I HATE CARS!!!

The fuel pump on the Falcon went last week. $350 later and it is going again but the Falcon is our second car that we currently cannot afford to fill with petrol so it is only used when we HAVE to use it. The transmission on the Nissan went today. This car we need! This is my cheap little run around shopping basket and now it is dead. God I hate cars. They are bottomless money pits of despair and I wish we were not so damned reliant on them. To give it is dues, the Nissan has been threatening to die for quite some time now (since we bought it in fact, this is why we could afford it []) so really it owes us nothing but, I can't afford to fix OR replace it unless I can sell a horse or something, and fast - I hate being under pressure to sell things just so we can get back to normal - We never seem to be able to get ahead. Cue violins and music of self-pity ... *sniff*

OK, vent over [V]

Oh darn - where's the third mechanical breakdown....

I just hate mechanics right now, I especially hate mechanics who change cambelts that later break and trash motors and who then renege on the agreement that they would fix it for nothing. Car still runs like rubbish, account is HUGE (I mean really large enough to buy 5 or 6 cows in calf huge) and we are exchanging terse letters about incompetence and morality. Waiting on the summons.....

My vent over too.

The alternater went on my truck (4wd) yesterday:( Oh Lou I do sympathise.

quote:I can't afford to fix OR replace it unless I can sell a horse or something, and fast - I hate being under pressure to sell things just so we can get back to normal - We never seem to be able to get ahead. Cue violins and music of self-pity ... *sniff*

We too have been under that sort of pressure. My guess is everyone is at some time. Things do get better... or maybe you get used to it[:0]

A friend of mine used to drive her horse to town for the groceries etc, which I always thought was a nice but totally impractical idea for working people.

At this point I am going to "touch wood" as I head out to see if my car will let me in tonight. Automatic opening does not open and so the alarm activates and immobilises the engine for a while........generally happens when it is raining and at night!! Of course, never plays silly beggars when it is with the mechanic!!!!!

I know how you feel, I had promised the german xchange student next door a ride in my "magic" forest two days before she departed home, went out to start the Falcon for towing the float,........dead battery. She was disappointed but we did a local "wild" ride instead. Think it means new battery..... but Jap cars aren't meant to let you down are they? I love my little import, it goes and goes. Have no practical help to offer, can you get a student loan to buy another shopping basket til you're a fully fledged WELL PAID teacher?
P.S. You will get ahead one day, you have LAND!

Thanks for listening and commiserations to those of you who understand my frustration!

Witheze, I already have a student loan and I loathe being in debt. But, we'll work something out, we always do. I just feel very much like it is one step forward, two steps back at the moment (we still have no real grass to speak of, we have had a little rain but the temperature has dropped too much for any grass growth and I am feeding out as much hay now as I usually do mid winter plus we are weaning foals right now and I hate weaning time).

I think I am feeling a bit down at the moment as well because I have just hit the books again after a few days off and can see how much work I have ahead of me. I always get a little depressed when I know I have a lot of work to do and having the car finally give up the ghost feels a bit like the last straw right now. I am just being pathetic. Need a good slappin

didn't you know that FORD stood for
Fix
Or
Repair
Daily

Sorry to hear that Lou - cars have a habit of failing at the most inconvenient times I'm sure back in the days before cars when horses provided the transport they were just as unreliable...

pity you aren't close by, My utes just sitting by the deck at the moment, no reg, no warrant, but if you avoided the cops it would move []

Reminds me it's time to fill out the rego form and get another years worth. i hate having to do it each year, why can't they work out the 20 yr cost per a vehicle and charge that to the importer? Sure it'd drive up the cost to buy a car, but no more yearly hassles, and they can charge yearly fees to the collectors with OLD cars. how many cars over 20 yrs are there around these days?

Sympathies, we have had troubles with the two vehicles we bought in the last six months, the first suffered a case of cattle stop (hubbie went over the one at the end of the road and vibrated a washer from the airbox into the engine) the dealer did fix it, but took a month to do it. The second lasted a whole two days before putting a rod through the engine, requiring a new engine, much arguing with the dealer later we ended up forking out $500 (better than the first quote of $3500!), it was either that or drag the whole thing through a tribunal.
I wish I wasn't reliant on them as well, but it is the price we pay for living in such a wonderful place.

I won't regale you all with the Landrover story then ... at least this is not a repeat of that I suppose

*mutter mutter*

Maybe bringing the clydie mare back into work and investing in a cart wouldn't be such a bad idea ...

:(My car died yesterday too- they reckon it is the fuel pump . Luckily it happened in a car park and not on the side of the road . Thank heavens for road side rescue . We have been lucky with our cars considering I don't really look after mine all that well. Plus I am laid up with cellulitis again. Bu##er all round .[V][}]

Now if you had bought a Toyota, you wouldn't be having this discussion. I've lost track of the number of Toyotas we have had at different times and different shapes, according to what we needed them for. They have all been great. You put petrol, water and oil ine them as needed and change the tyres as you wear them out and the rest is just driving.

We made the mistake of buying a Ford Ute for the farm. I'm sure it knows the way to the mechanics by itself, its been there so often. We've had more repairs (or attempted repairs) on that thing, than on all the Toyotas put together over the 25 years or so that we've owned Toyotas. We've replaced it with a Toyota Hi-lux. Yes its a bit expensive, but it goes when you need it and it always starts and the doors always lock and the brake lines don't break and the window wipers keep working and so many other things. True, the Ford engine still keeps going strong, but everything else hanging off the engine (like the rest of the car) is complete rubbish. Ford should have stuck to making engines and let some other manufacturer handle the design of the rest of the vehicle.

well inger... why do you think they got mazda to make the lazer, and the telsar is another mazda clone.

What you need is an electric bike. I built mine from parts, but there is a kit for $300 on TradeMe that I bought and fitted for my wife. Top speed (of hers) without pedalling is 30km/h. Range is about 30km or 1 hour of travelling. The kit is easy to fit, includes batteries, and recharges overnight for about 10 cents.

A