Yesterday was fun. I've been getting really bad gas mileage lately and have been smelling gas, so I pop the hood to see if the SU's are leaking and find the engine covered in oil!! To my horror, I didn't see my bright yellow dipstick. It appears as though engine pressure drove it right out of the engine compartment (couldn't find it anywhere and I didn't forget to put it in).

So I'm thinking I'd better attend to this problem first, the gas smell can wait. Off to the parts store for a new PCV valve (that took about 1/2 hour to find the cross-reference, fun!)and hose and an el-cheapo chrome SBC dipstick (I've cut it down and marked it). On the way home, I stopped in at the car wash to get all the oil off the engine compartment. I had just put in custom fit plug wires and am a little anal about clean engines etc.

Get change for the wash and the damn car won't start. Won't turn over - nothing (dash lights are on etc, but no action at the starter). The starter is rebuild so I'm doing a little cussin' and loosing some religion. I push start it, and get it into the wash bay (not wanting to pull the starter when the friggin thing is covered with oil). Hose it off and push start it again on the way home. Get it home and leave it on the street (facing downhill as I have to get to work in the morning), and try the starter one more time. It's working fine! Put it in the garage for a look - nothing wrong that I can see. Started up this morning...no problem.

Could the oil have been causing the problem (strange, as I've seen these starters so gunk encrusted they were hard to even see...and they worked)? Can a starter intermittently not work (one spot that doesn't make contact on the starter motor?)?? I don't have a stock key arrangement (still works like stock), could the ignition switch be faulty (no way to check as it decided to work).

Thoughts?

Craig