After 16 years of faithful service, the Dog Chariot’s alternator finally gave up the ghost.
We knew several months ago that it was on its last legs…or bearings, or slip rings, or whatever alternators have. But we decided to let it run, since replacing or fixing it is expensive and I was, as usual, thinking about buying a new car.
Welp. I didn’t buy a new car. In fact, I decided I don’t want a new car — druther do the driving myself, thank you. So the car has been tooling along just fine ever since that initial diagnosis.
Yesterday as I’m was driving home from the FedEx office the radio cut out.
I figured it was time to buy a new cheap radio.
But…uhm…then the ABS light flickered on. And the thermostat said the engine was a whole lot cooler than it oughta be. The air conditioning gasped and wheezed.
Shut off the AC, opened the windows. The ABS light went off. Radio cut in and out. Shut off the radio.
Got stuck behind a moron on a two-lane road that I’d turned onto by way of avoiding traffic and construction. Knew there was enough room for the six-banger to get around the idiot, so FLOORED IT and flew past the bastard like an X-wing with a TIE fighter on its tail.
The poor guy in the oncoming lane apparently did not understand why one has a six-cylinder engine. He was visibly terrified…as in he almost climbed up on the sidewalk. Tsk.
After that blast of power revved up the engine, the radio came back on and the ABS light went off and things seemed to work OK again. But I left the AC off and drove straight back to the Funny Farm.
Problem is, both of Chuck’s master mechanics are out — one with an injury and the other because he and his wife bought and paid for a trip to a destination wedding five months ago. His shop is very busy under ordinary conditions — with three guys working, they have all they can do to keep up with the work. But summertime is when cars love to crap out around here. So their lot is overflowing.
I felt terrible to foist a repair job on him right at this moment. We should have changed out the alternator when we first noticed it was sickly.
Anyhow, because of the craziness down at Chuck’s, the car probably won’t be back on the road before tomorrow. That’s OK, because I’ve got plenty of food in the house and my son is back in town.
Unfortunately I went off and left my purse in the car, which was parked in the alley behind Chuck’s. We called down there to tell Harold to snag the thing. Haven’t heard anything from them to the effect that some bum already found it. So I guess it’ll be OK. Without a car, one doesn’t need a purse…
That was stupid. Don’t even know why I took the damn purse, other than force of habit. There’s a spare driver’s license hidden in the vehicle.
We drove back to my house in a Chevy Suburban. I was reminded of why I don’t want a new vehicle.
Here’s what I want in a car:
• To get from point A to point B with the least amount of hassle, expense, and distraction possible
• To drive the car all by myself
• To be reasonably safe — i.e., inside a car heavy enough to withstand a collision or a rollover
• To run trouble-free at least 100,000 miles
• To have a radio that brings in NPR and a cowboy station
• To possess an air conditioner that actually works. At all times.
There you have it. That’s it That’s all I want.
Admittedly, a functioning air conditioner…that’s asking a lot. My car has one of the old-timey functioning air-conditioners, one that actually cools the car and does not pretend to practice passenger-by-passenger “climate control,” and that is one reason I don’t want to give it up.
Here’s what I DON’T WANT:
• A car that nags me any more than the Dog Chariot already nags
• A car that tells me to turn left an eighth of a mile ahead
• A car whose windshield wipers turn on at the first hint of a raindrop
• A car that can sense a red light ahead and puts on the brakes for me
• A car that’s connected to the Internet in any way, shape, or fashion
• A car that doubles as a cell phone
• A car that arrogates driving functions unto itself
• A four-banger whose makers fool us into imagining is as powerful as a six-banger
• A course in jet airplane navigation to learn to use the dashboard
What I really would like is to keep the Chariot on the road until such time as I can no longer drive. By then, Google and Tesla’s self-driving vehicles will be past the first and second generations and so should be less of a headache to own than the first versions will be. I’d like to be able to trade the Dog Chariot in on a self-driving car that goes faster than 30 or 40 miles an hour, that can run on the open highways, and that will last until I topple over into the grave.
That, I figure, will keep me out of the nursing home by making it possible to get daily necessities and run to the doctor without having to hire a taxicab for the purpose.
I hope.
I’m a lot like you, I mainly want a car to get me from Point A to Point B with as little stress as possible. My 14-year-old Hyundai ain’t fancy but it never needed to be. I do NOT want a car that’s theoretically smarter than I am, along with the expense of owning such a computer-on-wheels. I dread the day I will have to replace it.
