DIY Repairs: what Saves Money and What Destroys Cars
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Car
Jeep Wrangler
The Jeep TJ Wrangler is a tough vehicle made for off-roading. It's known for its ability to handle rough terrain and is a favorite among people who like to drive in the wild.
Term
lower valley pan
The lower valley pan is a part of the engine that holds oil and other fluids. Sometimes, dirt and gravel can get stuck in it, so it needs to be cleaned out when fixing the car.
Term
transmission transfer case service
This service is about checking and fixing a part of the car that helps it drive all four wheels. It's important for keeping the car running well, especially if it's used off-road.
Car
Jeep TJ
The Jeep TJ is a type of Jeep Wrangler made in the late 1990s and early 2000s. It's built for driving on rough terrain and is loved by people who enjoy off-roading.
Term
maintenance neglect
Maintenance neglect means not taking care of a car properly. If someone doesn't fix small problems or do regular check-ups, it can lead to bigger issues later on.
Car
Porsche 356
The Porsche 356 is a famous sports car made by the German company Porsche, and it was one of their first models, created a long time ago between 1948 and 1965. People talk about it because it looks great and drives really well, making it a favorite among car enthusiasts.
Term
electronics
Electronics in cars are the systems that help control things like the engine and entertainment features. They are important for how the car works but can be sensitive to things like moisture and salt.
Term
road salt
Road salt is the salt spread on roads to help melt ice in winter. While it helps keep roads safe, it can also cause cars to rust and break down faster.
Term
corrosion
Corrosion is when metal parts of a car start to break down or rust due to exposure to moisture and chemicals. This can make the car less safe and reliable.
Term
TPMS system
TPMS is a system in cars that tells you if your tires are low on air. It helps keep you safe by warning you before a tire gets too flat.
Term
brakes
Brakes are what help a car stop when you press the pedal. If they start working on their own, it can be very dangerous because you can't control when the car stops.
Part
brake master cylinder
The brake master cylinder is a part of the car that helps control the brakes. It pushes brake fluid to the brakes so that the car can stop when you press the brake pedal.
Term
brake fluid
Brake fluid is a special liquid that helps your car's brakes work. It moves the force from the brake pedal to the brakes themselves, allowing the car to stop.
Term
contaminated braking system
A contaminated braking system means that something dirty, like motor oil, has mixed with the brake fluid. This can make the brakes not work properly and can be dangerous.
Part
proportioning valve
The proportioning valve is a part of the brake system that helps control how much pressure goes to the front and back brakes. It makes sure the brakes work evenly and safely.
Part
brake parts cleaner
Brake parts cleaner is a cleaning solution designed to remove dirt and grease from brake parts. It's important to use it to keep brakes working safely and effectively.
Part
wheel cylinders
Wheel cylinders help your car's brakes work by pushing the brake pads against the wheels. When you press the brake pedal, they make sure your car stops safely.
Part
flex brake lines
Flex brake lines are rubber hoses that connect the brakes to the wheels. They help the brakes work even when the car is moving up and down on the road.
Term
cooling system
The cooling system helps keep the engine from getting too hot. It has parts like the radiator that help cool down the engine's fluids.
Car
Cognac Trans Am
The Pontiac Trans Am is a type of sports car that was made by Pontiac. It's known for being fast and having a cool design, especially popular in the 70s and 80s.
Term
power steering
Power steering is a feature in cars that makes it easier to turn the steering wheel. It helps you steer without having to use a lot of strength.
Term
washer fluid
Washer fluid is a liquid that helps clean your car's windshield. When you spray it, it helps get rid of dirt and bugs so you can see better while driving.
Term
radiator fluid
Radiator fluid is a liquid that helps keep your car's engine cool. It prevents the engine from getting too hot while you drive.
Term
tire pressures
Tire pressures are how much air is in your car's tires. It's important to keep them at the right level for safety and to help your car drive better.
Term
sidewall of the tire
The sidewall of the tire is the outer part that you can see when looking at the tire. It has important information about the tire, like how much air it should have.
