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Car maintenance
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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago
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"I do what I can, but these dats it's a lot harder to tinker about. On my last car, I couldn't even find the spark plugs! They were disguised. "
Have to agree with you. With modern cars it can be very difficult to identify a fault without the equipment to read the cars brain. |
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By *inzi LTV/TS
over a year ago
The Garden of Eden in Beautiful North Wales |
"I do what I can, but these dats it's a lot harder to tinker about. On my last car, I couldn't even find the spark plugs! They were disguised. "
Ha ha, What were they disguised as... puppy dogs! Lol |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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I've progressed slowly. Topped up Coolant, oil and screen wash today. Also, put air in the tyres. Did get someone else to clean,hoover n wax it though!!!  |
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"I do what I can, but these dats it's a lot harder to tinker about. On my last car, I couldn't even find the spark plugs! They were disguised.
Ha ha, What were they disguised as... puppy dogs! Lol"
Haha! Not quite, but they were hidden behind a metal plate, that looked part of the main engine block. Even a friend in the motor trade didn't know where they were.
I did find them in the end though. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"Yes.
Being a long time Alfa Romeo owner its essential that you have decent mechanical skills!
goes for anything italian made .... looks pretty but doesn't work quite as it should"
I beg to differ. They work as an Alfa should...  |
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I do the bits I enjoy and pay someone to do the bits I either don't like doing or don't have the time or equipment to do...
I'm just thinking of treating myself to a compressor and a shot blasting kit... |
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By *errygTV/TS
over a year ago
denton |
todays cars are not easy to work on, for one ECU controls the running, need dianostics to trace fault or at least make it easier, gone have the days of ford escort mk 2 etc where you could do most jobs yourself |
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By *inzi LTV/TS
over a year ago
The Garden of Eden in Beautiful North Wales |
The reason you can't do very much to your car these days (without expensive electronic scanners) is because in the 60's and 70's the manufacturers realised that they were losing millions of pounds to Sunday afternoon DIY enthusiasts. To combat this they started to fit things like electronic ignition and injection. Thus forcing the customer to take their car back to the dealership for repairs, as time went on and technology grew they have made it almost impossible for the motorist to do anything.... right down to oil and spark plugs, you still have to cancel the service light. You do the oil, filter and plugs then have to pay £30 or £40 to cancel it. You will have to pay around £2500 for a Snap-On scanner to check fault codes and rectify problems, the average motorist won't pay this price.
It's not all about technology, a lot of it is the manufacturer plundering your pockets after you've given them thousands of pounds in the first place.
Honda keep everything in house, they design and manufacture the machinery (robots) that build the cars. Everything about a Honda is Honda.
Just a bit of useless information for you to chew over. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"todays cars are not easy to work on, for one ECU controls the running, need dianostics to trace fault or at least make it easier, gone have the days of ford escort mk 2 etc where you could do most jobs yourself"
I totally disagree. Fault codes are only an indicator of what's wrong, not a true diagnosis. A good mechanic will use good old fashioned mechanical diagnostics before plugging a computer in. I have tons of diagnostic kit that barely gets used. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"I do what I can, but these dats it's a lot harder to tinker about. On my last car, I couldn't even find the spark plugs! They were disguised.
Ha ha, What were they disguised as... puppy dogs! Lol
Haha! Not quite, but they were hidden behind a metal plate, that looked part of the main engine block. Even a friend in the motor trade didn't know where they were.
I did find them in the end though. "
If your friend in the trade didn't know about coil packs then I'd say he's wasted in the motor trade, they've only been commonplace since the mid 90's!!! |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"The reason you can't do very much to your car these days (without expensive electronic scanners) is because in the 60's and 70's the manufacturers realised that they were losing millions of pounds to Sunday afternoon DIY enthusiasts. To combat this they started to fit things like electronic ignition and injection. Thus forcing the customer to take their car back to the dealership for repairs, as time went on and technology grew they have made it almost impossible for the motorist to do anything.... right down to oil and spark plugs, you still have to cancel the service light. You do the oil, filter and plugs then have to pay £30 or £40 to cancel it. You will have to pay around £2500 for a Snap-On scanner to check fault codes and rectify problems, the average motorist won't pay this price.
It's not all about technology, a lot of it is the manufacturer plundering your pockets after you've given them thousands of pounds in the first place.
Honda keep everything in house, they design and manufacture the machinery (robots) that build the cars. Everything about a Honda is Honda.
Just a bit of useless information for you to chew over."
