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This is a cool video. My first vehicle was a 1965 F100 stepside. That was when I was 15, back in 1984.

I just found this channel today and subscribed. I started from the most recent and have been liking them as I watch them. So far this is my favorite. I’m in this situation right now. I like old Fords. What state are you in?

I gave up working on cars for a living in 1976, when cars were getting too hard and complicated to work on. But I still work on classic cars 1972 and earlier and I've got all the business, as a part time hobbyist mechanic, that I can handle. It amazes me in how today's mechanics know nothing about carburetors, distributors, generators, drum brakes. I had a wealthy car collector want me to be his full time private mechanic but I don't want to move to Oregon, too expensive to live there

If manufacturers intended for modern cars to be serviced they wouldn't engineer them so you have to remove half an engine to replace spark plugs. Or need an IT degree to work with the absurd number of ECM sensors. Or be an NECA certfied electrician. Or lift the cab to work on a modern pickup truck. Modern vehicles are made to use then throw away. At least that's what the manufacturers want you to think.

an actual blue collar worker that actually understands how thing really are people keep blaming china but don't understand its politicians and these huge interest groups that are tricking people to blame a country instead of cooperation's and lobbying from them and with unlimited money that was made possible by the supreme court that is also currupt now from all the presents they getl just look into right to repair. but at the end of the day its the average american in this country who is to blame bc they don't bother to learn or read into what a politician are all about and are not able to make a smart vote and make them easily manipulated to vote against theyr own interests.

"It's not financially viable." Bullshit. If you believe that, then you need to make some changes in how YOU operate. Either charge more for your services or tool / skill up so that body work, an engine swap, etc. isn't as traumatic as it should be. Any mechanic, tech, whatever the hell we're calling these people now who says something like, "It's just not worth my time," isn't a mechanic anyone should want to have working on their car anyway. Those guys are deadbeats.

OEM parts only for me ...

I think there’s something primordial about “Will it run”. Kind of like looking into a campfire.

That’s some beautiful eye candy

You prefer to only work on older cars, that is a familiar story I heard a lot in the late 70s and 80s. That was when I watched a whole generation of points and condensor mechanics , forced to retire because they do not understand the computers and sensor engine controls and there were less and less stuff on a car they can repair. I was one of the few who transitioned over and still fix much of my cars today. Now I see mechanics in their age 40s never touched a distributor or carb. I am more than happy to get rid of the carbs, bias tires and regular headlights etc. There is still a lot of stuff in a car that had minimal changes, and there is definitely enough work for smaller shop to survive. I know I deal with one , they fix what I cannot. Where mechanics get squeeze is at the dealer, where they have huge overheads and staff to pay for, One college showcased about $600 worth of equipment just to change oil for cars (Toyota) with sealed transmission. I did it with little equipment in my driveway within a couple of hours and after watching You Tube .

I had to put subtitles to hear this guy 12:22 . Thanks for posting

The sound of a gear reduction Mopar starter at the intro hooked me,even tho i run the later small starter on my 65 Dart GT 273 i miss that sound,dont miss the headache of R&R

Good points, not only tools and know how that counts. it's also sometimes having to make parts from different models do the job. Availablity problems, we had a blown motor and couldn't get the right one. So I was pressured by the boss to 'approve' the different motor and got an earful from the guy doing the work. He quite rightly pointed out that everything had to be modified to do the job. Lose,lose.. then they scream about how long this all takes. Not to mention that many modern cars are designed to torture mechanics. Things like having to tear half the csr down just to do a job like a water pump. Also don't get me started on some book times they should be called Modern Mythology!

Mine is Indonesian. It was more expensive. The fretwork is really good on the edges. If you dont mind a little easy work, geta file, a good set of replacement strings, and some nut lube from an online guitar store. File the nut, lube it, and replace the strings. The mediocre tuners will work better. It is a big return for very little effort. Im no genius with tons of tools and skills. Its easy.

It is expensive to run a shop,and you have to charge appropriately to not go broke, some people balk the labor rate and parts price but it is absoloutly necessary to be able to stay in business,if you don’t like it talk to the people that make the cars,it’s not our fault,we are just here to help

I work for a dealer. I bought most the tools I needed to make good money when I started doing heavy line within the first 6 months to a year. Honestly the newer stuff depending on what you are working on isn't bad. The only difference is there is an onboard computer to tattle tell and point you in the direction of the faulty part. You don't get that luxury on those older cars, every single problem is essentially an NVH concern, sure you don't have codes and some people might not complain about lack of power... but where do you start? You have to check EVERYTHING, where is a modern car will trip a code and point you in the direction... you aren't doing compression and leak down on every car you touch. There is more pinpointing available through the onboard computer then you had on your old computerless systems.

