Thursday, May 13, 2010

Today is a day of ... thanksgiving

I have been on pins and needles for the past few days. On Monday my clutch went in my car. It happened during a little tense moment on the highway. I always leave distance between me and the vehicle ahead of me so that was good although I did have to hit my brakes - just not so hard. Then I geared down and hit the gas to get around the situation and make room for others. A moment later my car was burning something because the stench was strong. I noticed I was pressing the gas but not going anywhere fast. But we avoided a potentially serious situation for a multiple car pile up. Yay. That was the good news.

The next day I took my car to the garage and got the bad news. Then my neighbour used the words that usually cause me some concern ... "Don't take this the wrong way .. but ..." In this case she ended that with the idea that I need a new car. Yipes. I talked to the mechanic who agreed that maybe that would be the way to go since my estimate could be around $2500. I am totally unprepared for that eventuality. You need time to look at vehicles and test drive them etc.

I went online last night and looked at various websites. The 'smart car' is out. Volkswagon has some nice models that could be of interest to me. I used to like the Jetta but it would no longer be the car for me - too low. Marcy suggested the Mazda 5 but I would have to try it out - looks like more than I want. Toyota doesn't have much that I am interested in although I do think they are a quality product. Dodge caravan? Maybe. The one I instantly liked online was the Kia / Hyundia Soul. But that still left a lot to do before choosing one.

Thankfully this mornning Midas called and said the brakes check out fine and there seems to be nothing else wrong with the vehicle so my estimate will likely be around $1800. That I am willing to put into this car as she has been very reliable and will likely give me many more hours of driving time. I am relieved but it was a wake-up call and I will try to take a look at vehicles soon so that I have some idea of where I want to begin.

I won't have a car tomorrow so my friend Tanis is going to take me to the hospital tomorrow morning for my pre-surgery screening. My lumpectomy is set for May 25 - a couple of weeks yet. Then we will see if anything else is needed.

1 comment:

LzyMom said...

Oh jeez! Glad you avoided an accident. Toyota doesn't have such a great name right now due to the sticking accelerator pedal on a few models. I don't think you need your car roaring to 100 miles an hour and not being able to stop it.

I could totally see you in a smart car. :) I do love Lucille, my CRV but I think that's more room than you need.

Lily, on the other hand, has started riding a bike. argh :)