Saturday, May 7, 2011

MY FORD EXPLORER IS DEAD

R.I.P.  Booger Green Beast
I knew there was something wrong with my front end.  I was doing a lot of bouncing.  I thought time for some shocks and I'll be good for another 80,000 miles.  I'd planned to drive the wheels off the thing.  Well, actually I almost did.  I drove the entire front end off it.  I was actually afraid I had a bigger problem, when I nearly lost complete control during a recent rain storm.   I was still telling myself the old girl just needed shocks when I took her in.  They even quoted me a price on them, and I told them to go ahead, relieved I was wrong about something worse.  Then the guys doing the work called, and said, upon closer inspection, the whole front end needed to be replaced, plus new shocks.  The total for everything would be about $2,000.   My old gas guzzling Explorer wasn't worth the money to fix her up.  So I went and got this:   A 2011 Ford Fusion.   I'll miss my beautiful V8, since I got the 4 cylinder version of the car.  33mpg is oh so much sweeter than 15mpg. 

I didn't have a great deal of time to think, but I did a lot of praying.  I couldn't wait, the old sled wasn't safe to drive anymore, and I needed another car to get to work on Sunday night.  So I stayed open to God's leading, and believe I got what I needed.    



4 comments:

jps said...

Lonnie,

Glad you have a good vehicle again.

We have a similar story on why we ended up with the Prius.

James

That's my 2 cents! said...

Your story was upper most in my mind, and I do sense God's blessing in it. I knew I was going to have to get a new car. I simply thought it would be once I got to Florida.

God has been impressing on my heart the Florida move won't happen until after the first of the year.

Lonnie

Erwin Calverley said...

Sorry to hear about the Booger Green Beast. How many years did the Ford Explorer give you before it gave up? Well, I think it was smart of you to retire her than wait for her to break down often and spend on expensive repairs. That would have been a very heavy financial burden for you in the long run. Good sense going for a Ford after that. Ford is known for producing some of the toughest vehicles around, and the Fusion is no exception to that. How are you finding it?

Dante Mallet said...

It is difficult to let go of something that has been with you for so many years. But sometimes, a replacement is what’s necessary, a change in the landscape, if you will. Now that you car is new, you don’t have to frequently spend money on repairs, and you won’t have to worry about your car breaking down on you in the middle of the highway. Just as long as you keep the car in good condition, you don’t have to worry about anything.