PanGasket
has cork sides
Here. reach into this and change the oil filter. This is on a Subaru WRX/STi. The newer ones are all like this too. I had to find this picture and show my buddy when he wanted one. His mind changed pretty quick
What the hell were the designers at Chrysler thinking
- Thread starter plum crazy dart
- Start date
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GaryS
Well-Known Member
Guys, you've identified the problems, but not the cause. The vast majority of idiotic designs are the result of government regulations. Someday do a web search for auto industry regulations and see what all they control. It's jaw-dropping.
kt340sport
Well-Known Member
I had a really good friend , now passed away, call me one time , when i was working auto parts called me up and said the starter was gone in his Cadillac rear wheel drive i forget the engine size , but the starter was inside the engine , had to come apart to change it .Now that is engineering.
I remember in HS auto shop in the mid 80's trying to change the rear bank of plugs on a V6 gm FWD. Struggled with it for the entire morning, only to find out it was impossible without severe diss-assembly.
That and few other things, convinced me not to pursue a career in auto mechanics, despite already being ASE certified, and top of my class.
That and few other things, convinced me not to pursue a career in auto mechanics, despite already being ASE certified, and top of my class.
grimreaper
Cross Member
The neighbor lady had an Oldsmobile that needed a battery replaced. It was under the floor in the back seat.
65LoveAffair
Whovian
My wife and I have a 93 Camaro 3.4L V6. As previously noted, to change the rear bank of spark plugs, you have to unbolt the front of the engine and rack it forward to get at them. The firewall, and therefore the rear of the engine, is actually about six inches, possibly more, behind the front lip of the cowl. It's insane! We also needed to change the oil pan for the car at one point, and had to drop the entire exhaust to do this because it crossed under the pan. Not exactly the kind of DIY driveway repair I'm used to or comfortable with.
Earlier this year we had the timing belt, tensioner, water pump, and thermostat replaced on our 02 VW Passat GLX. This is what it looked like in the middle of that charlie foxtrot:
View attachment VWtimingbelt1.jpg
The entire front end of the car had to come off, or as VW calls it, it had to be put into the Service Position.
View attachment VWtimingbelt2.jpg
A closer look...
View attachment VWtimingbelt3.jpg
Closeup of the front of the engine while disassembled. I think someone else hit the proverbial nail on the head when they said that modern cars were built so that we would HAVE to take it in to the shop to be worked on. That's why I can't wait to get my Barracuda, so I'll have something to work on that I know I can do most of the work myself! On this VW, you have to disassemble the car like this just to change the THERMOSTAT! Nothing like a $300 repair bill just to replace your thermostat, right?
Earlier this year we had the timing belt, tensioner, water pump, and thermostat replaced on our 02 VW Passat GLX. This is what it looked like in the middle of that charlie foxtrot:
View attachment VWtimingbelt1.jpg
The entire front end of the car had to come off, or as VW calls it, it had to be put into the Service Position.
View attachment VWtimingbelt2.jpg
A closer look...
View attachment VWtimingbelt3.jpg
Closeup of the front of the engine while disassembled. I think someone else hit the proverbial nail on the head when they said that modern cars were built so that we would HAVE to take it in to the shop to be worked on. That's why I can't wait to get my Barracuda, so I'll have something to work on that I know I can do most of the work myself! On this VW, you have to disassemble the car like this just to change the THERMOSTAT! Nothing like a $300 repair bill just to replace your thermostat, right?
I have a new challenger and the battery is in the trunk.
Which is ok but there is no key to open the trunk, it is all electrically remote operated.
I hope they incorporated some sort of method to jump the car from under the hood, if the battery goes dead.
Which is ok but there is no key to open the trunk, it is all electrically remote operated.
I hope they incorporated some sort of method to jump the car from under the hood, if the battery goes dead.
MoparDaddy
Damn Right I Carry!
There should be a "jump" post under the hood
Good point. My wife's 2012 Journey has the battery located up inside the driver side front fender, behind the inner fender. When it needs replacing, I think I'll replace the car too.
)
plum crazy dart
Well-Known Member
Had a chrysler minivan today that the release for the spare was in the floor between the front seats, and that's where the spare is located. In the middle of the van.
moparmat2000
Well-Known Member
Intrepid, stratus, sebring, plymouth breeze, even the current crop of minivans were in the pipeline, or built long before fiat. The stratus /cirrus/ breeze with the shitty battery location even predates the diamler merger.
mikedevore
Well-Known Member
My wife's 300C has the battery in the trunk. I would rather have it there for wieght transfer.
I replaced it last winter, took about 10 minutes.
No reason not to drive late model MoPars. They are a blast.
Love the power of the HEMI.
Her 300C is quicker than my stock 1969 340 Dart was. 14.29 vs 14.80.
Handles great, love the comfort & 25MPG on top of that.
Saying there is no reason to drive late model MoPars is a copout.
Judging a car for where the battery is, doesn't make sense. NASCAR happens to put the battery behind the tire. guess it isn't a big deal with them.
I replaced it last winter, took about 10 minutes.
No reason not to drive late model MoPars. They are a blast.
Love the power of the HEMI.
Her 300C is quicker than my stock 1969 340 Dart was. 14.29 vs 14.80.
