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Post by LS on Feb 13, 2014 2:24:01 GMT
OK, so I was out running errands today and when I was almost finished, I noticed a slight roughness in the car's idle when stopped. I knew I was low on fuel, so I thought there might be some condensation water mixed in with the fuel that was left (with the crazy weather and all) , so I went and filled up. Still noticed the slight roughness afterwards when stopped. About 1/4 mile from home I began noticing the roughness while driving. When I pulled into my parking spot, literally at that moment, it would barely run. For Gear-heads Only: I could not only feel that the car was misfiring, but I could smell it. I have a cheap code reader I plugged in and it was showing P1384. Went inside, looked it up online and found that it was showing a bad Variable Valve Timing Sensor which, as it turns out, is a common problem with certain Lexus model years. In January of this year, on the Lexus owners forum, someone took the time to thoroughly explain (with pictures!) the location and replacement procedure for this sensor (as easy as changing a spark plug that's staring you in the face . Next, I looked up the part online and the only store with it in stock was an O'Reillys Auto Parts Store (5 minute walk from home). They were clearing them out and were priced $66 lower than Advance Auto and $53 lower than Autozone. Next, I pulled the old sensor out, cleaned it and tried again. Now it was idling at 2500 RPM and misfiring like crazy when put in gear. Went and bought the aftermarket replacement at O'Reilly's, put it in and the car is back to normal. In summary, God got me home and in my parking place before the sensor went completely kaput. He also provided: A. Thorough instructions on what was wrong and how to replace it B. A replacement part at clearance price within walking distance C.Wisdom to install the "made in China" replacement ... and have it work ... all in a 2 hour time frame! Thank You Lord!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2014 2:56:08 GMT
Jim, I'm not a gear head, but I do have to say that I really enjoyed reading what the Lord did for you in helping you get home to your parking space before your sensor broke down completely, and how He gave you instructions, walking distance to get another one at a good price, and wisdom to install it!! As a woman who has sat in more mechanic shops than I care to count, I really appreciated your story and how the Lord helped you every step of the way! God is good!
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Post by shiloh on Feb 13, 2014 3:00:49 GMT
I love stories like this! Lexus' are nice vehicles. May I add to this praise report? Let me tell you the story and I'll try and keep it as brief as possible. I got into a slow motion accident (literally) with our Dodge Charger. My husband had just redone the fin on the back. This was just before Christmas in 2012. I was so upset, never had even a speeding ticket and it was a 4 way stop. I am so used to driving that 4 way stop and it's right by where we live. I was coming back from shopping and it was night. All the trafic happened to be bottled up at each stop sign. The rules here in Ohio are, 'whoever stops first or whoever is to the right'. Not only did I stop first, but I was also to the right and some teenagers went zipping through real fast as I crawled through after knowing I had the right of way. Not much damage was done to either car but both were fixed and I'm the one who got sited because they look at it as, "who hit who". They were to my left. I won't bore you with all the other details but I thought, I'm fighting this ticket. I got so upset because of never having a ticket. These teeangers also took off real quick before the police were called and dumped something (I think drugs) and then came running back. So, I was in tears and my husand said, "Honey, don't worry! You didn't even break a headlight. You can't even get into an accident the right way!?..lol...he was teasing me to make me feel better but.....it didn't work. So, I go to court and my ticket (which I could have paid through mail) was $145.00 and I was so nervous in court. I was praying while waiting and asking the Lord to please let the judge hear my side. Guess what, the judge reduced my ticket to $25.00. Thankyou, Jesus! But I'm tellin' ya..I still had the right of way according to the law.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2014 3:15:52 GMT
Oh, Shiloh, I hear your frustration. A very similar thing happened to me. I was at a 4 way stop and I had arrived there first, then some teenagers stopped to the right of me. I started to go, and the teenagers just took off, even though I had the right of way since I got there first. I just stared at them, shaking my head with an incredulous look on my face, and they started laughing at me, and the driver gave me the finger! No respect for the traffic laws, and certainly no respect for the elderly!
Well, I can sympathize with your experience. So unfair that you got sited when it wasn't your fault! Thank God that your ticket was reduced to $25.00! Praise the Lord!
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Post by elizabeth on Feb 13, 2014 3:27:41 GMT
Jim and Shiloh, I'm very happy for you. Doesn't it make you feel so cared about when the Lord answers prayer like that.
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Post by LS on Feb 13, 2014 3:51:55 GMT
Thank you Leeza and Shiloh ... love your "praise report" as well, Shiloh. To go all of those years with no tickets and then to get a $145 ticket when you did nothing wrong! God truly did bless you in having the Judge lower the ticket that much. Shiloh, you said that your husband had just "redone the fin on the back" of your Dodge Charger. So I'm assuming you must own a 1969 Dodge Daytona Charger (is it green by any chance). I wonder when you'll get your first drag-racing ticket?
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Post by shiloh on Feb 13, 2014 3:53:58 GMT
Leeza, I am laughing so hard because I was thinking, "it was probably the same kids that were involved in our accidents"...lololol
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Post by shiloh on Feb 13, 2014 4:00:58 GMT
LOL, Jim.....no..it's a 2009 (I think, anyway)...and it's Cobalt blue but I think it looks like a dark grey. It looks like it's got one of those hummer engines but it doesn't. That picture is hilarious!!!!
