Lots of good info here from everyone. I've worked in the industry for 30+ years. Mechanic/tech/forman/owner. I'm like Julius in that I will never buy a new car. If you buy a used one to replace it, who knows what you are getting. We have a Sienna with close to 300k on it, and an Avalon with 200k+. Great, dependable rigs. Just something to consider. Rockauto.com is the best place to get parts from. Cheap, good stuff. Like Yankee said, that 700 bucks is pretty steep to do a belt on one of those. If I remember correctly, the flatrate time for doing all of the parts in a "master kit" should be under 3 hours. (Do the oil seals too!) 3 hours times 100 per hour shop labor, leaves 400 towards parts. That's way high.... We've had major problems with predatory tow companies down here in the past. That's a totally screwed up deal there...
For the home mechanic, replacing the water pump at the same time makes sense because working on the timing chain gets you easier access to the water pump. However, if you're gonna take it to a garage, they have a flat rate for each job and so easy access to the water pump won't matter one bit on the charges. Might as well replace the water pump whenever you feel like it.
That's not entirely true lanny as there are parts of the labor that are in each process that over lap and they will only charge for once. In other words if part A needs to be pulled to replace the water pump and and is also required to replace the timing chain then the shop can only charge once for having to r and r that part, thus a discount on labor. It's just like replacing the brake pads on one wheel and also replacing the wheel bearing. The wheel and tire along with some other parts need to be removed and replaced for each job, but if done at the same time only one labor charge is allowed for those parts that heed to be done for both services.
lol, I have one that'll stump you. I have a Lincoln Navigator that will try and start itself while sitting in the driveway, locked up, ignition off and no key in the car, but the starter will try and engage and start the car. I don't need a mechanic, I need a Priest to perform an exorcism.
Ha ha ha, that's just Sly testing out his invisible man serum. Don't accidentally bump in to him or you just may bump into a body part that you'll wish you could have avoided.
Fuck AAA. Insurance actually has emergency roadside service that you can purchase for the vehicle which covers towing, flat repairs, gas delivered, lock out situations etc. Mine costs me $12 a year.
Nope. It has some crazy electrical issues that have been acting up. Supposedly there is an area that water can leak into and cause all sorts of headaches.
The problem is, a court will likely state that the owner is knowledgeable on the rules of the parking lot and unless they specified how the car was to be parked and they didn't do it that way, what exactly did they do wrong? Tow companies are notorious for being shady, but unfortunately in this case, not sure what they did wrong.
Maybe. Not sure it will get me anywhere. There is a sign in the parking lot that says no backwards parking...the two truck that brought it from the shop couldn't park it the other way. So, technically, when they towed it for backwards parking, they are going by what the sign says. not sure if the law is on my side.
I tell the judge my story...if he has any conscience he will tell the tow company to fuck off. Though I am knowledgeable..as is my wife who's name the car is under...she was under extreme stress when it was towed back to the apartments and was not able at the time to consider the sign. It is a ridiculous and superfluous sign. I pay to park in the parking lot. There is a sticker on my back window. The sign is there because 1.) the two drivers for the company that works with my apartments are fucking lazy. They can't get be bothered to get out and check for the sticker, which they know is always on the left side of the rear window. 2.) So that they can screw people out of money. Also, the amount of money they are charging me $350 plus daily fees + their threat of extra liens is not only exorbitant but unconscionable. My wife and I are leaning heavily towards taking their asses to court. The more I think about it. The better it fucking sounds. I will probably pay their ridiculous fucking fees. Have my car fixed and sue the fuck out of the tow company...hell probably the shop too. Fuck them both where the sun don't shine.
Maybe your wife is just messing with you by intentionally pressing the "remote start" button on her keyless remote fob....j/k, well kinda.
I understand all that, but the court only deals with the laws and stress doesn't have a clause in it. I know it sucks, but what did the tow company do wrong by parking tit that way? Unfortunately the judge will likely ask you if you directed the tow company to park it head first and if you didn't, he will likely side with the tow company. How long after it was towed to your apartment, did the tow company that patrols the lot tow your car out of there? I would advise you to be cautious in just throwing out lawsuits as first you have to determine what each one did wrong and what you may have done wrong. The repair shop may be shady, but what did they do wrong? they gave you an estimate and you chose not to have them fix it. Now if they fixed it and it was found to be negligent charges you might, (and that's even a tough case) have a case against them. The tow company towing the car back to your apartment parked your car in your spot. Unless you designated them to park it a certain way and they didn't, you really don;t have a case against them. As for the tow company towing the car out of your apartment, if the rules say no back in parking and the tow company has the owners permission to tow illegally parked vehicles then not much recourse there unless you can prove the charges are not within their allowance as some states have negotiated tow rates through the city or county. I know it sucks, but sometimes there isn't much you can do.
lol, I wish, except there is no remote start and I have stood next to the vehicle while it tries to start by itself. I wish my dad was around and he had his shop still as it was much nicer to work on my cars in a well equipped shop and his knowledge.
Hell, with all of the circuit boards and electronics on today's cars I'm not the least bit surprised that your car is "possessed".
Yeah, modern cars are an electrical nightmare. I grew up in the day where the electrical systems were pretty basic and often helped my dad at his shop and would occasionally work on some electrical issues for him.
I once owned a possessed car. 1986 BMW 325i that had an aftermarket anti-theft system in it when we bought it for $250. It would occasionally do this weird whistle and the doors would lock and then unlock. There was one time when I went and started it before I headed out to school so it would warm up while I made my lunch, and when I went back out to leave I was locked out. I sat there for 45 minutes with my hand on the door handle in the freezing cold, waiting for that possessed car to unlock. That stupid son of a bitch drove me nuts. Always got me from point A to point B though. Either way, sorry for your struggle Chris. Those tow truck companies can go eff themselves!
