While ignorance of motor vehicle maintenance might be more common among city people, I've known plenty of country folks who left things to go until their vehicles wouldn't go any more. My father takes the prize for it, but he's not alone.

My old man won't fix anything on his vehicles unless they incapacitate. One headlight is plenty, windshield wipers are handy when they work but it's no big deal if they don't. Bad battery? Keep it on the charger 24/7. Tires are good if they hold air. If the truck slows some when the brake pedal hits the floor the brakes are perfectly good. If he can get to town and back before the truck gets too hot to run, he'll just top up the radiator and go. And he'll go like that for years until finally the radiator leaks out faster than the garden hose can fill it.

I can only think of one vehicle he's ever managed to sell. The rest he had to give away to get rid of them, and only gave them away because my mother won't let him be a rust farmer.

His $4000 big screen television rode home in a vehicle whose driver door handle was a chunk of garden hose hanging on a coat hanger wire, with plexiglass and duct tape where a side window used to be.

It was growing up with that idiot that made me crazy about maintenance -- as a kid, the things he wouldn't or couldn't fix became my problems. So now I can't sleep at night if I know the dome lamp is blown in my truck, and his vehicles go straight to hell because I'm not around to fix them.

 

this dude got ripped
"1000kms later I had to replace my radiator; it was completely rotten, this cost me over $600.
4000kms later I had to rebuild the alternator, cost was $400.
5000kms later, I had to rebuild the starter and replace BOTH battery cables at the tune of $250."

 

But at least now he can say that it makes no noise at all when he farts!

 

http://www.carsurvey.org/reviews/dod...ickup/r128263/
Ouch.
Radiator - 130 + coolant
Alternator - 120ish
Battery cables - 20-30$

 

I hate those people who wine about the cost to have someone fix something. If you cant pay for it, learn how to DIY!!! How stupid can you really be to pay $250 for battery cables?

 

Really REALLY stupid

 

Hey, it all depends on the customer. I used to work on the outskirts of a city notorious for its inhabits 'attitude'..... and we could tell when one of them rolled in, even before they opened their car door. Some of those folks were pretty damn obnoxious, and stupid on top of all that. I actually had customers bitch because we weren't charging them ENOUGH?!?!?!?!?! I especially like the "Well, I brought it to X shop, and THEY said it would 2 grand to fix it, how can you guys fix it for less than that?"...... My response generally was "Because we know what the problem really is, and are fix THAT, we are not shutgunning your car with new parts in hopes of solving your problem."

And then there are those that get their car repaired at some fly by night shop, and after they screw it up, expect US to fix it under warranty........ I really don't think so.

 

a little dealership down the road had a brand new Viper SRT-10 black with white stripes convertable sitting outside...im going to try to snag a picture tomorrow

 

bonus points for parkin your front wheel on the hood

 

i cant get the maxima tire up on it remember, my truck is parked