Normally I’m all about the “anything he can do, I can do better” philosophy, but when it comes to cars I am just not one of those girls who can pop the hood, figure out what’s wrong, and fix it. Nope, I’m more of the “call my husband crying and ask him to come get me when the car breaks down” variety. Which is exactly what happened when I was on my way to clinicals Thursday afternoon in his car.
The heat index was some unbelievably high number (107, I think) so I wasn’t particularly concerned that the a/c wasn’t cooling down like it normally does. I was already running a little bit late, so I was flying up Highway 1 at about 70 miles per hour. That’s when the power steering went. Then I noticed that the battery light was on and that the temperature gauge was pegged as high as it would go. This was the point that I picked up my cell phone and called in a panic. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to get where I needed to go without power steering and I was already pulling off on the side of the road when he told me he was putting the kids in the car and would be there as quick as he could. I sat there for a minute, saying a lot of words that made me really glad none of the kids were with me. Then I decided to text a classmate so they could let the instructor know where I was. When I looked up from that, I saw smoke coming out from under the hood. That’s when I decided to get out of the car. I know cars do that when they overheat, but I didn’t want to take my chances on it being something else.
I managed to get the hood popped open and walked over to the passenger side, where I stood gathering all of my stuff that I’d have to take with me. Cars were whizzing past and I was just praying that someone from my class would stop and pick me up so I wouldn’t be late. My husband finally got there and he hopped out to take a quick look at the car. He was thinking it was a broken belt based on my description and he quickly saw that he was right. I hadn’t noticed anything wrong other than the smoke pouring out, so I was shocked that he diagnosed it that quickly. His estimate to have it fixed (including towing) was a minimum of $100. Not good, considering our current situation.
He got me up there (only a few minutes late) and I made it through the night. Someone offered to give me a ride home so he wouldn’t have to get the kids out of bed at 11pm and come get me. When I was checking my phone on the way home, I saw that he’d texted to tell me that he thought he’d fixed it. For the grand total of $21, which is how much the belt cost. All I can say is wow. How awesome is that?
We went to get it off the side of the road Friday and it ran just fine. He did have to put some antifreeze/coolant in it, but that’s something that probably needed to be done anyway. I am in awe that he was able to fix it so quickly and so cheaply. Certainly a keeper! Now if only he’d replace the starter in the minivan so I didn’t have to try to start it 3-4 times every time I want to go somewhere…
