Car Repairs - The Saga

Greetings!

Well...I just want to say that I HATE car repairs. I hate them with a passion that burns deep within me. Not only are they expensive as all get out, they also inconvenience the driver and force a change in routine, plans, budget, etc. Don't get me wrong - if something is wrong with my poor Coby (my car...that's his name), then I want them fixed. The last thing that I want to happen is some day when I'm driving my daily commute to work via the US-20 bypass that I end up stuck on the side of the road like some poor schmuck. That would NOT be pleasant and I fear for the person that finds me. I think the deepest root of my hatred is that dealerships STRETCH the truth of what actually needs fixed and what could be fixed, but isn't a true problem, followed by an astronomically expanded cost to each repair. Why?? I know they want to make a buck - hey, this is America - but it REALLY costs THAT much to bolt on a rotor, or replace a shifter? Good grief!

So, that being said, today I took Coby (my car - remember him?) to a dealership here for a safety recall. No big deal - it's free to me and I would much rather have it fixed, especially if GM thinks there are going to be problems. To the credit of the dealership (who shall stay anonymous - they did their job well), they were very pleasant and I couldn't have asked for better service. They left the decision on the repairs up to me and I felt no pressure to do it RIGHT NOW (which one sometimes feels with these places). Of course, I receive my phone call at McDonald's (yeah, free wi-fi!) that the car is finished, followed by a litany of OTHER "problems" they found. ARGH! Well...of course, my lovely bride was not excited, but we decided with good discussion and thought and LOTS of prayer beforehand, to have a second opinion. Yeah for respect and communication in marriage!! :)

Now, as I sit here, waiting for that call to see how many of the "problems" are actually problems, I pray that this will not hurt the bank as much as I think it could. Thank you all for allowing me to vent my frustrations. Better on a blog than on a poor repairman. Ha!

Until next time!

BTW...marriage, weeks 2 and 3....still FREAKING AWESOME! I love my wife!!