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The value of a car, to me, is it's ability to get me from point A to point B while still having enough leg room that I'm not in pain. Really, that's it. I don't much care what it looks like or the pedigree of its systems. While in the computer world I'm a developer, in the auto world I am definitely an average user.
Normally I'm happy being an auto user, until the device malfunctions and I'm forced to deal with the annoyance. Or, worse, until I have to endure the scorn of the experts.
Today, the Jeep tried to kill me. It's not my regular car, that one warns me before it strikes. No, this is the alternate that Dave built. Ok, he didn't build it, but he did touch it. So fondled by Dave the Tinker, the Jeep did not come to me unaltered; but that's another tale of woe.
Today, a few short miles from home, the Jeep decided that the gas should get stuck. With no feet on any controls, the Jeep would build up to about 20mph. This is fine while moving on a highway, not so good for stopping at lights and signs. Basically, there were a few times, with Jeep trying to maintain it's rpms, that stopping didn't seem possible. I fought it home, avoided any fatalities, careened into the driveway, threw the beast into park and killed the gas.
Needless to say, I was a little rattled. The gas peddle has a block of wood attached to it and some mystery wires hanging about it; thanks Dave. However, those aren't new and the peddle doesn't appear to be any more out of sorts than usual.
I recount the events to the Jeep's current owner,![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
loosecanon. After a cursory inquiry as to my well being, the inquisition of the particulars begins. This is where I play the user to the all knowing tech, with all the baggage that entails.
In my story, I thought the Jeep had been stuck in second gear, but apparently that impossible; it's fourth. Was it accelerating and making this kind of noise? No, once it got to 20mph is seemed content. The engine doesn't know mphs, only rpms! How much was that? Three, I think. 3,000! Oh, bad. Why didn't you put it in neutral? I wanted to shut it down quickly. But neutral would have done that, and saved the untold damage you've done.
Amusingly, this sounds like half the computer help desk guys I hear. Only now, it's car knowledge and I'm the ignorant bastard. The automotive dress down is finalized with the always effective; well, if you'd even driven stick, you know that! There is short disertation on why standard transmission drivers are more insightful than automatic drivers can ever hope to be. It's not your fault, you're a good point and accelerate driver, you just don't know... argh.
I promise, with Donald Knuth as my witness, that I'll never abuse a VB programmer on their lacking of knowledge of C structure, memory allocation, pointers, or assembly language in general. Just please, God, no more about the fucking stick shift.
Dave, the Jeep tinker and Orthodox Jew, has been called. Did I mention we're supposed to be observing Passover? Did I mention none of us are Jewish? There is a massive hunt and run and hide going on. Loose food must be covered as it's technically not here. Don't ask. So, we cover the food shelves with Reynold's Wrap, to block the view. I can't help thinking that deep down the observant Chosen are afraid of space aliens and the beanie is to reflect the beams...
Oy, it's going to be a long night.
Normally I'm happy being an auto user, until the device malfunctions and I'm forced to deal with the annoyance. Or, worse, until I have to endure the scorn of the experts.
Today, the Jeep tried to kill me. It's not my regular car, that one warns me before it strikes. No, this is the alternate that Dave built. Ok, he didn't build it, but he did touch it. So fondled by Dave the Tinker, the Jeep did not come to me unaltered; but that's another tale of woe.
Today, a few short miles from home, the Jeep decided that the gas should get stuck. With no feet on any controls, the Jeep would build up to about 20mph. This is fine while moving on a highway, not so good for stopping at lights and signs. Basically, there were a few times, with Jeep trying to maintain it's rpms, that stopping didn't seem possible. I fought it home, avoided any fatalities, careened into the driveway, threw the beast into park and killed the gas.
Needless to say, I was a little rattled. The gas peddle has a block of wood attached to it and some mystery wires hanging about it; thanks Dave. However, those aren't new and the peddle doesn't appear to be any more out of sorts than usual.
I recount the events to the Jeep's current owner,
loosecanon. After a cursory inquiry as to my well being, the inquisition of the particulars begins. This is where I play the user to the all knowing tech, with all the baggage that entails.In my story, I thought the Jeep had been stuck in second gear, but apparently that impossible; it's fourth. Was it accelerating and making this kind of noise? No, once it got to 20mph is seemed content. The engine doesn't know mphs, only rpms! How much was that? Three, I think. 3,000! Oh, bad. Why didn't you put it in neutral? I wanted to shut it down quickly. But neutral would have done that, and saved the untold damage you've done.
Amusingly, this sounds like half the computer help desk guys I hear. Only now, it's car knowledge and I'm the ignorant bastard. The automotive dress down is finalized with the always effective; well, if you'd even driven stick, you know that! There is short disertation on why standard transmission drivers are more insightful than automatic drivers can ever hope to be. It's not your fault, you're a good point and accelerate driver, you just don't know... argh.
I promise, with Donald Knuth as my witness, that I'll never abuse a VB programmer on their lacking of knowledge of C structure, memory allocation, pointers, or assembly language in general. Just please, God, no more about the fucking stick shift.
Dave, the Jeep tinker and Orthodox Jew, has been called. Did I mention we're supposed to be observing Passover? Did I mention none of us are Jewish? There is a massive hunt and run and hide going on. Loose food must be covered as it's technically not here. Don't ask. So, we cover the food shelves with Reynold's Wrap, to block the view. I can't help thinking that deep down the observant Chosen are afraid of space aliens and the beanie is to reflect the beams...
Oy, it's going to be a long night.
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From:
no subject
On the last instance, it stuck at 55. This was bad, as there was stopped traffic ahead. I shifted into neutral and drifted to a stop at the side of the highway, popped the hood, and literally beat on the throttle with a stick until it released.
I took it to a mechanic and told him I wasn't coming to get it until he figured out what was wrong, since I didn't feel it was safe to drive. After two days of going over it with a fine-tooth comb and discarding theories like broken cruise control and worn bushings, he realized I was missing a spring from the throttle assembly.
That bugged me. In today's digital world, the only resistance I feel on the accelerator pedal is a couple of stout springs tied to the throttle. With the one missing, the other would occasionally fail to provide enough pull, and therefore the throttle would hang open, content with its lot in life. Yeesh.
From:
no subject
One of my cars had break problems. The first time you tap the break going 65mph and the pedal goes straight to the floor with no resistance, you heart follows it. Pumping the pedal would temporarily solve the problem until I could get the lines bled, but that first time you never forget.
The ultimate cause of my stuck gear experience; an acorn in the filter. No, I'm not kidding. I tell you, the squirrels are out to get me... ;)