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Post by LS on Feb 13, 2014 4:07:53 GMT
Leeza, I live in Chicago and there's this "tradition" of saving parking spaces that one clears of snow ... and I hate it. But, as in life in general, there are doers and takers. There's plenty of people in this neighborhood who will gladly do nothing with the snow in front of their own homes and park in any cleared out spot they see. Therefore, everyone's kind of stuck playing this game. I tried "bucking the system" awhile back (because I think it's childish), only to have to park 2 blocks away while someone left their car for days in the spot I cleared out in front of the house. How I wound up living in the city and driving an old Lexus (formerly owned by a Pastor) are two separate, and very unusual stories that I hope to share on this forum in the future. Anyway, when I said that The Lord got me into my parking spot, it was more significant than when I lived in the burbs with indoor parking I too have noticed that the young in general (teens to twenties) show much less respect for elders than I remember ... but then again, maybe my memory's "selective" Elizabeth, thank you and yes, it does feel good to know that God watches over the details
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Post by shiloh on Feb 13, 2014 4:38:54 GMT
You have to shovel out your own parking spot and someone else parks in it? There should be a law against that! I bet my cousin would tell me the same thing. He lives in Chicago too and you guys got hit bad also. Usually, what you get in Chicago is upon us in Ohio within a day or two. Fight the system, Jim! Go to City Hall! Write 'em a letter! lol...I actually got one of my articles published in the newspaper here about the Ohio EPA...but...that was about it. It didn't change much but my letter was very sarcastic. My last line was something like, "Hats off to the EPA for pulling another rabbit out of your hat." That was sarcasm on my part to them. It's all a money making scheme and this global warming is a bunch of...you know what.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2014 5:08:27 GMT
Lol, Shiloh! I can see the humor in it now, but at the time, this is what I wish I could have done to that disrespectful kid....
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2014 5:11:16 GMT
Oh, wow, Jim, I can't believe that people could be that selfish! No wonder it was so meaningful to you to have your parking space waiting for you when you got home, especially having car trouble! God is so good!
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Post by shiloh on Feb 13, 2014 5:31:44 GMT
Leeza, I am laughing so hard at that gif! You know what? I actually DO thank the Lord every day for the wonderful neighbors we have. People try and help eachother out and although my husband is recovering very well from his quadruple bypass (praise the Lord), he's been out there shoveling snow and the neighbor next door has been snowblowing our driveway without him even asking for help. He and his wife are very lovely people. My husband is going to buy him something but they are just all around nice people and have 2 little girls who are very cute! I like buying them little girl stuff...because..it's just fun and I like little girl stuff.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2014 5:54:24 GMT
Oh, Shiloh, I am so glad to hear that your husband is recovering well from his quadruple bypass. That's a serious surgery, but thank God that medical technology has advanced to the point where that is a fairly commonplace surgery now and the statistics of full recovery now is excellent! That's great that you have neighbors who care and who are willing to help out, and that your husband is doing so well now that he is able to shovel the snow himself. God is so good, isn't He?
Glad you liked the gif, lol!!!! Believe me, I was boiling after that, but I told the Lord, "I give these people over to You. Convict them, and save them, Lord. And help me get over the hurt and anger." (That was the "Christian" side of me, but my "flesh" wanted to chase them down in my car and tell them off!)
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2014 6:07:51 GMT
No, your memory is not selective at all, Jim. It is WAY different today than when I was growing up. I was raised to have a lot of respect for my elders, along with authority figures such as the police and teachers. I would never have dreamed of giving an elderly person the finger, especially if I was in the wrong in the first place.
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Post by LS on Feb 13, 2014 6:26:04 GMT
Yes Leeza (great GIF by the way...lol) and Shiloh, living in this city has really opened my eyes. What stands out most is the entitlement mentality of so many down here. Also kind of shocking are the stories of violence. The neighbor on my right had a sister die in the mid 90s when she was caught in the crossfire of 2 gangs. The neighbor on my left had a daughter killed in a drive-by some years ago in the same neighborhood (about 2 miles south of here) as the other neighbor. She also has had shots fired at the front of her house (first summer I was here ... glad they had the right address because, apparently, one of the local gangs thought her son was dealing drugs or .... whatever. I've always liked to experience new things, but I think I've had my fill of living here. Shiloh, the whole "saving your space" tradition is really a "catch 22". Technically, it's against the law to leave anything in the street to save a parking place that you may (or sometimes, may not) have shoveled out. But our former Mayor (Daley) defended the tradition when he was in office. The time I tried to buck the system was earlier this year when almost everything had melted, yet people were still putting chairs, milk crates, walkers etc. out to save their spot. Then, you get those who just pull up and throw aside or steal whatever is being used to save the spot and then park there themselves; there's nothing you can do because it's technically against the law ... which is why I hate this "game" Shiloh, the neighbors you described sound like great people. I know you live in Ohio, but it sounds more like Mayberry N.C.
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Post by shiloh on Feb 13, 2014 7:26:49 GMT
That's unbelievable, Jim! But I believe you. That's just insane! Doesn't that remind you of the verse, "and the love of many will wax cold..." This is far from a Mayberry communtiy, where we live. We have a lot of crime around here too but it doesn't matter where any of us go. It's all over the world..as in the days of Noah, anyone? The world was filled with violence. Leeza, I hear you on that all the way about what your flesh wanted to do. Don't feel bad. I had a very hard time with that too in my instance. I kept trying to keep it all in a spiritual aspect but...it was very hard and in my mind, I was going:
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2014 18:19:46 GMT
Oh., thanks for saying that, Shiloh! I do feel bad when I have struggles with my flesh in those instances, and like you, I kept trying to keep it in a spiritual aspect, also. But wow, it is so hard when someone is so blatently wrong and disrespectful like that! Of course, I would never go after them, (they would probably pull a knife on me if I did, lol!), nor would I ever slap anyone. I was just saying what I felt like doing!
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