Saturday, January 7, 2012

Spotting an "A" Owner

I've been spotted. There's no sense in trying to stay off the radar now. Just check the driveway. No, it's not the cars parked there that will give it away. It's the oil spots on the concrete. It's like putting out a sign that says, "Model A Parked Here."

I've always put a drip pan under my coupe and it drips more water than oil anyway, so it has been possible to keep the garage floor and the driveway fairly free of oil spots.  Not now that I have the pickup. It produces the spot that broke the camel's back.

Why do I care if there are oil spots on the concrete anyway?

Uhh, truthfully a handful of things come to mind. Mostly, I use my garage. I mean really use it. I've got two Harley's and now two Model A's. Thus, it's likely I'll be  laying on my back on that floor or in that driveway. It would be nice if I weren't wallowing in grease and oil. Also, I often find myself dropping little parts while squeezed under a car and then having to sweep around with my hand to find them. Not pleasant when the floor is oily.

Further, I've always admired a neat shop. It says, "This guy is careful and skillful." My garage has never actually been in that high class category. It pretty much says, "This guy is a shade-tree mechanic and may not know what he is doing." Oily spots all around just add injury to the insult. What if one of these guys slips and breaks his .. beer bottle. Not cool when friends come over and hang out in the garage.

Besides, if there are spots on your driveway and garage floor it means your vehicles are not well-maintained. So even if all my vehicles are crap and leak oil like crazy, I want it to appear that they are tight and clean running machines.

Finally, I subscribe to the "spot that problem" school of vehicle maintenance. All my vehicles are old and have a lot of miles on them. If a new spot appears I need to be able to see it in order to know some new problem has developed. If there are spots everywhere then you can't very well head off trouble. Can you?

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