ALTERNATOR WORKSHOP!!!
Yeah, so I have these cars... Dara was purchased back in the summer of 2000. I didn't even test drive her. I walked into the showroom with my mom, asked for silver, was told silver was sold out so I asked if they had black. Black was in stock so I told them that's the one I wanted.
The first time I ever drove a MK4 VW, let alone a VR6, was driving off the lot with my mom in the passenger seat.
Dara, was named after my first VW. A 1985 2.0 litre 4-door golf. Some think I wasn't really too creative in naming the second dub but here is a little back story about her and hopefully those who have gone through the story will like to hear it again and for those who don't really "get" cars will learn a little about how and why I have such a weird relationship with them in general.
I was in my last years of college. I was a jeep owner when I first got to Savannah, Georgia. It was a simple 4 banger, 2.5 litre engine. No AC, bare bones jeep that I had a 2" lift kit installed and was rocking 33's under the fenders. I had the jeep (don't even think she had a name. I think it was sheena or sheila or something) for close to two years and decided the brute force of the jeep should be given up for something I was closer to, the fun little hatchback.
Mom and I drove to a few dealers looking for a used VW to no avail until one night we went to springfield VW and talked to a nice dealer who was REALLY into dubs. He would tell of a story about how he gave a honda the "three wheel salute" on the highway at 120 mph. (A MK3 VW, when turned quickly, will lift up the rear wheel due to it's solid rear axle assembly).
I was sold. We took off with my brand new (used) 95 dub. I loved it. I worked on that thing everyday and it even got me down to art school for the last year there. While in savannah, I met a guy named Popsie who was a tech at the local VW dealer who said he could swap in a VR6 engine in my little 2.0. I was game and was told this is a fairly simple swap so I bit and gave him my car.
For two months.
Two loooong months. My best buddy dave would constantly let me borrow his car or drive me the 40 miles to popsies house every weekend to check up on him but as luck would have it, it would never be finished. School was ending soon and my patience was shot so one day Dave and I went to popsies house and demanded my car be put back together. Popsie dumped the old engine back in the bay without hooking ANYTHING back up i.e. coolant hoses, AC control etc etc and I was on my way, limping the whole time.
Dara selflessly gave her life to get me back home that year. She drove like a champ 800 miles back to my house, hurting the entire way. A week after I got home, my mom and I drove in Dara to the closest VW dealer and sadly, Dara died on the lot. RIGHT ON THE LOT. It was terribly sad and I even shed a little tear if I remember correctly. Before I went inside, I crawled under the dash and pulled her door chime relay out to hopefully transplant in the new car I bought later on.
I know some of you don't believe it but car's have souls. Dara stayed alive just long enough to get me to that lot. I totally believe it. Ask my mom if you think this is exaggerated.
Anyhoo, she was traded in for a brand spanking new 2000 VR turbo that was brought in fresh off the boat that week by one of the international dealers. Now I had leather and wood trim and heated seats. Far too much car for me at the time let alone in present day but I gladly drove the shit out of that car and still do =)
Dara was once a spunky little 4-door and now she has turned into a euro-trash finnicky little bitch. If I don't drive her every day, she runs like shit but if I show her attention, she drives like a champ. And now that I have another car in the carport right next to her, she has been feeling a little left out lately. I haven't spent a dime on her this season and she hasn't been to a single car show.
I can understand why she is mad at me and I paid for it in spades last night. Dara was driving kate and I around and all of a sudden she started beeping loudly at me telling me the alternator was done.
Ok, an alternator, seems simple enough. $150 bucks. Easy peasy right? Nah. Not in this car dude. I can't cram a piece of paper in the engine bay let alone get the alternator out without removing the entire front clip. Not an easy job.
More like a $1200 job. here, I'll bold that for ya, $1200 FUCKING DOLLARS.
Oh well, I guess that's the price you pay to cram 20 pounds of shit into a 5 pound sack.
*sigh, just when I was getting a handle on my debt, I get smacked down to square one again
The first time I ever drove a MK4 VW, let alone a VR6, was driving off the lot with my mom in the passenger seat.
