Saturday, January 14, 2012

One of Those Days

There it was again. The funny light that sent us to the owner's manual to find out what it meant when it first came on shortly before the Yaris' first scheduled maintenance. It turns out to be a warning light that one of the tires is under-inflated. While I check the air pressure on Billie at least twice a week, I will admit to being much more lax when it comes to auto tires. I just use the eyeball method.

When the light came on that first time, a couple of years ago now, I looked and the tires looked fine. When I took it to the dealer the service tech said sometimes a big swing in temperature can cause it to come on. When I picked it up the light was off and it didn't come on again until right before we left for Kansas a few weeks ago. As luck would have it, once again the car was scheduled for its routine maintenance. And, once again the tires all looked fine. And, once again when I picked the car up the light was off and it remained off all the way to Kansas and back.

The light remained off until about a week ago. This time the car was not scheduled for service, but the tires all looked good. Last Thursday evening, the evening of the first snow, I mentioned to Heather that if any of the tires were low it was the right rear. She looked at them and thought they all looked the same. I reminded her I had said, "If."

Our first snow wasn't  much of a snow, but as usual it put the whole area into a tizzy. I took this photo on my way to work while passing Tower Grove Park.

Yesterday I drove to work again and when I came out after work I thought thr left rear tire looked perhaps a little lower, but I knew I might just be imagining it. When I got home it looked pretty much the same. You might be asking yourself, why didn't I just check the tire pressure. I thought about it, but the gauge I use to check the Symba's tire often lets out as much air as I put in. Not a problem with Symba's tire, just a few pumps on the floor pump and all is well eventually, but it seemed to me it could be a problem with the Yaris' tires. In my defense, the plan for today was to get a new gauge and check all the tires and then take appropriate action.

When I came out to begin my errands you know what I found. I'm sure I don't even need to tell you, do I? Yep, the left rear tire was flat. While Heather called roadside assistance I headed to the computer to read the local news and to feel sorry for myself while kicking myself for not having done something sooner.

One of the lead local news stories was about a fire in a dentist's office. It seems this dentist collected sports memorabilia. His office was filled with irreplaceable items like the official scorecard from Sept. 29, 1963, the last game played by Cardinals great Stan Musial. If you wish you can read the article about the fire by clicking here.

Needless to say, I felt a little small for being upset by a little thing like a flat tire after reading about the dentist's loss.

In a little over an hour the spare was on and I was ready to roll.
By the time roadside assistance got the tire changed out it was too late to take it to the shop I like to use. They close down early on Saturdays. I'm off work Monday and I'll take it in then. If one was to have a flat tire this one couldn't have been more convenient. It happened in front of my home, we have roadside assistance, and I can get the tire looked after Monday without burning a vacation day or a Saturday morning.

I was still determined to get a new tire gauge before another day passed. There is an AutoZone near Maplewood Scooter Company. I figured it only made sense to head that direction and combine getting the tire gauge with a nice visit with Mike talking about scooters and motorcycles.


I had no idea my usual route would take me right by the burned out dentist's office. Some days it is difficult to imagine that life isn't somehow all connected.

This turned out to be one of those days.

9 comments:

  1. Bummer that the tire went flat.

    On our old Nissan Versa the tire pressure sensor always would come on during a certain stretch of highway. The dealer told me that certain radio waves or cell towers can cause interference while the tires are talking to the computer.

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    1. I've heard lots of stories about the unreliability of those sensors, but I was watching. The problem with these newer low profile tires it is really difficult to tell when they are low. I now have a gauge this won't happen again. By the way, when I took the tire in to get it fixed the manager of the store said with the crazy temperature swings we've been having the sensors have been coming on left and right.

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  2. The tire pressure sensor did never work correctly on my Merc. The tire was almost flat, and the sensor... didn't tell zip. Like checking the bike, I always visually check the tire pressure and do a walk around my car before I hit the road. I might be paranoid, but it only cost another 30 secs to check of one is road safe. German driver training kicking in, I guess...

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    1. Sonja,
      I actually do a walk around and check the lights and turn signals, but with the older tires an eyeball check was enough. And, truthfully it was this time, I just didn't trust my instincts. There is a lesson in that.

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    2. We've had nothing but problems with the tire pressure system on our Toyota Sienna. Whenever the temperature drops so does the reliability of the system. Makes it a waste of time. The only thing worse are the "run flat tires". We are on set #3 in 50K miles at $2K per set. And not a single real puncture. They would just stop holding air.

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  3. I love the little Yaris, almost bought one before I moved back to WI. Not a good drift buster...

    Sounds like you had one of those tiresome sort of days that ends with a sigh. You have reminded me that my car needs a checkup and oil change! Thanks!

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    1. Tiny,
      You are correct it isn't the greatest snow car I've ever owned. My favorite all time vehicle was a Suzuki Samurai. I drove that thing anywhere I wanted to go. I used to almost always have 4WD or AWD cars or SUVs, but living in the City and living in Missouri where there just aren't enough snow days to warrant it, I drive a Yaris and like it a lot. Besides it seems I've sort of out grown the need to go out looking to get stuck. That said, a nice camo Ural does call to me. That could be fun to take on a few drifts.

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  4. Everything is connected? I'll bet something really great happens when you go to get your tire gauge today!

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    1. Got the gauge Saturday. Got the tire repaired this morning. It was all good. Life has a way of balancing things out. It is a wondrous thing.

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