I’ve been working on my own cars and friends cars for about 10 years only because at any particular time I’m either too broke or too cheap to pay for the repair otherwise.
Beyond that, I’m a master googler. If it exists in digital form, I find it, period.
Also a tinkerer in general, which leads to sometimes brilliant or more frequently catastrophic results.
For my day job, I’m a mathematician.
Tech you remind me of myself…I fix anything also…Nice to have your own shop…its the only way to go as far as being a mechanic is concerned. Working for a Dealership with the flat rate is total nonsense if you ask me.
Blackbird
i am also a web designer for Elliott County Board of Education and Elliott County School and Elliott County Middle School and Sandy Hook Elementarry
Re flat rate at a dealership, Blackbird. I have heard good and bad from mechanics who worked at dealers. I paid flat rate with a guaranteed base and quite a few dealership mechanics wanted to work with me.
Its that guaranteed base that made it work…many don’t offer that to mechanics…You are apparently far more realistic than…lets say…Those 3 Funny looking guys…supposedly really friendly with your vehicle…or something like that? LOL
That base guarantee makes you a stand up guy for certain
It always amazed me that some shops were determined to cap the pay of their mechanics, Blackbird. And while they knocked the top out of good weeks they made no effort to fill in the slow weeks. Of course my shop was small and I was always under a car like everyone else and I quickly cut anyone loose who didn’t suit me as Iworked along side them. A good mechanic must be talented, ambitious and honest and I when I found good mechanics I tried to keep them. And good mechanics working with me earned 2 to 3 times the average income for the area and got a year end bonus of 5% of their annual gross. $2,500 in cash made a lot of wives very happy at Christmas.
I have an M.Bin in Bioinformatics, which qualifies me to build and unbuild 70s Honda motorcycles.
@ RodKnox You sure got that right man cash is KING Rod…sounds like you’re just an all round stand up guy man…Good on ya mate…Lets let this thread continue on without our chatter…Its apparently very popular and hitting new milestones all the time…I am honored to be the “Author”…LOL
@ Joedanger…Well if that’s what you “earn” by knowing how to rebuild 70’s Honda’s…then I have one too…LOL
Blackbird
I have no credentials to speak of…I simply get to fix any vehicle that makes it’s way to my home while the husband is out making a living so I can stay at home and get messy.
None here…
My name is Mike, I’ve been driving cars for 19 years. Occasionally I change the oil…
Greetings!
I am new to this forum but not new to cars and care repair.
My father was a mechanic who worked in MOPAR dealerships for most of his working life, with a short stint running his own auto repair company. I grew up watching and learning from him working on cars. I got my first car when I was 15. It got home on the back of a tow truck as it did not run and my dad told me "You have a year to make it running and safe before you can get your license! It was a Fiat 850 Spyder and it took just about the entire year to get it running, fix the rust, replace the top, get it painted, etc… In High School and College I worked after school and over summers in the dealer with my dad, writing service orders, doing “go-fer” duty, helping in the parts dept, doing oil, lube and filters and generally soaking up knowledge, grease and exhaust fumes.
I went through a stint of buying crappy old cars, fixing what was vital and re-selling them for a while in the late 70’s early 80’s. I can recall a VW fastback, a Rambler, a coupe Dodge Colts and a Toyota Celica I “flipped”. It didn’t always go easy and I lost money on a couple of them but I had fun and learned in the process.
As things stand now I do my own basic maintenance on the cars we have but will leave the big stuff to a local shop I trust. I am getting too old to be crawling around on the driveway under a jacked car or one on ramps for big stuff. I will do the simpler stuff myself still, such as alternator replacement, starter, brakes, etc. Most of my “wrenching” nowadays is on my motorcycle, however. If you think auto mechanics are tough to deal with you should try having to beg to even get a bike into a shop to change a tire!
I’m an electrical engineer by trade. I have worked for Siemens Automotive and Continental automotive on engine controllers through 2008. I replaced my first set of rings in a Honda engine when I was 14 and rebuilt my first car engine at 17 by myself.
