Dumbest mistake you have made?

[Mad Mart]

I once connected a battery the wrong way round on an Acclaim. Fortunately, it just blew the master fuse and did no other damage.

Never mind, better luck next time.

[Jon Tilson]

In the case of the automatic midget I was tempted to suggest that owning it at all was the bigger mistake,
but thought better of it in the interests of new member relations....

In the case of an acclaim.....I'll agree with Mart in some ways....

but in this case owning one at all was definitely the bigger gaffe.

Jonners

[ToledoZombie]

when i worked in the parts dept at a car dealership, i used a knife to open up a box that i thought contained a new bumper.
turned out it was actually a soft top that had been on back order for 6 months, needless to say it had a nice new opening from front to rear .....

[zsnemeth]

In the case of the automatic midget I was tempted to suggest that owning it at all was the bigger mistake

Don't go down there! Don't forget this is a two way street...

[IncaDolly78]

Good topic!

Many many many...

I once dropped a distributor mounting bolt down in to the block, on to the jackshaft, it then fell in to the sump. I had spent three days putting the sump back on as the threads of the sump mounting bolts near the subframe are damaged. I had to walk away and didn't return to it for a week.

Two weeks ago I knocked the fuel feed pipe of one of the carbs, and petrol poured everywhere, had this occurred when driving I have little doubt it would have caught fire and burned the car to a cinder.

Set the timing and camshaft to crankshaft 180 degrees out, somehow. I had checked and checked it. The engine did not like it.

And I once dropped a large G clamp on to the front eyebrow panel, the dent is still there.

Bad dolly owner.

[Purplebargeken]

I may have fitted an in-line filter the wrong way round once.

I have learned my lesson. Until the next time.

[Howard81]

I bought a Triumph rather than a nice cosy modern car that never goes wrong

[alolympic]

Attached an electric fan to the radiator whilst it was off the car. Then realised I hadn't mounted it in the right place to clear the crank pulley. With no spare radiator ties, the car then had to sit for days whilst some new ties arrived.

[maitretjak]

Got my arm stuck between car and workbench. 1am. Nobody else home.

My sprint had rolled off the ramps and I thought it was a wise idea to put body parts between my precious T-bone panel and the workbench. Result: arm wedged between nose panel and workbench.

Still calm, and not in too much pain, I still felt happy with my decision. Until I discovered I really couldn't free myself. After some 30 minutes, I managed to lift (!) the front of the car just enough to wiggle myself free.
Drove to hospital (not in the sprint) and the doctor told me I had been lucky, nothing damaged, but to expect some pain.

As I discovered the next day, I had my bachelor party, so brought the prescribed pain killers but didn't touch them because I anticipated some abuse of other mildly pain killing substances of the fluid kind, that didn't mix with the official ones. Didn't need the the prescribed ones.

[Pippin]

Replacing a sprint engine late one night, on my own, using only several lengths of binder twine to suspend it from the hoist. I don't think the binder twine snapped (it's pretty strong stuff and I'd have been in a worse fix if it had snapped) but it did slip or something just as I was lowering the engine (and gearbox? Probably, but I can't remember now). Result, one slightly dented front panel and an extended period of sweating while I struggle by brute force to stop the engine slipping any further and somehow regain control of the situation.

[davy67]

Today I collected both my front callipers from my lockup to take them up to the unit I keep my sprint in in order to start stripping them down. 25 minutes and 15 miles later on arrival at the unit I discovered that I had driven away and left the callipers lying in the middle of the pavement. One frantic drive back through heavy traffic to find they were lying just where I left them, next to a main road. Doh.

[trackerjack]

Today I collected both my front callipers from my lockup to take them up to the unit I keep my sprint in in order to start stripping them down. 25 minutes and 15 miles later on arrival at the unit I discovered that I had driven away and left the callipers lying in the middle of the pavement. One frantic drive back through heavy traffic to find they were lying just where I left them, next to a main road. Doh.

They didn,t make a "brake" for freedom then?

[Toledo Man]

Tjakko, you were very lucky. You could've suffered from Crush Syndrome which can be fatal. I learnt about this this when I did my first aid training.

[Karlos]

I stripped a distributor and re-assembled without the rotor. Took 1 hour to find out why the car would not start. Also I lied that I could drive when I was 15.

[whydidistartthis]

I stripped a distributor and re-assembled without the rotor. Took 1 hour to find out why the car would not start. Also I lied that I could drive when I was 15.

Thought I could drive at age 15. hence my first car (triumph Herald ) Required a replacement bonnet! At the time these were still available from the local scrap yard...