I started my pilgrammage to the Vintage at the Vineyards, by driving Otis yesterday down to Durham, North Carolina. Let me first say two something about Interstates 95 and 85 - they both suck. There is absolutely nothing to see or do, and the entire driving experience relates solely to defending oneself against getting crushed or smushed by 18-wheelers doing 90 mph.

But that's not the point of this post. My point -- some of you may have read my earlier post about the red idiot light for the alternator. The stupid light was coming on intermittently, notwithstanding that we have checked out all of the wires and the connections. And the battery maintains a full charge, and the alternator (a dual-output aftermarket unit) cranks out a healthy 14 volts at both terminals.

So we get on the highway yesterday, hit a nice cruising speed of about 72-ish, and voila - the red light comes on. And stays on, and never goes out. Yet, the car performs flawlessly for all of the 270 miles to Durham.

WTF is going on? Otis will be at V@V (look for the orange car with the "Otis" vanity plate and the grey trailer). Can one of you electrical gurus stop by to see if you can spot something? My experience here usually says that this type of problem (1) typically is something really simple, and (2) usually takes a second set of eyes to discover something that we've overlooked. Here, at least 5 people (4 purported experts plus one hack - me) have poked, prodded, tweaked, and fiddled with everything electrical on the car - yet the stupid red light comes on and stays on.

Except of course, we all know what will happen - I'll show up at V@V and the red light won't come on. That goes without saying. But trust me - the stupid light comes on. It was suggested earlier to take the electrical tape approach - as in, cover the light with electrical tape. I'm inclined simply to let the stupid thing burn out. It's just like my E-30 - the red brake-light warning light has been on for 24 years, yet my brake lights are fine.

Anyway, for anyone who lends a hand at V@V and can fix the problem, I'll buy you a bottle of wine.