Two weird problems and a good laugh!

I always try ty fix things myself. It's not that I don't trust real mechanics but rather that I want to spend my money on something else - like sushi and a new shirt - and I find great pleasure in learning new things. But this time I was just about to give up.


1. Start - Click - Stop.
Whenever I would do a cold start it would start right away but then, after 5 seconds, there would be a click and it shut down. This procedure would repeat itself two times whenever I start it cold. After two restarts it would continue like nothing had ever happend.
I was clueless. I asked around and where given all kinds of advice. Maybe the membrane is damaged or maybe there's a an air leak or maybe there's something wrong with the fuel pump...
None of this sounded like something I wanted to dig into. I got this image in my mind where some tiny springs shoots of and disappears into my beard, never to be found again.
One off my favorite resources in this world of tinkering with vintage 4x4's is a website called "ih8mud.com" and that's where I found the answer.
It was so simple. There's a sensor mounted to the lower side of the engine that tells if it's low on oil - I knew that - AND, it tells a relay to turn the engine off if it's to low - I did NOT know that!!!
So, I simply pulled the cable off from the sensor and gave it a try. Now it just kept on running - yippiiii! And yes, I did off course check the oil. There was enough oil so the sensor must be broken. I'll check that later, no biggie. So the solution was super easy, just pulled a wire and that's it.
Thanks ih8mud.com !!!

2. A new (scary) sound.
A few days back I noticed a kind of clonking/rattle-ish sound while driving. I thought that maybe something had come loose so I checked everything I could think of, over and over again, but could not find the source of it. I got pretty discouraged by the whole deal and all kinds of expensive scenarios started to spin around in my head.
I solved it today.
Turned out to be the stupidest thing. I had accidently shifted the transfer case from 2WD to 4WD with the front hubs set on "free"! So the front wheel drive was activated but without any resistance from the hubs, hence the rattling sound. I had a real good laugh at myself.

Well, stay alert and you will learn something new everyday.