What Did I Learn About the Rat National?

"That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms" (thatbastardkurtis5)
07/27/2016 at 14:57 • Filed to: RatNational

In short: Not much that I didn’t already know.

It’s all there, the interior is probably actually nicer in person than it looks in the pictures...I was giving it about an 8 in the pictures but I’m calling it a 9 now. It has one small hole in the frame that I found, the passenger side control arms both broke in the impact and were removed, but the mounts look good.

Probably the disappointing part of seeing it was that I was told it ran great, and it wouldn’t run at all when I was there. It turned and turned and turned, but we pulled a boot off a plus and the car has no spark.

He said it ran before, several times that day in fact, but naturally not when I was standing there in front of it. I tend to actually believe him that it ran, he described the car 100% accurately to that point. There’s not a ton of things it could be...ECU, blown fuse, crank position sensor, coil pack. None of them are particularly pricey, but hearing it run would make me feel a lot better about the internals.

As far as options, we’ve got WE2 for the Grand National package, G80 for posi traction, GU6 for a 3.42 rear gear, and K34 for cruise control...there’s more of course, it’s a pretty high option car.

The auction for the truck ends Sunday, so I’ll spend the next four days talking myself into and out of it. Last night I was in, this morning I was out, right now I’m back in. Hopefully the truck sells for so much money that it makes the choice easy.

DISCUSSION (9)

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms
07/27/2016 at 15:08

Hmmm....kinda iffy that you haven’t seen it running. Could you get the guy to maybe email you a video of it running once he get it to do so?

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars
07/27/2016 at 15:17

Yeah, that’s the plan actually. He’s gonna mess with it a little, at least try to figure out why it isn’t running. It turns over nice, everything is free, sounds like it’s got compression.

My main issue isn't even that, but getting it out of there. I'll need to hire a towing company, which I hate to do.

MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms
07/27/2016 at 15:23

If you need a tow instead of hiring a tow company you could get a AAA membership. The top tier one is under $100 and you get one 200 mile row, and 2 100 mile tows a year. Well worth it. I think there is a waiting period of a week or something though once you sign up until when you can use it.

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
07/27/2016 at 15:31

I’ve got one, but they only tow registered cars. You might get lucky and get a contractor who doesn’t care, or get unlucky and get a fleet driver who gets paid hourly and doesn’t want to tow anything he doesn’t have to. I know this because I used to be one of those fleet drivers who got paid hourly and didn’t want to toe anything I didn't have to, haha.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms
07/27/2016 at 15:33

Would it be that costly to rent a truck from UHaul and a car trailer and tow it home yourself?

MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms
07/27/2016 at 15:37

Really? I know multiple people who have used it to tow a newly purchased vehicle. I’ve never heard of anyone having an issue.

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars
07/27/2016 at 15:38

More like it would be a pain in the ass to rent a trailer to load a car that doesn't want to roll because there's nothing holding the rear axle on one side. If somebody around here would start renting trailers with electric winches on them, they would make a fortune off me alone.

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
07/27/2016 at 15:41

Yeah, I mean usually you can get away with it when the car looks like it belongs on the road. But at least the local club here, they're not supposed to tow unregistered cars at all. I suppose I could register it, but then I'd have to pay taxes on it, which I don't want to do yet.

Tuned-Port-Injected-Rage > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms
07/27/2016 at 15:53

Seeing a GN in that shape depresses me :(