Batteries and comics

[rachelmanija]

The other day my remote car lock/unlock device died. I discovered this when, after a dental appointment, I could not remote-unlock the car. And as the remote-lock automatically sets the alarm, if you manually open the car, the alarm goes off and the car won't start

Comments

[katie_m]

I've never had my remote die like that, but I did once have the in-car switch to open the fuel door die.

So there I am, half an hour into a trip over the Cascades that normally takes two and a half hours but that is likely to be longer this time, as it is snowing in the pass. I spend a while at the gas station trying to pry the door open with a key, and I cannot. I call AAA, thinking that surely this is exactly the sort of situation for which one has AAA, and am told that they cannot help me unless I am actually out of gas, instead of "low enough on gas that should I try to leave Ellensburg I will be stranded on the side of I-90. Possibly in the snow."

I try the switch a few more times, hoping that maybe it's just, you know, kidding. It is not kidding. At this point I call my physical therapist's office and explain that I am not coming, because I have car trouble and plus there's snow in the pass. They are understanding. (That physical therapist is the only physician who's ever gotten a thank you note from me, though granted not for being understanding about cancellations for people driving over the Cascades.)

So I call the dealership in Yakima and say, hey, any suggestions? "Oh," they say, "there's a manual release in the trunk!" Excellent.

They attempt to talk me through finding the manual release. I eventually manage to locate it, but it is in such a place that a 5'2" woman with shortish arms and not terribly strong hands cannot actually do anything with it but brush it with her fingertips.

I go to a Dodge dealership in town. (Ellensburg is a small town in central Washington. Dodge is what you've got.) I explain the problem and recruit one of the mechanics to my cause. He tries to get ahold of the switch and fails--by this time the lining of my trunk is half off, though thankfully it's designed to do that--so goes to consult a more senior mechanic. He goes to consult the Wisdom of the Internet, comes back out, fools with my trunk for a while, and finally, the fuel door cover pops open.

I thank them profusely, drive back to the gas station with the fuel door open (praying the entire time that it isn't going to blow closed), and go home. The end. Well, other than getting the fuel door repaired.

I like many things about my Jetta, but its propensity to have weird things go wrong with minor, yet essential systems (I once drove three hours to Portland with a window stuck down. Yes, it rained) is not one of them.