Gonzo

A true redneck engineer. LOL

REDNECK REPAIRS There's some good ol' boys out there who love to tinker on their cars every chance they get. They're not necessarily Harvard scholars, nor are they from back in the hills or down some dusty dirt road. They're from every neck of the woods, and from every city street. They will tackle any problem out there, and usually have some really interesting ways of solving them. Give these guys, or gals a few tools, a cutting torch, and a welder, and you might find a redneck in the making. A little grinding with sparks a flying along with a few 2X4's, and they'll soon have a new creation coming out of the garage. When it comes to every day repairs, they have their own unique way of taking care of them, to say the least. I'm not talking about the duct taped window with the split open garbage bag over it, or a pair of lock grip pliers for the blower switch. .. no, no, no... those kind of quick fixes are too common and don't even rate to be called a true redneck repair. I'm talking about the ingenious methods of taking care of their car without the aid of a manual, common sense, or good judgment. These are the true rednecks that blanket the country with the most hilarious methods of keeping their cars on the road that anyone could even imagine. I've got a few examples… let's see if you agree. The other day I was making my way home when I spotted an old pickup a few cars ahead of me. It appeared to be hauling a load of scrap metal, but as I got closer it was clear this scrap metal was lashed onto the truck itself. This guy had an old aluminum screen door laid across the back of the cab horizontally, and had it silicone sealed in place as well as wire straps in several places. He was using it in place of the rear glass of the cab. Not only did he have the glass window pushed up, he was also using the screen window to allow the breeze to enter his cab. (It wasn't hard to tell with the bits of paper getting blown up from the truck bed, and then sticking momentarily to the screen.) Yep, I'd say there's no doubt, this guy is officially ... a redneck. A few years ago I had an old car come in for some front end work... boy, was it a pile of junk. There wasn't a straight piece of metal on the car anywhere. Talk about clearing the barn out of bailing wire, this guy had it everywhere. The oddest thing was this piece of rope tied to each of the wiper blades which he had running through the open front windows. I had to stop what I was doing, and ask him what the rope was for... he was eager to show me. While sitting in the driver's seat he would pull the rope back and forth and his wipers would move accordingly. Cleaver ain't he? … I guess so, his reasoning behind it seemed pretty sound…… the wiper motor froze up some time ago, and to avoid repairing it he came up with this little rig. Can't deny it… that's a redneck repair if I ever saw one. Oh there's more...there's always more redneck repairs out there. Just hard to keep from looking at some of them sometimes; just makes ya shake your head at what they have created. Of course, there are these guys that fall in the category of real redneck engineers out there. These suspender wearing-beer chuggin' tool connoisseurs like to think of themselves as automotive structural re-engineers. I've seen everything from a Pinto four feet off the ground with a complete 4WD set up under the chassis, to SUV's with the tops cut off like a convertible. In fact one guy was using his revamped SUV as a way to haul his livestock around his farm. The only time he would get it out on the highway was to fill it up with gas at the local station. Once in a while he'd bring his pigs, goats, or whatever else he was hauling along for the ride. You guessed it, definitely... a redneck. So what constitutes a redneck? I suppose the best answer to that would be someone who dares to be different. Someone who has enough "moxie" to attempt the impossible without any concern or care what anyone else thinks about their remake of their horseless carriage. They're out to take care of a problem, or a need they have, with the tools and scrap metal they have at hand, and by golly, they'll get it done for sure. I know I've done my share of redneck repairs in the past, and there's no doubt I've got a bit of that redneck in me too. I'm sure most of us do, just some of these good ol' boys just take it to the extreme. We've all probably seen the beer can strapped to the exhaust to keep it from leaking, the flashlights duct taped to the fenders, the chain and lock in place of the door locks, and of course the odd battery clamp. That's just amateur stuff compared to some of the professional rednecks out there. These folks take care of business in their own special way. There's no end to their creativity, nor the ability to come up with something so weird or unique that you'll say, "Yep, that there is a redneck thru and thru." (I would just stand clear if one of them says… "Hey now, watch this.") Now, on occasion you'll spot some of the creations from these backwoods garages that will totally surprise you. At a VW car show many years ago I saw an old type III Volkswagen where this creative genius took a V6 Pontiac Fiero motor, suspension and drive train, and somehow shoehorned it into place where the original motor and backseat were. You could practically change the plugs from the driver's seat…… it was that close to his head. Did it work? You darn tootin' it worked. Work so well he could stand the front end up as it shifted into second gear. Ya gotta love these redneck creations. They make me smile; brings a chuckle out once in a while, too. As a mechanic I'm generally skeptical of these lofty ideas they have, but as a spectator at a mud bog...I just love this stuff. Give me some good old American ingenuity any day of the week. The one thing you can say for all those good old boys out there... these guys sure know how to have fun. Just keep trickin' out them there vehicles and show em' off, ya hear. I've heard of other countries claiming they have some good ol' boys of their own, but they can't hold a socket wrench up against a couple of good old home grown U.S. of A. Rednecks, that's for sure. The heart and soul of us all... … … …Rednecks - a true American original, and dang proud to be one myself. Nothing like a good old redneck at the repair shop... gotta love em' I've seen so many home grown repairs that I've lost count of them all. Feel free to tell me about your "redneck" repair that you've recently seen. View full article

