Vegmom Moments

MY CAR HAS ISSUES PART 3

I've posted before about my car doing strange things but today TOPPED the strange charts... And passed over in to the "See I'm not crazy" realm at the dealership...I took my car in the last 3 times and they say there is nothing wrong after keeping it for 8 hrs and forgetting it was there.....Although I am an Annoyed Patron that I'm sure they do not like... But at this point, I don't like them either, so there! 

Hmm... now who needs to hammer some nails?  ha ha

Here is the story....  Going to meet Hubby for Lunch.... Ok, not really... not really going anywhere because my car won't start... Not just the Immobilizer this time no... ITS DEAD!!!  So I call Hubby.... While he is on his way, I try the key again (knowing that it has issues) and the car literally BEEPS at me.. but I didn't push the horn and yet it BEEPS at me....  Then Dead!!  Then a little flash on the screen that says "Steering Disabled, Service Immediately"

OK - that can't be good!  Call the Dealership....  "Well bring it in and we'll look at it?"  What part of DEAD, do they not get!  Its not starting... So they tell me to call another number to have it towed.  And so I do... By then hubby arrives and we try his key... Thinking it was just my key... NOPE...

His key made it even angrier.  Now the car says "Breaks disabled, stop carefully"  Had I been moving at that point, I think that warning would have been BAD!!!  Thankfully my car was not moving..Still Dead!

Only its ON... the lights, are on and the radio.... Hubby gets the key out, we close the car we walk away, and it is still ON!  won't turn off and yet there is no key... I'm telling you the car is Possessed.... Hour later the tow truck gets there... He asks if I can drive it on to the truck...

Well, you are welcome to try that, maybe it will like you better" I say....  He turns the key.. It just does a little tick tick tick noise then spawns a warning that the breaks, steering and immobilizer are on.  So Mr. Nice Tow Truck man says he has to open the hood.  He doesn't know how... I don't have much confidence at this point....  I show him where the Hood Popper thing is and he jump starts the car...

It works???  Who new?  He says its the Alternator and my battery is deader then a door nail.. He was concerned it wouldn't make it up on to the truck. (flat bed thing)...  But he tows it...  Dealership said they will call me when it arrives.  THEY DON'T...

I try calling them..  3 different times, they don't answer.  So Hubby drives me up there two hours later.. My car is sitting outside.. It arrived...  The guy says they will look at it and call me...  THEY DON'T... Knowing they close at 5:30, I call again at 4...  They tell me they think it is the battery... I asked they check the alternator and they said "Nope, just the battery"  Fine!  Because the car is 2 years old and should have a bad battery right??? Surely not!  So they say they are testing it and will call me back... THEY DON'T...

5:00 I call them, knowing they are closing at 5:30 and don't work the weekends and I want my car back... "Yup, we replaced the battery, now were working on resetting the computer, we'll call you when its done"

I ask if they will call before 5:30... YES Ma'am I will call you as soon as it is done....  Great! 

Do you think they called... NOOOOO!!   I call back at 6 and the sales person that answered the phone said "I'm sorry, the service dept. is closed for the weekend"....  UMMMM And my car??? What about my Car??  He says "well you can leave them a message for Monday"

So I calmly and rudely at this point explain the circumstance, he says he will go check... Comes back to the phone to say the car is all ready and waiting out front for me to pick it up.  They had the paperwork at the front counter.  Nice, so glad they called when they said they would... Grrr!!!

We go pick up my car and it is working (for now)... and they washed it, wasn't that nice....  Sadly this is the only dealership in our area or I'd be taking my business elsewhere as this is my 4th experience of its kind.... I still like the car, I loved the buying experience, but the service...NOT SO MUCH!!! 

I guess, I was spoiled with Saturn Service for all those years.  Not only did they call you when they said they would, but they called you the following day to make sure you were OK....  And they leave a mint on your dashboard.  Now that's service!

For now I shall wait until the next issues episode until I get to enjoy the lovely service again....

CAR ISN'T HAPPY

So my car isn't very happy right now... It's lost its Pep... Its get up and go, got up and went... Chugs along because it has to, but not because it wants too...

Actually that sounds like me these days... But really I'm talking about my car... Finally one day it just died... putt putt putt sputter sputter cough cough DEAD.... But after 5 minutes it started back up.. Then it drove OK not great, but OK, and a couple days later the dang Immobilizer thing came on.

This is like the Computer blue screen of death except for my car... It won't start when that light comes on, and your pretty much stuck..Until it changes its mind.

So it is working again, all the while I'm calling the dealership.  They can't see me till the following Monday.  Fine, we make due and make an appointment.  I arrive last Monday at 8am...  4pm I call and they haven't even looked at it.... "did you have an appt." they ask!!  UM YEAH!!! That is why you made me wait until Monday!

4:30 someone calls me and says he drove it for 4 miles and found nothing wrong with it.  They set it out front and told me to come get it... *sigh*  And so I do...

