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26 September, 2008

Car trouble - Sticky Gas Pedal

I will never ever say that I'm a "man's man". I'm only mildly interested in sports, I'm not great at fixing things or building things, I don't like mowing the lawn or painting and I don't know much about cars. When it comes to cars I know where the oil goes and where the cd goes. That's all I need. Turns out this wealth of information has no use when I'm out on the road with a gas pedal that is stuck and my speed is creeping up to 50 with my foot on the brake.
I may not be a"man's man" but I can be a bit of geek and so I did my research and discovered that the car's "throttle body" is most likely filled up with crap. Off I went to Appalachian Tire to get it fixed. Waiting in line another gentleman was on his phone:

"Yer, I'm at some place getting my tires fixed or something....uh huh..yer I don't know where I am."

Strange.

Anyway, so I explained what *I* thought the problem was (in an authoritative "I know about mechanics and use terms like throttle body every day" tone) and after looking at the car they agreed with me. I was more surprised that anyone but tried to not let it show. He said "If this happens again you will need a new throttle cable". I thought it was a strange thing to say but what do I know about cars? The car was finished with in about 45 minutes and I was driving home shortly after that with a much smoother gas pedal.
Then 4 hours later, the pedal is sticking again. Is it a coincidence that he predicted it would stick again and therefore assumed I would bring it back for the new throttle cable? Or did it need a new cable all along? I guess the answer depends on my scepticism about mechanics. It's due an oil change anyway so perhaps when I take it to another mechanic this weekend all will be revealed. I just wish I could have taken "shop" in school.

1 comment:

Paul said...

I know zilch about cars too. Getting a 2nd opinion should answer your question. In the end all guys like us can do is find a mechanic we trust.