Fixing Colleagues' Cars

[Tayne]

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[simmo]

Have done my fair share of freebie car related favours but I think the trick is to be a bit mercenary and do favours for other trades. Through nieghbours and work I have had exchange Household Electrical, Corgi (whatever it is now) Gas repairs, TV/electronic repairs and loads of chippy stuff (woodwork not with cod). Although at one stage while I was living in Hillingdon I was getting free Kebabs for fixing their Jag but you can have too much of a bad thing.

[Pillock]

MECHANIK REQ. WORKWILL FIX UR CAR FOR KEBABS.

[simmo]

Hey I was eighteen at the time and a high percentage of my disposable income was going on Babs and Hofmiester

[Pillock]

Wasn't knocking you, I'd have done the same!Heck, I'd do a timing belt for a fishcake.

[Minimad5]

I am gonna do Pog's timing belt in a couple of weeks

Good luck !Hope the info i sent Pog was right.

[simmo]

Wasn't knocking you, I'd have done the same!Heck, I'd do a timing belt for a fishcake.

No worries, I think you must have my measure I used to have a doctored version of the Windows Code tramp on my desk, if thats what the reference was

[Pete-M]

Out of interest: anyone know what these things are? some sort of solenoids?

Depends on the age of the 3. Mine's got these weird fan type jobs on that seem to spray a lot wider than normal ones do.Oh, and some P38s and Classic Range Rovers do have heated washer jets. Most Fords with heated screens have 'em as well.

[Tayne]

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[j-j]

Out of interest: anyone know what these things are? some sort of solenoids?

Depends on the age of the 3. Mine's got these weird fan type jobs on that seem to spray a lot wider than normal ones do.Oh, and some P38s and Classic Range Rovers do have heated washer jets. Most Fords with heated screens have 'em as well.

It's an early 2000s car - say '03? I thought that they were the cause of the water not coming out as the pump was clearly operating. Stumped tbh - I wonder if she ever got it fixed.No sooner have I mentioned this in the thread than I'm assisting someone again today! I stopped in at a big ASDA for lunchville and there's this 2003 Polo doing the not starting thing. I go to get grub and when I get back the guy calls over "scuse me mate - wouldn't have any jump leads on you"? I said yes, sure do but that I don't think they'd help coz the battery and starter were good - it was churning over quick sharp. Uh - Oh! I've already said too much. He's an Asian guy and has the wife an kids and all the shopping in there - in the back of my mind there's the old: "give it a quick look and if all else phailz make your 'sorrys' and exit post haste"So open the bonnet to be confronted with the usual new car thing of everything worth looking at being covered in black plastic with lovely big shiny VW badge and 16v badge - all very pretty but no use to quickly establishing what's what and the like. I ask him to switch the ignition on to listen for a petrol pump noise - there it is. I ask him if he knows where the fuse box is and he hasn't a clue (not even sure he knows what a fb is tbh)I first check in the glove box - nowt, next under the dash - nowt an return to the engine. I realise that the anonymous black box I had my hand on was actually the battery! and after flipping it's lid up discovered the fuses are in there all 3 of them! all fine too. There are some beefy cables with fused connectors so chacked and all good.After some more unsuccessful cranking I give the exhaust a sniff - reeks of petrol so in the absence of pulling out a spark plug (wtf even are they? - can't see one) I reckoned there was no ignition going on. Gave every connector a push and wriggle. Unclipped the ECU which was quite warm to check its connectors and make sure it was not overheating and replaced. I suspected it might now be flooded so waited a good while when he told me he'd had an engine light and had it reset ( I asked If he'd been to a VW dealer for that but he looked blank - ?) Finally gave it a try starting once more and there were a few thuds of combustion! waited, try again and it immediately fired up and ran fine.Thank Allah! I was wondering how I was going to get out of this one if the thing wouldn't go! but there it was.Told him it really needs hooked up to a Proxia (or whatever) at a dealer to find out what's going on - suggested the usual suspects of MAP sensor or Exhaust gas sensor.So again, I find myself helping motorists in need! and oddly this time it was someone who approached ME! not me offering to help. Anyway, I keep noticing Range Rover Freelanders on the hard shoulder - saw 2 on the M6 last summer and several elsewhere. Just wondering for future reference if anyone on here knows what might be the weak spot on these in case I come to the aid of a fit blonde who's Freelander just chucked it?

[pogweasel]

Anyway, I keep noticing Range Rover Freelanders on the hard shoulder - saw 2 on the M6 last summer and several elsewhere. Just wondering for future reference if anyone on here knows what might be the weak spot on these in case I come to the aid of a fit blonde who's Freelander just chucked it?

