What are you working on today?

[michaelluscher]

Neatened some zip ties and routing of this TSB coolant hose on the Fusion, swapped the worm drive clamp for a constant tension
...watch it leak

Some of the wiring harness retainers crumbled, and the wiring harness was too close to exhaust for my comfort
So some 3M tape and zip ties seems to have it routed safe

12 volt wiring on the xB
Can't get the starter kill relay to work right

 

[Stimp]

Changed the spark plugs in our Buick Lacrosse at 99304 mi. Taking the intake manifold off wasn't as bad as it looks, and the rear plugs were easy to do after removing it. Iridium plugs should be good for another 100k. It also got a new air filter, and oil+filter, and the throttle body got a thorough cleaning.

 

[Creekside]

Yesterday I had an interesting problem. Sent a new guy(worlds best mining equipment tech per his resume ) to do a tuneup on a newer Hyster forklift with a 2.4 Mitsubishi. He promptly over tightened one of the plugs and pulled the ceramic and electrode out of it. Ended up making this extractor extension out an old hex roller shaft. 1/4-20 set screw locks the extractor into the shaft and I turned it with a 11/16” socket on a ratchet. After a couple tries to get it to bite the piece of spark plug backed right out. Talk about a lifesaver. In all my years as a technician I’ve never had to extract a plug or broke one till now.

 

[Tomioka]

Finished the water pump replacement on the 2011 Scion xD. Got a bit frustrated when I had to pull the engine mount to drop the engine. The WP shaft got hung up on the engine so it had to come down to come off.

Did find out it had the wrong belt on (owner replaced it w/ the alternator just recently). Judging by the old witness marks on the tensioning bolt it's supposed to have the shorter belt and that varies where the vehicle was assembled.

 

[AutoMechanic]

Yesterday: took the cover off the Beetle and let it air out. Hopefully can work on it at some point. Also went to dads truck and we are going to replace the track bars I think they are called? Never heard of them but he was having problems with the rear end and that was the issue so I’m going to put new ones on. Planned on completing repair yesterday however couldn’t locate my 15/16 wrench at home. I’ve got one at work just couldn’t find my home one. After some deep searching in my many large deep totes I finally found one so now I have the proper tool to complete the repair. My wrench sets in my toolbox and tool cart at home only go up to 7/8 so I keep the bigger ones separate as there is no room in my box. Glad I found it so I don’t have to buy another one.

Today: do that repair on dads truck and need to change the oil in moms car. Also need to do my truck but that can wait longer I guess it’s already waited 4 months lol. I don’t drive it so it doesn’t matter I guess. We are probably going to relax today and do the repairs tomorrow since we are all off for Labor Day. Mom wants to go on a drive today and I do too and grill out and drink. So the repairs for today might wait till tomorrow honestly lol.

 

[D60]

Yesterday: took the cover off the Beetle and let it air out. Hopefully can work on it at some point. Also went to dads truck and we are going to replace the track bars I think they are called? Never heard of them but he was having problems with the rear end and that was the issue so I’m going to put new ones on. Planned on completing repair yesterday however couldn’t locate my 15/16 wrench at home. I’ve got one at work just couldn’t find my home one. After some deep searching in my many large deep totes I finally found one so now I have the proper tool to complete the repair. My wrench sets in my toolbox and tool cart at home only go up to 7/8 so I keep the bigger ones separate as there is no room in my box. Glad I found it so I don’t have to buy another one.

Today: do that repair on dads truck and need to change the oil in moms car. Also need to do my truck but that can wait longer I guess it’s already waited 4 months lol. I don’t drive it so it doesn’t matter I guess. We are probably going to relax today and do the repairs tomorrow since we are all off for Labor Day. Mom wants to go on a drive today and I do too and grill out and drink. So the repairs for today might wait till tomorrow honestly lol.

You should be able to get away with 24mm also.
15/16" = ~.938"
24mm = ~.944"

 

[AutoMechanic]

You should be able to get away with 24mm also.
15/16" = ~.938"
24mm = ~.944"

Yeah I didn’t bring the 24 with me either and it didn’t occur to me until I found the 15/16 that 24 may have worked . I have a few more 24s than 15/16 haha.

 

[hrv]

Nothing my 2021 Honda Hrv is running great....

 

[BrianF]

So I had forgot to mention that after installing the rear axle on my Magnum, there was some side to side play that I couldn't account for. The rear brake rotor stabilized it but I knew something was amiss. Looked over the parts diagram and disassembly pictures.

Turns out I threw away a spacer that goes between the innermost axle tube bearing and the lock ring on the axle. Everything was coated in rusty penatrant and I mistook it for an inner bearing race. You can see it to the right of the axle tube bearing races on the axle shaft. It's part 28 in the diagram.

Well, 11:30 last night I jumped into the dumpster and dug around, finding it in a few minutes. I'll clean it up and reinstall it today or tomorrow.

 

[SHOZ]

Was trimming trees along the pond bank until it got too hot. Easement that hasn't been touched in 25 years. Overgrown mulberries for the most part. I need to lower the berm level a foot or so here as when they put it in they forced flash flooding across my property. Only took me 25 years to realize this.

