A long, long time ago the plastic string thingy that connected my gas cap to the car broke, which resulted in us setting the gas cap on top of the car when we got gas. (you already know where this is going, don't you?) A while later, I think sometime around Christmas, I set the cap on top of the car, then drove off without replacing it. Oh well, I thought, it's cheap to replace, no big deal. (My sister used to do this all the time back when she had her old Duster. I think she stopped replacing them after a while). We get gas maybe once every three weeks, so replacing the gas cap was rarely thought of.
Fast forward a month or so. Check engine light comes on. I told John I'm not driving to Texas with my check engine light on, only to break down in somewhere on the back roads of Mississippi. Being the slackers we are, we never got it looked at until today. Diagnostic test to figure out why the light turned on: $88.
A few hours after dropping off the car, the shop called John. "Well, the light turned on because the engine is picking up gas fumes. It's picking up fumes because you don't have a gas cap." They replaced the ($10) cap, drove the car around for a while, and the light went off. John called me and said "Guess how stupid I'm feeling right about now". Who knew?
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November, 2012
"And this is mine everlasting covenant, that when thy posterity shall embrace the truth, and look upward, then shall Zion look downward, and all the heavens shall shake with gladness, and the earth shall tremble with joy;" Genisis 9:22 (JST)
The South Family
November, 2012
3 comments:
So sorry. I hate the money involved with car problems and feeling at the mercy of someone else to tell me what is wrong and how to fix it. Just a note for the next time your check engine light comes on: A lot of Advanced Auto Part stores have a device (I'm sure there's a name for it) to plug into your car and read the car's computer. Obviously they aren't mechanics, but they can often give you a good idea what is going on, and they do it for free!!
On the UP-SIDE, aren't you glad it was a cheap fix and they didn't call and tell you that your engine needed 2000 dollars worth of work? Frustrating to spend money when you don't need it though, what a bummer- but at least you are driving to Texas with a nice, safe, gas cap included, car!
The diagnostic fees that they charge are completely ridiculous. I know the computers cost money and all of that, but 90 bucks every time someone walks in and says, "What's up with my car?" Highway robbery.
Glad to see the tip from Tammy. I'll definitely be using that one!
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