K-series. No further comment required.

[Tayne]

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[Andrew353w]

MANY years ago I was called and asked to diagnose a B.M.W.'s problem over the phone. Diagnosing any car over the phone is not exactly a precise science at the best of times. After all, you wouldn't ring your doctor & expect him to know what's wrong with you without seeing you, would you? No matter, I listened to the tale of wow, and diagnosed a blown head gasket, but with the priviso that this was without actually seeing the car. The owner schleps off to the local B.M.W. dealer & informs the service manager the head gasket's gone west & would they change it & carry out associated work. They did... The head gasket was perfectly O.K., or it was until they took it off, but the water pump had a detached impeller, so they changed the water pump-a fairly easy job in itself. The bill made 4 figures and the guy slagged me unmercifully! You can't win sometimes!And that's why I don't diagnose over the phone any more (or fix B.M.W.'s!)

[j-j]

K-series. No further comment required.

-seriously? I didn't realise these used that lump. O, well - not exactly a 'side of the road' fix doing a HG. Well I'll maybe still stop at the next Freel I see and be dead helpful with "it'll be the HG or the intermediate drive babe, see ya! fancy a drink l8r? - I'll buy coz you'll have some serious purse pounding* for the repairs! 8pm at wetherspoonz?"

(or fix B.M.W.'s!)

Why? is this the only car where the water pump impeller can come off?*Giggity!

[Andrew353w]

Why? is this the only car where the water pump impeller can come off?No, but it seems to be the only make of car owned by w**nkers who blame a mechanic who hadn't seen the car & did his diagnosis on that basis. Not ALL B.M.W. owners have that attitude (although I've yet to meet one who hasn't.....)

[pogweasel]

Not ALL B.M.W. owners have that attitude (although I've yet to meet one who hasn't.....)

[ChinaTom]

^ +1

[Andrew353w]

Unreserved apology to all Autoshiters for any offence caused by my remarks referring to B.M.W. owners or drivers! No Autoshiter would ever exhibit the behavioural characteristics I have suggested, regardless of the vehicle they own.As this is my favourite forum I have no wish to incur the wrath of "the management"!

[pogweasel]

Forgiven.

[j-j]

Forgiven.

+1Though tbh, noone was in my 'bad books' but I can't let a comment generalising a whole brand based on one incident - I have heard it So many times wrt my beloved Citroëns.Anyhoo - my question now is:If someone asks you to help with their car trouble - should you? how far should you go before you risk being blamed for something?Just curious what the shiter approach iz

[Andrew353w]

The caveats implied by my earlier comments not withstanding I STILL can't resist "having a go" when asked to assist! In fact the current Mrs. H dreads me discussing car stuff on the phone as this inevitably leads to me whizzing off to help someone. Half of this is me just wanting to help and the other half is not wanting to see a garage rip off a mechanically ignorant, but otherwise a decent human being, which sadly does still happen.

[Danblez]

I dont generally go anywhere near anything in the modern category as it makes me realise how little I know.Whilst driving across Europe in the summer I did stop to help (well attempt) two stranded motorists in Germany. The first was an english Mondeo so thought I would help out my fellow country man.The back back had snapped off and got caught under the car so I got got under the car and tried to get it out whilst asking where they were from. Neither spoke much english and what they did had a stong eastern european accent. After 5 minutes scrabbling around on the floor and managing to detach it and put it in the boot I told them they would be safe to carry on. Blokey didnt take his eys off the bumper which had been pushed off on one corner ond not a single attempt at thanks.Great, a burnt arm and filthy pants and not even a thanks.Next one was a German bloke who had boiled over, we stopped saying we had got water if he needed some and after a 2 minute rant from him waving his arms and shouting we just drove off.We didnt stop for anyone else after that.

[mouseflakes]

I once welded a workmate's Mk1 Fiesta to save him the cost of some repairs - but I forgot to re-attach the connections on the alternator after I'd finshed. It gets worse - on the way home (he obviously didn't spot the charge light) the plastic shroud on the (disconnected) spade connector melted on the exhaust manifold and the wire shorted. He had to get recovered the last two miles. It cost more than the repairs would have done. I felt like a proper charlie. Still - it passed the MOT at least.I also agreed to do a 'quick' welded repair to the front valance a neighbour's Metro - only to find it had previously been brazed - horrible - I won't be doing that again.

[j-j]

ut I forgot to re-attach the connections on the alternator after I'd finshed. felt like a proper charlie.

Hey, at least you bothered to disconnect it prior to welding!