It all started roughly 3 months ago with a slight oil leak. Just enough to notice it on the ground, and smell when driving. I finally was able to take it in after several weeks of life's craziness, only to be told that I was 4 DAYS out of warranty. Really. Fortunately, they made it right, and fixed the leak without charging me a dime. Or so I thought.
After a few weeks, I could still smell the oil burning. Clearly this wasn't normal. I returned to the dealership where they assured me they had fixed the leak, and again, no charge.
Then yesterday. You know what I'm going to say, right? Yep, really bad smell, and very distinctive (but slight) smoke coming from my hood. I only had 40 minutes to figure out what to do AND drive through rush hour/snowbird traffic to pick up my son from school. After discussing it with my husband, we decided the best thing to do for the night is to get a rental car, and take my car to the dealership the next day.
Today was that day. My son wouldn't get out of bed/moving this morning (he is SO my son), which means we were late getting him to school. I decided to try a different dealership to see if they would be willing to help me with my car, and maybe really fix it this time. Third time's the charm, right? The other dealership clearly could not get it right after two attempts, and they're out of the way for me, anyways. The "new" dealership was very nice, and said they'd do their best to work something out for me. On my way back to the office, I almost lost it. We just can't afford a new car or any major repairs right now. We have a LOT going on right now, and this just isn't helping.
By 3:45, I had not heard from the dealership, so I called - and of course, had to leave a voicemail. After waiting 30 minutes with no return call, I decided to extend my rental car for another day, as I figured there was no chance that my car would be fixed. At 4:40, the dealership calls - all fixed, no charge. What?! Time to scramble, again. What a relief, though.
Then I'm literally driving out of the dealership parking lot and my car makes a very strange noise while waiting at the stoplight. What the freak. I almost thought I was hallucinating. But the noise disappears and is driving fine, so I dismiss it. Traffic is horrible, and I'm very late in picking up my son. My car still smells after I pick him up, so I check under the hood for anything noticeable. Nope. Ok then, let's just get home.
We stop at another stoplight down the road, and the noise returns. I start to get a little more scared now, as my son is in the car and I can't quite figure out what is wrong. It sounds like the engine is revving up, but the RPM gauge is not showing anything to confirm that theory. It stops again when I drive off from the light. No indications show that anything is seriously wrong.
I'm at the home stretch, only about a mile to go, and my tire pressure light illuminates. Seriously. I am not making this up. The pressure in one of my rear tires is down to 23 PSI and falling steadily. I just need to make it home! As I pull in the driveway and get out to open the gate, I can hear the tire hissing. I get in the garage and finally park the stupid piece of crap. Yep, the tire is almost completely flat. Fabulous.
Fortunately, I have a great coworker friend (who also happens to be a very experienced airplane mechanic!) whom when I called him for some advice, insisted on coming over to help me hook up the spare, and try to figure out the revving noise. He did both wonderfully - the spare is installed, and discovered that the dealership mechanic bent the a/c hose into the engine cooling fan, which made a nice gouge in the hose.
Guess where I get to go again tomorrow? The adventures we live through...
So sorry Dina, nothing worse than an unreliable car, especially when you have a child with you.
ReplyDeleteI have had the best luck with Lextech (off of old 41 but they are moving to Bonita Beach road, not sure if they have moved yet) They are good, honest and very reasonable. I know this is a warranty issue but good to know for future reference. Tell Daryl or Steve sent you! I also have a son who is a pretty good mechanic (works for Devoe, is working on his certifications now) if you are ever stuck.
Sorry to hear about all the trouble you had with the car. It is so difficult to find a reliable dealership these days. You are very lucky to have such an experienced friend who sorted out everything for you, I would have probably never spotted that they bent the AC hose in the first place. Hope it gets fixed soon.
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