Friday, May 21, 2010

How to Hose Your Old Car in 8 Easy Steps

Step 1: Forget to change the oil for about a year and a half.

Give or take 6 months.

Since my idea of "car maintenance" is chastising John for throwing his Diet Mountain Dew bottles in the backseat, this was a breeze. John's not much better: his idea of car maintenance is throwing his Diet Mountain Dew bottles in the backseat.

Step 2: When the car begins making "chugaggugug BLURRgarg" noises, take it in to the shop.

In my defense, I thought the car was fine. I figured those little bucking vibrations and the erratic engine revving were a feature. John, however, would not be convinced. (He has a ninja-like sixth sense about these things.)

Step 3: Endure the raucous laughter and incredulous stares of an entire shop's worth of auto mechanics.

Fortunately this step was left to John, who became a kind of instant celebrity. He may or may not have been asked to pose for pictures with the sludgy tar baby the team was able to extract from our oil pan. A team, by the way, which was made up by every single employee on site, including the janitor and what John thinks was the water-delivery guy.

Step 4: While driving the car home from the shop, note that the rear end is now dragging on the ground.

I was driving, and yes, it took me the whole trip home to realize maybe this wasn't quite right.

Step 5: Go back to the shop and have the struts replaced.

The struts that were damaged from putting the car on a lift to change the oil.

Yeah. I can't imagine how that would have happened....

Now, since my history with mechanics makes me trust them about as far as they'd fall if I were to give them each a swift kick to the nuts (it's not a *good* history), at this point I was convinced the shop had sabotaged our car. Or at least I enjoyed yelling this theory to John when he informed me how much more our "oil change" was going to cost.

Step 6: While driving home from the shop a second time, note that the "check engine" light is now on.

Optional step 6a: renew your curse upon mechanics everywhere, because this is CLEARLY their fault.

Step 7: Go back to the shop (yes, the same one; who else knows your car better?) and learn that now the car needs a new computer.

[raising hand] Um, excuse me? Car manufacturers? Yeah, you guys. Look, if you're telling me my car has a computer in it - especially one that costs roughly the same as my Mac - then I should at least be able to play Plants vs Zombies on my dashboard. Is that so much to ask? Huh? Is it?!?

Step 8: Reveal to your Scrooge of a spouse that this has all been part of your dastardly plan to make her buy a new car.

John, sweetie? I'm waiting.

for the record, I'm the Scrooge; not John. He's been wanting a new car for ages now, so I figure this was his all his doing. ;)


  1. sounds like you had a WONDERFUL day today - good luck on the new car

  2. I read the title of this as "how to hose OFF your old car" I kept reading waiting for you to mention a quick and easy way to wash your car...

    then again... i probably still wouldn't do it

  3. Here I am, sitting up at 2:30 am, waiting to make sure my cat was *not* in fact bitten by a giant, cat-eating spider, and wondering how to pass the time, and VOILA - Jen has posted!

    We took my car in about two months ago because the engine light came on. $900 and roughly a week later, it came back on and... yeah, it's still on.

    Car problems (like giant, cat-eating spider problems) are lame.

  4. Sorry about your car, Jen. But look at it this way. It didn't burst into flames whilst navigating the interstate.

  5. It seems I'm well on my way to the same situation. I've been putting off my oil change for so long I've lost track. When my car starts making strange noises I find new and creative ways to justify why they don't mean anything. Oh and my check engine light has been on since October. The other lights that were on eventually went off on their own, maybe the same will happen with the check engine light. In the meantime I invested in a AAA membership so that when it inevitably dies on me at least I can get it towed.

  6. Genius! I hope you have your new car picked out!

  7. Sounds like a good reason to get a new car to me.

    Btw, may I suggest a Hyundai? They are doing very well in quality (rivaling Toyota and Honda) and they're relatively cheap.

    Love the new blog, Jen. I think we might share a brain...

  8. Jen,
    Perhaps John needs more prodding.
    Like a fib.
    {ahem} "John? saw flames when I looked thru rear view mirror". That might get his attention.

    My car did that. The engine seized- cost $$$- and I got ragged on for years.
    WV: butetsto Butetsto is a type of car oil.

