Tuesday 24th July 2001, Plano TX
Having had a poor night’s sleep, we were anxious to be up early to see Merrin at the BMW dealership. (We would have given anything to be able to see his expression, when he was alerted by George on Sunday that we were back!)
The engineers had already stripped down the engine, revealing an even larger hole which had been concealed by a breather tube. The second hole was about 2” square – large enough for us to peer inside the casing using a small mirror. With a little dexterity, the broken connecting rod was clearly visible.
There was good news and bad. The good news was that Merrin confirmed that the damage was accident-related – there would be no need for a protracted argument with Triumph over the warranty. The bad news was that the engine was (predictably) unrepairable. There was no new unit in the country, and the parts (if available) would have cost $6,700.
The insurance assessor was quick off the mark … too quick really. He arrived at 8am to look over the bike. Unfortunately, the dealers didn’t open until 10am. That was the last anyone saw of him today.