Good news/bad news

The good news is that Saturday Carolyn and I drove the Mustang and the Honda up to Longview to meet Brian and hand over the car.  Brian and Brendan rode the Amtrak train down from Tacoma:

There were last minute instructions about the car:

And then happy smiles and hugs;

Then we headed back south and Brian and Brendan headed north.  About the time we got home after some shopping on the way, I got the bad news.  Brian called and said  he was in Centrailia and the car would not start after getting gas.  I grabbed some tools and drove back up to see what I could do.  We worked on it all afternoon.  After replacing all the ignition components, including distributor, coil, and spark plug wires, we got the car running, but not good enough to drive anywhere on the freeway.  Then, as the final straw, the voltage regulator had a melt-down, with smoke and fluid coming from it even when the engine was shut off.  We gave up and left it there while I drove Brian and Brendan home to Tacoma.......a long day by the time I got home. 

The next day I drove up and met a tow truck and we loaded it up:

It returned to the roost:

A real, REAL bummer all the way around.  The engine had been running perfectly for almost 2000 miles and then when Brian finally had a chance to actually own it, it failed.  I think the ignitor in the electronic ignition failed and is the cause of the no-spark failure to start.  I have no idea why the voltage regulator had the melt down.  I've ordered the new part and I'm going on a motorcycle ride for seven days, so when I get back I should have some new parts to try.  And maybe a better attitude.