Voyeurism & Van Dwelling and Car Living 02 Aug 2006 01:40 pm
Emergency van repairs and how I dug my hole
I’ve dropped mentions several times of how I’ve needed a new alternator for a while now. Last night I realized rather harshly that I should have mentioned it one less time as I ended up doing an emergency repair. Had it waited another 15 minutes to seize I’d have been on my father’s driveway as I planned on replacing it today. No, really! It was on my action list for today and instead of fixing it I’m writing about it. But as it played out my problem wasn’t just an alternator failing, it was also in my delaying the repair in hopes of finding a better financial position to afford the repair. Now my emergency hundred dollar bill is owned by an auto parts store.
Yesterday when I drove from my nighttime parking spot to the library, less than a mile of easy driving, I heard the alternator go from it’s usual whine to a full-fledged racket. It was clearly bad and calling out for death to relieve it of it’s burden. But it was on the way back that the bearings truly gave out and it sounded like hell itself opened up all of a sudden under my hood and soon the four horsepower of the apocalypse would be jumping out.
I knew the second that I heard it doomsday was near so I quickly got off the main drag and into a subdivision. The road I was on I’d need to be towed from whereas I could actually park and repair on a side street and this proved a wise move. One block into the subdivision it died.
When I chose this area to be homeless at while living in my van it was done with deliberation. Most towns have overnight parking bans or at the least restrictions. But, I have friends and family all over to lean on for support and favors. As it turned out I ended up enlisting two people’s help from the family and two strangers.
The death rattle
The van died on a little street corner and I wanted to push it from the stop sign. Turning to the right was mostly a downhill run and I could get my van safely off the road and to a curb but mostly is a tough proposition when the vehicle you’re rolling weighs four tons. Thankfully a kindly gentleman helped for that critical four seconds of pushing and got me up the slight incline so I could roll the rest of the way.
I called a relative and she took me to the parts store where I discovered there could be one of several alternators so I’d need to return for engine and VIN numbers or simply bring in the dead alternator for comparison. I ended up just borrowing that car for a while and pulling the alternator while racing the fading evening sun.
Another kindly stranger was out walking his dog and asked if I needed help. He lived just down the street and offered tools and assistance. I declined on the tools as I carry a basic set and thanked him for the offer and that I may need it when getting the belt back on. Alternators are a pretty easy swap, requiring just a couple of bolts and a wire or two and in short order I had mine out. I can’t imagine how hot it was while running as it was just touchable when I started removing it–some 20-30 minutes after it broke down.
Being a chick in an auto parts store is sometimes comical, sometimes bang my head on the wall frustrating. The guy last night though wasn’t giving me the skeptical eye or wondering why my husband sent me to such a manly store to shop while he’s back home in the garage up to his elbows in greasy engine. The clerk was confident enough with me that it wasn’t until we had the new alternator on the counter that he questioned, “and you’re sure the alternator is dead?” I simply spun the shaft and let him hear for himself the racket and said, “well…it’s sure not right.” He laughed.
The neighbor did return when I was finishing up. He and his wife were in the yard while the kids played. And I was so grateful too! I’d simply never have gotten the serpentine belt on by myself. The amount of force needed on the tensioner to get it moved far enough was so great that even the guy, with his superior upper body strength, had trouble getting it moved. I tried, but we only made headway once I was the one stringing the belt back onto it’s path.
My best friend is a battery pack
After I bought the van the battery I learned that it was a fool’s economy not to get one of those $40 starter assistance battery packs. My essentially brand new battery in my newly purchased van had died and left me stranded one cold winter day. It was $50 for a jump start from the tow truck so the next day I bought a replacement battery and a chargeable battery pack. Sadly the nearest replacement point for a warrantee swap on my battery was several hours away.
Last night that battery pack paid for itself as my van’s battery was just a tad too low to get the engine started up but that booster pack got it roaring. Politely roaring that is, in the purr like a kitten sort of way. Suddenly my van ran amazingly quiet. No more bearing whine and no more gurgly rattle of a thrown bearing!
I drove around a while to charge the battery up and blissed out on the pleasing “I’m in good repair” engine noises my van produced. As it was late I just stuck around the relatives house after returning the car. I was invited to stay the night so I could eat dinner, shower and relax. Having a regular home was so very appreciated last night. The shower was a godsend as I was literally dripping with sweat for the speed and physical involvement of the repair. So I unwound with some DVDs while stretched out on a very comfortable sofa–in an air conditioned room!
The true cost of automotive repairs
People have often wondered why I do my own repairs. This was especially true previous to 9/11 when I always had really well paying jobs. But the cost of having someone else repair a car is more than just the astoundingly high hour rate mechanics charge, it’s the time involved and the quality of the work. When I do my own repairs I know it’ll be perfect because I’m not getting paid by the job, or even by the hour. I’m going to make it perfect and take the time to ensure it is so. And I’ll spend a couple minutes cleaning a part that’s still serviceable rather than a mechanic who’ll just charge me for a new anti-rattle clip for brakes when the old ones, once cleaned, are still perfectly serviceable.
