Car Trouble

We both have a car, a necessity when we both work and share picking up the kids. Trouble is we can't afford new cars and its probably a false economy because the money we spend on keeping our old cars on the road is probably more than new cars would be. Well, I'm in London well away from home and the train station is a long walk away and I call my wife to tell her that I'll be late when she gives me the bad news. The car door is busted and won't lock, I mean doesn't even stay shut. Whenever there is something wrong with one of the cars I feel like I've been thumped in the stomach - it's the lack of control: how much it is going to cost to fix things and who we can trust not to rip us off. So my wife has to drive home physically holding the door while driving with the children strapped in the back, nightmare! It's not like there is a handle or anything that would allow me to tie the handle shut when I got home, so we had to leave it parked in the street up on the curb so the door appears shut. :-(