Last week we attended the 18th Annual Southwest Fall Tour in Colorado Springs, Colorado. We had VCCA members from as far away as New Jersey. A couple from Hawaii were signed up but positive diagnosis of COVID prevented them from attending. Other states represented included: Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, Montana, Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington, Texas, Oklahoma.

We took our 1931 Phaeton. It had been put into our enclosed trailer intending to switch it at home with a 1932 Roadster Pickup to be taken to Des Moines, IA to get a top put on. That trip didn't happen so the Phaeton that last ran 8+ years ago was the candidate. I took off the gas cap and almost went to my knees from the stench of the rotten gas. Decided to drain the approximately 1 1/2 gallons of old gas. Some ran out but then some goopy black stuff followed. The tank was removed and flushed with MEK before being dried and installed. It was necessary to blow back on the gas line twice to clear it. Also had to replace the fuel pump, carburetor and condenser before getting it to run in the trailer using a gallon of non-ethanol gas. It was 2:30 PM Friday afternoon prior to 6 AM the next morning. It arrived in Colorado Springs with zero miles in the past 8+ years not a recommended practice. Once in Colorado Springs it was driven out of the trailer and non-ethanol gas from a can filled the tank about 1/2 full.

It ran okay the first day on the tour to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo and Carriage Museum. It had a terrible miss when started to go to dinner. It sounded like there was back flow to the air cleaner suspected to be a stuck intake valve. The next morning as soon as it was light enough to see the valve cover removed and each rocker tested. All seemed to be okay so the spark plugs were checked for possible carbon fouling. The engine builder had used 0.025" gap on the plugs that was widened to 0.040" to produce more power with the 87 octane non-ethanol gas. The engine was designed for faster burning ~60 octane gas. Still had bad miss. Ron Eyres owner of a nearly identical twin 1931 Phaeton came by to ask what was going on. His car has whitewall tires and the steering wheel on the wrong side, right! He discovered that the No. 1 intake rocker was now very loose. I moved the rocker out of the way resting the ball end next to the top of the push rod. Tapping on the top of the valve stem finally got the valve to move and eventually the valve was seated in the head. The rocker was put back in place by tapping down the valve stem with the ball end in the push rod. It was not necessary to re-adjust the valve. Each depression the valve spring cap was filled with ATF to help lubricate the valve stems. Ran okay with only a few noticeable misses in the morning and none the afternoon.

The overall tour was great except for the streets in Colorado Springs. There are a multitude of pot holes of various sizes, shapes and depths. The car now has new squeaks, rattles, thuds and bangs. It will take some time to find and eliminate them.

We hope that other VCCA members decide to try a VCCA tour in the future. They are like a family reunion without the "black sheep" attending. We have been on over 100 VCCA tours in the past 20+ years. Plan to attend as many as we can in the future. Next is Derby Kansas in three weeks. Can't wait to get on the road again.