I’m an old car nut and I work on most of my own stuff. I think of cars as the true combination of parts that have been assembled and as such most anything can be dismantled and fixed. I look for the other answer in problems instead of the most obvious one. That was my job for many years, find the needle in the haystack.
ASE Medium/Heavy Duty Master Tech, 12 years exp, Associates Degree In Applied Science Freightliner specialization/heavy equipment. High Plains Area Vo-Tech 2 year diesel application/heavy equipment Cirt. of completion. Hunter Alignment specialist Cirt. Been a Mobile Hydraulic Crane Technician for 6 years, with Liebherr factory training, Demag training, Link-belt Factory training, and many vendor cirts for ZF transmission repair and diagnostic work, Kessler Axle repair, Allison transmission Repair, on and on and on… this is not tooting my horn… it is just in my opinion what we as tech’s in the world today have to go thru… especially in my industry. constant liability, constant training, constant engineering applications and design revisions, codes to conform to… and all of this while competing with less than desirable competition that don’t follow good work practices, make the investment in their knowledge base, or the safety required to make proper diagnostics and repairs!!! and one more thing… I am knowledgeable for most all types of operating systems, hydraulic, electric, electronic, emissions control, power train… suspension, alignment, on and on… but that does not mean that I know ANYTHING about modern cars and trucks… haha! I just dont mess with them… keeping up with the “jones’es” is just too hard across the industry lines from what I do to the automotive world! and I will say one more thing, it continues to amaze me how often I see adaptive technology that is being used to control our 6 million dollar cranes while they move millions of pounds in sensitive locations and unique situations, being later applied to the automotive world! the relay types, control systems, data buss systems, sensor array’s, hydraulic control and pressure monitoring systems… on and on, when we perfect it in the big stuff I definitely see a “trickle down effect”!!!
and b.t.w. click and clack, YOU TWO AMAZE ME. your knowledge base is just simply amazing!
Job at gas station in high school(1980’s) fixing really minor stuff on cars and then college.
Had a series of $300 Subaru’s were I did the work myself however stayed away from brakes, tires, and mufflers since they all can kill you if not done right.(Grandpa said that)
After that I read so much on internet since 1995 and use the knowledge to fix/problem solve. I do have a degree in Civil Engineering & Computer Science. I never minded reading manuals and attempting things.
I work as IT Developer/Consultant.
I wrench my 07 Acura MDX although timing belt for pro’s. My wife’s Subaru turbo leagacy goes to an independent we trust.
Certified master automotive technician 15 years experience in this computer age.
Lead technician,manager of a pretty strait up honest small chain of used car dealers.
i have a 3000 dollar portable diagnostics system,some might refer to as simply a scanner.( my personal one)
however i deal mostly in higher market imports,but also domestics and often Asian as well.
This field for me is not only my science,but my art. and those looking to be serious in this business are dropping like fly’s…
anybody considering it perhaps younger,should be well apt in science,mathematics,and physics… with this you might be able to comprehend the amount of engineering that makes a car of any make what it is…
This is only to the professionals though. And to those that know ( other master techs with recent certs) the only profession comparable to ours is that of a doctor,the difference being we have to retain more knowledge than said doctor… human body=1, types of automobiles over the last century and a half? i don’t even know that…and to those who may not know what a master tech is… at Minimum it is one skilled,proficient ,and certified by ASE or some state program(not all states) in the 8 key areas of automotive technology… in order of my certifications Brakes, Electrical, Engine repair,(first test session) Engine performance,automatic transmissions,Manual drive train and axle,(second test session)suspension and steering,and heating and air conditioning(last testing session)Which oddly enough the last time i was in there doing re-certs just happened to be the last ASE testing session actually done in a classroom supervised by a few monitors… its all done computer based now… i will be so angry if i do it online next time,cause i will be thinking about others maybe cheating somehow… like it could De base the whole thing.
anyways enough said
I’ve got something I’d like to add to my credentials. Recently, I’ve diagnosed and repaired a few electrical problems with my motorcycle, a 2005 Honda Shadow Aero.
