Hm. I have posted absolutely nothing of what's actually been going on lately. I think for the most I'll keep it that way...but the result of the drama is that I'm not going to Atlantic City with Craig for spring break. We were supposed to leave this morning. Instead, I left by myself and went to Virginia to visit Alex. Eleven hours of driving by myself was certainly not my ideal way to spend a day, but it actually wasn't nearly as bad as it could've been. There's something therapeutic about just sailing along by yourself, listening to whatever music you want, singing if you want, and stopping where and when you want.
Of course, being me, I did manage to get a bit lost in New York, but with the help of mom and Google Maps I got out again and the rest of the trip went fine. I skipped Pennsylvania entirely, which was a large part of my original route, but I found a good way to get here and it worked out. I called Alex from the city of Roanoke, and she came and found me and we went to dinner at a Mexican restaurant called Alejandro's. They had something I've never seen before but am a huge fan of: a salsa bar. They set a basket of chips on the table and you go get whatever types of salsa you want to go with it. I'm a salsa whore - it was a little piece of food heaven for me.
Thinking about it now is making me hungry again. Damn.
Alex has class all day tomorrow, so I'm going to hang out in her apartment and get as much school catchup work done as I can. Having recently failed two exams, I've got plenty to work on. But first, I sleep in, since I went to sleep at 2:30 this morning, was woken again at 4am, and then again at 6:30, and have been up since then. I just wish I had some way to work the kinks out of my neck and back that came from all the driving.
Oh, and in other wonderful news: my car needs a new engine. When it rains, it pours, right?
Showing posts with label car. Show all posts
Showing posts with label car. Show all posts
Monday, March 16, 2009
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
The Car
Sometimes I wonder if I look a little too much on the bright side of things...then again, if I didn't, where would I be? I hoped when my last car was totalled that the next one would provide less cause for concern, but it's turned out to be the other way around. Yeah, the Jetta had a lot of problems its first year, but they all got fixed, and after that it behaved itself pretty well. The Corolla, on the other hand...
I'll start with the short background: I took it to Autex in Keene for an oil change, after which it developed a small rattle, not terribly alarming. Three thousand or so miles later, I took it back to the same place for an inspection, since they'd offered me a free one. I requested that they check out the rattle, which had gotten quite a bit worse in the last couple of months.
The guy came back to me looking somewhat alarmed and informed me that they hadn't found a rattle, but the engine was rapping loudly (sounds the same to me...he couldn't have just figured that's what I'd heard?), and when they checked, the car contained no oil. I told them to do an oil change and check for leaks, and they did so and found none.
The rapping stopped for about twenty-four hours, then began again, getting progressively worse over a couple of weeks until it was even worse than before. I checked the oil often, but even after a drive to western New York and back the level hardly fell, so I wasn't overly worried. The exhaust looked and smelled as it should, and it left no puddle in the driveway.
This week marked another three thousand since the last oil change, so I took it to JiffyLube to have the job done. In the summer I would do it myself, but there's no way I'm lying down in the snow and ice at this time of year to save twenty bucks. Craig asked the tech how the oil looked when it came out of the car, and the answer was, "There wasn't enough to tell. Oh, and you're low on coolant, too." He also told us that they did find a leak, between the engine and the transmission. It wasn't leaving a puddle because it only leaks while I'm driving.
The engine rapping was very slightly better after the service, but as I figured, it came right back. It seems the cylinders and/or cylinder heads are too badly damaged from...whatever the hell happened...to recover. Now, missing oil and coolant, and a leak between the engine and transmission that only happens when it's running - put the clues together, and what do they suggest? Unfortunately, a cracked engine block.
Of course, just finding out if that's actually the problem could cost more than the car is worth, so I'm pretty well stuck. I'm going to try to find a local mechanic who will give me an opinion without charging me three months' paycheck, but I honestly don't have a lot of hope.
I'll start with the short background: I took it to Autex in Keene for an oil change, after which it developed a small rattle, not terribly alarming. Three thousand or so miles later, I took it back to the same place for an inspection, since they'd offered me a free one. I requested that they check out the rattle, which had gotten quite a bit worse in the last couple of months.
The guy came back to me looking somewhat alarmed and informed me that they hadn't found a rattle, but the engine was rapping loudly (sounds the same to me...he couldn't have just figured that's what I'd heard?), and when they checked, the car contained no oil. I told them to do an oil change and check for leaks, and they did so and found none.
The rapping stopped for about twenty-four hours, then began again, getting progressively worse over a couple of weeks until it was even worse than before. I checked the oil often, but even after a drive to western New York and back the level hardly fell, so I wasn't overly worried. The exhaust looked and smelled as it should, and it left no puddle in the driveway.
This week marked another three thousand since the last oil change, so I took it to JiffyLube to have the job done. In the summer I would do it myself, but there's no way I'm lying down in the snow and ice at this time of year to save twenty bucks. Craig asked the tech how the oil looked when it came out of the car, and the answer was, "There wasn't enough to tell. Oh, and you're low on coolant, too." He also told us that they did find a leak, between the engine and the transmission. It wasn't leaving a puddle because it only leaks while I'm driving.
The engine rapping was very slightly better after the service, but as I figured, it came right back. It seems the cylinders and/or cylinder heads are too badly damaged from...whatever the hell happened...to recover. Now, missing oil and coolant, and a leak between the engine and transmission that only happens when it's running - put the clues together, and what do they suggest? Unfortunately, a cracked engine block.
Of course, just finding out if that's actually the problem could cost more than the car is worth, so I'm pretty well stuck. I'm going to try to find a local mechanic who will give me an opinion without charging me three months' paycheck, but I honestly don't have a lot of hope.
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