Cars, Sometimes I Hate Them

[Charlie B53]

Wife was irratated that Son and I took the better part of two days to tune up her Astro AWD.   Way long ago I told myself I would NEVER     EVER    own a van.     Of course that was before I got married, and had two kids, and grandkids.    At least when I picked it out I chose an AWD.  I have serious snow tire on a second set of wheels, but haven't used then in I don't remember when.  10 inches of snow one year still wasn't enough to need them.   But I digress.

Tuning up a van, especially an Astro as a serious P.I.T.A.  Take out a seat first so you have enough room to get the doghouse out just so you can see the engine.   The right side spark plugs and wires aren't too bad, a pain, but doable.   Drivers side, you need to be a skinny midget with a long arm, crawl underneath, and reach up around the exhaust to get to the plugs and wires, by BRAILLE as you cannot even see them.

I did this once about 15 years ago shortly after we bought it, just so I would KNOW that it was done and what parts were used.   I don't use the cheap import parts.   It has about 200000 miles since then so I thought since the doghouse had to come out to get to the distributor to change the cam position sensor, the computer trouble code said so, then while in there I would take care of everything, need it or not.  It didn't, but it is done and I won't have to think about it again for many years. Changing both O2 sensors was no fun either.   Why can't they put the right one where a guy can get to it?   Good thing I have a BIG red tool box with Lots and lots of shiny chrome pieces inside, just right for getting to weird things like this.   Still, I was ready to give up and take it into a shop and PAY someone to change the last one.    I would have even thought anything like this years ago.   Son didn't agree.  Said we can do this.   He was right.   We did.  Or should I say 'HE' did.  I couldn't even stand still, I paced. I was pretty bothered.   At least now it's done.   Next time anything goes wrong with her van I'm TRADING it in!   Her next vehicle won't be a van as they don't make an AWD.  At least GM doesn't.   And there isn't any imports, or anything other than GM on our property, unless it's a visitor.

Since it took us so long, Wife got an attitude and wants me to license the Blazer so she will have a second vehicle.   Fine.    This state has a mandatory safety inspection.  No problem.  I took it in this morning.  It failed.   Old wipers, one of two tail lights out, and rear brake pads thin.   No problem, I stopped and bought wipers and a bulb, done.  Brakes I still have in the box from when I changed the front two years ago I also bought rears, I just never got around to changing them.  Now I will.

Once home again I park next to my Barn, my toolbox lives in there.  I turn off the engine and hear a strange hissing.  Pressure bleeding off.  It can't be the A/C, I have charged it up and it isn't even turned on.  Then I see the steam coming out from under the front of the hood.  Qwap.  Turn the key on and LOOK at the gauge, pegged.   QWAP!   Raise the hood and see steam blowing out from under a heater hose.    Fine,  Go get BOTH hoses, put them on and start filling with antifreeze.  Start it up to bleed ouot the air, and keep filling.  And keep filling, and it keeps going down.  I start wondering, this is a LOT of antifreeze.   Then I look underneath.   Qwap!   Leaking from underneath, NOT just a heater hose.  Thinking the water pump seal didn't like going dry and DIED.

I am NOT buying a $50 water pump until I take it apart and LOOK at the weep hole.  Once I see that wet then I will go get the pump.

And more antifreeze.

It's times like this when I seriously long for the single days long ago.  All I had was two cylinders and two wheels.  Wasn't much to go wrong.

[Michael Murphy]

If it was easy every one could do it.  It amazes me what people with skill accomplish  You should be proud of the skill set that allows you to suffer through a amazing list of problems.  It is a very small percentage of the population who could do this. Everyone else would be complaining about having to buy a car.

[Charlie B53]

Kept my last truck, no wait.  I better clarify that.  My last truck got wet, covered the dash.  Insurance totaled it.  I'd only had it 4 years.   That caused me to get my current truck, identical except for color, and a year newer.   Chevy/GMC quit making them that year.  I got the last '03 ZR2 S10.    My 'other' truck I kept for 25 years.    Damn Japanese anyway.   Still ran fine, just the bed was about to fall off into maybe four pieces.  And the cab was about to settle down 6 inches because of all the rust.   Stupid me had already replaced the floor with REAL STEEL just a couple of years before.

