Shadetree/DIY guys, do people go to you ?

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Guys with no formal training or experience. Do people come to you with questions, expecting you to have a mental automotive encyclopedia? Do you find yourself changing oils, brakes, and such? Or how about on the other hand, do you find it a bit odd when family members speak of taking their car to the dealership for minor service, knowing they paid $20 for labor on cabin air filter?
Things I have done for others are complete brakes on my sister in law, shocks and struts on my brother, coolant change/flush on my brother, oil change on a few coworkers.
I always thoroughly and almost obsessively research any task that I jump into until I have torque values and capacities ingrained in my brain. I always follow closely the best applicable procedure. I do not doubt my ability or quality of work (well, I am paranoid by nature) and always recheck every step I have performed. I always sometimes wonder, "what if?", though.
Brother picked up his car today after I did the suspension. I kept my phone on max volume in case he called that his wheel flew off or a coil spring shot right through his fender. Coworker was puzzled that I told her to check underneath her car for any oil leaks after an oil change and I would top up and tighten as needed.
Anyway just trying to get other perspectives on the topic. Does anyone have a hard limit on complexity/safety of a job they will do for someone out of concern for possible liabilty?
 
I've done a lot of work on relatives' cars over the years. I'm fairly handy and have a good tool collection, and being a mechanical engineer leads a lot of people to think I must be a mechanic too. Mostly stuff like window regulators and brakes where the price of having it done at a dealer is way way higher than the parts costs. Oil changes too. I do not do anything involving transmissions, opening the engine, or complicated electrical troubleshooting. I stick to stuff that's obvious to diagnose and make it clear to them that I'll provide my time and bring every tool I've got but there are no guarantees or warranties
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jeff
 
I only share wisdom I have learnt on BITOG. Like using low viscosity spread oils like 10W30 and Fram Ultra.

The prevailing BITOG wisdom is that if you fix someone's car, family member or not, they will hold you responsible to everything that goes wrong with their car afterwards.
 
LOL, my diy skill level and OCD level seems similar to yours. At age 62, my enjoyment of diy car care is now mostly kept to my own car and occasionally on my adult children's cars. It just gets old doing favors for everyone else, even when they offer to pay something for your time. I don't enjoy wrenching THAT much and I keep it at a level where it IS enjoyable vs. becoming a chore.

While I enjoy being frugal as much as the next guy, I also can afford to pay someone else whenever I choose to. One of my best tactics has been to befriend a professional mechanic that also moonlights out of his garage. He is extremely competent and only charges about $40/hour labor. I take care of him very well and vice versa. We have a mutual respect and trust of each other. I do the parts running, etc. and pay him for his skills and expertise. He changed a difficult timing belt/water pump/etc. job with OEM parts for about $800 total vs. $1600 at other shops, a job that would have taken me all weekend, and probably more.

I do give limited verbal advice, but that can backfire on you also. Remember that saying about a good deed not going unpunished.

I hope THE CRITIC chimes in to share if he still does "favors" type work as much as he used to.
 
My wife brought her friend over for some Honda CRV 3rd gear pressure switch that commonly goes bad. Wifey figured out all the symptoms and diagnosis via a couple of youtube videos. I slapped the part in in under 15 minutes, took $20, and congratulated all involved in their barely needing me. Pizza was on me.
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I just did my nephews front bumper. He claimed that someone with a trailer hitch back into his front bumper but he has a history of bumping into things. His dad was coming up this weekend and he didnt want to have to explain a new dent to him
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It poked a nice hole in there but not too bad. He at least helped and learned a few things.
Pulled the front cap, fiberglassed the [censored] of of the back end with the plastic epoxy.
sanded sanded the front smooth, bondo (I know but the flexy stuff was not to be found)
sanded, primed and painted with rattle can paint.
Buffed after the paint cured and it looked pretty good. Color (black) didnt match for squat but he was ecstatic. He had no idea that it could be repaired to that degree in a day.

Far from perfect but unless you are looking for it, it doesn't draw your eyes to it. He's happy.

He also got me to shine up his headlights while we were working on the front end.

They shined up nice.

While reassembling the front cap I noticed the front cap was not orignal but a CAPA replacement.
Also the front drivers wheel well plastic cover was missing. When I asked who did the work to replace the front cap....The dealership. (SMH) The front cap needed the wheel well liner to stay in place. Ordered one from Rock auto and replaced.

The kid is really happy now.
 
I won't do work for other people, not even family.

