Attempted Badassity.

[Rollin]

Well I need to confess that I was unsuccessful at a Badassity move recently.  One of my oxygen sensors had gone bad and triggered my "service engine soon" light on my vehicle.  I had it checked at my local mechanic and he said "200 bucks, the part alone is $120."  He also said it could wait (since it was a pre-heater and the sensor worked okay).

So I took out my service manual (bought years ago), looked at some you tube videos, and got up the confidence to replace it myself.  Found the part at a local autoparts store for $50 (and it was a good brand - Bosch) and had them double check the engine code to ensure I had the correct one (there are four of these on the engine exhaust system).

Went home, jacked up the van and started pulling the plug on the part (to plug in the new one).  When I really couldn't it them apart without likeky breaking something I thought I'd regroup, take a break, and work on unbolting the thing from the exhaust pipe.  Well it is one of those items that was designed by a guy looking at an engine on a stand outside the vehicle.  Then, install the engine and laugh at the guy that tries to get a wrench between the transmission and body of the vehicle - while laying on your back.  Impossible in my time-frame, tool inventory, and skill level.

The hard part at this point is letting go of my expectations of getting this done by myself and for $50.  Also, I was excited about the idea so I told my wife what I was up to and now that brought in having to live that down.  I'm very glad that I resisted the urge to post here about the pre-repair/Badassity attempt!

The story turns out well though as I decided to find another mechanic that might do it cheaper.  Looked up a local guy, dropped it off, walked back to work after lunch, picked it up that afternoon - $40 to install!!  So, a total of $90 where it was originally going to be $200.

I guess the good thing that I take away from this is that there are often other options out there.  Come up with three options to any issue and then see what comes to you.

There - I feel better now, thanks for listening (reading :).

I guess rather than let this thread die as you probably nod and say to yourself "been there - done that" I could ask the other forum participants if they have had an attempted Badassity project go astray.  Well I'm all ears (or eyes :)?

[Nate R]

The connectors can be tricky. Some have to be removed from the bracket they're on before they can be unplugged, etc.

Were you using a regular wrench to try and get at it? In the future, an O2 sensor specific socket may be worth the $14 or so it costs.

At least you gave it a shot, AND, most importantly, you STOPPED before causing harm! :-)

[Rollin]

The connectors can be tricky. Some have to be removed from the bracket they're on before they can be unplugged, etc.

Were you using a regular wrench to try and get at it? In the future, an O2 sensor specific socket may be worth the $14 or so it costs.

At least you gave it a shot, AND, most importantly, you STOPPED before causing harm! :-)

Thanks for the consolation Nate R.  Yes, I looked at getting the special socket for the job, but it simply put the wrench that would have attached to it further up/away and closer to the underside of the body - further out of reach for me.

[Nate R]

Understood about the socket. There's another style of them that may have been better. Like this:

[CptPoo]

Last summer my car suddenly started overheating from a coolant leak, so I paid a mechanic $500 to fix it. I found out two days later that the overheating was actually caused by a broken coolant pump, and he wanted another $600 for that repair. There was no way I could afford the second repair on top of the first so I decided to do it myself.

I replaced the coolant pump, drive belt, and timing belt, and had a very similar experience to you. The engine compartment is so cramped that you have to remove one of the engine mounts and lower the engine to get access to the coolant pump. It took me about 10 hours of research on the web and in my repair manual, and 11 hours of work one Saturday, but I managed to do everything.

There was one point where I almost had to give up because I had the hardest time removing the pulley that connects the timing belt and the drive belt. It is in an area that gets hot so it was extremely rusted and pretty well fused to its mount. I even went to AutoZone to rent a pulley removing tool, but had no success with that either. I eventually managed to get some penetrant spray in it and finally removed it with a hammer. Removing that one pulley took me nearly 2 hours.

My post and pre cat o2 sensors have both been throwing a check engine light for about 4 years now, and I have considered replacing them. It looks relatively easy on my car, it just involves using a torch to heat up the mounting bolts.

[The Money Monk]

yeah this is my nightmare. I have done a lot of car repairs in the past, but I live in fear of starting a job, spend hours or days getting nothing done and then having to pay to get it fixed anyway.

[Jack]

yeah this is my nightmare. I have done a lot of car repairs in the past, but I live in fear of starting a job, spend hours or days getting nothing done and then having to pay to get it fixed anyway.

I've struggled with the same issue, but I'm doing a little better now. I found that it helps to ask myself "is it really any worse than the alternative, which is to chicken out and pay for every repair?"

Of course, my real fear is having to pay for the repair itself and a tow to the shop (where I could have driven to the shop if I hadn't tried to take it apart myself first).

