My Favorite Clunker Story

Trying to decide on just one clunker story was challenging.  You see I have owned a long list of clunkers.   I finally decided on a story about my 79-80 Horizon.  It had a Volkswagen engine, three white doors and one orange one.

I paid $300 for it when I lived in Red Lodge and was commuting back and forth to work in Billings.  My little car had a little over 200,000 miles when I bought it.  That little car always seemed happy running up and down the road as I logged lots of windshield time.  It always ran like a top.

I began to notice that it needed to be “herded” down the road more often.  It would kind of list – side to side as it meandered down the highway.  I was planning a trip to Kalispell and decided it was time for a trip to the repair shop for a re-alignment, before I went. 

I checked with several shops and K-Mart offered the best price.  I took it in and was told to come back in a couple hours.  I went shopping and killed several hours.    I returned to K-Mart to collect my car and head for Kalispell.

I asked the mechanic how much I owed.  He replied matter-of-fact-ly that there was no charge.  I looked at him incredulously and repeated “No Charge?”

“No, Ma’m.  No charge.”

“Why isn’t there a charge?’, I asked.

“We didn’t fix it.”

My amazement was quickly turning to irritation, “Why didn’t you fix it?”

He shook his head and responded, “Lady, there wasn’t anything left to re-align it to!”

I thanked him and decided against the trip to Kalispell, then promptly drove it home.

At the time I was a member of the Montana National Guard.  I worked with a great bunch of guys in the Mechanics section.  I shared my story the next time I saw them.  Their eyebrows rose as I told about the aborted attempt to have the car re-aligned. 

Sgt Hammer was concerned because he knew I often drove back and forth to Miles City.  He found me a little Subaru that was more dependable.

I still drove the Horizon in town until one December night it broke down in the Shopko parking lot.   I had gone and called AAA and was waiting for the tow truck to arrive.  While waiting, a family drove up.  The gentleman asked me if they could help.  I thanked him and said I was waiting.

He seemed reluctant to drive off, and leave me by myself.  He had a quick conference with his wife and then finally spoke again, “I used to have a Horizon that I traded off.  I have often regretted that decision and wished I hadn’t.  I just wanted to know how many miles you have on your car.”

I told him that the car had a little over 300,000 miles on it.  I heard him laugh and say, “I knew it!  Those little cars you could drive until the wheels fell off.”  He wished me a goodnight and I could see him still shaking his head as they drove off.

I got the car running again, but finally parked it in the driveway where it sat for the next couple of years.  One of the neighbors offered me $50 dollars for it.  Dan told me to just give it to him, so I did.  I later learned that he sold it for $100.

That little car had heart and I almost literally drove it until the wheels fell off.  My Mother often told me that the only reason I could get a mechanic to work on my car wasn’t because they were trying to figure out what was wrong.  They were trying to figure out why it had been running.  I once told a mechanic what she said.  He looked at me in all seriousness and said, “She’s right.”