Ken-I'm sorry to hear about the politics in California. Scan tools are expensive. The good ones cost about $3,000 and about another $1,000 a year to keep up to date. That explains the high price to pull codes. The whole process takes about 5 minutes. The problem with code pulling is that sometimes codes don't tell you the whole story with the car. In other words, the tool and info it supplies is only as good as the person using it.
Sothpaw - I'll tell you where I'm going in my mind with your problem. It's possible that the ignition coil or the driver module could be crapping out after getting hot. That's why I don't want to jump into the cats yet. When a vehicle doesn't start,it's because of the lack of air, fuel or spark. This is assuming the mechanicals are OK. I think it's safe to assume your problem is not mechanical.
The coil driver module, just like the rest of the electronics on your car are made with solid state(non-moving) parts. The nonmoving parts makes them consistent and reliable. The big problem with them is that they are also very delicate. That means that unless they are electrically fried, they will fail when exposed to heat and vibration. The electronics are mounted on small ceramic bases and their connections are through tiny (sometimes microscopic) solder joints. If the solder didn't flow right when it was made, or if the ceramic base becomes weak or cracked, when exposed to high heat, things tend to move. When this happens, sometimes the circuit opens and causes a temporary failure. When the unit cools, everything returns to normal. Thus the intermittent problem.
The spark test is the easiest and most logical test to do at this point. Trust me!
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