Automobiles

Let me start by amending my last blog. I would hold the door for anyone immediately behind me no matter who it was.

There, that’s settled.

Automobiles. Is that not one of the easiest ways for the proverbial Nice Guy to be taken advantage of. Luckily, I do know a little about them so I don’t get caught too bad. When I find someone trying to catch me that is the last time I will go there. We did get caught one time. We had a beautiful 77 T-Bird that we kept in mint condition. Every inch sparkled and looked like new. We even bought an identical model and color to use a spare parts. Took it all apart and set them aside. Used some, sold the rest. But anyway, we had some trouble with the transmission. Did not shift right and it was getting worse. Did not notice any oil on the ground. I checked everything I could think of and did not find anything. Well, transmissions are kind of mysterious as compared to a motor. If the expert says that it needs a $700 overhaul you usually believe them. We sunk some other money into it earlier and were afraid that this was not going to end. Best to cut our losses and sell the car while it ran nice and looked good. We did all right. We ended up making money on it after driving it for four years. Can’t complain. A month later the gentleman that bought the car stopped by. He was really happy. When we sold him the car we told him about the slight slip in the transmission. It seems that he had it serviced and found out it was a two dollar gasket. Good for him but I was bummed. We would probably kept that car for a long time but I guess the transmission shop either misdiagnosed the problem, or they were looking for a quick way to make some money. I give them the benefit of he doubt, being a Nice Guy, but I never went back there.

Nice Guys (and Gals) with cars can be easy targets if you know nothing about cars. Went to another shop for a tune up on our CRX. They wanted to charge us $180. Did it myself for fifty, a real thorough one, too.

Nice Guys are also the one that usually gets hit by someone with no car insurance. Who does that? If you don’t have any I think you would drive a little safer. No, it doesn’t work that way either. The Nice Guy is left with a pencil and a nearly blank piece of paper with information that will not add up to anything. We will bang it out so it doesn’t look too bad then go to see a friend that can fix it better. Then we will barter with the Nice Guy that is fixing it and keep the entire Nice Guy community happy and busy. Meanwhile, the jerk hits another car, probably owned buy a Nice Guy.

A technician visited our shop a couple or months ago. Nice Guy. He stayed while his wife backed the car out to go to a convenience store and t-boned a cement abutment. Crushed the door. He informed me sadly that it was a rental and his was still in the shop from the last accident. This could not have happened to a Nicer Guy. At least he wasn’t hit by some joker with no financial responsibility. I am going to drive home now, very carefully.