Forum Replies Created
-
Replies
-
[quote=”wafrederick” post=139253]There are body parts you don’t aftermarket.Truck tailgates are one of them,buy them from the dealer.The aftermarket tailgate dents real easy.1988 to 1998 fullsize Chevy and GMC truck doors,the aftermarkets don’t fit worth a crap.The door hinges are welded on from the factory and the adjustable replacement door hinges are a PITA to adjust.Best to find these used in good shape.There are two aftermarket body parts lines,Capa and Non Capa.Lot of times the non capa fit better than the capa parts.[/quote]This is the point I was making, the QUALITY of aftermarket parts is CRAP in correlation to factory parts. A repainted wheel is different from a factory wheel made in Europe, etc. The clarity of tempered glass is significantly different from a production car to a luxury vehicle… Its like using champion spark plugs in a motorcycle, the performance is different and the insurance don’t care if your property value is reduced as long as the claim is settled at 40% of the actual repair costs.
This answered my questions about quality work and materials related to the insurance company saying the $150 job is all that’s covered.
Just about any GC/LB certified grease is acceptable. I use mostly industrial grade because it is tacky and stays in there a long time. I became an amsoil dealer years ago and have been happy with their GLC all purpose chassis grease and currently use their truck grease. I believe the synthetic formulations last longer and withstand heat much better due to the better quality base oil used. Not a fan of Lucus per the test results, although lots of people argue its the best stuff in the universe. Shell & Shaffers make some awesome grease.
I tried clay once before and its amazing how much crap is still on the paint, its an art to clay a car LOL.. I was wondering if you have tried Optimum Car Care Products? Their stuff is super easy and effective. I use No-Rinse wash plus wax as a detail spray on my wheels and other places where traditional wax does not work. Its also available at amazon at a fair price… The Saturn looks great!
You talked about having a broken clip or other minor damage that occurred while doing a repair. This happens to everyone and and should not be ignored by the shop or the technician.
This is what happened to me:
My lawyer said I had to pay a shop to fix my engine due to malicious mischief. When the truck was returned, the check engine light was on, the shop said to replace all the oxygen sensors, the codes indicated a lean condition on both banks. Fuel pressure was low and the regulator was leaking, replaced the regulator, that made the fuel pressure even lower and the truck ran like crap.The truck sat all winter and I replaced the SCPI Spider, one of the injectors blew out and there was a fountain of gas coming out of the harness connector. A couple of months goes by and I pulled the CPI spider again and replaced the faulty injector with a part from my old spider. The truck runs now and the CEL went out the first time it was driven.
After checking all the fluids, it was determined the transmission fluid was not even on the stick after driving the truck, I added a quart and its still low. No ATF was on my invoice after replacing the engine & radiator.
The engine oil was drained to remove wear metals from a reman engine. The oil plug was not tight. After draining the oil, I put the drain plug back in, it would not tighten up at all. The engine was rebuilt by a machine shop and the truck was given back to me with a stripped drain plug!
I did not have a good experience with this engine shop. They installed a crappy aftermarket distributor when the OEM part needed a new drive gear (a common failure). The oil plug was stripped requiring a repair. The automatic transmission very low and no sign of leakage where it was parked.
Its hard to take pride in your work when the boss is demanding production and the other issues from your ‘Flat Rate System’ video. I don’t blame the guy who did the install, the shop should have advised me the fuel system was faulty and not concealing the issue as “Not their Concern.”
You talked about having a broken clip or other minor damage that occurred while doing a repair. This happens to everyone and and should not be ignored by the shop or the technician.
This is what happened to me:
My lawyer said I had to pay a shop to fix my engine due to malicious mischief. When the truck was returned, the check engine light was on, the shop said to replace all the oxygen sensors, the codes indicated a lean condition on both banks. Fuel pressure was low and the regulator was leaking, replaced the regulator, that made the fuel pressure even lower and the truck ran like crap.The truck sat all winter and I replaced the SCPI Spider, one of the injectors blew out and there was a fountain of gas coming out of the harness connector. A couple of months goes by and I pulled the CPI spider again and replaced the faulty injector with a part from my old spider. The truck runs now and the CEL went out the first time it was driven.
After checking all the fluids, it was determined the transmission fluid was not even on the stick after driving the truck, I added a quart and its still low. No ATF was on my invoice after replacing the engine & radiator.
The engine oil was drained to remove wear metals from a reman engine. The oil plug was not tight. After draining the oil, I put the drain plug back in, it would not tighten up at all. The engine was rebuilt by a machine shop and the truck was given back to me with a stripped drain plug!
I did not have a good experience with this engine shop. They installed a crappy aftermarket distributor when the OEM part needed a new drive gear (a common failure). The oil plug was stripped requiring a repair. The automatic transmission very low and no sign of leakage where it was parked.
Its hard to take pride in your work when the boss is demanding production and the other issues from your ‘Flat Rate System’ video. I don’t blame the guy who did the install, the shop should have advised me the fuel system was faulty and not concealing the issue as “Not their Concern.”
Advance Auto sells an “Import” formula ATF (labeled 100% synthetic) and I was wondering how it differs from MaxLife?
I run a GM 4L60E and a Mercedes 722.3 in an old diesel car. Both spec for Dextron IIAny suggestion on which ATF fluid is best suited for the Mercedes AT & the GM 4L60E?
