Our beloved spouses and their vehicles

[RooflessVW]

I guess with cars having the big tablet stuck in the dash these days, they could use the idling computing power to display a message to either turn the key to off, or start it as the battery is getting low? I think people are getting used to devices being "smart" so why not expect your $50k 4wd infotainment device to report a low battery that will soon stop if from functioning?
My kids did the same thing camping with my wife on a rainy day, sat in the car playing games on the tablet with engine off and the "AC" on until the car wouldn't start either. We now have a little booster pack with USB outputs to charge devices and had a lesson that you can only run the radio in the car for a while(1/2hr) without it running.

Both of my cars do this.

 

[gathermewool]

The old ivory soap trick works wonders against fog up on inside windscreens.

Except for that pesky glare…

 

[OVERKILL]

Not sure if the truck has a "battery low" function or not, if it does, she may have not noticed it.

 

[OVERKILL]

Is "lot surveillance" a thing you guys really have to do?

Yep, company policy. Somebody's job is to watch to make sure that the employees that work the later shifts make it safely to their vehicles. She doesn't do it all that regularly, it's a rotated role.

 

[IndyIan]

Both of my cars do this.

Like allow you to use the radio, fan, heated seats, etc, normally with the engine off until the battery starts to get low?

 

[JTK]

Yep, company policy. Somebody's job is to watch to make sure that the employees that work the later shifts make it safely to their vehicles. She doesn't do it all that regularly, it's a rotated role.

Ah! Gotcha. I missed the working part and was thinking this was something home related. That's a great work policy IMO.

In terms of being in the vehicle with the ignition on, I know my bride has come close to killing batteries. She'll often go out to the car for an important school / work call if the kids are all home.

 

[RooflessVW]

Like allow you to use the radio, fan, heated seats, etc, normally with the engine off until the battery starts to get low?

Yeah then the VW says "ignition switched off to protect battery" or something like that.

 

[02SE]

A golden opportunity.

Tell her an engine with a Supercharger will charge the battery faster...

 

[manicrodder]

@AutoMechanic. will come snuggle with you.

If his battery isn't dead.

 

[GMFan]

My wife thought the oil life monitor percentage displayed on the dashboard of her GM told you how much oil was left in the car. At least she knew enough to bring it in for "additional oil" when it got to about 10-15% before she met me.

 

[JC1]

I’ve heard ”Shaving Cream” works, also…….or has this been myth busted?

That works on bathroom mirrors, so it probably works on autos too.

 

[Averroes]

It's pouring rain here and as I sip a nice can of Steam Whistle I can't help but chuckle at the sequence of events that led to me being a bit cold and damp this evening.

My wife was working "lot surveillance" tonight, which involves her sitting in her truck for hours observing. She's not a car person, just like she isn't a technology person, she's quite comfortable in relying on me in that regard, which of course has its detractors/caveats.

I get a phone call around 10:30PM that the truck won't start. I'm thinking that she maybe isn't hitting the pedal hard enough, she's emphatic that this is not the issue. I tease her a tad, tell her that she's broken it, grab my 20ft jumper cables and drive to her work.

I get there, she puts down her window, hits the start button and it's clear the battery is pretty dead. It's also absolutely pouring rain, so I sit and wait a bit until it at least backs off a tad. Jumper cables in hand, I boost the truck with the Jeep. I ask her what she was doing, just listening to the radio?

Her response: I had it on.
I query: you mean you had it on Aux
Her: no, I had it on, because the windows fog up, so I can run the fan
Me, horrified: wait, what, you are sitting here running the fan with the engine off?
Her, oblivious: Yes, of course, the windows fog up, so I need it
Me: Honey, you can't run the fan for hours with the truck off, you'll kill the battery, as you've just demonstrated
Her: Well, I've done it before
Me: You've been lucky, you can't do that!
Her, embarrassed: OK, well, I know now

A learning experience for her of course, but this knowledge that we often take for granted, on things to do and not to do with cars, when it's this close to home it does make one take pause.

I'd punish my girl. I'd make her take public transit for a week and make her learn about the different group of oils hahaha.

 

[Cujet]

My wife driving the F150, made a right turn in the BestBuy parking lot. They have mushroom shaped bollards. She heard a noise and the truck slowed, so she stepped on the gas. The result was impressive "Can Opener" action on both RH doors and the bed. I wish I could find the pics.

A few years before that episode, she turned right and hopped a fire hydrant with our old F150. The truck held up well enough, but the hydrant was bent at a little bit of an angle.

More recently, she changed lanes to the right during a traffic jam and hit a stopped Hertz rental car. Same repair as before...

Oh and thinking about it, way before that, she changed lanes to the right at a light and sideswiped some poor lady's new car.

I'm not seeing a pattern.....

 

[Jetronic]

Like allow you to use the radio, fan, heated seats, etc, normally with the engine off until the battery starts to get low?

fan goes to it's lowest speed, don't have or need heated seats and get full radio functionality without starting the engine. I can probably put the fan speed up manually but never tried, there's no heat coming out after a couple minutes anyway.

with the ignition totally off I can run the radio for 1 hour at the time, but not the usb or bluetooth stuff.

 

[IveBeenRued]

My wife and my mother in law were driving our Subaru through PA once, they stopped for lunch and to run the dogs at a park. They had the headlights on, fan blowing, and radio on while they sat there with the engine off. They were there for approximately 2 hours and blamed me for “sending them on a road trip with a bad battery” after the car wouldn’t turn over.

 

[tc1446]

I’ve heard ”Shaving Cream” works, also…….or has this been myth busted?

Yes, it works too. Trouble is, most of these solutions don't last long.

 

[Surestick]

Yes, it works too. Trouble is, most of these solutions don't last long.

And when you get heavy condensation they cause cloudiness on the inside of the windows. In the winter when it get cold enough to freeze water condenses on the inside of the windows, freezes, and seems to concentrate any anti-fog product in the patterns the ice forms.
If anything, the cleaner the inside of your windshield the less condensation seems to form and the faster it evaporates with the fan on.

 

[JeffKeryk]

We go out in the self-combustable Model 3 for a spin and the center console door won't close. Weighted magnet thing? So I push a little harder. Then harder. "Dang, did I break this cheap POS?" Wifey sez, "It's telling you to close it softly..."
I say, "What? How do you know that?" Sue points at the screen.
The caption sez, "Close centerconsole lid gently."

 

[wander2039]

Asked my wife how the Escape did after having Firestone rotate and balance the tires.. well it does ok till you get up to 80 and then it starts shaking. 80! There's no 80 speed limit in our area, ugh, lol. She's a hot rod. I've snuck and few additives in the gas tanks over the years and she always notices, why is my car running different? I got lucky on this one.

 

[OVERKILL]

Wellllllll, as some suspected, the battery wasn't long for this world.

Covered under warranty at least.