I’ve Got Auto Troubles.
November 27, 2008 – 1:24 pmYesterday, the transmission on the Escort decided to finally put its foot down and demand that I either fix it or leave it alone. It did this on the way to Erin’s house for our “this is the best time that everyone can actually get together” Thanksgiving. Lucky for me, the car was able to make it back to our house without breaking down and I didn’t have to have it towed. But now, the morning after, I am faced with a multi-pronged problem.
The reason I started driving the Escort is that one morning, on my way to work, the van ran out of gas. I had just enough fumes to get it back home (hmmm notice a trend?), but not enough to get to the nearest gas station. The escort had gas and started up fine. After that I got in the habit of driving the Escort, despite its occasional transmission complaint. The van sat there for probably a month or more, during which the rear passenger tire went flat. It has a some sort of a pin hole leak. So now the van has 2 problems that need to be addressed (lack of gas and a flat tire). I also imagine, since it sat for as long as it did, that it needs a jump. I’m not going to try to turn it over without adding fuel.
So now I’ve got my work cut out for me. I have to walk to the nearest gas station, buy a can of “fix a flat” sealer, a gas can, 2 gallons or so of gas, and pray it all works so I can get the van to gas station for a proper fill up. All of this on Thanksgiving day. Yeah.
5 Responses to “I’ve Got Auto Troubles.”
Why don’t you sell the van and the escort and buy a new used car?
By Nic on Nov 28, 2008
I recently missed work because i had a nail in my tire. And actually I found a lot of nails near my parking spot (thanks maintenance crew) as I attempted to switch to my spare tire (which was ALSO flat I later found out). I had to drop 430 bucks for 4 new tires. :( I was planning on fixing my breaks this weekend and now I’m low on funds. Oh and by the way… I used a can of “fix a flat” to inflate my spare tire and it didn’t provide enough air (it was enough to get me to Costco though). Maybe my can was defective. But it’s something to think about.
By gary on Nov 28, 2008
My can also only filled the tire part way. But it was enough to get to the gas station, where I filled it up the rest of the way. The fix a flat can is really only meant to fill a compact car’s tire. My van has pretty big tires. After all, its the goo inside that really matters.
By Ben on Nov 28, 2008
Nic, I think that is the eventual plan. But at the moment we can’t afford a car payment. When Corin goes back to work, we’ll repair the Escort (it’s the newest and most valuable). I don’t need to do much to the van to get it ready for sale. At that point I’ll consider my options on a used (or inexpensive new) car.
We’re so close to getting out of debt, I’m not in a big hurry to get back in debt. Considering that the car and van were free and I haven’t invested more than the cost of gas and oil, both cars are still 1000’s of dollars ahead.
Any tips on where to buy my future car?
By Ben on Nov 28, 2008
I don’t really have any suggestions. I had to get my car in a hurry so I just went to Carmax. It worked out pretty well though. Other than flat tires, I haven’t had any problems and obviously that doesn’t have anything to do with where I got my car.
By Nic on Nov 29, 2008