Sure could use some good mojo, prayers, vibes, whatever.

[raevyncait]

Last summer, when I had to give up my beloved Escape because I was just too far behind to catch up on the payments when I'd been out of work for over a year, I bought a 1991 Taurus, one owner, mostly pulled behind a motor home, low mileage, for $1600 including tax & tags. She ran just fine until this Spring, when she blew the water pump and thermostat.  Almost $600 later, I was back on the road, but knowing that the a/c needed servicing, and that the serpentine belt would soon need replacing, as it was screeching when I first started up the car.  After the water pump was replaced, there also developed an oil leak.  So today, I had enough extra cash to get the a/c charged (in the hopes that it was all it needed), and took it to the mechanic up the street that maintains our company fleet of construction site trucks.  She's a goner. The motor mounts are rusted out and revving the engine (which I do NOT do, because it makes the belt screech worse) causes it to twist & buck up against the hood. The compressor on the a/c is shot. There's an exhaust leak (so even if I could afford the a/c compressor replacement, I can't drive with the windows closed anyway). Just the motor mount replacement will run me $800 or so, and by the time I fix the oil leak, exhaust, and the serpentine belt, I'm looking at probably what I paid for her, and the book value on one in PRISTINE condition is only about $1800.

At any rate, now I'm afraid to even drive home (30 miles one way), and am trying to work out how to get myself to/from work, and find another vehicle that I can drive with little/no downpayment and low payments. 

*sigh*, I think it's still Monday.

[lady serena]

Sending good thoughts and prayers, may you get what you need.

[raevyncait]

Thanks Lady Serena, as it turns out, there was only one bolt missing completely, the others while they do show some rust, are holding up just fine. There's still an exhaust leak that I need to get taken care of, and an oil leak, but I can get myself to/from work without worrying that the motor's about to fall out.

I AM unhappy with the shop that replaced the water pump, because that bolt, according to my co-worker who found that a bolt was missing, would have been removed in order to lift the engine up enough to easily get to the water pump assembly.  Either they didn't put it back at all, or they put it back improperly so I lost it. According to the mechanic that diagnosed the twist/buck, and my co-worker, the exhaust leak is most likely a crack caused by the twist/buck. There's also an oil leak that developed AFTER the oil was changed at the same time as the water pump. Yeah, that Firestone location will NOT get any additional business from me.

[Baron Frederick]

Raevyncait,I am so glad things worked out for you. I stay away from those places like Goodyear , Firestone and carX.Try to find a mechanic who only fixes cars and doesn't do front end work and all the rest of that.Someone who has been in business for a long time and only has a small shop.These type seem to work the best for me and seem to be the most honest.   
                                            Good Luck to you

[raevyncait]

Baron Frederick,
Truthfully, the ONLY reason I went to Firestone is because they were the ONLY ones open (it was almost 7pm). Trust me when I say I won't EVER go there again, unless I stop in to tell them what a bunch of jerks they are.  I had an oil change today, and what do you know, since the change, there's NO OIL LEAK, which tells me that either the engine being off balance (because FS failed to put the bolt back) created a leak, OR something was not tightened down properly (again by FS, as they were the last ones to change the oil).  The shop that told me she was a goner and not worth fixing has been in business something like 15 years or more. our company does tens of thousands of dollars worth of business with them annually, on our fleet of about 15 construction trucks, and I truly thought that the company history with them would afford me reasonable, fair, honest treatment. I was obviously mistaken. 
The Jiffy Lube where I had the oil change today was fabulous. After they were finished, & brought the car around to me, I was outside talking to them, telling them about the problem with FS (across the street), they opened her hood back up again to look at the mounts, and look again to see if they could find an oil leak, which they couldn't. They also commented on how perfectly clean, even after running the motor for a few minutes, and clear the oil was, especially given the fact that the engine is 21 years old.
Now, I doubt I'll have them do anything major, but I'll definitely be back for my oil changes and my inspection.

[raevyncait]

The latest update on my little car is that $700 later, she runs better than she has in the 11 months I've had her, thanks to a couple of new hoses, new spark plugs & wires, clean egr valve(s), a new fuel filter, oil pressure switch, and I can't even remember everything else. The guys at the shop didn't try to blow smoke up my weed puller or recommend anything that didn't NEED to be done. They've been around a pretty good while, and I had 3 different people (including my oil change place) recommend them to me.  All the reviews I found online were positive, and their rating with the BBB (which they do NOT have a membership in) is an A- (one complaint that was resolved quickly and to the satisfaction of the customer).  The price I paid, according to a couple of mechanics I've spoken with and the online estimators I found was low-mid range (unlike Firestone who charged more the $200 MORE than the high range on the same calculators for the water pump).

Overall I am very pleased with both the service and the way that they treated me and the other customers they dealt with in my presence.

Now to save up for the A/C repair next.  I'm hoping to have it done before Labor Day, but we'll see how that works out.