Yesterday we took the car in to AA to get the brake problem looked at, and we asked them to take a peak at the oil leak and squeaky AC belt while there. They said no problem, and off we went to the Auckland Domain and Auckland Museum to enjoy the day while waiting to get a quote for the work.
*Kara says: "enjoy" might be an overstatement- we did some nice stuff in between, but we were definitely preoccupied with the potential time and/or money that the repairs might cost us.*
One bright spot is that we found the most ADORABLE cafe, called Little & Friday, hidden inside of a fabric store close to the mechanic. We had a quiche and a cinnamon walnut brioche and it was too cute for words. Also, did you know that drip coffee with cream isn't a thing in New Zealand, really? I ordered an Americano since they didn't have drip and asked for a side of cream, and it was pretty shocking to them! Instant coffee is at the hostel so drip coffee must exist, but people seem to go for the espresso drinks.
He started off by saying "It looks bad." We hightailed it back to the AA shop to find out that we needed the whole ABS system checked by an electrician, which could get very expensive (~$2000). We had a coolant leak that needed to be fixed, and the oil leak was in fact coming from the head gasket which would cost at least $2500 to repair. Apparently, they'd need to take apart the engine to get to it. Basically they told us to junk the car.
YOU CAN IMAGINE THE EMOTIONS. We called the people who checked the car over at the Ellerslie Car Fair and they were no help at all, and we called the electrician AA recommended to us and they couldn't see us until Tuesday. We didn't have the contact info for Rocky. We had the entirety of our trip to Rotorua the next day booked and paid for. Finally, in desperation, we asked the front desk lady at AA to find us another electrician and she googled to find the closest one. It turned out to be Brandon (or Brendan?) at Hope Hickman Auto Electrical.
What can we say about this glorious, glorious man? I think the bird poop must have brought us to him.
*Kara says: We both want to kiss him on the mouth for how kind, patient, honest, and knowledgeable he is!!*
We brought the car to him- I was barely hiding hysteria- and he opened her up and looked around the engine for about a second before going "Uh oh." He poked the place where the coolant tube connects to the engine and it literally just fell off. The coolant was just glugging right on out of the hose. He didn't have to try- it's like he looked and it and it fell off. We told him we drove the car two hours to Piha and he was pretty shocked, and he told us we definitely couldn't drive it back to the hostel. He called and got the part to be delivered early the next morning.
He also said he didn't think the ABS system was too big of a deal, but he'd find out for sure in the morning, and he'd also change the fan belt for us.
We passed a very anxious night and called him back in the morning to see what was up. He didn't know yet but said we could probably have the car by 11:30. We went over to the shop where he then informed us that the problem with the ABS system was just a bolt that needed to be tightened, and that the coolant leak and the belt were fixed. We asked him about the oil leak and he said regardless of where it's coming from, we just need to check the oil regularly and be sure to refill it if it gets low, and it shouldn't be a problem. All this-- for less than $300.
Oh, we also had a problem with our drivers side window where it would only work about half the time. He was backing the car out of the garage for us and tried to roll the window down- when it didn't work he took about a 30 second look at it and told us it was just overheating because it stuck in the wrong position, so he fixed that for us too.
I told him he should put "HERO" on his business card and I mean it. Seriously, I want people to be able to google this, HOPE HICKMAN AUTO ELECTRICAL: BIG DAMN HEROES.
We drove the car to Hobbiton (more tomorrow!) and then to Rotorua with no problems. We even got to see some of the most beautiful scenery we've ever seen, which went a ways towards making up for the trauma. It was all rolling hills and winding roads with a shadowy mountain backdrop to it all.
We are here now in a wonderful AirB&B and there is privacy and tomorrow we have a massage. Things are looking up!