Amazing incompetence of a mechanic

[TechnoLoGs]

The S10 drama continues. Let me share what I got in a text, from the guy at Body Mechanic in Collingdale that is doing the job on my S10:

(retyped text message, received this morning)
That car was a bit [censored] up. The distributor wasn't tight. Could move with little effort Ca on crooked. Rotor hitting cap. No fan shroud. Missing clamp for air cleaner. No Trans shield. Exhaust had no springs. Just straight bolts rammed into and crushing donuts on y pipe. If it can't flex it will brake. Trans dip stick not bolted and bent. fan has a bent blade To much stuff to mention. I made a list it is at the garage. Pulled motor Sunday night. Going to need Exhaust spring kit and some other small stuff. There is only one factory Trans bolt. The rest are 5 grade. Where the originals go. I never seen something hacked that badly. You sure this guy was a mechanic.

Discuss ...

 

[Voltmaster]

Either hes trying to fix it to factory spec ( with all OEM parts ) which is ridiculous, or he really thinks your stupid enough to empty your bank account for him.

Or Sunday night he had a bit too much to drink before touching your car.

 

[crazyoildude]

Maybe he is the kind of guy that wants things done right because if these things go bad you may come back to him and say its his fault...On the other hand he could just want more money!

 

[eljefino]

One tradesman slamming another has been going on since the start of time.

However since this guy is "on paper" and standing behind his work I think you have a better shot.

He even communicates pretty well and lets you know you're out another $20 in miscellany.

 

[Thermo1223]

Well grade 5 bolts where grade 8 should go is a red flag to me.

The other stuff maybe small but I can see where he is coming from. You want your work to be right. I was asked to just fix the misfiring but I couldn't leave it at that.

A non-english speaking co-worker had a 2.0 Jetta that you could smell a mile away and hear as it misfired. To have it start everyday in that condition is a testament to the 2.0 VW motor.

I offered to scan it since I had vag-com. I even priced out parts and my labor to get it to pass inspection & emissions. It was a long list to do it right. He never agreed even after getting someone to explain to him how a tank of gas will last longer, his parking brake would work, his ABS would work, the engine wouldn't misfire. His A/C I might have been able to get working.

He rather just keep filling it with gas & oil since it leaked.

 

[yonyon]

It sounds like your new mechanic is not used to working on things that have been so hacked up. Back in the days before I started working in the ghetto I would have put that all on paper to be signed off on by you before beginning any work. There are too many stories about shops getting sued over pre-existing conditions.

I don't think you can blame the bent fan on your previous mechanic though. It was like that when you took the picture trying to get the belt routed.

 

[TechnoLoGs]

I, for one, an excited. I texted him back/forth, and we have a few developments:

1. The engine is coming from Clearwater Auto Parts, out of Minnesota. Is in New Castle, DE now, and is expected to be delivered to Media, PA tomorrow.
*by the way, this place had 3 1993 4.3s. So, so much for 1994 and 1995 Frankenengines, I was advised that you basically havd to take it down to a short block, then bolt up. More cost. Avoided.

2. I "tested" him by asking what kind of motor oil he would put in the engine, if it were his. Since we are all BITOGers here.

His reply, please pick apart/peruse: "I would put 10W-30 in there since that is what the bearing clearances call for and the manufacturer specified."

Doesn't sound too bad.

So this doesnt sound too too bad...

This engine WOULD have lasted, had the oil not gone out a bum dipstick housing.

Have to go all the way with this one. Ironically enough, he too has a Ford R150 that will be transporting the engine from Media, PA to Collingdale.

 

[Doog]

I never seen something hacked that badly. You sure this guy was a mechanic.


sometimes the truth hurts.....I don't think the guy is lying.

 

[NHGUY]

Remember,if they cant graduate high school,their only chance (they think) of making money and making a living out of it (as opposed to dead end McDonalds jobs) is to become a grease monkey.Awww....OBD? ABS? Air Bags? Hybrids? I dont need to stinkin know about those..I just want to work on the older stuff...there are still millions of 1960s/70s/80s vehicles out there....Yup,I can fix those,I can..

 

[Doog]

Originally Posted By: TechnoLoGs

This engine WOULD have lasted, had the oil not gone out a bum dipstick housing.


Just a word of advice: When changing a engine or doing major work or even an oil change. Start the engine after the specified work and let it sit and run until warmed. Then rev the warmed engine to 3-4000 rpm a few times. Then exit vehicle and with a trouble light inspect the running engine and look underneath for any leaks. Then take it around the block giving it some strong throttle. Stop and with the engine still running, inspect for leaks again. This is SOP for me for any work that involves oil or coolant.

You would have probably noticed your oil leak and been able to repair it before you fubared that previous engine.

 

[TheBig2003]

Originally Posted By: Doog

Then rev the warmed engine to 3-4000 rpm a few times.