I still have my First truck, in the Barn.   A 1970 SS 396 El Camino   Bought it from a friend, took over his payments in Feb 74 shortly after I returned from Germany, still in the Army.   She needs some body work, paint and interior to be beautiful again.   Still runs like a bored out 396.   HOT   She is very hard on rear tires.  And gas.

[Xplantdad]

Good for you Charlie...for taking care of business!

[kitkatz]

Shhhhh. I do not talk about extra money around the TransAm or it will eat it.  Or at least it did when it was running for me.

[cattlekid]

My husband the GM employee salutes you.    

He delivers accessory parts (wheels, step packages, mat sets, other assorted "stuff") all over the Chicago, Wisconsin and Indiana areas.

Did you see that Buick is bringing back the Grand National in 2017?  Fairly badass, if I do say so myself. Might get me to tear myself away from Ford for a while.

  And there isn't any imports, or anything other than GM on our property, unless it's a visitor.

[DayaraLee]

My dad bought a '61 corvette several years ago. I admit it's pretty spiffy. His brother is the mechanic in the family and collects a variety of old cars, all in stages of disrepair. If they could figure out how, I think both of them would move the cars into the house, and put the people in the garages. My dad would pale at the thought of me driving his car, even around the block. It would sure be funny to ask him, though, just to see his expression! Tons of respect for those who are able to identify problems, fix them, and maintain your own vehicles.

[PrimeTimer]

Best friend in high school drove a baby blue/white '58 Chevy Bel Air. She took very good care of it. It was precious to both of us...we got a lot of looks from the boys driving it around.   


Charlie, your wife is very lucky to be married to a mechanic!

[Charlie B53]

We have 'His' and 'Hers' lawn mowers.   Mine is about a 30 year old Wheel Horse with a 48 inch deck.  Hers is a Crafts(Wo)Man with a 50 inch deck.   I've replace both engines.  Mine, replaced the 20HP Onan with a 25HP V-Twin.  Had to upgrade to a heavier belt as when I put the vacuum bagger on it would smoke it every time.   Hers, I replaced the 22HP with a 28.  If we are more than a few days late some areas of the yard grow surprisingly fast, and heavy.  Neither mower even snorts going through those areas any longer I have improved the blades a little.  Spot welded a second blade so there are 2 on each spindle.   The grass is cut so fine it doesn't leave those thick layers that try to smother parts of the yard.

We have a third machine.  Neighbor was going to scrape a 40 odd year old John Deere 110 with a 36 inch deck.  He had loaned it to someone and got it back in pieces, not running.  I told him I would put it back together for the Grandkid.  A little TLC and finding a few missing parts on eBay.  Striped the wiring harness apart to replace a couple of toasted ones the smoke had leaked out of.   She runs again.   Does surprisingly well for being that old.   Dad had the same machine when I was an early teen.  Uses far less fuel than either of the larger machines, just takes longer to get the yard done.   I use it to cut along the front ditch, neither of ours will go through there without getting stuck.   There is a lot to be said for those tractor tread tires.

[Xplantdad]

Hey Charlie....this was my Saturday a few weeks back! (Thank God I did it before it got hot!)

Changed the fluid and the filter on the turbo 350, changed the oil and filter, changed the spark plugs, spark plug wires, points, condenser, distributor cap and put on the rebuilt quadrajet that my buddy Eric Jackson rebuilt for me

I am getting to old to do this driveway stuff!

[PrimeTimer]

Oooh that would be such a fun car to have! Vroom Vroom! Put on the big sunglasses, silk scarf and be like Hollywood! Go cruisin.............

[Xplantdad]

It rides like a Cadillac!

[Charlie B53]

Long ago while living in an apartment I stored a set of those factory wheels in Little Brothers garage attic.   I moved here to the mid-West.   He sold the house.   Didn't take my wheels with him.


If I get back there I am going to knock on the door and ask if I can have them back.  If they are still there.    I saw a note posted the other day a set of those wheels NOS went for a ridiculous price.

[Xplantdad]

Charlie 

[kristina]

... Usually I only look at cars as some transport to get me from "A" to "B" as "comfy" as possible......
... but I do make an exception when it comes to Oldtimer cars, especially Oldtimer Jaguar cars from the 1940's - 1950's ...
because they are extremely comfortable to sit in and "feel at home"...
... and ... that just reminds me ... I haven't bought my lottery-ticket for this week  ... yet ... 

