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Well, last night I printed out the insurance cards, and got a "5-day Transit Permit" from the governor.
In the mediocre light of the too-early dawn I sneaked out into the garage and rolled the Geo into the twilight. I, with reckless abandon, heated the glow plugs for one third of one sixtieth of one twenty-fourth of one three-hundred-sixty-fifth of a year. With bated breath I jumpered the starter to the positive terminal of Gaston Planté's invention and listened as Rudolf Diesel's engineering prowess roared to life, embodied by a Kubota engine.
Then I drove that sweet ride through my neighborhood and all the way down to the muffler shop (about 5 or 6 miles). With the open header pointed straight out of the front of the car it sure attracted a lot of attention. Every soccer mom and GQ dad that passed me stared - clearly in envy. Those poor *******s are constrained by the limit of their imagination, clearly.
I learned that 5th gear is not working in the tranny. Luckily 5th is accessible through a 'top hat' on the box.
Tops speed in 4th was 42mph, RPM limited by the governor. The engine had lot's more to give but the fly weights kept backing it off. Downshifting is weird.
Juan at C&M Muffler in Wylie, TX charged me a very reasonable price to bend up a custom 2 inch exhaust system with a new muffler and hangers. The pipe will run all the way to the rear - despite earlier intentions of pointing it out the fender (Like the 'Ricer' cars do), or straight up through the hood (like a tractor). Neither of those would pass state inspection, and the goal of this operation is to have a street legal project.
All the guys at the muffler shop were entertained by the car. It was like a 1 man car show. I'll post some pics of the exhaust system once I pick it up.
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