Was has been down in the engine room removing parts for scraping, sanding and repainting. They all look gorgeous when they are clean and new and shiny again. It give such a sense of satisfaction to have each job completed.
With the sewing machine taking up space in the salon, along with all the fabric we purchased for the new fender covers, there is some urgency to get all those made.
I started with the fenders that sit loud and proud on the foredeck in their holders. These are the 'showpiece' fenders, as it were. They are also the extras I go looking for when needed, so they are working parts of the boat. Yes, they will fade somewhat, and yes, they will get dirty, but for now, they look lovely:)
I wanted the covers to look good as well as to be strong, so everything is double stitched, bound and gagged almost, and the binding creates the blue stripe detail at the bottom and top of each fender.
The fly deck was too hot for me to work, so I set up on the cockpit table in the somewhat shade. Lots of light and plenty of fresh air, with the back curtain tucked up like that. it has been about 82-85F the last couple of days.
...And don't they look great with our new Gold Burgee, loud and proud on the bow??:) That means we have completed America's Great Loop. The fenders also compliment the windlass cover, you can just see at bottom left. I made that last year.
Not too much of a mess, as this is where all the traffic is, on and off the boat. I hagte having to put it all back, at the end of each day, but the machine would get wet, if I didn't. We had a little rain last night.
I had also bought some fresh herb plants while at the supermarket, on Monday. Having gotten rid of the last herbs before we entered Canada, it has been a while, and I have badly missed having their fresh goodness at hand.
Top container has parsley (English) and Chives, and the bottom one holds the mind and Dill. Mint really needs it's own container, but I don't have one, so it has to live with the dill. I hope they are compatible!
Yesterday (Tuesday) was a write off, in terms of getting chores done...more on that later...
Today, however, I got the machine out again and continued on task...well, for a bit. I have lots of pieces of the same fabric, but they aren't all useable, I found...not large enough, and I don't want to have to piece the fabric....too many seams are not good.
This is the result of today's efforts. I like this blue, as it is almost the same color as the stripe down the side of the boat. It is also the same color as the dinghy cover:)
Two more this shape, to be made, and then two ball covers. Those will take more fabric again. These should last a lot longer than the black ones. These are made of Olefin which is the fibre, that the fabric is made of. It might fade a bit, but the fabric has a 5 yr guarantee IN THE SUN!
Ok, I will tell you about Tuesday.
When we bought our new car, the Honda dealership in Bradenton showed us a statement that showed they had spent $1400 on 'making the car safe' for sale. That is all they are required to do, legally.
We understand that, and bought the vehicle 'as is'. Everything else about the vehicle is excellent.
On the statement it showed that they had replaced the front struts. This being part of the suspension system, it was with some interest that we heard a sound that made us question what else they SHOULD have done while they were in that same place. It is hard to describe the sound, so I wont. Waz seems to think it is the Bushings that need replacing. Our question was....Why didn't they do the bushings (if that is what is needed) while they were in there?
Anyway...ours not to reason why!
So, I replied to the e-mail that the service manager sent me to introduce himself. I told him of our problem, and was invited to take the car back to Bradenton (an hour north). I told them where we were, and that we couldn't just 'turn up' as suggested. Someone from the service department called me and we made the appointment for 10.30, Tuesday.
We arrived at 10.05 and were checked in at the production line service facility at the Dealership. We left our contact details and took off on foot, down the road to the Starbucks we had spied on the way in. Waz had his tablet with him and I carried a book. We were going to settle in for an hour or more.
The hour went by, and no communication from the service dept. We returned to the dealership and sat down in the 'waiting room' with about 20 other people. Waz checked his phone a couple of times...he has been having problems with it on AT&T...what next???:( to see if they had texted us, perhaps. No. He went out to the welcome counter where we had checked in, and told the young man there that we were now in the waiting room. It appears that he didn't tell anyone else! sigh!
It was now 1.20pm. The cell phone rang, and we were called out into the service area by the person in charge of our vehicle. We were a little puzzled by the number of personnel on this production line.
Scott told Waz on the phone that it would cost us $120 for them to 'Look at' the problem. We were aghast! What had they been doing for the past three + hours? Not looking at our problem, obviously!
Talk about frustrating, Trev! So, we went to talk to Scott. He said that because the problem wasn't covered under the limited warranty for used cars, they could not 'fix' anything on the vehicle. He decided to go and get one of the used car salesmen to 'talk' to us. And talk he did.
