Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: DREDIOCK on June 29, 2008, 10:55:36 PM
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Not on my van. Not on my wife's car.
Not on my mothers car.
Screw dat. cept for very minor stuff.
I'll leave it to the pros.
Decided to try and save some money and change the waterpump and front brakes on my work Van
Dodge Ram 2500 8cylinder with Air.
Had the help of one of my sons friends who is a year out of mechanics school.
He was a great help. And I'm glad I had his help but I'm also glad I didn't leave him alone with it.
Only took 9 firkin hours and 3 separate trips to the auto parts store.
One because we decided I needed a new belt and the kid never bothered to check to make sure the new one was the same size.
Brakes were a PIA but went pretty smooth.
the Waterpump...oy oy oy.
They don't do it like they used to.
Separating the fan from the waterpump used to be 4 bolts bada bing and its off.
NOT ANY MORE.
Man what an over engineered joke.
One big nut between the fan and the pump that acts as if it were welded in place.
Supposed to have a special tool for it.
Back to the parts store for either A a New fan assembly ( a route I would have been willing to go if they had it) or the tool to get it off.
They rent me the tool. Well actually the rental was free once I brought it back.
Got home. Next to useless. I dont know what the hell the tool set was that they gave me but it sure as hell wasn't to take this fan off the waterpump.
In the end it was just a good ol bench vise some penetrating oil and good ol muscle that got it done.
Taking it apart everything was in the way.
Putting it back together everything was in the way.
Thank god the kid brought his air gun and ratchet with him or I would still be trying to turn firkin bolts.
Then to top it off. in the middle of it a thunderstorm complete with loud bolts of lightning started going off.
By this time I was not in the mood. Promting me to look into the heavens and shake my fist in profound anger and mutter some not very nice words.
The big guy must have seen I wasn't in the mood and we only got a few drops as it passed on by
Back in the day even with air, and even on a van. This was easy stuff I could do in a couple of hours.
NOT ANYMORE.
Screw it
I learned my own lesson about when I say the pros can do it better and faster.
I'm no martar.
This crap isn't worth my time.
From now on I just drop it off at the mechanic and say "Fix it"
I coulda worked today and paid for it instead.
It woulda been worth it.
the hell with this. Busting up knuckles.getting covered in grease that wont wash out of my hands.
Layind down in and getting my head all covered in antifreeze from the puddle that formed when some of it missed the container I had under it (%(#*@# Rube goldberg designed bolt and line layouts that seem to be specifically placed to either be in the way or next to unreachable cept for those with triple jointed limbs.
You can keep it.
I COULDA BEEN AT A BBQ!!!!
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I change fluids. Other than that, I won't touch a vehicle anymore. Welcome to the club.
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My first car was a 76 honda accord that had been overhauled at 130k. Every bit of non essential engine gear was removed at the overhaul. Had a weber carb and racer headers installed and it was the dreamiest car EVAR to work on. I likened it to a lawnmower engine. Easy to work on, hell....even the tranny was a dream. I could actually crawl into the engine compartment with elbow room, ankle room......stretch out. The oil filter was right out there for God and everybody to see. I miss that car. Today I lift the hood on my subaru legacy and its packed to the gills...I cant even see the damned engine. I take it to a local mechanic.
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I put gas in mine. Thats about it.
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That's what I said, then I promptly joined the military.
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changing the fan motor on my old saturn cured me. I take it to the pros now.
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Give and take, really.
Changing a cam on an LSX engine is a simple ordeal compared to how it is with a Gen1 or Gen2 small block. Some things are easy, other things not so much.
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Heh, come back to me after changing a timing chain on a 3SFE in a Celica. :lol
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the Waterpump...oy oy oy.
They don't do it like they used to.
Separating the fan from the waterpump used to be 4 bolts bada bing and its off.
NOT ANY MORE.
Man what an over engineered joke.
One big nut between the fan and the pump that acts as if it were welded in place.
Supposed to have a special tool for it.
