Crazy fuel cap story

[Bilzo]

Here's another reason why I love 4Runners and my White Streak in particular:

In November of 2004 I was driving home to the beautiful Central San Joaquin Valley in California from Northern Nevada (about a six hour drive depending on weather and traffic). I stopped to get gas at a truck stop where US-50 and I-80 meet. Well, about 300 miles or so down I-80 or CA-99 I had to stop again for gas, and my gas cap is gone. I'm flipping out becasue the gas cap is one thing I'm really anal about. Can't find it anywhere, so I drive home. The next morning I buy the $12 replacement from Pep Boys or AutoZone or wherever and never give it a second thought.

About a month later I'm dropping a buddy off at the airport, and as I'm helping him get his bags out of the back I notice something. Lodged behind the rear spoiler and resting on the rear window wiper (I have a '95) is my old gas cap. It had been sitting there a month and nothing jarred it loose! Not even my weekly runs through the carwash. Luckily it hadn't rained that whole time and I never used the rear wiper. Unbelievable! I always put the cap on the roof when filling up, and apparently I drove off with it still up there. After that I knew the White Streak was blessed.

Any other crazy tales out there?

 

[lojeff]

Very Similar Story:

We were on vacation when we stopped for a quick photo from a mountaintop clearing and had some sandwiches with the view. My son didn't want to leave so my wife threw the cooler in the truck and carried my son (kicking and screaming) into the carseat. We didn't have the camera the rest of the trip. We bought a bunch of the disposables. About a month later, we found it on the roof of the truck widged under on of the luggage racks. Digital camera + rain = bad. We had to replace the camera but I was surprised it stayed up there so long.

 

[Bilzo]

That's pretty amazing.

 

[santana]

i use to put the gas cap ontop of my car aswell
the pathfinder i drove before my 4runner. i forgot to close it all up and drove around for a good two miles when i noticed my lid was still open. the gas cap was stuck in the top spoiler.

with that same car i also left an 10 inch socket extension under the hood. i left it resting on some surface near the battery when i was using it to change sparkplugs. that thing was under my hood for a whileee. would have been really bad if it just dropped into the belts.

 

[bonedoctor]

Lost watch found

Not a gas cap, but a watch--was switching out the bulbs in the headlights and took off my watch to get my hand down to the driver side bulbs. I know never to set anything on the engine (and have never left anything behind), but I took off the watch and probably placed in on the top of the intake. Well, long story short...I close the hood after replacing the bulbs, forgetting the watch. About a week later I notice the watch missing and then remember how I took it off when working under the hood. I didn't even go look since I was sure it was gone after a week. Not a valuable watch (an old Seiko), but sentimental value (was my brother's who died of cancer).

So now it's a few weeks later and I'm at the Quickie Lube place and the manager comes out in the waiting room and wants to know if I'd like to buy a watch--the damned thing somehow got clear over on top of the passenger fender well, up against the firewall. Had been driving around for 3-4 weeks with it still under there, had even been to the car wash (and I always would lift up the hood and clean under there to get off the salt spray).

So, got the watch back. Too bad it didn't turn into a Rolex Presidential while under there!

 

[bonedoctor]

i use to put the gas cap ontop of my car aswell
the pathfinder i drove before my 4runner. i forgot to close it all up and drove around for a good two miles when i noticed my lid was still open. the gas cap was stuck in the top spoiler.

with that same car i also left an 10 inch socket extension under the hood. i left it resting on some surface near the battery when i was using it to change sparkplugs. that thing was under my hood for a whileee. would have been really bad if it just dropped into the belts.

I had a similar incident, only it was the jerk-off mechanic that left some tools. He didn't even install the emission valve correctly (placing the hose on the valve before installing it in that impossible location by the firewall), so when I get home and lift the hood to check if he did it as requested (and didn't, so now I can't get clearance to do it), I find a super nice Snap-On flex head socket wrench with a matching extension laying on top of the engine. Funny thing, they call (the gas station) a few hours later asking if I found anything under the hood. Told 'em I heard some loud clunk on the drive home. I still use that wrench today--about twelve years later!

