Why are "newer" vehicles so hard to work on?

[vulcancowboy]

My wife called me Tuesday to say that the local Ford dealer had finished inspecting her '06 Lincoln Zephyr. While it didn't need anything to pass inspection, the mechanic said since the car has 105K miles on it, we should change the serpentine belt, replace the spark plugs, valve cover gaskets and install a new air filter. Approximate cost? $1,000! I told her NO WAY! I can do it myself.

So, I did a little research and found that in order to replace the plugs, you have to remove the intake manifold! I did replace the belt, which was not too easy either. I had to jack up the car, remove the right front tire & fender liner to get to the belt.

Seems kinda ridiculous to me that I have to remove a manifold just to change plugs, needless to say, I'm holding off on that job for a little while, at least until I recover from the belt changing exercise.

 

[3930dave]

There are words that come to mind, that I can't type in this forum....

Common problem today... cramming things into the (ever shrinking) engine compartment is usually way more of a priority than serviceability factors.

Audi A4 - most of the front end (bumper, grille) needs to come apart, to do a timing belt.

Ford Escape V6 - same issue - you pull the intake manifold, to change rear plugs or coils.

And on and on..... Some of the old stuff had it's "challenges" too (ex. V8 Monza), but the days of opening a hood and immediately seeing what you need to change, and how to do it, are largely gone....

Rgds, D.

 

[JCByrd24]

Vehicles are way more complex due to more gadgets and emissions stuff which means more stuff to fit in the box. Computer aided design allows the stuff to fit together very well but is also designed in sub-assemblies to be produced, assembled, and installed in a certain order. All the parts you mentioned were likley already assembled with engine/trans/ and maybe even front suspension and the car lowered over the hole thing. If you could lift the entire body off it would likely be easier. American cars seem to be the ones I here most about needing a major part removed to get to one of the plugs, but I'm sure this is common on others as well. I agree spark plugs and belts should surely be given more thought for maintenance. On the other hand how many miles did spark plugs go for back in the day. 100K is no problem now and most cars don't last 200K so it's a once in the life of the vehicle job.

 

[roadhunter]

The manufacturers do this on purpose to force you to take your car to the dealership to be worked on.

 

[rsallen]

Why does everyone forget that that 'routine' stuff needed to get done every few thousand miles rather the now routine tens of thousands of miles?
No, the manufactures do not do it so you can't work on it, they do it because you demand x y and z altogether in one package. Besides the manufacturer could care less after the car is out of warranty.

 

[Bird]

The manufacturers do this on purpose to force you to take your car to the dealership to be worked on.

That's the same thing lots of people said about every change to a vehicle in the '50s when I was working in my Dad's service station and auto parts store.:laughing::laughing:

In February, my 2001 Ford Ranger had 103964 miles on it when I had the spark plugs changed. When the dealer told me how much it would be, I contacted one of the more popular independent garages in the area and found the price to be the same. So I paid the dealer $579.21 to change spark plugs and wires, and oil & filter.

 

[sld]

You either evolve and learn or stay in the past. Vehicles have become way more complex but they are still not that hard to work on.

One thing I have done is stay with one manufacturer (Ford) for all of our cars / trucks for me, wife and the kids. I'm not a professional mechanic but I am not afraid to do any basic maintenance or trouble shooting. I have only taken our vehicles to the dealer or another mechanic 2-3 times in the last 10 years.

 

[MacLawn]

That's the same thing lots of people said about every change to a vehicle in the '50s when I was working in my Dad's service station and auto parts store.:laughing::laughing:

In February, my 2001 Ford Ranger had 103964 miles on it when I had the spark plugs changed. When the dealer told me how much it would be, I contacted one of the more popular independent garages in the area and found the price to be the same. So I paid the dealer $579.21 to change spark plugs and wires, and oil & filter.

That seems to be the ticket, bird. My Dad used to day to take ye cyar to the dealer who represents the make, they know more about it than Zeke's Auto. I'm getting transmission flush on me F150 tomorrow at local Ford dealer. It'll cost less than half a new truck payment, which comes every month.

 

[Beltzington]

Technology and manufacturing techniques have exceeded the shade-tree mechanics ability to keep pace. Big picture the products are much better and last far longer than 30-40 years ago. 1970 car got 10mpg and maybe last 100k with frequent maintenance. 2014 car gets 30mpg and will last 200K+ with 30 oil changes.
This forum would not exist if developers stuck with code the average Joe could fix. Don't get me wrong their are plenty of designs that could be much better for routine maintenance and I have cussed my share of engineers but at the end of the day if you want to be able to fix it yourself, buy a classic.

 

[roadhunter]

That's the same thing lots of people said about every change to a vehicle in the '50s when I was working in my Dad's service station and auto parts store.:laughing::laughing:

In February, my 2001 Ford Ranger had 103964 miles on it when I had the spark plugs changed. When the dealer told me how much it would be, I contacted one of the more popular independent garages in the area and found the price to be the same. So I paid the dealer $579.21 to change spark plugs and wires, and oil & filter.

No idea what your ranger example is supposed to prove. It's a 15 year old car that most all shops can work on and it's a simple task that most shadetree mechanics could complete in an afternoon. :laughing:

Roll into a private shop with a new ecoboost and see if they can work on it. You will get a different answer.:laughing:

Technology is advancing to appoint where you really need specialized training and equipment to work on modern cars and trucks. Most private shops simply can't afford to send their techs to training for every manufacturer out there nor can they afford to buy every specialty tool/technology necessary to work on all the various cars and trucks out there. I ran into this when I had a 2007 Jeep GC with a 3.0 diesel. None of the private shops I went to had even seen one let alone know how to work on it. Without the factory training and resources they were helpless. Manufacturers and dealerships know this and have figured out that they make more money if you bring your car to the dealership for work. So they do everything they can to make sure you have to come to the dealership for your service.