We used to have similar places here but most, if not all, have closed. When my local one was closing I was told it was because of insurance requirements. They would have had to have at least one mechanic for every customer just to make sure nobody did anything stupid, injured themselves, then claimed that the company had allowed them to do something stupid.
Did I mention that I dislike very much the paternalistic Nanny State zero risc attitude which seems to be fancy ourdays? rant over
OK, the one I use has a car „master“ (german title) and some mechanics running around doing their own professional work, it is a mixture of DIY and free garage. I learned a lot from these guys and they are very helpful …
KCR wrote:
Did I mention that I dislike very much the paternalistic Nanny State zero risc attitude which seems to be fancy ourdays? rant over
So do I but having seen what some people were doing I can understand the problem.....
We used to have those around here too, but not in 20+ years. I suspected not enough people worked on their own cars anymore to make such a place pay for itself.
Harv wrote:
We used to have those around here too, but not in 20+ years. I suspected not enough people worked on their own cars anymore to make such a place pay for itself.
the trouble Harv is there is nothing on today's cars to fix , disposable like every other thing now days.
Well, the news is good. It's an exhaust manifold and not the HG. So I've got a spare HG set to make sure the gaskets stay sound forever :)
Next step - source a passenger side exhaust manifold...
It must have split completely to make as much noise as it was. Have they taken it off and definitely confirmed it?
Morat wrote:
Well, the news is good. It's an exhaust manifold and not the HG. So I've got a spare HG set to make sure the gaskets stay sound forever :)
Next step - source a passenger side exhaust manifold...
Is there not one in the HG set you could use?
I would think it is the actual manifold that has split at the flexi section and not just the gasket.
Gilbertd wrote:
I would think it is the actual manifold that has split at the flexi section and not just the gasket.
Yep, it's the manifold rather than the gasket. I'm seeing lots of them on the bay of E. I'm wondering how good a bet they are second hand.
Ah I see, missed that, though it seems like good news all the same (well at least better news than the HG would be)
Made a beginner's mistake parking in the garage and nicked the front bumper ... darn, did not need that ... it broke like glass, now I need also to add that to the long list of things to do ... never a moment of rest :-(
Got the replacement manifold skimmed yesterday as the flange surface was rough as dogs.
Had a great wedding anniversary today .my vogue decided the water pump should fall Luckily nothing broken up or cooked Just bearings gone .
Then the TDI to v8 discovery 1 decided it play up with a missfire ----- turns out lead not on plug properly So after that little lot got video done to prove failure for warranty
Following the saga of the dying starter motor (separate thread) a new starter was fitted. For a large vehicle with what should be plenty of room it’s a bit of a pig to do. Coupled with the ‘meaty’ Hankook battery it surprised me just how quick it spun the V8. Next job is to refurbish the old starter motor.
As removing the wheel arch liner would facilitate the removal/replacement of the starter motor I took the opportunity to replace the rather sad looking OSF mud flap. As expected, the mud flap fixings were completely corroded so all were cut/ground off to remove the old mud flap, the new one being replaced with uprated fasteners all round cos bigger is always better!
Whilst under the wheel arch the brakes discs and pads were thoroughly checked - all OK and I also took the opportunity to remove the caliper sliding pins and clean/re-grease them.
Today I completed the refurbishment of the errant starter motor. A few piccies:
First stage of disassembly - note the orange shroud around the solenoid piston. Not seen one of these before but I assume it’s there to keep the solenoid inner workings as clean as possible:
Second stage of disassembly - the main motor components:
Third sage of disassembly - the solenoid. I feared this may be the problem child but couldn’t find any clear problem. The piston seemed pretty clean and moved freely. All the contacts conned out OK but were thoroughly cleaned as were its inner workings:
Items after a run in the wash tank and the blast cabinet to remove paint and generally clean them up ready for painting:
Main motor bits cleaned up, commutator and bush/bearing surfaces polished. All gears were cleaned out and re-greased. The new brush cage assembly is also in shot:
Parts masked up and then painted in primer ready for top coat:
Once the top coat had dried all items were then inspected, thoroughly cleaned (again) ready for reassembly. I did not find any real problem, even the carbon brushes and cage assembly looked to have plenty of life left - it was renewed anyway. The whole unit was then reassembled. The biggest problem experienced during this exercise was disassembly and getting the fixings out. The main through bolts were OK but the three bolts holding the solenoid in place and the two small screws locating the brush cage in place were a right pain. The heads seemed to be made of chocolate and chewed up rather quickly and easily rather than just unscrew. Perseverance beat them into submission and new Allen head stainless steel bolts replaced them.
The acid test was a few test runs on the bench. Here’s a video of one:
It’s now packaged up and on the shelf joining my other ready use spares!