I’m ready to spend the weekend in Cypress, California with my friends, enjoying Mitsubishi Owner Day (MOD). Just two days before I’m set to leave for California (and less than a week before I start a new job at Enterprise Wreck-A-Life), I’m on my way home just as evening rush hour is beginning to make the lives of thousands miserable for at least an hour. From my position in the innermost lane, I’m thinking I might just sneak through before it gets too bad when it happens. The car in front of me applies the brakes. I engage the clutch and the tach needle drops like a brick.

Now, I’m cruising along with the AC on, having just fixed it a week or so prior. The coolant temperature gauge in the dash is reading normal and I’m a bit confused. Keeping the clutch pedal on the floor, I turn the key to start and the engine comes back online. It’s time to turn off the AC and the radio and make sure everything’s okay. In fourth gear, now, we move forward, traffic steadily slowing, everyone getting in closer together. The guy in front of me applies the brakes. I engage the clutch and the tach needle, again, drops like a brick. This isn’t good.

Since I was clutching to drop to third gear, I’m already there, so I turn the key again, but this time, the engine won’t start. Oh shit. I do NOT want to be the guy in the dead car in the fast lane in rush hour traffic when it’s over 105* outside. Since I’m still moving, I just pop the clutch in third gear and the engine comes back online. It’s not happy, but it’s running and I’m beginning to panic. I light my signal and begin crowding the middle lane to get over. Of course, nobody wants to let me in, but I switch to the hazard lights and use the hand signal. Fortunately, the people around me recognize they can let me get off the road or they can sit behind my dead Mitsubishi.

By the time I reach the shoulder, I’ve had to reach down for second gear and pop the clutch again to keep the car running. I’m now flooring the gas in second gear, watching the boost gauge report no boost, and listening to my Mitsubishi drop one cylinder after another. There’s only four of them to begin with. 195 sounds just like a modified Subaru WRX as I fight for every foot of travel I can get out of it. The hammer is down, but the tach is dropping. When it reaches 1000rpm, I get on the clutch pedal and let the engine deliver the death rattle.

Upon stopping well off the road on the shoulder, the temperature gauge now begins to climb steadily and steam begins to erupt from every gap on the front of the car. I pop the hood and see the upper tank on the radiator has split, the upper radiator hose has split, and it’s managed to spray oil all over everything under the hood. I just barely made it off the road. Engine No.3 had already been in a fire and, with over 200,000 miles on it before I installed it, I figured there are some engines that are just destined to burn.

I ended up pulling the head and having a good friend of mine clean it up for me. He had it machined for the new MLS head gasket, lapped the valves, installed the new valve seals and lifters for me. He also did some mild portwork on the exhaust manifold, wastegate flapper and O2 housing. Meanwhile, I ordered new rod bearings and piston rings. I spent a number of nights out in the tiny garage at the apartment popping pistons out of cylinders, cleaning them up, honing the cylinders and installing fresh bits. Same old pistons and rods, but new rings and bearings were installed.

It would be October before 195 finally returned to the road, powered by engine No.3.5.

Next in the series: Anniversary Kia Surprise!