A car is an investment in not this.
About 3 years ago, we bought a car. Not only because I am super lazy and don’t like to walk to places, but also because our other car decided that it needed to drop the transmission for some reason. I’m not smarty, but I know that when your transmission drops, you will also be dropping…lots of money on fixing it. Rather than drive around in a van that sounds like a stick shift that is constantly in first gear, we decided to get another car instead.
It was a great investment in my feet. Also my kids feet, who are pretty good at complaining as taught by their father. They like to ask for things like food and shelter and cars to drive them around. I swear, some people are so high maintenance.
Anyways, we took a completely unproductive Saturday (which is what they are supposed to be) and turned it into a productive Saturday, by visiting dealerships, looking at ads on the internet and then visiting other dealerships, then talking to mobsters, uh, car salesman, about getting a new car. It was emotionally draining sitting in uncomfortable chairs while my wife badgered these people and told them to lower the price and give us more stuff. Then it was even more emotionally draining signing paper after paper, and telling the “warranty” guy no time after time. No, we don’t want the undercoating, no we don’t want the extended warranty, no we don’t want the optional seat belts. Geez.
We finally got out of there completely scathed. It was well after nightfall, as I drove our transmission noise maker to the dealership to complete the trade in deal. We had our highly mediocre car with the one day test trial of Satellite radio, the luxury pleather seats, and an enormous bill for the next 60-700 months. I couldn’t wait to get it out on the road to do some drifting, but my wife said that vans aren’t for drifting.
What we did find out is that they aren’t very good at tires. For some reason, this new car had a passenger front tire that lasted barely longer than the satellite radio.
But you know you just figure it’s a new car, it’s just because tire pressure fluctuates and we’ll just go fill it up and it will be fine. And it was. Until a month goes by and it does it again.
On and off the little tire messes with our psyche. Every time we think it works, it comes along and doesn’t. But it is just such a little thing, we deal with it.
We take it to Firestone, they tell us they can’t find anything. Then, about a year later, our tire tread is too low, so state/federal law says blah de blah and you have to get new tires. Which is fine with us. It may cost a grand to replace them all, but at least that freaking leak with go away.
And it did. For a while.
Oh crap, it’s me.
Then, just like that annoying “friend” who goes away just enough for you to feel safe again, just to pop up and need money just when you don’t have any, our little “friend” came back.
First it was once a month, then once a week, then every other day. Now, it freaking every single day! And honestly, we would fill it up, then come home and get the stupid warning sign again.
Saturday, we took it to Sam’s Club. Fully ready to stay all day if necessary. They got us in. Asked if we had any nails or anything puncturing the tire. Nope. Nothing. They put some sealant on it, filled it back up. And we were on our bitter way. We spent the rest of the day going to a movie, shopping for some Father’s Day clothes, and breathing contently that our tire was finally fixed.
Then we woke up the next day. Drove to church, so excited that it was fixed. We even checked the tire, just to make sure. 36 just like it was the night before.
Finally.
But wait, did that say 24 just as it switched back? I must be seeing things. Yep, I’m seeing red. I am ready to douse this thing with gasoline and light it on fire. And throw it off a cliff.
Hey car, you’re fired.
Man am I tired of this thing.
ARRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH
Bitter Tired of this Thing Ben
Ben's Bitter Blog 
Good stuff, Bitter. Glad you saw through those selfish wants and needs of your kids. [food, etc.] Not only high-maintenance, but flat out presumptuous. Do you have a separate post on warranties for kids? ;->
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I know. Some kids can be so needy. They not only need food, but shelter as well? Come one!
I should have got a warranty on my kids, but of course, I didn’t want to pay for those scams. The extended one would have ran out already anyways. Too late. Now I need to feed them out of pocket.
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i feel this so hard. except we have a lovely elderly neighbor that “does us a favor” and checks our tire pressure every few weeks. A few Saturdays ago, we had a 7am doorbell greeting letting us know all was well.
I havent mowed the lawn since.
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That sounds like a neighborhood that is way too involved. Remind me never to move there. I can fix my own tires thanks. Oh and don’t wake me up.
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A day in a car dealership is what I imagine hell would be like, on par with spending a day with an insurance salesperson. Both are clearly driven by the devil.
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Well, I spoke of my eternal hell last week. When I attended an all day wedding. It was the absolute worst. Had to even help out, and dressed in a suit all day was the worst.
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What you went through at the auto dealership is called “The Grind.” It’s a deliberate process designed to slow things down to the point where the buyer just wants to get out of there with the car, and will sign just about anything to speed up the process.
If you understand that you’re going to be subjected to “The Grind” and you have the time, you can play it in reverse. Decide what you want, but remain indecisive and tie up the Salesman’s time. Eventually the Sales Manager will notice, and he’s the guy who ultimately approves the sale. He’s the one who wants to move product, whereas the Salesman wants a commission.