Now I have my car driving all week still making funny noises, sputtering as it idles also changing gears sounds like its annoyed, and the get up and go hasn't come back.. My smooth quiet ride has turned to not so quiet and not so smooth...  Makes me sad for my tank of a car.....  But I don't have time to keep going to the dealership...

So Alas I sit bummed... Good news is, the heated seats still work and that makes me very happy on these cold days! :-)

TIME FOR NEW TIRE

How do I know its time for new tires? Because while driving down the interstate today my tire went flat! As in NO AIR!! Loving my Volvo, we didn't feel a thing.

If it wasn't for the clunkity clunk noise, I wouldn't have even thought to pull off.

Hubby gets out to change the tire. He says... "Stand over there and let me know if a car is coming toward me".

Oh sure! I'll get right on that! I'll stand at the back of the car so I can be the first to get hit.. Then you'll know to move out of the way.

Nice.. I'm so loved in this house, I tell ya...

Alas, we did get the temp tire on and made it to the fix it place.. All is well..

FIRST CAR

Some people look back to their first car and boast about its "Muscle"  A boat made out of metal that could withstand anything....

I, on the other hand can only boast about a Ford Festiva...  Yup my first car... The little puddle hopper... It was a stick shift but only had 4 gears.. and it cost $8 to fill up the tank with gas..  That tank would last me two weeks.  I toodled around town for a couple years in the little thing and then it was passed on to others in the family...

While driving in to work this morning, I saw one of these the same color as mine was (Teal) and I started to laugh... How in the world is that thing STILL running.... Let alone driving 65 on the interstate without rattling until the windows fell out. 

When a guy sees one of their muscle cars still running on the interstate they give that "Grunt" and then reminisce about how that car was the best car they ever owned and how it could stand up to a tornado and the test of time... blah blah blah... And many of those cars are actually revised, fixed, remodeled, and put on display at rallies..... But no one is going to remodel a Festiva?  A Beetle Bug Maybe but not a Festiva... You never hear of Festiva Rallies..... So when I see my little Festiva driving down the road, I think "How in the world is that still running"  ha ha...

But it did bring back some fun memories.....  I did like that little car! 

STINK IN THE CAR

Problem:  Stink in the car that was driving me nuts

Solution:  Look under Passenger Car Seat to find 10 day old Stir Fry left overs....

Ewwwww!!!  Yes, I will NOT live this one down!  (Hubby is the one that found it)

And Poor NeeNee... She says "I know how you always like herbal stuff, so I just thought the smell was from one of your things"

LOST, SMASH, & KINDNESS

Let me start by saying that I KNOW every NEW day is a good day!  I also get that everything happens for a reason and sometimes those reasons aren't clear when they happen!  But do you ever wake up and think, "If I only had 10 more minutes to sleep"  knowing that you don't... and then the rest of your day seems to be off by at least 10 minutes....

Well I tell ya... As if Tick bites, floods, and sick bugs weren't enough crazy stuff for one week, this day has decided to bless us with many more Strange things..

I woke up this morning to a child's running nose being rubbed on my face (eww!), Which led in to a GRUMPY Mommy to begin the day... Hubby tried to talk to me (nicely) and I just looked at him with all my morning glory and said "I'm grumpy, and attempting to talk to me is a BAD idea"...  So I get Veg off to school and realize I don't have my Blackberry.  I can't live with out my Blackberry.... I'm not sure if any of you have this syndrome, but it is quite serious... When a Blackberry is lost, its as if your right hand is missing.  I looked thorough the car, I called it, I called hubby, I went to the house in a scavenger hunt rage... I need to find it!   And then it hit me... I remembered... The light bulb in my head that said "AW, CRUD"

I left it on my bumper while Veg and I were playing outside last night.... So I search the yard, the driveway, the road.... I even asked the Squirrels in the front yard if they'd seen it... they were already looking at me like I'd lost my mind (which I had after all... I can't have my mind without my blackberry)  but alas, the squirrels didn't seem to be Blackberry Thieves.... And then at this point I'm about to be late for a meeting, I get a call on my other cell phone.. 

"Hello, my name is V. and I think I have your Blackberry, because I see the number coming up every time you call"  HALLELUJAH!!!!   In 4 years, I haven't once lost the thing or any phone for that matter.  I just couldn't believe it.    And this amazing lady found it in the road.  It had stayed on my bumper for at least two streets, for her to be able to find it (I'm telling you its loyal, it was probably hanging on for dear life and hollering at me to stop).  But she stopped, picked it up and took it to her work.  Thankfully she allowed me to meet her so I could get my little friend back.  It was unharmed, and happy to be back in my car.  Yup it even had a little sigh of relief, or was that me... And the best part of this whole ordeal was to see that there really is kindness and good people left in this world of ours.

So around that time, Hubby calls and says "I need to take the receptionist at the Doctor's office some coffee"... This is "not" a hubby thing to do so I asked "why" and he says that she looked like she was having a hard day, and she mentioned wishing she had some coffee.  So he took her some.. Awww.. and yet Strange!

