Sensible planning

[Helen_Highwater]

Roberta posted in the Lounge section (See "In distress") about her car getting a puncture but due to forum rules the fact that she was dressed was moderated.

The question was asked in the replies about not having breakdown cover given that a single tow costs enough to pay for such cover for 5 or 6 years, perhaps more.

So if you go out driving dressed do you count having breakdown cover as a sensible thing to do? For me knowing that I'll have someone vetted and employed by a large organisation come to my assistance seems the way to go. My call is recorded, logged, there's oversight. Given we often discuss taking steps to ensure our personal safety paying for breakdown cover seems logical captain. Afterall, some here will pay much more for a pair of shoes!

I actually get cover free as one if the perks of my bank account. Yes I know I pay a fee to have the account but it's a lot less than the costs of all the benefits added up.

While out driving dressed a couple of years ago my car decided to go into "get you home mode". Thing was I was a long way from home. Anyway I parked it up and went shopping resolving that if it was still playing up on my return I'd call out breakdown as I felt confident I'd be treated professionally. As it turned out the car righted itself but I felt comforted I had the option should I have needed it.

[Crissy 107]

That is sensible planning and very good advice. I have paid for AAA for my whole family for years. They can take my place when one of my girls are far away and I cannot get there anytime soon.

[ReneeTD]

I've driven pretty on a few occasions. Usually late nights or long trips out of town. My planning is a cargo van and a change and/or coveralls in the back. If I can't handle a problem myself, I can just go back to drab while waiting for the tow.

[Bobbi46]

How one dresses matters very little breakdown services are like the emergency services they have seen it all before.

[ReneeTD]

How one dresses matters very little breakdown services are like the emergency services they have seen it all before.

Given the relative circumstances, I'm willing to bet that emergency services see it more often.

[deebra]

Buy and keep a power pac ($60) and put it in your trunk, it will start a dead battery and pump up flat tires, don't have to wait for AAA. AAA is good. Carry a boy bag to change.

[BrendaPDX]

Yikes! I have never really thought about it, newer cars are so much more reliable now. I do have towing insurance from my car insurance, but again never really thought about it. Maybe I will pack some drab clothes in the trunk just in case. :battingeyelashes:

[Linda E. Woodworth]

I've had AAA for our cars for years. They've saved our bacon more than once.

AAA came to my rescue when I was at my 2nd Southern Comfort Conference in Atlanta. I had ventured out alone to do some shopping and promptly locked my keys in the truck. Luckily I did have my purse and cell phone. One call and 20 minutes later a fine gentleman drove up in his AAA truck and unlocked my door. My only regret is not getting him to take my picture!

I thanked him and then went inside for lunch and some retail therapy, but that's another story.

[Angela Marie]

Whenever I drive, which is most of the time when I go out, I always carry makeup remover and a full compliment of drab clothes in my trunk. I've never had to use them yet but knowing that they are there does give me peace of mind. Of course the older I get the less I care about who sees me lol. But always better to be safe than sorry. We never know when and issue may occur and under what circumstances.

[Cheryl T]

Our insurance provides the benefit of towing should we experience a breakdown.
That exact thing happened to me about 2 years ago as I was traveling to our vacation home alone. The vehicle overheated and I was stranded on the interstate. It was summer and I was wearing a light blouse and summer skirt. After calling for the tow I changed into a pair of jeans, not wanting to be too flashy for the driver. I decided not to fully change and accepted the possibilities. He was the perfect gentleman, place the vehicle on the flat bed and I climbed into the passenger seat. Not a word about my attire was said and when he brought me home I thanked him for his professionalism and tipped him as well.
The experience went a long way towards helping me be comfortable in the world as myself.

[Teresa]

Helen,
You have just reminded me to update my Greenflag details as my " Get me home address " is my wife's . That could be a very interesting situation !

I do think it's a very wise move to have breakdown cover , recently I manged to fill my diesel engined car with a tank full of petrol . I couldn't move it from the forecourt until the recovery truck arrived . I had only popped out to buy some rice from the supermarket I arrived home three hours later . The story didn't end there as they damaged my fuel gauge sender unit seal which resulted in a fuel leak which two further visits to correct but all good now .

I'm sure the recovery people are all professional enough to deal with a most things , well I've long stopped carrying male clothes in my car in an emergency so there will be no choice .

[Robertacd]

Considering how long we have had the car, one tow is pretty good. So we probably are still money ahead than if we had AAA all along. But that being said, getting AAA is on my list of things to do.

Honestly, it was not that bad facing the tow truck driver, making small talk as he towed it to the shop, and dealing with the repair shop dressed.

Sure I was probably a scuttlebutt topic for the rest of the day, but I was treated with respect by everyone I interacted with.

My new words to live by are.

If you own it, they can't take it from you.

[Helen_Highwater]

Roberta,

As you say everything went off fine and that would be the case the vast majority of times. I guess what I'm saying is I feel it's better to have one of the big organisations to call upon than rely on a small independent garage who only answer to themselves.

If memory serves you're guy didn't rack up the charges but he could easily have done so just out of malice if he was someone who looks on us with a less than favorable gaze. I would count on the professionalism of someone from the AA/RAC/Greenflag so presenting dressed would hold little trepidation for me. If an operative did act in a less than professional way then there's always a way to complain that will be taken seriously.

For me it's just one more box ticked that makes my outings safer. And yes, a change bag is always a good idea.

[Beverley Sims]

I have vehicle cover for the reason I am dressed all the time I am out.

I also carry my cellphone for added insurance.