90% utter rubbish! |
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By *osieWoman
over a year ago
Wembley |
As a teenager, I used to hang around with my older brother and his friends and learnt to change or adjust the gap and clean the spark plugs, change the engine oil and oil filter, top up the brake fluid, coolant and washer fluid, change the air cleaner, fuel filter, take the carburettor apart and clean the jets, adjust the timing with a strobe light, clean the distributor, check the tread depth
My brother got for me a sprocket set for my 18th birthday. I had all the tools and didn't need anybody
Now-a-days, I can't even find hood release on cars; I've become useless |
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By *inzi LTV/TS
over a year ago
The Garden of Eden in Beautiful North Wales |
"The reason you can't do very much to your car these days (without expensive electronic scanners) is because in the 60's and 70's the manufacturers realised that they were losing millions of pounds to Sunday afternoon DIY enthusiasts. To combat this they started to fit things like electronic ignition and injection. Thus forcing the customer to take their car back to the dealership for repairs, as time went on and technology grew they have made it almost impossible for the motorist to do anything.... right down to oil and spark plugs, you still have to cancel the service light. You do the oil, filter and plugs then have to pay £30 or £40 to cancel it. You will have to pay around £2500 for a Snap-On scanner to check fault codes and rectify problems, the average motorist won't pay this price.
It's not all about technology, a lot of it is the manufacturer plundering your pockets after you've given them thousands of pounds in the first place.
Honda keep everything in house, they design and manufacture the machinery (robots) that build the cars. Everything about a Honda is Honda.
Just a bit of useless information for you to chew over.
90% utter rubbish!"
Ok, fix your own car!
Just outta interest, which is the 10% you think is true? |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"The reason you can't do very much to your car these days (without expensive electronic scanners) is because in the 60's and 70's the manufacturers realised that they were losing millions of pounds to Sunday afternoon DIY enthusiasts. To combat this they started to fit things like electronic ignition and injection. Thus forcing the customer to take their car back to the dealership for repairs, as time went on and technology grew they have made it almost impossible for the motorist to do anything.... right down to oil and spark plugs, you still have to cancel the service light. You do the oil, filter and plugs then have to pay £30 or £40 to cancel it. You will have to pay around £2500 for a Snap-On scanner to check fault codes and rectify problems, the average motorist won't pay this price.
It's not all about technology, a lot of it is the manufacturer plundering your pockets after you've given them thousands of pounds in the first place.
Honda keep everything in house, they design and manufacture the machinery (robots) that build the cars. Everything about a Honda is Honda.
Just a bit of useless information for you to chew over.
90% utter rubbish!
Ok, fix your own car!
Just outta interest, which is the 10% you think is true?"
The bit about Honda. The rest is just classic mechanic speak for those who aren't clued up. Most fault codes (with the exception of airbag and canbus faults) can be read and cleared with a £3 Android app and a £10 Bluetooth EOBD2 v2.0 dongle. A decent mechanic will try to diagnose a fault the old fashioned way before plugging in and most of the time they'll find it.
I do fix my own cars too...  |
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By *eavenNhellCouple
over a year ago
carrbrook stalybridge |
i have owned fiats ,renaults and skodas so i learned to fix my cars at the side of the road with tinfoil and chewing gum .was helping my brother to re build his triumph toledo from aged 12 .building rally cars from aged sixteen so happy to get my hands dirty when needed .saved my self a lot of money over time especialy now with the computerised cars we get |
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By *inzi LTV/TS
over a year ago
The Garden of Eden in Beautiful North Wales |
"The reason you can't do very much to your car these days (without expensive electronic scanners) is because in the 60's and 70's the manufacturers realised that they were losing millions of pounds to Sunday afternoon DIY enthusiasts. To combat this they started to fit things like electronic ignition and injection. Thus forcing the customer to take their car back to the dealership for repairs, as time went on and technology grew they have made it almost impossible for the motorist to do anything.... right down to oil and spark plugs, you still have to cancel the service light. You do the oil, filter and plugs then have to pay £30 or £40 to cancel it. You will have to pay around £2500 for a Snap-On scanner to check fault codes and rectify problems, the average motorist won't pay this price.
It's not all about technology, a lot of it is the manufacturer plundering your pockets after you've given them thousands of pounds in the first place.
Honda keep everything in house, they design and manufacture the machinery (robots) that build the cars. Everything about a Honda is Honda.
Just a bit of useless information for you to chew over.
90% utter rubbish!
Ok, fix your own car!
Just outta interest, which is the 10% you think is true?
The bit about Honda. The rest is just classic mechanic speak for those who aren't clued up. Most fault codes (with the exception of airbag and canbus faults) can be read and cleared with a £3 Android app and a £10 Bluetooth EOBD2 v2.0 dongle. A decent mechanic will try to diagnose a fault the old fashioned way before plugging in and most of the time they'll find it.
