Laughing at other's misfortune (NAC)

[only5kgt@uswest.net]

Sorry for the BW... but this recent talk of headgasket oil
leaks got me thinking of a story I heard at work last week.
For the last few months I have been working as a lower-level
tech at an independent shop specializing in BMW and VW. (We
get some Audis... very rarely, and it's a matter of '90 100
oil changes- no offense meant to that car, but a *very*
mindless level of Audi involvement)  This job has shown me
how much I *don't* know about cars... anyway, the service
mgr. is the silver-haired, pipe-smoking type with thousands
of bizarre anecdotes spanning the last couple decades. A
doozy involving towing, oil, and damage:
A customer had a nice '64 Beetle, sunroof, many factory
accesories, beautiful little car. They towed it behind their
Class A motorhome without incident for years. That is, until
the day they inadvertently set off for the Interstate with
the VW in 1st gear, hitched up behind the Winnebago. Now,
this thing weighs 5 tons, has a breathed-on Chev 454. You
think they can feel much of a difference in resistance?
They drove till lunchtime, stopping then was the first time
they noticed anything amiss. Four hours at 65 mph in 1st for
the VW! The fire damage was noticeable. The spinning crank
set the oil on fire- it burned up the supply and snuffed out
after the oil was all gone. Typical engine fire damage to
the coachwork, exaggerated by 65 mph winds.
That, and about *two inches* endplay on the crank, and
*visibly* warped heads, no evidence of sparkplug leads left.

The image of this fireball being yanked down the road was
somehow very funny. I guess it's a matter of perspective-
makes an oil leak on the side of the block look a little
smaller, don't it?
Regards,
Rob
'85 CGT
'87 5kcst (RIP)
'93 90S (sis's car)