Service Engine Soon

There are few things in life that strike as much horror in the hearts of many as the the "Service Engine Soon" light on the dash of your car. Now, I live in New York, and many here have never owned a car, or if they do, it's not a primary source of travel. And neither is mine, but it used to be; my little 1998 Saturn that I bought just before Halloween in 1997 has done really well by me. I've attributed it to my religious oil changes EVERY 3,000 miles AND recently I've been paying extra for the "high-mileage" oil, since my little silver sedan has over 170,000 miles on her. I remember test driving her when she only had about 7 miles, my how far we've come.

It's the car that I paid for myself, with no down payment, and no co-signer, just my junked up car as a "trade-in" The Mercury Topaz I used in college that had never seen an oil change as long as I owned it. My old clunker was given to me by my dad, but I had no idea how to take care of it, and it lasted fine, until I graduated, and started my hour long commute to work every day...umm and hour to _and _from, 2 hours total. So, when that car died (a painful, expensive and long process) I decided I was going to do whatever it took to make MY new car last. 11 years later and my Saturn still looks pretty, but I fear the worst from the dreaded "service engine soon" light, I've had too many friends tell me that means death to the car. I always said I would drive my Saturn into the ground, and perhaps I have. I'll let you know on Monday, when I take her in to be looked at. I'm trying to keep expectations low. She's too old a car for me to put too much money into, but it is convenient to have a car on hand when we travel to see family...but we don't really use my car all that much, it's just the convenience. If the Amtrak allowed our little furry daughter Chalupa, we would much rather take the train. Bah.