-1

Amongst all the ASE top mechanics that I know, none of them have said that that is a good idea. That is a jiffy-lube or oil changers [censored] move. You should be able to see a leak without having to rev the engine. Take it for a short drive and that is more than enough.

 

[TechnoLoGs]

Originally Posted By: TheBig2003
Originally Posted By: Doog

Then rev the warmed engine to 3-4000 rpm a few times.

-1

Amongst all the ASE top mechanics that I know, none of them have said that that is a good idea. That is a jiffy-lube or oil changers [censored] move. You should be able to see a leak without having to rev the engine. Take it for a short drive and that is more than enough.


If its fully warmed I don't see how it could hurt anything??

I have taken engines up super high at park by using the throttle cable and only one guy gave me the "stare of death" like it would hurt his engine.

 

[yonyon]

You also didn't see how hammering away at a couple of pistons to unstick them could hurt anything. Really, there wasn't anything wrong with doing that given the circumstances. It could have worked (and maybe it did) but it's not the sort of thing to make a habit of. Revving without a load is like that. Sometimes you have to do it, but don't make a habit of it.

You need to get the engine speed up sometimes, but if it's just to check for leaks, get out on the road and do it under load.

 

[95busa]

Dude sounds legit

 

[QuadDriver]

personally, if the engine work involved freshly replaced lubed parts like bearings and valve train thingies and perhaps a piston/ring set or too, Id leave the revving part off until it went thru a couple heating/cooling cycles.

and I would not even start it until I was sure it was properly primed

I swear the meaning of 'properly' above escapes most mechanics, 'specially on chevy motors.

(Im normally not so negative but I just finished rebuilding a ranger with a 9 month old rebuild that was not properly primed)

 

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: Doog
Originally Posted By: TechnoLoGs

This engine WOULD have lasted, had the oil not gone out a bum dipstick housing.


Just a word of advice: When changing a engine or doing major work or even an oil change. Start the engine after the specified work and let it sit and run until warmed. Then rev the warmed engine to 3-4000 rpm a few times. Then exit vehicle and with a trouble light inspect the running engine and look underneath for any leaks. Then take it around the block giving it some strong throttle. Stop and with the engine still running, inspect for leaks again. This is SOP for me for any work that involves oil or coolant.

You would have probably noticed your oil leak and been able to repair it before you fubared that previous engine.


I always start the engine, watch the oil pressure gauge go to normal and then look under the engine and around filter for leaks.

 

[dwcopple]

Originally Posted By: TechnoLoGs
it will brake.
I hate it when people don't know the difference between brake and break. Friggin' local Ford dealership has a sign for "break special", it's special all right...

 

[TechnoLoGs]

The engine arrived yesterday and is now being dropped off to the truck. Body Mechanix, Collingdale PA.

So its no longer on the LTL freight ship from Minnesota, it is here in PA, and is where the S10 is.

 

[armos]

Quote:
That car was a bit [censored] up. The distributor wasn't tight. Could move with little effort Ca on crooked. Rotor hitting cap. No fan shroud. Missing clamp for air cleaner. No Trans shield. Exhaust had no springs. Just straight bolts rammed into and crushing donuts on y pipe. If it can't flex it will brake. Trans dip stick not bolted and bent. fan has a bent blade To much stuff to mention. I made a list it is at the garage. Pulled motor Sunday night. Going to need Exhaust spring kit and some other small stuff. There is only one factory Trans bolt. The rest are 5 grade. Where the originals go. I never seen something hacked that badly. You sure this guy was a mechanic.


Originally Posted By: TechnoLoGs

2. I "tested" him by asking what kind of motor oil he would put in the engine, if it were his. Since we are all BITOGers here.

His reply, please pick apart/peruse: "I would put 10W-30 in there since that is what the bearing clearances call for and the manufacturer specified."

Doesn't sound too bad.

Sounds like a classic dealer mechanic. Everything by the book, no shortcuts, and money is no object. Reminds me of my grandfather, who was a mechanic for a tractor company - he would have said the same things this mechanic said.
My dad is basically the opposite, being a shadetree all his life. It's the difference between making things work on your own budget, vs making them perfect on someone else's budget and your employer's reputation.

Mechanics aren't really oil experts, nor is that subject really cut and dry, so a question like that doesn't disqualify anybody's competence at repair. But his response reinforces the notion that he goes by the book.

I don't know the back story of this vehicle, or how much of that stuff can be attributed to whoever worked on it last.
But if the stuff he said is true, then whoever is responsible sounds like a hack who really didn't know what they were doing. Bad work by anyone's standards, shadetree or not. Subpar bolts in the transmission and the way the exhaust is mounted pretty much say it all. At that point the miscellaneous loose and missing parts are almost a foregone conclusion. Whoever it was doesn't sound like somebody who should be selling their services for money.

 

[jeepman3071]

I think this guy should do good work. I'd ALWAYS rather have a guy that does things by the book. You will know it is done correctly, especially considering what happened with the other engine.