It's gone.
I was at work when it happened. My wife handled the whole thing -- coordinated with the tow truck driver, got it hooked up, sent it off. By the time I checked my phone the wagon was already on its way to the shop. I'm grateful she was there to make it happen, and also a little sad I missed it. This felt like a moment.
Excited and nervous in equal measure, and I'm not totally sure which one is winning.
The excited part is easy to explain. This is the furthest the project has gotten since I bought the car. Someone who actually works on old vehicles has it in their shop right now, and there is a real chance I drive it again soon. That has not felt possible for a while.
The nervous part is harder to sit with. Once they tear it down and start looking around in there, there's no telling what else they find. Every mechanic who has ever touched an old car knows that one job has a way of turning into three. I'm expecting the final number to come in higher than the $1,471 they quoted me. If it's another thousand on top of that, I'm still under budget. I'm trying to hold onto that.
The plan from their end: tear it down, take photos, then give me the final quote before doing anything. No surprises. That's exactly what I asked for and I appreciate that they said it without me having to push.
One thing I'm quietly hoping for that wasn't in the original scope: the car has always been hard to start. I did some research last night and a bad head gasket can cause that -- combustion gases leaking into the coolant system mess with compression enough to make cold starts rough. If fixing the head gasket clears that up too, that would be a real bonus.
As for what comes next if this goes well: rear shocks and springs are up after the engine, then AC. It's cooling down here in LA so the AC can wait a little longer. The suspension can't.
Hoping to have it back in a few days. I'll post as soon as I know more.