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I don’t like it when people call me smart. It makes me think I really am smart. And smart people should know it all, right? Obviously no. I think it becomes a hindrance to asking questions when you don’t know the answers because they should just be there, plain and simple. Otherwise you’re dumb, no? This revelation just occurred to me. (since I’m supposed to be smart, but really am not :-)) The truely smart people are those who will up front, admit they don’t know it all by asking questions and getting answers. Answers that will further them along in their quest. So to summarize:

smart + not ask questions = not so smart

smart or dumb + ask questions = smart

I even did a web search and this was what came up first. It’s better to be stupid and get smarter, than to be smart and not get any more smarts.

I’ve been looking at receivers and all of ‘em still suck! There aren’t any that don’t have multicolored flashing displays with gaudy bezels and chromed out plastic. Do they really think everyone who’s in the market is a 19yr old punk? And why do the LCD displays still use technology from the 80’s? Are they so cheap they can’t upgrade to higher resolution, easier to read visuals? Give me a nice analog knob and something discreet that doesn’t jump for attention everytime you turn it on. Come on, even Eclipse has gone to the dark side. You can’t get anything simple looking without spending the big bucks for their high-end units. And why can’t you put an auxilary input on all your head units? You cheap bastards.

“And that’s what grinds my gears.”

I finally put all the parts back in and filled up the fluids. Cranked the starter several times to prime the fuel lines. And it fired up. But it was quite rough. I actually thought it was missing a cylinder. So I did some investigating. Traced my steps back to the installation.

I let the car idle for a few minutes and it started to smoke a bit. And I panicked and turned off the engine. Turns out the exhaust manifolds still had traces of penetrating lube. False alarm. Found a small coolant leak in the housing/hoses below the coolant pump. Minor problem. Since the car had been sitting so long, I was surprised it actually turned over. Then the second start attempt was made and it barely turned over. Time to slow charge the battery.

I came back several hours later still scratching my head. Pulled the spark plugs to make sure they were firing. There was adequate evidence that they were. However some were a bit more fouled than I anticipated. And one was coated in oil. Big scare. Then I realized it was oil from the machining of the head cause it was clear. It probably just leached into the cylinder when the valve opened and dripped onto the spark plug. Which explained the possible poor idle. Needs a bit of time to burn off. Then I fired it up again and drove around the neighborhood. Felt alright. Didn’t want to risk it and drove back after the engine warmed up. It was still smoking a bit after I got back but other than that, everything seemed good. Probably drive it some more tomorrow to break in the new valve job.

Pics to come later.

Couple of things. The intake manifold is now mounted. Not torqued but bolted on well enough for a stopping point. A few notes to make for future reference:

• Make sure breather tube is well cleaned and pressed into bottom block before putting on intake
• Possibly put head on with intake attached next time. May be easier than struggling to attach intake nuts blindly with nearly no space to get to studs.
• Remember to attach rear coolant hose if going that route.

Sometimes the order of a process can make or break the job. Fortunately it wasn’t a deal killer this time.

On a different note, thanks to Ann for providing Sean and I with a nice dinner and movie for our belated birthday gifts. TBS would be proud :-p

Matthew Perry. Amanda Pete. Familiar names. West Wing. A TV drama. Looks like Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip may be similar but with a bit of self-deprecating comedic flare. I don’t know what to think of it yet. My roommate decided to be an ass and channel-surfed during the preview for the next episode. Thanks jerk. :p

edit: Looks like I hit the nail when I said there were similarities to West Wing. Lots of old characters from that show are actually in it. (I’ve only seen parts of an episode)