My younger brother works at a Chrysler dealership... he's one of the top techs, but he's even worried about his job. The problem seems to not so much to be customer loyality but in how much work the tech can turn out. They work the dealership where every ticket has to have some sort of up sale included. If the tech is unable to make that extra sale per job... he's out. Now that gets back to customer loyality. If this is the type of customer who isn't worried about price then there is no problem, but those type of customers are getting few and farer between. Right now, I'm overwhelmed with work. Mostly older vehicles. But, they are looking for somebody to keep these relics alive so they can avoid buying another car. That to me... is where we as the independent market need to stress our expertise. Most dealerships wont take on a car that is over 5 or 10 years old, where we'll take it on. The dealership has an attitude that the older the car is the less likely to have had regular maintenance and their liability goes higher and higher on those older cars. I really believe the ability of a decent independent shop rests on taking care of the cars that their customers bring them. Not to take on jobs they don't have the expertise in, but ship those customers to a shop that can do that work. Don't be greedy, share it with the rest of the working shops in the area. The more we work together the more people will understand that the real value in car repair is in a shop that they can trust, can do the job, and is willing to go the extra mile to repair it. Keeping the cost down isn't as much a problem when it comes to the idea that the customer knows this is the ONLY way to get their car repaired without going to a bunch of retards that claim they know how to fix it but really only change parts. Keep the work honest, keep the work on the top shelf... and I truly believe we'll all be in business for years to come.

I had one several years ago on an Oldsmobile, mid 80's... the guy couldn't get his park and dash lights to work. He had the entire dash pulled free, the glove box dangling, instrument cluster was laying on the passenger seat, and the steering col. wasn't bolt in. I took one look at it and knew exactly what was wrong, I disconnected the radio he just put in that weekend and changed the fuse. The hardest part was getting to the fuse box because the dash was laying down on top of it. Never ceases to amaze me of the stupidity of people and their cars when they think they are saving a buck by doing the work themselves. And, to think this guys problem all started over installing a new radio.... dumb, dumb, dumb....

Been there, done that. Last week had a guy call me and tell me his factory alarm was going bad because thats what happened to his other car. He described the problem and what it sounded like to me was just a bad battery. He didn't want to do that, what he wanted was for me to look into what it would take to remove the factory alarm. Really,,,, I said tow it in, let me look at it first. .. .. .. .. I put a battery in it. Case closed. Don't help people... I can take care of it without your help. It is only going to piss ya off anyway... LOL

Yea, I've seen the same thing at my shop Joe. People will always go for a deal before loyality. The other thing that is happening in my area is some of the tire shops are giving out free repairs for anything less than 100 bucks. It's a way to fill their bays up with cars. But, then I've heard that because of the work load of freebees... they had to send half the techs home because they couldn't afford to keep them on during this sales attempt. What a joke... give away repairs for free, but send the techs home because you can't afford to have them around...even though your bays are full... go figure.

for a few years I was running across the Chrysler Lebaron convertibles with extended warranties. The top motor was covered on one policy, then when the next one came in I immediately said, "Oh, it was covered under the one I did last week, and you've got the same extended warranty company." Ah, NOT... this policy only covered the hydraulic side and not the electric motor... seemed every car after that the rules changed to suit the need... like if these extended warranty companies had some magic decoder ring that could tell which car was going to have which kind of failure and make sure they didn't cover that component. LOL Extended warranties are still not a bad idea for large part failures... it's when it involves the smaller parts that the issues seem to get involved. Outlet hoses, window switches, convertible top motors etc...

