My car isn't that old... I got it brand new in October of 03. So its what... 3.5 years old. Well I've got over 95000 miles on it. The first 2.5 years that I had it I drove obscene amounts. As in 120 miles a day round trip to/from work, driving at least 2 hours to and from my parents house or to MD almost every weekend... stuff like that.
So poor little Suzie Q (what my trusty Civic has been nick named) has had a rough 3.5 years. Shes in the shop today. And I just got a call from the mechanic at the Honda dealership telling me that all the repairs that needed to be done (AC is broken, need new brake pads, and then the major 90,000 mile tune up) was going to come to $1900!!! WHAT???? I thought the AC just needed freon (however you spell it) because air comes out when I turn it on... its just not cold. But apparently the entire system is shot. And it was going to be 1295 to fix it. UGH! Must I remind you that its almost summer time in BALMY, HUMID Charlotte, NC?
I clearly am not paying 1300 bucks to get it fixed (I can barely afford the stuff that HAS to be done like uhhh brake pads haha) so looks like its time for this chickie to just SUCK IT UP and be hot this summer :) I'm thinking of investing in one of those super stylish windshield blocker things so that the car stays a bit warmer when its baking in the sun.
So lets just sum it up by the fact that I was almost in tears when I got off the phone with the mechanic as I was just starting to feel somewhat good about my financial situation (granted still in debt, but keeping my head above water and slowly paying things off). Damn it all!
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Yes, I'm actually wearing shorts!
The story of a girl trying to lose those extra pounds, in a HEALTHY way. Eating right, exercising and keeping track of it all for her own sanity.
Yes, I'm actually wearing shorts!
About Me
Name: jeannie
Location: Charlotte, NC
Age: 28
Random Happies: singing loudly in my car, little kids, good hugs, real mail, family dinners, my iPod, the beach, crushed ice, sunny days, March Madness, my Weber, flip flops, Maddie (the pup), manual cars, math, roadtrips, fountain sodas, laughing until it hurts
Location: Charlotte, NC
Age: 28
Random Happies: singing loudly in my car, little kids, good hugs, real mail, family dinners, my iPod, the beach, crushed ice, sunny days, March Madness, my Weber, flip flops, Maddie (the pup), manual cars, math, roadtrips, fountain sodas, laughing until it hurts
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6 comments:
That sucks. I feel you on the AC. It's tough to go without in the summer.
My car is in the shop as I type, with no end in sight. I talked to the mechanic today, and it is now "safe" to drive. So now he can drive it and figure out what it takes to make it reliable. I hate car issues. The best for you and Suzie Q!!
UGH! I went through the same thing with my last car. I felt like I was just pouring money into it. And it would need fixing when I didn't have the dough. You kind of get use to the sweating in the car after a while. Hahaha. Good luck!
ugh. cars...love 'em when they're working, hate 'em when they're not (kinda like any piece of technical equipment, in my opinion!).
I've found that most dealerships are rip offs. Have you gotten a 2nd opinion from another mechanic? I've used Honda Works (www.hondaworks.net) on Tryon Street before and found them to be pretty reasonable (it was a few years ago though).
Jeannie...woah. Ok a few ideas for you coming from a girl with a handy mechanic-esc husband. The 90k service...most of it is a bunch of crap. When you bought your car, they should have given you a list of what is contained in this service pack, some of it is like "check the windshield wipers", "clean the door jams", "check the tire treads" all of which I know you can do on your own...and they are charging you for it. I am sure, that if you took their list and went down it yourself or sent it to me, myself and/or Jimmy can tell you what you really need done. Two, brake pads are break pads and once when I went to Nissan to see about having mine done, they wanted $400...just for those!! GO TO WAL MART or find out if anyone you work with or know can install brake pads. Jimmy does mine (it's a shame you don't live closer or he'd do yours too!), they cost around $30 at Autozone or whereever and are not too difficult to put on. You could probably buy the pads and pay someone like $50-$100 and have them put on in a day. As for the air conditioner, go around and get free estimates, it might take some time, but on your lunch our one or two days a week go to places your co-workers have used and get estimates, if they want your work they will come down in price, go into the first one and say, Honda wanted to charge me $700 to fix my AC (total BS I know, but this works) and then ask if they can beat that, so if they say sure we can do it for $600 you have more then cut your charge in 1/2!! Then get it in writing then go to the next place and so on, until it is manageable. If you want/need any more help/car advice, just shoot me an email! Sorry about the lengthy comment!! Good Luck!
Carrie has some really good advice, I was going to mention that the 90 km service is usually a big rip off and is basically unnecessary. I usually shop around to try to find the best deal, sometimes at smaller shops you can get the work done for up to 50% lower than what the dealership is charging you so shop around!!
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