1) not enough customer pay work at the dealership to offset the stingy warranty times 2) Stingy warranty times 3) The manufacturer expects us to diagnose for free 4) Too much free work (License plate removal for sales department, wiper blades, tire pressures, license plate brackets, initializing TPM, pairing phones, checking Bluetooth system and pairing, teaching customer how to pair their phone, some light bulbs are expected to be replaced for free) 5) too many techs; not enough work 6) not being compensated properly by the warranty administrator based on the techs notes on the R. O. 7) being asked to reassemble the vehicle and then disassemble the vehicle again at a future date for free because a part was coming from another country. 8) Being expected to provide $100k in tools and leave them locked up held hostage in someone else's shop overnight 9) being charged for uniforms 10) poor work / life balance 11) zero 401k matching 12) poor retirement benefits 13) being expected to work Saturdays when there wasn't enough work Monday thru Friday 14) low shop morale because not enough work 15) poor work environment 16) poor work conditions 17) unsafe work environment 18) lack of special tools that should be provided by the dealership 19) no bonuses for CSI or shop safety 20) no holiday party 21) no company parties unless tied to a shop company business meeting as a bribe 22) They will allow you to keep your tools hostage over night, but they won't allow you to use the shop for anything other than your vehicle and immediate family.

late 80s volvos are a breeze to work on, i'm an expert on these, they are fuel injected with a computer (to the right of the passengers feet behind the plastic) but there are no codes, the fuel injection components are checked with a voltmeter, that's it....and the only problems i have ever had with these cars are the drive shaft bearing that needs grease or leaking fuel line, one very strange problem, i got a bad voltage regulator (screws into the back of the alternator) and when it was below zero out the car wouldn't run right until the battery got warmed up, for the people that don't know this the battery loses half it's power at these temps. the other problem is never use aluminum fuses on these cars, the best place for you to get parts is worldpac, or autoparts warehouse (same place for non mechanics, all oem very high quality parts

Good video... I think its pretty cool you dont work on vehicles with computers... Rare Breed 👍🏼🛠

Specialisation or specific exclusion is important. It gets jobs that you want, can accomplish competently and you know will fill your rice bowl. You can change or expand your niche at any time. As you said, you are capable. You know how to learn and apply knowledge.You've done it before. I do factories these days.

AWESOME VIDEO .

Today's vehicles are meant to be replaced not repaired. Plastic garbage controlled by computers with very little to no resale value. Purchasing a new vehicle is a bad financial decision.

7 years in the field, actually enjoyed working in both older and newer cars. Anyone that can’t do both simply comes down to skill issues, or just don’t want to learn. Left the field because there are easier jobs that pays more. Still work on my own stuff and save tons of money.

I wanted to be a mechanic after high school. Working on cars just felt something I could enjoy and getting paid doing it. I decided to work in a hospital setting instead. Wrenching can be hard on the body and conditions can be harsh. I work on my families and friends car only when Im available and around my schedule. It best of both worlds for me because work is better in what I do but my love on working on cars is my getaway.

WHAT IS THAT GUY SAYING??? Even at full volume I can’t hear what he is saying

Had an issue on a mitsubishi, similar to yours. Turned out to be a peice of plastic film floating in the fuel tank it would suck up to the fuel pick up and stop, then it would settle and away you go untill it got sucked up again. Good luck finding your issue

I'd be pulling the tank out and checking inside, could it have some earth/ ground issues

If I get a junk part, I always write junk on it with a paint marker before I return it, so nobody else gets screwed

both coils and condensers can fail when hot and then return to normal as soon as they cool. then fuel line, filter or tank pickup restriction but you tested for that. poor connection somewhere in the ignition circuit? or alternator or voltage regulator failing and reducing voltage to the ignition? though it wouldn't crank after. vapor lock? fuel line getting too hot? How hot does that second filter get?

I got out of it 15 years ago...not too long after had people calling saying " I cant find a goid mechanic..." Im like " you want it now and you want it cheap...good luck..."

so right -----retired now but before i spent close to forty years turning wrenches in my own business and working for others. like you i loved the work and making vehicles safe and sound and helping people ,now it has changed so much----used to change a heater core in couple of hours-----now it takes that long just to find it . miss the older days when you could do good honest work ,be proud ,make a simple living and make people happy ,now its dog eat dog rush to beat the times and people expect us to do miracles---------full service gas stations for the most part would alert one on a issue before it was to bad------water ,fluids ,tires and things that made driving safer and cheeper !!thanks for sharing--------the good days .

