Nothing but the best for my baby.

By JO ABI

My car isn’t happy. It has a distinct rattle. Can you hear it? Of course not. When I dragged my husband out to hear the tap tap tap he looked at me like I was crazy.

“It sounds like an engine babe.” Thanks for nothing hon.

I contacted my mechanic and like a knight in shining armour he arrived the same day and giving my car an affectionate pat on the bonnet, asked me to start the engine.

“Can you hear it,” I demanded after a few seconds. “It’s there, I can hear it. It’s not as loud as the other day but it’s there. There! Did you hear that?”

“Shhhhh,” he whispered and leaned his head gently towards my tut tut tutting engine.

I drive a Hyundai Tucson and it is my baby, my golden child (it is gold). I bought it during the first and only season of Channel Seven’s My Kitchen Rules. I was obsessed with Evan and Bella who were assigned a restaurant in Manly called Pink Salt. Each couple promoted a Hyundai and Evan and Bella had the Tuscon, a cute little 4WD that they playfully washed while throwing water and bubbles at each other. I really wanted to be them. I settled for driving their car. Stalker!

Yes I checked it was a good car and nice and safe for my family. It’s been with us since 2005 and this is the first time it’s ever protested about anything. My baby is sick and I will do everything in my power to make it better.

“Can you hear it yet,” I whispered dramatically.

Ignoring me, my mechanic got on his hands and knees and stuck his head under the car, the engine still running. I started tapping my foot.

He got up and sat in the driver’s seat and revved it a few times and then came back out and leaned in for a close listen again.

“It’s the water pump,” he announced loudly, jolting me out of my vision of shopping for a new Tuscon, a blue one this time I think.

“The water pump?” I thought the only water a car used was for the window wipers. Apparently not.

“It’s near the timing belt which is what’s making the noise.”

“The timing belt? Can you fix it?”

“We’ll need to replace it Jo,” he explained carefully. “It won’t be cheap but if the water pump goes the whole engine could be damaged.”

Oh no. My baby was sick. I sprang into action. Don’t mess with Mama Bear.

“I’ll need you to make sure you replace it with a genuine part please,” I stated firmly. “I drive the kids around in this car and it’s my baby. I want it fixed properly.”

“No worries, he said.”

My life revolves around my car. I learned pretty quickly that I if I wasn’t going to learn how to change tyres and oil, I’d have to make sure I serviced it regularly.

When your car needs some TLC make sure your mechanic uses genuine parts. They are worth every cent, last the longest and come with a warranty.

Make sure your mechanic checks for any damage done while replacing parts on your car.

And always always service your car on time. Saving money in the short run will cost you in the long run.

My car is my family. No cheap and nasty knockoffs are going near it, as I live and breathe.

Only Hyundai Genuine Parts are built to the standards that you expect from Hyundai and often prove to be better value.

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