No…I’m not talking about my kid, I’m talking about my car. I love my kid, but I love that car too. I used to be ashamed to admit how attached I was to four wheels and some metal/plastic combo, but now I just own it. I love my car. I was proud as punch when I paid it off in March and the title came in the mail. It was truly mine, no longer mine and the bank’s.
Can you imagine my dismay when my transmission went in May at 107K miles? Getting any kind of mechanical repair done as a single woman is intimidating…but a transmission? We’re talking high, high dollar repair. We are talking Jen on a tight budget. We’re talking about if I make a mistake it’s going to be very costly.
I finally made a decision on where to have the work done. It was a good decision as it turned out that mine was one of the most complicated transmissions they’d worked on, but this company had GREAT reviews, specialized in transmissions, and were good to work with, returning calls promptly and keeping me informed every step of the way. Yesterday I picked my baby up and brought it home. It was so nice to drive my car again.
You know what was even better? I now know more about a transmission than I ever wanted to know. Thanks to an online tutelage, I knew EXACTLY what the repair guy was talking about when he called. Am I a transmission specialist? Not hardly, but I can now carry on a semi-intelligent conversation about it. I am also determined to take a class on under-the-hood basics.
I know how to check my oil, tire pressure, and coolant. It’s not enough. I need to know how to intelligently converse about what’s going on under the hood of my car. This is not particularly information that I want to know but it is stuff that I need to know.
I know that the mechanics of car care is not a particularly glamorous post. That’s okay. Those that know me know I’m not particularly glamorous. I’m a down-to-earth, pragmatic, romantic dreamer. 
But, as women, we need to be aware of what we’re dealing with. And if you want to tell me that your husband always handles that…I’ll caution you that he might not always be there to do so.
So, my ending comment is part question/part challenge. How much do you know about your car? How much are you willing to learn? And in a weird way, this totally fits in with the Blaze sentiment. The Blaze heroine loves her man but she can take care of her own.
So, I challenge you today to become a Blaze heroine –a woman who knows her car underneath the hood and can follow a mechanics discussion.
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I don’t know much about the mechanics, but I read the NASCAR series, does that count?
Jennifer-
I even know how to jump my car and have done it for other too!! I thank my dad every for this skill. He taught me right! And it is a skill I plan on passing on to my boys, since I have no girls.
I have to say I had one of those father’s who taught me everything there is about cars. When I got my first car He made me learn how to change my own oil and how to check every spark plug. he made sure I was educated on my car. Even when I would go and get my oil changed he would have me change my air filter first and see if they would try and show me a different one. The place did it only once and it resulted in a free oil change. I even learned how to put my new radio in my car. This a skill I am proud to know and made my husband’s life easier
Well, I grew up in an era when my dad was a “backyard mechanic” and did much of the maintence on the family car. Now since cars are computerized there is not much choice but to take them to the dealer or a reliable repair shop. Lucky for me I found such a place about 15 years ago & have continued to take my business to them. They were recommended by a co-worker. Any problem that has a risen after they worked on my car was promptly taken care of with no extra charge. I learned enough from my dad, brother & a good friend to have some idea what they are talking about. In the past I always checked my own oil, added water and or antifreeze to an older car I had. The beauty of owning a newer car is that there are far less mechanical problems. The key is keeping up with the maintence and not letting anything go if there seems to be a problem. Like you I am single and owning a car is a necessity but an expensive one. Also like you I paid off my car earlier this year, yea, what freedom!
The last couple of years of payment have been tough as I wasn’t yet ready to retire but the economy finally forced me into it! Retirement is wonderful but the tight budget is a constant challenge.
Now that your “baby” is in good running condition I hope it continues to serve you well. (Y)
Have a great weekend. (H)
Well I don’t think I could rebuild a transmission myself, but I know the basics under the hood
Then again, my husband and my stepfather are both mechanics and I’ve spent way too much of my life hearing about the bleeping flipping blanking this or that when they are working on one of those recalcitrant vehicles LOL
Oh Tawny, that made me laugh because “been there, heard that”!!
I, too, LOVE my baby!! I was very, very happy the day we paid it off and it became all mine.
I do know how it works, in general, and can do some basic maintenance on my own. On of the most difficult things about moving 3000+ miles is finding a new mechanic. I loved my old mechanic. He treated me as if I knew what I was talking about and would never, never try to pull anything over on me. He knew better. 
I could tell him about a noise that it was making that I couldn’t identify, and he would listen and help me figure out what it was. (Usually, he’d know by my trying to mimic it, LOL!) There are a few mechanics in town and I’ve started stopping by to say hello. I go by myself, driving my husband’s much newer, fancier car. I have a few questions I ask. The way they answer tells me a lot! 
Enjoy having your baby home, Jen!