[newfiesmum]

........if you suspected a problem with your engine, you could go to a garage and a mechanic would stick his head under the bonnet and tell you if there was anything to worry about? And for that five minute job, he would charge you precisely nil but you usually slipped him a couple of quid for his time?

Nowadays you get an engine light come on, which could mean absolutely anything, and you take it to a garage who obligingly offer to plug it into their diagnostic computer and charge you £70 to tell you whether it is anything to worry about.

That is what happened to me today, so I decided as it felt all right and was not playing silly beggars, I would leave it thanks.

 

[Guest]

Gone are those days unless you have an old car......I used to service and repair my own car now I can barely service it .......hardly recognise most of the stuff under the bonet now

 

[Kinjilabs]

My airbag warning light came on and stayed on so took it to a garage where luckily I dont have to pay, they put it on the computer and it was just a fault with the light sticking on.

Now if I had gone to someone I didnt know they would have probably told me I needed air bags reset and charged me the earth

 

[CharleyRogan]

I'm very lucky to have 2 mechanic friends

 

[Pointermum]

A light came on, on my car about a month ago so we took it to the guy who does my dads car and he told us what it meant for free Down side is it's a 2k part that needs replacing or they can send it off for refurb for £180 so now i'm car-less for the next two weeks :crying:

It wasn't urgent so i've left it for a couple of weeks to half term when i don't need to run around soo much.

 

[pogo]

I love my local mechanic, he only charges a few quid for parts and has my car all day before having a look over and charged my nothing

 

[Colliebarmy]

I can remember when a clutch lasted 150,000 miles and if it went i could get the parts for £50 and me and a mate could do it in 2 hours, hell ive done a viva on my own..

in May I paid £895 to have a DMF, CSC, Clutch, starter, auxiliary belt and tensioner replaced on a Mondeo Tdci, the problem was the flywheel, a part which used to be a solid unbreakable item, but is now made up of many breakable parts, whilst changing one you always replace the clutch, even though it might be good, the starter collects swarf off the busted flywheel....and so on

Then there are "EGR" valves, which dump dirty exhaust gases back into the engine....and make smoke

Then there are "DPF" (a filter in the exhaust) ..... £1500

People, unless you drive over 30,000 miles a year DO NOT BUY A DIESEL, 55mpg is not enough to make it viable over a petrol engine

 

[Colliebarmy]

A light came on, on my car about a month ago so we took it to the guy who does my dads car and he told us what it meant for free Down side is it's a 2k part that needs replacing or they can send it off for refurb for £180 so now i'm car-less for the next two weeks :crying:

It wasn't urgent so i've left it for a couple of weeks to half term when i don't need to run around soo much.

what car is it?

 

[newfiesmum]

My airbag warning light came on and stayed on so took it to a garage where luckily I dont have to pay, they put it on the computer and it was just a fault with the light sticking on.

Now if I had gone to someone I didnt know they would have probably told me I needed air bags reset and charged me the earth

I have come to the conclusion that most of time that is exactly what happens - faulty light.

I love my local mechanic, he only charges a few quid for parts and has my car all day before having a look over and charged my nothing

We have an exhaust and tyre fitter locally that I have been using for years. They do all sorts of things for me free of charge. Once I noticed a little nick in the tyre of the learner car just as I was going to pick someone up for a test. It was perfectly safe and legal but I knew they wouldn't take it out like that so I went to this place and they turned the wheel round so the nick was on the inside. Didn't charge a penny, but I did give him a fiver.

 

[Pointermum]

what car is it?

Only a Vauxhall Zafria , it's the computer part that's faulty to to with controlling the brakes separately like if i applied them while going round a roundabout ot something like that

 

[Zaros]

........if you suspected a problem with your engine, you could go to a garage and a mechanic would stick his head under the bonnet and tell you if there was anything to worry about? And for that five minute job, he would charge you precisely nil but you usually slipped him a couple of quid for his time?

Nowadays you get an engine light come on, which could mean absolutely anything, and you take it to a garage who obligingly offer to plug it into their diagnostic computer and charge you £70 to tell you whether it is anything to worry about.

I used to work in one of those very same garages as a lad.
Part time apprentice and Pump Jockey for a 24hour Garage on the A63 Boothferry Road.
Dispensing 2** 3*** 4**** and Diesel is what I was paid to do most of the time come rain hail or freezing snow whilst the customer sat in the comparitive warmth and comfort of his vehicle.
We used to check Tyres, Oil and other fluids too all for 0 pounds.
This service was also available to the many Articulated Trucks that used to roll through on a Daily basis too.
If ever someone had a niggling problem with their car it was never a problem for us to give it a look over just to reassure them all was well.

I lost count of the number of on the spot battery changes I carried out on different makes of cars, but I'll always remember my first, and all for the price of the battery alone.

But that was in the days when a Garage was a Garage and not just a petrol station. A place full of the motorists essential needs and requirements, covering most popular makes, where Bread, Beans and Biscuits were only ever found in the local Spar 500 yards further down the road.
Those were the days my friend!

Today I'm at a virtual loss with the car because they've hidden it beneath all this computer wizardry and electrickery and I really don't think it's necessary.:001_unsure:

 

[pogo]

I also wish they'd listen to us women more, I took my car to a garage different to my local dude, as my head light went and when i put a new bulb in it only came on dim. I thought it was a fuse that had gone, he refused to even look at the fuses and after tinkering for a hour said i can't find a problem i think you have a big electrical problem....

