One of the most hateful repairs I've ever done

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Originally Posted By: AdRock
Originally Posted By: Clevy
My 04 ram hemi was by far the most painful plug change experience ever.
The first 6 on the driver side are easy, it's the last 2 that are agonizing. I had to drop the plug in the hole,then the socket and short extension,then swivel,another extension then assemble the pieces,with 1 hand,blind,then crank them in. Pulling them out was a nightmare because I hadn't learned yet that the whole socket and extension needed to be assembled and disassembled in the plug hole.
And I had to lay on top of the engine getting poked and stabbed with whatever was sticking out.
Dodge wanted 800 bucks to change the plugs in my truck. It took me. 6.5 hours to do it.
I'd want 800 bucks to if I had to do it to someone else's vehicle.


I just did the plugs on my buddies 04 ram hemi with 90k miles on it on Sunday. What a pain. Plus they were the original plugs and were in that engine very tight. I have a 24in. long ratchet that I was using to get the plugs out but had to use a 4ft. breaker bar to get a few loose. When it came to the back 2 cylinders on the drivers side I couldn't get enough leverage to even get them loose. It was about midnight when he said just leave them. He's going to get the shop that does his company cars to deal with them. Also, who was the moron designer that decided to put the egr pipe on the passenger side directly above the coils that really should be pulled straight out? IDIOT.



You got that right. When dodge told me 800 bucks I told them they were nuts. After doing it myself I now know why it costs 800 bucks,because its worth it.
The rear drivers side pair are unreal. I had to completely pull apart the socket and extensions,then reassemble blind.
I almost gave up however prior to the plug change I was getting 13mpg on the highway. So I was in awe at consumption.
After the plug change it settled down to 20mpg which I was satisfied with.
Truck had 240k at the time and the plugs looked stock and original.
 
I had that same ring changed on my mustang last year, I don't know how hard it was because my mechanic changed it but I remember picking that ring up at the dealer, the old one was flat.
 
My '90 T-Bird SC had one of the MOST complex/expensive to repair ABS systems I've ever heard of being installed in a car.

This is/was only thing in a Blue Oval product I could not stand/live with.
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(This car's remote, dash adjustable damper setting system was also not very great, but an easy fix to just dump it for manually adjustable Konis.
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Originally Posted By: ls1mike
LT1 F-body plug and wire change. W-Body Power steering pump.


Heard horror stories about the F-bod stuff, but the L67 power steering pump wasn't too bad, aside from a busted knuckle. The coolant elbows weren't too great, and the location of the oil filter and intercooler pump on my LSJ aren't the greatest.
 
Originally Posted By: dailydriver
My '90 T-Bird SC had one of the MOST complex/expensive to repair ABS systems I've ever heard of being installed in a car.

This is/was only thing in a Blue Oval product I could not stand/live with.
wink.gif

(This car's remote, dash adjustable damper setting system was also not very great, but an easy fix to just dump it for manually adjustable Konis.
wink.gif
)


The Teves system, most 80s GMs with anti lock brakes used it as well, have same on my '88 T-Bird...

You guys ain't really been in bed with a Ford 4.6 till you've replaced the valve stem seals... I can do both sides on two older 5.0 and a half dozen thermostats changes, while doing just one side of the fat girl modular...

Originally Posted By: Colt45ws
Originally Posted By: zzyzzx
Who was making you get the V8 when you could have gotten the smaller V6?

Yes, get the 3.8L so you can feed it head gaskets.

A gasket went bad on a 17 year old engine with an unspecified number of miles. I guess its a bad engine.[/sarcasm]


Ain't that the truth?? Look up POS in any newer Websters, a Ford 3.8 will be one of the examples... OK that's stretching the truth but it really should be there...
 
All of the manufacturers are guilty of this at some point or another. Just a few of my fav's:

1. PCV valve on a Prius, should be
2. Starter on a '94 Chev 1 Ton Dually- Rt/F wheel and shroud come off. 2 Transmission and brake lines in the way of the 75 lb starter.

