We left Branson, MO this morning on the way to Tupelo, MS. The roads are now winding through the Ozarks and several small towns in Arkansas. Near the small town of Yellville, there is a huge building going up, seemingly out in nowhere, that resembles the grain elevators in Kansas Turns out it is a Butterball poultry feed mill, which will make food for turkey farms, which is a big business in northeast Arkansas. As we passed through Ash Flat, AR, we stopped at Meacham's Restaurant for lunch. This appears to be the only place to eat in the area as it was quite busy. When you walk into the waiting area, there is a sign that says to wait here and when a table opens up, they will come get you. And, the line is on the honor system! Seemed to work just fine. Turns out this is a family owned operation with an extensive menu. The daughter of the founder still works there. Food was good and filling.
After lunch, we continued on toward Tupelo. We discovered a nice chain of gas stations, called Casey's General Store, from Iowa. They were very clean and reminded us of QuikTrip that we have at home. However, I soon started to hear a noise whenever I would come to a stop. However, the car was running fine so I continued to listen for it as we motored on. The noise seemed like it could be an alternator bushing and as we were coming to Jonesboro, AR, one of the few big cities on the way, I decided to stop at Bud's Starter and Alternator Shop to have it checked. I got his name from an MG contact in MS that knew an MG guy in Jonesboro. He recommended Bud's. After a little diagnosing, Bud agreed that it sounded like a bushing. Unfortunately, he did not have a replacement, nor did anyone in Jonesboro. However, there was one in Memphis, and we were going through Memphis on the way to Tupelo. He suggested loosening the fan belt to take some stress off the bushing and continuing on to Memphis. So, off we went! The car was still running fine, and I was checking the ignition light and voltmeter constantly! We got to Memphis without incident and picked up the alternator. However, because the car was running fine, and it was getting late and we needed to get to Tupelo so we could get home the next day, we decided to continue on. I could change the alternator tomorrow morning when it was cooler, and when the car had cooled off.
Everything was fine until about 25 miles from Tupelo, as the sun was setting, the ignition light came on! The car continued to run fine and the voltmeter was still indicating that I had some volts left! Luckily, traffic was very light on I-22 at that time and I kept the lights off until I saw someone approaching from the rear and then, after they had passed, I turned them off again to same the battery. Even though the ignition light was on, it must have been at least partially charging as we made it to Tupelo, where I had to turn on the lights to get to the hotel. We were able to walk to eat dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings and next door to Lowe's for a tool I needed. I'll swap alternators in the morning.
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