“Why do we love the sea? It is because it has some potent power to make us think things we like to think.” ~Robert Henri

Goodness knows that I’ve had a string of issues with my RV as of late.  However, up to this point no one has blatantly LIED to me about repairs.   Uh, not until now…

It’s a convoluted and mixed story beginning with my RV breaking down in the greater Phoenix area and needing a new engine.  Then, I found everything replaced except the pistons and rings (Don’t ask me about short and long block – I’m clueless.)  However, I went back to the original installer, he fixed the problem (pistons and rings) and I thought I was done.  The oil wasn’t black anymore and wasn’t burning any oil either.

I took my RV to a local garage (let’s call them “The Idiots”) and had the oil changed and valves adjusted after 500 miles as instructed.  Then, I noticed oil on my driveway.  So, I promptly take it back to the “local garage” (a.k.a. The Idiots) and they inform me I need a new engine and the “other guy” did a hack job and I need THEM to replace the engine correctly for $4,000.00 plus dollars.

Lean closer – it gets better…

I take it to ANOTHER local mechanic (let’s call him “Mr. Nice Mechanic”) who cleans off the oil on the plate below and tells me it ISN’T leaking – well, just where the other shop installed the oil filter incorrectly, and the overage from overfilling the oil.   He also replaces my radiator cap with a newer one saying the old one is inefficient.  He shows me the radiator cap and it isn’t the one it had on it when I took it to “The Idiots.”

“Mr. Nice Mechanic” tells me to drive it around and bring it back in a few days – yesterday in fact.  (I drove it about 125 miles or so.)  Surprise!  No oil leaks and engine runs fine when I hear from him today.

What’s a girl to do?

Well, I plan to get back EVERY freakin’ dime I spent to “The Idiots.”  So, today I called my charge card company, (my hands were literally shaking I was so upset) explained the situation, and disputed the charges.  I’m going to ask “Mr. Nice Mechanic” to write a letter to say my engine is fine and that he found the oil filter installed incorrectly.   My credit card representative said that’s all I’ll need to recoup my money. I’m also calling the Better Business Bureau and report their sorry arses!

Now, I need to calm down and let the drama play out.  However, “The Idiots” will rue the day they decided to F*)% with the Psycho Bitch…

Tags: liar, Toyota RV, unhonest mechanics

It’s been a difficult time lately with my RV.  After  a long process, I finally thought everything was fine.  After having EVERYTHING rebuilt on the engine, I took it to a local shop for the recommended oil change and valve adjustment after 500 miles.  My driveway is sloped, and I noticed a puddle of oil on the ground.  Suspiciously, the dipstick reads “spot-on” full.  When I took it back to the above mentioned shop, he said they found three oil leaks, and I needed a new engine.  Uh, I just got a new engine.

My 80 year-old neighbor convinced me to pay the bill, get the write-up, and take it to another mechanic.  That mechanic cleaned up around the where the oil was, and checked the places the other mechanic said it was leaking.  Uh, he found no leaks.  (I think the other shop did a sloppy job of changing the oild AND overfilled it – plus they put on an old radiator cap that wasn’t mine and I had to get a new one.)  He does want me to drive it around and bring it back next Tuesday to re-check.  He also told me he wasn’t fond of the garage I took it to that said I had all the problems.

There’s no nice way to say this – someone’s lying.  By the way, the rig seems to run fine.

My RV refrigerator is currently in Tucson getting repaired.  It’s fixed and I have to go back and have it re-installed.  It was a pin-hole leak in the evaporator – the freezer worked fine, but the inside temperature of the fridge wouldn’t go above 50 degrees.

I had a blow-out on the way home from Tucson.  The first tow service my insurance company sent told me he couldn’t drop the tire from underneath and wanted to cut the chain – even though I had the proper tool and showed him the instructions in the manual.  He left.  God watches over fools because another tow truck who thought I was his call stopped.  He promised to come back.  He did, dropped the tire and changed the flat.  I was at the side of the road on I-10 going east between Wilcox and Bowie for a total of four hours.  Yes, I reported the first road service to my insurance company.  The first thing I did was order new tires all the way around and Discount Tire installed them on Monday.  They were five years old – desert heat is hard on tires…

Cali got sick on Sunday after I gave her a bath and crazily licked the floor inside and eating grass outside.  I treated her first with Pepto Bismol, but later recalled a previous trip to the vet for the same reason.  She sounded “stuffy,” much like I do with allergies at times.  I remember the vet told me the drainage in her throat could make her nauseated.  So, now I give her a Benadryl (and a fish oil tablet to help metabolize the Benadryl in dogs) once a day.  She’s fine now and not “stuffy.”  She’s been eating rice with a little bit of chicken all week and I’m going to slowly introduce her to kibble tomorrow.

I also lost my car keys, but found them in my RV 2-3 days later.  I have another set, but I worried since my house keys are on the same key ring.

I dream of parking my RV near idyllic surroundings in nature with a book, a glass of wine, and Cali at my feet. Not to sound “goofy,” but I want to devote some serious time to my hobby of amateur photography and marvel at God’s creation of nature.  It’s there that I find peace…

Cali is better, my neighbors on both sides have been supportive give me rides to the mechanic(s), and I even found some great summer books to read.  If  I slow down and take one thing at a time, it’s easier to deal with “little disasters.”  So, gentle reader if you’re so inclined I appreciate your good thoughts, prayers, or whatever way you communicate with the divine.

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”     ~ Albert Einstein

I’m booking on the latter Albert – this too shall pass…

Tags: Albert Einstein, Counting My Blessings, mechanics, miracles, Only the Good Friday, RV