The 100K mile check-up
My car hit 100,000 miles back in January, not long before the very cold snap. My maintenance light came on immediately, and I knew I needed an oil change and possibly the 100K mile check-over. I figured belts would need to be replaced, stuff along those lines. And then, during or shortly after the very cold snap, my car got noisy. A few years back--I'd say a good five, but definitely since I've been at my current job--the car had an exhaust issue. Taking it to Toyota and having them look at it led them to say, you need to replace the whole exhaust system, which would have to be ordered and would take some time to get in, plus cost about $2K. ...Uh...Let me get a second opinion on that. Dad and I took it to Merlin, they said they could resolder it or what have you that night, on the spot, for like $200. Sold! And the work held until it was just too cold, which I completely get, because -20F is not a common temperature around here and who knows how low that solder (or whatever) is meant to go.
With band off this week for spring break, Monday seemed ideal for taking it in. I'll be honest: Having two long days in a row makes me tired by the time I get to Wednesday, so that I definitely just want to go home, and after that I lose momentum for attempting an appointment, and the next thing I know it's the following week and the cycle repeats. (I am SO not looking forward to summer, when I'll have three long nights in a row--Tuesday at work, Wednesday rehearsal, and Thursday concert. Ugh. I wish a Tuesday night person would up and appear and take this burden off me.)
I get there a little early, and I talk to the guy, and he's up front with me: To look at the car outside of the general multi-point inspection is roughly $68. Mind you, I had a coupon, so that my oil change and check-over cost under $42; even though the car is already getting looked at, you're telling me it's another $68 to look at this specific problem? Really? Here's the thing: I *know* there's a problem. Exhaust is coming out from under the driver's side door. I can hear that it's louder than usual. What I need for you to tell me is what you'd need to do to fix said problem, how much it will cost, and how long it will take. And you're honestly telling me that I have to spend $68 just for them to say, hey, you have a problem? I did ponder it for a moment, but no--and I told the guy what the outcome had been the last time. He understood and was gracious about it, but really. That's potentially a third of the cost of the repair done elsewhere. I'd like to do it while I'm here, because it's noisy and smelly and I think it helped contribute to some of my hearing woes, it was that loud in the past. But yeah. That is not a smart spending of money. I'm not saying Merlin doesn't have the same policy now, but really. That's just absurd to me.
The good news is that it was kind of slow that day, so without a bunch of other people having work done, my car was done in about 45 minutes. Mechanically, the car is in good shape, so that's great. Being spring break, it means my ride home during rush hour wasn't terrible, either, except I was stuck behind a car going straight in the right lane at Kirk and Fabyan. My father has instilled in me to move into the left lane, which I will do at key intersections, to not block the way for cars turning right. This person's father clearly did not share the same wisdom, so I was stuck sitting there, gazing wistfully at the construction equipment, hoping against hope they'll finally put in turn lanes at this intersection. That will be so nice. It almost warrants double-right turn lanes, but I'll definitely take one. It will alleviate the backups down Kirk Road that I used to have to sit through on a regular basis. No fun, that.
With band off this week for spring break, Monday seemed ideal for taking it in. I'll be honest: Having two long days in a row makes me tired by the time I get to Wednesday, so that I definitely just want to go home, and after that I lose momentum for attempting an appointment, and the next thing I know it's the following week and the cycle repeats. (I am SO not looking forward to summer, when I'll have three long nights in a row--Tuesday at work, Wednesday rehearsal, and Thursday concert. Ugh. I wish a Tuesday night person would up and appear and take this burden off me.)
I get there a little early, and I talk to the guy, and he's up front with me: To look at the car outside of the general multi-point inspection is roughly $68. Mind you, I had a coupon, so that my oil change and check-over cost under $42; even though the car is already getting looked at, you're telling me it's another $68 to look at this specific problem? Really? Here's the thing: I *know* there's a problem. Exhaust is coming out from under the driver's side door. I can hear that it's louder than usual. What I need for you to tell me is what you'd need to do to fix said problem, how much it will cost, and how long it will take. And you're honestly telling me that I have to spend $68 just for them to say, hey, you have a problem? I did ponder it for a moment, but no--and I told the guy what the outcome had been the last time. He understood and was gracious about it, but really. That's potentially a third of the cost of the repair done elsewhere. I'd like to do it while I'm here, because it's noisy and smelly and I think it helped contribute to some of my hearing woes, it was that loud in the past. But yeah. That is not a smart spending of money. I'm not saying Merlin doesn't have the same policy now, but really. That's just absurd to me.
The good news is that it was kind of slow that day, so without a bunch of other people having work done, my car was done in about 45 minutes. Mechanically, the car is in good shape, so that's great. Being spring break, it means my ride home during rush hour wasn't terrible, either, except I was stuck behind a car going straight in the right lane at Kirk and Fabyan. My father has instilled in me to move into the left lane, which I will do at key intersections, to not block the way for cars turning right. This person's father clearly did not share the same wisdom, so I was stuck sitting there, gazing wistfully at the construction equipment, hoping against hope they'll finally put in turn lanes at this intersection. That will be so nice. It almost warrants double-right turn lanes, but I'll definitely take one. It will alleviate the backups down Kirk Road that I used to have to sit through on a regular basis. No fun, that.