Term
oil changes
Oil changes are when you replace the old oil in your car's engine with new oil. This helps keep the engine running smoothly and prevents damage.
Term
fuel economy
Fuel economy is how efficiently a car uses fuel. If your tires are not inflated correctly, your car will use more fuel to drive the same distance, which means you'll spend more money on gas.
Term
engine related
When someone talks about 'engine related' work, they mean anything that has to do with the car's engine, which is what makes the car run.
Part
headlight switch
The headlight switch is what you use to turn your car's headlights on and off. It can also let you choose between bright and dim lights.
Term
fuse
A fuse is like a safety switch for electrical systems in cars. If too much electricity flows, the fuse breaks to stop any damage.
LIVE
Good morning Niagara
You're tuned to car connection where the coffee's hot the tools are ready and the talk is always tuned up
And I'm your host Nile motormouth Jenkins coming to you straight from the car connection workshop
Where we mix a little humor a little know-how and a whole lot of horsepower
Here it's not just about fixing cars
It's about keeping you rolling and saving you money
Giving you the confidence to understand what's under that hood from the classics to the commuters
The weird noises to the what the heck moments we've got you covered
So grab your coffee
Sit back not too far if you're driving
And join the crew this morning because this is car connection your Monday through Saturday morning pit stop
For stories smarts and a few good laughs, and I'm motormouth Jenkins. We're shifting into drive this morning
so hang on to your hats if you got one, you know, is it just me and
That these knitted hats don't stay on your melon
You don't like to either creep down on you till you can't see at the front and you're right in the middle of doing stuff
You know like shoveling snow or you're on the end the back end of the snowblower
But you know I'm getting wood out of the wood pile and the hats popping up my ears are uncovered
I pull it down and then it slides off at the back. It's like what what the heck?
You pull the hat and knitted hat on your head should it not when you kind of pull it down lock it in stay there
And I have like a stack
About door winter hats because I go through I make they just get filthy. So, you know, I
Let's let's not open that but anyhow, so I have a change up, but they all fit the same way
I'm thinking is my melon deformed or something
It's one size fits all no, it's not working out. Anyways before I digress
I just thought I'd put that out there. It's kind of irritating me a little bit
I got all these hats and not one stays in place
Like what do you got to have a head head that shaped like a you know
An orange cone
Yeah, yeah, we were responsible for that
You know, remember when they used to put Ronald McDonald outside and at the big gold nachis
We had to go through a construction place and find one of those big
orange cones
Go through the drive-thru and somebody would jump out of the car and jam the cone on the top of Ronald McDonald's head
Yeah, that was us
We did that
All right, I hope you had a great weekend and we've got family day coming up a
Week from today so something to look forward to
Plan some things with the kids the older kids as well. Keep them busy. Noodle art is good
Yeah snowman making gonna be a little tough the snow squeaky and that yeah, so you're gonna have to be creative
Maybe, you know some paper mache
Make a volcano in the kitchen and let her rip and then spend, you know two days cleaning up the mess
Anyhow, thanks for letting me into your vehicle this morning if you're driving and you're welcome to come into the car connection
Workshop we love love love our first-time listeners
We're only about a week out from celebrating
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Subscribed to our YouTube channel. We have we're on the back door celebrating 200
teaching videos on our
YouTube channel where you always learn five things what it is where it is how it works how it breaks and what you could have
learned as some of the basic
automotive ownership
Fundamentals to prevent that stuff from happening and the whole idea and aspect of everything
I've been doing just wrapped up 31 years of our program or live call an automotive program called car connection on
several networks and
It was time to move on. Let's go digital
So let's reach more people instead of being trapped in little circles where there's a possibility
There might be someone tuned in to your program well now we have north south east and west
360 degrees
180 for those
Those people that believe that the earth is flat
Hey each to his own right
Anyhow, how do you get to the other side? That's that's my question
You know like when you get to the edge and you know where you need to go is on the underneath
How do you get there?
