Other commenters helped me diagnose the problem. When I couldn’t afford the solution, someone I knew only by his handle offered to pay
Read more in the kindness of strangers series
As a pensioner, money is always tight, so I was distraught when the secondhand car I’d recently bought began overheating. I took it to three or four different mechanics, none of whom were able to diagnose the problem.
Desperate, I searched online for solutions. On car forums, several commenters suggested tackling the potential problems that would be cheapest to fix, in a process of elimination. Having replaced the thermostat, radiator coolant, engine oil and filter, and transmission fluid, the principal suspect was down to the radiator. So I contacted my carmaker, who quoted me $1,200 for a replacement – way more than I could afford, as I only had $500 left in the bank. I was hit with the sinking feeling that I had just blown my life savings on a lemon.
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