My day goes on... Meetings and work, and a really cool Book project for Veg from SH.. And finally its time to fight the traffic and pick up the kiddo.  He was complaining of thirst and I didn't have anything in my car so once again he asked "Please" for Starbucks apple juice.  I obliged and believe it or not I DIDN'T get me a FRAP!!!  I was very good, going on my first week of Frapless days!... 

Sitting at a stop sign, waiting to turn on to a busy busy intersection (think of Frogger times 5) and I feel WHACK!!!  my head goes forward, I look to make sure Veg is OK, and see this lady behind me flailing her arms.  I get out of the car and she says "Sorry, I was scratching my foot and my other foot stepped on the accelerator.. But it looks like your car is fine"  So I looked and it did look fine (I must have bouncy bumpers).  Her car had a few scratches and she says "Oh, its just a Mercedes, don't worry I can get that fixed"   So I think all is good and I get back in the car.  where I see Veg Crying.  So in panic mode I run to his door.. "What is wrong?  Does something Hurt?"  He was so upset.... With a whimper and a tear he says "I spilled my apple juice"... 

Ya no, looking back, all this strange stuff started happening when I decided to quit having Frozen Coffee Beverages.  My Friend says that my Karma is off?  Could it be?  Do I really need the Frap to keep my planets in alignment?

Ugh - such decisions! 

COOL TRUCK FRONT

Not sure if you can see this but next to the Life is Good sticker is a SOY POWER sticker..... Now that is a message!  *SMILE*

TODAYS UPDATES

The Car - Turned out to be some parts gone bad - all under warranty. So the lonely car got to come home today and our wallets weren't drained in the process.

The Ears - Not sure its the ears.. we got a note from the school saying 3 other kids had fevers with no other symptoms.  They lasted 5 days...we are on Day 5... So maybe we are done with this nonsense "again"  But one of the ears was pink so the nurse we saw on Friday thought it was that.  Were still treating with antibiotics along with some natural stuff, hoping to be done with all this sick stuff soon.

The Thrift Store - Hubby purchased some really cool Scrapbook stuff for me tonight, along with some items to donate to Veg's School, so I have to send out some Kudos

Sleep - "HA, What's that!"

Think thats all I have for now!  :-)  Hope your day was a great one!

LONELY CAR

CHUG CHUG PUFF PUFF I THINK I CAN, I THINK I CAN... No I'm not talking about a child's book, I am talking about Hubby's car that has decided it doesn't want to run any more.  One moment all is well, and the next it just coughs and sputters and then as if it was popping a fever like Veg and his ear infections it turned on its "Check Engine Light"..  I'm not sure if it caught Veg's Ear Infection or if Hubby filled it with some bad gas (which we think is the problem)...But the poor little Dodge Neon is NOT a happy camper.

The dealership has this little fancy thing, where you drop the car off and leave your key with a note in the door.  Then when they get their in the morning, they read the note and fix your car.  So Hubby got the car to the dealership and calls us to come get him..

Dragging veg out with a 102 fever (yes these dang ears), and we arrive at the dealership... But it was so strange... I mean you seriously leave a love note to the mechanic from your car, and tie it to your key, and then just drop it in a hole in the door.  Hubby hears the key go "Clank" and fall to the floor inside the service bay.  And his car just sitting there all alone...  But it is a kind of cool service if you think about it...

What if we could do that with our body parts?  Like my Step Dad could just drop his stomach off at the doctor the night before with a note saying "Does not work, need help" and then he could go pick it up the next day.  How cool would that be? 

Or if I could Drop Veg's ears off at the Ear guy with a note stating - "they hurt, and are burning me up, please fix"

OK maybe that is kinda gross...  Back to the poor car!  So I guess tomorrow we will find out what is wrong with it.. And if it is bad gas (the fuel kind) then I think we are in for a heap of repair trouble... Thank goodness for Warranties, and a Receipt from the Gas Station!

CAR WITH MORE ISSUES

First my car didn't like my computer bag... It would beep saying my passenger (the bag) didn't have it's seat Belt on.  Then it started beeping again saying it was shutting down my airbags.  If I put my bag on the floor it was happy, and eventually the car learned to accept my bag in the seat with out beeping.

Well yesterday a very nice friend sent me a very sweet key chain.  It has my sons name and a picture of a little boy on it.  So naturally I stuck it on my Keys...Well... Apparently my car doesn't like my new key chain because it refused to start.  Yes, put the key in the ignition and I got this:

beep beep, lights blink blink and the word "IMMOBILIZED"  On my dash board!  But nothing else, DEAD CAR!!!  THIS IS NOT what someone wants to see when they are needing to be some where...

After checking the manual, I discovered you can't have two of the same keys on the key ring or it will "IMMOBILIZE"  but I didn't have two of the same keys on my key ring... I decided to remove my new key chain and Voila!  The car started and the warnings went away!

Leave it to me to pick a Car with Issues!!!