What's this useful optimism
Dec. 6th, 2004 10:31 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ventaDriving down the motorway at the weekend, I had a sudden moment of panic as the accelerator pedal disappeared.
Common sense kicked in, and I told myself that pedals don't just disappear. Further checking revealed it was still there and, since I was still travelling at 70, presumably still working. It had, however, lost almost all its "spring", meaning that the slightest pressure from my foot sent it all the way to the floor. Wearing big boots, I could barely feel the pedal under my foot at all.
I drove very cautiously to my destination. I parked up and went to see the Violent Femmes (more on that later). Afterwards, following consultation with Andy, I fished out my nice big torch kept for such occasions in William's boot, and went to Have Words with my accelerator cable. The easily-visible end (at the carburettor) looked fine to my somewhat unpractised eyes - no fraying, no snagging, no invading parties of Saxons. I threw some WD40 at it for good measure - it didn't help. The other end of the cable disappears into a load of plastic moulding and Unchartered Territory.
Although William seemed quite drivable, I wasn't too sure how safe it was - if the theory that the accelerator cable was fraying was correct, then it might snap at any time. So, I called the AA.
It amuses me that the AA answer the phone by asking why I'm calling, and how they can help. Well, funnily enough, I'm calling the AA because my car's knackered and I'd like them to mend it. But no matter.
Not much more than an hour later, a chap in a breakdown lorry arrived. I explained what the problem was, and what I'd already checked. He repeated my checks on the carburettor-end of the cable, did some more poking around, and eventually informed me that the problem was that my engine needed tuning and the spark plugs needed replacing.
Now, I don't disagree. My engine does need tuning, and the plugs are frankly well past it. However, I disagree fairly violently that either of these would affect the springiness of the accelerator pedal.[*]
I pointed this out - if my engine needed tuning, wouldn't that be a gradual deterioration, rather than a sudden "snap" on the motorway ?
No, said the engineer, the engine was in a very bad state. There was absolutely no way I could drive "up the A40 at 60" with my engine like that. (Since I had just driven down the A40 at considerably more than 60, I assume he was saying no way I should rather than could). I might have accepted this, because I don't know that much about engines - though if mine were so badly out of tune it surprises me that the car passed the MOT emissions tests so comfortably only a month ago.
However, I persevered. Even if my engine were so badly out, how could it possibly affect a mechanical thing like the accelerator pedal ? Apparently, my engine was running so rough that "poor take-up" affected the pedal. Annoyingly, it didn't occur to me to point out that, if this were the case, then why the hell does the pedal still behave wrongly when the engine is switched off ?
Eventually, I gave in. There's only so far you can argue with an expert in their own field at 1:30am. I drove back to Oxford very cautiously.
So, my current theory is that the AA guy was just wrong. I don't know if I was right, but I think I have a more plausible explanation than he did.
This morning, I dropped William off at the Slade, asking them to have a look at the accelerator pedal (and to replace the plugs and tune the engine while they were on). I await their verdict with interest.
[*] For those who are saying "I don't know enough about cars to form an opinion": In my view, this is approximately equivalent to someone saying that the fact that the ball in your mouse is sticking can be solved by defragmenting your hard-drive. The defrag may well need doing, but simply isn't going to help the reported problem.
Common sense kicked in, and I told myself that pedals don't just disappear. Further checking revealed it was still there and, since I was still travelling at 70, presumably still working. It had, however, lost almost all its "spring", meaning that the slightest pressure from my foot sent it all the way to the floor. Wearing big boots, I could barely feel the pedal under my foot at all.
I drove very cautiously to my destination. I parked up and went to see the Violent Femmes (more on that later). Afterwards, following consultation with Andy, I fished out my nice big torch kept for such occasions in William's boot, and went to Have Words with my accelerator cable. The easily-visible end (at the carburettor) looked fine to my somewhat unpractised eyes - no fraying, no snagging, no invading parties of Saxons. I threw some WD40 at it for good measure - it didn't help. The other end of the cable disappears into a load of plastic moulding and Unchartered Territory.
Although William seemed quite drivable, I wasn't too sure how safe it was - if the theory that the accelerator cable was fraying was correct, then it might snap at any time. So, I called the AA.
It amuses me that the AA answer the phone by asking why I'm calling, and how they can help. Well, funnily enough, I'm calling the AA because my car's knackered and I'd like them to mend it. But no matter.
Not much more than an hour later, a chap in a breakdown lorry arrived. I explained what the problem was, and what I'd already checked. He repeated my checks on the carburettor-end of the cable, did some more poking around, and eventually informed me that the problem was that my engine needed tuning and the spark plugs needed replacing.
Now, I don't disagree. My engine does need tuning, and the plugs are frankly well past it. However, I disagree fairly violently that either of these would affect the springiness of the accelerator pedal.[*]
I pointed this out - if my engine needed tuning, wouldn't that be a gradual deterioration, rather than a sudden "snap" on the motorway ?
No, said the engineer, the engine was in a very bad state. There was absolutely no way I could drive "up the A40 at 60" with my engine like that. (Since I had just driven down the A40 at considerably more than 60, I assume he was saying no way I should rather than could). I might have accepted this, because I don't know that much about engines - though if mine were so badly out of tune it surprises me that the car passed the MOT emissions tests so comfortably only a month ago.
However, I persevered. Even if my engine were so badly out, how could it possibly affect a mechanical thing like the accelerator pedal ? Apparently, my engine was running so rough that "poor take-up" affected the pedal. Annoyingly, it didn't occur to me to point out that, if this were the case, then why the hell does the pedal still behave wrongly when the engine is switched off ?
Eventually, I gave in. There's only so far you can argue with an expert in their own field at 1:30am. I drove back to Oxford very cautiously.
So, my current theory is that the AA guy was just wrong. I don't know if I was right, but I think I have a more plausible explanation than he did.
This morning, I dropped William off at the Slade, asking them to have a look at the accelerator pedal (and to replace the plugs and tune the engine while they were on). I await their verdict with interest.
[*] For those who are saying "I don't know enough about cars to form an opinion": In my view, this is approximately equivalent to someone saying that the fact that the ball in your mouse is sticking can be solved by defragmenting your hard-drive. The defrag may well need doing, but simply isn't going to help the reported problem.
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no subject
Date: 2004-12-06 03:49 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-12-06 03:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-12-06 03:55 am (UTC)Well that's something to get you for Christmas then... :-)
no subject
Date: 2004-12-06 04:09 am (UTC)At least, when it comes to trying to convince anybody that you know what you're talking about (which is not corrolated with whether you actually do). And that ought to include William.
That ought to convince him :)
no subject
Date: 2004-12-06 04:14 am (UTC)Even the A-Z of Berkshire. So that might be more of a threat. "If you don't fix your accelerator, I'll, I'll... drive you to Slough."
no subject
Date: 2004-12-06 04:26 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-12-06 05:45 am (UTC)