Rising Gas Prices = More Ecomodder Interest?

[Isaac Zachary]

Originally Posted by redpoint5

All of this is speculation though because I've never brought a car I owned in for anything and never had major car issues, or things I couldn't easily fix myself. When I purchase a vehicle, I don't want a relationship with the dealer; I want to never see them again.

And some of it is speculation for me too as I've never bought a new car.

I wouldn't mind having a relationship with a dealer if they at least seemed to care about me. There are places (stores, shops, etc.) that I go to even though they're a little more expensive just because they're nice and seem sincere. I avoid others because even though I can get what I need at a lower price simply because they treat me like it's a real bother to sell me the product or service I'm paying for.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by redpoint5

I'd prefer to have a mobile mechanic dispatched to me than to bring my car in somewhere. I've never brought my (company) car anywhere and spent less than a few hours there.

I remember seeing at least one mechanic who did exactly this, with his Honda Cub and a cargo box where he carried the tools.

[hayden55]

Just say no to the dealerships if you don't have a car with a warranty. I find local mechanics or fbm mechanics can do just as good of a job or better for a better price. Rock Auto is really all you need for parts. The local dealership will tell me they will order them and they will be here in 1-2 days and I can do that myself. The biggest eye opener to me was it was going to be like $1900 in parts and labor for a timing belt kit on the sequoia. The Aisin kit (timing belt, idlers, pullies, tensioner, water pump, seals etc..) from rock auto was $189 + $30 coolant. A local mechanic wanted $400 to install (but i did it myself).
Labor wise the local mobile mechanics are about 40-60 an hour. Toyota is $120+ tax so $132/hr here.
*Aisin makes Toyota's parts.

[redpoint5]

All my vehicles have timing chains, so no regular maintenance there.

I did bring my truck to a Cummins shop to do a general evaluation of the powertrain once, but I was young and didn't know anything about diesels back then.

One thing I'd never try myself is fiberglass repair. I tried a few times to work with the evil stuff and suck at it, so I'll happily pay to never mess with it again. If I cared about appearance, I'd probably hire that work out too. Anything that is more of an art than a science is better handled by the artist.

[Isaac Zachary]

Originally Posted by hayden55

Labor wise the local mobile mechanics are about 40-60 an hour. Toyota is $120+ tax so $132/hr here.
*Aisin makes Toyota's parts.

Maybe I should go to Arkansas for all my mechanical work I can't do. Here it's $150/hour for a no-name shop. I've never even heard of a mobile mechanic in the area.

Generally my experience with any mechanic has been poor. Like when I paid over $300 for an alignment to find out they striped out the bolts and nuts that hold the struts to the steering knuckles and just left it like that.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by hayden55

The biggest eye opener to me was it was going to be like $1900 in parts and labor for a timing belt kit on the sequoia. The Aisin kit (timing belt, idlers, pullies, tensioner, water pump, seals etc..) from rock auto was $189 + $30 coolant. A local mechanic wanted $400 to install (but i did it myself).

I'm less than pleased to deal with timing belts, even though it's quite easier for an inline engine. At least these tend to cope better with a shorter belt without the tensioner than a V8 would.

[Hersbird]

Going to an independent shop that works on Teslas is even more few and far between. I bet there is literally only a handful. On top of that they make it as difficult as possible to get parts or access to information on systems.

I normally do all my own repairs and maintenance unless it was under warranty.

I'm getting to the point where I'm buying new or used still under factory warranty because I'm tired of working on cars, but I still don't want to pay $1000s for repairs.

If a company didn't have a warranty shop in my town, I wouldn't even consider buying new. We bought a used Kia once that still had factory warranty but no Kia service here at the time. It broke and they paid to have it towed 230 miles under roadside assistance, but when it was done I was responsible to go an get it myself. Now I just bought a used Lincoln still with 2 years of warranty left and the dealer is a mile away. That's convenient. I could easily walk to or from service.

Ps. On topic. It is a 400hp Lincoln that needs premium and gets 20 mpg combined, replacing the PHEV that got 82 mpge combined. Costing me over $1000 per year more in fuel according to the EPA. It won't really be that much but probably about $700 more.

[freebeard]

By that logic I should drive an Arcimoto FUV. The factory is over on the West side.

[redpoint5]

A friend reached out today asking for help buying her mom a car. Apparently she "had" to move an hour away from work (she makes good money as a nurse), but her vehicle gets 15 MPG.

Funny how when gas is cheap for 3 years, people buy tanks, but once it crosses $3 everyone wants to get a Prius. Do people not realize fuel prices fluctuate? Anyone whose budget depends on stabil fuel prices is doing life wrong.

[freebeard]

What did you recommend? The 1979 Dasher diesel is a good freeway car.

Is that an hour further, or is it already 45 minutes?

Nurse? Maybe she's laying plans to get out of Dodge.