<VV> Convention - My Adventure

[Bill H.]

                                                                                B"H
I was thrilled to attend the convention, even if only for a few hours!  I met some really great folks and we shmoozed Corvairs the whole time.  It was great!
Driving the 150 miles to the convention was a no-problem trip.  My car performed beautifully and the A/C was a welcome addition to the pleasure of driving a Corvair on the highway on a hot summer day.
On the trip home, which was late Thursday night (around 10:00), I got onto route 84 West heading toward Hartford, when I noticed that when I took my foot off the accelerator, the car kept going, like it had cruise control.  But it didn't slow down when you touched the brake!  The gas pedal was stuck!  I jabbed it a few times and it somehow released itself.  However, almost every time I pressed it, that pedal jammed.  I stopped several times in Connecticut on the Merritt Parkway, lifted the engine over, but couldn't see anything wrong.  The linkage released without a problem when I pressed the acclerator with the engine off.  Back on the road, sticking again.  Jab the pedal a few times, and it eventually released.  
It got worse when I got into Brooklyn, since I was now in local traffic.  Still, I had stopped about 5 times on the way and couldn't find anything wrong.
Next day, I drove to work, about 5 miles of city driving.  At one point I had to shift to Neutral and shut the engine off to keep from going out of control.  
Coming home from work, the same thing happened.  Now I was really terrified!  I shut the motor off, coasted to the curb.  Looked again at the fuel system and I found the problem:  The screw to the choke lever on the passenger side carb had come loose.  The little metal link between the choke lever and the throttle lever on the carb body had fallen off, the throttle tab was jamming against the choke lever, holding the throttle open.  I tied the choke lever up out the way until I got home, and had no further problems.
The big problem is that there is NO room for any kind of screwdriver to tighten that choke rod screw!  The big A/C compressor blocks any access, there is about 1/2 inch space. When I reattached the choke link and screw, I used a bent steak knife to tighten that screw. I should probably use thread lock on that screw so it doesn't come loose again.  
I hope everyone had a safe trip home!
Best regards...Bill Hershkowitz 66 Monza Sport Sedan 110 PG A/C (and NO cruise control!)