Yeah, just ask it just the you know general question
Anyhow, let's keep it rolling this morning. We're gonna be talking about I know here it comes brothers and sisters do it yourself
or
DIY repairs that save you money and
other ones that destroy
Your freaking vehicle and I I have seen some stuff. Let me tell you this past summer
e-gads mad and there's been times where I just open the hood and go
Not today cowboy not today
So if you're just scooting through the drive-thru
Double-check your order lock it down in that cup holder
Hand over the 16-pack Crayola crayons to your sidekick there your co-pilot and
give them the
The leaf bag laptop to take notes on right they fold up perfectly ever notice that
Yeah, the bundle just slip it right out of the bundle the way it is flip it over
Instant memo pad
Yeah, and there's nothing gonna pop up on the screen that you no longer have you know
You're no longer gonna be receiving any more emails unless you buy more storage on the cloud
Really
Get last it's all one word
All right forecast this morning
Heading into a brand-new work week make it a great day make it a great Monday
Yeah, I remember the song that came out. I don't like Mondays. I
Got past that it was my psychological teacher
Said you got to get past that bro. Yeah, they're make every day a great
Day, I know what the song was all about. So you don't have to send me any hate mail or anything
I'm on I'm on that. I am actually a musician. So yeah, I know what that's all about here
We go forecast today
Precipitation they're gonna I know they're gonna lie to us because I have been on the snowblower and putting on the banjo
Yesterday afternoon another three four hours to finish tidying up and get things ready for the next blast, which is coming tomorrow
Tuesday yeah
Even though the lake is frozen and we are on the south shores of Lake Erie it has been snowing
Pretty much every single day here
Yeah, you're saying well, I mean we didn't get anything
Well, if I've had a big enough fan, I would be happy to send you, you know a streamer
Yeah, no problem puts down about two or three inches of fresh snow in literally 20 minutes to half an hour
So anyways, you're welcome to have some just let me know shoot me an email
Remember everything we talk about on our YouTube channel
And actually Mondays, that's when we we shoot fresh videos
We've got a bunch in the library will be uploading some more some more this week two for Tuesday one for Friday
And I'll tell you you can go all the way back to the beginning of our channel and learn so much of the basics
Fluids, where are they? What do they look like? How do we test them batteries? How do you know you got a bad battery?
bad battery
How do you know it's gonna go south on you?
Annie freeze. What are we looking for? How do we test it? How do we know? It's really really good and
Or really really bad, but it looks really good all those things you will learn on our YouTube channel
You go back all the way back at the beginning and we've been working on this cute little
97 Jeep TJ Wrangler that was sent up to us from Nile in the lake from a truck
Wrecking yard where everything's behemoths in there. This thing's arrived. It is now
Inches away from being completely drivable
There's a couple more services to do but we got to move it over to the lift
To take the lower valley pan off to get gravel and mud and everything that's all trapped in around the transmission
And do a transmission transfer case service, but you can watch this
97 Jeep TJ that we rescued from the crusher just go through all the maintenance neglect that put it there
That's all that's the whole reason why it was there was whoever owned it
Was a maintenance neglector
Don't fix stuff. Don't do nothing. Just put gas in turn the key in
Hope it starts and we got a good day and just you know, drive it like you stole it
So anyways, so exciting to see it come back to life and at the very end of that series
We will show you how much it cost
All in to bring that little Jeep back to life. You are going to be
Absolutely
shocked because even some of my friends are saying
motor mouth
You're spending a ton of money on that thing and I scratch my head and I go how the stink
Do they know that how do they know that?
