Who works on their own cars?

caprikid1

Anything and nothing, all depends on time to be honest. I tend to avoid spraying and welding, although I have welder (All the gear and no idea !). Have a terrible addiction for buying tool !.


Mini is due out of the bodyshop this week and cannot wait for a Mini Break pulling out subframes etc ….

coffeehound

I used to do a little work on my 80s and 90s Golfs - some mechanical, electrics and interior. Did an engine head renovation on one which was surprisingly straightforward with the help of Mr Haynes and Car Mechanic magazine.

Those were the last of the good old days of home maintenance though. I wouldn't know where to start with modern CANBUS, DMF, etc. If the opportunity ever arose, I'd love to build a Caterham from the kit or restore a classic.

Jaimeteddy

If my car is damaged somewhere, I will take it to a repair shop. If there is a need to wash the car, I will actively wash my car, the work does not require mechanical engineering

Ganga

I still do a lot of mechanical repairs where possible but as now retired i do not have the access to the warm well lit workshop where i used to work complete with trolly jacks etc.
I worked with a lad whos dad once had a car that threw a con rod in the middle of no where,drained the sump,took it off,pushed the piston and con rod up the barrel and jammed it in place with a bit of wood,taped up the cranckshaft with leccys tape and used a jubilee clip to keep it in place ( stopped the oil hoseing out and dropping the oil pressure ) refitted the sump,re-filled the used oil and drove home on three cylinders! would/could anybody do this now.
My late father in the 60,s always carried tyre levers,puncture repair outfit,grease etc in the boot of his cars just in case

facade

alan_d wrote: »

I really dislike paying someone to do something I could do myself, especially when they (often) do it to a lower standard than I would, as they are against the clock and don't need to live with the results!

I find this with tradesmen. The difference between me and a "professional" is that I take 5 or 10 times longer to do an absolutely perfect job upto my standards, and they just do the job.



I certainly don't trust anyone to work on my car, so I do all the mechanical and electrical work myself. Only things I can't do involve machinery that I don't have, like skimming a head flat.

JustAnotherSaver

GunJack wrote: »

Are you sure you're not thinking of The Hitch-Hiker's Guide To The Galaxy ??? :rotfl:

Considering i don't know what the hell you're talking about i'd say yeah, probably not.

custardy

Used to do it all. dodgy knees mean I pay to get work done more often now.
Did the front discs and pads last year but paid for the rear (combined abs/hum/disc affair.
Saved a chunk of cash when the fly by wire throttle body failed.
3 screws total to replace a £220 part with a bit of guesstimating on the cause with £10 bluetooth OBD dongle.

hareng

Its more a case of not trusting anyone from locals to proper dealerships.
Many instances of paying for repairs and they were never carried out even at dealerships to retain vehicle warrranty.
Other times due to not having the right equipment have had half axle bearing replacements, upon return find out of 8 engine bolts 5 missing and 3 hanging out!


Obviously i am stuck for room so cant have all the tools available i do almost everything within reason to a far better standard than the pros. Full brake layouts including lines, made exhausts, steering racks, whipped engines and boxes out on axle stands on my own, rebuilt axles and diffs to rearranging camber and castor angles. OHV no problem whipping heads off, OHC prefer not to and pay someone.

Water pumps, EGR removal etc and the like not worth mentioning.
Modern cars an assortment of programme readers and coders is an absolute necessity, you cannot put a throttle body menial job back without learning its new position!

Jackmydad

AdrianC wrote: »

Last major job was swapping the rear subframe on the sensible daily. That needs a couple of balljoints and an aux belt next. The Landy has a front wing off at the moment for some footwell welding.

I hear they're painting the Forth Bridge as well at the moment.
I always wanted a stainless chassis and similar replacements for other rusting LR bits.
Been looking at them nostalgically.
Land Rovers, not the rusting bits that is!

I've done most things that are within the realms of DIY. Lot of welding, bit of (fairly bad) spraying.
Engine rebuilds, etc.
Car's were a lot simpler then.
Knees are partly shot, and these days I have a bit of an aversion to lying on cold garage floors.
Very little interest at all in modern cars, apart from them actually going along reliably.
Garage does most of my maintenance these days.

oldagetraveller

JustAnotherSaver wrote: »

Considering i don't know what the hell you're talking about i'd say yeah, probably not.

Ford Prefect, one of the main characters in that excellent book/t.v. series.:)