Good luck with your venture. Sometimes the best thing to know is ... not everything. You'll find that a lot of ideas will come to you once you get started but... your plans sound good. Go for it...!!! Keep ASO in mind for any help or more ideas. Gonzo

I just start to snarl like a junk yard dog when a customer tells me they have an extended warranty. Some are good, some are a real pain to deal with. The biggest issue is always "whats covered" a lot of times the thing that is wrong with the car isn't covered. The last one was a guy who bought a van about seven months ago and the motor mounts were ripped apart. I priced everything out and called the company. Oops, not covered... they're concidered "wearable items" I laughed at this jerk on the phone... Like, dude... EVERYTHING is wearable... some are just more so than others. But, it seemed to be their way of getting out of paying for it. go figure

Temper – Temper The front office door swings wide and a mom holds it open for her son who is carrying in a steering column. The column is out of her sons little S-10. From the general appearance of the column it looked like somebody was trying awfully hard to steal the little truck. Everything was distorted and bent out of shape. The steering wheel was even bent, and the horn pad looked like someone had taken an ax to the center of it. There was hardly a part of the steering column that wasn't damaged in some way or form. "My husband tried to change the turn signal switch but couldn't figure out how to get it off," the mom tells me. "Yea, I brought another column with us if you could use the parts off of it to fix this one," the son said while sitting the bent column on its steering wheel in front of me. "So what actually happened here? I see the turn signal switch is still in place but the whole column looks like it went through a war zone. Is this a theft recovery?" I asked. No it wasn't stolen, it was dad. Seems dad had the idea he could fix it, and wasn't going to let some little steering column kick his butt. He had seen it done a number of times and even watched a video on how to do it. But it looked like the column was way beyond repair; at this point I'm thinking that good old dad didn't know what a non-mangled steering column looked like... if he would have known, he probably would have just replaced it instead of trying to bring this bent up piece of junk back to life. The key was still hanging out of the ignition as the column sat on the counter; even though the column was bent and contorted completely out of shape it did somewhat remind of the leaning tower of Pisa with a lot of pieces missing. While the ticket was being filled out I reached for a pocket screwdriver and removed the key and tumbler so that I could install it into the other column. The look on the sons face was pure shock as to how easy it was to remove the key and tumbler. "Dad worked on getting that key and tumbler out for hours, look mom he took it out with a pocket screwdriver," the surprised young man said to his mom. The son brought in the replacement column. It had all the correct parts in place and was in fairly good shape except for a problem with the hazard switch. (Pretty much what was wrong with the other turn signal switch) It too had the ignition key hanging out of it so I showed the young lad how to push in the retaining button and remove the key and tumbler. Mom was pretty impressed and had a big smile on her face as she watched her son maneuver the key and tumbler into the replacement column. "The tow truck was right behind us with my sons little truck. How soon can you have all of this back together?" she asked. "Oh, a couple of hours should do it if I don't run into any problems. I'll change out the turn signal switch with the new one you brought since the replacement column has the hazard switch broken off of it too," I told her, "But how in the world did the original column get in such bad shape if it wasn't from a theft?" It was dad, good old dad had been working on the little trucks steering column all weekend and had finally given up on repairing it. Mom went on to tell me the whole story. "He came inside the house, grabbed a beer and mumbled something about a sledge hammer. He headed back out to the garage and came back out with a hatchet. He was determined to get it apart no matter what. We all watched as he proceeded to go ballistic on the little truck. The next thing I know he was a cussin' and a smackin' that steering column. Parts we're a flying everywhere and that steering column still wouldn't budge for him. He kept at it until he was too tired to swing the hatchet one more time and then he just gave up, sat down next to the truck and drank his beer," she told me while trying to hold back the laughter. The son had that look of agreement on his face as if this was nothing new with good old dad when it came to something he didn't understand. "Dad always tries to fix things around the house and after he gets done breaking things up pretty good mom will take over and save the day," the young lad told me. When I finally got to see the little truck you could tell somebody was really having a go at destroying that steering column. With a few marks in the headliner and some obvious missed blows whacking the dash panel there was no doubt he had made up his mind that the steering wheel and the column was going to come off one way or another. The install was no big deal, luckily it was an old enough truck that there was no security system to worry about or any air bag system installed on it. Just bolt it back up, line up the shaft and put all the trim back together. (The trim needed a little TLC though) With the replacement column (which was untouched by good old dad) and the original key and tumbler installed the repair was done in no time at all. I gave the mom a call and a few hours later the boy had his truck back on the road again. "I told my husband his temper was going to get him, and it sure did this time. He's really a sweet guy, but you should see what he does with plumbing... we keep that number handy at all times." (Chuckling as if this was nothing new with the family.) "I guess it's a male ego thing or something. He's really sorry about it all, just can't seem to get it through his thick head that he doesn't know everything." she told me. The son then tells me, "Yea, I don't think he's going to try that again." "Ma'am you know it would have been a lot cheaper if you would have brought it to me before it was torn apart," I told her. She knew that already, but like I said, it seems to be the norm at their house. Let dad have a whack at it first until his temper gets the best of him and then call the pros. Well what can ya say, he tried, he failed, and he took more than a few whacks at it… chalk it up to a lesson learned I guess. The mom backed up sons comment that "dad" has sworn off car repair forever, and wasn't about to try anything remotely like auto mechanics ever again. Well, time will tell about that... temper, temper mister... why don't you take up basket weaving, model ship building, or perhaps some yoga. Maybe it's time for a mountain retreat to work out your aggressions. One thing is for sure fella; your mechanical expertise is just one big hatchet job. Do me a favor there … "dad"… have another beer…………… but don't mess with the cars anymore OK? I've been known to have a temper at times, yea, I've thrown a golf club or two... but this guy... he takes the Grand Prize! Leave a comment, leave a thought... I really enjoy your comments. You keep reading them, and I'll keep writing them. View full article

