TheSamba.com :: View topic - Maintance Work on non-VW's

Sat Feb 09, 2008 10:13 pm

I enjoy working on my kit car, and jet boat. However, when it comes to pulling maintance on the wife's van or my truck, it not the same. I dont even want to bother with changing and (properly) disposing of the fluids myself. I'd rather pay the guy at the Valvoline shop. Yeah, I gotta check that they tightened everything up but thats about a 10 minute job. I'd rather spend time working on my toys. Anybody feel this way?

Sat Feb 09, 2008 10:25 pm

By non-Vw's...do you mean just non-air-cooled VW's?
I have a low mileage 16V GTI and my wife has a V6 Passat variant.
To tell you the truth..I don't mind working on them at all.
Honestly, I don't mind working on many cars now that I don't do it for a living. And I help my coworkers with their stuff when they have trouble.
Wheel bearings on an Explorer, window reg in a chevy ma-bu, etc.
I start to get bothered when I have to wrench on something that someone ELSE has already got fairly screwed up.
I hate fixing a mess someone else has made...other than that it's cool.
Gotta get to the whole timing belt/h20 pump on the 30V passat soon too.. .hang on lemme rethink this. :wink:

Sat Feb 09, 2008 10:42 pm

Holy hell, what a timely thread.
I spent the afternoon doing the oil, filter, plugs and rear brakes on our 02 Jetta turbo. You can't even see the plugs, and the car doesn't even have spark plug wires. There is a big cover over the whole top of the engine, and then each plug has like four tiny wires going to it and this Skylab looking thing hooking to it. Jesus. So I finally get that and the oil change done and go to do the rear brakes but apparently you need a special tool so I'll be heading off to the auto parts store in the morning to borrow one. I just finished paying the dealer nearly 2k just to get the car to pass its emissions test.

Wife's Corolla is only a year older and is WAAAAY easier to work on.

Sat Feb 09, 2008 10:50 pm

Naw, I mean any non-VW vechicle.

Sat Feb 09, 2008 11:02 pm

I don't think of the Jetta as a VW 8)

It's satisfying for me, doing routine maintenance as long as I have the right tools. Nothing worse than getting into a job, knowing that there is probably a specialized tool for the operation, and not having it.

Sun Feb 10, 2008 12:11 am

Major Woody wrote: I don't think of the Jetta as a VW 8)

It's satisfying for me, doing routine maintenance as long as I have the right tools. Nothing worse than getting into a job, knowing that there is probably a specialized tool for the operation, and not having it.

Yeah, no shit. I think I might have to make the tool to hold the cams out of a 2x4 or something...or just get lucky! :lol:

Sun Feb 10, 2008 6:19 am

I work on My Oldsmobile occasionally. Just like The Bentley Books are necessary for the VW's, so too are the GM Factory Manuals. I bought a GM manual 4 inches thick for my year only. Well worth the $100.
I still despise the stock plastic intake manifolds on the Olds 3800 engines. I have a greatly improved aftermarket manifold to install when it warms up. And no, it doesn't seem as fulfilling as wrenching the VW's.

Sun Feb 10, 2008 8:51 am

Yep, do practically all of it myself, even the air conditioning (both R-12 and R134a). 1988 Mazda B2200 Cab Plus truck (since 1994), 1994 Suburban (since 2000), 1998 Nissan Frontier. Next project is crankshaft seal and oil cooler fix (leaks) on my 1835 DP. I do have a mechanic I trust, but he won't work on my VW (although he "might" these days because I know him well). Why myself? Usually less hassle, sense of satisfaction in knowing the job is done, and right. Another reason: got call from daughter the other night from out of town: she had taken 2000 Celica in for quickie oil change, and she says the heat won't work now (blower does come on). I don't know if shop "touched" anything, I can't fix it by phone. I told her to take it back to them, and tell her story, see if they actually did something during the oil change. I remember about a zillion years ago, my brother "felt" I should change the oil on his '72 VW because he assumed such was "fun" for me. When I said there would be time and supplies, he said no and went to an official VW dealer. When he returned, two of his oil studs were gone and replaced by bolts, some standard of quality they had !!!

Sun Feb 10, 2008 9:11 am

Bub wrote: By non-Vw's...do you mean just non-air-cooled VW's?
I have a low mileage 16V GTI and my wife has a V6 Passat variant.
To tell you the truth..I don't mind working on them at all.
Honestly, I don't mind working on many cars now that I don't do it for a living. And I help my coworkers with their stuff when they have trouble.
Wheel bearings on an Explorer, window reg in a chevy ma-bu, etc.
I start to get bothered when I have to wrench on something that someone ELSE has already got fairly screwed up.
I hate fixing a mess someone else has made...other than that it's cool.
Gotta get to the whole timing belt/h20 pump on the 30V passat soon too.. .hang on lemme rethink this. :wink:

Just did a 30v myself.Get ready for a treat.Be sure to do the water pump while you're at it.The OE pumps plastic impellers are a pos, and prone to failure

Sun Feb 10, 2008 10:07 am

I did the brakes on my wife's "New" Beetle. But it recently needed a complete tune and based on how hard it was to change the headlight :? I just paid my local guy to do it.

