What a Week!

This has not been a very good week, so far. I am having some major issues with my truck. I first noticed the problem Monday afternoon, after I got off work. When I tried to start my truck, it took me three tries to get it started….very unusual. Then, it seemed like it was running very rough. It was not idling correctly and was making more racket than normal. That evening, I drove out to Spencer, Okla. For a REACT meeting and the truck seemed to do fine.

When I got up Tuesday morning and started my truck, I noticed it was not idling correctly and very loud. I pulled out of my driveway and headed down the street. No matter how hard I accelerated, the truck would not pick up any speed. It had no power at all. As I drove down Drexel, I continued to accelerate, but there was still very little power. Then, when I tried to get on I-44 from SW 89, I put the pedal to the floor….and nothing. As a matter of fact, I lost speed. Traffic was going 60-70 mph on the interstate and all I could get my speed to was 25 mph. I drove on the shoulder for about ¼ mile..and once I finally got up to 45 mph, I merged onto the highway. I drove 45-50 all the way to work. Once I got to work, I could still tell my truck was running real rough and something was wrong.

Since I know very little about vehicles, I decided to email my friend and ask him about it. He informed me it was probably something to do with the electronics on my truck. For the past couple of years, my “check engine light” has continuously stayed on, but I was told by a couple of mechanics it was nothing to be concerned about. This time, the light kept flashing off and on, which I had never seen before. My friend advised me that I needed to go ahead and take the truck to a mechanic that had all the up-to-date equipment and have them check it out.

So, After I got off work, I headed to the mechanics shop. Once again, I tried to merge onto the interstate and could only get up to 35 mph. Eventually, as I got moving on the interstate, I was finally able to hit 65-70. I got off at SE 89 & I-35 and drove into the parking lot of the mechanic’s shop. When I explained to the mechanic what the problem was, he didn’t act like it was anything major, so I left him the keys. As of this morning, they still had not had a chance to look at it, so I hope to hear something this afternoon.

Here’s the thing. The truck has 176,000 miles on it and is a 2000 model. It has gone through two transmissions since I have had it. It has been a great truck for me for the past 6-7 years. Karla and I decided if it was going to cost over $500.00 to have it repaired, we would just get rid of it and find something else for me to drive. We really don’t have the money to buy another vehicle, but we also don’t want to keep investing money in a truck that may be on its last leg anyway. Plus, if we have to get rid of it, I may have to spend a whole day taking all my REACT stuff off of it. I have all kinds of wiring for my REACT lights going throughout my truck, so all the wiring will have to be removed. I really don’t want to do that, so I am hoping the problem is an inexpensive one to repair.

Until we find a solution, Karla and I are sharing her car. It’s not what I want to do, but there is no other alternative.

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