Well said Joe, (as always) The big point of this article was actually not to single out the DIY'rs or the shops that don't want to invest into the new technology, but rather as a way of informing EVERYONE what it takes to be a top notch idependent shop vs the slacker shops and home repair dudes. I remember the SAAB story... and, that's just wrong for a manufacturer to pull something like that. I find it harder and harder to answer a question over the phone about a certian aspect of a cars flash programming because ... as seems to be the case more and more... each and every different model of a certian manufacturer can be completely different in the way you flash a certian portion of them. I would have never thought to check and see if a wiper switch needed programmed and I could see myself telling the customer "No problem, I'll get it taken care of." And only to find out later that I'd have a trip to the dealer. (sucks) It appears to me as if the you're right about how the dealerships and manufacturers are closing the doors on home repair and trying to maintian their hold on the car after the sale. Hopefully, the home repair is done...gone..not happening anymore and leave the repairs to the shops that have the equipment and the talent. I think the car is going to be even more sophisticated in the future and the cost of the correct equipment will climb, which means "If you're not a shop.. don't try the repair" Investing in the proper tools also means you have to be able to turn a profit with those tools. Buying a scanner for home use that will cover such things is just out of the question. Keeping the costs at a resonable level is the key to sustaining business. Small shops have such small profit margin to begin with and it's very possible the small shop may go the way of the DIY'r. (Hope not) Time are a changing... it reminds me of the times growing up and watching the small mom and pop grocery stores not being able to compete with the large chain markets. If something doesn't give... the mom and pop repair shop could be facing the same thing. It may take a collective effort between several small shops to purchase said equipment and share the cost between each other. I just hope I'm wrong about all of this.

