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As much as I can afford to have other people do it. I enjoy doing my own car work. When I change my own fluids, oils, brake pads, and even flush the coolant and bleeding the brakes. When I've done them often it's like cleaning the house. I get a sense of joy out of driving the car knowing that it drives perfect with the right oil and fluids inside.
I just completed a difficult oil filter housing change on my BMW, it was tight but got it done and the car's engine code went away. Probably a $1500+ job at the dealer and the parts cost only $100.
Another job I've done with changing the alternator which is like an $1200 job since mechanics charge you $600 for a no name brand part and another $600 to change it. Some cars it's an easy job but other cars it can be a difficult tight job to get the water pump and belt changed at the same time. They can easily charge you $2000 for the entire job just doing one area.
Still enjoy it, just don't always have the time for it. Anything that can be tackled solo in under a couple hours I still do. Beyond that it's likely going to a shop unless it lines up with a 3 day weekend.
I used to enjoy it, but live in an apartment now where my garage is tiny, too small for my tools, and anyway, any work at all is forbidden.
I liked to do some work, and some I'd do because it was done best by someone who wasn't on The Clock. Good example: a simple oil change. When I drained the oil into a pan, I let it drip for at-least an hour, thinking that this last drop probably has as much contaminants as the first gallon.
Oh, I enjoy it - anything that can be done in under 2-3 hours. But you have to reduce the number of vehicles (once you start adding motorcycles + ATV + jetskis + chainsaws you can easily go crazy)
My car (which has not accumulated many miles since the Pandemic...)
has 191,000 miles and I see absolutely no reason why it will not make it to 300,000+ just fine.
In another context, in Europe they have to pass those "Right To Repair" laws
because Evil Corporations like Apple say not only are there No User Replacable Parts Inside
but we're gonna make it with sealed, non replaceable batteries inside - so they enforce engineered obsolescence because it increases their revenue. So lets compare "cars" vs other devices. What if I WANT to work on it myself? Dont I OWN this? Shouldn't the tech docs and wiring diagrams and services manuals be easily available? Do I really have to sue the manufacturer to make that happen - I wonder if Tesla would sue Hanes for making a aftermarket manual (proprietary Software - not a not an item composed of Atoms but Software made of closed source Bits).
I think the customs of car culture should carry over to tech culture. The day the hood does not open to access the engine, that's when I buy a bicycle and you can keep your $90,000 Tesla. I will print a classic car from 1967 on my 3D Printer and give middle fingers to the DMV.
I'm 68 and I like doing my own oil changes etc. but I haven't been able to since I bought my Volt two years ago. It just sits too low so I would have to jack the car up to do them. I just had an oil change done at the dealer the other day for less than fifty bucks.
I replaced the heater door actuator on our 2005 Explorer about 2 years ago. Heat was stuck in the "defrost" position and we could only turn it off or on. Our youngest drives that vehicle and he had to tough it out for one summer with no AC.
It was very difficult to reach the unit but I persevered and accomplished the mission. I had to buy a set of ratcheting box wrenches and in the end I could only reattach 2 of the 3 screws holding thing in place, but we now have AC and can change the heat settings from defrost to feet and anything in between.
It's more about the satisfaction of fixing it myself, than of saving money on the repair. It's also about showing my family that we can still fix things ourselves rather than "throwing it away" or running to a repair shop for every little thing that goes wrong.
I'll be 69 in a couple of weeks, but still do as much as I can. I just can't do it as quickly as I used to, but I'm also retired, so I don't have to "get er done" by midnight, so I can still grab a few hours sleep, so I can get to work in the AM...........
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