Back to the parts store for either A a New fan assembly ( a route I would have been willing to go if they had it) or the tool to get it off.
i had the same problem recently, getting the fan of a '96 v6 ford explorer so i could get at the water pump. i didn't have the factory tool to lock the waterpump pulley, but judging by the pic of it in a workshop manual it word have been useless anyway as that fan retaining bolt was freaking tight. i bent up a few home made tools trying to lock the pulley to get the bloody thing off. in the end i ended up using a length of 2 inch wide , 1/4 inch thick flat steel and bolted one end of it to the pump using 2 of the pulley bolts with the other end of the steel resting on the concrete floor to solidly lock the pulley while i undid the bolt. that worked, but jeez what a lot messing around just to get a fan off to get at a waterpump. that explorer had other problems that were even more frustration and time consuming to fix, but that's modern vehicles for you. i know a few mechanics that don't get much pleasure out of working on em, and they get paid to do it.
i'm all for the kiss theory when it comes to cars, even if the results of that are considered antiquated these days.
there's no problems working on this. the thing cold be stripped back to the short block in under an hour if ever there was a need to do it and i was in a hurry.
(http://i258.photobucket.com/albums/hh260/backsp3/357c2.jpg)
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new auto engineers should have to work as a auto technician for a few years before they are allowed to design anything.
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ohhh hell yeah
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new auto engineers should have to work as a auto technician for a few years before they are allowed to design anything.
Engineers and architects should BOTH be forced to work on the things they will be designing for a few years before they are allowed to design anything. LOL
Did a job a couple of months ago for a customer who's father was visiting.
We got to chatting about various things then he revealed he was a retired electrical engineer.
"I was an engineer for 35 years before I retired.
then I decided to work in rapairs where I learned everything I was doing wrong for those 35 years"
True story
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Engineers and architects should BOTH be forced to work on the things they will be designing for a few years before they are allowed to design anything. LOL
Did a job a couple of months ago for a customer who's father was visiting.
We got to chatting about various things then he revealed he was a retired electrical engineer.
"I was an engineer for 35 years before I retired.
then I decided to work in rapairs where I learned everything I was doing wrong for those 35 years"
True story
:rofl
I personally feel the opposite way. My radiator on the Wrangler TJ was shot. So I purchased a new one, and put it in. Sure it was hard, but it wouldn't have been as satisfying if it were easy. I'll be doing anything that only has a 3/4 difficulty myself from now on. The Radiator and hoses were $250, having it done in the shop would have cost me an extra 500-750 bucks.
To be honest, the hardest part about the whole process was getting the correct piece in. I ordered 2 manual trans radiators from Autozone. Both times the correct box and part number showed up, but there was an Automatic trans radiator in the box. After that, we had one sent in to Advanced, and it was perfect. 3-4 hours to remove and replace the radiator and hoses. 1 Week to order the correct radiator.
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Not on my van. Not on my wife's car.
Not on my mothers car.
Screw dat. cept for very minor stuff.
I'll leave it to the pros.
Decided to try and save some money and change the waterpump and front brakes on my work Van
Dodge Ram 2500 8cylinder with Air.
Had the help of one of my sons friends who is a year out of mechanics school.
He was a great help. And I'm glad I had his help but I'm also glad I didn't leave him alone with it.
Only took 9 firkin hours and 3 separate trips to the auto parts store.
One because we decided I needed a new belt and the kid never bothered to check to make sure the new one was the same size.
Brakes were a PIA but went pretty smooth.
the Waterpump...oy oy oy.
They don't do it like they used to.
Separating the fan from the waterpump used to be 4 bolts bada bing and its off.
NOT ANY MORE.
Man what an over engineered joke.
One big nut between the fan and the pump that acts as if it were welded in place.
Supposed to have a special tool for it.
Back to the parts store for either A a New fan assembly ( a route I would have been willing to go if they had it) or the tool to get it off.
They rent me the tool. Well actually the rental was free once I brought it back.
Got home. Next to useless. I dont know what the hell the tool set was that they gave me but it sure as hell wasn't to take this fan off the waterpump.
In the end it was just a good ol bench vise some penetrating oil and good ol muscle that got it done.
Taking it apart everything was in the way.
Putting it back together everything was in the way.
Thank god the kid brought his air gun and ratchet with him or I would still be trying to turn firkin bolts.