Hi, how do you think about replace the bridge?

First

With all due respect mechanics fix things that need fixed. Otherwise you're an enthusiast. It's no different than computer programers that used to write in C (I was one). There are still mechanics that work on carburetors and they're still programmers that write in C. I fix cars that have computers because that's what people want fixed.

I love older vehicles with a carburetors,cars back then had a soul, they all were unique and didn't copy each other like today's cars. Im sorry a Toyota Prius or a Tesla will never hold the wow factor that an old school muscle car or truck will have to me.

Also don’t get mad at China or Mexico seriously they are the not the problem. They are making opportunity just like us

Think about how much you spend on just rags. I would rather go to the junkyard, find my car and grab a part then buy new. New oem is great but hard to find and expensive. New is shit like you said with the head gasket.

Thank you

Truth

ASE certified master here, it's really not all doom and gloom. I prefer OBDII vehicles 96+ as the diagnostic is easier. The 96-10 Japanese vehicles are rock solid but easier to repair now the 15 and up vehicles have more systems GDI, turbos and their associated plumbing, blind spot and foward collision sensors. Some tech like electric power steering eliminated power steering leaks and most EPS systems are reliable. The biggest problem I see is deferred maintenance tpms light pops on, couple years later the EBCM has an issue, then a few years later the occupant detection system (weight sensor) causes an SRS light. Customer brings in the car with Tire,ABS, airbag and maybe a check engine light and they want a quote well it's going to be high. Dealer level scan tools are really only needed for coding and programming if you don't do the volume to warrant having a certain tool that's where you should have a network of other shops you work with as a network, if you live in a large city you have several mobile programming and diagnostic guys. Wrenching is as hard as you make it, don't be afraid to turn away customers, don't be afraid to ask another shop for help. Right now a well run shop is a license to print money.

ive done all of our vehicle repair/maintenance along with friends vehicles for the past 30+ yrs because of a crooked stealership. all the money ive saved doing my own work ive accumulated the tool collection of a master mechanic along with most of the specialty tools in blow molded cases, testers, meters and so on. ive never worked in a shop professionally, ive been a concrete finisher for 30 yrs. i love my career but when i get to do some wrenching, i know its going to be a fun and relaxing night after work or on the weekend. i do it because ive always loved working with my hands and the satisfaction knowing i was able to help someone save some cash from crooked shops. ive havent had the need for an expensive scanner yet as ive gotten by with a code reader and the internet just fine along with my years of experience. it may take me longer but like i said, im not a mechanic nor do i want to be one. im just a concrete guy that can fix about anything.

Thank you for sharing your insights and making this video. I have a 15YO son that I want him to consider a trade as a profession and videos like yours are valuable beyond words.

It's easy to blame China, but Chinese companies only make parts to a level of quality that is requested by the vendor. The vendor approaches a "manufacturer" and asks them to make a particular part TO A SPECIFIC PRICE. And that price is not much because the vendor wants to clear anywhere between 80 to 100% markup. The Chinese "manufacturers" then take that offer and put it out to tender to subcontractors who underbid each other (because they want to make their markup on that contract). What you end up with is a part made for pennies on the dollar. They can actually make high-quality items (heck, they have a very successful space program, plus many other world-leading industries), but it's us in the Western world who want "cheap" items.

The government has a hand in this. EPA ect.

You can make lots of money doing easy work like AC, brakes, suspension, tires and other easy work. Hire 2 guys to help. I would do it.

I'm 62 and grew up in this business. No money, and no respect

Bad part is its on purpose, this is an attack from all angles but no one will see it

Kids nowadays don't want to be mechanics because the newer cars coming out of the lots are over-engineered over complicated.They're just too much parts.There's too much parts to break and it's just a pain in the a**To fix, to take them apart You spend the whole day and fix one little plastic part.That's why people don't want to become mechanics its no fun any more its just expensive and stressfull 🥴

Exactly The Point! Who would want to work on most of the modern vehicles anyways? (It’s and abomination of creation) (It’s a freak show in most cases)

I am a master automotive technician for 40 years I know what you mean I should have listened to my mother she said to go in the Air Force and I would have a pension and I would be working at Boeing near me because they hire out of the military and be ready to retire with another pension instead I have to work like my father did till I drop dead I work on old new boats just about anything that has a engine I have to pay 2000 dollars a year to get my scanner updated I used to love to work on vehicles know it's a headache you forgot to mention rust and the parts break taking them off God bless you and your family keep up the hard work making videos and have a blessed day today 🙏