<p>I’ll throw another wrinkle into this complicated scenario. Were there enough seatbelts in the Smith’s car to accommodate Mr. and Mrs. Jones? (OP said it was “tight”)?</p>
<p>All those people and nobody could have fixed the car?
What was wrong with it?</p>
<p>I think there’s no point having lingering resentment or holding a grudge over this. Maybe just shrug and say “malesh, what’s done is done”. Then maybe say to daughter, ‘well, I would not have handled it that way, but I’m glad you’re safe’.</p>
<p>Here’s what I think could have been done: Both Mr. Smith and Mr. Jones wait with the broken-down car. Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Jones go on with the girls. Presumably everyone drives? If the men balk at that, Mrs. Smith and Jones could offer to wait with the car at the side of the road while the men take the girls. </p>
<p>I have ridden in a tow truck alone with my kids before, it’s not that big a deal.</p>
<p>AAA responds to any breakdown call in less than 45 min. This should not have been a major fiasco involving doing everything en masse. Or?</p>
<p>This is just an example to me of why we need more hands on experience on fixing things.
To take a vehicle apparently four hours into the middle of nowhere, that is in such bad shape that it isn’t driveable a few days later?
That is mind boggling to me.
Cars don’t just stop working without warning anymore than people drop dead who were in the prime of health.
Everyone should have one of these in their car at all times along with basic tools.
[Chilton</a> Total Car Care Manuals](<a href=“http://chilton.cengage.com/totalcare.aspx]Chilton”>http://chilton.cengage.com/totalcare.aspx)
Along with regular maintenance and use of a code reader, there is no reason to be caught unaware by break downs.</p>
<p>I suggest that when parents hand over the care of their children to other adults, that one of the safety issues they discuss are what is to be done in emergencies. ( as well as a signed release in case of hospitalizations)
Better safe than sorry.
;)</p>
<p>
That might be what their brochure or something says but I know of many instances where it took hours for the AAA tow truck to arrive. It’s not unusual at all for the wait to be an extended timeframe. This is especially true if not broken down in a city (I think the OP said this was between Tahoe and SF).</p>
<p>
I agree that vehicles nowadays are quite reliable (but then so is my 66 Mustang) but unfortunately they can still break down with no warning. </p>
<p>The last time we called AAA for a tow truck (which took hours to arrive btw), it was because the electric fuel pump failed. This stops a vehicle dead in its tracks with no warning. It’s also a complex fix in some vehicles since it’s actually inside the gas tank.</p>
<p>Transmissions can also sometimes fail suddenly. There are some other scenarios as well.</p>
<p>I agree on the point of one fixing their own car. I do quite a bit of work on my vehicles but it seems that fewer and fewer people know how to do much of anything with a car other than take it to the dealer or call AAA.</p>
<p>No one in my family knows how to fix a car. I don’t even know how to open a hood sometimes. It is not a skill I have ever found necessary to have. My cars have broken down (a tire blew a month ago), but I have managed to get them taken care of. I do get my car serviced before I go on a long trip and make sure my roadside service is up to date.</p>
<p>My idea of knowing how to fix a car is having the AAA number available. I would rather have my D call AAA than to change a tire on the side of the road, or spend an hour leaning over the hood on the freeway.</p>
<p>My kids need to have 3 meals a day and they like to sleep in a bed. Some people don’t always feel food is that important (they’ll eat whenever). After one or two bad experiences with some people, my kids have opted not to go away with other families. Every family has their own dynamic and what they view is important. As a guest, the only thing one could do is to adjust or not to go.</p>
<p>I still would argue that everyone needs to know how to check( if not change) a timing belt- how to fill and change a tire- how to make sure your hoses are properly clamped and in good repair,how to change your oil, etc.</p>
<p>Of course if you feel comfortable with the honesty and capability of others to keep your vehicle in repair while charging you no more than necessary, I guess you don’t have to think about not letting your fuel filter get clogged so that you need an unexpected pump replacement, or making sure you really needed new rotors.</p>
<p>But I like to fix things- saves me money & time from waiting on someone elses schedule.
