A Lemon

I've been struggling with some vehicle problems lately. For the past almost two years I've been driving a Dodge Journey and I have to say that it's not been the most favorite vehicle I've ever had.

For starters, it had a very bad stale cigarette odor when we first got it. I bought febreeze car fresheners to clip to the air vents. I febreezed the seats. I left the windows down at every opportunity. Following an online suggestion, I even kept some coffee grounds under the seat to absorb odors. In the end, Time healed all wounds ... and odors.

Once I could draw a deep breath in vehicle, I thought things would get better. Unfortunately, that was not the case. I noticed that the temperature gauge started climbing. The longer the vehicle was in one spot while running--say, at a stoplight or in a drive through--the higher the temperature would climb. When I had the oil changed, the technician told me that I was very low on coolant, but that he couldn't spot any leaks so he topped off the tank and sent me on my way. 

It became second nature for me to set the computer screen to the temperature gauge as opposed to the speedometer or mileage screens. I also took to carrying jugs of coolant with me, and eventually it got so bad that I was adding more coolant to the tank every other day or so. We finally were able to get someone to replace a faulty thermometer and then the vehicle finally started running smoothly.

Except for the grinding noise.

We had the brakes replaced shortly after we bought the Journey. What the mechanic did NOT replace, though, was the brake pads. They were metal on metal and the squealing and grinding was quite alarming.

When we got the brake pads replaced, I finally was able to relax and enjoy my vehicle. Until the day it decided to quit on me.

While I was driving it.

In traffic.

On the expressway.

I had just merged onto I-94 and was keeping up with traffic when everything suddenly stopped. I turned on my hazard lights and steered to the shoulder (on a bridge, I might add) and called my husband. While I was waiting for him, I turned everything off and then started the car again. It started right up and drove with no problems. 

When I got home, Hubby looked over the vehicle and could find nothing wrong. I decided that perhaps it was a fluke, but then it happened again the next day. I was about to turn into our driveway when the car quit and everything shut down. The power steering went too, and I almost hit a tree as I tried to steer the dead car into the driveway. Once again it started up with no further problems.

The vehicle continued to die once or twice a day. We researched it online and found out that it had happened to quite a few owners. When they took the vehicle in, the mechanics were unable to recreate the problem, and were, therefore, unable to fix it.

Isn't that reassuring. We pretty much parked the car, taking it only on short trips nearby, and began sharing a vehicle. We both knew that couldn't last for long and we started looking for something that might work better. After a week of searching and test driving more vehicles than I care to count, I am pleased to announce that I am now the proud owner of a Kia Optima. 

For a long time I've preferred an SUV to a car, but to tell you the truth, I'm so glad to have a vehicle I don't have to worry about, I really don't care. I think my new ride looks pretty sweet.

So tell me, what kind of vehicle do you drive? Do you like it?