I tend to be a pretty absent-minded person. For example, I lose my car keys a lot. I have a hard time remembering people’s names or what I was supposed to buy at the grocery store. I’ve found a way to cope with this absent-mindedness just fine—I tend to rely on handwritten lists a lot—and I’ve always just thought of it as a harmless character quirk on my part. However, recently, I’ve had a bit of bad luck with my absentmindedness, and it’s actually cost me quite a lot of money. I present for you a recent mistake I made, so that by reading about my silliness, hopefully you can avoid paying the price I did.
My example has to do with maintaining my automobile. I’m not what I would call well-versed in the workings of cars and trucks, so I don’t really think to maintain my vehicle. I usually leave that to a mechanic. The problem with this attitude, though, is that I often end up paying a lot for my ignorance. The ultimate example of this occurred on my way to work. I took a nail in the right rear tire, but didn’t realize it until I had driven the ten miles or so. Sure, I felt the car handle a little sluggishly, but it wasn’t until I parked at the office that I saw the tire was completely flat. I had essentially driven on the rim, shredding the sidewall. My mistake cost me over two hundred American dollars for a new tire, instead of the pocket change I would have spent to buy a plug kit. I was lucky I didn’t do more damage.
The lesson I learned here is that I should take a bigger interest in how my car works. I try to check the tire pressure every few weeks, and I also visually inspect the engine and fluids. I’m still pretty bad at it, but at least I’m making an effort to get a sense for my vehicle. The idea here is that if I’m even remotely aware of how my vehicle behaves and looks, then I can better anticipate problems. Now I know what a flat tire feels like.
But think of what could have happened had I had longer to go! I would have possibly damaged the wheel and brake system, and I would have found myself stranded on the side of the road, waiting for a tow truck. When I imagine these scenarios, the dollars pile up, frightening me with the thought of how badly my finances could really have been affected, all because I was stupid with how I drove my car.
Nowadays, I drive with a tire plug kit in the back. I learned how to change my own tire instead of relying on a friend. I try to be a more conscientious user of my things, so that way I can appreciate their monetary value.
Author Bio: This guest post is contributed by Kate Willson, who writes about finance, career, college life at best online colleges. She welcomes your comments at her email Id: katewillson2@gmail.com.
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Great point, there are many silly things going on with cars, and some of them are just so easy to take care. I find that life and time just gets in the way of doing these mundane tasks like changing the oil. I only remember to change wiper blades while its raining and after I need them.
Thanks.
I procrastinate on some of these things too. My wipers are a few years old and I think they’re supposed to be changed more regularly here in Canada.
Keeping your tire properly inflated also saves gas. I check probably once every 5-6 weeks or when the temperature drastically change.
I’ve been getting better at this. I have a digital gauge and a small pump, so I can take care of it in my garage and don’t need to find a gas station with air that doesn’t require $0.50.
I was given our family van in high school, and knew that the oil leaked out of it. However, it took two people to check the oil (one to push the button, the other to open the hood), and no one would help me do it for the first several weeks of ownership! Needless to say, the oil had all leaked out, metal melted together, and the car was kaput after just three weeks.
Lesson learned!
I ruined my first car’s engine by not getting the oil changed often enough. But at least I got a few years out of it!
Kate, I think you are probably not alone in this quirk. Although I’m pretty good at maintaining the 2 cars in our household, I remember a friends mom once blew out her engine because she let the oil run completely down!
Wow. That must have been some ride. Rolling with a complete flat is not a very comfortable thing, and can be quite difficult at high speeds. In fact, I pretty much assume you were not driving at very high speeds…or you might not have made it at all!
I completely agree with you on how silly mistakes can sometimes be costly. Even parking sometimes, without looking around for a better spot can be so heavy on the pocket. Great post, thank you so much for sharing