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I wouldn't say that. I sent my car to the dealer under warranty with a brake issue. Explained the problem, and figured they would fix it in a couple hours.
Nope, got the car back and they said everything was normal.
I disagreed and pulled my own wheels off and found one of my rear caliper pistons was seized. Bought a caliper and replaced it on my own. Dealership never saw my car again after that.
Not all dealerships are the same. Some flat out suck. Some are great. I try hard to avoid the ones that suck. I've asked around locally on which ones are better with my model and so far I've been very happy with the recommendations. When I bought it, I also visited a few Dodge dealers and all are far from equal. One tried to sell me on the Durango but had ZERO in stock because they don't stock them. Yeah, I'll buy a $50K+ vehicle without seeing it and driving it...yeah sure....I wasn't born yesterday. I went to a dealership that had several Durangos on the lot. Problem solved. Their shop is also far better.
Back in the day when a normal human being could work on a non-computerized car.
You still can. Spark plugs are in the same spot. Misfires are diagnosed the same way, the mechanicals of the engine are still the same basic systems as 20-30 years ago.
If anything, I find troubleshooting a car with a computer a hell of a lot easier.
You still can. Spark plugs are in the same spot. Misfires are diagnosed the same way, the mechanicals of the engine are still the same basic systems as 20-30 years ago.
If anything, I find troubleshooting a car with a computer a hell of a lot easier.
Exactly. I like the car telling me that, for instance, there's an ignition miss in cyl #3 so I can start there and diagnose plug or wire without going through the whole engine trying find the miss (or if it's fuel or spark). Changing plugs is pretty easy, even with modern coil on plug systems. Just unbolt the coilpack and replace the spark plug as normal. Simple.
The other night we changed the power steering pump on my Sons 2008 Dodge Ram and that was a piece of cake. But, while we were working on it, I looked at how far the engine goes back into the firewall and commented about how tough it would be to reach the plugs to change them. My Son said they are good for 100,000 miles and he is only at 60,000. Thank God, I am not looking forward to that job !
You can't even SEE half the plugs because they are so hidden in there.
I wouldn't wait that long, they do freeze in there and then it's an unbelievable nightmare to get out a broken off plug. Always neversieze the threads on the new ones.
Exactly. I like the car telling me that, for instance, there's an ignition miss in cyl #3 so I can start there and diagnose plug or wire without going through the whole engine trying find the miss (or if it's fuel or spark). Changing plugs is pretty easy, even with modern coil on plug systems. Just unbolt the coilpack and replace the spark plug as normal. Simple.
For the most part they are. The issue is getting access to them on some engines. I know my Lexus engine it is a pain to access due to having the remove intake manifold and various other pieces and dark hidden screws.
Depending on the vehicle , some have one coil some have a coil per cylinder.
I do a KV test to see what the condition of the coil is .
Then if no problems in the KV test I do a leak down test (not compression )
A leak down consists of the engine being locked in (TDC) position so that the cylinder being tested in not moving and it is during the compression stroke . The leak down tester uses your air compressor at a specific rate applied in the spark plug hole to determine if the cylinder is leaking and at what rate .
20% leak down is quite good, and common on relatively new engines.
30% - 40% is OK but 40% and up, there is something more serious going on. And while the pressure is applied one can listen to the different places air is leaking.
Oil fill port,
Intake ,carburetor,
Exhaust ,tail pipe ,
Radiator .
High volume of air heard from the Oil fill port -would indicate rings and or cylinder are the source of high leakage .
Significant air coming from the carburetor -would be an intake valve.
Significant air coming from the tail pipe -the exhaust valve.
Air bubbling from the radiator (cap off ) indicated the head gasket is blown.
The tool is available from Harbor Freight $40.-$50.
The KV meter I got from Snap 0n ,roughly $100.+
A single spark plug to simply fail is very unusual ,it's not high tech electronics and there are no switches or moving parts.
However you might look at the plug in question and see if the gap is closed.
It is prudent to have a guide to properly read your plugs ,auto parts stores, and service manuals usually have them.
Never use a impact wrench to install spark plugs , one sure way of messing things up and 12 Lbs torque is not that difficult to achieve.
Back in the day when a normal human being could work on a non-computerized car.
I have to say that it's actually easier to diagnose cars today with the right tools. I plugged my ODB2 reader to the car and hook up my Android phone to it and it tells me all kinds of diagnostic info that a mechanic could be lying to me. I used the Car diagnostic tool to log and detect which cylinder had the misfire and it was accurate.
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Yeah, I'll buy a $50K+ vehicle without seeing it and driving it...yeah sure....I wasn't born yesterday. I went to a dealership that had several Durangos on the lot. Problem solved. Their shop is also far better.