  9. Please tell me this is some concoction of Jen's imagination??? No way is that picture real??? And check engine lights are always fun.... Been dealing with one myself for over a year now... :)

  10. Oh Jen,
    I am so sorry my Mom recently went through a similar series of events my favorite part of her 2 week ordeal was that neither the garage or the dealership would fix the car dealership said that garage has done so many repairs ass backwards that they won't touch it and garage said the dealer was the only one who could fix a problem they couldn't figure out how to! WTH?

    Oh you wanna know the end result, her car started working on its own! LOL! Totally serious, the engine light still comes on but the car doesn't turn off in the middle of her driving it anymore!

    Have a great weekend! Have my fingers crossed for the new or at least new to you car! The necklace came through . . . pick a car and show us on the blog . . . hey it is worth a try! LMAO!


  11. If they tell you that you need a new computer, GET A SECOND OPINION!! We recently had something kinda similar. (well... minus the oil baby part.)
    Long story short, the first place gave us a bad part. By getting a second opinion, we saved over $700. (And the nice people at the first place gave us a check for what we had to pay at the second place, & a bit more!) :)

  12. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA!! Oh! I love it!

    I need a new car and must remember this one! Hope you get a nice new car!


  13. Ugh, I don't trust mechanics either, mostly because I'm not a real trusting person. Sorry your car bit the dust.

  14. Haha, I would love to play Plants vs. Zombies on a dashboard.... oh wait, wait, that would be bad. I have just finished the whole game (because procrastination is my profession), and have nearly had to delete it.
    Incidentally, I have been growing some (real) potted herbs and plants inside, which have been taken over by fruit fly-like things called fungus gnats. There is nothing you can fight them with, and even when you try basic things like fly traps, they keep coming back like a bad class-B zombie movie. If Plants vs. Zombies REALLY wanted a true zombie to attack plants, they should have created a fungus gnat zombie. Can't wait for the next version...
    Hooray for earlier posts (for those of us in Europe)!

  15. I can confidently say without doubt that I HATE engine check.

    How smart is this -- put one light on the dash that lights up for a range of causes, from "minimum wage gas station attendant didn't tighten gas cap" to "engine melt down in 3...2...1..." Make car's owner take the car to a mechanic, losing a few hours pay plus the cost of checking what the light means with their proprietary expensive machine, and then charge you to tighten the gas cap correctly, a solution that will endure until you stop for gas again.

    For bonus hate-points, whose idea was it to use a computer to control several thousand pounds of mobile metal and glass traditionally kept outdoors in all weathers for years at a time?

    Bitter, moi?


    whose dash light is the "engine check" light

  16. Isn't it lovely all the weezing and hacking and random loss of power and high pitched constant whining that cars can create when they pass their "best before" date?

    We just got a new vehicle a couple weeks ago, and I LOVE it. LOOOOVE. There is no boundaries to my love for this vehicle. Probably because I was so sick of the noise from the old one.

    And I would have been with you on the mechanics thing, but we found a wonderful, incredibly honest and fair mechanic named Kevin. I love Kevin, too.

    Good luck finding a new car!

  17. SO guess what? I just got a new car! guess why....

  18. Wow. Just wow. I can't believe you had to go back like 3 times! It must have cost a lot!

  19. Oh, it sounds like you've had quite an adventure in Car Land!

    I've got another chapter in The Chronicles of Car Land -- I'm emailing it to you, in case you want to post it. I'd post it on my own blog, but that doesn't exist yet, and I don't have a lot of time to bring it into existence. (You know, something about having a toddler, new baby, and hubby seem to take all my time away.)

  20. Mm, isn't it curious how one fix tends to always lead to another problem? Odd how that happens and completely coincidental, I'm sure.

    Though, admittedly, as soon as you mentioned the first step your car was pretty much hosed. Steps two through eight were for humor factor at that point. Though, of course, a little less humor when you're living it, obviously.

    Lift to change the oil? Seriously? C'moooon.

  21. I know so little about car maintenance that I call oil "car juice." You haven't been laughed at until you've asked the guys at AutoZone for "car juice" and "car juice remover." You know, for when it gets on your hands.

  22. issues are never fun (not even shopping for a new one). Just a random FYI: some high school shop classes will change the oil for you, so the students get hands on experience. You just have to pay for the replacement oil.

  23. it is time to find a new shop. This is too much to be coincidental. Start asking around. There are a few honest shops left, I am sure you'll find one.