I know what ya mean. The same thing happens at my shop every single day of the week. Mechanical repair parts are a bit on the expensive side...but not bad, however there isn't much to do with the price of a IPDM or FICM unit. Especially if you take a look at how many electronic components cannnot be reflashed and have to bought brand new. Those prices are fixed at the dealer and those parts are what I run into more often than not. Since I'm mainly an electrical repair shop I tend to see it on a regular basis. Cost of parts in my cases leads to either the customer selling the car or giving up. I totally agree with ya... it's harder and harder to make the ends meet when the customers we rely on to make all that happen can't afford the repairs that they need.

well.... ya gotta get serious once in awhile. This story was started becauce of the latest "right to repair" issues going through the legistation. Thought I would give a non-sided view of what the right to repair may lead to. It's not the only view it's more of the thoughts and ideas other people have presented to me. I'll work on a funny story for next week... LOL

Why DIY DIY repairs are nothing new; they are a part of the American culture. For some, it's about saving money, for others it's the pride of actually accomplishing a job without any professional help. Cost is the big factor of course, ask any DIY'r about a project and the first thing they'll tell you is how much money they saved by doing it themselves. These days car repair is slowly going away as one of those DIY repairs. The cost of the specialty tools is the leading factor, however, it's not just the cost it's the constant change, updates, and proper procedures that differ from one vehicle to the next. Years ago, if you had a couple of screw drivers and a box of wrenches you could pretty much take any carburetor apart from any manufacturer. All you needed was a diagram, a rebuild kit and a place to lay it all out. Not so today, each manufacturer has their own software, their own procedures, and their own individual "unique" way of "diagraming" all that info. A manufacturer level scanner is the ideal scanner for most repairs. These scanners are almost all internet based these days and are constantly updated to insure the latest information is available. The same is true with a lot of aftermarket scanners, keep in mind; the cheaper off-the-shelf scanners can leave you with only partial information. Not all scanners are the same. I haven't seen one aftermarket scanner be able to handle all the functions that a manufacturer scanner can. Cost vs. quality, or in this case "content" is always an issue. That's where the problem can start, especially for the consumer trying to do things themselves. Keep in mind what the original purpose was for those aftermarket tools. Most were designed to answer a certain market need and not be an overall tool to perform every function. For example; I have a lot of scanners that will read air bag codes on just about every manufactured vehicle out there, however I only have certain scanners that will perform the passenger seat presence reset (and that's only on certain makes and models). Without the reset the air bag light will stay on until that procedure is performed. Not to mention the way the scanner shows the information. Some scanners may show a certain sensor as a voltage reading, others might show it as a percentage. The DIY'r has to also consider the different ways the information is listed in the repair manuals even that can be a challenge. Here's a guy at home, in his garage, with a Toyota (for example) and is about to change a certain part he has found a problem with. He's done his research through the internet or a shop manual, and is confident in his abilities of making the proper repair. But there is one little thing holding him back, he needs to flash or reprogram some part of it in order for the vehicle to recognize the new part, or even perhaps to allow the car to start. But, our illustrious DIY'r doesn't want to spend the money or the time to purchase the manufacturer's software, data base, and yearly subscription needed. Hmmm, what to do now? The answer, take it to the