I got the correct cap and rotor from Beyond 2 and got it installed. In the process, I lost the wiring order for the spark plug wires. I spent a few mornings before work testing different combinations, but since I only had 15 minutes at a time, it took a few days before I got it right.

Funny story. As I was leaning over the engine, I saw the number 1342 on the head. “I wonder what 1342″ means? After a bit of Google searching, I found the answer. It’s the wiring order. Those German’s think of everything!

With the engine running, I took a closer look at the motor mounts and found that the driver’s side mount had definitely broken. Without a garage to do the work, I needed to take the car somewhere. I didn’t trust driving all the way to Burlingame, so I gingerly took the car to German Auto Sport in Berkeley. They did an excellent job and I picked up the car the next morning.

As I was driving home I rolled over a large bump in the road that is known as “Mount Saint 4th Street”. And as I rolled over it, the car died. I cranked the engine, but nothing would happen. I rolled out of the intersection before I lost momentum and then pushed the car almost all the way to a parking spot, but I couldn’t make it up the slight incline of the road.

I called Beth to check if Wade was home down the hall and if he could come help me push the car, which he kindly did. I was tired and frustrated, so I left it for the night.

The next morning I popped the hood and discovered that the distributor cap was shattered. I called Kwan to see what he thought and to see if he had another cap. He recommended me to German Auto Sport in Berkeley, and so I drove over and purchased a new cap. Chris at German Auto Sport said the same thing had happened to him and it turned out to be a broken motor mount. I thanked him for the advice and headed home. Once I was home, I installed the new cap and the car started right up.

That afternoon Seth and Jen came over and I wanted to take Seth out for a ride in the Silver Bullet. We headed off down the street and, feeling confident, I punched on the gas a bit. The engine lugged, and quit. We coasted into a parking spot, popped the hood, and sure enough, the cap and was busted. The rotor also broke this time.

Seth and I walked a short three blocks back to the Landshark and pulled its cap and rotor and then headed back to the Silver Bullet. We got the car started and carefully drove it back to a parking spot. We examined the mounts and tried to rock the engine, but it seemed solid. It did turn out, however, that the cap I used was not the correct one. Although my car is a 1969, the engine isn’t and the distributor is slightly different. Perhaps the cap slipped off and hit the rotor, causing both to break.

Time to swing by Beyond 2 to get the correct cap.