Car Leaks Petrol, No One Sympathizes
August 20, 2009 at 14:11 5 comments
The Bluebox sprung a terrible leak en route to work. We were going slow, taking the turn from one main road to another. All of a sudden, the engine quietly kaputzed and refused to be resuscitated. When Mr. Manx opened his door, we were greeted by the powerful stench of fresh petrol and a spreading puddle on the road.
Yep, that wet patch was the spilt petrol. Mr. Manx yelled to get out of the car NOW, and we grabbed our bags and scooted to the pavement.
Then the car burst into flames.
Kidding. It did not. It gave a superb impression of a paperweight and wafted strong fumes, while passing vehicles honked angrily. As if we were stopping there for fun. Mr. Manx called for a tow truck and we waited. At one point, a police car pulled up and the guys inside wanted to know what was going on. When Mr. Manx told them, they shrugged and drove off. Fair enough as I couldn’t see what they could’ve done either.
We decided that I might as well catch a cab to work while he continued to wait. After I got into one, the cabby, too, started saying that it wasn’t right of us to stop where we did. Arrrrrghh. I was that close to telling him that we’d done that just to see how many people we could piss off in one morning. WHO IN THEIR BLOODY RIGHT MIND WOULD STOP THEIR CAR AT A SINGLE-LANE EXIT FOR FUN LAH???
Apparently the cabby wasn’t the last person to think that. Mr. Manx got yelled at by a mannerless Caucasian driver, and then someone in a truck dropped a cigarette as they rolled past.
Then the car burst into flames.
Kidding again. It did not. It got towed to the mechanic, where a detached line was quickly repaired.
Irritations aside, I think things could easily have been a lot worse. What if the leak had happened five seconds later than it did? We’d have entered the other main road and unsuspecting vehicles behind could have been caught completely off guard. Or what if it had happened while we’d been on the fast lane of the expressway? It’s not as if any alarms went off, or the car came to a gradual stop. It just died completely, suddenly and quietly. So I’m glad that it happened where and when it did. I’m convinced that God was watching over us.
Entry filed under: Dear Diary. Tags: Cars, Rambles, UnfortunateEvents.
1.
kel | August 21, 2009 at 01:20
yikes. scared me for awhile there.
spoke to mr manx but he didnt mention nothing abt this.
yes, nothing is be by chance.. thank God u guys are safe.
2.
Katie | August 21, 2009 at 22:57
Yupz. Despite all the crap that happens, is good to be alive.
3.
Monty | August 24, 2009 at 20:36
Heh, same thing happened to us in my mom’s old volvo. I can tell u what happens. You smell something burning and then the car suddenly stops in the middle of the road.
4.
Katie | August 24, 2009 at 20:53
And get cursed by everyone who passes by!
5.
Monty | August 25, 2009 at 16:39
but am glad you two are safe:) We did cause a minor traffic jam.