calling all indy garages

jimmyw

Just looking at all the different garages around the country dealing with all different cars and wondering is there any cars you don't like working on? like you totally refuse to work on. Is there any cars that you do love/like to work on? Maybe you don't give a s***e as long as you get paid for the work..Would like views on this.





Well it is Friday night, and tubs is ****e again:):(:) and I cant have a drink in the pub:D

crosshair1

Run my own shop and 3.0 4jx1 Isuzu troopers are not welcome as are newer LRovers , the trooper because of the engine grief they give and parts cost, just could find better work to be doing and getting less hassle for.
The LRs because the newer versions would require too much time to learn the systems and procedures involved and too much outlay to provide an adequate diagnostic interface to competently work on them.
This does leave a shocked looking potential customer walking away buy business is business.

Voodoomelon

Not a mechanic myself, but I know a lot of Indys won't touch a V12.

VanhireBoys

I will work on Gernan and Swedish cars no problem.. Well engineered and easy to work on...

I have dabbled in Jap cars as well .. They are easy

I absolutely refuse to work on all French or Italian cars no exceptions... I wont even lift the bonnet of one...!.. I have a bit of experience with them and it always ended up badly.. Quality is bad

Its a horses for courses thing... I was brought up around German cars. I am sure if you got a mechanic brought up with French or Italian cars he would say he wouldnt touch a German ....

Voodoomelon wrote: »

Not a mechanic myself, but I know a lot of Indys won't touch a V12.

BTW Ive just come back from setting up timing and fuelling of a 1977 Jag XJS V12... ! It was easy enough.. Leaning in over the side of the car was the only issue.. ! All you have to remember is to multiply everything by 3 ...cyclinders, size fuel consumption.....! Enjoyed the experience and would definately work on one again....!

martinr5232

Big + 1 on the three litre Troopers horrible horrible yoke never again!

Voodoomelon

VanhireBoys wrote: »

BTW Ive just come back from setting up timing and fuelling of a 1977 Jag XJS V12... ! It was easy enough.. Leaning in over the side of the car was the only issue.. ! All you have to remember is to multiply everything by 3 ...cyclinders, size fuel consumption.....! Enjoyed the experience and would definately work on one again....!

I completely agree, i think its more of a mental block than anything else, just the idea of one scares a lot of people i think.

Nissan doctor

I would work on any car but I would do some research before taking on any work I'm not familiar with to make sure there were no hidden problems or special tools required to do it.
So many independent garages take on jobs without knowing whats involved and then have to get tools or taking it somewhere else to finish etc and that's just not worth the hassle.

I got myself diagnostic tools for all modern(obd2) cars as well as the Japanese Nissan's, as well as generic engine diagnostic tools(leak down, sniff tester, oil pressure testers etc etc) and a small amount of specialist tools for common jobs/cars such as timing tools for Opel chain engines, Renault and ford petrol.
Anything specialist, I have a customer with a jag xkr for example, I will do his service/repair work but anything involving the more complicated functions cars like that are always better going to someone who knows them specifically.

Captain Slow IRL

I work in a main dealer and we get anything and everything traded in - hate the french and italian cars, cheap flimsy pieces of sh1t.

Couldn't refuse working on them or I'd be shown the door - when my own place is up and running, no pieces of crap will be allowed through the doors!

johndaman66

I'm not a mechanic but I know from my own experience of trying to get a headgasket done in a diesel Renault Megavan many garages wouldn't go near it...too big a job and very likely to give trouble again soon after seemingly. As I recall one garage man said he would be slow about doing a head gasket in a diesel generally regardless of make and model. He would have taken on the job in most petrol models but doing one on a Renault petrol wouldn't have being too appealing to him for that matter. I did get it done at another garage eventually but low and behold it did give up again soon after with the same problem.

Also took it to another garage at another stage to get a rather lot of work done for the doe. Shocks, bushings, brake pads and the like. Was landed with a sizeable bill. No doubt I appeared somewhat shocked to the mechanic when I was coughing up the dough and he said to me in a rather condescending manner "yerrah tis mainly oul toyotas on the road these days".

dirtydiesel

I love working on older cars, the carina is easy to work on, and my favourite van would be the transit, nothing is difficult on the transit.

rebel.ranter

I'm not a professional mechanic but I think we will see a common theme relating to French & Italian cars. I would suspect that most would say Fords are straight forward.
Me in my amateur capacity would prefer anything german.

unknownlegend

dirtydiesel wrote: »

I love working on older cars, the carina is easy to work on, and my favourite van would be the transit, nothing is difficult on the transit.

I also find older toyota/jap or german/scandanavian cars preferable to get into nuts and bolts with but that's a long time ago and my experience is limited. Would say some indy's are limited by modern diagnostic equipment and specialist tools and knowledge for some makes and models, particularly high end. But of course not all!! :-D

jimmyw

I am sure you guys/gals must get annoyed/frustrated at some engines that are compact and hardly any room to even get your hand in never mind turn a spanner on.Half the engine has to come off to get at some parts.Do you ever get used to these type of work.I know Its not the same as working at home with the lifts you have in the garage compared to at home working on your back with the car on axle stands.

