My dang Jeep failed emissions testing the other day. Showed two (of four) oxygen sensors being bad. I think: oh...I can do this myself! It doesn't look hard! You know what's hard? Crawling under your car for several hours trying to fish your hands and a socket wrench through impossibly small spaces when it's 85F and 80% humidity in dang October! And, only to find out you didn't fix the problem all the way and the car has to go to the shop after all. Because...really...I have so much free time to be doing that sort of stuff right now.
Looking forward to my next car job which is replacing the brakes and rotors. Compared to the O2 sensors, it seems like a cakewalk.
I'm about to try my hand at a brake job. Got all my stuff, but haven't had a free half-day on a weekend that was raining since July.
about the only mechanical repairs I won't do are a/c work and tires ... my least favorite is dashboard work, I don't think there's ever been a comfortable position to work from on anything behind or under the dashboard
Both money and time are pretty scarce for me, much to my unhappiness when my car breaks I just take it to the shop now.
My college roommate was a mechanic, and even after we moved on from university, he was still enough of a car nut to handle any repairs my car needed. Hell, I bought my current car from his garage.
He finally moved out of state, and while I'm happy for the guy.... I miss being able to pay for car repairs with beer.
Brian, really 85 degrees and 80% humidity. Pffff. You lived in Texas, c'mon man.
-Mike
I've listened to car talk weekly for years and years and years, and still do, and I'm not sure I could even change my oil. Maybe that's like listening to music and expecting to play guitar well.
We've had snow here where I live for the last week...
Jacob
Quote from: madbean on October 12, 2018, 12:28:02 AM
... You know what's hard? Crawling under your car for several hours trying to fish your hands and a socket wrench through impossibly small spaces when it's 85F and 80% humidity in dang October! And, only to find out you didn't fix the problem all the way and the car has to go to the shop after all. Because...really...I have so much free time to be doing that sort of stuff right now.
:)
Quote from: jkokura on October 12, 2018, 04:06:30 AM
We've had snow here where I live for the last week...
Jacob
It's definitely sweatshirt weather here in Indiana.
Quote from: somnif on October 12, 2018, 01:16:11 AM
My college roommate was a mechanic, and even after we moved on from university, he was still enough of a car nut to handle any repairs my car needed. Hell, I bought my current car from his garage.
He finally moved out of state, and while I'm happy for the guy.... I miss being able to pay for car repairs with beer.
:D
Quote from: thesmokingman on October 12, 2018, 12:34:54 AM
about the only mechanical repairs I won't do are a/c work and tires ... my least favorite is dashboard work, I don't think there's ever been a comfortable position to work from on anything behind or under the dashboard
I have nightmares of removing a dashboard from an old mustang II. The check engine light kept flickering on and off for no good reason.
I finally gave up and slapped a piece of duct tape over the stupid light. Duct Tape has now become by best friend! Quack! :)
Quote from: Ekimneets on October 12, 2018, 02:39:37 AM
Brian, really 85 degrees and 80% humidity. Pffff. You lived in Texas, c'mon man.
-Mike
Oh I know. I've turned into a total wimp since I left Texas!
I was at the medical branch down in Galveston and it seemed like a typical summer day was 99* and 99% humidity. Not to mention being engulfed in a cloud of mosquitoes that actually made it hard to see.
Oh those were the days!
-M
I've changed the oil in a car only one time on my life. It was on a Dodge Spirit, and I remember something was making sparks while I was tightening the filter. It was so completely outside my realm of reasonable expectations that it shattered my confidence, and I never changed my own oil again.
I did, however, replace an oxygen sensor once. That went ok, but required a specialized socket for my wrench.
Now, my main issue is time (in addition to my intolerance to high humidity weather). I don't even have enough time to mow my own lawn these days, so I certainly don't have time to learn new car repair skills.
My first job was at the local car repair shop when I was 14. I learned a lot when it came to repairing cars, pumping gas, and smoking cigarettes. I no longer smoke but I still do all I can with out a lift. I'll agree with whomever said that interior / dash work is the worst. And I'll also say the suspension work sucks too. Tie rods and lower control arms are no fun in the driveway!
Brakes are a walk in the park. Super easy and as long as you aren't replacing the caliper you don't need to bleed them. Just do yourself a favor and buy ceramic pads. They don't heat up as fast and don't leave any dust.
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I just learned today that my Jeep needs new tires and breaks.. I learned all this when I took my Jeep in to get a screw out of my rear driver side tire.
No more eurorack modules this month :(
Sucky, but if it needs to be done...
I think the last big ticket item on my car, was the bottom being sandblasted for rust and repainted. (Living by the sea does that.) Tyres and brakes have been done in the past...
Yeah, that's what my holiday pay goes on, in the holidays. Not trips out of town, sadly.
Most car repair/maintenance work is a complete pain, but it does depend on the car. Every once in a while, you come across engineering and practicality that makes so much sense, it just about blows you away. I'm speaking of course of 1980's Toyota 4x4's. These are hands down the easiest, most inexpensive vehicles to work on and maintain that I've ever come across (There's a Top Gear episode dedicated to this very fact). I had to replace both my master and slave brake cylinders one day. 1.5 hour job with nothing but a socket set and no floor jack. Total price...$30. I rebuilt the entire front end of the engine: new timing chain/sprocket/guides/chain cover/gaskets/oil pump/water pump/oil pan gasket...about 6 hours with a total price of $100. Again; socket set and no floor jack needed.
If everything in the world were engineered like this, we wouldn't know what to do with all our extra time and money. If you happen to have an older Toyota 4x4, don't ever, ever, ever get rid of it. You will still be able to drive it, even after a nuclear holocaust.