Sun Feb 10, 2008 11:02 am

I've never taken any of my stuff to a "mechanic". I do everything myself. Probably the most involved (on a newer car) was the timing belts on my wife's old '97 Acura CL. Jesus, I'm a big guy and I had one foot on the core support yanking on a cheater bar and a borrowed crank pulley nut tool for about 30 minutes. It finally cracked loose and all the tools fell to the ground. I thought for sure I had busted the nut off. That one was a pain in the ass, but I got factory parts off of ebay and saved about $500.00 for a one day job. The first oil change on my wife's Subaru was a pain in the ass too. I broke two strangulation type oil filter wrenches (the only kind that will get up in there) before I called the dealership. He said I was doing exactly what they do. He said "you know what the guy's name is that puts that filter on at the factory?" I said "no", he says, "Sir!".
I'm doing a clutch right now on a '95 Sidekick I bought to flip. I did all the custom welding (shock towers, top hat and perch) for the bags on the front of my Tacoma as well as new third member (second gear roll back), and cross drilled brakes. I usually try to buy the absolute best stuff I can, considering I'm saving labor costs. It works well that way. I certainly wouldn't consider myself a mechanic, but every time I tackle something, it comes out nice.

Sun Feb 10, 2008 11:08 am

If the engine rotates clockwise (looking at the crank pulley) you can use the starter motor to break the bolt loose.

Sun Feb 10, 2008 11:13 am

Bub wrote: Major Woody wrote: I don't think of the Jetta as a VW 8)

It's satisfying for me, doing routine maintenance as long as I have the right tools. Nothing worse than getting into a job, knowing that there is probably a specialized tool for the operation, and not having it.

Yeah, no shit. I think I might have to make the tool to hold the cams out of a 2x4 or something...or just get lucky! :lol:

And people bitch about having to working on the 2.0L bus engines.

Mon Feb 11, 2008 11:00 am

That job took me 10 hours, and I'm still pretty quick.

Mon Feb 11, 2008 12:33 pm

chickengeorge wrote: The first oil change on my wife's Subaru was a pain in the ass too. I broke two strangulation type oil filter wrenches (the only kind that will get up in there) before I called the dealership.

For my 1998 Nissan Frontier truck bought 3 years ago, had to take off front right wheel to get oil filter off, after removing fiberboard protector. I bought an oil filter relocater kit for it at JEGS.com for about $50.

Mon Feb 11, 2008 4:37 pm

I don't "enjoy" maintaining our vehicles, but I do all of it myself. It'd be silly for me to pay another person to do it. We've got 4 cars, 1 truck, 2 motorcycles, 3 mowers, and my mother's XUV that I care for.

My poor ol' '82 Toyota 4WD has a perpetual case of cobbler's shoe syndrome*.

(* coined by bljones, some time ago. It really fits my beater's condition.)

Tue Feb 12, 2008 8:06 pm

I enjoy working on my old 86 chevy 1/2 ton (Im a big guy, and I can practically fit in the engine bay), but other than aircooleds, thats it. I won't touch my 07 F-150.

Tue Feb 12, 2008 9:10 pm

I alway have done my own work on my other cars as well as my VW's .
The great thing with working on a newer car is it gives you a real appreciation for the simplicity in a aircooled VW .
Im glad I don't own anything newer than 1985 , and im intending to keep it that way , the newer cars with all the sensors , hoses and computer crap . not for me . I understand how it works , but I just don't like it in a car .

Wed Feb 13, 2008 7:04 am

I replaced the heater core in my 96 Ford Ranger. Thought " I can do that myself in a few hours and save a pile of labor money".

19 hours later, I decided next time I would just pay the dealership to do it. Got it done, but won't ever do it again.

Wed Feb 13, 2008 7:38 am

ScottK wrote: I replaced the heater core in my 96 Ford Ranger. Thought " I can do that myself in a few hours and save a pile of labor money".

19 hours later, I decided next time I would just pay the dealership to do it. Got it done, but won't ever do it again.

Is it like the Dodge Ram trucks? I had to completely dismantle the dash to get to the heater core in my 1997. You're *supposed* to evacuate the A/C system as well and disconnect the cooling coils from the A/C lines, but there's just enough room, if you push hard enough and swear, to pop the heater core out without doing that.