The Van is Back!

Yesterday I drove up to Buffalo with Dan, my business partner for sales calls and to pick up our van from the repair shop.

The story started two weeks ago when we were driving to Rochester, NY to see Grace play in a hockey tournament. Just as we got a toll ticket on the eastbound side of the New York Thruway I noticed the check engine light came on and the temperature gauge was climbing fast. I pulled over to the side of the road and opened the hood to find steam rising from the engine. I also smelled burning rubber.

With the semis whizzing by, I knew I had to drive on to a safer spot. We nervously made our way a mile and a half to the next exit. The toll taker directed us to a park and ride lot at the end of the exit ramp. As I turned off the car, the engine started to sound very busy, almost as if it was grinding itself up.

While Bobbie called AAA, I stood in the rain to call Butch, our mechanic back in Pittsburgh. He asked if there was white smoke coming from the car. When I said yes, he said we may have blown a head gasket and the engine is probably ruined. His estimate, a $1200 repair.

In the meantime, AAA told Bobbie that we were technically still on the Thruway and could not be towed using their benefits, but they would try anyway and call us back. While we waited, she called Enterprise and National to reserve a rental car. Then good news from AAA, they are sending a tow truck, but bad news on renting a car. We would have to go to the Buffalo airport too rent one-way from National. Enterprise would not pick us up.

The tow truck driver pictured above turned out to be a great guy. But at first he wasn't so sure about us because he had been told that there were five people arrested on the Thruway that needed to be towed. (Perhaps AAA may need some communications skills training.) He was very nice to the kids, gave us the phone number to a good cab service, and waited patiently as we gathered everything out of the van. "No offense." I said, "If the engine is blown, we may not want to bring it back to Pittsburgh." He laughed and agreed that I should do what I ought to do. Janine started to cry at this point because like us, she thought she may never see this car again.

Soon the cab arrived and we piled all of our stuff into the trunk. The cabbie was brusque at first, but soon was helping put things into his Crown Victoria cab. The tow truck driver left me with a firm handshake talking about his seven year old boy who is already playing hockey, and his two younger brothers who are right behind.

It was a five minute $12 cab ride to the airport as the park and ride lot was on the perimeter of it. The cabbie helped us unload all of our stuff into an enclosure on the departures level. Then he started to give me detailed directions on how to get to Rochester from there. Heck, I think he would have stayed with the kids if we asked.

The Buffalo car rental area was no picnic, but then, none are. The attendant was friendly but unhelpful in reassuring me I was getting a car that would fit all of us and our stuff. "We don't have any minivans. There's a big hockey tournament this weekend."

"Thanks, I know..."

But I was soon in a Dodge Charger 4 door winding my way out onto the airport drive and back to the Departures area. Everything did fit including the kids as you can see. Although I would not buy a Dodge Charger myself, we got to Rochester and back to Pittsburgh in fine order.

The next day, I got up the courage to call the repair shop associated with the towing service that had the van. It was a bad water pump, but the computer recording and engine overheat and shut-down. There MAY be engine damage. Relieved, I asked for a few days to make up my mind about it.

Once I was back in Pittsburgh I took a box of doughnuts over to Butch to ask his advice. "Where was the white smoke coming from?" he asked.

"Under the hood."

"You didn't tell me that! It's just the water pump! I thought there was white smoke from the tail pipe."

"You didn't ask, Butch! Are they shooting straight?"

"For that price, yes. But I can't tell about any damage without seeing the car."

So I OK'd the repair and upgraded our AAA membership to cover up to 100 miles towing.

And yesterday, the car came home...