The next morning, I got up and realized that unlike Albuquerque, Kingman didn't cool off much overnight. So, I left by 630am. As the road climbed to Flagstaff, the clouds brought some rain and cooler temperatures....along with more wind.
The road back to Albuquerque from there was not as hot as the day before, although the starter motor stopped working completely right after I got gas for the last time [Gallup]. [I later found out the connection was really loose.
By the time I got home, the motor seemed to be running on 2 of its 4 cylinders and the exhaust pipe was hanging down. Luckily, I hit every green light from our freeway exit to our home, and I 'rolled' through the two stop signs and made it home without stalling. I had called Irene about 20 miles out and she got the gate opened as I approached. Using a stick, she held up the muffler pipe so it wouldn't get caught as I brought the Vanagon up the ramps and over the curb. As I turned off the ignition, then tried in vain to start it again, I said to myself "I am so glad to be home!"
In summary, I had a rather 'interesting' trip back home, with few exceptions [A/C and fan], everything but the engine [which I knew I need to replace anyway] on the Vanagon worked fine......and there were far more positive than negative parts.
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