Dara, was named after my first VW. A 1985 2.0 litre 4-door golf. Some think I wasn't really too creative in naming the second dub but here is a little back story about her and hopefully those who have gone through the story will like to hear it again and for those who don't really "get" cars will learn a little about how and why I have such a weird relationship with them in general.
I was in my last years of college. I was a jeep owner when I first got to Savannah, Georgia. It was a simple 4 banger, 2.5 litre engine. No AC, bare bones jeep that I had a 2" lift kit installed and was rocking 33's under the fenders. I had the jeep (don't even think she had a name. I think it was sheena or sheila or something) for close to two years and decided the brute force of the jeep should be given up for something I was closer to, the fun little hatchback.
Mom and I drove to a few dealers looking for a used VW to no avail until one night we went to springfield VW and talked to a nice dealer who was REALLY into dubs. He would tell of a story about how he gave a honda the "three wheel salute" on the highway at 120 mph. (A MK3 VW, when turned quickly, will lift up the rear wheel due to it's solid rear axle assembly).
I was sold. We took off with my brand new (used) 95 dub. I loved it. I worked on that thing everyday and it even got me down to art school for the last year there. While in savannah, I met a guy named Popsie who was a tech at the local VW dealer who said he could swap in a VR6 engine in my little 2.0. I was game and was told this is a fairly simple swap so I bit and gave him my car.
For two months.
Two loooong months. My best buddy dave would constantly let me borrow his car or drive me the 40 miles to popsies house every weekend to check up on him but as luck would have it, it would never be finished. School was ending soon and my patience was shot so one day Dave and I went to popsies house and demanded my car be put back together. Popsie dumped the old engine back in the bay without hooking ANYTHING back up i.e. coolant hoses, AC control etc etc and I was on my way, limping the whole time.
Dara selflessly gave her life to get me back home that year. She drove like a champ 800 miles back to my house, hurting the entire way. A week after I got home, my mom and I drove in Dara to the closest VW dealer and sadly, Dara died on the lot. RIGHT ON THE LOT. It was terribly sad and I even shed a little tear if I remember correctly. Before I went inside, I crawled under the dash and pulled her door chime relay out to hopefully transplant in the new car I bought later on.
I know some of you don't believe it but car's have souls. Dara stayed alive just long enough to get me to that lot. I totally believe it. Ask my mom if you think this is exaggerated.
Anyhoo, she was traded in for a brand spanking new 2000 VR turbo that was brought in fresh off the boat that week by one of the international dealers. Now I had leather and wood trim and heated seats. Far too much car for me at the time let alone in present day but I gladly drove the shit out of that car and still do =)
Dara was once a spunky little 4-door and now she has turned into a euro-trash finnicky little bitch. If I don't drive her every day, she runs like shit but if I show her attention, she drives like a champ. And now that I have another car in the carport right next to her, she has been feeling a little left out lately. I haven't spent a dime on her this season and she hasn't been to a single car show.
I can understand why she is mad at me and I paid for it in spades last night. Dara was driving kate and I around and all of a sudden she started beeping loudly at me telling me the alternator was done.
Ok, an alternator, seems simple enough. $150 bucks. Easy peasy right? Nah. Not in this car dude. I can't cram a piece of paper in the engine bay let alone get the alternator out without removing the entire front clip. Not an easy job.
More like a $1200 job. here, I'll bold that for ya, $1200 FUCKING DOLLARS.
Oh well, I guess that's the price you pay to cram 20 pounds of shit into a 5 pound sack.
*sigh, just when I was getting a handle on my debt, I get smacked down to square one again
- Tuesday, September 12, 2006 at 12:45 PM
- Posted by JKREW
- 3 Comments
you're not back to square one darling (: it's just a little set back. we'll make up for this in no time. we'll just have to be on the cheap for a while. I can cook at home all the time. I know you're starting to like sock soup and baked shoe so it'll be ok!
You can make stone soup like Mrs. Stark taught you in Kindergarden.
...mmmmmmmmm sock soup.