I hate cars

[telecasterguru (Frank)]

I have to admit that I also hate cars but my dog Roxanne loves them.

Frank

[FredSnerd (Claude)]

Originally Posted by telecasterguru

I have to admit that I also hate cars but my dog Roxanne loves them.

Frank

Yeah! Why do dogs chase cars? They can't drive.

[AstralTraveller (David)]

A local tyre store has lost a customer, not so much because they stuffed up but because they denied it. My wife took our old troopie in to get a puncture repaired. We also had them put the spare back under the car and the repaired tyre back on the R side rear. Fine.

A week or so later I noticed that the spare was a bit lose and so I tried to tighten it up. I discovered that the cross-member that wheel-lifter (that chain winch sorta thingy) mounts on was bent! What's more it obviously had been bent by the lifter. When I told my wife she said that she noticed that it took them about 20 minutes to get the wheel in place and that the young bloke who was doing the job had called the old bloke over to help.

It seems that, when he jacked the car up he somehow managed to hook the chain that hold the spare up on the floor-jack. So the car went up, the lifter stayed put and the cross member bent. If I had been there I would have seen them having problems and investigated but my wife doesn't like to enter workshops.

So we took the car back to them and they denied everything. They tried to claim we must have done it while 4 wheel driving. Rubbish. The damage wasn't consistant with that 'theory' and we hadn't been off the blacktop during the week. In the end the manager gave us the $50 it cost me for a crossmember from a wrecker. The last thing I said to him was along the lines "Mate, my old man was in the motor trade all his life and I know that sometimes stuff ups occur. Where he worked they were honest enough to admit it and make good the damage."

After that I refused to buy tyres from them, even though they are cheaper than their competators for the tyres I wanted. I just won't deal with someone who lied to my face.

[GrahamL]

Reliable cars I think they all are when they gets us to where we want.. Camrys are pretty good , keep the timing belts changed
religously when there sposed to be .. My sons pulsar has been an
honest little car aside some dash cicruit board dramas
(australian made part).. I bought a tj magna recently at a good price
a few told me mitsubishi screwed up a few models in the 80's and 90's
and there credibility isn't that good with buyers still so you can get them quite cheap and the cars they make today arn't to bad .


A friends son had a wheel alignment done on his classic old hq a while back .. driving home and turning into his home street he noticed what he thought was a little movement in the steering wheel .. as he staightened up he gave it a little wiggle and the wheel came OFF in his hands .. when they had finished the alignment they had moved the wheel around one notch on the spline and left the nut in the centre console .. noice

[mithrandir (Andrew)]

Originally Posted by nightstalker

I bought a tj magna recently at a good price
a few told me mitsubishi screwed up a few models in the 80's and 90's
and there credibility isn't that good with buyers still so you can get them quite cheap and the cars they make today arn't to bad .

Mitsubishi engines seem to have a use by date. I had to replace the 2.6l 4cyl in one Pajero at about 130000Km and the 3l v6 in another at about 160000Km. Too much ring wear and valve lifters that wouldn't pump up.

[wasyoungonce (Brendan)]

My 2nd Daughters car started to make a rather noisy "tapping" noise, a Hyundai excel 1999, 2 weeks after purchase. Despite my protestations...I was un-happy with the pushy guy selling it (private sale).

She had just purchased this and she wouldn't listen to us about getting inspections (you know the scene), she had limited income as she's in year 12 (works part time at Coles). To make matters worse her cousin is a car mechanic and he said he would inspect it..but never showed up despite many promises (and offers or $100+)

Anyway this noise sounded, to me the pessimist, like a valve lifter or big end bearing. I didn't know, the working of a car engine are but a waste of physics/energy conversions to me!

We took it to a garage that flushed the engine & put in new oil...the car started smoking on start-up.

To cut to the chase it (the new oil fill) must have flooded the valve lifters seals, which are obviously on their way out but fixed the noise...must have been a valve lifter.

But it all settled down & it runs fine now ..no smoke and more importantly no more tears!

A lucky escape at that! But at least she now listens to our advice..or "am I dreaming"?

[DavidU (Dave)]

Originally Posted by wasyoungonce

A lucky escape at that! But at least she now listens to our advice..or "am I dreaming"?

I have 3 daughters, once they turn 20 they start listening to my advice and even ask for it

[wasyoungonce (Brendan)]

Originally Posted by DavidU

I have 3 daughters, once they turn 20 they start listening to my advice and even ask for it

I wish that was true...the oldest is finishing 3rd yr Psychology (she's 21) now just entering Honours & Masters...She analyses everything at the dinner table!

She "knows it all"...and taught her other two Sisters!

Sigh ....I still have years of this to come!