Hiked Mount Wilson and Broke my Miata

"Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)" (rduncan5678)
02/26/2018 at 15:50 • Filed to: None

I had Friday off and was home in LA so I decided to go on a nice 14 mile round trip hike up to Mt Wilson from Chantry Flats. This is a location that gets SUPER crowded on weekends so it was nice to have an empty mountain to myself. It was also about 25 degrees F (feels like 15 with wind) up there when I checked the weather before leaving my apartment. It was like 40 by the time I got up there, although with the wind still howling it certainly wasn’t warm. Rare for some southern California hiking! It is February though so I’m not entirely surprised. Here is a photo dump and then the story of how my Miata broke on the way home but thanks to a roadside temporary repair, the adventure made it all the way home still.

Quite a clear day!

Snow! Shady spots up high were well covered

100 inch telescope

Quite the mighty big telescope

The ocean!

So after a nice long hike with some beautiful views, I finally made it to the car right as the sun was setting. I then made it about 45 minutes down the freeway before exiting for the last 15 minutes of my drive. Everything was going well until the car misfired and then got extremely loud. It was as if my header fell off and shit was idling all over the place. I pulled over immediately, opened the hood, and noticed a spark plug wire flopping up and down! Clearly that was my issue. Although the car ran far better than I expected for only three cylinders. What I discovered after getting my headlamp on and shutting things down was that the Spark plug had come entirely out of the engine! And even more surprising was that the tip of the electrode had broken off so that plug was done for. However I had no backup spark plugs, because why is that something I would carry? I was soon to accept the reality of needing to call an Uber to get to the nearest autoparts store, therefore admitting defeat!

Figuring I might as well at least try to be creative, I noticed there was still a little bit of the electrode left that maybe I could bend into place and get enough spark to get home. I found a pair of pliers and burned my hands a few times from the hot as hell plug. But eventually got it to look kind of like a normal spark plug with some gap that I figured might work for now. I should have at least tried to gap it with a credit card instead of eye balling it but i figured I’d just give it a try as is. Thankfully I had a spark plug tool and a nice 8 inch extension so I made quick work of reassembly. Then to my surprise again, the car started right up! I made my way home as carefully as possible, hoping nothing would explode or break again. I figured something surely wasn’t right if a spark plug shot out on its own so it would need further investigation and a new plug before driving it beyond a crawl.

Well I spent all weekend doing other things so I never got around to working on the Miata. The STi was reliable transportation all weekend and I needed the back seat anyways so it worked out just fine. And now that I’m enroute to Dallas for the week, that problem is tabled for next weekend. My goal is to replace all four spark plugs (making sure to torque wrench them in) and then change the oil and filter. Why change the oil? Well that broken piece of electrode likely fell into the engine since I didn’t find it and is hopefully floating in my oil pan or stuck in the filter rather than any other alternatives. That should be an adventure!

Anyways, very fun day!

DISCUSSION (10)

Future next gen S2000 owner > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
02/26/2018 at 15:55

That’s what you get for hiking.

LOREM IPSUM > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
02/26/2018 at 16:00

If that electrode broke off I’d be surprised if it made its way to the pan. Hopefully it shot past an exhaust valve and into the cat, otherwise I would worry it might just rattle around inside the cylinder, potentially scoring the walls, or possibly leading to predetonation when pushed hard.

Got a scope handy by chance?

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
02/26/2018 at 16:07

While the LA basin may be the most populated area in california it’s surprising how few people you see once you get out of town. I spent 4 months in San Bernardino and was clearing branches off of mountain bike trails in the spring. I was the first to ride a very popular trail all year.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever
02/26/2018 at 17:52

Depends on the trail though. Some of the stuff in like Griffith Park or down near Malibu gets really crowded. And I imagine that’s mainly just due to proximity to LA proper. But yeah its wild to me how “off the grid” you can get without traveling too far from such a crowded area. It’s just such a crazy contrast that always fascinates me.

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
02/26/2018 at 17:55

If you ever get time the HWY 38 drive up to Angles Oaks and then back on rim of the world drive is a pretty cool drive (HWY 18). The pine trees up there are huge.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > LOREM IPSUM
02/26/2018 at 17:56

I don’t have a scope but yeah what you are saying makes sense. I’m not even entirely sure it made its way into the cylinder but just like FOD with aircraft, if you didn’t find it then assume it’s going to end up inside an engine component at some point and fuck shit up. Meaning it’s pretty important to not just lose chunks of metal like that. It may have been partially attached and fallen out when I hastily removed it in the dark. But yeah the most likely scenario is through the exhaust port like you said since I already drove the car a bit to get it home. It may be worth acquiring a scope though to be sure.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever
02/26/2018 at 17:58

Yup I definitely want to head up through Big Bear at some point. Probably in the summer time since I don’t want to deal with winter conditions at the higher elevations up there.

Chariotoflove > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
02/26/2018 at 19:13

This reminds me that I promised you some things to do in Dallas.

The Perot Museum of Science. Right now, they’re having a special space exhibit. El Fenix is right across the street and has good cheap Tex-Mex. My daughter and I make a night of it lots.

The Dallas Museum of Art. Because of an endowment a few years ago, it’s free admission. Also, see the nearby Nasher Sculpture Center.

If you’re into museums and history, the Fifth Floor Museum downtown is dedicated to Dallas’s morbid fascination with the shooting and death of President Kennedy.

You have got to see the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Gardens overlooking White Rock Lake, especially when the bulbs come out in Spring. They are seriously spectacular and on a par with gardens anywhere in the world, IMO. We’ve been members for 17 years. Worth every penny.

If you like theatre, see the Dallas Summer Musicals series of off-broadway productions at the Fair Park Music Hall. These are national, traveling productions. The Hall is a great place to see them. Despite the name, their season is not just in Summer.

While you’re over in East Dallas, check out The Goat blues bar. They have more than just blues bands though.

The Dallas Symphony Orchestra is pretty good, but I haven’t been to see them.

Dallas Cars & Coffee is at BMW of Plano the first Saturday morning of each month. I hear it’s kind of crowded, so get there early.

The Galleria shopping center has year round ice skating on the bottom floor.

Like animals? The Dallas Zoo is great. We’ve been members for years. The Fort Worth Zoo is an internationally recognized zoo, and worth the trip.

That’s a bunch of random stuff I can think of. Anything else you’re interested in, let me know.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Chariotoflove
02/26/2018 at 19:17

Wow that’s a pretty awesome list, I know at least one weekend in March I have to spend here and my girlfriend is possibly coming to visit so I know she would love to see the gardens you talked about. I’d definitely want to see the science museum. Everything else seems worth checking out if I find time too. Thanks!

LOREM IPSUM > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
02/26/2018 at 19:35

It may also have been ejected along with the plug, but better safe than r&r-ing an engine.