Need to vent about Christmas auto repairs...

[toner87]

OK, I admit it, I'm just looking for sympathy, but here is my tale of woe...
My darling wife smashed our 2000 VW Jetta VR6 into a curb two weeks ago and completely whacked the front left end destroying the tire and the tie rod and putting the car way out of alignment.... She was avoiding an accident, or so she says... She was not injured.Cost to repair and replace everything = $650.00. Oh yeah, there's a big dent under the driver's side door that needs to be fixed, too. USAA insurance will take care of all of this, but I do have a $500.00 deductible...
Then, I notice my coolant light is coming on... Yesterday I find out it's my water pump that needs to be replaced. Do you guys know what it takes to replace a water pump in a 2000 Jetta?! The pump is cheap, but to replace it you apparently have to unbolt the engine and move it 2" to get the clearance necessary to remove/replace the pump. Parts = about $100.00. Labor =$420.00.
ARRGGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
OK, just had to vent. I drop the car off Friday and they'll fix the dents while I'm down in Orange Beach, AL (The Redneck Riviera) with the in-laws...
Merry Christmas All!!!
T.

[yjleesvrr]

toner - if your wife whacked the front end into a curb and you only have to spend $650, count yourself lucky. I know someone who did this to a Honda Accord and they spent 2 grand.

Hope that cheered you up

[toner87]

Thanks Yong!

[TonyT607]

Toner, how 'bout this:



+



=

Zero deductible, and you get a brand new car.


(Or better yet, give the Missus your car and get a brand new R1200GS, K1200GT, HP2, etc.....)

[toner87]

Tony, you're BAD!!!

[yjleesvrr]

Tony, you're BAD!!!

He's from New Jersey. What do you expect?

[sjbmw]

Tony's breaking out the "Sopranos Used Car Maintenance Guide"

[rdsmith3]

Toner

Ask your mechanic if you should replace the timing belt and the thermostat while he has everything apart. I believe it is the same labor, so why pay for it twice if you are anywhere near the maintenance interval for replacing the timing belt.

I just did that on my 97 Audi A6. I needed a new water pump, and replaced the timing belt at the same time. You know you have had a car for a while when you are on your third timing belt.

[Beemeridian]

678

[wncbmw]

What Bob and Dave said.

[CycleRob]

I've replaced about a dozen car timing belts on different makes and I would like to add the timing belt's idler pulley/bearing to the parts list on at least every odd numbered belt replacement. If you do a lot of driving thru puddles, replace it every time. A bad bearing will get real noisy just before it seizes up and stops - - - smoking the belt -or- gets so loose the pulley falls off and the engine stops, both cases often with bent valves and a really expensive repair.

If you ignore replacing the belt like Mary did with her 140,000 mile Prelude that stalled in traffic and wouldn't restart, it had to be towed home. Cranking the engine to start it generated a dull groan like I've never heard. I took on the repair job and found a timing belt with a 20 inch TOOTHLESS section. With the new belt, there was zero compression. Further investigation showed all the intake valves had huge clearances. That can only mean one thing. Bent valves. All 8 of them. Well over $200 just for the new valves. If I wasn't "married" to her older sister, the dealer repair bill to remove the head and replace all the intake valves would have been more than the car was worth.

A Ford Escort was the easiest one at 90 minutes, even though the top motor mount had to be removed. The difficult, hours long, PITA jobs were all on older generation cars where dealer serviceability apparently wasn't as important as it is now.

[owldaddy]

Oh ya, I almost forgot what it was like to change a belt, one of the reasons I like my Altima so much, maintenance chores are few, and there is NO belt. Change the fluids and the filters according to schedule, Plugs distributer cap rotor and wires every now and then. The easiest car I have ever had to maintain. I hate working on cars these days. An attitude that comes from working on cars for the last 40 years I guess. They used to be fun to work on, not any longer. Even my hands are clean these days.
Don

[iowabeakster]

consumer reports and the auto magazines should disclose to shoppers whether an engine design will bend valves if there is a belt failure.

a number of years ago i was talking with a mechanic who only worked on Toyotas and Hondas. he said that the only Toyota that would bend valves was the tercel. maybe that explains why toyotas are so slow.