Strange but True
Need a Laugh? These “Strange but True” stories were sent to Automotive Fleet by fleet managers, drivers, and fleet management companies. Have a strange but true story? Something so incredible it couldn’t have been made up? Share your stories with Automotive Fleet. E-mail: Lauren.Fletcher@bobit.com.
Oil Trouble
A fleet manager was working for a large Michigan-based fleet. One day, a fairly new driver told the fleet manager her vehicle was using a lot of oil, about 5-6 quarts per day. The fleet manager went with the driver to investigate.
Rather than pulling out the dipstick to measure the oil level, the driver simply removed the oil fill cap from the valve cover, peered in the oil reservoir, and said, “Look, it’s low again.”
She had been pouring oil into the valve cover, believing if the oil level didn’t reach the top of the valve cover, she needed to add more. The fleet manager had no idea how the vehicle engine survived that much oil.
Saving Face
At the company chairman’s behest, a VP of finance requested a Cadillac DeVille in the color of Antelope from his company’s fleet manager.
The fleet manager searched for the vehicle and found it in two days. It was delivered on a Friday, and the chairman took it home to his wife.
Unfortunately, she hated the Antelope color, thinking it would be darker and abruptly told him to go to a dealer to purchase a blue one.
Embarrassed, the chairman walked into a dealer on Saturday morning, purchased a brand new blue Cadillac DeVille and told the dealer to hold the Antelope-colored Cadillac for the leasing company to pick up on Monday.
As the chairman pulled out of the dealership with his brand new DeVille, he was T-boned by a pickup truck, causing major damage to the new vehicle. He was not hurt physically, but his ego was.
Calling the fleet manager, the VP said, “Let me know what all of this will cost. I’ll write the check, and we won’t talk about it again.”
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