[s-cars] Thanksgiving Misadventure

[Keith Franchetti]

Hi All-

Thanks again for the additional help and support today, including with
understanding AAA ins and outs.  I can't take advantage of long-range
towing till 7 days after today (when I re-joined).  But I CAN bring a
friend and his card--or just *be *the guy on that card.

It's been suggested quite a bit that it's quite possible threads are not
too damaged to get a plug back in there in such a way it might hold torque,
or that, at least it might not hurt to much to try that, provided I do a
good job on cleaning up/vacuuming inside and out.  Got some special, super
small shop-vac attachments that might help with that.  Can't find a
boroscope to rent or even buy TODAY whose head will fit through the plug
hole.  But I do have some tubing to stick through the hole to at least
vacuum out combustion chamber of whatever might be left in there.

It's also been suggested that the valve cover gasket might have failed.
 Could this explain why, even though I unplugged the juice to the #5
injector, I still ended up with so much fuel flooding all over the place
during my limp from breakdown site to the bus station?  Coolant did not
appear contaminated with oil, so I'm relatively confident no head gasket
breach.

I'm going to see about getting that gasket set before I head down tomorrow.
 I've got an old set of coils and spare plugs.  I have a ride down lined
up.  If the stars align, when I get there, I'll find an outlet for my 100'
of extension cord.  I've got rags and other various implements for
cleaning/drying things out, and vacuuming debris.  If I can ascertain the
plug hole might not be too badly damaged (closer inspection of the pics I
took of the mess with my camera phone suggest I might not have lost any
pieces of the plug into the chamber), I might proceed with changing the
valve cover gaskets, cleaning the threads, plug bores, combustion chamber,
switching in new ignition coil and boot, installing plug, and seeing how
she fires up.  If no dice, can still call AAA and we come back on the
flatbed.  Or, failing that, I'm AT the bus station this time.

Cue *Mission Impossible* theme.

Of course any and all further wisdom is welcome.  And I'll report back.

Keith