[Charlie B53]

I moved the Blazer into the shade amid a group of trees in the back yard.  There is a slight breeze across there and the tree shade and grass depress the temps making it tolerable when it is roasting near 100 out in the sun.

Now I can be a real 'Shadetree Mechanic'.

I didn't get very far today, but I got all the wiring unplugged.  I am not in any real hurry.  It's still going to be hot all week.

[Fabkiwi06]

Man, I topped off my brake fluid the other day and I felt super accomplished. Then I came here and read this!

I'm so car illiterate. But, I watch Top Gear! I feel like that should count for something!

And XPlantDad, that's a beauuuutiful car! Does she have a name?

[Charlie B53]

It is very temping to add brake fluid when you see it looking low.  This is a very common error among the untrained.

Brakes are sealed systems and should NOT need fluid added, unless there is a leak.  The vehicle needs to be inspected carefully for any signs of brake fluid leaking.  If so then repair must be made to prevent sudden brake failure.

Low fluid in the reservoir is a sign that the brake pads or shoes are worn and may soon need replacement.  The 'low' fluid is in the wheel cylinders as the pistons are farther out.  Installing new pads and shoes pushes the pistons back in thus returning the fluid to the reservoir.  Topping off can lead to over filling and spilling causing paint damage.

Brake pads and shoes are cheap enough at the parts stores.  Not a lot of tools are needed for the job, but if not done correctly your brakes can fail to perform adequately.  Replacement should only be done by someone somewhat skilled.  It isn't that difficult, but attention to detail is critical. New pads and shoes should be 'seated' once finished.

[Michael Murphy]

Your warning about self repair is well placed.  For some reason mechanics don't get the respect they deserve, Cars are amazingly complex systems and the people who work on them have a huge amount of knowledge about the vehicles they work on.  The modern mechanic needs to know about things undreamed of years ago.  My 9 year old ford ranger just died, I bought a new car that doesn't use a key to start and I feel like a idiot sitting in my car with my keys in my hand and no place to put it. 

[Charlie B53]

Michael, I don't doubt that I would do the same thing.

Retired Marine Mechanic/Machinist.   I only know one way to do things as if they fail, people can die.    Cars aside from the computer, are so simple, if there is a problem you can just coast to the side and walk home.   Not so on a boat, out in the ocean.

Sorta like an air-frame/powoerplant mechanic, planes fall out of the sky when they have a problem.  That's bad.   So you only do it right, or not at all.

New cars, too much to go wrong.   I like the old stuff.   That KISS principal.That may have contributed to my keeping my truck 25 years until the body and bed rotted apart.  I intend to keep my current truck a long time.  I've had My ElCamino over 40 years already.  And my Harley 35 years so far.  I tend to take care of things a bit so they will last.

Have to, I can't afford any of the new stuff!  I don't care much for payments, much less for paying interest.

Is this a sign of age?  Or wisdom?

[Xplantdad]

Charlie...you are right....older cars are easy to work on.Much easier than the new stuff!

Fabkiwi06...it doesn't have a name...it's just spoiled and spends a lot of time covered in the garage 

[PrimeTimer]

New cars, too much to go wrong.   I like the old stuff.   That KISS principal.That may have contributed to my keeping my truck 25 years until the body and bed rotted apart.  I intend to keep my current truck a long time.  I've had My ElCamino over 40 years already.  And my Harley 35 years so far.  I tend to take care of things a bit so they will last.

Have to, I can't afford any of the new stuff!  I don't care much for payments, much less for paying interest.

Is this a sign of age?  Or wisdom?

It's wisdom, CharlieB! It may not be true of all makes/models but I firmly believe that any car will last if you take good care of it. I'm no mechanic but always know to have my car serviced. A service tech once laughed and asked if I ever drive anywhere because I was taking my car in before it even needed servicing. At the time I was going by a monthly service schedule and not by mileage. If the service log book said to have it serviced for plugs and wires in the month of June, then by golly, that's what I did! I don't drive anywhere I don't need to be altho these days I am seriously thinking of getting in my car and just keep on going..

[Charlie B53]

I live a few miles outside of a couple of very small towns.  They call them Cities, but one only had one blinking red light, the other has five.  Besides adding lights at the freeway exchange they recently added one at the Wal-Mart outlet, which really helps people leaving the Chinese Buffet directly across that intersection.