 

[Tomioka]

Finally fixed my interior door grab handles on the 02 Silverado.
Thanks to an ebay seller selling 3D printed replacements. 3 screws holding the piece to the handle and some epoxy to hold the repair together.

Broken piece next to 3D printed replacement. Showed how a small piece can be easily replaced vs replacing the whole grab handle or door panel.

 

[RAR]

Stripping parts off of an old 1999 Ford Crown Victoria and my old 1998 Mercury Grand Marquis. Parts guy at my local Irish themed parts chain store is interested in buying these hulks for derby use.

So I got busy stripping out radios, trim, door panels, switches, taillights, etc., for resale.

I’m also keeping the lace aluminum wheels as well. Good seller if nothing else.

I’ve got quite a list going, including two alternators and 4 airbags for whoever will buy them. Hot and sticky today, so I quit around noon.

I gave up on reviving these cars into a working one when I learned one was sunk in the water deeper than I knew (door handle high, so it’s junk), and the Mercury had see thru floors.

 

[HemiBenny]

Well I got to tear back into the front brakes on the Chrysler. While driving it there was a rattle coming from the front when you drove over bumps. The brakes feel great,..but that darn rattle.
Anyway, I noticed that the Aftermarket pads for the front came with hardware that wasn’t identical to OE. The rear pads had identical hardware, but for some reason the front didn’t. They fit great, but for some reason the hardware allowed the pads to move just enough to rattle once everything was together. I cleaned up the OE hardware and reused it as much as I hate reusing hardware. After putting the OE hardware back on, the rattle is completely gone.
Gotta love the crapshoot that is using aftermarket parts. All it takes is one little piece out of the whole set to drive you nuts.

Left side is OE and the right side is aftermarket.

 

[nthach]

View attachment 176753

Same thing happened to me with Akebono pads on a Honda. Ended up using the OE clips after a date with a wire brush.

 

[AutoMechanic]

Since today is a paid holiday for me I’ll probably put those torque rods on dads truck now that I have located my at home 15/16 wrench. Then maybe do the overdue oil change on the truck or do some work around the house since we are all off today.

 

[demarpaint]

I started out today with it's a holiday, so no work was the theme. But I moved vehicles around straightened up the garage and got ready for a brake job tomorrow, and an oil change for my wife's 08 Liberty.

 

[HemiBenny]

Same thing happened to me with Akebono pads on a Honda. Ended up using the OE clips after a date with a wire brush.

When I noticed that the clips weren’t the same, I almost used the OE clips because I’m big on things being exactly the same when it goes back together. Well I convinced myself that the new ones will probably be ok,….boy was I wrong. I should have known better. Oh well, if that’s the worse thing that happens to me, I’ve got it made.
I just hope the pads and rotors last half as long as the OE equipment did. It probably won’t, but we’ll see.

 

[wander2039]

Cooling systems.. Gave the Festiva a good burping. Sensor for the gauge is off though. IR thermometer says the temp is perfect though.

Finally remembered to flush the Dakota.. heater core and all. Haven't had good heat since I got it and always forget! Not this year. Back flushed it numerous times and CLR'd. Put everything back together and have some dishwashing soap in it now. Really good heat now.. on. 90 degree day Perfect timing.

Not sure if I'll get to the steam hose on the RV.

 

[meep]

2015 crv.

installed element3 brake pads all the way around. took the ridge off while sanding the rotor surfaces, inside and out, with a belt sander. Just hold it flat and let it spin the rotor for a minute, flip it over, screw it down and do it again. These rotors were in excellent shape and could be reused. wire brushed and painted the inside and outside of the rotor hats, put anti-seize on the hub flange.

at 85,000, the oem pads still had 1/4 of their life left, but the caliper slides on one rear unit were stuck and unhappy. The rear pads are tiny but had less life left in them. Fortunately I caught it before any damage was done. After a good bit of going through everything, mostly cleaning and re-greasing, new pads and an extra generous brake bleed (full bottle of dot 3), it drove nicely, much improved pedal feel with a buttery tip-in and notably more bite.

my wife took the wheel for a food run and she could tell the difference. This was probably one of the least-drama brake days I’ve done, minus the clips and shims on the rear calipers - that’s probably the worst collection of interconnecting pads, shims, and springs I’ve ever worked with. Reassembly was difficult. all said, and done, a good day.

 

[robertcope]

This weekend...

Recently purchased a 2011 Range Rover. I love it. But it appears to have failed on me. Air Suspension Control Module reports only 0.980V to a sensor that should get 5V. Measuring the circuit, it is getting 5V, so... pretty sure the module is hosed.

My wife's 2008 Rabbit's AC failed. Must have a leak in it, as it had very little refrigerant in it. Refilled and it blows cold. Will have to find the leak, but couldn't find my sniffing tool.

My 2012 Expedition had a window just... explode. I assume it was the heat we've been having, since nothing else was around when it happened (I have cameras). I really appreciate how stupidly easy the Ford is to get parts for and fix. $250 or so for a window and about 45m of labor.

Whew.