Landslide

It isn't my day today.

A few days ago, J noticed that the van's airconditioning was not cooling evenly. Actually, he noticed it sometime ago. He doesn't usually drive the van so I didn't pay attention to what he said. I thought it was the same as always. However, last weekend, it was really hot so I was trying to adjust the temperature so the interior of the van would cool faster. That was when it became very noticeable. The vent on the driver side was spewing warm air. I kept on turning the temperature down when J said it was already very cold. I was surprised that indeed, his side of the car was already cold, chilly even.

The following day, I called the car dealership to schedule the repair. I was booked for today. I went there early this morning -- I was told that I needed to get the car in early so I can get it back by the end of the day. They promised they would call me to give me updates. Around 2:30 this afternoon, the service associate gave me a call. He told me the condenser was damaged, they have the parts available, although the repairs would take probably until Friday. No biggie. J is away and won't be back until Friday. However, the dealbreaker: warranty wouldn't cover it and it costs a friggin' $700. I told the associate to put the service on hold, I wanted to consult J. It really was too much (duh?!), but given that it was a huge car that we depend on for long drives, there wasn't much space for a compromise. J told me to play hard, but in the end, he was saying to just have it serviced and we'll just find a way to cover for the extra expense. I tried talking with the associate again, he advised me he can lower the price to about $600 and that's it. I said no. I would pass up his offer and maybe get the van serviced some other time. I told him I would come pick the van up before the end of the day. Before I went back for the van, I tried calling one of my acquaintances. He works at another dealership, so I thought he might have a better idea. He agreed that $700 was too much, he advised me to talk with the service manager at the dealership, and maybe, if I can't get it covered by warranty, at least get a good deal on the service and repair.

The associate at my dealership was helpful, sure, but when I asked to speak with the manager, he just told me, it won't be covered by warranty and I should just speak to my insurance agent and hope they'd cover it. But that doesn't make any sense to me. I would still have to pay $500 for participation, and in the long run, jack up my premiums for making a claim. That doesn't sound too good, does it? I insisted to talk with the manager and asked her if she can help me on my dilemma. She got my records out and while she said she could not promise anything, she would try to talk to the corporate office to ask if they can make an exception in covering the repairs. I know she can only do so much, but getting even a 25% discount sounds way better than paying that much for that small repair. I would know the van's fate tomorrow.

And while it wasn't my day today, I hope tomorrow would be better. Heck, I hope this is only a sign of better things to come. As they say, when you're down, there's nowhere to go but up.