This has NOT been a good week car-wise , at least in my part of the world. First, my friend and neighbor, @Joyce Mcgregor called and asked if we could bring the battery charger for her car , which would not start. We did that, Bobby (aka Preacherbob) hooked up the battery charger, and we headed off to the next little town where we pick up my daughter's mail every week while she is overseas. On the way back, we stopped at the grocery store, and when we came back out, there was a huge puddle of water and anti-freeze all around the car. Sure enough, the radiator was empty ! We went to the nearby gas station and got some water and filled it back up, got a gallon to spare in case we had to stop again on the way home, and raced for the house. Apparently, it was not losing so much water when we drove, because we made it home fine (with a lot of prayers, I might add), and then the water started pouring out again. After letting it cool down, Bobby checked to see if maybe it was just a hose. It wasn't. That meant he had to disassemble part of the car to get to the water pump. Meantime, back to Joyce's car, and her battery was still dead and the car still would not start, so he activated the charger on that again. By that night, Bobby had the water pump almost off, and the next morning we began a search of the neaby auto parts stores for a replacement. By now, Joyce's car was starting again; so that was the good news for the day. Next, Bobby got a call from a friend and his water heater had started leaking bad, and they run a small convenience store, so he needed to get it working right away. A deal was soon worked out that Bobby would help him with the water heater, and he would drive Bobby to get the new water pump for the car. Last night , Joyce stopped by for a minute, and her car now sounded like someone was running a bad lawnmower out in front of the house. Thankfully, she made it home, too; but the outlook does not sound good for her car. Today, Bobby got the new pump installed; so (at least for the time being) we are able to drive again. Our poor old stationwagon has been on its last legs for a while now; so I always have to baby it along and not go anywhere I do not have to go. It may be time for horse-and-buggy days again.......
I so hear you on the horse and buggy part. I agree there is no worse feeling then when your car does not want to work. I will never forget driving my son to P.A for wrestling camp and the radiator started to leak on my old truck. I bought some anti freeze and when you say you pray on the road it is so very true. I was lucky and made it home okay. I was alone driving back and really do not know what might have happened had I not made it. My mechanic told me something I did not know, when you are actually driving a vehicle and the radiator leaks it will not leak when the car is in motion because the system is under pressure, it will leak as soon as you stop though. This is providing it is a pin hole leak, Obviously a big hunk out of a hose or something like a water pump leaking you will have problems. Had you kept driving with your water pump like that you could have blown the engine. It is good Bobby is handy and you have people that can help you out. Hopefully that was your can quote for the year.
I got a flat tire a couple of days ago, after leaving my land up north. I had a perfectly good spare and a jack, but I couldn't find my tire iron. Plus, my phone was dead and not recharging for reasons I'll never know, so I couldn't even call AAA. I drove it on the flat for about ten miles before coming to a tire shop, and fortunately the rim was not damaged.
Ahh, that's good to know, @Ken Anderson, since I don't go too far, and my tires aren't the greatest. I only drive around 10 miles from home maximum, since the car's been acting up, with no money or help to fix it. Crossing my fingers here. Glad your rim wasn't damaged. @Yvonne Smith What a week y'all have had. as @Jenn Windey said, it's good that Bobby is handy, and y'all were able to get the part, and repair the vehicle. I had a car like that when I was in grad school, and money was tight back then too, but actually not as tight as it is now. I consistently drove with several gallons of water in the car just in case, because I was always having to add that and anti-freeze, until I had the money to repair it. I'm glad that's behind y'all, and I hope @Joyce Mcgregor's car is fixed soon.
Two things I'm very glad we have: AAA and a fully charged External Battery for a cell phone we keep in our main vehicle. Wife also has one of these batteries in her purse and fully charged. I check both of them often to make sure they are fully charged. Unlike years ago, when I had older vehicles (old Maverick and Datsun King Cab) and done some repairs, tune-ups and oil changes on them myself, I don't do any repairs like that anymore. For one thing, living in an apt. complex, it's not allowed. Other thing, I just can't physically do those repairs anymore. I never did brake jobs or deep engine repairs anyway. I will still change a battery and do easy stuff (change air filter, wiper blades, add anti-freeze), but the rest is left up to either Goodyear or Midas where we have credit. I remember one morning, sitting in Midas, waiting for something to be checked, the manager looks at me and says "so, how are you doing this morning?", obviously thinking I'd say "good". Nope, not what I said. I looked at him and said, "well I can't be doing that good since my vehicle is sitting here with possible something wrong with it." He got a chuckle out of that and said "you're right".
Well, my car is sitting in the driveway since the "bad lawn mower" sounds. I really hate cars, especially when there is no money for repairs. But Yvonne's hubby is going to come back down when he gets time and look at it. In the meantime, no driving. Yvonne calls me when she is going out to see if I need to make a stop anywhere. I am so thankfull for her and Bobby and the help they give me. It is truely a blessing to have friends like them.
I'm sorry to hear that Joyce, I'm almost in the same situation. I'm glad you have good friends/neighbors who will help, that sure is a blessing. I sure wish something would turn around, and so many people weren't struggling these days.
We bought 2 brand new cars in 2013 so we have no problem with a breakdown. Besides, our cars are well maintained by the dealer although quite an expense. However, our main problem is the motorcycles on the road. There are lots of motorcycles here and our cars have suffered countless of injuries already, from simple scratches to bigger damages like dents. It's really exasperating whenever our car would be damaged by motorcycles. And there was never an incident that the motorcycle stopped albeit they sped away to escape responsibility. Now my car has a scratch in the front fender and my husband's car has 2 big scratches at the back. It's very stressful.
You are trying to be funny eh? No thank you. Even if you give us a motorcycle for free, no way I will be riding on it. Seriously, we abhor motorcycles because the statistics say a lot - more than 100 accidents a day in Metro Manila alone. There is no clear regulation of motorcycles, they are almost everywhere, in any lane. And most of the times they would cut the path of big vehicles as if they are faster. It's a good thing that motorcycle riders are required to wear helmets and that motorcycle headlights should be turned on when on the road but still the statistics of accidents are high. We were in Vietnam last weekend and motorcycles there dominate the road. I would hate to drive a car there because I wouldn't last a day without an accident.
No, I was being semi-serious. The old adage, if you can't beat em', join em'! You would have more mobility yourself. I thought you had mentioned a motorcycle or motor scooter, in a previous post. Maybe it was your Father In Law? Anyway, a motorcycle would make a smaller target, and you would blend in.