  24. Wow that is crazy!!! Oh and why is the guy HANGING off the car????


  25. I had a similar story involving an intake manifold. Driving home from the third repair trip, the car died 2 miles from the shop. They had to tow it back and told me it needed a new engine. We found a refurbished engine ourselves and had an engineer who repairs cars for fun put it in.

    Right now, I'm having to replace the radiator after it overheating twice and shutting down once (on 95 at that). Fun times. Fun time.

    Car ownership is such a joy.

  26. This is just like what happened when we bought my oldest stepdaughter her car earlier this year. I kept telling my husband "Maybe we should look at a little nicer one and we won't have to do so much to it." No no no...his idea was "We buy a $1,000 car and then we have $1,000 to fix it up. It'll be a steal!!"


    We took it home and spent 3 hours cleaning the cat hair and coffee stains out of it. We went to the junk yard and got new back seats because the cat had apparently done more than shed in the car. We washed it and waxed it to surprise her - and the check engine light came on.
    Went to the shop, got that fixed, check engine light came back on. This time it needed the new computer - same as yours. Got that done and it came on AGAIN. Turned out it also had a valve stuck.

    Needless to say we spent well above that $1,000 to "fix it up" and I really REALLY wanted to say "I told you so" but managed to refrain.

  27. Oh fun. I once damaged my parent's car pretty badly when I was at college - it'd only been a few months between oil changes, but I forgot that it leaked, and forgot to check the oil levels... Yeah, I ran it without oil for at least several weeks. Or more. It's never been the same since. I probably took a couple of years off its lifespan. I still don't understand why they weren't mad.

  28. Ugh.

    Don't envy you in the least.

    Not unless you really CAN talk him in to a new car! ;)

  29. I'm the daughter of a mechanic. So even though I don't do my own repairs (my hubby won't let me...he says that's why we pay mechanics) I know a lot of what's going on with my car. That totally FREAKS out the mechanics when I take it in for service and tell them exactly what's wrong with my car LOL!
    I've had a few mechanics try to patronize me or ignore me...bad idea cuz I won't return there AND I tell everyone I know to never go there.

    I hope you either get your car fixed or get a nice new one soon.

  30. Between my parents, myself, my two sisters and their families... we have quite a few cars to care for.

    Fortunately my dad has always been a mechanical person, and anything that's out of his depth we go to a local mechanic to fix.

    BTW, if say, your sister is driving you and your car around town and suddenly you smell an intense burning fish smell coming from somewhere... don't ignore it, or just assume that neighbors somewhere close by have ruined their dinner. Because if you wait until the smoke starts billowing out from under the hood, it is entirely too late to realize that the H on the temperature gauge doesn't stand for "Hello, everything's fine." True story.

  31. My 14 year old son is in auto shop now. Jealous?

    I once had my car repaired by a friend of my dad. He TOLD MY DAD that according to the window sticker, I hadn't had an oil change in over a year! Too bad HIPAA laws don't apply to mechanics.

    If oil change places treated women with respect and didn't rip them off, they'd make a fortune in repeat business.

  32. That sucks about your car, but having worked in auto parts for a decade (the last 4 years at the local Honda dealership), let me just say the one most important thing you can do to keep your car running is change the oil regularly! A lot of problems can be avoided by simple routine maitenance. By the way, if the shop messed up your shocks with the lift, they should be paying for them. Sounds like they didn't use the lift properly.

  33. My husband says this is my definition of car maintenance:

    Routine maintenance for me is filling my car with gas routinely and rotating the tires is driving the car.

    Even with all this abuse though, my car still refuses to die.

    I absolutly LOVE this new blog and I follow you religiously

  34. I am glad to see someone else enjoys interacting with mechanics as much as I do. Sign me up to see the dentist and the gyno - all in the same day - before I would go to the mechanic!

  35. I'm disappointed that the solution did not involve a steam engine.
    Brass. Definitely needs more brass.

  36. My son just got his degree in auto tech, so is officially a mechanic, so I must defend, being Mamabear and all! It's not all mechanics, my son would never make fun of someone and their car maintenance abilities (at least not to their face!).

