Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Good Year
It's been a good year for us. Not record breaking, but decent for a side business. I'd like to thank all of my patrons and wish you a Merry Christmas.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Back in Business
I have been working full time at AutoZone untill recently when I started school at Lincoln College of Technology to get training as an automotive technician. I resigned from AutoZone so now I can work on RAW Automotive again. Woo Hoo!
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Company Truck
I love my truck, but it has let me down a lot. It's not the trucks fault, but it really is a bummer to be a mechanic, a shadetree, and have to get a tow. Embarrasing. So, we've decided to sell it. I've got $3500 in it and I'm looking for offers. It runs fine now except for an oil leak. Here's the skinny
The good,
new carb new tires (Hancooks)
new radiator (not installed)
new alternator w/belt
new distrubtor/wires/plugs/coil
new wiring harness, main, rear, engine, etc
original 1966 farm truck plates
original hubcaps
new front windshield and gasket (rust removed and primed black)
extra doors, hood, grill, fenders, carb, steering column
new water pump and hoses
new shocks (gabriel ultras)
new ultra white headlights
new exhaust and muffler
new battery and cables
The bad
It's in primer, but it needs to be stripped (previous owner just primed over everything without any prep)
there is rust in the usual places (rear cab corners, floor board, rocker panels, front lower fenders, rear fenders, but I have an extra set included)
rear main seal is leaking a bit
1990 GMC Vandura
This was an unfortunate car experiance. The customer brought this one to me with a knocking noise in the motor. It sounded like the lifters weren't getting oil so I dropped the pan and checked the oil pump. Sure enough, the pump was bad and there was metal covering the pan. It was too late to save this motor. The harmonic balancer was wobbling signaling that the bearings had been chewed up. The car wasn't really worth putting in a new motor so that was that. What a mess.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Plenty of work, but I'm thankful
I've had so many people that want me to work on their cars that I have actually had to tell them that I am booked and schedule them for the next week. I've also missed a few customers due to not being able to fit them in and that is a great disappointment. Especially because I don't hear from them again.
1994 Ford Explorer
The wheel bearings were worn out. NTB said they would not align the vehicle so I'm fixing them. There was still maybe a quarter inch play left, but without replacing the hub assembly and maybe even the spindle that was the best that could be done. I'm still waiting to hear if the alignment was able to be done somewhere else. I have personally not had much success with NTB and any of my vehicles.
First defective part replacement
Yesterday I replaced a door actuator that I had installed three months ago. The defective actuator actually seized up. I've never seen one do that before. It only took about an hour.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Busy, Busy and more Busy
I had a customer bring in a 1992 Chevrolet Astro Van that was smoking from the engine. I had him pop the hood and could hear that the bearings were going out in his a/c compressor. I had him turn on his air full blast and well, memories of sparklers in July filled my head. I told him I had found his problem. He was quoted $1200 at one shop and wanted to know what I would charge.
$410 in parts
$90 in labor
Sadly the sparkler machine is no more.
$410 in parts
$90 in labor
Sadly the sparkler machine is no more.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Hard to tell someone their car's not worth it
Today was the first experience we've have with telling someone their car isn't worth the repairs needed. It wasn't an easy call to make, but we think it was the right one.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
1988 Toyota Land Cruiser
This was actually a pretty neat old truck, which needs some work, but still really neat.
Rear brake adjustment and removal of the parking brake cable
2 hours
Rear brake adjustment and removal of the parking brake cable
2 hours
Sunday, February 15, 2009
1966 Chevrolet C10 Work Truck
New Tires, battery and cables, alternator, voltage regulator, several lug nuts and wheel studs, brake hose, water pump, radiator hoses, distributor and coil, spark plugs and wires, main wiring harness, secondary engine wiring harness, headlight switch, dimmer switch, hubcaps, headlights, ignition switch and alt belt. I think that has been everything so far.
When I say work truck I really mean work. I have no idea how many hours, but I know that it'll get more next week.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Monday, February 9, 2009
2006 Honda Accord LX
Front Brakes (including travel time to turn rotors)
2 hours
This is also a car that last month I wired in a universal O2 sensor saving the customer about $100. The OE sensor was $162 or thereabouts.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Saturday, January 17, 2009
1994 Explorer Sport V6
Replaced idler pulley and serpentine belt
(He actually travelled to the person's apt complex to fix this one)
1 hour
(He actually travelled to the person's apt complex to fix this one)
1 hour
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
2000 Mitsubishi Eclipse GS
Hatch shock installation & modification (which means they would be super expensive to fix unless you get creative)
1 hour
1 hour
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
1999 Chevy Venture
Replaced passenger/driver window switch, rewired the harness under the carpet (two shorts), restored finish on headlights.
2.5 hours
Monday, January 5, 2009
Much Success
We've had so many satisfied customers that we have expanded and purchased our own air tools and a company truck!
It's a 1966 Chevrolet C10 Stepside (long wheel base)
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