[mark houghton]

Most of you kids understand the basic electrical gremlins we experience every now and then. but some of you are still picking up knowledge in that regard.

Here's one that we should all know in our sleep:

I was fixing for a fine ride, maybe 50 miles round trip this afternoon. Got all of 5 miles away from home into a little resort/lake town with a high Ukranian/Russian populace. As I entered the city limits, low and behold she quite running. Sheeeeiiiittt I said, as well as other F type words. The fuel pumps no workie.

Did the requisite stuff: Checked the fuel pump fuse (was good to go), pulled off/beat on and re-inserted the yellow relay from hell....all seemed good...more on that later). The freakin' bitcsch would not allow the fuel pumps to run. I'm thiking "crap, leave my car here in Mafia-land, come back with a tow truck to no car". NOT an option.

Pulled off the cover to the yellow relay, 'cause I was smelling electrical hot chit somewhere. Behold, one nasty shorted out burned area within the relay.

So what to do? I knew exactly what was needed, but what I really needed was a short piece of wire to bridge 87A and 30 of the relay contacts. Did I have any emergency wire handy....FFuuucck no. So I pulled off and straightened out the pull tab from a beer can that I was planning on enjoying later, and used it to bridge the gap between 87A and 30 of the yellow relay socket. The pumps fired up, but the piece of aluminum was too short.

Meanwhile, the low life insurgents are starting to gather around, drooling about what might become their fortune. Me, I'm wracking my brain, need a simple piece of damn wire. Rooting around in the glove box, I came across a spare fuse which - when disassembled - was long enough to bridge the gap between 87A and 30 of the yellow relay socket. VVRROOMM....off we went.

Note to self, and note you you all: Keep a 2" piece of wire in your glove box, just in case. When I pulled the cover off my yellow relay, it was obviously burned up from a short or whatever. Toast....but I have another on the way. Meanwhile, I'm running with the bypass.