  37. Be like Penny and put a sticker over the 'check engine' light.

  38. Um John? I have a new CRV and I love love love it. Just a thought.

    Jenn, did it help? :)

  39. I completely agree with step 7, plants vs zombies is such a fun game!

  40. Car stress is no fun. I say to heck with the mechanics - get a pony!

  41. I married a man who is mechanically inclined and good with stuff like that specifically for this reason! My dad used to get on me all the time about how long its been since I changed my oil. Now my husband takes care of it for me...and on time! :)

  42. I didn't even get to bring mine to a shop myself. I was driving up into the mountains, and it finally overheated and burned out the engine. I got five hundred for her from a junker shop, who I think bought her for the transmission, which was a few months old.

    And yeah, it's not that I necessarily "forgot" to change her oil, it's that I didn't want to mess with cutting the duct tape that was holding down the hood and holding the front end together.

  43. Buy a Honda. We've had two for 8 years and (with scheduled maintenance!) have never had a problem, unless you count some hail damage.

  44. I've been "driving" (and I use the term loosely) my car without the benefit of Reverse for oh...... 7 months now. It's amazing how many places you can actually go without having to reverse. You just have to be careful where / how you park. [Summary: it's a cracked valve seal, which requires dropping the tranny to fix. It's a $5,000 repair for that reason. The car is worth about $900. Not happening.]

    So. Good luck with the car shopping.

  45. Funny. I took my car in for a $30 oil change this morning at 7:45. It's now 12:10 and I'm officially looking at around $900 worth of parts and labor. I freaking hate cars. And I feel your pain.

  46. ok, the first thing to do is never bring your car back to that joke of a repair shop!

    second, bring your car to an auto zone or any other auto parts store that offers to read your check engine light for free. they will plug in a little gadget and then tell you what code your car's computer is triggering and suggest what needs to be done to fix it. i highly doubt you need a new computer. it could be something as simple as needing a fuel filter or an oxygen sensor.

    third, find a new repair shop and tell them what code your computer is triggering and have them fix that problem.

    good luck!

  47. Kathryn said...
    "...procrastination is my profession..."

    Hey! That's my field, too!
    Maybe we should put off getting together some day.

    JEN...HOW, pray tell, did that man get under the hood from way up there? I mean, from down there. I mean--Oh, forget it.
    And I don't see a droplight anywhere, or a tool box. AND, those two guys are just plain TOO CLEAN! Where's the grease???
    I'm so lucky that my hubby IS a mechanic, and a darn good one, too. (I can tell he's GOOD, because he comes in with grease in his ears, his eyes, his hair, his nose hairs, and flakes of rust in his chest hairs. *sigh*'s such a turn-on.)
    He can take engines, transmissions, and whatchamacallits apart & put them back together --CORRECTLY! He has every tool ever invented and some that haven't even been invented yet.
    Funny thing little Subaru wagon is sitting in the driveway with four flat tires and a gone alternator.

  48. Jen, I just wanted to tell you that I think you are hilarious. I love it when people can blog about the annoying and stupid stuff that happens in life without whining about it. I. Love. Your. Blog(s)!

    Oh, and I really hope you get a new car out of this ordeal! I like the little fib suggestion. Swearing you saw flames coming out of just about anywhere would surely do the trick.

  49. You're doing it wrong. You're supposed to change the oil by letting the crack in the something or other leak oil out and be burned off through the tailpipe (you know this by the plume of smoke coming out of said tail pipe) and then adding new oil every thousand miles or so.

    So says my husband.

    Me? I take mine in every 5K miles. I also make everyone remove the garbage they bring in.

    And only allow him to drive it when I'm too drunk to do so myself.

    We run counter to stereotype when it comes to cars. But I'll tell ya, he hasn't spent nearly as much on oil changes as I have. He's a saver!

    Well... now it needs to pass smog and I think that's gonna set us back a couple grand.

  50. My boyfriend is a mechanic and I still had the issue of we forgot to change to oil for aprx. 8-12months. We're better at it now I swear, sorry to hear about all the other problems but from what I know about his shop boys they would never sabotage a car, but they have had plenty come back over and over because proper maintenance was not kept up on the car.

  51. I like you Jen. That's all I have to say. You make me smile. We geeky girls have to stick together!

    This, along with Cake Wrecks, will be amongst my daily readings.

    I have this link to Star Wars shoes. When I find it I'm going to come back and post it for you!

  52. Found the link. My husband and I fought over who would get to the computer first when we heard these announced on Conan's show (*sniff*).

    Anyway! Enjoy!

