I'm mechanically inclined, but...

[Rastoff]

...I'm not inclined to be a mechanic.

There was a time when I enjoyed working on cars and motorcycles. I still like to do certain things, but that list is shrinking as I age.

Today I was helping my wife change the spark plugs in her Jeep. She had never done this before and wanted to do it herself. Of course it's 38°F and raining so, she rigged up a tarp and we set in.

To her credit, she did as much of the work as she could, but wasn't strong enough to get some bolts/nuts loose. In the end, we got it done. Now we need to change the crankshaft angle sensor. After that is the fuel filter which is in the gas tank and requires dropping the tank. Oh, so much fun.

 

[kenv1950]

Never heard of a filter in the tank,but there is a strainer.
Usually its along the frame somewhere .
But i hear ya on doing your own work
I've always done my own work, I have a GCherokee 99.
That's new stuff to me . Changed all the front axels and front drive shaft ,break job and some other stuff. Went to change the spark plugs, couldn't find them or spark plug wires (youtube)
Didn't know they didn't have SP wires. Found the plugs under the rail.. Guess I'm showing my age
I DON'T TOUCH MY WIFES NEW CHEROKEE
Geez I just noticed I broke 1000 post

 

[meaneyedcatz]

Good for her!!
I used to swing wrenches for a living but glad I do not now.
I only repair my own cars if I know how and I can save a ton of money doing it myself.

 

[Oldfrt]

I am a mechanic in a power plant and enjoy the work since it doesn't matter to me if what I am working on gets done, as long as I have parts and the necessary tools I just plug along. I only enjoy working on cars only when I don't need it, I don't like being rushed to make something work. I am enjoying the rolling restoration I am doing to a 2000 Mercedes S430, a little work here and there but no significant work until spring.

 

[bamabiker]

There was a time when I enjoyed working on cars and motorcycles. I still like to do certain things, but that list is shrinking as I age.

Hey, I resemble that remark.

 

[carpriver]

the last motor vehicle I worked on was my 1982 Bronco.

 

[Muley Gil]

Being a po boy, I've done as much wrench turning as I can. Generally, if someone points out a part that needs changing, I have been able to do that. However, the older I get, the less inclined I am to break out the tool box.

I have spent more time than I like to think about, lying on my back, on a piece of cardboard, in near freezing weather, trying to keep some rambling old car or truck running enough to get back and forth to work.

 

[amazingflapjack]

Good for a relationship doing things like that together. After my injury in 4-15 I serviced my bike with mirrors mostly, from a chair! That oil drain plug was a tough one way down there, and underneath. Wife helped. It helped my confidence as I recovered, to know I could still do things. Took me most of the day to change the oil-filter, and rear end dope (shaft drive). I'm kinda hard headed, but when channeled well, it can be an asset. The Lord powered me.

 

[rwsmith]

I know that some gas filters....

Never heard of a filter in the tank,but there is a strainer.
Usually its along the frame somewhere .
But i hear ya on doing your own work
I've always done my own work, I have a GCherokee 99.
That's new stuff to me . Changed all the front axels and front drive shaft ,break job and some other stuff. Went to change the spark plugs, couldn't find them or spark plug wires (youtube)
Didn't know they didn't have SP wires. Found the plugs under the rail.. Guess I'm showing my age
I DON'T TOUCH MY WIFES NEW CHEROKEE
Geez I just noticed I broke 1000 post

Some filters are above the tank, necessitating dropping the tank to replace it.

 

[rwsmith]

I love mechanics and mechanical things...

In fact I'm a retired mechanical designer... I have the knowledge but not the touch and feel to b a good mechanic. Sometimes I'm having problems and my wife will come up behind me and say, 'Why don't you do it like this?" And she makes it look easy.

Another thing that is a problem is that I've never been very patient and when I started running into the health probs and the like I just lost any patience I had.

One time a friend owed me a favor and said he'd pick up my car with his crane and change the clutch. We started and it was one problem after another.. I got flustered and he said, "Go sit down a minute, if you are frustrated you can't do mechanical work" So I did. Later he was using the guide to get the parts and drive shaft back together and the thing wouldn't go in. He worked and worked and ended up trying to shove it in so hard the car was bouncing around while he was cussing it. I said, "Don't get mad. If you're mad you can't do mechanical work." I had to scramble for my life out from under the car because if he got hold of me I think he would have killed me. (He had a build like a gorilla).

There's more to the story. At last the thing slid together and we were celebrating when I noticed a bunch of pins laying around. I said, "Hey, what the...?" and he howled with dismay, "THAT'S THE UNIVERSAL JOINT!" After gatherthing up the pins and putting the joint back together (with tape) we got the job done. It was getting on dark Sunday evening and I peeled out of there and all the way home.

 

[chief38]

...I'm not inclined to be a mechanic.

There was a time when I enjoyed working on cars and motorcycles. I still like to do certain things, but that list is shrinking as I age.

Today I was helping my wife change the spark plugs in her Jeep. She had never done this before and wanted to do it herself. Of course it's 38°F and raining so, she rigged up a tarp and we set in.

