Think you are having a bad week?

[waGoN]

Well, Monday, had to take the dog to the vet. She is pretty healthy, except that she gets sick every night. Yeah, I know, that ain't healthy. Anyway, they still can't figure it out. Tuesday. Wrecked my Malibu wagon. Yes, that is right, I lost a dear member of my automotive family. Some woman ran a stop sign or something. I don't even know what happened. All I knew was I had the right of way, and BAM, there was a car in front of me. I hit the brakes, and it was too late. The Malibu is gone. Cause of death? Blunt force trauma to the grill.
I got a ride home, and had to jump start my black truck, because it has been sitting for a while. While it was running, I noticed tranny fluid dripping on the ground. Rotted line. Jump started the dually, which developed a bad rap the last time I trailered the waGoN, but was going to drive it anyway. Took a battery charger, a battery pack and jumpers hooked to the black truck to get it started. I think the batteries are on their way out, because I had to get jump started when I left work. I left early so I could fix the tranny line. The next morning, I had to jump start the black truck again. When I noticed that the wipers wouldn't work, and then found out the directionals aren't working either. What really set me off was when I found that the radio didn't work either. How am I gonna crank my country music?? I took that to work, and on the way home some banana head decides to run in front of me so I hit the brakes. A puff of smoke from under the hood, and a sinking pedal, gave me a sinking feeling. The brake line coming right of the master cylinder was spraying the header, hence the smoke. So, with the GN in the garage waiting for the updated motor, and the waGoN in the trailer with an expired sticker, I had to rent a car this morning. Five registered vehicles and I gotta rent. I called and asked what they had for AMERICAN cars, and they couldn't guarantee what I got. Yeah right! When I got to the office she said that it was early and everyone was delivering/picking up cars and all I could have was a F0RD Focus, "unless you want a Silverado." Yeah, I took the truck.
I'm tired.

[turbineborique]

That's the spirit Brian ; Could have been worse , count your blessings , I mean it could have been your Grill .....Oh yeah good choice on the rental . Te veo en la piesta .

[Mike_g]

Dam Brian ! You replaced that tranny line with John on the Way to Bristol..
Gotta hand it to ya, when life hands you lemons

[waGoN]

Yeah but this week instead of making lemonade, I just got lemon juice in the eye. On the bright side, I looked at a car the same day it happened, and will be looking at another tomorrow, and may even drive it home. It's wrong wheel drive, but Cadillac doesn't make alot of rear drivers anymore.
Also, if they let me then I will be bringing the Malibu home to harvest some organs for a roof transplant. Still waiting to hear from the other insurance company. They suck. Mine is much better than hers.
Yeah, I was counting my blessings as I saw the hood crunch. Who needs high speed cameras? I saw the whole thing in s l o w m o t i o n. I thought, "Oh shit! This is gonna hurt." It didn't. Well, at least not until later. My neck tightened up pretty good, but it is almost back to normal. I am lucky that was all though.

[Night Train]

Glad you are OK. Well at least it wasn't the Black waGoN. BTW, we can now use Grundy in MA to insure our Buicks. I ran an online check for my 87 and for $20K coverage it was around $300/yr.

[waGoN]

A little update: The big update is in the "Well?" post.
Woman said I was "traveling at a high rate of speed" so here ins. co. took 8 days to figure out that her stop sign made her responsible for the accident. I still haven't found out any details on my check, the amount, or what happens to the Malibu.
I found a nice looking Eldorado to replace it. When I called, I asked if it had any lights on or anything, they obviously said no, but when I got there, there was an antilock brake light on, and the display said something about servicing the suspension. They said they'd fix it and I gave them a deposit. It took a couple of days, but fixed it. When I called they said it was all set, they just had to get a title. They were going to suggest that I take the car and drive around on my old plates until I got the title (only legal for 7 days). I told them no. Then they suggested I take a loaner until the title came in. NOPE. Not gonna do it.
I looked at another Eldorado, and an SLS last night. The SLS was nice, but the Eldo was gorgeous. Took them for a spin. The SLS rode real nice. The gorgeous Eldo? Not so much. When I got back from the test drive I told him, "There's something wrong with that car. Motor sounds funny and is weak, and the tranny is messed up." It's a shame, because I wanted the SLS, but when I saw the Eldo, I changed my mind. As soon as I drove them both, I changed my mind back. I'm picking up the SLS tonight.

I'll try to get a picture of the Malibu. I'm a little technologically challenged, and messed up when I took a picture of it with my phone.
I'm hoping to buy it back from the insurance company, or preferably get it for free and chopping the roof off to put on my 85 T-Type.

[Night Train]

What year SLS? Check out http://suncoreindustries.com/. They have kits to replace the air suspension components with regular shocks or they can sell you remanned parts like the airpump MUCH LESS the GM.

[waGoN]

Well, it has been a very long time, but I finally got a check out of them. I paid $600 for the car probably 8 years ago, and have put little into it. They gave me a check for $1600 and change. Not bad, but I don't think I could find another car that was as reliable, for that amount.
I picked up a 97 Cadillac SLS. HOLY CRAP do these things have alot of power for a wrong wheel drive vehicle.
I love the thing, but being old, it still needs a little TLC, just like my Malibu did.
I still have to deal with getting the dang insurance company to pay for the rental and storage of my car while they tried to figure out what happened.

[TurboBabe]

I'm glad you finally received your money...but it really is not a safe way to make a profit.....Malibu...Cadillac....Malibu...Cadillac. ....it took me about 20 years to move from a Lincoln to a Dodge....although wrong wheel drive is a BIG change. Hope you enjoy your new ride!

[waGoN]

Yup, I got the money for the car, but they refused the rental company, so they suggested that I pay for it, then fax in the bill and wait to get reimbursed. If they try the same thing with the towing company on the storage fees, then there will be alot of phones ringing at the insurance company.
Yes, wrong wheel drive is a bit of a change. A change that I swore I would never make, but it is a Cadillac, and it's a V-8. I can see myself getting into a little trouble before I adjust to all of that power. It sure is alot of fun.