NPC Need some help in Louisville Need a shop reference, My son was in Michigan Now in Louisville heading for Memphis problem solved for now Options

[rick 918-S]

My youngest son Kyle bought a VW Rabbit Diesel the other day. He is a musician and knows nothing about cars. His older brother Aric and I spent the last several days and nights working on the car to make it safe and road worthy for him. He is wondering across the country and has several stops planned along the way. He left last night for his eventual destination, Brattleboro, VT where he enrolled in a course to learn to be a luthier. He called at 12:30 am to ask me how to fix his headlights. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/WTF.gif)

Seems he was pulled over for a tail light and when he started off again the head lights wouldn't turn on. He held the dimmer switch and continued to drive to get to Remus MI. where he is attending a wedding.

Anyone know of a shop he can stop at that could fix the head lights for him. He is not mechanical at all. Ya, my kid can't fix his own car. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif)

[bulitt]

Maybe its just me, but I dont think Louisville to Vermont via Memphis is a direct route? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif)

[rick 918-S]

Maybe its just me, but I dont think Louisville to Vermont via Memphis is a direct route? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif)

No, no it's not.... He is a wanderer. He doesn't need to be in VT for a month. Before he decided to come home and get a car he was traveling around the country on his thumb and hopping trains. Really.

I was glad he came home. He had a Dodge D100 4wd but the rear end was hollowing and the gas and oil usage were not good.

I gave him a nice V6 Ford Ranger Truck but it did get the kind of mileage he wanted.

He found this Rabbit and traded the Dodge for it thinking the diesel would be the answer. It had been sitting since 2007. As I stated his older brother and I spend several days an lots of money to try to ensure he could travel safe and not just dump the car off someplace and get back on the trains or thumb a ride. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/screwy.gif)

We replaced the tires, windshield rear wheel bearings, oil change, Muffler and full brake job including calipers and wheel cylinders. We also rebuilt the vacuum pump that works the power brake booster. The car had a new radiator installed in 2007.

There was no heat in the car. I pulled the heater hoses and checked the control valve. It was working but when I blew air into the overflow with one hose off the heater core a bunch of silver seal came out. I guess they tried to fix the radiator in 2007 but succeeded in plugging up the heater core instead. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)

He left town the minute we finished the brakes. The car really seemed to run nice and the engine was clean.

He's a smart young man. He attended Perpich Institute for the Arts his senior year, finished a 2 year AA at McNally Smith College of Music in a year, has a BA in Music from UMD and graduated early with honors. I think he was just misled by the liberal education system we allowed him to attend. He's not a druggie and doesn't drink excessively.

He's starting to think about life beyond today. The Luthier school only takes 3 students at a time. It's expensive but I think it will be worth it. He may come away from there with some means of supporting himself beyond playing music on the street corners for cash. That's my hope for him. In the mean time all I can do is be a dad and try to keep him moving in a positive direction.