Merry Christmas to Me!

To show appreciation for some assistance I had offered, two of my friends bought a new starter for Casper. I set aside some time to install it yesterday, and the whole process went rather smooth. There is really not much to write about it except this:

1. Disconnect the battery
2. Jack the front end waaaaay up
3. Lower the car onto jack stands
4. Remove old starter (two large bolts + electrical wiring)
5. Install new starter
6. Reconnect the battery
7. Test
8. Remove jack stands
9. Drive away

If I had lacked a nice jack and jack stands, I wouldn't have been able to do this. My friend Gary had recently purchased a new creeper (that thingy with wheels which mechanics lay on), which also made a world of difference.

Lesson: While there are some parts which are less expensive online, local auto parts stores still have competitive pricing and many places will price match (or even beat by 5%+) other local stores. The new starter cost $70 less locally than the best online price I could find.