All  I got were his plates UUR 342. Motorists, beware of drivers like this guy. Driver was wearing glasses, medium built. He was driving alone during this time.  Only shows that even if you drive defensively, there are still idiots out there. I will report the matter to the LTO see how I can file a case against this guy.

Ondoy was here and the floods caught us all by surprise. If your car was caught in the flood, don’t fret. It’s not as bad as you think. First things first. Do you have insurance? Does it cover “acts of God”? Good if it’s comprehensive. Enough reading for you, just pick up the phone and call the insurance guys.

Don’t have insurance? Well, the reality is that you will spend money to have it up and running. Either way, with or without insurance you will still spend money. The difference is that without insurance, you might have to spend a little bit more. Ergo, here are some basic steps that you need to go through when trouble shooting your flood-damaged car.

1. Let it dry thoroughly. Sounds like you’ll be helpless but it’s the best way, at least in my experience. Remember that your car will suffer more damage if it conked out during the flood than when you just turned off the engine BEFORE the water reached critical levels. Yes, I know. Your car will stink like hell so be ready for a terrible laborious cleanup. First, let it dry. There’s no going around it. DO NOT TRY TO START THE CAR immediately after the floods have subsided. Patience is key and you might just get out of there sooner if you let the car dry. Yes, that includes the interior. Especially the interior.
2. Once the car is bone dry (which could take days), check the oil by pulling the engine oil dipstick. When in doubt, my mechanic always tells me to touch the oil. The color will betray its real contents. A dark deep reddish amber hue will tell you that there is no water in the engine. However, a blackish/grayish hue means there is water. Again, do not start the car if there is water in the engine, otherwise your repair costs will skyrocket. Change the oil and also check the gas tank for water. You’ll find this out by inspecting your fuel filter. The smell is usually a dead giveaway.
3. Check the electricals inside the car. Electricals are a mostly overlooked by car owners, but in this age of computers, the electricals have become the soul of your car. The scariest part to replace is the ECU or the computer box. This computer box controls practically everything about your car, fuel, brakes, idling and all that, and depending on the make and model of your car, it is situated in different areas of your vehicle. In my Nissan Sentra, my mechanic told me that it is situated under the middle part of the dash, thus bumper-lever water is a no-no for me. Be careful with electrical shock. Wear rubber boots when fiddling with the electricals. If you’re brave enough, you can disconnect the terminals and dry them out before plugging them back in. Only then can you turn the engine on.
4. On a good day, open all the doors and let the bad air out before you start cleaning the upholstery. If you car is equipped with power seats, clean all the connectors and terminals. A tsikoteer suggested that motors of power accessories can take the water, as long as they were’nt working at the time the flood was entering the interior.
5. Check the battery. Dry it out first.
6. Clean the upholstery. This is not because you want to preserve the leatherette. You need to clean the interior because flood waters are dirty and people’s butts will be sitting there. By cleaning the interior you can be sure that neither you nor your kids will contract leptospirosis.

When your car DOES start, peel your ears for any clanking sounds from the engine. If you hear the sound of sardine cans being dragged with a string, then turn the engine off immediately. It means there’s water in the engine and the only solution is an engine overhaul.

Remember, do not try to fix everything yourself. Get professionals to do the job for you.

Don’t you just hate it when your car window goes down and doesn’t come up? This happened to me when I was driving to NLEX (North Luzon Expressway) on my way to Bulacan. So I lowered my window to pay the initial P36.00 toll fee that would get me as far as Bocaue exit, beyond which I would have to an incremental fee (but that’s another story). After I got my ticket and tried to close the window, I heard a crunching sound and that’s it. It wouldn’t roll up again! So in the heat of the afternoon sun, I had no choice but to have the strong breeze blow into my face all the way until Bulacan. I drive a Nissan, and we all know Nissan is famous for it’s Calsonic cool airconditioning system. Unfortunately, I had to come home feeling sticky and humid that day.

So being a Makati resident, I went to the nearest place that does these repairs, Evangelista Street, Bangkal, Makati. Yes sir, South of the Metro, this is the place to bring your car for easy and cheap repairs.

So what could have possibly go wrong? A lot can go wrong in an old car, but knowing where to check first can spell the difference between repair and replacement.

Listen for the source of the problem. Usually the power window will give out tell-tale signs of what the problem is, before conking out. In my case, I heard a crunching sound. I tried to flip the switch and even help it move but the window would only go down and not up. These are important clues to observe before taking it to the technician.

Check the windows for unique scratches or the absence of it. Scratches are indications of frayed cables. The absence of the scratches might tell you that the problem could be the electrical, though this is not valid all the time.

Get a feel of your car’s electrical state. This means, try turning all lights and other accessories and see if the other windows work slower too. Then try starting the car, rev for a few minutes, then try turning on all electrical devices and accessories again. Reduced performance will tell you it might be an electrical problem.

There will be car enthusiasts who will tell you to assume automatically that it is an electrical problem. In my case, the crunching sound gave the problem away: a frayed cable. Cost to fix? P450 pesos only. They bought a cable and repaired it in no time. Cheap and efficient, Evangelista mechanics are mostly nice enough to tell you that you don’t need to replace anything. Try ERLDIANS for your power window problems, I hardly need to come back.