It can take hours, maybe days, but it can save you thousands. The dealership still makes money.
Don’t ask me how I know this. 😀
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I love it. By getting revenge, you can put the bitterness back on them. I think I might just use that next time.
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Argh, my husband really loves cars (he names them and waxes nostalgic about the ones he used to have) but hate having to deal with them. I just want reliability and good gas mileage so I don’t have to think about them anymore. Every time a car starts acting up, I’m all “*Great*, now I gotta deal with this crap.”
Maybe I married a guy who likes cars so i wouldn’t have to. Eh, anyway, I hope your tire saga and car drama ends well soon.
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I think we finally solved it by taking it back to the tire place that we bought the tires. It has been over three days of not having to fill it, so we might be good.
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Haha, good luck! I hate car drama.
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Yeah, my least favorite thing. That is why we keep buying new cars instead of other people’s but even that doesn’t seem to help. Oh well, they all end up in a heap somewhere eventually.
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All will be revealed to you from the correct email address…. since you’re using the wrong one you’ll just have to deal with a magical, hysterical tire.
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Umm, you are going to need to find the time to type all this out so I can know the scoop.
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I just dropped cash on a/c refrigerant and a hose for my car because that must’ve been the problem right? No, every year for 3 years my car’s air conditioning goes out. Every year. I’m turning into a werewolf in traffic, like let me make it home before I start getting really ugly. I’d love to get every family member a scooter and be done with it. Also, sorry about your tire.
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Yeah, I’ve been blessed with a car that doesn’t have air conditioning and windows that need to be rolled down and locks that are manual. On the plus side, the air never breaks, I am prepared to sweat every summer on the drive home.
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Depreciating heaps of rust … sold mine, no replacement, never happier!
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So you are huffing it around on foot? Or do you have a great train/bus system. I think they just need moving sidewalks everywhere. That would be ideal for me.
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Yay to moving sidewalks. I’m old enough to get a free bus pass and senior railcard … occasional taxi and hire car … and no jalopy worry!
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I wish that were the case for me, but stupid cars are the best way around here. I wish I was in Europe where the train system was much better and cheaper.
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My check engine light has been doing this for a few years. I’ve contemplated fire bombing mine as well.
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I wouldn’t blame you if you did. It is getting a little ridiculous. You’d think we got a clunker, but of course it is just out of warranty.
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It’s really flipping tempting. Mine is old so I think you have the right to be at least 67.8% more annoyed than I. But I’m Italian so I do annoyed really well.
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I do annoyed really well too. I’m not really good at stats, but I figure I could be at least 67.8% more annoyed.
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It is not the tire’s fault that it keeps going flat. You are making it feel inferior. No wonder it is deflated. You should apologize to it and give it an alignment to show there are no hard feelings.
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Oh, I will be berating it and telling it that it isn’t meeting it’s expectations, just like a bad boss, until it starts doing its job.
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Need to buy new tires, are ‘Widowmakers’ a good brand?
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Actually those are a decent brand, along with the Tirefire brand.
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Yeah, WTH? Ours says “low tire” all the time when it isn’t actually low. My friend’s SUV has an intermittent noise that sounds like a tire iron bouncing around in the trunk. Except she doesn’t have a tire iron. Or a trunk. Nobody knows what it is. Her twins call it “George.” When it starts knocking, they’re like, “Mommy, George is back again.” Good Luck! 🙂
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We’re going to need some luck, because if they don’t fix this thing, then I’m driving that thing off the cliff. Just for a stupid tire leak.
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HAhaaaaaa!!! I absolutely love your captions! Hey car, your fired! HAHAAA!!!
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I am pretty good with the really bad puns. I should start a pun company. It would be a really bad one though.
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I have to buy a new car soon. I’m dreading it. I like my little “bumper car” that I don’t have to worry about wrecking. I mean I still try not to crash into things but it’s nice to know that if I do, it really doesn’t matter that much.
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I pretty much have that one too. It has no power locks or windows, no air conditioning and so it doesn’t matter what I do to it. It also has several dings and knicks, but it has been really inexpensive, so I’m driving it into the ground.
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I had a Subaru with an oil leak like that. No one could find a thing wrong anywhere in the engine, but every couple days, I had to add a quart of oil to it. Got to the point I kept a sixer of oil in the back all the time.
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That sounds like my Dodge Neon, except I knew about it and didn’t get it fixed on purpose, because we were going to trade it in soon.
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Thanks Bitter. I’m doing the same thing (buying a new car) this weekend…I’m glad you hate it as much as me. I might get the extended warranty on the tires though…
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I would never get the extended warranty. Just be bitter that they made a crappy tire.
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Heh, heh, I see what you did with the pun there.
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Yep, super clever with those puns.
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