It's not
Possible to know that because I'm the only one who has the folder that everything's logged in and I'm the one that knows
where we got free stuff if
I was willing to go get it take the parts off where we got most of the stuff that the guys there were
Fantastic at letting me take whatever I wanted off of this oh six
Last year that the Jeep TJ Wrangler and it was from Texas. I should have bought the whole thing
And they would have let me take it
But they say you know whatever you want motor off you do take it off. It's this much and I go really yeah
You want you don't want the interior if you're willing to take it all out. It's all gonna go in the scrap anyway
Nobody comes in here for that stuff. I go mine
So anyhow, I don't want to get too far behind but let's get in the weekend weather have our swiggy together
So get your morning beverage ready and prepared if you're heading out on the road heading to work
Please drive safe and sane drive sanely. Okay
You're saving your vehicle. Just remember that every time you drive your vehicle normally and
Stick, you know, maybe five or ten over the limit and I'm not saying that's right to do because the sign is
Not a suggested
Retail price for driving. It's not it's not suggested
So I do, you know, five eight kilometers over and I save a ton of money on fuel and my vehicles last forever
Mm-hmm money in the pocket
We're gonna teach you that
Today we can expect minus seven
And now right now as we're speaking and partly cloudy wind is making it feel colder about minus eight
Cloudy conditions expected around 6 a.m. And today's
Temperature range is from minus nine to 21 degrees and it feels like minus 10 to 22
I've been out there this morning already and yes, you're saying well if this program
launches at eight, how can it be six?
I get up at 4 a.m. To do this program for you
Monday through Saturday and I enjoy
Sharing my 44 years. I think it's actually more than that. I'm cutting it short
Years in the automotive world
I my license for my 310 s is my light truck passenger vehicle
License my 310 t is so I I've worked for Peterville of Ontario. I've worked for mac trucks of canada
I've worked on equipment
And farm equipment all that stuff and had some great experiences. I've even worked on boats
And rebuilding motors and stuff
So I've had a lot of experience and learned a lot of things
And I can share that with you and I spent four years
As a mole in a dealership on purpose after I closed my shop because I really wanted to know
What goes on behind the curtain?
And I'll tell you I learned a lot and I will share all that with you. There's things that I cannot share
Otherwise somebody is probably going to send me something nasty
and not nice
So there's things that I cannot share that I know behind the curtains that are the dealership and how it works
And the politics and all that stuff and let's just leave that right where it is. Okay, so we're going to be talking about
DIY auto repairs
There's stuff that you can do yourself that will save you money
And there's other things that you just should not consider touching
ever
Not today
Not tomorrow and not even next week
Yeah, because you're going to get yourself in big trouble
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It's a mug. Let's just call it that
Okay, I'm stepping away
All right, let's uh kick off our morning and get right into our topic because it's a it is a heavy one
It really is and I'm gonna be nice. I'm gonna be nice to the do-it-yourselfers
I promise myself this morning. I'm not gonna beat on you too much like a bad donkey
so
Grab your favorite morning beverage. Keep an eye on the road if you're driving. All right, don't spill it because that's
That's just a disaster for cleanup
Yeah, so on three two one, we have a swiggy together. Are you ready?
All right. I heard someone say I'm ready three two one
Uh-huh that's working I'm liking that very good
All right, let's move on this morning
So thank you. Uh, I know that was a little bit of a longer plug, but
you know what's important
is
To work together to help others and when we take the eyes off ourselves and put them on someone else great things happen
That's what it's all about. If it's all about you, then you know what?
There's nothing we can do to help you because it's all about you
Yeah, when we get our own planet then we can not invite you to any backyard parties or anything
But we don't have that yet. So we have to share we have to share what we do
Well, here's what I want to say right out of the gate
on this topic
DIY
Repairs that save money and ones that destroy cars and I've seen it both directions where it can be a good thing
And on the other side of it. It can be ugly
Ugly times ugly
It's just equals more ugly
Is first and foremost
Know your limitations
Whatever age group you are color size
Whatever our youtube channel will teach you all the basics
You'll get to learn your automobile front back sideways. So north south east and west
all the basics
The basics on an automobile 25 years ago to today have never changed
How those accessories are activated is what has changed we've gone from from analog
to digital
And beyond we are beyond
And it can be it can be very intimidating
But you also have to understand the new breed of animal we have today in automobiles
There's more wiring
Honor automobiles today than what powers the space shuttle and you can fact check me on that if you like
It's crazy
And it's electronics
And they're fussy
And we have road salt and we have corrosion
And all those things that electronics do not like the basics have never changed how you work the heater system
It still has
defrost
center dash and feet
Three vent positions. It still has fan speed one two three or four
You can still set by level
So, you know you
Well in today's vehicles, you can set the exact temperature that you love
Accurately to the nut
In yesterday's yesteryear's vehicle you slide the bar
You have red and blue
Blue being if the vehicle is equipped with air conditioning. That's the colder
Slide towards the red. That's the hotter and you just find that sweet spot for you and leave it there
There you go. It all works the same
But different
It's kind of like car connection
And the workshop we do everything the same every single day only different and it's true
So tires we still have to check tire pressures
With a gauge or
Look at the light that's been flashing on your tpms system tire pressure monitoring system
Like the you know the light on your vcr flashing 12 for five seven years because you didn't know how to fix that
Um, I see that with tpms. Oh, so how long has that light been flashing on that right front wheel?