  53. I am killing myself laughing right about now! You rock Jen! I hope you get anew car.

  54. Oh my God, I love Plants vs. Zombies.

    (If you have an ipod touch and/or an iphone, you could mount that to the dash and totally make that dream a reality.)

  55. I hate to tell you, but they probably just forgot to reset the sensor. That's happened to me, and that was all it was.

    Seriously. Go back to the shop and ask them if they reset the sensor. I'll bet you just about anything that that's all it is, and they're just trying to gouge you.

  56. AH!! I love love love plants vs zombies!

  57. Love it. I can SOOO relate. Our '93 Toyota Pickup has 227,000 miles (give or take a few hundred miles) and I love it, but it's about to turn into a bottomless money pit.

    E-brake cable went out about 2 years ago, so the brake light randomly comes on when the e-brake isn't pushed in fully. Check engine light has been on for a similar period of time. It was the O2 sensor, which we replaced ourselves, but we don't have the capability of resetting the code, so the light stays on (have no idea if there's a new issue, haven't checked).

    The brake light came on permanently a while back, just thought the e-brake was being a piece. Then a few thousand miles later the brakes start grinding. After driving it like that for a while (figured, hubby and I would just replace the front rotors, no biggie), once hubby finally got in there to do the repair, determined that one caliper had seized and only one pad wore down (ahh, that's why the brake light was permanently on) and apparently we have to fully pull apart the entire front 4x4 hub to get the rotor off. So, we just slapped a new brake pad on, and since rebuilding the calipers are above either of our pay grades, we'll have to take that in.

    Did I mention there is no amount of JB Weld that will fix a leak at the radiator cap, the engine needs a rebuild as we burn about a quart and a half of oil every 3000 miles, the u-joints need to be redone, it needs a new clutch and the reverse light intermittently works (new switch has to be put into the rear differential box).

    And that's just the start of the "to do list" on that rig. Oooh, and yesterday when going to get a flat fixed, two hours later I was informed that it was an unfixable flat due to a screw being through the sidewall, and since it's a 4x4 and the tires, while still good enough to get through the summer are well worn, we have to put a whole new set of tires on the truck to the tune of $700.

    Yes, part of me wouldn't mind a new car. That way, we could do 95% of the repairs ourselves (no urgency to have them done quickly), but I REALLY don't want a car payment. I REALLY like not having a car payment.

    I think I'll see if we can limp along to 300,000 miles and then go from there. Maybe I can get a longevity discount on a new Toyota!

  58. I am lucky enough to have been able to buy a new car recently, and am in the process of getting the old one ready to sell to a friend. So I took the old car into a car detailer (the first time I have ever done that sort of thing, my definition of car maintenance being quite similar to Jen's. They told me they could have it ready by 2:00 p.m. I called at 1:45 to see how it was going and they told me that they were having some trouble with the carpet (I could hear their generally derisive noises about my carpet in the background) The last word is that it might be ready by 6:30 and the owner of the business is now working on it personally because he knows some "tricks". I tried telling them it didn't have to be perfect but apparently they feel this letting the carpet win. Meanwhile my friend is stranded at work waiting for us to come pick her up. I hope she enjoys the clean carpet when we finally get there.

  59. My first "purchased" car (read not leased) in a long time - 2007 Jeep Sahara Wrangler - 4 door. 20,000 miles in I needed a new engine - "shame on you, you didn't change the oil, that will cost you $500.00 and we will sweep the rest under the rug." This was only the beginning - I just picked my Jeep up from the 4th trip to the dealership in a month - don't ask.

  60. Tell me you didn't have to pay for trip two... you know, the one where the repairs were for what *THEY* did to your car?

    Also, take it somewhere else for a second opinion and any further work. Those guys just sound hinky.

  61. Roundredhead said...
    " in the process of getting the old one ready to sell to a friend."
    Eeee. The hair on the back of my neck just tingled, reading that.
    MAYBE (HOPEFULLY) this won't happen to you with your friend, but...just be careful.
    From my own experience (not me personally, but from the hubster),
    it can be a slippery slope, selling a car to a friend.
    He did it, and he made sure that the person was told EVERYTHING that HE had done to it, EVERYTHING that had EVER been done to it, and EVERYTHING that it either still NEEDED to have done, or MAY need to have done (*down the road*). Everything was upfront and he was totally honest.
    Even with all of that, though, the person felt free to be a pain in the butt whenever he had ANY questions about ANYthing to do with the car. He'd show up/drop by/ to bug my husband for opinions and suggestions and advice and blah blah blah. It went on for quite a'd think the guy had adopted a CHILD from us.
    Just thought I'd pass that along, because you never know...
    Good luck, though!

