Our Wonderful Loaner Car

In answer to our prayers, a friend of mine is letting us borrow one of his cars throughout the rest of our time here on Guam. We're thankful that we sold the Highlander within the first week of it being on the market, but in reality that was too early

It's impossible to do anything on Guam without a private vehicle. The public transportation system here is nothing to speak of. I've got a lot of little errands still to run, and my wife still needs to take the kids around to places and things to do. There really isn't anyplace for the kids to go for fun in our neighborhood.

I'm borrowing a tank of a car, a 1999 GMC Suburban. It feels like I am driving a Sherman tank. This thing is huge, and unlike the low-mileage cars we own, this one has character. Here's how our conversation went as he showed me the ins and outs of "the Beast."

***

FRIEND: There's a few things I need to show you. Let's pop the hood. (pulls lever on driver's side) You have to do this to it. (throws his weight against the front of the hood, which then pops open) It has a small leak in it, so you have to fill up the coolant every once in a while (gets garden hose, starts filling coolant reservoir)

ME: You don't use any antifreeze?

FRIEND: Nah, don't really need it here on Guam. Besides, it'll just leak out anyway. (opens radioator cap and starts putting water in it until it overflows) Now, the gas gauge isn't reliable, so be sure you take it in soon. I think it's about a quarter of a tank now. (gas gauge reads three-quarters tank)

ME: (Stares at taken apart driver's side door panel)

FREIND: I had to do that to get the driver's window to go up and down again.

ME: (Tries to lock doors with electronic locks.)

FRIEND: That stopped working when I took the door apart. Now don't leave anything valuable in the car because you can't lock the trunk. Also, don't worry about the funny noises it makes when you first start it up. (starts engine, whole vehicle shudders and shakes) Once you put it in drive it will go away. Have a good time with it!

***

I later found out other quirks of the car, such as the AC compressor will kick on at a random time when it feels it's ready - and not before. Indeed you can lock the trunk, but you can only do so from the outside, by turning the key in the lock the correct way. The radio works great, but is missing ALL the knobs.

Despite all this, I am really enjoying driving the car. The 3/45 AC works best (only three windows go down, and we generally drive about 45 mph). Also, who needs side curtain airbags when you've got thick, heavy metal doors? I've got about 10 feet of car behind me in case someone bangs me from behind, and at least another 6 feet of engine compartment in front if I have a head-on crash. A car this old has it's own personality, and we're loving every minute of it.