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I started to type a post yesterday but got insanely busy at work and afterwards with all the car shuffling and what not.
Both of our cars had to go in for repairs at the same freaking time... You'd think by having two vehicles the odds of this occurring are pretty slim... But noooooo!
It all started with Ricky (the truck) last week. I noticed that he kept going from 2-Hi to Auto 4WD all on his own. I guess I should mention that Ricky has on the fly push button 4WD. It got to the point where I couldn't get him out of Auto 4WD and he began to switch over to 4-Hi when the urge arose. In parking lots (like while trying to turn into a space) Ricky would kick over to 4-Lo. This was absolutely not necessary since I only drive on pavement. Yea, good times. We decided he needed to go to a shop for service, knowing to wait could mean much more damage to the 4WD system depending on the issue or that he could potentially just "break down."
We agreed that Friday I would leave work early to take Ricky in and I would drive the car to and from work, along with driving Collin to the Max station (and picking him up of course!). I noticed on my way to work (while stopped at 198th and TV Hwy) that there was the slightest bit of smoke coming out from under Lucy's hood.... NOT A GOOD SIGN... We knew that her seals needed replacing (instances of some blue smoke coming out of the tail pipe. As soon as I got to work I text Collin and said Lucy HAD to go in now, and about the smoke.
We both know enough about cars that we are confident we are looking at new seals and what not for Lucy, which is not cheap by any means... But it's better to get it repaired now while it's just wisps of smoke here and there and not billowing clouds accompanied by any "banging" or "knocking" sounds.
We got Ricky in, and since the service center we went to didn't have a loaner program we rented a cute Nissan Versa for the weekend (with our AAA discount it was just over $15.00 a day). We got Lucy scheduled to be dropped off Monday (last) night at the Beaverton Toyota Service Center, and they DO have a loaner program. We planned on taking Lucy in, picking up the loaner, going to fill up the rental, returning the rental, and then going home... As things tend to, that plan blew up in our faces.
Collin got stuck on a call and left work almost a half hour late. Then his train was delayed five minutes. By the time I collected him from the Max station I had to go fill up the rental and get it returned so it wasn't late. So , Collin had to take Lucy to the service place on his own and then come pick me up... It was great fun hanging out at the Hillsboro Airport for over a half hour.... Yea... LOADS OF FUN....
But, I must admit, Beaverton Toyota takes care of their customers and (depending on the rest of this experience) I totally see myself using them in the future. Not only were they really cool (according to Collin), like to the point that the tech was excited to work on Lucy (she is technically a classic by age), but they gave us a super sweet 2011 Rav4 LTD while they fix Lucy.
Ricky should be done and fixed, and we will be picking him up tonight.
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We did pick him up! And he is all better and it was fifteen dollars less than they quoted! Yay! He drives perfectly now. They did suggest the we do a fluid flush on the transmission, power steering, and cooling; we will do so in a few months. They also noted a slight leak in the power steering pump but it is not an emergent issue. This repair set us back four hundred and ninety dollars. Lucy, we know, will be much much more than that. The repairs are necessary though and cheaper than a new car (or used), and I happen to be very attached to our cars...
Well, I am missing the hockey game and I should probably pay dinner some more attention than I currently am. Spicy teriyaki stir fry! Yum!
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