Exhaust work is straightforward and (I think) easy to understand. If you’ve got a lift and a ‘cety torch, it really should be gravy work. That said, I have made plenty of my own mistakes and repaired the mistakes of others. Hopefully this article helps a few of you...
I like grease. You may or you may not, but as a very cheap staple of most shops, I’ve learned to use it in a few unconventional ways, which has made me like it more. Here are a few times plain ol’ grease is what you should reach for.Vertically-oriented O-rings...
If you’ve already invested in RRR (recovery/recycle/recharge) machine equipment necessary to service vehicles with R1234yf, you may have also already learned that performing a refrigerant identification test prior to recovering what is in the customer’s vehicle is...
The oil change is supposed to be simple, right? And while the service guide is always your guide, there are a few things that pertain to servicing vehicles equipped with cartridge-style oil filters that aren't always covered as well as they could be. Here's a few tips...
Description If your parking brake is weak or not working at all, a stretched cable is usually the issue. The Dorman 03006 parking brake slack eliminator is a quick and easy way to restore brake function.Related Videos
Picture this: it’s an unremarkable day at work, and you’re busy crossing lines off your to-do list. Suddenly, a recent customer returns and ruins your day with the following words. “Ever since you worked on my car…” Look, nobody’s perfect. If you make a mistake that...
Description A flat spare tire is just dead weight. Many trucks and SUVs come from the factory with the spare’s valve stem pointing up, but you can flip it over and reinstall for easy checks and refills.Related Videos
I recently had occasion to sit down and leaf my way through a book entitled “Traffic: why we drive the way we do (and what it says about us).” It was very well-documented and researched, but perhaps a bit closer to a college textbook than light reading material for a...
Way back when, torque specs didn’t exist. Oh, mechanics were familiar with busted fasteners. Prior to torque wrenches, factory tools often had handles of specific lengths, with the understanding that “cheater pipes” were not to be used and that an average man of...
Ever drain and fill a coolant system and watch the temp gauge spike afterwards? Air trapped in there can cause a car to act like it has a cooling problem. It’s annoying to let the car cool so you can work on it, then re-bleed and possibly still have the same...
Bleeding brakes is one of those jobs most of us know how to do, but when a hard-to-bleed system pops up, experienced techs have a few additional tricks up their sleeves to help get the job done. You can certainly vacuum bleed or power bleed if you have the equipment,...
In my first job behind the automotive counter, I remember selling an awful lot of 10W30, 10W40, and even some of that newfangled 5W30. Now, of course, things are much different; we have many weights of oil, most trending toward lower viscosity, and more and more...