Then to top it off. in the middle of it a thunderstorm complete with loud bolts of lightning started going off.
By this time I was not in the mood. Promting me to look into the heavens and shake my fist in profound anger and mutter some not very nice words.
The big guy must have seen I wasn't in the mood and we only got a few drops as it passed on by
Back in the day even with air, and even on a van. This was easy stuff I could do in a couple of hours.
NOT ANYMORE.
Screw it
I learned my own lesson about when I say the pros can do it better and faster.
I'm no martar.
This crap isn't worth my time.
From now on I just drop it off at the mechanic and say "Fix it"
I coulda worked today and paid for it instead.
It woulda been worth it.
the hell with this. Busting up knuckles.getting covered in grease that wont wash out of my hands.
Layind down in and getting my head all covered in antifreeze from the puddle that formed when some of it missed the container I had under it (%(#*@# Rube goldberg designed bolt and line layouts that seem to be specifically placed to either be in the way or next to unreachable cept for those with triple jointed limbs.
You can keep it.
I COULDA BEEN AT A BBQ!!!!
ya...we're underpaid too :D
that pump shoulda been easy though. i agree with ya on the nut thing. ford trucks do that too. i have tools especially for that. i even have one that connects to my air hammer. takes em off in about 3 minutes or less. next time invest in latex gloves. i wear em all the time, and you'd never know i turn wrenches all day long.
or better yet...next time bring it to me, and i'll fix it for ya :D :aok
<<S>>
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My first car was a 76 honda accord that had been overhauled at 130k. Every bit of non essential engine gear was removed at the overhaul. Had a weber carb and racer headers installed and it was the dreamiest car EVAR to work on. I likened it to a lawnmower engine. Easy to work on, hell....even the tranny was a dream. I could actually crawl into the engine compartment with elbow room, ankle room......stretch out. The oil filter was right out there for God and everybody to see. I miss that car. Today I lift the hood on my subaru legacy and its packed to the gills...I cant even see the damned engine. I take it to a local mechanic.
you sure it wasn't a civic? i didn't think honda had an accord back in the 70's? thought only the 2 cylinder civics, but i could be wrong.
<<S>>
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Heh, come back to me after changing a timing chain on a 3SFE in a Celica. :lol
been there.......
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new auto engineers should have to work as a auto technician for a few years before they are allowed to design anything.
i've been saying that for over 10 years
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I run an auto center, personally I hate cars, yes I hate them, with every fiber of my being.
I know the tool they gave you, one big wrench and this gizzy thats supposed to hold the pully by the bolts while you crack the nut loose. Actually what happens is it lets the pulley slip while you crack all the skin on your knuckles loose.
The real tool, which makes it simple is a wrench that is made like a crowsfoot, (lil stuby wrench) and has a spot on the end to hold another tool attached to an air hammer, it acts like a lever and works pretty well. You just have to know which fans are reverse threaded or you can have a bad day as this tool will remove the fan in either direction. The wrong direction and you'll be getting a new fan.
You have to keep in mind that at one time cars were built by engineers so that monkeys could fix them. Now they are built by monkeys so that engineers must fix them.
Oh, just a side note: Very important, if you need tires for any of your cars, BUY THEM NOW! Tire manufacturers have told us that the price of tires will increase to an expected 30% to 40% by the fall.
Don
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There are those that can do a job and then the ones that can not, the ones that can not usually become teachers or designers of the things they can not do. I think it's a revenge thing. :lol
I've never had a problem doing any of my own vehicle maintenance but i give all the credit for my ability to the fine mechanical training i received while in the military. :aok
Biggest job i ever did was pull the motor on my 92 Toyota pickup, strip the block down, replace crank shaft, then rebuild it from there. Yep was true backyard mechanic/shade tree job as i used a come-a-long hooked to my big tree in the yard to lift the motor in and out. Took me 6 days from start to finish and the biggest pains where the multi port fuel injection and hooking the vacuum lines back up to the right places. :eek:
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Once upon a time many years ago I personally changed my car's oil. That was enough mechanics for me. :uhoh
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There are those that can do a job and then the ones that can not, the ones that can not usually become teachers or designers of the things they can not do. I think it's a revenge thing. :lol
I've never had a problem doing any of my own vehicle maintenance but i give all the credit for my ability to the fine mechanical training i received while in the military. :aok
Biggest job i ever did was pull the motor on my 92 Toyota pickup, strip the block down, replace crank shaft, then rebuild it from there. Yep was true backyard mechanic/shade tree job as i used a come-a-long hooked to my big tree in the yard to lift the motor in and out. Took me 6 days from start to finish and the biggest pains where the multi port fuel injection and hooking the vacuum lines back up to the right places. :eek:
By engine bay layout standards, a 92 toyota is a dinosaur. Try doing a shade tree engine pull on a new car..... nope.