[MiniRock]

Helen,
recently I manged to fill my diesel engined car with a tank full of petrol . I couldn't move it from the forecourt until the recovery truck arrived .

A few years ago I did the same thing on a long journey from Austria to the UK with my elderly parents. I was a bit worried about it but I continued (there was a bit of diesel remaining in the tank when I filled it and I stopped whenever I could to dilute the contents of the tank with more diesel). I had no problems and the car is still running perfectly to this day.

A friend of mine told me afterwards that it isn't really a problem to put petrol in a diesel car. The time I put diesel in my aeroplane was however!

[Teresa]

MiniRock ,
So what airline do I avoid ? I guess that's easy just look for the one with a line of recovery vehicles waiting !

Just to add to that story , while I was sitting in the waiting area for them to flush the system through , I asked if anyone in the recovery team had manged to do the same thing ? The two guys laughed and pointed to the guy just arriving in the yard and said , " Why do you think we call him PETROLHEAD ? Just don't mention it to his face he's never lived it down being rescued by another recovery vehicle ! "

[Robertacd]

I just signed us up for AAA. As much as we lead a charmed life we have a long drive to Esprit in a few weeks.

[Sometimes Steffi]

On the way home from Keystone en femme last year, I stopped to take a quick nap. When I woke up, the battery was drained. I called AAA and just decided to own it. I did have some male clothes in the car and could have changed, but it still seemed so unnecessary. So, I met the AAA yow as I was, in my church dress. In spite of my fears, the tow truck driver was very professional.

It turned out that when I stopped, I turned off the car, but left the keys in the ignition. That kept my running lights on, which drained the battery, a "feature" that I wasn't aware of.

[Helena]

I had an intermittent battery problem on my previous car and after one of our meetings it wouldn't start. I was contemplating how it would be meeting the AA person, but thankfully one of the other ladies jump started it for me.

Unless I am doing something else in drab I don't carry an emergency man bag.

[Karmen]

Given the relative circumstances, I'm willing to bet that emergency services see it more often.

Well, when your car breaks down you usually have enough time to change your clothes and clean off your makeup, before any help arrives. If you get into an accident, that is not always an option. Or when you get stopped by the police. It happened to me a few times and I was always terrified.

Back on topic. It's always sensible to have towing assistance on your insurance, even when you're not driving dressed. And when you do, it's good to have spare male clothes in your car, unless you're open about your dressing habits. I used towing service a few times, but luckily never happened when I was driving fully dressed.

[Stephanie47]

My car insurance covers breakdowns, i.e., towing and flat repair. My driving is limited to taking evening drives to a safe residential neighborhood where I park and take an evening stroll. I make it a point to carry a set of male clothing just in case of a breakdown. Fortunately, en femme I have not had a flat or breakdown. I stay off freeways. I never use freeways in any attire mode because once you're trapped between exits, then, you're trapped. Usually the wrecks close down the freeway for a long time.

I try to keep my car in good working order. If I am going to be out en femme I always check my lights; headlights, turn signals, brakes, etc, just to minimize interactions with the police. I always make sure my gas tank is full. And, keep my battery fully charged. All this is common sense if you own a car away.

I cringed at the service charge she was charged. I would always recommend having some sort of insurance.

[Jennifer2918]

When I have go out driving dressed its normally very late at night or very early mornings, but I have done it during the day a few times.

I always bring some sweat pants, an extra shirt, and a pair of flip flops.....Just in case.

I did have a blow out tire one night and needed to call AAA for assistance. I was sure glad I had the change of clothes as it happened close to home and while I was waiting a cop stopped by and checked on me sitting on the side of the road.

Nothing exciting happened, as drab was the dress for the situation.

[Jenny22]

Car overheating tip ... it may get you home. If it happens, and your car still has radiator fluid, turn your heater on HIGH, even in the middle of a hot summer. That will help the engine run a bit cooler.

[Shirley Anne]

For a number of years I ran a breakdown/recovery service contracted to all the main assistance companies, in my years doing this I can recall 3 times being called out to assist fully dressed and made up CDs.

[Julie Slowinski]

I don’t drive much and almost never when dressed. I get around on the CTA if convenient, but mostly ride in Ubers. The account has my male name, so there’s a slight initial confusion, but it all becomes clear once inside the vehicle. Concerning sensible planning, I make sure throw a backup battery charger in my purse - can’t call an Uber with a dead phone.

[JeanTG]

A friend of mine told me afterwards that it isn't really a problem to put petrol in a diesel car. The time I put diesel in my aeroplane was however!

It depends on the diesel car. The newer ones with common-rail injectors are a problem. Put gas in, and the high-pressure fuel pump, which relies on the lubricity of diesel fuel for its lubrication, will grenade and send shrapnel all through the fuel system requiring a completely new fuel system from tank to injectors, if you're unlucky. On a VW, that's a $7k repair job. A VERY expensive mistake. If you're lucky, it will die a few metres down the road before permanent damage can be done. It *won't* run on gas!!! It used to be in winter you could put 5L of gas in to dilute the fuel and prevent gelling, but even that will do long-term damage to the fuel pump on modern common-rail diesels.

I used to have a plane but never put the wrong fuel in; it required 100LL. It had 60 gallons fuel capacity, at local prices, after refuelling, I would be carrying $450 of fuel in my wings... and it would burn it at the rate of $80 per hour. I'm retired now, so you can see why I no longer have it!

Back on topic, so far I don't bring a change of clothes in the car when I go out dressed, unless I have to change modes for other reasons during the outing. Maybe an old pair of jeans and a t-shirt wouldn't be a bad idea.