The other morning as I was heading out to my nicely warmed up, defrosted car, there was an older gentlemen out in our parking lot furiously scraping away at a HARD frost covering on his window.  He looks at my nicely warmed up, defrosted car with a bit of wistful jealousy and says ‘ I should have done that too’.  I agree and hop into my nicely warmed up defrosted car, without letting any heat escape, and do the Dogwood Dash to work.

 

Last night, after work, I do a bit of shopping and then quickly head out to Willow Point to try and get some pictures of the foggy ocean before it gets dark.  I successfully negotiate the driftwood scattered along the beach and take a few pictures before dark.  I jump in the car, and it is making a growling humming noise — what IS that?  I proceed to drive thru Willow Point, now accutely aware of this mysterious noise coming from the back of the car.  I pull over on Hilchey Rd and get out, walk around the car, listening for the noise, do a full circle of the car, nope, can’t figure it out.  So, jump back in and continue driving toward Dogwood Street.  Suddenly, the noise stops, (that’s good, I figure), but NO, now the car is hesitating and stuttering.  I proceed thru the intersection and pull over on the side of the street. 

Shut the car off. 

Wait. 

Turn the car back on,

Nope, that’s not going to work. 

Phone Randy. 

Wait. 

Wait. 

Phone a friend.

Wait.

Wait.

Wait.

Wait some more. 

 Randy eventually finds me. 

He attempts to start the car. 

Nope, that’s not going to work. 

We leave the car, drive home and come up with a plan to phone BCAA in the morning and rescue the car all the while checking our ‘car budget’ to see how many $1000’s we have to spend to fix ‘the baby’

 

Later in the evening, Randy says to me ‘could it be out of gas?’.

I say, ‘well it could be, I guess……’,

I say, ‘but it was making a growling noise and what do you suppose that was?’

I say, ‘and it was coming from the back of the car, and it was louder IN the car than OUTSIDE the car’

 

Background info: 

– our gas gauge has never worked.

– the trip meter was under 400km

– 450km is fill up time!

– the car has a cute little voice that tells me when it’s about to be empty

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We decide at 9:30 to try a gas rescue mission!

 

and the moral of the story is:

don’t forget that while you’re eating your breakfast, all the while, envisioning this nicely warmed up, defrosted car, that IT’S USING GAS TO DO THAT!!

 

I’ve never been so happy to embarrass myself as I was last night! It beats an expensive car repair bill anytime!!

 

The growling noise was likely the fuel pump (located inside the gas tank?) as it attempted to make liquid out of fumes or sludge.

 

I wonder what happened to the cute little voice that tells me when the tank is about to be empty?