What is it about women (at least mine) and vehicle maintenance?

I think I'm about at my wits end sometimes. Short of holding a gun to my wife's head, I can't get her to cooperate. It is always inconvenient either financially or timewise to do it. Two of the tires are bald and I can't get her to let me replace them. One got a flat last fall. She's been driving on her spare (full size) tire for most of a year now. The car is well over 50K miles and every time I mention changing transmission fluid, belts, or radiator hoses I basically get ignored or put off. I can barely get the oil changed twice a year, and she won't take it in to get it done herself. There's a CVC joint in the rear going bad (AWD) and we just ignore that too. I don't get it. Does she really want to break down in the middle of town and pay big bucks for an emegency repair rather than let me take care of it? She says no, but her actions sure don't indicate it. It's my fault because I pick inconvenient times to do it. Lord knows my personal classwork schedule and when I have time shouldn't be a consideration. After I resorted to being a bit of a jerk about it, she has "tentatively" scheduled me to do it on the 8th, a full month out. I never had these kind of problems when I was single! This is nuts I tell ya! :smiley13:

Ahhh, married life........

I'm trying to hold on to the single life for another few years, although the girlfriend isn't too keen on that idea :smiley3:

Dang, want to trade? My wife thinks oil life is exactly 3000 miles, which is ridiculous imho, and she sets her trip-o-meter when I change the oil and filters. The bitching usually starts at about 2500 miles and doesn't stop until I change it again.

For the first 3 or 4 years she had her car, I was made to take it into the dealer at every single maintenance point in the manual, and it had to be in the shop with in 100 miles of the stated mileage.

Extremes suck, that is for sure.......maybe we can mind-meld them and come out with something in the middle....oh wait, it would probably be a man. :smiley36:

I knew a girl in college who's daddy gave her a brand new Pontiac Grand-Am. She never changed the oil or anything in it! Even at 10,000 miles! You didn't marry her, did you?

I can kind of relate to both you and ashauler. I guess what I don't understand is why I have to wash the car so many times. I mean, it's pollen season, for crying out loud. We also wash cars before and after driving vacations.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mrtr33

snip........I can kind of relate to both you and ashauler. I guess what I don't understand is why I have to wash the car so many times. I mean, it's pollen season, for crying out loud. We also wash cars before and after driving vacations.

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Here's how I feel about washing cars:

There in my driveway sits
a damn dirty car
I noticed it Saturday
While smokin' a 'gar

I saw a big bucket
a rag and the hose
I considered them all while
blowing smoke from my nose

The bucket was empty
the hose nicely coiled
Is my smoking experience
about to be foiled

No way my good friend
this moment won't be wasted
This stick is one of the best
that I've tasted

I'll enjoy my smoke and
this feeling will pass and
That damn dirty car
can just kiss my fat a##

It'll be there tomorrow or
even the next day
But I'm not gonna
throw this cigar away

The last car she had was outfitted with low profile sport tires. You know, the higher pressure, really thin ones? Those things you have to keep topped off with air because there's not much cushion there to begin with. I didn't have an air compressor at that time. She refused to keep the tires filled regularly. Apparently, much like the shoemaker elves, it was my job to do it in the middle of the night with a turkey baster or drive it to a gas station. Therefore, a couple times a year (pothole), we had to pay to get a rim fixed at the local metal shop across town. The spare in that car got plenty of use as well.

:smiley32:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ashauler

Here's how I feel about washing cars:

There in my driveway sits
a damn dirty car
I noticed it Saturday
While smokin' a 'gar

I saw a big bucket
a rag and the hose
I considered them all while
blowing smoke from my nose

The bucket was empty
the hose nicely coiled
Is my smoking experience
about to be foiled

No way my good friend
this moment won't be wasted
This stick is one of the best
that I've tasted

I'll enjoy my smoke and
this feeling will pass and
That damn dirty car
can just kiss my fat a##

It'll be there tomorrow or
even the next day
But I'm not gonna
throw this cigar away

---

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ashauler

Dang, want to trade? My wife thinks oil life is exactly 3000 miles, which is ridiculous imho, and she sets her trip-o-meter when I change the oil and filters. The bitching usually starts at about 2500 miles and doesn't stop until I change it again.

For the first 3 or 4 years she had her car, I was made to take it into the dealer at every single maintenance point in the manual, and it had to be in the shop with in 100 miles of the stated mileage.