Whatever, we are pretty much 'in the sticks'.  I've noticed a few of those small scooters going by.  Those Vespa type that get near 100 MPG.  I was telling Wife the other day one of those could be handy.  Get my bicycle trailer out, add brake lights, tail lights and turn signals would be an easy task, tow it behind one of those scooters.  The 4 miles to town may irritate some drivers as these things won't do 55, but you could put a bunch of groceries in that trailer.  and not use a full cup of gas there and back.

BMW Europe has for years built a scooter that has a full cab, minus doors.  It is open sided.  But has a real seat, with seat belt, windshield with wiper.  The cabin container is large enough you could wear a suit in the rain and NOT get wet.  I don't know the reason why they do not import them to the USA.  I am sure they would sell well.

My American Family Insurance Agent bought a scooter many years ago, rides it to all his appointments in fair weather.  Raves about the mileage and the money he has saved on fuel alone.

And it is FUN!

Which may be why I will NEVER give up my Harley.   I LIKE it!

Be careful out there!

Charlie B53

[Charlie B53]

Not sure if I reported that was NOT the water pump.  Seems GM intake gaskets used on the 4.3 about 95 thru 04 have a tendency to fail at the water passage, leaking water either inside ending up in the oil or blowing steam as this Blazer did.   When this happened to Wife's Astro I sent it into the Dealer.  No way I wanted to mess with a Van.  It's bad enough just changing spark plus and wires.

It has taken me almost a whole week to take thisi Blazer apart.  I don't lean over into there as well as I used to.  Son came over yesterday and help set the intake back into place so I wouldn't smear the two beads of silicone and cause an oil leak.   We had made a sort of bet how long it would take me to put it back together.  I live for challenge.  He went to the parts store to get some vacuum hose for his Blazer.  By the time he got back I was ready to add water and stir.   OooPs, forgot to change the oil, so he did it for me.  Good thing as when I lifted the intake a cup or so of antifreeze drained into the oil.

Cranked it over and it wouldn't start.  I was confused.  I KNOW that I put the distributor in indexed correctly.   I'm a retired Pro.  I don't make mistakes like that.   We checked it out and determined the ignition is fine, it wasn't getting any fuel.   Hmmmmm.   Why wasn't the fuel pump running?   I must have had another of those   D'oh  moments as when he asked 'Did you unplug a relay or anything?'   It finally dawned on me.   "Yes"    Plugged it back in and it starts just fine.

Good thing it's raining today.  My back and elbows are killing me.  I did far too much yesterday.  I'm not much good today.   Changing rear brakes and taking it in for reinspection can wait.  She can drive her Van.    I hurt way more than normal.   Dog is sleeping in my bed.  I am so tempted to join him.

[PrimeTimer]

Bit of a vent here but didn't know where else to post it and it does have something to do with a car. A loud one and it's owner. We live in an apartment complex, so things get noisy. Especially the parking lot. Day and nite you can hear people, cars, trucks, motorcycles and screaming kids coming and going. It's all a part of apartment life. But I really hate it when the young ones "peel out" in the parking lot or those with the large trucks who back in with their tail pipes a few feet from your windows (cough, cough, hack, hack). Now, most of you are going to say I should complain to the apartment manager or just politely ask offenders to stop being offensive. Easier said than done my friends...that's not necessarily an option these days and what I mean by "these days" is that not everyone takes a polite request as a polite request anymore. For starters, management here refuses to involve themselves in anything. Hard enough to get them to fix a leaky sink. As for noisy tenants, might find myself at the short end of a long barrel or my own vehicle up on blocks in the morning and my wheels gone. So, we put up with a lot of crappola. Have to. We do plan on moving next year so we'll see.

Meanwhile, it was a relief when party girl upstairs stopped dating motorcycle man. His bike was loud and he came and went at all hours. Well, now it's an old Chevy Camaro. Oh cool...uh no. This guy always sounds angry. Sits and revs up the engine at 5am and then peels out. Comes back home in the evening and sits for a good 20 minutes just revving up that beautiful car. RRRRR!! RRR! RRRRR! What an idiot! But imagine my surprise to see that this ignorant driver is actually the old retiree from across the way. Balding skinny old guy. WTH??? He's old enough to know better! I mean, c'mon! Sit and rev up your car engine in the parking lot of an apartment complex....Really?