Car breakdowns : your stories .

[dessiato]

I have RACE, I'm OK paying for it even though I rarely use it. I feel it's like any insurance, it's a waste of money until you need it. I have full cover for the whole of EU. I usually only travel between France, UK and around Spain but the level of confidence it gives me if anything goes wrong is worth the money.

 

[StoneRoad]

This happened back a great many years ago, around June, IIRC.
Driving North on the M6 around the end of the Lune Gorge (roughly) on my 1960s AJS motorbike, doing about the speed limit I decided that the view of the waggon I had been following was getting boring, so I started to overtake.
About 2 / 3 of the way alongside it, there was an almighty bang and the engine stopped.
I snatched the clutch in and used my right hand to indicate going left / slowing down and headed for the hard shoulder...
coasted down it until I found a phone.
Stopped and put the bike on the stand. Quick examination - smoking oil up behind the cylinders and seized completely solid.
After I stopped shaking, I rang the motorway control to report my presence and to request the AA send a relay (don't bother with the roadside inspection, it ain't fixable, they still sent a mechanic, who agreed with me at once).
Police patrol checked I was OK a couple of times while I waited for the relay. (went to relative's large garage, arriving very late at night)
Surprisingly, there weren't skid marks on the road - I went and looked a couple of days later).

Turned out that she'd put a leg out of bed.
The big end was almost opened out flat and that had punched a hole about 2" across in the aluminium crankcase on the affected side. Cause was some old red hematite sealant from a previous rebuild (not mine, I used high temperature gorilla snot) had blocked an oil way.
Bike was put back on the road, after a lot of work - and a fight with some twats that bored one cylinder oval and not vertical. Getting that sorted was the most difficult part of the rebuild. The next time she needs a rebore; it will have to be a relining.
I went round the Beamish Trophy route that autumn on the same bike.
The life and times of my beloved 1960s AJS 650 twin ...

 

[Sasaferrato]

This happened back a great many years ago, around June, IIRC.
Driving North on the M6 around the end of the Lune Gorge (roughly) on my 1960s AJS motorbike, doing about the speed limit I decided that the view of the waggon I had been following was getting boring, so I started to overtake.
About 2 / 3 of the way alongside it, there was an almighty bang and the engine stopped.
I snatched the clutch in and used my right hand to indicate going left / slowing down and headed for the hard shoulder...
coasted down it until I found a phone.
Stopped and put the bike on the stand. Quick examination - smoking oil up behind the cylinders and seized completely solid.
After I stopped shaking, I rang the motorway control to report my presence and to request the AA send a relay (don't bother with the roadside inspection, it ain't fixable, they still sent a mechanic, who agreed with me at once).
Police patrol checked I was OK a couple of times while I waited for the relay. (went to relative's large garage, arriving very late at night)
Surprisingly, there weren't skid marks on the road - I went and looked a couple of days later).

Turned out that she'd put a leg out of bed.
The big end was almost opened out flat and that had punched a hole about 2" across in the aluminium crankcase on the affected side. Cause was some old red hematite sealant from a previous rebuild (not mine, I used high temperature gorilla snot) had blocked an oil way.
Bike was put back on the road, after a lot of work - and a fight with some twats that bored one cylinder oval and not vertical. Getting that sorted was the most difficult part of the rebuild. The next time she needs a rebore; it will have to be a relining.
I went round the Beamish Trophy route that autumn on the same bike.
The life and times of my beloved 1960s AJS 650 twin ...

 

[iamwithnail]

Fairly sure I've told this story on here before, but.

I once bought a car for 350 quid, Citroen ax, c plate (in... 2006?) It was great, and I did 8000 miles in it until the engine seized because I forgot to put oil in it. Best car, pound for pound. The keys used to fall out of the ignition when you went round a left hand corner.

ANYWAY.

Driving up a hill near.cumbernauld to work and the car starts shuddering and juddering, there's a horrible fatal sounding noise and I manage to get into the layby (not a motorway at the time, just below the castlecary services if you know it, heading north).

Phone the AA. Guy comes out, lifts the bonnet, looks for half a second and goes "nope", and shuts the bonnet again.

Me: what do you mean 'nope'?
Mechanic: you know how there's crank rods in your engine?
Me: sort of, yeah.
Mechanic: aye, well, they're not inside it any more. Where do you want towed to?

Rods (or whatever) had come right out the front of the block and fucked the whole thing. Loved that wee car tho.