[Hal Copple]

i have over 60K miles on my SPF, and have come to think of some things as just consumables. I have probably 70+ quarter mile runs, and as much as a thousand miles of track time on my car. My engine doesn't leak a drop, the finish looks like the day i brought it home. But things wear out. New windshield, a top, battery, clutch, several thermostats, a few alternators, a starter, CV boots, about to put on the fifth set of rear tires, and so forth. I think about three gages so far.

But replacing a hundred dollar gage from time to time is just another part of the privelge of owning a race car i am priveleged to drive every day. If a gage were to be defective out of the box, i just got a new one. If it fails sooner or later in the car, i just put in a new one. When my son tells me of the routene service costs and parts costs for his Porsche Boxster, i just tell him to save his money, and enjoy the ride.


So it is no really big deal for an Autometer gage, or a Smiths, to give out every now and then. I have had gages go out in other cars, so putting one in the Great Stroker occasionally is not an issue, really.

Things that have moving parts eventually wear out. Like me, someday.