RAY: Hi, we're back. You're listening to Car Talk with us, Click and Clack, the Tappet Brothers, and we're here, of course, to talk about cars, car repair and, first and foremost, the answer to last week's Puzzler.
TOM: But first, the question!
RAY: You know, this little beauty came to us...I don't know...e-mail, snail mail--I forget--from someone named William Morrison from Midland, Michigan, and here it is.
TOM: Yeah, I can hardly wait. I remember when you said this last week. You mentioned his name because I thought of my classmate, Bill Morrison, who has done all the artwork for the Web site.
RAY: But I like that, I like that--I can hardly wait. Such enthusiasm; such excitement!
TOM: I can hardly wait! Because...
RAY: How long do you think you think you can hardly wait? If it were, like, five minutes, can you hardly wait minutes? How about a week? Can you hardly wait a week?
TOM: I have waited a week!
RAY: Every morning on his way to work, Bill Bob Beaumont stops at the corner gas station and spends $.25 for gas.
TOM: That Puzzler! That was good.
RAY: Well, it remains to be seen. On his way home from work, he stops at the same gas station and again spends $.25 for gas. He continues this pattern for months. The amount he spends never varies, nor does the twice-a-day schedule.
TOM: Whew. Oh, man.
RAY: Oh, this thing is just rife with hints, right?
TOM: It is. I mean, always in retrospect, you say. Aha!
RAY: Aha!
TOM: That's what that meant!
RAY: Finally, the attendant who has observed Bill Bob's routine says, "You know, if you spent about 10 bucks on a repair, you wouldn't have to stop here so often. Or maybe even at all." The question is: What simple repair does the attendant have in mind? And the excellent hint is that it has nothing to do with the fuel system. Now, there are lots of potential answers to this.
TOM: There are?
RAY: Well, I suppose so. I mean, he could say, "Well, you know, he was buying gasoline and the thing was running so badly that he had to adjust the carburetor or anything," but there was only one elegant answer.
TOM: Oh, and it is elegant. It is.
RAY: That the "gas" he's buying is not gasoline, but instead he's buying "gas" which is air for his tires or a tire that has a leak.
TOM: And that's why it's always $.25.
RAY: He puts $.25 in the machine; the thing goes ding, ding, ding; he fills up his tire; and off he goes. He buys his gasoline someplace else.
TOM: Does it say dingaling?
RAY: Dingaling, and then, of course, the tire's flat after his day at work. He stops at the same filling station again, inserts another quarter--$.25 worth of gas. So, some may go boohoo, hiss-hiss, etc., but...
TOM: But, as we all did when you told us the answer!
RAY: Yeah.
TOM: But in retrospect, I have to say, it's brilliant.
RAY: Well, if you think that one was bad, wait till you hear this week's.
TOM: Because a Puzzler should be a Puzzler! It should be puzzling!
RAY: Indeed. All right, who's our winner this week?
TOM: Our winner is Alyse D'Smith. Oh, come on, who are all these people with names that I can't pronounce!
RAY: Here's what you do from now on. Her name is Alice Smith. Right.[ Car Talk Puzzler ]
