The Van That Wasn’t

*sigh*

So I’ve been looking at vans over this past week, online, and in person. Well, after some checking and test-driving, I found a van that seemed to be in good shape. It was quite a drive from where we were – but for a reliable van, it was worth it.

One thing, though. The air conditioning didn’t work. That would have to be fixed. But otherwise, things looked great.

But – better to be safe than sorry. It was already at a Dodge dealership, so I had the dealership do a full mechanical inspection.

The air conditioning was recharged and working (so I heard), and the inspection came out fine – just a little brake work needed, which was done.

So we met the owner at the dealership. And I wasn’t quite satisfied yet. After all, we have a long trip ahead of us.

So I asked to talk to the mechanic personally. What would you recommend I do next? What kind of guarantee do I have? And so on and so on.

After grilling the mechanic, I was satisfied.

We got in the van to check things out one more time. And guess what? No air conditioning.

Now what? Well, we finally decided to propose a lower price, for the work still to do on the air conditioning. The seller agreed.

Now to get the patient guy his money. There was no bank close, so after some conversation we decided to drive to the nearest bank, about 25 minutes away.

I thought I could make it on that tank of gas. I really did. But when the gas light came on, there was no more risking – after all, I had no idea how low the dial could go.

So I wasted more time turning around, going back to the gas station, getting in line, putting in gas, and then getting back on the road.

The seller had gone on ahead of us. But as I drove out on the highway I realized – the bank is going to be closed.

Ok, I admit it, I was pretty frustrated by this time.

So I drove a little bit, thinking of alternate plans, and then decided to call the seller – who would now be waiting at the bank wondering who these people were who had absconded with his van.

He called me just then. And he checked the bank – I was wrong – it was open for a while yet. *phew*

On I drove. Well, at least I had had a good chance to drive the vehicle. Everything was working fine. Looked like it would be a good van.

Until the little light on the dash went on.

I was only maybe 6 minutes from the bank. The problem was, I had no idea what that little light meant. It had an exclamation mark in it – looked serious…

Then I smelled something funny.

Then the smoke started rising from under the hood.

Nowhere to pull over, so I stopped in the middle of an exit, with traffic whizzing by on either side.

Apparently the light on the dash meant that a tire wasn’t inflated properly. The smoke under the hood? Not sure about that…

I called the seller (who I should perhaps stop calling “the seller” at this point), and he met me at a nearby gas station.

Some kind of fluid was everywhere under the hood.

Let’s just say I didn’t buy the van.

So, after a few hundred dollars of driving back and forth and a safety inspection…

Wait – a full safety inspection at the dealership… the AC they fixed not fixed, a light on the dash, fluid everywhere…

Well, I thank the Lord for whatever He has in all of this for us – perhaps protecting us from a lemon – and now we start from scratch.

Let’s just say someone was loading a van on a tow truck this afternoon – and it wasn’t us!

Discouraging? Yep. But God is in control – I’m glad He is and not me. So – tomorrow is a new day.

Maybe I should get a horse* instead.

* In the early days of automobiles, frequent breakdowns led to the common cry – “Get a horse!” from those who used the more reliable animal transportation.