dealer. WRONG! An independent shop has the appropriate aftermarket scanner or manufacturer scanner. A lot of DIY'rs look at independent shops as parts changers, similar to what they can do in their own home garage, and the dealer is some greater than thou place of ultra-sophistication that cannot be obtained by the mere auto technician at the corner repair shop. WRONG AGAIN! This is where the time, the talent, and the training all come together. At every manufacturer website I've been to there is a section for training and or helpful hints on how to perform diagnostic test, scanner usage, and reprogramming. There are even more on line training, video training, and night classes available for the modern technician. All of which is a must do, and even more important than ever before. It's all a matter of time and money of course, but it's all doable. Auto mechanics have always had to adapt to new technologies and lately it's the computer software and reprogramming. It doesn't matter if it's the dealer tech or the independent tech… they both have to do exactly the same procedure to accomplish the same goal. Laptops, manufacturer software, cables, and subscriptions are just another tool for that matter, but definitely an expensive one. If you noticed I never once called the manufacturer scanner the "dealer scanner". That's because it's not a dealer scanner, it's the manufacturer's scanner for their product. Believe me, not every dealer has a scanner for every car that comes into the service bays either. I've seen it myself at a Ford dealership while I was picking up some OEM parts. There's a Dodge parked in the service bay with a tech performing some repair under the hood. What a minute, did I say a Dodge at a Ford place… sure did, happens all the time. Mind you, some of the dealership's loyal customers are just like the loyal independent customer… they'll bring all their cars to one specific place because of the trust they have built up with them. But, what about the software issues for a car at a competitor's dealership you ask? Won't the dealership have the same problem with software flashing and reprogramming on vehicles that aren't theirs? Yes, just like an independent shop will have. Ironic ain't it… Let's see, advanced training and classes, constant upkeep with software, meet the challenges of the new specifications and procedures, and repeat this for every manufacturers vehicle out there. Hmmm, that doesn't sound much like a DIY'r, it sounds more like what I do every day as a professional technician. It's what separates the DIY'r from the pro. So if you want to do the job at home, sure… the information and skills are out there for you, but even with all those skills, tools, and scanners… you're still not a professional at it. A profession by any other name is something you do to earn a living. Repairing one car in your driveway doesn't make you any more of a mechanic than a paint brush makes you Picasso. I always have this "Norman Rockwell" picture in my head of a father passing his tool box down to his son. Great memorable moment, but these days dad should include a laptop in the picture with a year's subscription to the manufacturer for the family grocery getter. The tools are great pop, but they only take you so far these days. With the cost of operating a vehicle going up at the pump, saving money on car repair is always an option. DIY'rs if you must, have at it. I know why you DIY… but I would keep the repair shop's number handy. It's been a long time since somebody has repaired their own refrigerator or wash machine. Either they give up on them and buy a new one or they call a service man out to repair it. This is where I think... the automotive field is heading. It might take a long time to actually happen but I do believe it is the trend that will eventually happen. Even with all this talk of "right to repair" I don't think the motoring public is ready to deal with the complexities of actual electronic repairs. "Beware of what you wish for" should be the slogan... The shade tree and the DIY'r are antiques in the world of auto repair... let's not make things worse by having a DIY'r try to reprogram their FIAT. LOL View full article