About a year and a half ago, I had to rely on my motorcycle as my only transportation because I was in the process of moving and I loaned my car to someone who agreed to move it for me. Unfortunately, I found myself in South Florida during a major tropical storm, and had to ride to work in a heavy downpour several days in a row. Rain got into parts of the motorcycle that are normally dry, and my torn signals stopped working.
I got my hands on a circuit tester (the simple kind with a light), and figured out it wasn’t the bulbs or a fuse. I opened up the switch, and it was pretty wet in there, so I took the switch apart and borrowed my friend’s hair dryer. After everything was dry, I reassembled the switch, and viola, it worked again.
I was pretty impressed with myself until my headlight stopped working. I was blowing fuses on a regular basis. I took it to a shop, and told them I had recently messed with the turn signal switch. They said they did some diagnostic work, including checked the turn signal switch, and they couldn’t find anything wrong with it. I didn’t have much confidence in this shop because of the impression I got from the service writer. He was a shady character who told me they would get to work right away on the bike, but a week later, they hadn’t even looked at it yet.
When I got the bike home, I took the turn signal switch apart again to make sure they put it back together correctly. That’s when I discovered my mistake. I had routed a wire in front of a bracket instead of behind it, and the turn signal switch was cutting into that wire. The short was blowing the headlight fuse just about every time I signaled a right turn. I repaired the wire and routed it correctly, and that fixed the problem. I was the cause of the problem, but again, I was pretty impressed with myself anyway. Evidently, I was better at this than a so-called Honda certified technician! This isn’t the first time I’ve discovered I know my bike better than a certified Honda tech, but that’s another story.
Fast forward to a month ago, and I had a starting problem with the bike. I would press the start button, and nothing would happen except the headlight would dim. However, I was able to push start the bike to get it home. Being able to push start the bike allowed me to procrastinate on the repair, and I continued to ride the bike to work whenever weather permitted.
Eventually, I got a chance to work on the bike. I checked the wiring between the start button and the starter, including the relays housed in the headlight, and everything looked fine. I started playing with the starter button, and discovered that if I played with it long enough, the bike would start. I thought about replacing the button and its inner workings, but money was tight, so I took it apart, cleaned the parts and contacts, and bent the contacts so they would come into better contact with the right parts of the switch. Then I put everything back together. Viola! It started just fine, only now the switch was sticking. I had cleaned all the lubrication of the parts of the switch.
I looked around for an appropriate lubricant, and even went to the hardware store and auto parts store looking for the right product, but I couldn’t find anything that looked like the right product, so I bought a can of WD-40, took the switch apart, sprayed the parts, and put everything back together. It’s worked fine since.
It’s funny. I didn’t do any real electrical troubleshooting this time. I simply played with things that I though would be logical to check, and it led me to the problem. Thank goodness it’s a simple machine.
work in the auto parts aftermarket for about twenty years and once had my ASE cert.
If this is the intro thread, my credentials aren’t too impressive. I just learned early in life that I had mechanical aptitude, and have spent my life working in mechanical trades that I was always told girls aren’t supposed to do. Currently, and for over 10 years, that’s been as a house carpenter.
I also learned early in life that some mechanics are shameless about ripping women off - especially after my mom’s divorce. I used to show her repair receipts to guys I was dating, and they’d be aghast that she was being charged about a 500% markup on the retail price of some parts. So I decided I was going to learn as much as I could, so I wouldn’t be at the mercy of some man if I didn’t have another around to do my business for me.
Grew up with fingers in Air cooled motorbikes, then with head under British Leyland Minis, Citroens, Renaults, Various euro Fords (fiesta / escort / Ka) many, many Opel Astras . Have been known to mend diesel fuel systems with twigs and zip ties. Now know never tell a dealer you want a car in a hurry and never buy a car when you are a sleep deprived parent…
Look after a fleet of overworked and under-serviced VW’s and Opels in work and cry at the 30,000km oil change intervals
Live in Ireland where gas is $8 a gallon so drive like there are thumb tacks on the accelerator but that is still better than giving in and driving an ecobox diesel with peaky torque curves and stall-o-matic auto cut off system to cheat Co2 taxes.
Was seduced by American cars driving 70’s Detroit land yachts when in Colorado as a young lad…