Watching daughter race at Mosport a thrill a minute

BRIAN EARLY FOR THE TORONTO STAR

Lauren Early made her dad proud on the kart track.

Brian Early

SPECIAL TO THE STAR

BEST moment

I think most of us have a "life list." Mine isn't all car stuff, but being able to cross off "Drive at over 200 km/h on the Autobahn" was a highlight – albeit a very brief one due to traffic and sanity – courtesy of BMW's ActiveHybrid 7. For several seconds, I comfortably and safely enjoyed 212 km/h, all without worrying about incurring Julian Fantino's wrath.

"Best," however, occurred closer to home and at much lower speeds. My daughter Lauren, now 8, raced go-karts in this season's recreational Arrive and Drive series hosted by Mosport International Karting on its dedicated track at Mosport International Raceway.

Believe it or not, this was not my idea – blame my wife and her friends – and no one was more surprised than me to see Lauren actually interested in doing it.

She wasn't the fastest, not even close, but she had a good time, made some new friends, and gained a tonne of self-confidence. It was a really positive experience for both of us.

Worst moment

Call it skill, call it luck, but whatever you call it, I've somehow made it through another year without pretzelling a press vehicle or setting a new journalist record for foreign traffic fines.

That leaves my Clark Kent day job of turning wrenches to provide a "worst," and it didn't disappoint.

As a small, independent shop, we're lucky to have a very good relationship with most of our customers. We'll go further out of our way for our "A" clients, of course.

When a 2002 Jeep Liberty came in misfiring because the cylinder-2 exhaust valve rocker arm had fallen off, we discovered that Chrysler has an updated rocker arm and valve lifter (which keeps tension on the arm). In the name of cost-saving for this "A" customer, we put in just the one set.

Cylinder 6's fell off a few days later; the other five even-side arms and lifters got changed – the fix for the few Internet posters who'd experienced the same problem.

When the new No. 2 exhaust rocker then fell off, we had retainers custom fitted to the arms. That (finally) fixed it.

Soon after, it started consuming antifreeze in the No. 2 cylinder – apparently a more common failure, and typically fatal with this 3.7-litre V6.

A used motor went in. Feeling bad about the prior rocker work and its expense, we ate the labour and charged our cost for the motor and special coolant. We also swapped the updated parts into it, gratis. I've done worse engine jobs, but I certainly wouldn't call it fun.

Two months less a day, I got to do it again (without the rocker transplant), because the replacement engine – you guessed it – started consuming antifreeze, in cylinder No. 2. Why this customer hasn't taken out a full-page ad decrying our shop's work yet, I don't know.

Best of all, it's booked in for late next week because it's misfiring again.

Place your bets now: Will it need motor No. 3, or the updated rocker arms that were scrapped with the last engine?

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