In my early career I fixed computers, and I also did that for friends and family. Well a few years of every single issue turning into my problem because I "fixed it that one time, this must be your fault" has turned me off to the whole thing.

[censored], most family and friends have no idea I work on my own cars.
 
In the summer I will let a friend or relative come over and I will change oil, filters, fluids, brakes, plugs and wires, hoses, change thermostat and have done a few valve cover gaskets,but I am getting less and less inclined to do it as I am getting older. I will not get into exhaust or suspension work and will not do it in the winter months as being under a vehicle on cold concrete driveway is not much fun. I do not get paid maybe a 12 pack or case of beer on occasion and if dealing with fluids I inform them that they must find a place to take the old fluids like oil and antifreeze as I am not a recycling facility. I have the equipment to recharge AC on my own vehicles but so far have only had to do it once and that was on our Sonata. I will not mess with the AC units of vehicles other than my own.
 
I'm teaching my kids to do their own auto work and get their hands dirty or pay $$$ at the dealer!

I can't spoil them with free work at my age, because in 10 yrs I figure I'll be unable to then.

However, we have a fun time so they learn the value of their own labour and DIY the cars is a
shared experience.

Somebody has to inherit my tools and workshop!! LOL
 
Close family friends are my weak spot when it comes to helping others out with car problems. They are a great family and we love them to death, but they are the ones that BITOG has nightmares about.

They have no idea or interest in maintaining any of their gasoline burning possessions. Wehn I found out that one of the guys was planning on driving his father-in-law's Mercedes to Florida, I was a bit concerned. It had sat outdoors at his storage shed for 5 years with the windows partially rolled down without a cover. Front wheel bearings were seized, no brakes all around, wouldn't run right below 2000 rpms, and on and on...

He was just going to jump into it and drive it 1800 miles like he had just driven it off the new car lot. He can easily afford to be rescued when everything goes wrong, but I thought why allow that to happen when I can easily prevent it?

His brother lives straight across the street from me, and his issues are OPE instead of cars because he leases vehicles through his firm. I've had his lawn tractor and snowblower in my shop often, sometimes for the simplest things like a broken sparkplug causing running issues. At some point he'll bring me his PWC to get that up to snuff, it spends most of the summer in his driveway disabled.

I happily do everything I can for them and other members of my family simply because I have the knowledge and tools to do it. They all appreciate it greatly, and I don't feel uncomfortable when I ask them legal advice or help with HR issues. Those are their specialties and they are equally happy to help me. I never charge for my labor, and when friends insist on paying me I graciously accept and go out and buy them something I know they'll like.
 
Oh heck no! Outside the wifes and my vehicle, I do not touch anybody else's vehicle. Even my with my own kids, the second they learned to drive, I had them under their own vehicle turning the wrenches with my supervision so they could see what went into maintaining a vehicle.

Many years back, I broke my own rule for the neighbor lady that was recently "widowed" at the insistence of my wife. Did an oil change and tire rotation for the old bitty once, and then I was blamed for the next two years for every other failed and neglected maintenance problem she had.

I get the occasional other neighbor or extended family member hemming and hawing trying to rope in "helping" them, but I shut that business down promptly. Family will take advantage of and screw you over quicker than any stranger.
 
Originally Posted By: threeputtpar
Close family friends are my weak spot when it comes to helping others out with car problems. They are a great family and we love them to death, but they are the ones that BITOG has nightmares about.

They have no idea or interest in maintaining any of their gasoline burning possessions. Wehn I found out that one of the guys was planning on driving his father-in-law's Mercedes to Florida, I was a bit concerned. It had sat outdoors at his storage shed for 5 years with the windows partially rolled down without a cover. Front wheel bearings were seized, no brakes all around, wouldn't run right below 2000 rpms, and on and on...

He was just going to jump into it and drive it 1800 miles like he had just driven it off the new car lot. He can easily afford to be rescued when everything goes wrong, but I thought why allow that to happen when I can easily prevent it?

His brother lives straight across the street from me, and his issues are OPE instead of cars because he leases vehicles through his firm. I've had his lawn tractor and snowblower in my shop often, sometimes for the simplest things like a broken sparkplug causing running issues. At some point he'll bring me his PWC to get that up to snuff, it spends most of the summer in his driveway disabled.

I happily do everything I can for them and other members of my family simply because I have the knowledge and tools to do it. They all appreciate it greatly, and I don't feel uncomfortable when I ask them legal advice or help with HR issues. Those are their specialties and they are equally happy to help me. I never charge for my labor, and when friends insist on paying me I graciously accept and go out and buy them something I know they'll like.


I have ended up being the charity mechanic for probably a dozen people.

Yesterday while I was replacing a shock bushing on my sister's van the neighbor two houses down wanted me to come look at her newish Cadillac that had a digital speedometer than quit working.

The thing is, I'm handy, but with the internet there is no reason people can't google this stuff themselves, which is what I have to do if working on something that is unfamiliar. I've never touched a caddy, and with the all digital dash with HUD there's no way I'm touching that thing.

I currently have 24 Honda ATV's in my back yard. About half of them are mine. The other's belong to friends, or my wife's family. They bring them to me to fix, and when it was wheel bearings and even top ends I did it because I enjoyed it. Now it's gotten to the point where people just drop stuff off, and I've had enough of it. The guy who doesn't pay his bills but his wife drives a Range Rover? He drops his kids late 80's 350 Foreman off that "needs rings" and the things been sitting with the top end off for years. Cylinder had 1/4" of rust on the walls. His kid is in my daughter's class so I'm going to fix it with a parts bike I got for next to nothing, and hope that the dad doesn't sell it out from under the kid (I feel sorry for the kid). So I haven't gotten to that one yet and come home to find an old Big Red ATC in the driveway, same guy, with "can you look at it?" I pushed it off on the bushes, and the next time I saw him told him to come get it.

My parent's and my wife's father are old. My sister is an old maid, so they need my help. I don't want to see people I care about pay $100/ hour to have things done that I can easily do, but I've discovered while some people are nice, patient, and gracious, some will take full advantage of me if I let them. Family I feel an obligation to help. Same for close friends, but I've been amazed at the people who barely know me who want me to "look at" whatever they have.

I've told people "NO MORE" the last few times people have asked me to fix their stuff. I don't have time to work on my own stuff if I keep working on other peoples junk.

The last straw was a close friend has a Honda Rincon that he sank several times. I tore the motor down to clean it out, and after reassembly cannot get it to shift right. It has hydraulically driven clutches instead of gears so honestly it's beyond my skill level, and while I've found a lot of people with the same issue online, no one has ever posted up the cause of the problem or the solution, so I'm stuck on it. I want to fix it for him, but have spent countless hours messing with it and it still won't shift out of first without the rear wheels locking up, so I'm about to throw in the towel and tell him to come pick it up. He paid for the new seals, timing and oil pump chains, and top end work, but ultimately I failed to fix it, he spend a bunch of money on parts, and he's probably going to find that if he takes it to a shop fixing it will much more than it's worth (I suspect the motor will have to be torn down again). It shifted fine when he brought it to me, just smoked horribly, so I didn't get something together right. No way this situation ends well unless I get it fixed, and since I don't charge my friends to tinker it's put me in a very awkward spot.

The worst thing is, after being helpful for years, now when I tell people no it offends them. No good deed goes unpunished.
 
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My parent's neighbors do with me - but I do maintenance including brakes. A few friends have also came up to me. I know one of them buys parts and I don't charge him anything, I see it as a hobby to keep a neglected Chevy on the road.
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I've just done a valve adjustment, new plugs/coils/oil/coolant for a co-worker and I charged him what was fair for my time.
 
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I do more work for friends and family than for myself. Ever since I was in the service at 17 y/o I've been doing mechanical work. I figure maybe one day they may return a favor, but don't really care if they do.
 
I try to avoid working on other people's cars. I barely have enough time to work on my own cars, let alone others'. Besides my own, I only fix and maintain my mom's cars, and that's thankfully not very often.
 
If one of my wife's friends or relatives is stranded nearby, usually due to a dead battery, they might call her and ask if I can look at it. As if I am operating some kind of charity roadside assistance service.

So I pack up my toolbox and multimeter, and probably end up pulling a dead battery, take them to O'Reilly to get a new one, then install it.

But I don't do routine maintenance or repairs on other people's vehicles. Not worth the hassle. And it's not like I have hands on experience with all makes and models, either. I would be a fool to think I am going to sort out electrical problems on an Altima, fuel injection trouble on a Subaru, etc.
 
As a mechanic - no. As a detailer, yes. Good thing, since my mechanical skills and knowledge is quite limited.

Back in the days, I used to do paint corrections and detailings for friends and colleagues on weekends for some extra $.

Nowadays, with the family, house and property to attend to, I still do complete detailings for my own cars and my immediate family's but no one else. I don't have enough time for that anymore.

I'm still asked quite a few times every year. Maybe when most of the house work is done and the kids are older and living on their own, which will take many years still.
 
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