uh
A little while
Like what's a little while in your world?
To me, it would be yesterday came on yesterday
Uh, no, it was uh, probably four months ago
There you go. So warning systems don't always
Warn you they just people just go. Oh, yeah, whatever. You know good thing. You're not flying a plane or a helicopter or something
That's in the sky
Yeah, you're just going now. It's you know, we'll check it another time. Whatever
all right
Know your limitations
I don't know your mechanical ability. I don't know what tools you have at home
whether you know, you're gonna try and remove something from your car with a
A saw that you would do woodworking with or a hammer and a chisel
That you would carve out a really nice piece of woodworking
I don't know what you have for tooling. I don't know
Your aptitude of mechanics
I don't I don't have a crystal ball
it fell
Yeah, it broke it was out of warranty
Yeah, I just don't make them like they used to
In uh magic wands. They're on backorder
Yep, they're not giving us a date on that either. So
It looks like we got to diagnose stuff ourselves instead of you know, the crystal ball magic wand boom. We got it fixed
Know your limitations
If it looks
Like it's going to be a rough go
Then that's where you should say no
So i'm going to talk to the do-it-yourselfers that touch stuff that you really ought not to be touching
And i'll tell you a story
I had one coming you had it coming
Uh when I had my shop on the hamilton mountain
Remember this couple sweet couple
And the husband, you know, he he was a great fella nicest fella
And he was just trying to do
his wife some
You know take care of her car
So he thought he checked the fluids
So he did he topped them up topped up the fluids got that all done
Then the car the brakes are coming on by themselves and locking the car up on the road. So you
Picture this you're booting along and then
The brakes are locking up and you're like, I'm hey, I'm not even I did not touch the brake pedal. I didn't do it
Why why are you locking it up? I didn't touch the brake pedal. I don't know
So this goes on and then I get a call and they
The husband brings the vehicle in
wife takes the other car
Whatever to get to work
He dropped it off
So I said well leave it with us. We'll see what's going on. So I make a long
story completely short because it it it's like three three sections
So husband says, I don't know why the brakes are locking up and right away. I'm going, uh
There's something contaminated in the brakes
So you go right to the brake master cylinder pop the lid stick my finger in it and it's coming out stringy
Like doesn't even feel like brake fluid
I go, can you show me?
Um
The bottle that you filled did you fill this up? He goes. Oh, yeah, I topped it off. It was a little bit low
Yeah, it's in the trunk. He brings me a bottle of motor oil
I'm going uh-oh
Because now he's contaminated the entire braking system
And how does that work?
