Date: Mon, 29 Jun 1998 05:47:36 -0700
Reply-To: Steven Johnson <sjohnson@CALWEB.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <Vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: Steven Johnson <sjohnson@CALWEB.COM>
Subject: Re: Another dumb newbie request
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Kristin Dewey <Goldenroad@AOL.COM> wrote:
>Could you possibly run down a basic list of stuff (just stuff in general) that
>I really need to have my German car mechanic fix, as opposed to stuff I can
>have Ricardo down at the corner repair shop do for me...??? (Or direct me to
>where such a list exists...If I've overlooked it)
Hi Kristin,
That's a pretty good question. If I can't do the maintenance thing on
my van ('91 Camper) I tend to want to take it to the German mechanic
rather than your run-of-the-mill brand X shop. Why? Because most
Brand X shops are just that and they tend to be good at the basic
"get-em-through-and-outta-here-fast" things like lube & oil shops.
So if they get a vehicle with a "real" problem, they'll do the job
but charge you lots of $$$ for the job so you won't want to bring
that kind of job to them again, or they'll just give it the sunshine
treatment, and say they couldn't find a problem.
Now, I'm not saying 'all' brand X shops are that way. I'm just
saying that that is the way most of them seem to be IMHO.
If you still want to use brand X shops, then I would keep the
maintenance items simple, like the lube and oil stuff. Brakes
and some of the suspension stuff isn't much different from
regular cars so they can do that stuff to.
When it comes to the tune-up stuff, it's so simple, you should
really learn how to do it yourself. Changing the plugs, cap,
rotor and air cleaner are a snap. The oil change is a breeze.
You should also learn to, at least, bleed and add coolant to the
cooling system. Why? Because the system is always subject to
air getting in the system. And because it's such an easy job to
do yourself, that you don't want to have to be paying a mechanic
to do it every time you need to which might be as often as once
a month, depending on how tight your cooling system is. If it
has to be done more often than that, you have a leak and it needs
to be sought out and fixed.
How do you learn to do this stuff? Get a Bentley & a Haynes manual
and *read* the sections that you need to do the work you need to
do. Consult the FAQs. Check the list archives. Consult this
list asking more specific questions with detailed descriptions
of your issues and problems.
>I'm looking forward to learning how to change the oil, so I don't suspect I'll
>be ready for many self-repair projects any time soon, and I'd like to start
>figuring out how to economize where I can. It appears from what I've seen on
>this list, that I'm gonna need to be saving my money, but I don't want to,
>what's that saying? Cut off my nose to spite my face? Something like that.
If you want to save money, learn to do the basic maintenance items yourself.
Doing them yourself will return your investment in tools and books in a
very short time. Like, the first time you do a tune-up. Also, doing
these simpler things allows you to become more familiar with other parts
of the van. That's what experienced mechanics are. More familiar with
vehicles. And the more you know, the more you are able to deal with
the different types of issues/problems that come up.
*Important* Don't Be Afraid To Do Your Own Maintenance!
Why pay the guy at the Brand X garage to screw up your car, when you
can do it yourself for free? :)
>Hey, someone's gotta be the token newbie, and it may as well be someone who
>doesn't know crap about cars, much less Vanagons...right!!?? Any tips would be
>appreciated.
Hey, we all had to start at some time in our lives. Don't let the
experienced folks fool you. They make mistakes and are still learning
too. They just don't always volunteer that information so readily... :)
>
>(And all you old guys can stop rolling your eyes and saying "Je-sus" right
>now, you hear me?) (And I'll have none of those "How many Kristin's does it
>take to screw in a light bulb jokes either!)
Okay, how about....Why did the newbie cross the street??? .... ;)
>Um.. Thanks...
Um.. You're welcome....
Steven
Sacramento, CA
sjohnson@calweb.com