Without knowing anything about us, our car, what the problem was or ANYTHING...he launched into a diatribe about how, because the vehicle was older than 5 yrs, and had over 100k miles on the clock...WHOA! hold on there a moment young man with short Mohawk gelled to within an inch of it's life....This vehicle is 10 yrs old, but has only 51k miles on the clock. So, what happened to this vehicle that it needed new structs? why? Well, he didn't have any answers for us, and didn't like to listen to us, and we tried not to get agro and tried to stay patient with him and his assumptions.
What it all came and does come down to....NOBODY asked us any of the relevant question by E-mail, to ascertain what the problem was that we perceived. They could have told us, by e-mail, that the limited warranty didn't cover any further work on the suspension system...which we had told them was the problem!!! Communication is key to everything!
We were tired but resigned to the fact that we will have to find our own mechanic, or Waz will do the bushings himself. He successfully did them on our Subaru two years ago. As long as that is the problem. We will see.
We decided to come back to Port Charlotte via Highway 41, which is otherwise known as Tamiami Trail. There were places we wanted to take a second look at, on the way. We had been this way before, through Sarasota, and decided once there to go over the bridge we had come under on the ICW, in the boat, just 2 weeks ago, and go back to St Armands Circle, which we enjoyed. We knew where to get the best Ice-cream there:)
St Armands is rather upscale, and the shops and restaurants reflect that. The number of European cars parked and circling the roundabout was amazing:)
Sarasota is the home of Ringling Circus. There is a wonderful Circus Museum here, among other memorabilia. These plaques are dedications to the many wonderfully talented people who were involved in the circus and who left their mark in various ways. It would take a long time to read all of them, but the few we read, were impressive.
This is the road that takes you to Longboat Key. St Armands is a key also.
Don't I always forget things that happen, during the week!
We had expected a pump out on Friday. That it didn't happen as expected didn't surprise us, such is the track record of our provider. sigh! United Site Services have great phone people, at HQ, but the communications of their on -the- ground folks leave a lot to be desired.
They didn't arrive on Saturday either, the way they had woken us up at 7am, last week. And of course sunday was out of the question too. By mid morning on Monday, I texted our local guy Dee to ask if he was doing the job that day. He said yes, but seeing is believing, lol. I made a second text mid afternoon, and received the reply that he was 20 mins away. riiiiiiiight!
Sure enough, he arrived around 5pm.
We had received a phone call the previous Monday, from Nicole, at HQ. She was looking after our accounts. She had been asked to contact us to say that they were putting up the price of our pump-out as it was taking a long time to do the job. Eh?
Our reply was civil. That the pump-out takes a long time is nothing to do with US. That Dee said, last Saturday morning, that the pumper was due to go into the shop for a service, as it wasn't sucking that well....well, is that OUR fault? Should we be charged more money because THEIR equipment is faulty? Well, I guess you get the gist of the conversation. I also reminded them to go back to our records of the previous year ending in April, and to check the times on those. We didn't get a call back from them, after I discussed with her how dissatisfied we were in general with everything to do with the 'service'. Don't ask why we have them doing this again....for lack of a replacement service, is why.
So, nothing has changed on that scene. This time the pump-out too 50 mins. Did their truck get serviced in the interim week? who knows! I haven't had a call from HQ to dispute this week's pump-out, so I guess all is good. I might add that we pay $200 per month for this weekly service (incl. tax).
so it isn't peanuts! We have NEVER paid so much for a pump-out, anywhere else...Sheesh.
Cant we just have a peaceful life where everything goes according to plan?? :)
No such luck!!
Well, that's about it for now. Thursday tomorrow, and we are spending the late afternoon and evening with baby Mia...babysitting! yay! She is so much fun and at 8 months, getting Very mobile.:) We are enjoying being around her and her parents.
Well, that was some unfortunate experience on your new car. The dealership should have been up front to you guys on its situation so that you guys won't be blindsinded on what's up. It's their duty to tell you this. While they did offer a "fair warning" that's required by law, they should have gone in detail about the parts that they "fixed". Either way, I hope this issue with the struts gets to be resolved soon. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteDiane Wilson @ Fletcher Chrysler
I’m sorry to hear about that frustrating car repair, Warren. It must've been very frustrating to wait for hours to get your car done. I believe you could still find a more reliable shop to cater to your car’s needs, regardless of its age and model. I hope your car issues were solved by this time. Keep safe!
ReplyDeleteByron Walters @ Bob Dunn Subaru