Those #+%^ engineers!

[WinterDeere]

I had an uncle who bought a small Ford car years ago, Fiesta I think, and it needed a water pump. The dealer quoted a high labor price because of one very hard to access bolt.
So he drove it home and drilled a 1" hole in inner fender where bolt was. That reduced the water pump bill a lot.
Back home he put a 1" rubber plug in the hole.

... and you wonder why the manufacturer couldn't have just done this in the first place. Perhaps the unibody had already been thru crash test ratings, and a hole in that location would have required re-testing? Just a guess.

Depending on the engineers involved, most of the OP's items could be chalked up to accountants and managers. My career has been filled with a desire to fix inherited problems with designs, or problems created by unexpected changes that were out of my hands, only to be told there's no time or budget allowed for the fix. I suspect most engineers could tell many such stories.

Maybe the engineers at Subaru spec'd an A/C compressor with a serviceable clutch, only to be overruled by marketing and accounting, or the guys designing the engine compartment at Toyota were never told a 3.5L V6 might go in there someday down the road. Very few wouldn't want to fix these problems, once known, but we are rarely left to chase these things in a modern company with tightly-controlled resource management.

 

[kenmbz]

What model is this? My 2020 Wrangler has the batteries under the hood and there’s no need to remove the bumper to replace headlights. And it doesn’t have a plastic oil pan.

2011 Jeep GC 5.7l

 

[jyoutz]

... and you wonder why the manufacturer couldn't have just done this in the first place. Perhaps the unibody had already been thru crash test ratings, and a hole in that location would have required re-testing? Just a guess.

Depending on the engineers involved, most of the OP's items could be chalked up to accountants and managers. My career has been filled with a desire to fix inherited problems with designs, or problems created by unexpected changes that were out of my hands, only to be told there's no time or budget allowed for the fix. I suspect most engineers could tell many such stories.

Maybe the engineers at Subaru spec'd an A/C compressor with a serviceable clutch, only to be overruled by marketing and accounting, or the guys designing the engine compartment at Toyota were never told a 3.5L V6 might go in there someday down the road. Very few wouldn't want to fix these problems, once known, but we are rarely left to chase these things in a modern company with tightly-controlled resource management.

My guess is the engines and car bodies are designed separately. That same engine might fit perfectly into another vehicle model without this issue. Then they shoehorn the engine into a smaller vehicle model and these issues occur.

 

[jjeff]

Snowmobile chain cases bloody engineers
,bean counters stopped putting drain plugs on newer snowmobiles now.on some models you either need to use an oil extractor which sucks the oil out or split the chain case getting gear lube all over the belly pan. The newer skidoos gen 4 chassis with 4 strokes and mechanical reverse on 2020 models at least put a drain plug back in them at least. 2018 Polaris and 2019 skidoos do not have drain plugs. It's a royal pia trying to suck thickened cool gear lube with a oil extractor sucking device so I make a gear lube mess splitting the cases.

 

[KennyG]

Snowmobile chain cases bloody engineers bean counters stopped putting stopped drain plugs on newer snowmobiles now you either need to use an oil extractor which sucks the oil out or split the chain case getting gear lube all over the belly pan. The newer skidoos gen 4 chassis I belie

Interesting. Why did small engine makers quit putting in drain plugs? Turning a lawn mower over on it's side to drain the oil is really dumb.

 

[jjeff]

Interesting. Why did small engine makers quit putting in drain plugs? Turning a lawn mower over on it's side to drain the oil is really dumb.

Save money? Bring to dealer to let a tech overcharge you to use a oil Extractor IDK it's a bad idea imo not putting a simple drain plug in bottom of chain cases.

 

[kenmbz]

For my Jeep the books all show changing the headlight through a twist out cover in the wheel well.
I have the upgraded headlights, so it's from above with a rubber cover and some metal fingers that hold the light unit.
Seems like each model in the line up and each version of the model had some differences.
Since my jeep does not have the stop/start feature, no second battery.
But I have an extra computer for the lights, even thought the lights themselves are analog.

It seems like more engines are sealed and expected to be thrown out like a printer cartridge when they fail :-(

My old Simplicity tractors from the late 90's, the transmissions had no drain plugs. Not only did they save a dollar each, probably sold more mowers since the fluid never got changed. Win/Win for the manufacturer.

 

[jjeff]

For my Jeep the books all show changing the headlight through a twist out cover in the wheel well.
I have the upgraded headlights, so it's from above with a rubber cover and some metal fingers that hold the light unit.
Seems like each model in the line up and each version of the model had some differences.
Since my jeep does not have the stop/start feature, no second battery.
But I have an extra computer for the lights, even thought the lights themselves are analog.

It seems like more engines are sealed and expected to be thrown out like a printer cartridge when they fail :-(

My old Simplicity tractors from the late 90's, the transmissions had no drain plugs. Not only did they save a dollar each, probably sold more mowers since the fluid never got changed. Win/Win for the manufacturer.

I passed on a new what was classified heavier duty with better hydro drive motors on a Husqvarna rider with differential lock for mowing up north after I found the the hydros were sealed.

 

[WinterDeere]

The only sense I can make of this is that drain plug deletes must be more about saving labor and minimizing potential warranty claims, than the cost of the plug itself. They likely pay less than $5 for the plug + washer + added machining cost. But having them cross-threaded, leak, or other potential in-warranty issues hurt reputation and can cost much more.

I mentioned in a recent thread, that we bought a 2021 Mini Cooper S for our teen to drive, which has a nice little powerful BMW 2.0 turbo engine... honestly the car is a total blast to drive. But in week 1, I discovered there's no dipstick in that car! You can check that oil level is "OK" on the in-dash display, but there's no indication where in that "OK" range you might be.

When changing oil, having noticed over many dozens of cars and years that no car ever takes the full listed crankcase capacity to hit center of ideal range, I'm now wondering how I'm going to know how much oil to install after draining and filter swapping. I hate the idea of wasting a whole morning to take a car to the nearest Mini dealer (2 hours round trip + wait time), for an oil change I can do in 15 minutes in my own garage.

 

[ultrarunner]

I had an uncle who bought a small Ford car years ago, Fiesta I think, and it needed a water pump. The dealer quoted a high labor price because of one very hard to access bolt.
So he drove it home and drilled a 1" hole in inner fender where bolt was. That reduced the water pump bill a lot.
Back home he put a 1" rubber plug in the hole.

Yep… outside the box problem solving…

Brother had one of those in college… great mpg and fun to drive… gave $600 for it.

Someone caved a front fender… got new one for $40 but these fenders were welded… no bolts… my repair came out looking great..