DIY vehicle fixes

[Guigz]

good then make that point and not that shop are crooks because they cost more than you. really? who would have thought it so.

My accountant use turbo tax and input numbers like monkey can but I pay him for a bit more than that and I don't call him a crook because I can buy turbo tax for $19.99 and input numbers on my own if I want to waste my time.

Did you pay your accountant 500$ for the service? No, you did not because there is another guy around the corner that will do it for way less.

The problem with mechanics is that there is price fixing and insufficient competition and the general public is not informed enough to be able to argue with the mechanic.

To give you an example, I recently went to a tire shop to get tires put on my rims. When I got there, the mechanic tried to convince me that the tires that I had purchased (at another shop) were not "strong enough" to support the weight of the vehicle and would be dangerous to put on. I had checked my facts before ordering the tires, of course, and both the speed and load rating of the tires were over that recommended for my car. To further ridicule the mechanic, he pointed to the speed rating (T, i.e., 190KM/H) instead of the load rating (the number on the sidewall) to argue his point. He is a freaking tire mechanic and has no clue that the letter is the speed rating and the number the load rating??! Gimme a break! Anyway, I never went there again....


Although it is not a fix, per say, I do recommend changing your own tires yourself. For a minimal investment (less than 100$ and 4 steel rims) you can save the cost of having your tires changed every 6 months. For me it also saves time as it takes less than even driving to the nearest garage (20 minutes) nevermind the 60 minutes wait time at the garage and the 20 minutes drive back....

[thundershock]

It really comes down to if you are lazy or not to do DIY fixes for your car.
If you do then it's great, you save a lot of money on labour and learn a thing or two about proper car maintenance since you will probably be driving your whole life anyways.

But if you don't have the time/tools/equipment/etc, then definitely shop around. You'd be amazed what say five different shops would quote you for something like timing belt replacement. I've had quotes from 400-2200 just for a Honda Civic. I know the saying that you get what you pay for but even a simple googling can save you a lot of money on quotes.

I think most people go to dealerships instead because the local shops are often thought of as crooks (not saying dealerships are or are not) and yes I have had experience with local shops ripping me off on things. I understand the overhead and fixed costs of running a business but you can't tell me there's a 500 dollar difference for job A when the another shop down the street can do the same job.

[kcowan]

I had shopped around for vehicle repairs and found a body shop in Richmond Hill that was a value leader. Whenever the teenage boys had another oops, I would get an estimate from that shop and then dutifully drive over to Markham to get the other two. They were always 20% higher.

[chriswh86]

Fixing your own car is a good way to save money. Many small jobs can be done at home in the garage or driveway.

After doing this for 40 years may I offer a couple of tips?

Buy a good repair manual. Parts stores sell them specific to your car, but the best one is from the car dealer, the one their mechanics use. You can order them from the dealer but they are expensive like over $100. The parts store ones are smaller and less detailed but only $20 or $30.

The public library has repair books if you don't want to spend the money. Check out the book or photocopy the pages you need, that way you don't worry about getting their book greasy.

Second tip, today's cars will run an amazing long time with minimal upkeep as long as you follow the manufacturer's maintenance schedule. Read your owner's manual and go by that. You may be amazed to find you only need to change the oil half as often or less, as what the oil change place says.

One tip that saved me a bundle was in my 1996 Dodge Caravan owner's manual. It said, change the alternator brushes at 150,000 KM. Sure enough, at 180,000 KM the alternator light came on. I bought new brushes for $14 and installed them in 1/2 hour without taking the alternator off. If I had not read the book I would have been stuck for a new alternator at $320 plus labor.

I know people who follow their owners manual to the letter and have driven 300,000 or 400,000 KM with no major repairs. They even have their brake fluid changed (look in the book). When they need a brake job it's $40 for a set of pads not $700 for pads, rotors and calipers.

So, dig the owners manual out of the glove box and read the section on maintenance, it is only 2 or 3 pages. And get a repair manual. Good luck.

Nailed it. I just bought 3 ford repair manuals for my 09 ford sport trac. They are HUGE books, the 3 together are about 6-8" high. Anyways, for the $100 i spent on them (they are the books ford mech's use) you can basically save that $100 on your first oil change!! I plan to get a hanes manual as well as more content to read. Having manuals over your stock manual is a good idea. Check with your dealer ship and try to find out what book the dealer mechanics use, then check ebay. I got my books barely used, which saved a lot of money even with shipping from the US.

C,