[AT] oil pressure

[Larry D Goss]

I remember Andy Grannetelli (sp) doing a screwdriver demonstration with STP 
on TV.  He would jam it through the top of an unopened can, pull it out, and 
then challenge anyone to pinch the blade between thumb and forefinger to 
pick up the screwdriver.

The story about the hole in the oil pan reminds me of an incident that 
happened to us in Poland a number of years ago.

This is long and boring so if you're not interested, hit the Delete key now.

Our son was driving an ancient Mercedes van that was powered by a 
four-cylinder Diesel engine and front-wheel drive.  They have some "killer" 
speed bumps in Europe and we approached one a bit too fast.  The front of 
the van nose-dived and the oil pan hit the concrete speed bump while we were 
traveling at a pretty good clip.  Inspection showed a pencil-sized hole in 
the pan with oil draining fast.  We piled back into the van and our son 
drove us off toward his favorite garage.  It was about two miles away and we 
spread an oil slick for the whole distance.  Much to my amazement, the 
garage was still open at 5:30 on a Saturday afternoon.  The mechanic backed 
a car out that was in the work bay, pulled the Mercedes van over the oil 
pit, and dropped the pan.  He beat the dents out of the pan, welded it to 
plug the leak, reinstalled it with fresh oil and had us on our way in a 
little over half an hour.  The total cost was around $10.  I commented to 
our son afterwards that I didn't know anywhere on this side of the Atlantic 
where you could get that kind of service late on a Saturday afternoon at any 
price.

Larry