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cathyr19355 ([personal profile] cathyr19355) wrote2005-09-22 11:23 pm
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The Car Death Demon Strikes Again!

I've remarked several times about how many of my friends are having major car trouble this year--either with having cars totaled, or suffering through expensive repairs. I paid $900 in May to get my steering repaired. So I thought I was done with the evil Car Demon for this year. I was wrong.

Tonight, as I was driving Eric to dinner, I stopped at my local bank, which is about 3 or 4 blocks from my house, to use the MAC machine. As usual, I parked in the driveway because it's after banking hours, the driveway runs right beside the MAC machine, and I was only going to be there a moment or two.

Or so I thought.

After I used the machine and got back in the car, I put the key back in the ignition and turned it. The car went "urrrrgh", and the dashboard lights flashed feebly. A second try produced an even feebler "urrrgh", then nothing. Yet my dome light still worked normally, as did my emergency flashers, so the battery was not dead. I had no hint that this might happen, since the car had started normally and run normally as far as the bank, when I turned it off when I hopped out to use the MAC machine. Worse still, the car had just passed its state inspection only two days ago.

So I called AAA, wrangled with them about whether my membership was current (it wasn't), paid it over the phone, and got them to send a tow truck to take my car back to my mechanic's garage. After dinner at the local sandwich shop (not quite what I'd been hoping for), I sat in my dead car with Eric until Tow Truck Guy showed up about an hour later.

Tomorrow morning, I get to call my mechanic, explain the problem, and pray that it can be fixed with an hour's hunting and a 89-cent part. But, somehow, I doubt I'm going to be that lucky.

In other news, our home HVAC system needs fixing, again--for the third time in approximately six weeks. I fear that the Air Conditioning Demon is coming for my home system, very very soon....

[identity profile] jmaynard.livejournal.com 2005-09-23 05:17 pm (UTC)(link)
Yeah. You should probably go ahead and bite the bullet now, as the price won't get any cheaper. I would strongly recommend spending the money on a R-410 (Puron)-based system, as it will be much cheaper to maintain in the long run as R-22 is phased out. As for efficiency, the best suggestion I can make is to factor the cost difference against your electricity bills, and see where the numbers play out. Don't forget to ask about any rebates your electric utility may be offering; those often offset the extra cost of the higher efficiency unit.

[identity profile] cathyr19355.livejournal.com 2005-09-24 03:57 am (UTC)(link)
I would, but a unit big enough to supply the central air to my home costs about $2,000, and I just don't have it. Ah well, the warm season's nearly over here in Pennsylvania, and 2006 will be another year....