They would have died out there!

Well, not really, but it was pretty hot out this morning, and at first we were the only ones to stop and help! We left Karijini National Park and were headed to a small town called Tom Price when we happened upon yet another broken down Toyota Troopy, which was blocking the opposite lane. We stopped and asked the very nice older German couple if we could help, and when they said that the engine was dead, we decided we needed to tow them out of the middle of the road to someplace safe. We hitched up the ailing Troopy to Reggie with a tow strap, and pulled it a few hundred meters to a wide spot on the side of the road.

They then informed us that the vehicle had just stopped, with the engine turning over but not firing, and they had just filled the gas tank at Tom Price. I figured that it was either an electrical issue, or no fuel getting to the engine, as it was a newer electronic Troopy. Not for the first time I was happy to have a mechanical engine instead of an electronic one, as they are not as easy to fix as a mechanical engine. After verifying that all of the fuses worked, we then went looking for the fuel pump, to no avail. This Troopy was pretty fancy, and I couldn't tell what was what under the hood, what with the marvels of electronic vehicle engineering crammed under there.

Luckily a mine work truck then came along, and the very kind Rio Tinto mine worker offered to drive the couple into the next town. We advised them to notify the car rental agency so they could get a call out for a real mechanic, or tow truck, as none of us were anything close to an electronic engine mechanic! There were some language barriers, but before we parted ways the couple did ask for our names and email address, and mentioned something about a Christmas card. This wasn't the first Troopy that we've tried to assist, or seen broken down, so we thanked heavens for our sturdy and uncomplicated Reggie, and headed off - another day in the life of an overlander!