Car Talk, Part 1

For those who are not familiar with the delightful NPR program, Car Talk, please go here to check it out. I don't like talk shows or car stuff, but I like Car Talk. And so will you. I promise.

But this post is not about Car Talk, the show. It's about my car, Estelle, the 2005 Honda CR-V that I bought in August.

I love Estelle. She's red, and I named her Estelle because she is "old lady red" (as opposed to fire engine red, like my first CR-V, Lily) and Estelle is indisputably an old lady name. I challenge you to name someone under the age of 70 named Estelle. It seemed appropriate.

Though we have only been together a few months, Estelle has served me well. Last weekend, while I was home for New Years, my dad replaced the left headlight bulb for me. Then last night I noticed that now the right headlight bulb is burnt out. Dangit. I don't plan to go home again until Easter, and that's a long time to drive around without a headlight.

And so. I should fix it myself. That makes a smidgen nervous. Not like, get-an-ulcer nervous, just a little unsure and hesitant.

It's funny, you know. I'm 30-wonderful years old. I'm reasonably intelligent and generally fairly competent. I have a high school diploma, a BA, and a masters degree. I've lived, alone, on four continents, in six different countries, and have survived life in five different languages. I can change a poopy diaper without flinching. I know CPR and the heimlich. I can de-clog the sink and bathroom drains or fix the vacuum or any number of other, small fix-it projects. I have my own electric drill and Leatherman tool (both of which I use regularly). And as we know from a previous post (which you can read here), I have plenty of wrenches. I taught MIDDLE SCHOOL, for crying out loud! But I don't know how to change the bulb in my headlamp.

But it's ok. No one needs to know how to do everything. All you need to know is who is the right person to help you.

And so I called my dad. I find that quite often in life, Dad is the right person to call.

Dad hesitantly told me I could probably figure it out (not gonna lie- he didn't sound too confident). I called Autozone, and they assured me that they had the part for $7.99, plus tax. The Honda service center told me it'd be about $30 for them to do it. But where's the challenge in that? Besides, I have more time than money right now. So here's the plan:

Plan A: Get the bulb and ask nicely for the nice Autozone man to help me install it (batting eyelashes and looking forlorn and pitiful only if absolutely necessary)

Plan B: Get the bulb and try to put it in myself, cold turkey

Plan C: Get the bulb and call Dad, who will try to walk me through the process on the phone.

Plan D: Suck it up and go to the Honda service center.

[time lapse: approximately 3 hours]

And so I'm back. I'm happy to report that Estelle now has two working headlights again, and I am only about $10 poorer for it. In the end, we went with plan A, with a little plan C mixed in. The Autozone guy had a little trouble getting the old bulb out, and Dad graciously helped him a bit on the phone. No eyelash batting was required.

So, when it's all said and done, I still don't know how to replace the bulb in my car's headlamp. But I know how to get it done next time, and Estelle is happy to not be lopsided anymore. All's well that ends well.

[Editor's Note: The author would like to thank Tom Foster and Autozone guy for their assistance and expertise related to the events in this blog post.]