You know, it ain't like Will Rogers said, "I never met a man I didn't like." He never had to deal with them as a customer. I know what ya mean, and there are a lot of people that I don't want to ever see again as a customer. thanx for your comments. keep them coming. Gonzo

... My wife read your comment Joe, here response , ya nailed it!!

Cars and people... people and parts ... in some cases I wish you had to be liscenced to buy certian parts and components.

Apples to Apples Alternators, Starters, Voltage Regulators, Window motor assemblies, Light Bulbs, Serpentine belts, the list goes on and on of the various cheaply made replacement parts out there. Being able to distinguish what parts are good or bad is part of being a professional in this crazy world of automotive repair. A customer calls in wanting prices on a certain job, and more than likely this isn't the first phone call they've made today. The way I can tell this is by the way they answer certain questions I ask. This is in order to narrow down the options on that particular part or job. "What's the motor size, is it 2 or 4 door, automatic or manual?" If these questions aren't a hit and miss answer chances are they've been through this before, and have a pretty good idea what the cost is… or at least what they've found out from the auto parts cheapo depot. "Yes, I need a price on an alternator for my car," the caller asks. I give them a price for the brands I sell, and before I'm even finished they'll tell me how much the last guy would sell the part for. That's fine, I know everyone is looking for a bargain, and shopping around for prices is all part of it. However, let's compare apples to apples… not just prices to prices. A perfect example of this is the common external regulator for a Ford product. The prices will range from just a few bucks to as much as 30 dollars. The difference is the quality, of course. You can tell the difference for yourself by just picking them up. The cheap regulator feels like a feather compared to the more expensive one. The question is... do they both work? Yes they do, but there's no doubt the cheaper one will not take any abuse, or a fluctuating signal, or load variations as well as the better made part. No doubt the cheaper one is going to need replaced sooner than you think. From the professional side, it takes just as long to diagnose a problem and make the repair with a well manufactured part as it does to put on one of those bottom of the barrel parts. The big difference is you only have to do the job once, rather than over and over again. That eats up diagnostic time, shop time, and doesn't make for a very happy customer. Over the years the number of times I've had someone bring a car in and tell me they have put five or six alternators on the car, and it still doesn't work is beyond comprehension. The unsuspecting customer will almost certainly have the same reaction on the phone or at the service counter. "There has to be something electrically wrong with the car," they'll say. Even though I haven't checked the car out yet, I'll still ask them, "Where are you buying your parts?" Nine chances out of ten they are buying the cheap knock off brands because of the cost, and under certain applications these knock off brands fail constantly. By the time I get the car in the shop and run the needed tests, I'm already stretching their pocket book just to give them the answer I already assumed it would be. "It's a cheap part that's causing the problem," I'll tell them, and when I give them the price of the "quality" part I know I'm in for an argument. "It shouldn't cost that much. I'll just go get another one myself," the now ticked off customer will tell me. It could be they really wanted me to find something else wrong with it, because they know it can't be the part. Then again, it could be because they don't want to change it again. Whichever the case may be... I'm the lucky guy taking the brunt of the customer's melt down at the front counter. Why is it that the second largest purchase most people make in their life time is left to using cheap discount parts as a way to keep their family truckster on the road? You know, if the original manufacturer used some of these discount parts most of those cars wouldn't make it from the manufacturer to the show room floor without breaking down. One morning when I arrived at the shop a customer was waiting for me with a rear main seal for me to see. I had just replaced the seal in his car a few weeks earlier. There wasn't a problem with the car, his problem was that he believed that I over charged him for the seal. While he was at one of those discount parts stores he purchased a rear seal himself, and after having some time to think about it he figured I should know just how ticked off he was. Needless to say, now he's thinking every bit of the labor cost must have been exaggerated as well. There was only one way that I could think of to solve this problem. I called my supplier and had them send down another seal just like the original one I had purchased. With the customer standing in front of me, we took both of the seals out of their boxes and laid them on the counter. "You see, they are actually the same," the aggravated customer tells me, "They're the same color, same design and obviously are identical, you over charged me!" I'll admit they looked the same, and I was getting a little worried that I wouldn't find a difference between the two of them. I wanted to prove my point that not all parts are created equal, but how? As this anger management class dropout started to get even more steamed up, he started to make his point known how he felt about mechanics in general, parts stores, and the world at large. I picked the two seals up while he was standing on his soap box proudly putting down anyone who had anything to do with the car business. When I gently snapped the actual seal area that touches the crank shaft back and forth ... I had the answer... the difference was obvious. "Sir, if you'll calm down a minute I'll show you the difference. The one you brought from the discount part store has fewer coils on the retaining spring. This spring is what keeps the rubber seal up against the crankshaft to prevent any leaks. Look at the one I just purchased, and you'll see it has twice as many coils on the spring," I calmly explained to him. (OK, I "tried" to say it calmly) After a bit of scrutiny on his part he did see the difference between the two so called "exact" parts. He apologized for all his belligerent ranting, and said he would make good on his promise not to buy any more parts based on the dollar amount. I hope so... sure would make my day go a lot smoother. These days with even more parts coming in from different parts of the world, and at different quality levels, the tech has to be on his toes to make sure what they are installing on a customer's car is actually a decent component. Even today, I'll do my best to sway the customer into buying quality parts rather than going the cheap route. If they insist on using a cheaper part, I'll be the first to tell them what the results will be. Comparing apples to apples is still a good method of explaining things to someone who might have a difference of opinion. One bad apple doesn't spoil the whole bunch, even good parts fail sometimes. But I'd put my money on a quality part any day of the week. Service is the name of the game in the automotive repair business; knowing which "apple" is the right one for your car is just another part of the service good shops provide. There are plenty of apples out there in the orchard, and sorting out the bad ones aren't about who has the best TV commercial or newspaper ad. Ask a mechanic, he'll know the difference between good parts and bad ones. As the old saying goes; "Ya get what ya paid for." Cheap parts are so common these days, with the economy on the low ... seems everyone is going low with the parts and labor prices. It's to bad more people won't listen to the mechanic vs listening to the guy behind the parts counter. Some do... some don't. Keep those comments coming! View full article