Extremes suck, that is for sure.......maybe we can mind-meld them and come out with something in the middle....oh wait, it would probably be a man. :smiley36:

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Polar opposites indeed! I use synthetic oil. That way I only have to change oil twice a year.

Is April the official month to "Bitch, Moan, Wine, Hate, Stupefy, Distract, and Shit on your Husband?"

A lot of this crap going on lately....sheesh :smiley7:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mrtr33

I knew a girl in college who's daddy gave her a brand new Pontiac Grand-Am. She never changed the oil or anything in it! Even at 10,000 miles! You didn't marry her, did you?

I can kind of relate to both you and ashauler. I guess what I don't understand is why I have to wash the car so many times. I mean, it's pollen season, for crying out loud. We also wash cars before and after driving vacations.

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Here Here!

Luckily, my wife is good about taking her own vehicle in for maintenance, repairs, oil changes etc. So am I.

But, I constantly hear about how dirty my truck is. It makes me nuts!!!! She's always washing her vehicle and yes, I get that it's a company truck and all but she's always hacking at me about mine even if all it has on it is a bit of dust. It makes no sense to me. When my truck gets dirty I wash it. If it has a bit of road dust on it, pshaw, it can wait...

ashauler
Loved the poem! I'm going to remember it the first time my wife walks up to me when I'm outside enjoying a cigar and mentions me washing the truck.........LOL

CptnBlues63 Your lucky you still have your truck, My wife adopted my Truck and i only have visiting right on weekends if i ask nicely.
Well she did give me the mini van so i dont have to walk to work :smiley6:

My car is the one one thing left I can truly control so I keep it very nice and I change the oil after 3000 miles and do everything the manauel tells me to do. I only have to fill up every 3 weeks and it still looks pretty good. I got it for my 40th beday that was almost 9 years ago. My car treats me good so I treat it good., and funny thing it is a 99 Pontic grand am :smiley20:

My wife is good about knowing the maintenance schedule and always tells me, "we need to get the oil changed", which means I need to get the oil changed. I'm not sure what the difference is between her taking it to the oil change place or me doing it, but she insists it's me.

My wife steals my truck and cleans it. She'll actually drive to work in her Jeep, take the truck and clean it. And don't get me wrong - I keep up with all maintenance. Oil changes, never let it drop below a quarter tank of gas, keep the tires inflated, check antifreeze/coolant levels, etc. I just fail to see where washing the thing contributes to the automobile's maintenance. It's not like we have to deal with salt on the roads for ice. It rains all the time here, for crying out loud!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Kenyth

I think I'm about at my wits end sometimes. Short of holding a gun to my wife's head, I can't get her to cooperate. It is always inconvenient either financially or timewise to do it. Two of the tires are bald and I can't get her to let me replace them. One got a flat last fall. She's been driving on her spare (full size) tire for most of a year now. The car is well over 50K miles and every time I mention changing transmission fluid, belts, or radiator hoses I basically get ignored or put off. I can barely get the oil changed twice a year, and she won't take it in to get it done herself. There's a CVC joint in the rear going bad (AWD) and we just ignore that too. I don't get it. Does she really want to break down in the middle of town and pay big bucks for an emegency repair rather than let me take care of it? She says no, but her actions sure don't indicate it. It's my fault because I pick inconvenient times to do it. Lord knows my personal classwork schedule and when I have time shouldn't be a consideration. After I resorted to being a bit of a jerk about it, she has "tentatively" scheduled me to do it on the 8th, a full month out. I never had these kind of problems when I was single! This is nuts I tell ya! :smiley13:

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Doesn't that mean she gets a new car?

Some folks are audio learners, some are visual. Perhaps a little of both will help you out.

If it were me, I'd call a buddy with a handful of fouled out spark plugs and pick them up. Then, I'd pull a couple of the plug wires so it runs rough (or not at all) and then turn it around on her for not having regular service done to it.

Fortunately both my trucks are diesels and I don't have plugs, but the cost of a new injection pump (showed her the prices online) makes my wife keen to regular maintenance and picky about where she gets fuel from for them.



Kris

Quote:

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Originally Posted by logan37

Doesn't that mean she gets a new car?

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I even tried to get her to do that, just so we wouldn't have to deal with the bad CVC joint. Doesn't want to. She really has never been all that excited about paying for maintenance on anything, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Some folks have the attitude that if it works, don't fix it.