Also, I really hate arranging for rides to and from the mechanic and having to leave it there all day, or even half the day when I know it’s something quick. Like last night it took only 65 minutes from start to finish to replace the alternator including the two trips to the parts store. Comparing that to waiting for rides, waiting for service clerks, waiting for paperwork, waiting, waiting, waiting–and saying no to a million upsells and horror stories about how this or that is broken and must be repaired to be safe. But the only danger there was to my wallet. Especially as women aren’t supposed to know about cars I hear it all and am fortunately smart enough to smell the fishy stories. When I do need repairs done for me at a shop I play stupid for then to see what they say. If they’re honest enough to be fair when I play into the stupid woman expectations I figure they’re a good bet to hire for the repair.
on 30 Aug 2006 at 9:43 am 1.matty said …
Again, I would suggest a junkyard if you’d have to blow your last few bucks. Also, alternators can be rebuilt, often cheaper than a rebuilt can be bought at a parts store. Finally, why a battery pack thing and not just a set of cheap jumper cables?
on 30 Aug 2006 at 2:01 pm 2.April said …
Cheap jumper cables are exactly that. Cheap. On the low end of the price spectrum you get some clips with wires that may look good but will not necessarily transfer enough power to actually start the dead car. I actually saw this recently and the dead car didn’t start until a better set of cables were found, after which it started as if Henry Ford himself manifested a ghostly magic from the drivers seat. So we’re at, lets say, twenty bucks now for cables based on what I’ve just peeked at online. Copper isn’t cheap and plenty of diameter is needed.
When my battery died it was on an ice cold night and good cables or not, no one was offering a running car to jump from. So what do I do? Rummage around for pennies and potatoes to make a battery? No, I called a tow truck and spent $50 to get jumped. Even the short wait for the truck was dropping the interior of my van to a frighteningly cold temperature. I don’t remember what the temperature was that night but the next morning when putting in the new battery the wind chill was negative 20 degrees–if memory serves. So the night before would have been quite cold indeed. Even in the daytime I needed to run my hands under warm water a few times while working to keep them able to hold tools firmly–and yes, I was wearing gloves.
As I just flushed $50 down the toilet and sat freezing waiting for help I was determined not to let that happen again. So when I saw an automotive battery starter pack on sale for $40 I bought it–for less than the cost of jump start. And now if I ever get stranded with a dead battery I don’t have to pay a small fortune for a jump or need to rely on the strangers who are unwilling to pop their hood for a couple minutes. This lack of Samaritan good will has happened far too many times for my own personal comfort level.
Whether I had jumper cable or not they still require a complicit party to assist you. This was the third time in my life I was stuck somewhere with a dead battery, a set of jumper cables and no kind stranger to lend a hand for whatever reason. And that battery pack? It’ll always be there for me as on my routine maintenance checklist I’ve added a line for checking it’s charge and topping it off if needed.
Let’s examine the potential alternator sources…
Junk yard: From where I was it would have been a forty-five minute ride each way to spend $30 on an alternator of dubious life span. I’d have needed to compensate either my driver or the owner of the borrowed car for gas and because night was falling this would have turned into a multiple day repair. Being later at night the junk yards were likely closed. So let’s say $30 for the alternator plus ten bucks in gas and or cigarettes/beer/lunch and a call to the local police hoping they’ll allow the vehicle to remain overnight on a street and then hoping it doesn’t get towed anyways because information didn’t flow efficiently from one party to another.
DIY rebuild: Also a multiple day affair. I did inquire about this and the parts would have to be ordered and would take two days to arrive. The cost was twenty-something dollars so that sounded appealing initially, but the total price was not desirable. This option would have also necessitated having my van towed to an off-streen location so that’s another $100 or more. So rebuilding, a theoretically cheap option, would have cost more than a brand new, straight from the factory alternator not to mention leaving me without a way to move around for several days in a community without any public transportation.
Buying a rebuilt alternator: This was the option I took. I bought the cheapest non-junk alternator from a reputable rebuilder and it has a lifetime warranty–and just a couple dollars more than the one with a very short guarantee from a lesser source too. I had my van running again before bedtime and was able to get it off the street–and out of the town’s parking regulation–long before I’d be risking a ticket and/or towing and impounding.
on 04 Feb 2007 at 12:32 pm 3.Eric said …
Yea leave the cheap jumper cables alone. I work in a parts store and they sell $10 dollar cables. Most of the time they come back roasty toasty. As far as keeping things charged you can get solar powered battery maintainers from Northern tool supply or off ebay.
on 03 Mar 2007 at 1:19 pm 4.Sandy said …
The battery boosters are a lifesaver. I got the one for 60 dollars and have used it to add air to a tire, jump start my car and for others (I’m a good Samaritan!), and use it as an electrical power source. It’s good for about an hour for a 60 watt bulb when I use it in my storage room. You need to charge it up at least once a month. Definitely more reliable and versatile than jumper cables.