That will be a katrillion dollars to fix the thingamajunk on your car, Ma’am…

I loath having to have any work done on my car. I am sure that “clueless car-phoebe” is in blinking neon on my forehead on those dreaded instances when I have to take my car in. The thing is, its not totally because I’m a girl, because my brother has the same problem. I think its because there was no person who fiddled or tinkered with cars in the house when we were children after 1980. That is the year my father died. He was a friggin genius! First guy in his town to go to college, graduated THE top of his class from Michigan Technological University. He was an engineer with Oldsmobile. There were several summers where they sent him to Georgia to figure our why machinery in whole plants weren’t working properly. He was never happier then solving a problem or making a machine more efficient. Nobody in my neighborhood called repairmen, they called my Dad. The winter after he died there was a flood of new repair worker immigration into a neighborhood that had formally been a “plumber’s crack” free zone.

So I had to have my brake light repaired. At least that’s what the nice police officer that only gave me a warning instead of a ticket had said. While I had to be in my least favorite place, I was going to be sensible and have the rear window defrost fixed too. My car is small enough that I CAN keep the rear window clear by blasting the heater on high…but in order to do so I sit in the front seat sweating bullets. Verrry attractive and comfortable! The estimate for the brake light was $68.00, but the estimated reattaching of the bracket that had become dislodged from the rear window was $350.00! No, no…typing it like that is too tame…THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS. I had gone to the dealership because I HAD been ripped off in the past from smaller independent shops, what was this? (I figure the fact that the dealership wants to sell me my next car will help to keep honesty within my grasp.) But I NEEDED to have them fixed…. So I said to proceed.
In the end, The agent I dealt with had been conservative, and the estimate too high. My cost was only $98.00, total. The moral of my story should probably be something about facing fear or trying to be more informed, but no. I totally lucked out and next time the auto repair gods will have their vengeance, I'm sure of it. God I hate to have my car fixed!