OK, Rick. You and Gary T have convinced me. If only I could find my car, I would feel good about the whole thing. As it is, I have to wonder if it got stolen, and deal with dueling mechanics!
IANAL and all that, but I think the tow company has a responsibility to make sure the car is secure before droping it off. I would raise holy hell with them.
They finally found my car, parked at a Dunkin Donuts with the keys in the ignition!
It was the solenoid, and the mechanic replaced the whole starter. It was a lot less expensive than I feared, as well. Only one hour labor.
Thanks for all your ideas. It made me feel a lot more confident about not getting ripped off. Actually, the mechanic was impressed by my knowledge, and told my b/f that I’m good! We’ll just let him think that I already knew about the solenoid, yes?
The mechanic sounds like a keeper also. Glad everything is OK.