Do you fix your own car?

TheWobbler said:
I have no mechanical experience but with the amount of videos on youtube I will now try do most things on my car myself.

I was to scared to try anything but the amount of money garages charge these days is ridiculous. The mark up on parts is shocking and they put the cheapest brands in.

The last straw was when they tried to charge me over 300 quid for brake pads and discs. So I watched a video and did them my self. All went well and I couldnt believe how simple it was to do.

Last week I replaced the combination stalk as the wipers had stopped working.

Just failed my MOT today, 2 suspension arms need replaced. Out of curiosity I asked the garage to price up the work and they wanted £380. Got the parts my self for £130 and am going to attempt them tomorrow.

Yes I sound poor, but I refuse to give away money.
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I was actually a wheel vehicle mechanic in the Army. Which doesn't put me close to a certified mechanic in civilian life, but I know what is what and am capable of working on my own vehicles.

The thing is that I hate wrenching and would rather pay somebody else to do it than do it myself.
 
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Currently rebuilding a 78 chevy stepside. Not a off-frame resto, as Im not building a show truck, but me and a buddy are doing it all ourselves.

No, I take that back. There are a few things I wont be doing. We both suck at sheetmetal welding, so the can corners are being done by a Professional. And I had a mechanic replace one of the CV joints since it was still original, and breaking a bolt on that damn thing would have meant way to much work trying to drill out and tap a new one.

So we're doing most of it ourselves. But even the best of do it yourselfers will use actual mechanics for things they know they cant tackle.
 
Steve-French said:
I was actually a wheel vehicle mechanic in the Army. Which doesn't put close to a certified mechanic in civillian life, but I know what is what and am capable of working on my own vehicles.

The thing is that I hate wrenching and would rather pay somebody else to do it then do it myself.
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When I was doing my suspension arms today, I was thinking the same thing when the bolts felt like they were just not going to budge. But I'd rather take the pain on my hands then part with my money lol.
 
I went to tech school right after high school and worked on cars for a living for a while, so I always worked on my car in the past.

Since I got out of that field many years ago, I still do from time to time if the repairs are minor. I've changed alternators, plugs... basically things that don't require a lift since then.
 
I just paid £110 for a Major service on my mk5 TDI. Hardly worth my effort since the parts alone costs £50+. The fools also did an MOT without my asking, and I told them I wouldn’t pay for it. VW wanted £329. They also wanted £450 for a timing belt change, got a Pole to come round and do it for £260.

Whocanfixmycar.com is a great website - get quotes from local garages on bits of work you need done. Do your research before accepting the quotes, though.
 
MaureenCretis said:
I just paid £110 for a Major service on my mk5 TDI. Hardly worth my effort since the parts alone costs £50+. The fools also did an MOT without my asking, and I told them I wouldn’t pay for it. VW wanted £329.

Whocanfixmycar.com is a great website - get quotes from local garages on bits of work you need done. Do your research before accepting the quotes, though.
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You got a bargain with that major service. Did an indie do that for you?

I never get my service done at the main dealers as they're are a rip off. That being said, the indie garage I did my MOT was charging a customer £250 for a full service. I thought that was quite high.
 
Some things should be left to the experts/specialists and not be so cheap or else Sherdog will say "you sound poor". Car stuff is potentially life or death. Don't gamble.
 
TheWobbler said:
You got a bargain with that major service. Did an indie do that for you?

I never get my service done at the main dealers as they're are a rip off. That being said, the indie garage I did my MOT was charging a customer £250 for a full service. I thought that was quite high.
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I got a variety of quotes off that website. Went with the cheapest, thinking they're all a little risky, so just go with the cheapest. Dunno how they could do it so cheap, but I did my own inspection afterwards, and could see quite clearly they'd replaced the oil & air filters etc, topped up the coolant and the brakes felt sharper, so they'd done the fluid, too. They were a bit chaotic and I had to chase him for a few days to get the service booked stamped, but they did it all, plus I got a free 10 month MOT extension, so pretty happy all in.

Main dealer servicing is always far too expensive, but at least there's peace of mind because they have an established reputation to protect and you can always go higher up the ladder if you need to lodge a complaint. With your independent places, its your word against theirs - but for a car this age, it wasn't worth the outlay.
 
Fuck no, I can barely put gas in it. I'm a useless cunt with man tasks unfortunately.
 
TheWobbler said:
The mark up on parts is shocking and they put the cheapest brands in.
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Sometimes I'll buy the exact part I want and just have them install it. That way I know exactly what I'm getting. (And hopefully the mechanic is honest)
 
I will change my own oil, spark plugs, light bulbs, antifreeze, and things of that nature, but if it starts getting much more complicated than that then I'll take it in. There's just something satisfying about knowing your car is being properly worked on and you're not gonna fuck it up somehow by doing it yourself. (Assuming you've found a legit mechanic)
 
I do most of my own stuff my gas door was broken at a local gas station that's not self serve. I YouTubed how to fix it did it myself called the dealer they would have charged over $250.
 
About 70% of the time. Things I cannot do, I got buddies I go to, and we do it together. Either that, or trade for doing some electrical work, and work on their computers.

Haven't been to a mechanic in over 10 years.
 
I've worked on them myself for about the past 20 years. I started out DIY'ing stuff, then went through training to learn more. There's way more free information available these days for those that want to learn. I suggest checking out the following YT channels: ScannerDanner, and South Main Auto. Both are good technicians that a lot of people can learn from.
 
The good thing is a lot of companies like euro car parts and places similar have great deals online like between 25% - 50% off most of the time. When they have a good percent off, I buy all my service parts for cheap. Save myself a lot of money plus I can get the decent parts and not crap that the garages use.
 
Hello! Yes, I like to fix my own car. Where do you buy parts, by the way? I would like to recommend you to take a look at those auto parts from the website above. They are really good at car parts, and you will surely find what you are looking for there. Good luck with your car, hope I was helpful to you here :)
 
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some stuff I'll do, filters, oil, some belts, brake pads, plug tires and electrical stuff. For some reason I've always had a pretty good knack for electrical and plumbing work. Although I will say some of the diagnostic equipment and tools needed for newer vehicles makes it a little cost prohibitive to do somethings, not to mention the economy of space for storage of the stuff.
 
TheWobbler said:
I have no mechanical experience but with the amount of videos on youtube I will now try do most things on my car myself.

I was to scared to try anything but the amount of money garages charge these days is ridiculous. The mark up on parts is shocking and they put the cheapest brands in.

The last straw was when they tried to charge me over 300 quid for brake pads and discs. So I watched a video and did them my self. All went well and I couldnt believe how simple it was to do.

Last week I replaced the combination stalk as the wipers had stopped working.

Just failed my MOT today, 2 suspension arms need replaced. Out of curiosity I asked the garage to price up the work and they wanted £380. Got the parts my self for £130 and am going to attempt them tomorrow.

Yes I sound poor, but I refuse to give away money.
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I used to own a 95 BMW 328 back in 97. I did my own oil changes, changed my own brakes and rotors, the spark plugs and all the belts including timing belts. I loved working on that car. I also changed the radio head unit and speakers. I even modified some parts on it. I bought a Haynes car repair manual for that car and it taught me how to fix that car. I even bought the stuff to reset and get the service lights and codes on the car.

I was in my early 20’s and I had time to fuck around with my car. Today, I don’t have time for that shit and take my truck to a local mechanic I trust and like. It was fun, though, when I had time.
 
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