  62. True Story. My grandmother came in one day and said she thought there was something wrong with her car. My father and brothers, being male and therefore contemptuous, asked her what made her think that? She answered, the flames coming out of the engine.

  63. Yikes! Maybe I shouldn't "solve" the problem of the weird squeaky whistling sound my Jetta makes by simply turning up the radio anymore :)

    Hope you get the new car, you deserve it!

  64. Dear Sendingtheclowns,
    I appreciate your concern. I have to admit that selling a car to a friend makes me nervous. But with this friend I actually think I'm going to have the opposite problem. She's so kind by nature that she won't tell me if something goes wrong, but I'd hate her to start silently being sorry about the whole thing so I am doing everything I can to make the car perfect for her. This is why I had it detailed.

    They did finally finish it and they did an amazing job, my seven year old car looked like new. I think they have won themselves a new regular customer.

  65. Look on the bright side - at least you have a Mac!

  66. ya, I tried something similar a couple years ago. I ran the minivan completely OUT of oil. Yes, I also endured the looks, chuckles, etc. But instead of a new car, I've now been tooling around town in the large Olds that used to belong to my late grandfather. Oh JOY!!!

    Hope you get a wonderful new car Jen! You deserve it!

  67. Oh boy.. I would go back there and kick every single one of them in the nuts. Even the water delivery guy just out of sheer pmsing spite. Brother these guys sound like rip offs to me.

  68. Sorry to hear about your car Jen that sucks. Here something to chear you up

    Pancakes! (well pancake molds of awesome.

  69. what's really funny is that when I came to read this post, the ad at the top of the blog was for "justask" or something, but it was for asking a mechanic questions. Hope you get a new car soon! I love my kia forte :)

  70. 10 points for mentioning my favourite video game!

  71. Jen,

    totally unrelated comment but i cldn't find an email for this blog. found this and immediately thought of you.

  72. My first car was a little Nissan Quest, and the "Service Engine" light came on every 30,000 miles. It was preprogrammed to do this so you would visit your dealer to get the light to go away (and throw money at them in the meantime). At 60,000 miles I had the nicest dealer mechanic show me a little hole in the inside of the car by the passenger's feet where you put a screwdriver to turn off the relay and reset the light. Every time after that I just reset the switch myself and all was well.

    I now have a Pontiac Vibe (twin to the Toyota Matrix) and I LOVE my car. When we bought it we had saved up, done our research, and got a great deal. We got one of those car buying tip books, ordered a report for $50 that showed us exactly what the dealer paid for the car including all the hidden stuff, then sent faxes to 10 dealers saying what car we wanted with what options and what we were willing to pay based on what they paid. They started sending us their best offers, we picked the second best one (which was close to home), and told them what the lowest bid was. They not only best that bid by several hundred dollars they threw in a dealership lifetime oil change offer. We went in, checked out the car, wrote them a check for the amount plus tax, and drove away.

    I hate listening to car dealers shuck and jive, and this will be the only way I will ever buy a car again. And with the lifetime oil change deal, I just have to show up every few months and it's taken care of. Voila.

  73. I <3 CW, YAY for the new blog!

  74. Wait a minute. If this is the car I'm thinking of, and you're calling it your OLD car...didn't you just get that thing like 4 years ago?

    As for selling cars to friends...I dunno about that, but many long years ago we bought a car from a certain couple we'd just met (whose first initials may or may not both be J), and it worked out pretty well as far as we were concerned! Oh, and the car was a winner too.

  75. Ah, time flies, Amy - I think we were actually going on 7 years with it. It was an '02, and we bought it when it was 2 years old.

    Notice I'm using the past tense. ;)

    An update is coming!

  76. lol. if you find the car that has plants vs zombies installed let us know!

  77. Anyone else notice that the ad running along side this entry is for a Chevy?

  78. Adds running alongside are now for repairs and the omni-present "car repair warrenty". Google ad posters spell as well as cake wreckerators apparently.