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Quote from: john9001 on Today at 07:49:04 AM
new auto engineers should have to work as a auto technician for a few years before they are allowed to design anything.
I've been saying that for over 10 years
ALL engineers should 'work on the bench' for at least 2 years.
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A headlight bulb blew on my old 02 Corolla. No problem I thought, just pop in a new bulb. And no problem it would have been too, if I had hands the size of a three year old. For those of with normal sized appendages, what it actually meant was stripping out some very ominous looking unnamed black boxes and pretty and the screen wash tank. I declined treat and took it to the shop.
There's something truly humiliating about having to ask another man to change a light-bulb for you. :confused:
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Heh, come back to me after changing a timing chain on a 3SFE in a Celica. :lol
Worse, head gaskets on a V12 Jag :mad:
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you sure it wasn't a civic? i didn't think honda had an accord back in the 70's? thought only the 2 cylinder civics, but i could be wrong.
<<S>>
Accord debuted as a hatchback in 1976.
(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1f/Honda_Accord_3_door_first_iteration.jpg)
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In the past I've rebuilt several v-8 engines without a problem.
Even rebuilt an automatic transmission once and it worked after I was done.
Six years ago I was working to get a 95 Chevy S-10 thru inspection. I gave up,
packed all of the parts into the cab and took it to a mechanic to finish. I haven't
even changed the oil in any of my vehicles since.
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Thing is I used to do this kinda stuff all the time.
And I used to get a degree of satisfaction when I was done.
I still get that way when I complete a difficult house. Or figure out a problem with a computer.
Cars?
After this one
I'd just rather not be bothered anymore.
When I was done I didnt feel satisfied. Just aggrivated..
Screw it. My time is worth more to me then spending hours busting my knuckles on some overdesigned BS
Im looking at this thing and thinking to myself that I could think of 5 or six different ways to design these things that were aggrivating me and accomplish the exact same thing. AND it would be easier to work on.
I remember one other time. Wife has a Saturn that needed a new alternator.
To change the alternator you had to remove the passenger side wheel AND the firewall.
To Change a Frikken ALTERNATOR.
And what idiot decided the bumperjack was a bad idea?
Those things were 1,000 times more safe then the rinky dink peice of junk they give you now.
That half the time wont let you jack the car up far enough to do anything with. Or require so much energy to jack up that your too tired to change the tire
I just carry a floor jack with me now.
No I've had it with this.
Even removing the two part fan shrowd was an adventure. Not unbolting it. That was easy. But removing it
No more
Like I said. My time is more valuable to to me then that.
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I remember one other time. Wife has a Saturn that needed a new alternator.
To change the alternator you had to remove the passenger side wheel AND the firewall.
To Change a Frikken ALTERNATOR.
Don't forget you got under the car to remove it. I changed the one on my wife's Saturn so many times that by the time it was stolen, I could change it out in just over 15 minutes. Every 4-6 months it would go bad... had one from Auto Zone w/ lifetime warranty.
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Don't forget you got under the car to remove it. I changed the one on my wife's Saturn so many times that by the time it was stolen, I could change it out in just over 15 minutes. Every 4-6 months it would go bad... had one from Auto Zone w/ lifetime warranty.
How much did it cost ya to get someone to steal it? LOL
Wife had a Corsica I absolutely loathed.
I woulda been willingotpay someone to steal that.
I hated that car so much I would leave it unlocked at Woodbridge shopping center.
which was a place known for getting cars stolen from its parking lot.
HOPING it woulnt be there when I came out.
