DONT LEAVE TOOLS AROUND ENGINE

[60eldo]

   Just a little advise that I learned the hard way today, I just put in a in rad 400.00, and went to start my car, I kinda looked at all the tools I had left on the fenders and rad support, thought I should move them, but na, nothing will happen,,started the engine, screw driver fell hit fan,,,,,,,yes,,,,right through the NEW rad,,,just a thought guys

[TJ Hopland]

Dang.  Thought you were going to say a tool rolled somewhere and now you are going to be driving around with a trapped tool till you take the car apart again.  Never had it happen as bad as it happened to you.  Worst I did was destroy my dwell tach meter when the wires got tangled with the fan.   Also destroyed the fan.  Luckily it was a V6 car that could have had a v8 so the radiator survived.

When I bought my first 73 Eldo I was driving it home from the guys house and I decided I wanted to feel the power so I put it to the floor.  For reasons I never quite figured out the engine moved enough for the fan to rub the new radiator.  I still had 30 miles to drive.   I took a needle nose and bent the damaged tubes over to slow down the leaks and made it within blocks of home before the distributor got too full of antifreeze and water to keep running.  One downside to the distributor being up front.   Only good thing for me was at least I did not just recently pay for the radiator.  Previous owner bought it years before but never finished installing it till I bought the car.  Bad thing was I spent all my money to buy the car so I think it had to sit for a month or so till I got enough pay checks to pay for a new one.   

[52Cadillac]

Johnny that sucks big time. Ill remember that as Murphy likes to follow me around also.
Mike

[Dan LeBlanc]

Ouch. I feel your pain from here.

[Richardonly]

Perhaps a lesson can be learned by others due to your misfortune.  Sorry to hear that this happened and thank you for warning others.

[Gene Beaird]

Dang, Johnny, that hurts!  Over the years, I've had tools rattle off their perch and fall, usually into deep dark recesses of the engine bay to be fished out, but luckily, never had a tool destroy the part I just installed!! 

[Louis Smith]

This is a somewhat common occurrence, but fortunately, now with the same disastrous results.  I think it is a result of a common male trait, of being in a hurry.  It it right up there with males not taking the time to "read the directions".  I read a tip, many years ago, to help alleviate this problem.  It basically suggested keeping an old pan or bucket close by to keep the tools in.  Naturally the container must be very stable.

[Buster Miller]

I had a similar thing happen to me as I was restoring my 58, I had just got it together before paint and wanted to take it down the road and left a plastic bag of nuts and bolts under the hood and somehow it got into the fan and scattered those like buckshot only to send one into my hood denting it upward from the inside!! So yes I am sure a lot of us guys feel your pain!!!

[Dan LeBlanc]

I was changing the wheel bearings in my 63 Impala a couple weeks ago. While I was driving out the old races, I lost my grip on the hammer. Where did it land?  Smack dab on the hood.

[76eldo]

As we get older, these things happen.

I did a photo shoot of a 1960 Eldo I was selling a few years back.  When I got done I put an expensive Nikon Digital SLR on the rear deck of the car.  A few minutes later I decided to take it around the block before putting it back in the garage.

You guessed it, the camera got dumped to the blacktop.

I realized my blunder about 30 minutes later, and went to look for it.  I only went around the block.  I found no camera, no lens, no broken glass, nothing.  I had hoped that either the lens or the body had survived.

I was really upset about it and when my wife came home she could tell something was wrong.  After I told here what happened she suggested taping up some fliers saying "Lost Camera - Reward" and my phone number.

I put about 15 out on light poles and street signs in the one block area and the next day I got a call from a neighbor around the corner who had it.  It was completely fine except for a slight scratch on the bottom.  Worked fine and looked fine.   I thanked him and handed him $50.00 and we were both very happy.

Now I try to remember to check everything under the hood and around the car after working on it.

Last Saturday I judged the 60's class at a local CLC meet and one of our members had a distributor wrench sitting on top of the fender on a beautiful 66 Eldorado convertible when he opened up the hood.  Stuff happens...

Brian

[gary griffin]

   I was working under the hood of my 1942 and there are flat spots on the ducts just inboard of the inner fenders. A great place to put things while working on the car. I had some tools, and small parts up there and forgot them.

   The next day I called for a wrecker to take the car to a shop for some work.

   When the car got to the shop a few tools and misc parts were still atop the ducts but I forgot what exactly was up there and as I reassemble that area I expect to find some shortages. I hope it is some common fasteners and not some difficult to find small part.  The joys of restoration.

Gary Griffin