I do fix my own cars too... "
Ok, You spend your pennies in poundland on shite. I don't repair cars most of the time, I repair them all the time and I've worked on motors that you wanked over as a kid. When I started out you were still swimming around on your father's nutsack and I do start the old fashioned way because thats all we had or needed, electronic gizmos can't find everything. I don't get paid for what I do, I get paid for what I know and I've probably forgotten more than you ever will. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
|
"The reason you can't do very much to your car these days (without expensive electronic scanners) is because in the 60's and 70's the manufacturers realised that they were losing millions of pounds to Sunday afternoon DIY enthusiasts. To combat this they started to fit things like electronic ignition and injection. Thus forcing the customer to take their car back to the dealership for repairs, as time went on and technology grew they have made it almost impossible for the motorist to do anything.... right down to oil and spark plugs, you still have to cancel the service light. You do the oil, filter and plugs then have to pay £30 or £40 to cancel it. You will have to pay around £2500 for a Snap-On scanner to check fault codes and rectify problems, the average motorist won't pay this price.
It's not all about technology, a lot of it is the manufacturer plundering your pockets after you've given them thousands of pounds in the first place.
Honda keep everything in house, they design and manufacture the machinery (robots) that build the cars. Everything about a Honda is Honda.
Just a bit of useless information for you to chew over.
90% utter rubbish!
Ok, fix your own car!
Just outta interest, which is the 10% you think is true?
The bit about Honda. The rest is just classic mechanic speak for those who aren't clued up. Most fault codes (with the exception of airbag and canbus faults) can be read and cleared with a £3 Android app and a £10 Bluetooth EOBD2 v2.0 dongle. A decent mechanic will try to diagnose a fault the old fashioned way before plugging in and most of the time they'll find it.
I do fix my own cars too...
Ok, You spend your pennies in poundland on shite. I don't repair cars most of the time, I repair them all the time and I've worked on motors that you wanked over as a kid. When I started out you were still swimming around on your father's nutsack and I do start the old fashioned way because thats all we had or needed, electronic gizmos can't find everything. I don't get paid for what I do, I get paid for what I know and I've probably forgotten more than you ever will. "
Think what you like my friend. I've also been fixing motors most of my life. I grew up stripping and rebuilding mk1 Escorts act. I built my own 575bhp Sierra Cosworth. I repair and maintain cars for the AROC and work for Jaguar Landrover. I know my shit mate, I own all the toys including the Snap-On crap garages seem to love. I also know the mechanic bullshit and scaremongering... |
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Well as I've always had Minis, Moggies Spitfires MGBs and loads of other British cars I've always done my own servicing and maintenance. Still got a Midget that usually needs something doing.
My last everyday car was a Rover 75. Very easy to work on.
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"Well as I've always had Minis, Moggies Spitfires MGBs and loads of other British cars I've always done my own servicing and maintenance. Still got a Midget that usually needs something doing.
My last everyday car was a Rover 75. Very easy to work on.
"
I fixed a mates 75 the other day. The aux belt pulley on the crank had collapsed. Thankfully it hadn't gone through the timing belt. 25 minutes and £20 later he was on his way again. They're a piece of cake to work on and really don't deserve the bad reputation they got lumped with. |
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"Well as I've always had Minis, Moggies Spitfires MGBs and loads of other British cars I've always done my own servicing and maintenance. Still got a Midget that usually needs something doing.
My last everyday car was a Rover 75. Very easy to work on.
I fixed a mates 75 the other day. The aux belt pulley on the crank had collapsed. Thankfully it hadn't gone through the timing belt. 25 minutes and £20 later he was on his way again. They're a piece of cake to work on and really don't deserve the bad reputation they got lumped with."
I think a lot of it is anti-Rover bias stirred up by the media. 75s are very good cars indeed, well made, nice to drive and lovely interiors. I did a few jobs on mine, nothing difficult. Would have another one tomorrow. |
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By *eavenNhellCouple
over a year ago
carrbrook stalybridge |
"Well as I've always had Minis, Moggies Spitfires MGBs and loads of other British cars I've always done my own servicing and maintenance. Still got a Midget that usually needs something doing.
My last everyday car was a Rover 75. Very easy to work on.
I fixed a mates 75 the other day. The aux belt pulley on the crank had collapsed. Thankfully it hadn't gone through the timing belt. 25 minutes and £20 later he was on his way again. They're a piece of cake to work on and really don't deserve the bad reputation they got lumped with.