3. Water Pump- on the '07+ Tundra
Too much to list! Just Plain Stupid.
The dealer charges 4 hours labor!
 
Everything on our old A4 - mostly because to replace one part - all the surrounding rubber/plastic would be disintegrated, it also started most procedures with 'put car in service mode', which meant, take the front off.

Except the front CV joints. Remarkably easy.
 
Originally Posted By: ls1mike
LT1 F-body plug and wire change. W-Body Power steering pump.



Never again will I work on a LT-1 in a 4th generation F body.
 
My mechanic buddy had one. Got it for free essentially and used it as his work car. He got so fed up with it; the amount of repair work necessary, and one night he just flipped out in his shop. He started beating the snot out of the car with tools, fists, boots ect.

Rather funny to watch
 
Ever try changing spark plugs on a 5.4L V8 Triton engine in the F150s? Not fun if they break on you.

Every try doing the same thing but on a 4.3L GMC Jimmy? Also not that fun, but slightly easier ;-).

I recently changed the cabin air filter for my GF's ford fusion. A metal round bar blocked the filter panel. The filter ripped, but managed to get it off after using very long and thin pliers to get in there. Ended up taking 40 minutes to do.

In case you don't know, the filter is located behind the glove box, which is also difficult to remove than my car.

I have no complaints with my Hyundai. Foreign econo cars tend to be very easy to work on for the most part.

+1 on the 3.8L engines eating headgaskets...
 
Clutch job in a Porsche 944.

Not because the job was particularly difficult as far as clutch jobs went, but because the transmission is at the rear axle but it still has to be removed. Thankfully Porsche fixed this for the 968, allowing you to remove the torque tube separately from the gearbox, meaning that a clutch job might take a couple of hours instead of 8 to 12.

I've been told Corvettes since 1997 are a nightmare as well, as you literally have to separate the body from the frame to get to a couple of bolts on the back of the engine.
 
Originally Posted By: A_Harman
I just replaced the power steering pump on my Camaro last week. It's up high on the front of the engine, but the two bolts that attach it to the cylinder head can only be accessed with an open end wrench, and you can only turn the bolts a half-flat at a time. Oh yes, the ABS module has to be dismounted and moved aside to get any access to the outboard bolt. All told, I was wrenching on those two bolts for about an hour to get them out.

Then I broke the phenolic pulley trying to get it off the pump and had to buy a new one. Then I tried to get smart, and had a local machine shop drill access holes in the new pulley so I could use a socket to run in the bolts. The access holes worked like a charm, and it only took me about 5 minutes to install the new pump. But now I'm worried about durability of my new phenolic pulley because the access holes are chipped at the corners and may cause the web to crack over time.

Some jobs just go wrong from the start.


^^^This is why I went with a Turn One modded pump and their own OEM sized, alloy pulley (with access sections cut into it) already installed and racing wire-tied.
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Originally Posted By: HM12460
Originally Posted By: ls1mike
LT1 F-body plug and wire change. W-Body Power steering pump.



Never again will I work on a LT-1 in a 4th generation F body.


The plug change on an LS1 4th gen is not much better.
frown.gif
 
Simple thing like replacing headlight bulb in 2006 Volvo V70 is pain in the behind. The full power low beam is used as DRL and it burnt out in less than 1-2 years, replacing it took more than 30 minutes. Right now I use long life Philips H11 bulb to extend it to 2-4 years.

Replacing headlight bulb in the E430 is no more than 1-2 minutes.
 
Originally Posted By: dailydriver
Originally Posted By: HM12460
Originally Posted By: ls1mike
LT1 F-body plug and wire change. W-Body Power steering pump.



Never again will I work on a LT-1 in a 4th generation F body.


The plug change on an LS1 4th gen is not much better.
frown.gif


Headers help. The wires are easier.
 
After I replaced the water pump on a Chrysler Sebring 2.7, I got terrible flashbacks for a month every time I saw a Chrysler Sebring.
 
Oooh. Previa. I had the original Toyota van (2 of them) and my neighbor had a previa w/ SC.

Those were both nightmares for anything more than an oil change.
 
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