Every now the the brake fluid has motor oil in it
Everything in the braking system that has rubber seals or rubber is swelling up and causing the brakes to lock up
Yeah, so and that's a lot of components on this particular card had uh
Rear brakes were drum brakes disc brakes on the front
They're locking up. So you have rubber flex lines. You have wheel cylinders. You have calipers
You have the uh
Proportioning valve which controls the fluid flow to the rear brakes versus the front brakes
And then you got to flush all the lines out. So all those pieces have to be replaced and the master cylinder
So we do all that to the tune of like and remember the bill was like 2,200 bucks
We spent three days on that you got to pull all the lines off and flush them out completely
with um
brake parts cleaner
And you got to make sure as a tech that those lines are spotless because if there's any
Engine oil
Still in the brake lines. Guess what happens
same thing
It's going to contaminate and then you're back to square one
So who pays the second time if we don't get it right? So we would have to flush like two gallons
Uh brake parts cleaner through all the steel lines take them all off at both ends
Blow the fluid through blow air through there and make sure not a drip of anything is coming out the other end
And now rebuild the braking system proportioning valve
wheel cylinders
Flex flex brake lines
Which you have at the front and the back is it's crazy
So we do all that
And then he comes he goes my wife is going to kill me when she hears how much this is
So she came in with him and she goes how much is it? $2,200. I thought she was going to kill him
It was not pretty. In fact, I said, can we just take this out into the big boys shop?
and discuss that further
And she says you're never touching my car again. Don't you dare touch my car? Well
wasn't a year
Guess what happened?
He did touch her car. He topped up all the fluids, but this time we had
a washer fluid in the radiator
And we put motor oil in the master cylinder again. Yep, you're saying it
After $2,200 and he goes
Did I do that again? He goes I go yeah, look
Put my finger in there. I said this is not good. We can't save anything
He goes yeah, the brakes are kind of chattering like they're coming on
Sort of coming on and then off and then coming on
And then one wheel locks up he goes
It you can't drive it. It's unsafe
He goes my wife is going to string me up
In a cherry tree. I go at least it's going to be a cherry tree, you know fruit tree. It's going to be nice
Yeah
He goes no, I'm serious. I'm dead serious. I was not supposed to touch your car and I thought I'd do her favorite checker fluids
Make sure she's okay
I said
What did you put in the radiator?
Show me
It was a jug with no label on
And it was green, but it was washer fluid. It was not antifreeze
So the radiator is foaming at the mouth. So that's all got to be flushed the whole cooling system
It's got to be completely flushed
neutralized
because there's alcohol in there now
And yeah
And now the brakes again
He's like you can't tell her and I go I'm not getting I'm I'm not getting involved in that. I'm just fixing the car
I said, I'll get I'll just pull the other invoice order all the parts. We'll get this done
We'll try and get it done as fast as we can to save you some labor
Because it is intensive. We got to we got to take the braking system apart
Completely and flush it again
So I leave that with you. So his wife then talks to me personally and says
Tell him do not touch my car that you know what if it needs something just bring it here
You'll do it, right? I go, yeah, we'll check your tire pressures and the fluids and stuff
We'll top it off with our stuff. So we know what we're putting in there. She goes good
All right
$10 on the same car in less than a year
So do it yourself first
If you're going to be checking fluids, that's one of the I said
I told you that story because you need to know what fluid you have in your hand
And you need to know where it's going. So again our youtube channel if you go right back to the first dozen videos
Um, you'll find that I'm working on a I believe it is a cognac trans am
And lots of room under the hood to identify the fluids where they are what they are and what you put in there
You'll learn that
Simple as that guess what today's vehicles are set up exactly the same thing
power steering
brake juice brake fluid
washer fluid
radiator fluid
But fluid specific
So you need to know what you're putting in and where you're putting it in and no guesswork
Guesswork will do that same story to you
You contaminate then we got to flush it all out
All of it and get it out of there and then reintroduce the right stuff
So if you're going to be doing tire pressures
Read the sidewall of the tire for Pete's sake tells you right on there what to set the tire pressures at
I don't personally go off of the door sticker
Or the owner's manual and here's the reason why
Car manufacturers do not make tires
Tire manufacturers make the tires
The car does not know what tire it's being born with
It doesn't
The tire knows
What it is and whose it is
Read the sidewall go off that tire pressure
because again
car companies
Do not manufacture tires tire manufacturers
Manufacture and engineer tires and that's why the tires information on it on the sidewall
We have a video
Up on our youtube channel for that as well showing you what the heck is written on the side of that tire
What does it mean? What do I need to pay attention to? How do I find the tire pressure?
