Life has been CRAZY

My life has been insane these past few weeks. My car pooped out on me, paid off another loan, did lots of stress induced deep cleaning, had to call the fire department today… WHEW!

The life of my car was rapidly declining.

It started mid February – the day before our super cold snap. I was experiencing a few issues with my car. It would stall when idling low, or it would nudge forwards when I would brake for traffic lights; almost like it was accelerating all on its own. Later that same day, it just started making this really loud knocking noise while I was stopped at a busy intersection. I pulled over at the gas station to see if I could figure out what the noise was.

I checked the dipstick indicated it had plenty of oil. Not a whole lot else I could have done at that moment so I decided to limp it home. Thankfully, I was merely across town so home wasn’t too far.

That next day, I went out to try it again, thinking maybe it will *magically* go away, kind of like how sometimes that happens with the check engine light. It didn’t. I stayed home due to not having a working vehicle, and contacted a mechanic. We limped it over and on the way, my daughter made the comment, “Uhh I think you should drive really slow.” I am!

Her life was on her last leg.

We dropped it off at the shop, and apparently, it was so loud, they could hear me coming down the road. Not a good sign. There was also a puddle of oil forming underneath the car that I had not noticed before. Also not a good sign.

I was hoping it was the timing chain. It would be a costly fix but I could afford that over a new car. The plan was to replace the rear seal, which is why the oil was leaking, put oil in it, and see how it turned out. If it was fine, they would replace the timing chain. Fingers were crossed!

They replaced the seal, filled the oil, and started her up. The knocking sound went away…very briefly before coming back again. NOT A GOOD SIGN! My grandpa called me to break the bad news, and asked what I wanted to do. I wasn’t going to make a spur of the moment decision so I spent the whole day weighing out my options.

The choices were… not great.

1: Scrap my car and get a new one, along with a new car loan. OR, scrap it and run around in my truck all summer until I saved up for a used car. Didn’t like that idea for a lot of reasons.

2: Replace the engine for $5,900 in addition to the work they just did PLUS all the labor.

3: Tow it to my grandpas house and let it sit until I could figure out a different idea, or buy the engine from the parts store and put it in ourselves.

More cons than pros for every option options.

option 1

• I called a few places and they offered me $300-$400 for my car. Over the past 24 months, I’ve put a lot of work into my car – new wheel hubs, exhaust manifold, 4 new tires, new ball joints, and then some. No way I was going to let it go for a few hundred bucks!

• It’s paid for, and I really don’t like the idea of starting monthly car payments. I’ve had this one paid off for only two years.

• Even if I were to get a cheaper used vehicle, I would STILL need to take out a small loan. Then the problem is I don’t know what’s been done to that vehicle. What if THAT engine breaks on me, too? At least with my car, I know what’s been replaced and it’s in good condition.

• Using my truck all summer wasn’t a bad idea, except I’d be spending a LOT of money on gas. Not ideal, but probably the cheapest option.
• I would STILL most likely need a loan to cover the cost of a new engine.

• A used engine is cheaper, but there’s no way of knowing the condition. It’d be risky, and if it didn’t work, I’d be out another engine and a few grand. A new engine at least comes with a warranty, which was reassuring.
• Replacing the engine myself is not a good idea, especially since I’d have to pay to have it towed, then spend money on parts and/or tools, labor hours, heartache, and everything else involved.

• I have no problem working on my car, but there are times when you’re better off paying a professional. Plus, replacing an entire engine is not a simple task.

My previous life decisions had come into play.

I ended up calling my financial advisor to ask about withdrawing money from my IRA account. It was a tough decision, but the money was there and I wouldn’t have to take out a loan. Of course, a percentage gets skimmed off the top for both state and federal taxes, and I’ll be penalized come next years tax season, but I felt like it was the best option. The papers were signed, money transferred, and a new engine was ordered.

On a random side note, if you haven’t opened an IRA account, or some type of investment savings account, I HIGHLY recommend that you do. The sooner you start the better. It just might save your ass one day.

Life had other plans, apparently.

You know how you make a plan, and you stick to it, only to have it derailed by something out of your control? It leaves you upset and feeling powerless.

Not going to lie, I felt like I had failed. I make sure my vehicle is maintained properly; change the oil every 3K miles, replace the brake pads, new rotors, new discs, new exhaust manifold, etc. If something is breaks, it gets fixed.

I was down in the dumps about my car. It felt like even though I had done all the things I thought I was supposed it, it wasn’t enough. That was a hard pill to swallow.

Life since then.

My car was in the shop for three weeks, so I had borrowed a vehicle for the time being, and finally got it back last Friday. Reunited and it feels so good! I feel like I can breathe again.

Life still seems crazy – I called the fire department the other day because we had reason to believe there was a gas leak. Thankfully, there wasn’t.

I’ve been crocheting A LOT, to help with stress and attended my first vendor show a few weekends ago. It was a good experience and a nice distraction.

There are a lot of tasks I need to get done around the house. It’s a never ending list of things to do. But, at least I have my car back. <3