 

[ShadowRunner]

I had a very similar experience with a pair of pliars. I was working in the garage and I told myself as soon as I put the pliars on the roof that I would forget about them. Sure of enough a few days and at least 100 miles later I found the pliars still on top of my Cherokee (at the time). I had driven through rain and everything. They didnt leave a rust stain or a scratch on the paint either!! I dont know how it stayed on but I am very happy it didnt come off as I was commuting to and from work for those few days.

 

[owen4runner]

Similar (maybe not, but hilarious) story. I was watching AmericasFunniest Video or something. Husband was trying out their video camera and was looking out from their front window towards their lawn. The wife arrives with their car and parked infront of their house. Husband noticed something weird and focused in on the car towards the gas tank fill area. Lo and behold, the fuel pump NOZZLE was still on the fill opening of the gas tank and about ten feet of hose attached. She was dragging the whole thing when she pulled over.

 

[Uneek]

Similar (maybe not, but hilarious) story. I was watching AmericasFunniest Video or something. Husband was trying out their video camera and was looking out from their front window towards their lawn. The wife arrives with their car and parked infront of their house. Husband noticed something weird and focused in on the car towards the gas tank fill area. Lo and behold, the fuel pump NOZZLE was still on the fill opening of the gas tank and about ten feet of hose attached. She was dragging the whole thing when she pulled over.

I know of two people who that. A friend's sister and another classmate's dad. OMFG, how do people pull something like that off?!?! Doesn't something sticking out of the fuel filler and the side in the mirrors catch the driver's attention?

 

[racefan_67]

....if people didn't do silly things like that then what else could we poke fun at?....granted the gas pump one baffles me but the gas caps being left off is making someone rich....:dancin:

 

[trijicon]

I know of two people who that. A friend's sister and another classmate's dad. OMFG, how do people pull something like that off?!?! Doesn't something sticking out of the fuel filler and the side in the mirrors catch the driver's attention?

I actually did that one day. I noticed it though right as I pulled away from the pump. Went to the counter to tell them what I did. Apparently, it happens all the time and those pumps were made to detach if pulled hard

 

[teotwaki]

This story ought to suppress all of those naysayers who claim that the 4Runner's spoiler has no functional value!!!! :biggrin2:

Here's another reason why I love 4Runners and my White Streak in particular:

In November of 2004 I was driving home to the beautiful Central San Joaquin Valley in California from Northern Nevada (about a six hour drive depending on weather and traffic). I stopped to get gas at a truck stop where US-50 and I-80 meet. Well, about 300 miles or so down I-80 or CA-99 I had to stop again for gas, and my gas cap is gone. I'm flipping out becasue the gas cap is one thing I'm really anal about. Can't find it anywhere, so I drive home. The next morning I buy the $12 replacement from Pep Boys or AutoZone or wherever and never give it a second thought.

About a month later I'm dropping a buddy off at the airport, and as I'm helping him get his bags out of the back I notice something. Lodged behind the rear spoiler and resting on the rear window wiper (I have a '95) is my old gas cap. It had been sitting there a month and nothing jarred it loose! Not even my weekly runs through the carwash. Luckily it hadn't rained that whole time and I never used the rear wiper. Unbelievable! I always put the cap on the roof when filling up, and apparently I drove off with it still up there. After that I knew the White Streak was blessed.

Any other crazy tales out there?

 

[Uneek]

I actually did that one day. I noticed it though right as I pulled away from the pump. Went to the counter to tell them what I did. Apparently, it happens all the time and those pumps were made to detach if pulled hard

No worries, you're allowed to do it, cause you have a 4Runner.

Yeah, I heard that they're break away too... and a radio station actually did a prank call on a listener's friend that drove off with the pump.