Fuel leak… again

Well I got the leak at the front end fixed up and yes it cost me.  About $800 all in.  I’ll have to look at the invoice but it was essentially the steering control box and it couldn’t be re-built. 

Friday night I had planned to go camping out to Two Jack Lake as I was going to assist with a scuba class on the weekend.  I figured rather than drive back and forth from Calgary I’d camp and save myself some time and aggravation.  I left work @ 3:30ish on Friday afternoon and was ready to hit the road.  I drove home and started packing up the bus.  Now let me take you back to Wednesday… I was driving past the local A&W and there was a group of older cars there.  I stopped to have a look and they were as interested in the Westy as I was in the old Vette that was there.  One of the guys commented that he smelled gas… not I had just filled up the bus and a little bit of fuel splashed down the side so I thought nothing of it…   Flash forward to Friday again…

As I was packing up the back of the bus guess what I smelled…

So I looked under the bus and didn’t really see anything at first but the foam gasket that surrounds the engine compartment had a discoluoration.  I poked it with my finger and gas started flowing out.  I unpacked the van and started looking around the engine compartment with my flashlight to track down the leak.    Problem found!   It was fairly accessible and it looked like a simple repair.  So armed with a screwdriver and a piece of replacement hose I started the repair.  It took me a couple of tries to secure the hose without it leaking on me but I did it.   My first driveway repair on the Westy!!!  I’ll post pictures later on tonight or tomorrow for those of you that want to take a look and critique my repair job.

So feeling supremely confident and reeking of gas I had a quick shower, packed up the van and headed to the mountains.  I had a great weekend camping and no other problems with the Westy.  Did 4 dives over the Saturday and Sunday and helped certify 3 divers in their Drysuit specialty and 2 divers became Advanced Open water divers.   All in all good times. 

Ta-da! It’s Safety Guy!!

I love taking the VW out.  Last night I headed down to the Bull and Finch in the SW to enjoy some sunshine, beer and wings on the patio.  I managed to get a primo parking spot and it was kind of funny actually because people were looking at the Westy and interested in it.  It’s almost like it’s a relic from the past.   Lol

Anyway, had an enjoyable night but I don’t know that I am going to go back to that pub anytime soon.  The service wasn’t great and the wings were kind of tasteless actually. I can live with mediocre service on its own, but mediocre service with crappy wings…now you’ve crossed a line!

Oh, one last thing… there was a group at a table next to me who were all clearly drunk.  I don’t mean fall down drunk but impaired none the less.  So as the night winds down this group disperses and one of the ladies whips out her car keys and staggers her way over to her Chevy Cavalier.  Really?  Seriously?  My friends call me “Safety guy” sometimes, not a sexy nickname, but I can’t stand it when people get injured because they failed to look and take account of what’s going on around them.  For some strange reason, I feel the need to say something to this woman who is sitting behind the wheel of her car after drinking for several hours…  Obviously this is not something I do all the time.  I come up to the driver side window.  Tap,tap tap.  I look into her glazed over eyes and ask her, “Are you sure you should be driving?”.  I do this in the least accusing was possible.  I did think about saying, “Look lady, your efff-ing hammered there’s no way you should be behind the wheel of a car”, but I didn’t. 

She assures me that she’s okay and that she’s not that drunk as she shifts the car into reverse and pulls away.  I’m no expert, but if I was a cop I would have totally given this woman a sobriety test.    I hope she made it home safely but stupid people however, have a way of taking themselves out of the gene pool. 

Reminds me of the lady I saw cycling out by Elbow Falls on the weekend who wiped out and was poorly equipped for riding in the mountains…all I can say is I am glad I had my first aid kit and water with me.  It came in handy but that’s a story for another time.