Handles great, love the comfort & 25MPG on top of that.
Saying there is no reason to drive late model MoPars is a copout.
Judging a car for where the battery is, doesn't make sense. NASCAR happens to put the battery behind the tire. guess it isn't a big deal with them.
ramenth
Gratis persona
plum crazy dart
Well-Known Member
Nothing wrong with in the trunk. A lot of high end cars have them there, it's better for the battery also. Nascar can also change the tires and fuel the car in 13 seconds. And they don't work in the rain and snow
bad440
everything,all the time..
ive gotten 300 bucks to change one of those.they look worse than they are,but yeah not very maintenance minded...
plum crazy dart
Well-Known Member
Vw's just plain suck to work on.
racerhog
RacerHog likes his Mopars
Hahahahahahahaha......Those are fun.....
rp23g7
Well-Known Member
Quit wrenching for car dealers in 95 or so. I worked for a Chrysler dealer in 95, or what ever year Chrysler took over Jeep/Eagle.
Those cars were total junk.
the only good jeep that didn't have issues was a 4 cyl, Wrangler, 4 speed, the others had Cat recalls, water pump bearing issues, the AWD mini vans had trans/transfer case/diff leaks not to mention the transmission issues they had.
The Eagles had master cylinders that seized and caused the brakes to drag, Monaco? What a joke of a car.
I had to replace the horns on a Cirrus or Stratus, I forget which. Book time said 2 hrs. WHAT????? I had to take out, the inner fender, the battery, the headlight, the radiator cooling fan, what a joke.
Those cars were total junk.
the only good jeep that didn't have issues was a 4 cyl, Wrangler, 4 speed, the others had Cat recalls, water pump bearing issues, the AWD mini vans had trans/transfer case/diff leaks not to mention the transmission issues they had.
The Eagles had master cylinders that seized and caused the brakes to drag, Monaco? What a joke of a car.
I had to replace the horns on a Cirrus or Stratus, I forget which. Book time said 2 hrs. WHAT????? I had to take out, the inner fender, the battery, the headlight, the radiator cooling fan, what a joke.
65LoveAffair
Whovian
I have to admit, though, the VW is MUCH easier to replace the spark plugs and wires on! There's no reaching, no jacking the engine up, no trying to squeeze my hand into a space designed for a 2 year old. It took me all of 15 minutes to change the plugs and wires. That was a really nice change. So, you win some and you lose some.
whiteeagle
Well-Known Member
I have seen that same thing on corsicas and another 1 or 2
Frankie
Member #9641
PCD said:
Apparently they weren't.
ramenth
Gratis persona
No different than the recall on the Mystiques and Contours. Paid out 2.5 hours. To drop the steering wheel, take out the instrument cluster, take off the glove box door, pull the dash down, drill holes in the dash, pull the padding tight, pop rivet the padding into place (hoping it didn't pop high enough to hit the windshield), stretch the padding back into place at the glove box and instrument cluster, pop rivet the padding into place and reinstall.
The guy who did them the most had it down to a science and it still took him five hours each one.
I had to do my share. Wasn't fun. And lost my *** on each one of them.
I always like the Ford F-series window motor replacement. No way of reaching into the door to get to it and with the time it paid, there was no way in hell of pulling the window and getting the regulator/motor out that way. Solution was to drill three 1/2" holes in three little dimples on the door frame and reach in with an 8mm 1/4 inch drive socket. At least they dimpled the frame where the bolts were, but wouldn't it have been easier to go ahead and stamp holes already?
And don't get me going on the damned hatch latch on the Explorers. Thank God for ratcheting wrenches.
Just replaced the IAC (idle air control) on my mom's 03 Dakota 3.9.
Even though it's right on top and easy to see...
There's just barely enough room to get a torx socket and 1/4 ratchet on the screw but you only get 1/4 turn because the handle hits the cowl. On the other side, that same setup gets "trapped" between the screw being removed and a hard line, and there's a bracket in the way, preventing you from holding the socket with your other hand to keep it from spinning the screw back in.
All this while your wrench hand is angled with the wrist bent backwards.
Took at least twice as long as it would have if the obstructions would have been engineered away.
Even though it's right on top and easy to see...
There's just barely enough room to get a torx socket and 1/4 ratchet on the screw but you only get 1/4 turn because the handle hits the cowl. On the other side, that same setup gets "trapped" between the screw being removed and a hard line, and there's a bracket in the way, preventing you from holding the socket with your other hand to keep it from spinning the screw back in.
All this while your wrench hand is angled with the wrist bent backwards.
Took at least twice as long as it would have if the obstructions would have been engineered away.
rp23g7
Well-Known Member
During that year for bad transmissions, I did 2, it had a 9 hr book time on it, took me 4 hrs to get it out by myself, not ever doing it before.
The transmission guy, could take one out, reseal it, etc, and put it back in and have it back on the road in 50 minutes.
That dude made serious cash
DFootCuda
Well-Known Member
A friend of mine had mice chew up his plug wires on his new Nissan Xterra . Car had to be towed to dealer to replace plug wires because they have to remove supercharger to replace spark plug wires . Cost him 1,200 bucks
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