JD's_Z06

My dear soldier son (who learned to shift on my C5 Z06!) is in the Army at Ft. Lewis-- his old beater '91 camaro blew a headgasket Tues afternoon near Moses Lake, Wa., on his way back to base after leave. It's on the roadside of hwy90 near exit 188. Need to get it off road to safe location until he can A) get it fixed locally, then limp it back to base; or B) collect the funds to tow it all the way back to Ft. Lewis.

His roomie at FtL drove the 6-hour round trip to get him, so he'd make it back to base in time. But of course, the car sits all alone on the roadside.

He will be deploying outside the US for training in about 2 weeks! He's a PVT 1st class, so it's tough for him to scrape up the funds before deploying. I cannot help with funds, unfortunately. Do we have any vette folks in that area who can help us, or does anyone have any ideas as to what to do???

Thanks~ I'm a worried mom right now!

last901

I sent off a copy of your post to a friend in Ellensburg asking if he had any ideas? I'm 150 miles west in Sammamish, but I'm pretty sure somebody can help in one way or another. Most of us on this forum are in the western part of the state so we need to find someone, I think, close to where the car is.

Is the car locked up? If we find someone to retrieve it, how does one get in the car without getting arrested?

Mufflerbearing

If the car is sitting on the shoulder of I-90 I would expect the State Patrol to have the car towed sooner or later depending on what degree of hazard the car presents and whether or not a note was left on the window explaining the problem and when it might be picked up.

billla

I'm in Monroe, so also a long ways away. I *think* I get 200 miles of towing free with my AAA, and it works for anyone I'm with - if that helps get the car at least to Western Washington, golden.

I've got space in my garage, and I have the tools and know-how to change the head gasket...although why it blew is the question.

I know a lot of folks are mobilizing - let me know if what I can offer helps.

I agree that he needs to call the State Patrol and let them know the deal!

last901

I hadn't even thought about AAA - even though
Im a member. I believe one has to have a premium membership to allow for a $200 towing job. Still a bargain and that's what I have.

The question is; can one join AAA after the fact and still get the benefits if being already in distress.

I knew somebody would come through with some idea.

billla

I am a premium member...I had two teenagers

200 Mile Tow – Premier members receive one 200 mile tow per household per membership year, and three additional 100 mile tows to the destination of your choice. If you frequently travel, this 200 mile tow can prove to be invaluable in the case of a breakdown.

He wouldn't need to be a member - anyone affiliated with me can use it...based on my say-so. It's pretty sweet

c4cruiser

AAA could be a good solution although the person who is a AAA member has to be at the car's location in order to sign for the tow.

If the car is at milepost 188 on I-90, that will eat up most of the 200 mile tow range to Seattle. One might have to call AAA to see what the rules and rates are for mileage beyond that 200 mile range.

Definitely call the WSP and ask what the policy is on disabled vehicles regarding how long they can be left along the side of the road. I think it's 48 hours and then the WSP Call a tow company to get the car. There would be both a towing fee and a storage fee. Once the car is impounded, I don't believe that AAA will tow it.

last901

I just received a message from a friend who has a buddy near Moses Lake he's going to call. So, please keep us updated on the situation so we don't have too many people responding to the issue.

last901

Any Updates or News?

JD's_Z06

Thanks to many caring people, we did get the car off the road in time to keep it from getting impounded! Yay! My son (Aleister) called State Patrol as soon as he got back to base; they said he had 24hrs before it got towed, and it would be impossible to say what impound yard it would go to, because they rotate thru 6 different ones.

He rented a car on base, drove back to the car, called a flatbed towing service (Moses Lake Towing) who for $75 took it to a place called "Safe Stor" in Moses Lake, where he can store it outside for $20 month; within the confines of a chain link fence. SO, for now it's off the road, and *seemingly* safe.

He will be deploying around 24 August, and will be out for approx 3-4 mths, (not that you ever really know what's going to happen with deployments) so I guess it will just have to sit there until he returns

Thanks again to the PATRIOTS in our Corvette Community for your efforts and concern. I have set up a "GoFundMe" site to try and raise money to help him get his car fixed when he gets back. His birthday is 21 Aug (he'll be 21!) so that would be a nice gift for him to return to...

billla

link the site and let's get it funded

maybe a caravan of tools and gaskets over there to do the deed in the storage place so it's running.

glad it all worked out!