To her credit, she did as much of the work as she could, but wasn't strong enough to get some bolts/nuts loose. In the end, we got it done. Now we need to change the crankshaft angle sensor. After that is the fuel filter which is in the gas tank and requires dropping the tank. Oh, so much fun.

Always a good thing when you spend time together doing tasks that need to get done.

As far as the Fuel Filter in the Gas Tank goes.......... yes, there are now many cars with the filter inside the tank. They are "permanent" type Filters and to the best of my knowledge are not really meant to be changed on any regular basis. I did read about these type filters and they are different than the typical ones we swap out every couple of years and are usually external.

I would venture to say that changing it out (unless you have a problem with it or a reason to believe you do) for no real reason could possibly cause you and your wife more headaches than it is worth. I've done the same procedure helping a friend change out a Fuel Pump and it is a filthy, messy, smelly and huge pain in the Butt job! With out a lift it is even worse!! I did it on a lift and still managed to smell like Gasoline for a while!

Before doing this (assuming you are not having a specific problem) I'd check your owners manual and make sure it's a job that must be done and is not just something you think is preventative but not called for. Just saying.......

 

[snowman]

I've always had a significant mechanical aptitude and spent much of my youth repairing my Dad's old farm implements(he couldn't afford the newer stuff). For a number of years now I've done nearly all my automotive work. But I'm partly disabled and that makes most jobs somewhat difficult. I assess each job ahead of time and determine if it's worth the extra effort required for me to accomplish it. As a rule the only reason I've done as much as I have is that I couldn't afford the labor charges otherwise. But now I'm finding that I'm more willing to pay the independent tech down the street, especially when the need is with my F250 4x4. With that thing the parts are heavy and everything seems harder to reach.

I wish I had a partner to help, as Rastoff has. Makes a big difference, especially when just getting up to get a tool feels like a session at the gym.

Regards,
Andy

 

[Golddollar]

I could field strip and re-assemble a Colt .45 Government Model when I was 12 years old. Taught myself to do it out of a book.

 

[brigeton]

I used to do most of my own work on my cars. I worked as a machine repairman before I retired and got pretty sick of wrenching on things. I was crew chief on a late model team for a few years and enjoyed that cause I like racing and the race car never got really dirty underneath. I hate working under a car with mud & snow falling in your face every time you touch something. Now I do very little, maybe brakes or something if I can save a lot of money and the weather is nice.

 

[steelslaver]

Filters and fuel pumps in the gas tank, transmission filters that can't be accessed, stuff buried way down in and under. Valve cover bolts and spark plus that take a anorexic midget contortionist with "special" swivel socket and swivel extensions to replace. (I am 6'4", 280# with 14" circumference forearms and need 2X gloves) Done for cheaper and easier manufacturing, to crowd more into less space AND to force the do it yourself guy out from under his car and into their shops.

Alternator went bad on my 2005 Ford Escape. That used to be a 1/2 hour change out. Ha ha, this one was buried against the firewall at the bottom of the motor, above the exhaust and frame member. Had a shroud and ducting to help cool it. After watching videos and reading up it took me over 6 hours to get it loose, a extra set of hands to wiggle it up and out. Then about 4 hours of contorted wrenching to get the new one back in. It went bad in less than a week. Going to rip it out replace and sell the car. Bough a Mercury Marquis rear wheel drive with V6 and low mileage. Like driving my couch and I CAN WORK ON IT much easier.

 

[2152hq]

One thing I never fell in love with,,fixing cars.
I spent enough time trying to keep $100 clunkers running when I was young. Laying in the dirt or snow and ice changing parts that didn't want to be changed out.
Got real tired real quick of the old 'All you really need is a pretty good runnin' old car to get you here and there'.
Sure..'runnin' is the key word there. Stuck on the side of the road was more like reality.

Now I just 'fix' old guns. Nice comfortable surroundings and my knuckles don't always look like I went 12rds bare fisted with a block of granite.
I lease a new truck every few years. Put gas in it and drive around.

Maybe I should've taken 'Auto Shop' in H/S. I would have taken Gun Shop but it wasn't offered.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

Fixing cars used to be fun when they had carburators........Now I have a good honest mechanic and I gladly pay him for his expertise

 

[Donn]

After that is the fuel filter which is in the gas tank and requires dropping the tank. Oh, so much fun.

Beware Rastoff. The fuel filter on my GMC pickup's in the tank, part of the, (ridiculously expensive), fuel pump. You'll probably have to change the whole unit. As far as DIY, I enjoy wrenching on my old Chevy. It's not my daily driver, so there's no pressure to get it done. I'll do screwdriver jobs, stuff I can reach under the hood. Still do brakes and oil changes despite it being harder getting up off the ground these days. But the old days,
pulling engines, trannies and such? Those days are long gone.

 

[glenncal1]

I recently bought a 1973 Honda CB350f (see other thread), has carbs, points, condensors. Brings me back to my youth. Plus everything is very easy to get to.

cb350 by James Calvin, on Flickr

 

[kenv1950]

Some filters are above the tank, necessitating dropping the tank to replace it.

Wonder what Einstein decided to put it there.
Hope mines not there . Don't have it in me to tackle that, I live in SALT country and every nut and bolt is rust welded together underneath .