Driving home from the Drag races today in Woodburn Oregon my pickup cab filled with smoke when I was about 30 miles from home. I got her pulled over to the shoulder and found my wiring was "fried to a crispy crunch" from the foot starter switch to the voltage regulator and to the generator. Of course, everything close to these wires was melted together. My truck is 6V + ground and has original guages plus a Sun Tach. Has anyone had this happen to them? Should I replace everything that was close to the heat? I'm thinking that I should replace the wiring under the dash to the regulator, starter switch & generator. Sacramento Vintage Ford has OEM type harnesses for under $50. Thoughts? On the way down I threw a fan belt a spit coolant all over the freeway and my truck when it overheated and my puke tank overflowed. I had an extra belt and some coolant in the truck and the repair only took half an hour and we were on our way. God it is fun to drive a 69 year old rig! Picture is of my killer one pickup vintage hot rod show on I-205 south of Portland (micro billetproof). That is my 5 year old sons head, he was sleeping his way through the good times. I did have lots of car folks stop by and offer to help. Thanks Danny (Dondanno). Oh, the tow set me back 125 smackers after my insurance paid only $25. The first Oregon tow truck that showed up wanted $275 to tow her home. WTF? Luckly I had a number for a Washington tow company in my wallet, so I sent the first truck packing. Time for AAA of something better than American Collectors Insurance's road side assistance.
Day wasn't all bad!. My son got to sit in a nostalgia class rail, eat some corndogs, watch Dad drink beer, and see the jet cars.
Yeah, that is a nice truck... I am so glad to hear that its relatively "good" news. I imagined seeing a smoldering lump that used to be your truck. $100 for 30 miles? wow.... that sucks
To bad about the problems. Woodburn is a great race track. I drove my Roadster there about 7 years ago (I was staying in Portland at the time) they had a reunion for one of the local clubs, can't remember there name. Lots of great cars and people. When I went to leave, there was a good sized piece of wood on my seat, with a small plaque on it. I thought what the heck? It was a trophy for having the best orange track roadster! It's hanging on my shop wall. I like those kind of awards. Dean
"Picture is of my killer one pickup vintage hot rod show on I-205 south of Portland (micro billetproof)." Thats funny Iceberg, looks like ya made the best of it though.
My vote would be to change all your wiring to a new style 12 volt kit. Get yourself AAA Plus. It gives you up to 100 tow miles free. Well worth it.
The Jalopy Journal
