May 16 - Washington : All done

We had a half-day in Seattle / Kent before our flights in the afternoon. Dad and I decided to try to replace the fuel pressure sensor for Taylor. We should have done it during the trip, but the combination of exhaustion and not being sure how long it would take kept us from diving in.

The last hotel- Doubletree! Thanks to Dad for smoking through his whole stash of Hilton points!

After a quick breakfast, Dad and I went over to Taylor's apartment. Here's one last photo of the tire wear on our Bridgestone RE-71R's. 7,500+ miles on these, plus 120 minutes of track time, give or take.

Just dipping into the wear bars...

We popped the hood on the Volvo and dug in to try and get the fuel pressure sensor replaced. I followed a nice DIY write-up on the Volvo forum Swedespeed.com, so thanks to the folks there that provided it!

Only moderately worse for the wear.

Fuel pressure can be released via this valve. Helps minimize the fuel spray.

For anybody who may find this and want to know the replacement part number.

Dad at work.

The sensor is located under some of this stuff.

It was going nice and easy until I dropped the one bolt we needed. It didn't hit the ground. Ugh.

Dad found an extra bolt in his collection that fit nicely, but I jacked up the car to try and find it anyway. Bolts floating around the engine bay worry me. Miraculously, I found it wedged in some suspension components. It doesn't sound like much of an issue when I type it out, but this probably delayed us 45 minutes, doubling the length of time we spent on the replacement.

We tested it out- the car ran nicely. It was nearing time to leave, so we rolled across the street to get some lunch before our flights.

Dad and Taylor ordering at Kigo, a noodle place.

With lunch finished, it was time to pack up and head out. Our adventure had come to an end. It was an amazing journey- Thanks Dad and Taylor for doing this! It's a memory that will stay with me forever; I feel very lucky.

Thanks, too, to my wife, Ryann, who was pregnant and taking care of our 18 month old daughter- she encouraged us to sign up, then was one of our biggest cheerleaders the whole time. Thanks to my Mom, who flew to Houston to help Ryann with the house and the baby, and thanks to Ryann's family as well for doing the same. 

And finally, thanks to our readers out there who have followed along- I hope you enjoyed!

Dropped off by Taylor at the airport- so long!

May 15 - Montana, Idaho, Washington : Done

Our last day of the road trip. It was agreed that if we did this again, we wouldn't start 2,100 miles away.

Another day, another breakfast buffet.

The prevailing mood was much better than captured here.

The scenic route was pleasant. At this point we were nursing the car along with a check engine light, required maintenance light, broken fuel gauge, low coolant light, engine system control failure light, brake assist service required light, malfunctioning cruise control, and fuel pressure cutting in and out. Come on, Volvo, you can make it!

Lunch at Panda Express.

Standard road trip positions.

Last gas stop before Seattle!

We made it! Right back to where we started nearly two weeks previously. 7,500+ miles driven. Exhausted, but elated, we set about unpacking so Tom could be returned.

Yay!

I took this photo to remind myself that the trailer was fully unloaded.

Dad and Taylor continued to get unpacked while I returned the trailer. Adios, Tom, you served us well.

After getting back to Taylor's apartment, we took this final photo before setting off for dinner at Duke's Chowder House across the parking lot. For the first time in two weeks, we took our time, without the specter of a monster drive ahead. It felt good.