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The Dumb Blond and the Engineer My car has been down most of the week for maintenance. Since one thing needed work I decided to do all of the stuff now and save having to go back later. This means my wings have been clipped most of the week. I did have the old Explorer to use but the transmission was acting up and it scared me. I only went where I had to go and stuck to the main roads. I did not want to end up on the back canyon road in 100+ degree heat waiting for tow service to be dispatched. Maintaining the Explorer is one of the things Chuck can do so I didn’t give it much thought. The other day I was talking about how one of my daughters had experienced similar problems and assumed the transmission was gone. We sold the car to a neighbor “as is” for a low price. The neighbor changed the transmission fluid and no more problems. I casually asked Chuck when he last checked the transmission fluid or had It checked. Uh, what? Hadn’t been done in about 5 years! So – starting at the beginning with the easiest solution………..The dip stick was completely dry!! A couple of cans of fluid and it works just fine. His reasoning? Since he wasn’t going to be working on the car he didn’t pay attention to these things. Turns out engineers may be great for designing things but not maintaining them. Now dumb blonds on the other hand – we need to stay on top of these things so we are not taken advantage of by those who consider us easy prey. Growing up in the country my dad made sure each of us could do basic care and monitoring of our vehicles and could do simple emergency repairs like patch a hose and change a tire. My first husband knew nothing about cars and had no interest in them while I’ on the other hand, had always been a car person and love them. I did all of the auto monitoring and care. Second husband was obsessive about auto maintenance so I let him do it. Next long term relationship was with a fellow gear head so we both did the monitoring and spend a lot of time doing what we could do ourselves and lots of money specialty things done. Since then I have only focused on my “toy car” and “delegated” the rest! Looks like I need to include all of the vehicles in my vigilance. When I was visiting my sister in MA and we were late getting somewhere I took over the driving and got us there early. I joked about “If you need to get there quickly put a California girl behind the wheel.” Guess I will have to expand it to “If you want vehicle maintenance schedules adhered to put the dumb blond in charge.” Spiritwoman ^i^ |
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My observations in here proves to me that you are many things,,,,,,BUT a "dumb blond" you are not!!! . The beginning of life, conception..
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You are the LAST blonde I'd call "dumb!" BTW, is there an oil spot on the ground beneath where the transmission would be when the car is parked? I'm wondering if you have a leak. But I've even known of automatic transmissions not to leak when the car is still and not running. (On rare occasions a seal is bad but it will only leak when the engine is on and the car is in motion.) And on some older models, (Maybe even the newer ones?) a vacuum leak on a modulator(?) may suck trans fluid into the engine. Usually the exhaust will have a lot of white smoke when that happens. Only reason I asked, is because it's very rare for a trans fluid level to get so low that you can't see it on the dipstick before you have already had noticeable problems. So I thought perhaps it might help you to check. Blog was a cute story! GBU, Gavin
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7/11/2013 10:14 pm |
Love it. Reminds me of he time my friend, a radio technician had been looking for an intermittent short for hours. I walked in and noticed a frayed wire. It was just one of those things that got lost in the search for a more complicated problem. Spiritwoman ^i^
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7/11/2013 10:16 pm |
My observations in here proves to me that you are many things,,,,,,BUT a "dumb blond" you are not!!! Spiritwoman ^i^
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7/11/2013 10:16 pm |
My observations in here proves to me that you are many things,,,,,,BUT a "dumb blond" you are not!!! Spiritwoman ^i^
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7/11/2013 10:19 pm |
Most automatic transmissions have an accessible filter but it normally requires a lift. Replacement kits are available from most auto-part stores. The last one I replaced was on my step-daughters car and it cost me an hour or so of labor and less than ten bucks for the filter kit. But, it is messy and a sensible person would also replace the transmission fluid at the same time. That is where the expense comes in. Fossilfetcher Spiritwoman ^i^
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7/11/2013 10:22 pm |
You remind me of the time I took my old Fiero to the mechanic and told him something was wrong becasue it sounded like the washing machine about to die with a load of laundry. All of the guys had a good laugh but it turned out that the water pump was going out. A water pump is a water pump whether it be in a car or a washing machine. Spiritwoman ^i^
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7/11/2013 10:23 pm |
I always go for the easiest solution first. Learned that from a doctor friend. Spiritwoman ^i^
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7/11/2013 10:27 pm |
You are the LAST blonde I'd call "dumb!" BTW, is there an oil spot on the ground beneath where the transmission would be when the car is parked? I'm wondering if you have a leak. But I've even known of automatic transmissions not to leak when the car is still and not running. (On rare occasions a seal is bad but it will only leak when the engine is on and the car is in motion.) And on some older models, (Maybe even the newer ones?) a vacuum leak on a modulator(?) may suck trans fluid into the engine. Usually the exhaust will have a lot of white smoke when that happens. Only reason I asked, is because it's very rare for a trans fluid level to get so low that you can't see it on the dipstick before you have already had noticeable problems. So I thought perhaps it might help you to check. Blog was a cute story! GBU, Gavin Spiritwoman ^i^
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7/11/2013 10:30 pm |
Thank goodness I haven't had to worry about cars in a long time. Every mechanic in the world could take advantage of me! I just learned to keep a new car. Seemed like that worked best. In September my daughter will start driving. I've decided I'll just keep her in a new one also. Maybe if we keep the oil changed and the gas tank full we'll get by. If anything goes wrong -- I'll need your number  !!!My sister's boyfriend (who is a mechanic) keeps telling me to get a "normal car" but they aren't any fun. Spiritwoman ^i^
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7/11/2013 10:31 pm |
Once the challenge of the design and build is done they figure their job is done. Spiritwoman ^i^
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7/12/2013 9:13 am |
So happy to have you home - and on line!!!!! Spiritwoman ^i^
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