Pirate
Gold Member
I had to remove the engine mounts and lower the engine, after remove the tire and wheelwell junk, just to change the water pump on my grand caravan.
Why are "newer" vehicles so hard to work on?
- Thread starter vulcancowboy
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Sometimes they are and sometimes not...
Changing out drum brake shoes is more involved than changing out pads... at least in my experience.
A lot of the harder part is geography... simply more crammed into smaller space making access and issue.
I had to change the brushes on my alternator the other day... it was almost as simple as plug and play to do this on the BMW.
Changing out drum brake shoes is more involved than changing out pads... at least in my experience.
A lot of the harder part is geography... simply more crammed into smaller space making access and issue.
I had to change the brushes on my alternator the other day... it was almost as simple as plug and play to do this on the BMW.
OP
vulcancowboy
Gold Member
SirReal63
Platinum Member
That is an excellent price, I may just have to do mine over the winter.
Ultra runner, I have found BMW's to be very easy to work on, quite possibly the easiest car I have ever wrenched on. Everything is laid out perfectly and comes apart like it should, for those thatnunderstandnthe engineering that went into it.
Ultra runner, I have found BMW's to be very easy to work on, quite possibly the easiest car I have ever wrenched on. Everything is laid out perfectly and comes apart like it should, for those thatnunderstandnthe engineering that went into it.
tcreeley
Elite Member
I had some brakework done on my 2003 Silverado lat spring by a local shop. It ground when I went in and it ground when I left. I went back a week later and they couldn't find anything. So I took it to the dealer- the ABS was not set properly.
The other shop is very friendly- will pick up my truck have it done part way through the day- all without an appointment.
In the long run, the dealer is cheaper and does a good job.
The other shop is very friendly- will pick up my truck have it done part way through the day- all without an appointment.
In the long run, the dealer is cheaper and does a good job.
wroughtn_harv
Super Member
The good old days has always been there. I can remember all of us standing around complaining about the new cars in 78 while we helped a neighbor break loose a motor mount so he could jack up the engine in a big block 74 Firebird so he could change a spark plug. What was great about that was it turned out to be the spark plug wire after we installed the second new plug. It was about then that I had to do a valve job on a one year old Monte Carlo with a 3.8 V6. We all talked then about how all car engineers had mother in laws that were mechanics.
I've done a ton of work myself on my 2003 Duramax C5500. Because of that I've decided that things are only more difficult because things are built better and different, mostly different. It's like someone complaining about telephones today compared to yesterday.
I was in the woods in northern AZ this fall and had a bad case of nostalgia over a 65 Ford F250 that was all original including the El Dorado camper. I drove one through Vegas drinking a milkshake and eating a chesseburger because the owner thought it was the best way for me to learn how to multitask way back in 65. That top of the line F250 Custom Cab cost him $2,800.00 with his San Bernardino County employee discount. It was red and white. The comparable maxed out 2015 Ford today is about $65,000.00. But the old truck didn't have leather, ABS, huge diesel power, six speed automatic, four doors, wifi hot spot, and capable of safely towing 20,000 lbs. It couldn't run ten thousand between oil changes or have tires that could live over fifty thousand miles either.
I heard Click and Clack the other day tell a father that giving his daughter his 65 Mustang for her first car was insane. That's because the Mustang doesn't have airbags, abs, and all of the other safety stuff that might make the difference when she has that wreck.
The other day I noticed my wife's 2002 Bravada's overflow tank was rotted out around the neck. I assumed it was a $200.00 piece. I looked it up online and found one for about $50.00. I then called my local GM dealer and gave Ron the part number. It was there the next day and less than forty bucks. I had trouble figuring out what I had to take apart to replace it. Once I did that it was a piece of cake. Once again, it's like doing something on the computer, the biggest issue is operator ignorance.
I've done a ton of work myself on my 2003 Duramax C5500. Because of that I've decided that things are only more difficult because things are built better and different, mostly different. It's like someone complaining about telephones today compared to yesterday.
I was in the woods in northern AZ this fall and had a bad case of nostalgia over a 65 Ford F250 that was all original including the El Dorado camper. I drove one through Vegas drinking a milkshake and eating a chesseburger because the owner thought it was the best way for me to learn how to multitask way back in 65. That top of the line F250 Custom Cab cost him $2,800.00 with his San Bernardino County employee discount. It was red and white. The comparable maxed out 2015 Ford today is about $65,000.00. But the old truck didn't have leather, ABS, huge diesel power, six speed automatic, four doors, wifi hot spot, and capable of safely towing 20,000 lbs. It couldn't run ten thousand between oil changes or have tires that could live over fifty thousand miles either.
I heard Click and Clack the other day tell a father that giving his daughter his 65 Mustang for her first car was insane. That's because the Mustang doesn't have airbags, abs, and all of the other safety stuff that might make the difference when she has that wreck.
The other day I noticed my wife's 2002 Bravada's overflow tank was rotted out around the neck. I assumed it was a $200.00 piece. I looked it up online and found one for about $50.00. I then called my local GM dealer and gave Ron the part number. It was there the next day and less than forty bucks. I had trouble figuring out what I had to take apart to replace it. Once I did that it was a piece of cake. Once again, it's like doing something on the computer, the biggest issue is operator ignorance.
Gary Fowler
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If you think cars are bad, just try working on a Goldwing motorcycle. I was just looking at how to change the sub-air filters and you have to remove nearly all of the fairings front and both sides just to get to them and they are supposed to be changed yearly. It would take a whole afternoon to just remove and replace the plastic components for a 5 minute job of replacing a $2 filter. One has to do the same thing to replace a headlight bulb also.
DarkBlack
Elite Member
You're lucky your brakes work at all on a 2003 Silverado in a snow-salt state. Most of that year, rust and blow out brake lines. If that doesn't happen, the idiotic positioned, under chassis mounted ABS unit ( $800 unit hanging under vehicle) and pump usually rusts and fails. If not that, your cheap Chinese steel rotors usually rust and delaminate, destroying themselves. You must have got one of the only good ones.
OP
vulcancowboy
Gold Member
Just had to have the brake lines & fuel lines replaced on my '03 Silverado 2500, decided not to tackle it myself, cost just over $1100. The darn chemicals they use in the winter here are awful.
CowboyRon
Platinum Member
I've got almost 300,000 miles on my 02 Silverado 2500 hd brakes. I bought the truck with 70,000 miles and I assume they were the original brakes.