It's there. We show you that on a video clearly how to do that and walk through
All the numbers that you'll see on a tire and break it down for you. This means this this means this this means that
To give you an idea what all that gobbly gook on the sidewall tire means
So that's for you the di wires. You want to do some things that are good
Keep your car clean
Do the oil changes on time. Do not stretch your oil changes
Be if you want to be a really good do-it-yourselfer be in charge of your fleet service maintenance
Organize it
Get it done
We're going to help you with that
This month as well for shooting that video
All the cute cards and stuff are ready because I won't I don't want to miss a single
Thing to tell you about how important it is
major companies that I
worked on their fleets
Save money by keeping those trucks going
And mileage doesn't mean anything. They run it till they're done with it
And then it's still it may receive one more service
Then that vehicle's coming out of the fleet and it's being replaced by another one
But they can't afford downtime. How do they make money the fleet manager?
Make sure that the the fleet are always
Service to the nines can't go out to it and go hope it starts
I hope it steers. I hope it stops
No, they know the fleet manager knows what units need to go in for service next
You if you want to be a really good diy or you need to learn how to do that and look at your vehicle or vehicles
as your fleet
And manage the service you will put so much money back in your wallet
You won't even imagine and you can pack the mileage on those vehicles like no tomorrow
That's nothing but a lie. You got to listen to the podcast on that one
Is that's just white noise from the talking heads for years
Oh, you got to get rid of that in a couple years, you know, you can't go beyond 60,000 k
Well, that's a wonderful expensive piece of junk. You sold me
Three years 60,000 k. That's all it can do. Here's the keys. I don't want that
Get lost. No
so as a good
Responsible diy or know your limitations
learn the fluid
Making sure that you have the right fluid in your hand going into the right component
Because that will cost you a lot of money
So those are things you can save on making sure
That the fluids are topped up making sure that the tire pressures are right because for every one psi
A tire is under inflated. You're losing two percent fuel economy. Did you know that?
I know you know it if you listen to this podcast because I told you that
in a podcast
I shared
eight fuel saving tips
And if you want to sign up for the 30 day fuel savings challenge
Which minimum will put a hundred dollars back in your wallet
Then you need to email me and just email me through car connection business network dot com cc busnet dot com
Send me an email and say i'm all in let me know who you are what you drive
And when we have 50 people signed up we're going to run it
And then we're going to share
the
outcome
To get other people fired up that you know what you can save a ton of money
You really really can if you have multiple vehicles in the house if you can save a hundred dollars
in fuel savings
and do it
That's a hundred dollars a month times 12. That's 1200 dollars in your wallet
Sound good?
Then email me. Let me know you're in when we have 50 people signed up
We're going to run it the 30 day fuel savings challenge
And you'll be shocked
It may even be more than a hundred dollars
I'm saying right now a hundred is the minimum
For many of you
Will be put back in your wallet. That's a 1200 dollar raise right there
If you have multiple vehicles
and you're all
In on the 30 day fuel savings challenge. What does that look like?
What does that look like back in your in your wallet?
Okay, di wires
Do not get involved in doing things like brakes
suspension
steering
And even anything engine related or electronic related
If you do not know the road to get it done and get it done right
Don't touch it
Just say the word stop. Don't don't touch it
You're going to get yourself upside down and sideways and here's what happens next
You get yourself in trouble
You're working on stuff whatever it may be under the hood doing your own wiring
You cannot cut any wiring today
You cannot do any cutting and splicing adding this thing that gadgetry this that the other thing
You change the resistance in the electronic and the wiring and guess what service light is a christmas tree
And for us to fix that we got to reverse everything that you cut spliced and change the resistance level
In that circuit and we got to get it back to normal
What is that going to cost?