Yeah, me too! I’m thinking if I have to buy a new car before I’m ready for a self-driving chariot, I’ll look for an older model. Preferably one that’s not “connected.”
Who would’ve thunk we’d ever become such fuddy-duddies? 😀
MAN….Sorry about your “car woes”….Brace yourself….alternators can be expensive….BUT I guess it’s better than a car payment…. “Back when dinos roamed the earth”….I can remember buying an alternator for $30 and installing it myself in about 20 minutes….That ship has sailed! Last time I bought one it was over $300 and a REAL pain to install. As for a new car/truck….I liked your idea of the “double cab” pickup but that Toyota…”Dog Chariot” has served you well….maybe another Toyota van. Maybe put “the word” out at Church and with your biz contacts your in the market for an….”vehicle upgrade”.
Yeah, I know… And I just dropped a wad of dough on some new shoes that I probably shouldn’t have bought. Damn! I may have to take those back.
Eventually, I guess, I’m going to have to get another car. I just don’t want to have to go back to school to learn to drive it, and I REALLY do NOT want to be “connected” to the Internet. I find that exceptionally objectionable. Crazy, I know…but please, somebody indulge me!
The folks in my business group are partial to a car broker in Scottsdale. I found him kind of aggressive…he kept pestering me after I had expressed only passing interest in MAYBE thinking about a new-to-me car. My old broker has retired. And he only brokered new cars, anyway — he would get you the fleet price. It’s pretty obvious to me that I won’t be able to afford to buy a new car. But I’ve never bought a used car, and frankly, the prospect of buying someone else’s problems doesn’t appeal much.
The new Toyota vans…argh. They’ve gussied those things up a great deal more than suits my taste, and I don’t think you can take the seats out of them anymore. Or if you can, it doesn’t look like they fold up so you can store them. That’s why I was thinking “pickup”: the way my van is set up, it’s the next best thing to a pickup: a large empty cargo space with just enough room for me and two (at most) passengers. And plenty of room for dogs to run around.
Toyota makes a pretty nice pickup. As I recall from SDXB’s, the ride wasn’t very comfortable. But my neighbor across the street has a newer model, and he says the ride is fine. He drives just like me — “assertive,” shall we say — and he’s been very pleased with the thing.
Problem is, it’s real hard to find a used Toyota pickup. People actually will stop an owner in parking lots and ask if he’d like to sell.
Auughhh! What was that we were saying about the cost of pickups the other day? Lookit this: http://www.caranddriver.com/toyota/tacoma
“The average as-tested price of the four full-size pickups in our most recent comparison test was $56,409. And that’s not even the half of it: The most expensive half-ton truck right now is the Ford F-150 Limited, which tops out north of $68,000. Hop inside that truck, and you’re greeted by stitched leather, eucalyptus wood trim, and a full-length panoramic glass roof. It’ll even massage your rear end as you tow your boat to the lake house for the weekend with your three kids in the humongous back seat.”
Auugh!
Car & Driver isn’t impressed by the Tacoma under the hood, either. They hate the V-6 engine, which for me is not a negotiable.
I get it, about buying a used car…..it’s like a mine field. When you do the research on a vehicle you often find problems with transmissions and electronics from the data….and they can be big bucks to fix. I was seriously considering a hybrid Ford Escape BUT each year seems to have it’s own set of problems and the transmissions are right around $5K for replacement…..seriously….. called my “trans guy” and says he’d LOVE to have the business. One would think….it REALLY shouldn’t be this hard….
Gaaaahhh! My son bought a Ford Escape — not a hybrid. But he also seems to have found out they have transmission issues.
It used to be that almost all GM truck transmissions failed right about at the end of the warranty.
First time it happened to the ex- and me, the transmission crashed within LESS THAN A WEEK of the warrantee’s expiration. Next time, it was a month or two afterward, but he was able to get the Chevrolet dealer to fix it. Probably being a partner in what was then the most prominent law firm in the southwest this side of southern California had something to do with his success at that…
I was recently at the dealership to have some minor work done and a guy came around doing a service survey. We talked about my vehicle (over decade old 4Runner) and asked if it was in good shape. I said, yes. He then said that they were looking to buy older 4Runners and trucks and suggested I sell mine. Because they could get me into a new one for almost the same cost.
So…I’d get a brand new vehicle for free? Because mine has been paid off for a long time. He tried to sell me on it having a warranty. it was silly. I also thought, if my vehicle is so desirable, why would I want to sell it?
Also, whenever I splurge on something (like you did with the shoes), I’m guaranteed to have an unexpected expense!