The battery had to be replaced in February 2011, the alternator had to be replaced in April 2011, and the battery had to be replaced again in May 2011.
A friend loaned me the money for the first battery. A local charity paid for the alternator (and installed it); they also talked WalMart into exchanging the battery even though we didn't have the receipt.
The darn thing died again as I was backing into the carport on May 10 2011 (the park manager had to push it the rest of the way into the carport while yours truly sat behind the wheel and thought really nasty thoughts!)
The assumption is that now its the voltage regulator that is the problem. They aren't that expensive but when you have ZERO money, even $100.00 might as well be a million bucks!
Since then I have been taking the city bus, walking, and cadging rides from other park residents as well as Larry and Colleen (the park manager and his wife).
Yesterday while looking out the bathroom window at the rear end of the truck, I had a bright idea. At least I hope its a bright idea!
We have a park-wide yard sale next month so I think I will try to sell the truck and buy an alternative vehicle. By alternative vehicle I mean a moped or a motorcycle or a scooter or an electric bicycle (yes there are such things, I've seen them while walking to the bus stop) or a good old fashioned 10-speed bicycle.
The bus is fine but it only runs every 40 minutes (every 80 minutes on Saturday and not at all on Sunday) and some areas of town don't have any bus service at all (such as the office of the local newspaper).
I had never even thought of replacing the truck with an alternative form of transportation. This solution would solve a lot of problems
1) Gas costs so much right now that even if the truck was running I couldn't afford to fill the tank
2) Any of the alternatives are more environmentally friendly than the truck
3) Resale value for my truck is around $4700.00 and I will knock off $700.00 for the voltage regulator. I can get a NICE alternative vehicle for $4000.00!!
No comments:
Post a Comment