On my car

So, after an unprecedented run (for this blog, anyhow) of 13 posts over 11 straight days, I thought you all might be taking me for granted, so I decided to be quiet for a couple days.

Heh, no, not really, it just kind of worked out that way, but I am sort of glad the streak broke naturally before it got so long that it was putting pressure on me to maintain it.

Anyhow, I just got my car back tonight. I had the thing serviced at Jiffy Lube last Saturday, and a couple days later I noticed smoke coming from the engine as I drove, and shortly after I would stop. The first thing I did, naturally, was stop and top off the radiator. It was a little low, but nothing to be overly concerned about, and I noticed from that point on that the car was not even close to overheating. So I kept on driving it, until Tuesday night, when I was going to a softball game and the thing really started to smoke. I opened up the hood when I got to the game, but I really just couldn't figure out what was going on. Got it back home after the game, at which point I realized the thing was leaking oil. It was leaking out onto the engine manifold and burning off as the engine heated up, which explained not only the smoke, but a rather bad smell that accompanied it.

So, I generally still get my car worked on at the shop in the town where I grew up, about 45 minutes away. Our family has a very good relationship with the service department there, they treat us very well, and I've just never had an opportunity to look for a good mechanic around here. I arranged through my folks to borrow my aunt and uncle's extra car, and to meet my Dad with it about halfway between here and there. And of course, as I got started that night, the thing started to smoke noticiably. I, of course, was aware there was no immediate problem, but clearly the one guy I drove by on 581 was not aware. He pulled up beside me and was desperately signaling me, as if I couldn't see the smoke coming from the back of my own. I tried doing my best to single him back that I knew and it was okay, but he just didn't get the message and stayed with me, even as I slowed down to try to let him go past. When that didn't work, I sped up and went back by him, at which point he pulled over behind me and continued his signaling. So slowed down again, and once again, he pulled up around me with this panicked look on his face, still frantically signaling, with me once again trying to signal him. I sped up again, and this time I think he finally got the message or gave up. I'm just thankful everyone on my 25 mile drive down 581 and 81 wasn't quite as "helpful" as this guy. Everyone else pretty much ignored me, except for the guy who passed me with his windows wide open who clearly had a issue with the smell.

Anyhow, got the thing into the shop, and it turns out that the new oil filter that Jiffy Lube had put on the car was busted in someway. Needless to say, we'll be having a conversation about that at some point in the next several days. There was also something of a shimmy in my car, which I had looked at while it was in, turns out all 4 wheels were out of alignment. That would cause a shimmy, I suppose. So, I'm looking forward to a not too friendly repair bill here. Fortunately, I lucked out, because the shop's billing cycle runs on the 25th, and I got the work done starting on the 26th, which means they won't bill me until July 25th, and then I'll have another month to pay.

This is the second time in the last 3 months the car has been in the shop for something to do with the engine, but I really just love the car. The first time in the shop it was struggling because it needed a tune up, and obviously this recent engine difficulty wasn't a result of the engine breaking down. I bought the car (a 1997 Dodge Intrepid) in 2003, it now has over 110,000 miles on it, and these are the first two times it's ever been in the shop because of engine issues. So all in all, I've been quite blessed with this machine, and here's hoping that continues for a while longer.