get my car driveable again

UPDATE October 15, 2023:

Thank you so much everybody!!!!

With about $200 in junkyard parts, a couple gaskets and a tube of silicone sealant, I’m back in business. Words cannot express how grateful I am, but if any of you need help in the future please do not hesitate to ask. I want to do my best to pay your kindness, back, forwards and upwards. You will be in my thoughts, and I will do everything in my power to make sure the impact of your generosity continues to pay dividends over time.

I will be closing this GoFundMe now, since my project is complete. If you donated, please feel free to ask me for help with any car repairs you need in future. If I can’t fix it, I can probably at least help you make some headway on diagnosing it for low or no cost. Additionally, I would like to offer my help providing cheap minor car repair services to anyone who needs them, so that I can help others maintain their livelihoods the same way that I was helped.

Peace be with you all.

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Hi.

On September 1st of this year, I had a seizure while driving precipitated by taking two doses of my Zoloft a little too close together (I’ve never had a seizure before). I had a minor accident on the highway; I was the only one involved. In my post-seizure state an Austin Police Department officer assumed I was intoxicated, despite blowing nothing on the breathalyzer and passing all the field sobriety tests. I consented to a blood test and spent a day in jail. I am now in the process of fighting the DUI charge in court.

Because my car was impounded before Labor Day weekend, it was four days before I could get it out and I got charged $411. I was already in a precarious financial situation, I drive Lyft and Favor for extra cash so that source of income was gone, but the additional money spent meant that I haven’t been able to fix my car since. Taking Lyft rides to get to school and work has made things pretty impossible, and at this point I don’t see any way out except to ask for help.

I need to replace my right hand steering knuckle, lower ball joint and half-axle. I can go to the junkyard and do the repairs myself; the parts will probably run me less than $100 at the junkyard or maybe a couple hundred if I were to buy them new.

I’ve been trying to rent a car for weeks to do all these errands myself, but the car rental place only takes credit card, not debit and they require a $150 deposit even though the rental itself is supposed to be around $50. I can’t afford this without help.

I’m asking for a little more than the absolute minimum I might be able to work with because it would help a lot to be able to just take it to a shop, or at least buy new parts instead of having to pull them from the junkyard.

Thank you for reading, and if you’re able to contribute at all, know that you’re helping me out of an impossible situation and I appreciate it more than you could know.