Quote:
Originally Posted by Hitch
Yuppperdoodle, that'll do it. Neglect a major appliance--especially as they become more automated, more computerized--at your own risk.
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Major appliances are the same order of object as cars. To get the maximum life, you buy the best you can afford, and scrupulously maintain it according to manufacturer recommendations, and you run it into the ground.
A late friend had me rolling my eyes over that. He'd start with junkers and run
them into the ground, claiming that the initial cost was so much lower. "Uh huh.", I said. "And what value do you place on your
time? I've witnessed what you have to do to keep the junkers running, and I'll flatly
state that if you bought a decent used car in the first place and maintained it properly, you have to expend far less time and effort and it would cost you less all told!" I never did get that across to him.
A former girlfriend sat down with her mom when she needed a car to do the research. It was the days before the Internet Ate the World, so a bit more complicated to do. They decided she needed a good used car, and researched which models had the best maintenance records and the
least visits to the dealer for service. She would up getting a Dodge Dart which ran like a top for years.
Along that line, SF writer Robert A. Heinlein told a story about getting his first car after being invalided out of the Navy by TB and settling in Colorado. He took a train to the East Coast to meet with John W, Campbell, his editor at Astounding SF Magazine, to whom he'd sold a novel. His return trip went through St. Louis, because he wanted to meet fellow writer E.E. "Doc" Smith, author of the classic Lensman series.
They got along splendidly. When RAH mentioned that he really needed to get a car, Smith offered to assist him in selecting one. Back then, it was customary that you took a car for a test drive before actually buying. They looked at good condition used cars, and Smith's technique was to take it out, find a clear straight stretch of highway with no other traffic, then floor the accelerator while he had his ear pressed against the driver side door to listen to the noises the car made under speed.
RAH described it as somewhat hair raising, but effective. The one Smith decided was acceptable ran well for years, and Smith secured it for the amount RAH had just collected from Campbell for the sale. That was rather less than the advertised price, but cash on the spot has a way of doing that...
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Dennis