Advance Auto sells an “Import” formula ATF (labeled 100% synthetic) and I was wondering how it differs from MaxLife?
I run a GM 4L60E and a Mercedes 722.3 in an old diesel car. Both spec for Dextron IIAny suggestion on which ATF fluid is best suited for the Mercedes AT & the GM 4L60E?
Filling oil filters is a common practice in the diesel world due to paranoid technicians.
On the A9 exam, it states it is no longer a recommended practice. My college adviser discouraged the practice because oil is not clean, even in the container. If you run good oil, dry starts are not a concern as the engine is coated with oil.Volvo engines in big rigs can set a code if run more than 10 seconds with low oil pressure and filling those filters may be required. I used to work in a truck stop shop and some drivers would get upset if the filters were not prefilled… Its just a matter of opinion, there is no real benefit as the filters will fill in less than 30 seconds at a slow idle, much like a winter start.
Filling oil filters is a common practice in the diesel world due to paranoid technicians.
On the A9 exam, it states it is no longer a recommended practice. My college adviser discouraged the practice because oil is not clean, even in the container. If you run good oil, dry starts are not a concern as the engine is coated with oil.Volvo engines in big rigs can set a code if run more than 10 seconds with low oil pressure and filling those filters may be required. I used to work in a truck stop shop and some drivers would get upset if the filters were not prefilled… Its just a matter of opinion, there is no real benefit as the filters will fill in less than 30 seconds at a slow idle, much like a winter start.
I know this is an old thread, but I have this same car and its awesome to drive but it does have some problems.
The lift pump goes bad and can give you a loss of power, the fuel strainer in the tank can get all clogged up with algae and other crap.
The smoking described is from bad injectors, the cheap aftermarket injectors don’t last and go out of calibration after about six months. You can buy a kit with Monarch spray tips from Mercedessource along with a pop tester to do your own work, its kinda expensive unless you plan to do injectors often.
Cam followers go bad and give a knocking sound when idling, this is very common.
There are two types of Turbos and these need worked on every 100K to clean out the carbon, replace the bushings & seals. The impeller wheel, shaft and compressor wheel also wear down making less boost. The Garrett model has parts available, the KKK model is very hard to get service parts and is very expensive to replace.
Be advised, you can never get this engine hot because the head will crack and cost a fortune to repair.
Good luck with your Mercedes Diesel, it may be hard to work on but its one awesome car to drive.
I know this is an old thread, but I have this same car and its awesome to drive but it does have some problems.
The lift pump goes bad and can give you a loss of power, the fuel strainer in the tank can get all clogged up with algae and other crap.
The smoking described is from bad injectors, the cheap aftermarket injectors don’t last and go out of calibration after about six months. You can buy a kit with Monarch spray tips from Mercedessource along with a pop tester to do your own work, its kinda expensive unless you plan to do injectors often.
Cam followers go bad and give a knocking sound when idling, this is very common.
There are two types of Turbos and these need worked on every 100K to clean out the carbon, replace the bushings & seals. The impeller wheel, shaft and compressor wheel also wear down making less boost. The Garrett model has parts available, the KKK model is very hard to get service parts and is very expensive to replace.
Be advised, you can never get this engine hot because the head will crack and cost a fortune to repair.
Good luck with your Mercedes Diesel, it may be hard to work on but its one awesome car to drive.
Newer technology is in the merger between Detroit Diesel and Mercedes. Kenworth now uses their own engine built by Paccar. Most of the transmissions are going to an auto-shift manual and the tower has problems as they get older.
There is a lot of free info out there if you take the time to read up on it. Fleet magazines are a good resources to see the newest trends with trucking companies.
You need a book on how diesel engines work, fuel systems, air to air coolers, turbos (Variable Geometry VGT) and related systems. believe it or not, old ASE study guides are a great book to better understand how truck systems work.
The book I used in college is around $200 and this is the ISBN number: 1401870643 http://www.amazon.com/Heavy-Duty-Truck-Systems-Bennett/dp/1435483820
This book covers truck systems and the only other books I used is one on diesel engines and electronic diagnostics. The instructors was cool about providing a master book on steering & suspension to save the students money buying books.Lube, tires, wheel ends and brakes is most likely where you will do most of your work as you get into truck repair.
I hope this points you in the right direction and good luck with your new job B)
Newer technology is in the merger between Detroit Diesel and Mercedes. Kenworth now uses their own engine built by Paccar. Most of the transmissions are going to an auto-shift manual and the tower has problems as they get older.
There is a lot of free info out there if you take the time to read up on it. Fleet magazines are a good resources to see the newest trends with trucking companies.
You need a book on how diesel engines work, fuel systems, air to air coolers, turbos (Variable Geometry VGT) and related systems. believe it or not, old ASE study guides are a great book to better understand how truck systems work.
The book I used in college is around $200 and this is the ISBN number: 1401870643 http://www.amazon.com/Heavy-Duty-Truck-Systems-Bennett/dp/1435483820
This book covers truck systems and the only other books I used is one on diesel engines and electronic diagnostics. The instructors was cool about providing a master book on steering & suspension to save the students money buying books.Lube, tires, wheel ends and brakes is most likely where you will do most of your work as you get into truck repair.
I hope this points you in the right direction and good luck with your new job B)