Guess what it turned out to be..... and who fixed it

 

[Sled dog hotel]

........if you suspected a problem with your engine, you could go to a garage and a mechanic would stick his head under the bonnet and tell you if there was anything to worry about? And for that five minute job, he would charge you precisely nil but you usually slipped him a couple of quid for his time?

Nowadays you get an engine light come on, which could mean absolutely anything, and you take it to a garage who obligingly offer to plug it into their diagnostic computer and charge you £70 to tell you whether it is anything to worry about.

That is what happened to me today, so I decided as it felt all right and was not playing silly beggars, I would leave it thanks.

Was having this conversation recently with my neighbour. I used to have one of the early type fiestas ages ago, and even me if I heard a noise or something was up could often pop the bonnet and though I might not be able to fix it could locate a leak or where the noise was coming from and had some idea. Forget it now you cant even see whats what if you do lift the bonnet.

And yes gone are the days when a good mechanic could have a listen get out his tools and with a bit out checking, locate the problem and often fix it there and then. Now as you say they have to plug the things in and hope the computer can work it out and tell them whats what, and also true like you say charge you a fortune for the privalage as well.

 

[Happy Paws2]

and you have to take it to the manufactures garages for their computers to do all the upgrades on it.

 

[redginald]

I wouldn't be able to afford having my car fixed if i wasn't in the trade, unfortunately the benefits of being able to work on your own car are far outweighed by the poor wages. The mechanics don't see that £100 an hour.

In fairness we can sometimes be scratching our heads for hours diagnosing cars, and that £70 diag suddenly becomes good value for money if you see the work sometimes required to find some of these faults. Of course its swings and roundabouts and some faults are diagnosed quickly.

Its not just a case of scanning codes either, this will often point in the right direction but doesn't tell you what needs replacing. And modern cars are awful to work on regarding major mechanical repairs.

As suggested i would never own a diesel either, 4 injectors =a grand, fuel pump=a grand, DPFs are serviceable items and are not cheap. Im happy with petrol thanks!

For anybody who is a bit of a have a go hero, and owns a smart phone you can now buy an diagnostic interface and app to diag most modern cars engine management faults and it will cost you no more than £15 all in, you can delete codes with it aswell

 

[Thorne]

And if the warning light comes on you can't turn it off unless you've got the right tools; our old Focus had a fault in the engine check light itself! Nothing wrong with the car, the light just developed a mind of its own

Very grateful that both my dad and OH are mechanics, but they can't get around the computers on new cars. Another great way for car companies to get more money out of us!

 

[MoggyBaby]

........if you suspected a problem with your engine, you could go to a garage and a mechanic would stick his head under the bonnet and tell you if there was anything to worry about? And for that five minute job, he would charge you precisely nil but you usually slipped him a couple of quid for his time?

Nowadays you get an engine light come on, which could mean absolutely anything, and you take it to a garage who obligingly offer to plug it into their diagnostic computer and charge you £70 to tell you whether it is anything to worry about.

That is what happened to me today, so I decided as it felt all right and was not playing silly beggars, I would leave it thanks.

OH has had the 'maintenance' light on in his car now for over 3 years..... It has passed all its MOT's in that time so I wouldn't worry overly much TBH. you'll soon know if it is REALLY serious!!!!!

People, unless you drive over 30,000 miles a year DO NOT BUY A DIESEL, 55mpg is not enough to make it viable over a petrol engine

Sorry but I have to disagree with this comment. I got a diesel in June, I drive approx 10-12k miles a year and I am now saving £30-40 a month in fuel over my previous petrol engine (and that is with diesel being more expensive than petrol too....) and my yearly road tax has gone down to only £30.

DEFINITELY more viable to me!!!

You have to consider the TYPE of driving you will be doing with a diesel- if town driving is the greater % then it is probably not worth it but if you do more on duel carriageways or motorways, then you may be better off. I most certainly am.

 

[redginald]

If you get an EOBD Bluetooth interface you CAN delete engine management dtcs on most petrols 2001 on and diesel 03/04 on.

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=160703634790

What car do you have Newfiesmum ? Not trying to worry you but leaving something like a misfire on a petrol can lead to further Catalytic converter damage if not corrected.

Most modern Diesels are designed for long journeys, you'll do one no favours on short trips, and when you have to fork out for a dpf, or pay for a fuel injector any money saved on diesel will be in someone else's pocket

 

[Colliebarmy]

Sorry but I have to disagree with this comment. I got a diesel in June, I drive approx 10-12k miles a year and I am now saving £30-40 a month in fuel over my previous petrol engine (and that is with diesel being more expensive than petrol too....) and my yearly road tax has gone down to only £30.

Diesel is dearer than petrol
Diesel cars are dearer to buy than petrol cars
Diesel cars require more servicing (and more parts+dearer oil) than petrols

(My mondeo oil changes every 15.000 miles cost £50 with a filter, a petrol would be half the price and twice the mileage)

Wait till your EGR sticks or your DPF light comes on.......

or maybe the experts are wrong

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...money-petrol-models-economical-makes-car.html

The average time to recoup costs is 5 years, most people only keep a car 4 years..........

 

[debruning]

Do I remember when I could jump a battery with my car? Yep.

It was before I bought my new shiny Prius C...love the car, can't find the dang battery - which I needed to do to give a friend a jump.

We eventually used an older car of mine to get the job done...and I looked up on the web how to get at the battery. :sosp: