+Swordsman422 61 Posted March 2, 2012 I'll be up front with the moral of this story first: take time out of your life to learn a few things about your car. You'll be surprised at how much money you'll save doing it yourself. Case in point, the air conditioner on my 2003 Honda Accord quit working. The compressor would still engage, but the cabin blower fan would not turn. Not having several hundred dollars to spend on this issue, I decided to tackle it on my own. You always start with the cheapest thing first, so I checked the fuse that ran the system. It was fine. Next, because it is just easy, I pulled out the blower motor to check it. The shaft spun freely at the slightest touch with no grinding or resistance, with is what a healthy electric motor should do. I got it narrowed down to the transistor, which is a $90 part. Using an Ohm meter, I discovered that the resistor inside was faulty. I bought a pack of two 1 Ohm, 1/4 Watt resistors for 97 cents, soldered a new one onto the resistor pins, and reinstalled the unit. The A/C now works. Going to the dealership may have cost me up to $800 to repair a problem that I fixed on my own with a 43.5 cent part. That's $799.565 I am now free to spend on Thirdwire games. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ironroad 218 Posted March 2, 2012 I know how you feel, I have learned the hard way that if something minor goes out on your car, you can usually fix it yourself for far less than a dealership or even a mechanic you may have. Brakes Oil changes Fuses even minor electrical stuff can be fixed pretty cheaply and with minimal tools Buying a $120-200 car computer code reader was a good investment. Better to pay that money upfront and once, instead of every-time a panel light comes on and you have to take it to a dealer for a "diagnostic". Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FastCargo 412 Posted March 2, 2012 If you have the time. FC Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fubar512 1,350 Posted March 2, 2012 I'm waiting for warm weather so I can rebuild the front end of my truck. Upper ball joints and control arm bushings, tie rod ends, lower control arms, and shocks. I'll bet I'll save like $1200 by doing it myself. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slartibartfast 153 Posted March 2, 2012 Must admit my poor bikes get the spanner attention from me as well feels as though its my only way to say sorry to them... but as you rightly said doing even basic maintenance on a vehicle is easy an Oil change here including oil is going to set me back a 100Euros doing it myself is 30minutes work and about 30 Euro's... and if I do a change once a year on both bikes thats 140 Euro's saved already... just get a manual Haynes/workshop or similiar and learn your vehicle it will also get you used to seeing things as they should be and that way you pick up any faults early... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nesher 628 Posted March 2, 2012 nice save but not everyone can handle their tools.. once I had t change the light on my car, took it to the shop.. cost me about 20-25 USD on the next time I had to change I did that with my big brother that is more handy than me (hard times being a computer geek ) the car is pretty new so hopefully I won't have to spend money on stuff like that anytime soon Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fubar512 1,350 Posted March 2, 2012 nice save but not everyone can handle their tools.. I have to sheepishly admit that I am a diesel mechanic, and worked on transit buses for over a decade before I became a "geek".... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Derk 265 Posted March 2, 2012 Right front blinker unit for my car, E 44,= through the dealer, E 10,95 spare part by internet....... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FastCargo 412 Posted March 2, 2012 I bent wrenches helping my dad out on his cars, then my cars. Plus jobs around the house, plumbing, electrical, structural, painting,etc. Even operated machinery (backhoes, small bulldozers, etc). House or car work doesn't bother me. I could save money doing some of the stuff myself. But my time is far more valuable. I don't see enough of my family as it is, and scraping my knuckles stuck in the garage to fix something no longer appeals to me as it did back in the day. FC Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fubar512 1,350 Posted March 2, 2012 But my time is far more valuable. The best auto mechanic I've ever had the pleasure to know (and work with), rarely changes his oil anymore. He takes his vehicles to the dealer Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slartibartfast 153 Posted March 2, 2012 Must admit I can fieldstrip a lot of weapons and then some but motorbikes I learnt in 09 when my current bike died on me and I needed a bike in 8 months and had to build one out of boxes and managed to do so from that I learnt a lot and more importantly I learnt that it was good therapy for me and settled my mind so I am happy to do it and as its only motorbikes I work on time is not too bad as I spend my time over winter doing the work and then in Spring Summer Autumn I get to ride them... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wrench 9,857 Posted March 2, 2012 sometimes its not so much of not having the time, or not having the money -- its having someplace to DO it at!! Fortunately, my brother-from-another-mother, owns his own shop (well, him & his dad), so that's a lucky non-issue. Plus, having been in the biz for 30 years ... I still have 98.6% of all my stuff (~30k worth of tools!!!), stored in my mother garage (good thing she has a Corolla!) my 2 most prized tools: my Fluke meter and digial ocsillyscope. I really LIKE Swordsman's fix ... that's something even the dealer wouldn't have come up with (well, other that if possible, replacing that board!). Shows exceptional diagnostic skill, and the ability to 'think outside the box' Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The M00ps 0 Posted March 4, 2012 I had a similar experience with my Samsung HDTV. After a couple of years, it stopped powering on. I took it to a local dealer for repair, and they wanted $1100 to replace the display panel. Although we paid $2400 for it new, by this time you could get a comparable 40" brand new for $650. So I decided to just take it home and do a little tinkering, as I felt I had nothing to lose. Since the audio was out as well, I doubted that the display panel was the problem. After doing a little Google research, I found that quite a few people were reporting the same problem with Samsung LCDs. It seems Samsung had done a little cost cutting and used some undersized capacitors on the power board. After a while, they tended to rupture. So I replaced 4 bad capacitors at a cost of about $6 IIRC, and voila, the set powered back up. It's been working perfectly for about 3 years now hence. Last week I got an email from Samsung notifying me that I was party to a class action settlement for this problem, and that they would reimburse up to $300 towards repair or replacement costs. Too bad I didn't keep that $6 receipt from Radio Shack. I would've turned it in just on principle. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
