Our ’03 Ford Ranger (the kids named it Bart, as an acronym for Big Red Truck) needs a new rear end. We thought it just needed a new differential bearing(s?) and had it sitting in the garage since the beginning of August. We’ve done quite well as a one-car family in that time, using our bikes and feet a lot more, and scheduling larger/longer shopping trips carefully, when Mr Deplume wasn’t using the car to get to work.
But the weather is getting colder, and it will be increasingly difficult to deal with one car in the winter. So we took Bart out for a second opinion, as the local mechanic quoted us about $700 to replace the pinion bearing bearings, cautioning us that the job might grow if they find damage when they open up the differential.* According to the other garage, apparently the bearings are very bad and likely have damaged other parts. So at 2pm we got an estimate of $1075 to fix it up by replacing the whole shebang.
I called Mr Deplume while on the way home, and we decided that a grand, while a lot of money, is still way cheaper than the cost of a newer automobile.
And then tragedy struck.
About 2 miles from home, while driving on a curved overpass, the truck’s engine surged and then sputtered. The engine light went on, and I realized that the temp gauge was buried in the “WAY TOO HOT” zone. It was very scary! I pulled over, almost called for a tow, but then the temp went down some and I started it back up and slowly drove it the rest of the way to the local garage, about a mile away. I hope that last mile didn’t completely kill some major engine part, in a lame attempt to avoid a $50 tow bill; it was overheating again by the time I got it there.
I handed them the key, still shaking from the fright, and asked them to please tell me what was wrong. I’ll likely not know anything until tomorrow, but I’m steeling myself for the option that I just may be hoofing it for a lot longer than I expected.**
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* I imagine that I could have written that sentence using words lifted from Lewis Carroll’s “Jabberwocky” and it would have made just about as much sense to most people reading this: …the local mechanic quoted us about $700 to replace the frumious Bandersnatch, cautioning us that the job might grow if they find damage when they open up the vorpal blade.
** Before anyone starts taking up a collection for me, thinking that we’re too broke to buy something else to drive: We have some savings that we could use to buy another auto. I’m just not interested in pulling that trigger until I’m convinced the need is actually there.
