Last week the 4Runner started acting up again. As it has been no stranger to mechanical difficulty, I didn’t pay much attention, but took it to the shop after it was smoking. It looked to be running hot, so I figured I was in for a new radiator. The problem turned out to be a busted thermostat, but in the process of getting hot, it blew a head gasket. Knowing full well how much repairs have been for that vehicle, I decided it had crossed me for the last time.

I’m now the owner of a 1999 GMC Jimmy, white/charcoal. Pictures forthcoming. Now for the difficult decision: do I move all the electronics from the 4Runner to the Jimmy, or leave it stock?

The 4Runner is sitting around, waiting for a potential buyer who wants to fix it, or for me to scrap it out for parts. *Edit: Sold it.*

This morning I drug my of-late cantankerous 4Runner to see Craig at Pulaski Pawn & Audio. Their business is located right beside my father’s, but they only recently started doing audio installs and I had never been over there.

Anyway, I seemed to have caught Craig at a good time, and he graciously took the time to look at my system. We started unhooking all the components one at a time trying to find the power draw that’s killing my battery, and he finally decided it was one of the Memphis amplifiers that’s not cutting off properly. He also installed a new battery, which I was much in need of. The Bosch I had previously has been drained and recharged so many times that it won’t hold a charge. He installed a Stinger SPV44 dry cell deep cycle battery and referred me to a shop in Lawrenceburg to have the rogue amp checked out.

I’m selling my truck. It is a ’99 Chevrolet Silverado Z71 4×4 extended cab short bed, loaded with leather and loads more. It is here on eBay.