JD's_Z06

aww, that's so very kind of you, billla (being a sr member and all) to ask me to post the link. Vette folk are good as gold. (but we knew that)

http://www.gofundme.com/cdw95w

billla

senior just means I've been here a while - that's it

Do we have anyone out in that direction that could do an initial assessment of the repairs?

JD's_Z06

I emailed with my son, here is his take on the condition of the car:

"I've had most work done by Austins Pro Max (pro-max.com) in Tacoma (253-777-1953). Im not sure if it could limp back, it seems like it seized. When it blew, it dropped all oil pressure at 80mph on the highway, and when I tried to start it, it wouldn't even rotate at all, like it fully seized up. I knew the gasket was going because the coolant would turn brown from having oil mix in, and it was smoking out of the oil dipstick tube and valve cover breather. I was talking to Portland Speed Industries, and they recommended a swap, as from the signs and symptoms, vs cost of replacement, it would end up costing more to go through and rebuild the old engine than to get a new, better one. They said that the smoke could also be piston ring failure, causing excess pressure which caused gaskets to fail. Also right before it blew, I heard ticking, like it had a chattery lifter or something, varied based on rpm. So I'm thinking about going with a carburated LS1 engine, thats a crate engine from GM so it will be under warranty. That way I will have the same reliability, and far better fuel economy as well. Plus, its brand new so the likelyhood of failure in the next 10 years is almost none, and that would be good for when Im in college being broke. I figure it costing a bit more is a decent trade off for the reliability and newer technology. Plus LS engines last far longer than older small blocks. I sent an email to Portland Speed Industries asking them about all that, and what would go along with it, like if i could use my current transmission or if not, if i could use it as credit towards a t56. I'll keep you updated. Or maybe a nicer sbc, that would be a quick drop in, idk. all depends on money, really. how much ill have, how much we raise, if I want to get a personal loan to fix it up, idk..."

last901

Well.... I don't know. How many miles does he have on the Camaro. What's it worth now to a auto wrecker or, for that matter if he donated to a worth charity?

If the car is otherwise nice, then perhaps the value of the car with a new LS engine may exceed the value of having the conversion done. To my mind, at the moment it seems as though he may end up with a so-so Camaro with a nice engine. If he's happy with that, then by all means do it. If the old engine was neglected by the previous owner to the point where it gave up, then I would question the other systems in the car. I'm sure Portland Speed Industries gave good advice. i'm assuming they sell engines, not used cars.

How long will be stationed up here? Does he really need a car that badly?

Tough call without all the information, but in the long run he may be better off serving his tour of duty with a good used Toyota or new Kia, with warranty, good mileage etc, than pouring money into something that may just be a money sink and a lost cause.

Better to get some reliable transportation right now than to keep putting money into a lost cause. There will be lots of cars out there once he's out of the military. I advise patience.

Good luck. Keep us posted.

c4cruiser

From the description of what happened, I would expect nothing less than a full rebuild or a reman engine. Even a stock long block replacement engine can easily run over $3K not including the labor for installation. That can add another $500 to $750 depending on labor rates at a shop.

I'm assuming that his desire for a T56 means the car is already a manual. Figure another $2500 for the trans and a few hundred for a new clutch assembly. That doesn't include any mods necessary for installing a T56 into an older Camaro.

Nothing was mentioned about when he would like to start college; is he considering it right after his enlistment is up? Or maybe waiting a year or two? College will be expensive. He will get some tuition assistance but he should be looking at putting money away so he can afford college. Trying to rebuild a car while going to school will be tough at the very least in terms of both time to do the work and the cost. Having a personal loan for car repairs may not help his chances for getting student loans.

Getting another car would be my suggestion but not until he's back in CONUS and is at least an E-4 and better yet, an E-5. Something economical to operate, and cheap to insure. Lots of choices out there; Honda, Toyota, Subaru, even KIA or Hyundai. His first year of college may not really require a car especially if he winds up living on campus.