Rescue Services

[Beowulf]

we'd filled the engine with water (neither of us mechanically minded)

*makes a mental not NEVER to let Beo anywhere near the engine!*

You filled the engine with WATER?!?! Oh My!!

Well we'd been putting water into the right place.. but we thought we had a leak as the water level in the car kept going into the red. Turns out we DID have a leak.. just not onto the road as we thought.. it was leaking into the pistony bit (as I said not mechanically minded)

Car stalled, we turned the key and got a really nice loud THUMP CLUNK sound from the engine !

[Barry Shnikov]

I had to drive home with my head out of the window so I could see where I was going. Luckily there were no other cars on the road.

Mmphh...mphhh...floppy ears...mmmmph


...quick, drag me away from the keyboard...

[Barry Shnikov]

it was leaking into the pistony bit

[Beowulf]

well what ever you call it.. I don't know.. The combustion chamber? What ever bit the head gasket protects. (look I know my way round a circuit board, the software in a PC or a complex mathematical equation.. I've no room in my head for Zen and the art of car maintenance )

[Daisy Chain]

I need to join one - do I chose the AA, the RAC or one of the other ones?

My new car is now a year old and his free breakdown assistance has expired. The company offered me 2 more years for £120 (rescue, recovery and at home). What a bargain compared to the AA and RAC.

Luckily I read the small print. The car would not be covered for punctures amongst other things. Hmmm. Not quite so appealing. Have you ever tried to get the nuts off your wheels after the garage has done them up with that squirty air thing? A weak little thing like me needs a man to get her nuts off.

So it's back to the RAC (and the man in the nice uniform). Although hopefully, I will pay for this service and not have to use it.

Daisy

(A MIU Loving Little Flower)

[Fruity Oranges]

We're with the RAC and have been for many years. Can't fault them at all. When we were going on our honeymoon, we were on our way to catch the ferry but broke down on the motorway at Oxford. They were with us within 30 minutes and then towed us back home. We thought that that was it, honeymoon stuffed unless we get a hire car - but the very nice lady on the phone said that because we'd already started our holiday, we would be getting a car through the cover we had with them! So, later that day, we caught a later ferry and had the honeymoon

[TurboTomato]

Piston broke Barry?

Beo - that's a reasonable understanding given that you're not mechanically minded The head gasket is a kind of seal that sits in between the engine block and the head. If it's knackered, coolant can seep through into the cylinders, hence the appetite for water. The other tell tale signs are 'mayonnaise' around the oil filler cap, lots of condensation from the exhaust...

[Double Trouble]

...quick, drag me away from the keyboard...

Shut it Barry...It was very traumatic.

[Caz]

I think I am the only person with Green Flag. Can't fault them. Ex-boyfriend left car lights on all weekend once and drained battery and on monday morning they arrived at my house within 20 minutes which i thought was pretty damn good. Good thing about Green Flag is that they ensure the car not the person so anyone can drive the car and if it breaks down they will still come out, rather than AA / RAC insuring each person!

[TurboTomato]

Good thing about Green Flag is that they ensure the car not the person so anyone can drive the car and if it breaks down they will still come out, rather than AA / RAC insuring each person!

Swings and roundabouts really - both have their advantages. It is very useful being covered as a person, as it doesn't matter what car I'm in (whether I'm a passenger or whatever) - if it breaks down I will get home. As I mentioned before I have used this option on 2 occasions and found it to be a bit of a lifesaver (compensating for mates who haven't bothered to take out breakdown cover ). However if you have something like a family car that being driven by a few different people I can see the advantage of covering the car rather than the person.

I've now cancelled my breakdown cover as I get it free with my bank account, but I've yet to test it out. I'm pretty sure it will be basic Roadside cover, which is a little annoying as I'd rather have Recovery as well, but I'm loathe to pay out for Roadside a 2nd time. I'm banking on the fact that I have a Honda and it won't break down

[Mezzosoprano]

I think I am the only person with Green Flag. Can't fault them. Ex-boyfriend left car lights on all weekend once and drained battery and on monday morning they arrived at my house within 20 minutes which i thought was pretty damn good. Good thing about Green Flag is that they ensure the car not the person so anyone can drive the car and if it breaks down they will still come out, rather than AA / RAC insuring each person!

AA cover cars or people... personally think it's MUCH better to get the car covered!!

[Tiggerbabe]

As TT says, that depends.....I'm the only person using my car therefore it's of more comfort to me to know that if I'm in someone else's car and it breaks down we can still get home, especially if they don't have cover.

[Mezzosoprano]

As TT says, that depends.....I'm the only person using my car therefore it's of more comfort to me to know that if I'm in someone else's car and it breaks down we can still get home, especially if they don't have cover.

Good point - I'm only ever really in my own car or with folk I know who have either the expertise to fix it themselves or are with a breakdown recovery. Because the car is covered I know that if I or my partner have the kids in the car (bearing in mind its a W reg Astra and now getting a bit far through) if I dies on either of us... we can get the kids home...

That all sounds way too sensible for me....