[Rollin]

yeah this is my nightmare. I have done a lot of car repairs in the past, but I live in fear of starting a job, spend hours or days getting nothing done and then having to pay to get it fixed anyway.

I've struggled with the same issue, but I'm doing a little better now. I found that it helps to ask myself "is it really any worse than the alternative, which is to chicken out and pay for every repair?"

Of course, my real fear is having to pay for the repair itself and a tow to the shop (where I could have driven to the shop if I hadn't tried to take it apart myself first).

Also to The Money Monk, my new mechanic said yesterday that therir rate is triple if you screwed it up and are now asking for their help.

Cptpoo - you reminded me of the biggest job I tackled years back.  It was the second time the headgasket blew on my wife's Grand Am (with the Quad 4 motor).  I said I would not pay $2000 to have it done again so I spent the next six weeks doing it myself.  My wife came into the garage and asked what all the labelled bags on the shelf were from.  I told her that was her engine :).

Well, I too had spent two days getting the water pump off at the back of the engine, but in the end I got it all back together and it ran - rather rough though.  I did it for about $120 total (redecking of the head and gasket materials).  I did have to bring it to a mechanic to see why it ran so rough.  I put the timing chain/wheel? on one ONE TOOTH OFF!  So close...but just shy of perfect.

[tooqk4u22]

I miss older cars - maybe not the most efficient/green but damn are they reliable and easy to fix. 

I just got new (well new to me used tires) and it is irrating that it is such a simple thing that I have to pay for someone to do because of the equipment. First of all no "tire shop" would even do it, claiming it was against policy/liability issues to install used tires - whatever. .  I found a local mechanic that did for a lot less than pep boys would do it.  He was quoting a brake job to a lady and that was about 65% of what I have seen at other places. 

This may be my new go to guy. 

[AccidentalMiser]

Way to go, Rollin!  You don't know what you can do until you try.  You won't always be successful and sometimes you'll bite off more than you can chew, but you just have to keep trying and learning.

With Youtube and internet forums, there is always somewhere to go for more information about your repair.  Last fall, I did the head gaskets on my Subaru Forester which I would not have tackled without the videos on Youtube.  They came out great and I saved $2000 (or more, I would have scrapped the car rather than pay to have the HG done.)

Just make sure you answer the most important questions before you start:  "Can I safely do this job?  What's the worst thing that can happen with this repair?  Can I afford for that to happen?"

Best of luck to you!

[CptPoo]

Cptpoo - you reminded me of the biggest job I tackled years back.  It was the second time the headgasket blew on my wife's Grand Am (with the Quad 4 motor).  I said I would not pay $2000 to have it done again so I spent the next six weeks doing it myself.  My wife came into the garage and asked what all the labelled bags on the shelf were from.  I told her that was her engine :).

Well, I too had spent two days getting the water pump off at the back of the engine, but in the end I got it all back together and it ran - rather rough though.  I did it for about $120 total (redecking of the head and gasket materials).  I did have to bring it to a mechanic to see why it ran so rough.  I put the timing chain/wheel? on one ONE TOOTH OFF!  So close...but just shy of perfect.

That is admirable. If you can do that kind of repair on that model of car, you can fix just about anything. Having the timing belt as your only problem is pretty good. I had to spend the next two weeks after replacement, constantly readjusting my timing belt to get rid of the whining it was making. VW made it harder for me by having a specific wrench who's sole purpose was adjusting the timing belt tensioner, but luckily my grip-locks saved the day (I don't know what I would do without that tool.)

Now I'm moving on the replacing my spark plug wires, which takes two more specific tools from VW. 1. A tool for detaching the spark plug cables, and 2. A very long Allen wrench for removing the exhaust manifold so I can get access to the spark plugs.

[clutchy]

It's good to do your own maintenance and it's also good to know your own limits.

I've been doing my own vehicle maintenance on my cars for quite some time now.  I've attempted a few things that didn't work out so well and ended up costing more after I goobed it up.


Mostly though I can do any of the minor repair work.  Getting into the engine is usually where I draw the line.

[anastrophe]

I guess rather than let this thread die as you probably nod and say to yourself "been there - done that" I could ask the other forum participants if they have had an attempted Badassity project go astray.  Well I'm all ears (or eyes :)?

Well, I cannot count how many bolts I stripped before I bought a torque wrench. Now I have both the wrench and a good set of taps too:)

(Also, I know a guy who was using a table saw to make a new staircase, didn't clamp properly, and lost a finger. Probably not the kind of story you were looking for, though.)