If I was doing it professionally, I think I would throw something across the garage doing this kind of work. Which reminds me of a time I was changing rear brake pads on my 98 accord when I had them installed the wheel jammed on and could not find out why or how to free them, and it was raining:mad:. Weeellllll! the f***s I shouted I am sure the neighbours thought I was been tortured or something. Would not make a good professional mechanic anyway. Next day when I was calm, I fixed it no problems.

Nissan doctor

It gets like that occasionally, lifts or not!:P

Most of the time I find it kind of theraputic especially on major engine builds etc but sometimes you need to walk away, take a break, then go back to it with fresh eyes.

dmca77

3l Trooper. Nothing but hassle. Every single one of them. Seen my fair share of them but now NONE.

fonecrusher1

OP sorry for hijacking your thread a bit.
Can i just ask the mechanics reading, if someone came to you with a mazda rx7 or rx8 would you turn them away or is the rotary engine not as complicated as they look?

Nissan doctor

fonecrusher1 wrote: »

OP sorry for hijacking your thread a bit.
Can i just ask the mechanics reading, if someone came to you with a mazda rx7 or rx8 would you turn them away or is the rotary engine not as complicated as they look?

Normal servicing and maintenance work is no problem on them as well as diagnostics.
I would be aware or the common problems with rotarys but for major work and engine overhaul/tip replacement etc there is only one man in Ireland I would recommend.

Eric Cartman

crosshair1 wrote: »

Run my own shop and 3.0 4jx1 Isuzu troopers are not welcome as are newer LRovers , the trooper because of the engine grief they give and parts cost, just could find better work to be doing and getting less hassle for.
The LRs because the newer versions would require too much time to learn the systems and procedures involved and too much outlay to provide an adequate diagnostic interface to competently work on them.
This does leave a shocked looking potential customer walking away buy business is business.

if you know somebody wanting to get rid of one of those 3.0 troopers please give me a PM i could use a few of them at the moment

crosshair1

Eric, are you planning on a few new pick ups? Heard theres good trade value on running Troopers !!
Fonecrusher, any indy should be able to do routine work on the mazdas but most would stay clear of mechanicals.
Regarding the french/italian cars discussed I wouldnt turn any away. they may not be the easiest to work on in some areas but I would imagine if a garage is not prepared to work them they would lose out on a significant no of customers as there is a sizeable share of the market (and some would say they are much more likely to go wrong!).
I think that the problem going forward with indy garages is the access to adequate knowledge and diagnostic equipment for each make of car they work on. There are many aftermarket data suppliers and diagnostic tool suppliers but no one covers all so multiples are needed to cover a wide range of the market. I think myself that eventually dealer tools or dealer level tools will be needed in each shop for each make worked on.

Nissan doctor

Diagnostic equipment covering all vehicles is easily available for independent garages. They can be a few quid but are worth it in the long run.

As for french cars etc.

All cars are the same mechanically(aforementioned rotaries aside) and IMO its up to any mechanic to be keeping themselves up to date with the latest technologies and reported issues and fixes etc for all common cars.

crosshair1

yes Nissan, I understand your point that diag. equipment is readily available
I assume that you mean multi make tools such as Texa, Snap on, Autocom, Launch, Bosch etc. that would cover most makes/models seen by your average shop at an average cost of about €5k. I believe it is not possible to work on modern vehicles without one or more of those tools.
The problem is that there are always things that you cannot do with these tools, for example forced DFP regenerations, coding-programming etc.
I assume that you use Consult from your username in that case you would be aware of the functionality you have over the above scanners.
My take on diagnostic equipment is that it will not increase the profit of the business but will allow us indys to remain working on vehicles that are becoming ever more complex.

Eric Cartman

crosshair1 wrote: »

Eric, are you planning on a few new pick ups? Heard theres good trade value on running Troopers !!

well i only want one but lets just say i have a nice deal with a dealer and if i can find a few troopers he's got a fleet order to fill and it would severley decrease the price of my new D-max :P

also they dont have to be running, i have ways of moving them

crosshair1

Massive demand on them at the minute, would you keep a Dmax after its warranty runs out? it is the same engine isnt it?:)

Eric Cartman

crosshair1 wrote: »

Massive demand on them at the minute, would you keep a Dmax after its warranty runs out? it is the same engine isnt it?:)

no and no , the mileage i do ill have the warranty gone in less than 2 years anyway, and thus if i buy a new car now ill just change it every year for less than the cost of keeping it 2 years and putting tyres and other bits on it, its a different engine altogether and ive yet to read about engine problems with the d-max anywhere, i think isuzu learned their lesson