[Regular</a> Maintenance](<a href=“http://autorepair.about.com/od/regularmaintenance/Performing_Regular_Maintenance.htm]Regular”>Car Maintenance, Repairs, & How-Tos)</p>
<p>“I would have offered to stay, but no one I know would have accepted the offer, and would have felt terrible if they had kept people waiting around on a saturday, especailly after the first tow truck was an hour and a half late.”</p>
<p>[^Posted by ilovetoquilt22.]</p>
<p>I was practically yelling at my computer screen at some of your comments, but especially this one. I HATE HATE HATE it when people offer assistance and then ***** about the other party accepting the assistance later.</p>
<p>Enough of your nonscense already! Please stop acting so valiant. Sure your daughter was inconvienienced for 7 hours instead of 4. NO WAY would I have let the MAN stay behind by himself. That’s what close friends do—well, at least my close friends and family. I suspect you are most upset because your daughter probably came home extra late, tired, irritable, and your husband and other male spectators (brother in-law) egged the situation on (by calling Mr. J a wuss). Just be grateful your daughter (and EVERYONE else) made it home safe and get on with your life. The situation is over now so there’s no need to hold a grudge.</p>
<p>And quite frankly, your post screams sexism. Another thing I find vexing is when people try to define the characteristics of manliness and womanliness. I don’t know, just my 2 cents.</p>
<p>But then again, I suppose a simple phone call to you should have been made as well. Did they try calling you at least to let you know what was going on and your opinion on the matter?</p>
<p>Here is trust for you…When my husband puts windshield fluid in my car, I’ll ask him if he put it in the right place. Could you imagine if he were to try to change a timing belt? I don’t know if people remember the thread I started about him fixing faucet in our bathroom. Tools he had to buy, could had the whole bathroom redone.</p>
<p>Being able to fix cars has served me well. When I was younger it enabled me to save an awful lot of money in vehicle repairs. It does now as well since repair shops charge more per hour than most people earn and being in a position to understand the mechanics allows one to avoid unwarranted repairs that many places will try to talk one into doing. Of course, most people don’t even realize that they’re being subjected to this since they don’t understand vehicles.</p>
<p>Being able to repair vehicles has also gotten me out of situations that would have been difficult otherwise - like getting broken down in the middle of nowhere due to an issue that couldn’t have been avoided proactively by having the car ‘checked out’ before the trip. Not everyone breaks down in town or along an urban freeway unless they never travel anywhere. </p>
<p>It’s also allowed me to help a lot of others with problems on their vehicles including family members, neighbors, and random people stuck on the road in the middle of nowhere.</p>
<p>Having the knowledge, even if one doesn’t want to do the actual work, is beneficial since most of us need to deal with cars throughout our lives and they’re generally expensive items to own and repair.</p>
<p>Well, I do remember my brother in law changing the oil on my sisters car and not putting the cap back on. ( which wasn’t noticed till the oil pressure dropped)
I also remember him taking off the grill to change a headlight!</p>
<p>I didn’t say people should do it without knowing what they are doing, but isn’t difficult to have a manual at hand or to take a class so that we are at least informed on the workings of our vehicles.</p>
<p>This is off topic a bit but it is pretty alarming
[FAA</a> to order retesting of 1,400 airplane mechanics | Latest News | WFAA.com](<a href=“http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/wfaa/latestnews/stories/wfaa090729_mo_faa.8d867fd6.html]FAA”>http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/wfaa/latestnews/stories/wfaa090729_mo_faa.8d867fd6.html)</p>
<p>I don’t own a car that has a timing belt. I check the oil regularly and I have taught D to do that too. We also check tire pressure regularly and I do a visual inspection of tires every time I get in the car. I grew up with a father who believed in buying retreads so we had our share of flat tires and blow outs when I was a kid making me paranoid about tires. </p>
<p>I see someone agrees with one of my pet peeves. Don’t offer help if you’re going to complain about it being accepted - very tacky.</p>
<p>* I grew up with a father who believed in buying retreads so we had our share of flat tires and blow outs when I was a kid making me paranoid about tires. *
scary
perhaps my insistence on being self sufficient is because I had a father who knew little about cars ( although I picked boyfriends who knew a lot and were willing to teach me)</p>
<p>
I’ve only had the oil changed by someone other than me once in my life. It was not too long ago and I only did it because it was a free first oil change on a new car and it was done at the dealer - not some quicky-lube. However, since I was a little uneasy with it, I checked the car after my W drove it back from the dealer and found that they neglected to put the oil filler cap back on. Luckily the car hadn’t been driven that far and I noticed it or else the engine would have gotten ruined once dirt and dust entered the system. The dealer apologized, gave us a new cap (which I put on myself), and offered a couple more free oil changes which of course I didn’t bother to collect on.</p>
<p>
When I was 16 and didn’t have that much money I bought retreads a few times and also experienced a lot of flats/blowouts. It convinced me to never by retreads again and to pay attention and buy decent tires even if they cost a bit more.</p>
<p>
I assume you mean that they’ve had timing chains instead of belts. Those can have problems as well although in the case of a timing chain it’s usually the timing gear that fails but ends up causing the same issues - either the engine simply won’t start anymore or if it’s an interference engine, a piston might hit a valve. I’ve had to replace timing gears before but at least they don’t require the regular ‘maintenance’ and cost of replacing the belt at 60K miles or so.</p>