I think a lot of it is anti-Rover bias stirred up by the media. 75s are very good cars indeed, well made, nice to drive and lovely interiors. I did a few jobs on mine, nothing difficult. Would have another one tomorrow. "
the 75 was a fantastic motor at the time the replacements for the 45 & 25 were to be based on very similar designes and with the mini ( now made by bmw ) all but ready things were about to look very good for the rover group .hte govt came under a lot of behind the scenes presure on the government not to provide R&D funds to them from ford vauxhall etc hence they eventualy went under . the isues with the kseries headgaskets that was highlighted on watchdog etc was all but cured (funny how the similar problem in the VAG groups engines wasnt highlighted ) |
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By *umpkinMan
over a year ago
near the sounds of the wimborne quarter jack! |
Did my time day release at college in the mid `70s, Spent most of my time in the `80s and `90s messing about dropping a succession of "low" mileage (less than 200,000 miles) V8 SDI engines in my Series 2 Landy then messing about with my `82 Range Rover. Now on my second 300TDI Disco which needs bugger all doing to it so now messing about with Little Grey Ferguson tractors. Got a `51 TED petrol/TVO which is up and running, a `50 TED which is currently in bits with the Perkins P3 engine away having the crank and bores done and will soon be picking up a dung spreader to accompany them! That needs a full rebuild of the wooden body! |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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As an MOT tester I think cars are in many ways getting simpler, with less moving parts.
As for engines if you've worked on one in the past they are practically the same as they are now - just take those pesky covers off. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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Do all the maintenance on our Mercedes that way i can guarantee whats been done and ensure it has been done.
Many years ago took our car into the dealer for service and that very morning i made sure the windscreen wash was full, collected the car paid the bill. Looked at the bill when i arrived home only to see that i had been charged for windscreen wash bast***s, looked further only to find air filter had not even been removed and cleaned let alone replaced as billed for. Phone call to Mercedes dealer who tried to explain it as genuine mistake and would give me discount on next service, couldn't stop laughing at him for thinking it would be back there again. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"Do all the maintenance on our Mercedes that way i can guarantee whats been done and ensure it has been done.
Many years ago took our car into the dealer for service and that very morning i made sure the windscreen wash was full, collected the car paid the bill. Looked at the bill when i arrived home only to see that i had been charged for windscreen wash bast***s, looked further only to find air filter had not even been removed and cleaned let alone replaced as billed for. Phone call to Mercedes dealer who tried to explain it as genuine mistake and would give me discount on next service, couldn't stop laughing at him for thinking it would be back there again."
This practice is very much the norm regardless of manufacturer, however the surprising thing is that the punter who's just been had- and knows it- then defends the dealer to me! |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"I have to take mine in tomorrow . Am dreading it . It's a covertable and suddenly the boot won't lock and too heavy to open.No doubt expensive."
What car type? |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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Take it to a Peugeot specialist or auto electrician. The linkages for the boot / hood are probably just in need of lubrication, and the microswitch for the boot release is probably on the blink |
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"Did my time day release at college in the mid `70s, Spent most of my time in the `80s and `90s messing about dropping a succession of "low" mileage (less than 200,000 miles) V8 SDI engines in my Series 2 Landy then messing about with my `82 Range Rover. Now on my second 300TDI Disco which needs bugger all doing to it so now messing about with Little Grey Ferguson tractors. Got a `51 TED petrol/TVO which is up and running, a `50 TED which is currently in bits with the Perkins P3 engine away having the crank and bores done and will soon be picking up a dung spreader to accompany them! That needs a full rebuild of the wooden body!"
Always fancied a Fergie or an MF35
Mate had a Nuffield for years, nice little tractor. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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" goes for anything italian made .... looks pretty but doesn't work quite as it should"
Yeah, had an Italian gf once, that statement applies
As for the car, minimal maintenance only steep sloping drive is not easy to work on, but I maintain all my bikes. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"So how many of you fabsters do as much work on your own car as possible to save money."
Why? When I can flutter my eyelids and flirt with a hot mechanic?  |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"Yes.
Being a long time Alfa Romeo owner its essential that you have decent mechanical skills!
Second essential is keeping a stock of Alfa spares and grabbing rare ones from eBay when you can!  "
I have a few excellent contacts/specialists for that..  |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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I do most jobs myself on my own car. I'm no mechanic but I seem to do ok. I put a new alternator on the other day, looked a bit tricky but only took half an hour. There are videos on YouTube for most things nowadays and they are much easier to follow that a Haynes manual. |
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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago
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Well today I did the rear pads on our 207 gt. All running smoothly until I discovered a fecked caliper. Foretunately got a new replacement within an hour but not chuffed about the 85 quid bill. Still owning a car is never cheap. |
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