Nobody ever so much as opened the door
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Well lets see,
Today I tore down and repacked bearings on the front of my car, last week I redid back brakes and replaced all the vacuum lines. The week before that I did both brakes on the front, and rebuilt the carb. In addition I've been sending down the roof and repainting.
Of course it's a 76 Mercury Comet. Runs like a Swiss watch too.
Regards,
Kevin
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Don't forget you got under the car to remove it. I changed the one on my wife's Saturn so many times that by the time it was stolen, I could change it out in just over 15 minutes. Every 4-6 months it would go bad... had one from Auto Zone w/ lifetime warranty.
How many times did you replace the alternator? I mean, without fixing why it was going out? :)
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Oh, fun days.
I used to do the mid level stuff -- body work, half shafts all the time, motor mounts, brakes, shocks, alternator, various pumps and radiator stuff, gaskets, thermostats, transmission linkages, timing belt. Tried to do the exhaust once without a lift or a torch (sawzall) and it was all rusted and the bolts were seized and I couldn't quite get the saw where I needed it and then couldn't get the thing back up to get it somewhere else and ended up intentionally cutting the flange end of the exhaust manifold off just to get the dammed pipe on the ground and show the frackin thing who's boss after 6 hours in 90s heat. One time spent 4 hours in the cold trying to get the half shaft off my Rabbit GTI only to discover that the bolts on the transmission hub (under the grease) were not allen head like the Honda I had and like they appeard at a casual glance but required some exotic metric 6-point star drive. WTF, Volkswagen. A stupid trip to the local Snap on Distributor and $5.00 later and it slips right off.
If I had a fun project like Lazs or a bunch of friends who liked to hang out with me and work on cars and a great set of tools and accessories for auto work it would be OK. I don't mind doing mechanical things. But now it's just a druge. But, since I am handy with tools (earned a living before with tools) it kinda irritates me to pay someone to do things I can do even if they can do it much faster and more efficiently in a good auto shop. Did some light coolant work on my old Mazda 4 years ago and knocked it out, so never say never I guess.
My last oil change was a 15 years ago when I quickly drained and put on the new filter and things were going so great that in my excitement I poured 3-4 courts through the engine and out the oil pan onto the garage floor -- because I had forgotten to reinstall the drain plug. I'll easily pay somebody the small fee to take that minor PITA off my hands.
Charon
tool to lock the water pump pulley, but judging by the pic of it in a workshop manual it word have been useless anyway
On the old VW rabbit I owned I had the same issue. I was able to wedge a nice-sized L-shaped allen wrench in the pulley groove with the bend up and and rotate the pulley with the wrench until it wedged on the engine and locked the pulley.
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How many times did you replace the alternator? I mean, without fixing why it was going out? :)
That particular model had a habit of eating them... heat maybe? dunno.
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A headlight bulb blew on my old 02 Corolla. No problem I thought, just pop in a new bulb. And no problem it would have been too, if I had hands the size of a three year old. For those of with normal sized appendages, what it actually meant was stripping out some very ominous looking unnamed black boxes and pretty and the screen wash tank. I declined treat and took it to the shop.
There's something truly humiliating about having to ask another man to change a light-bulb for you. :confused:
try one of the HID headlights......they actually have transformers to "fire" them up. i thinnk it hits in the ballpark of 300V? i know it hits high enough voltage to kill ya if ya do something wrong. i worked at a place before i bought my own shop where all the mechanics were afraid to change one.
<<S>>
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Accord debuted as a hatchback in 1976.
(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1f/Honda_Accord_3_door_first_iteration.jpg)
thanks dude.....i really wasn't sure......
<<S>>
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Well lets see,
Today I tore down and repacked bearings on the front of my car, last week I redid back brakes and replaced all the vacuum lines. The week before that I did both brakes on the front, and rebuilt the carb. In addition I've been sending down the roof and repainting.
Of course it's a 76 Mercury Comet. Runs like a Swiss watch too.
Regards,
Kevin
wow!! i didn't think any of them were still around? you have the 250 6 cyl, or a V8?
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Like I said. My time is more valuable to to me then that.
like i said.....us technicians are underpaid :D
especially those of us that own our own shops now :rofl :rofl