Well, when I if I get involved in repairs like that, here's what I would tell them you want me to fix that
It's start the clock stop the clock pay the bill
Well, you can't estimate that I have no idea how long that's going to take to reverse out what you've done. I have no idea
But it's got to be fixed and the only way it's going to be fixed is for someone to say
You're going to pay me for my time
Whatever it takes
That's the estimate it's going to be less than a million but more than a dollar. There's your estimate
And many times I'd open the hood and just look and look and look and go. I don't have time for this
Like I got other customers. I got to get in get the service work done and get it out
And I'd have to say, you know what I don't have time to fix that
Like that's going to pull me off other work that I can get in the door and out the door
This is a nightmare. You have created a nightmare. Like this is car down
Because you shouldn't have touched it
You went beyond your limitations
And don't trust everything you see on the youtube's
There's some good guys on there and there's some hackers on there
No disrespect, but you know know your limitations, whatever it is. I don't touch plumbing
Very very limited on that
And I don't touch electrical in the house and you know what your insurance will tell you bad boy
You did that, you know, you caused the problem. We're not paying. Who did this work?
Yeah, so you can't
You've got to have a licensed dude
Doing your plumbing doing your electrical if something should go wrong the insurance isn't paying
So cars are the same if you've added an accessory because you're a di wire to your vehicle that the vehicle wasn't born with
at the factory and it causes an engine bay fire
in the
Insurance adjuster comes out and sees that
They're going to deny the claim you're on your own
So that's why I'm saying di wires
Know your limitations
If you have not done brakes or suspension and steering before do not touch it
Just do not
Leave it alone. Let leave it to the experts
Number two
Do not start cutting and splicing and hacking into wiring to add some kind of accessory
Do not do it. You want that new high-fi set in the dash? You need to have a professional
Install shop that has a license
An installers license to put that unit in there
And then that saves you from if something should happen
And the car burns out
That you're not going to be denied the claim. So that's what I'm saying
Just don't don't do it because I've had stuff come in just this last year
And look I look at it and I go I just I don't have time for that
I I can't do that. That's going to tie me up for days. I can't do it
And they're like, oh, come on. You know motor mouth help me out. I go. I'm just being honest
I can't touch it and you're going to go to a number of shops where they're going to say well
If you want to leave it with me, I'll get to it when I can
And I helped a couple of fellows out that
Over the years would do stuff like that and I'd say, you know the rule drop it off
And don't bother me. Don't call me on the hour every hour. Is it done yet? Is it done yet?
Is it done yet? And I'd finally have to say every time you call me I set you back one day
Well, you're kidding me. I go no
Because you're pulling me off the shop floor
To answer your the same question that you called me and asked me two hours ago. Is it done yet? Is it done yet?
Look at what you did
I got to get in there and and figure it all out and get back to ground zero
I say leave if you want leave it and in an evening
I'll mess around with it
But during the day, I got to get the other jobs that are booked
That I know I can get in the door out the door and get the car back to them. This one is a project
So that's what I would leave them with
And but in today's world you do that with a shop that's busy
They're going to just say I don't I don't have time for that
I I haven't got time to get into that and sort that out if you want to leave it
We'll get to it when when we can when we have time. I can't guarantee you
When what day what hour it'll be finished
But if you want to leave it, I'll poke away at it as I can
So doing learning the basics
And learning how to schedule your vehicle for for maintenance
And keep that baby running as long as you can you want to be you want to be a member of the 300 k club
400,000 kilometers
600,000 k miles
You got two vehicles one's over 300
And the fj is going to hit the 400,000 kilometer mark
This year it's going to be the 400 k club for the 07 fj
You see what i'm saying it didn't happen by magic 400 k
Basic maintenance all the time stay on it
Schedule it get it in to the shop get it done want to be a great di wire
That's your job being the fleet service manager
And getting that vehicle scheduled to stay ahead of the repair curve that will lower your repair bills
You'll pack the miles on like you've never seen before and you'll have a vehicle that's still solid
Even when you hit 400 k
And 600 k miles
So I hope that helps you out
Don't mean to beat on the do-it-yourselfers, but you know what?
I've seen so much heartache
From someone trying to do something and making it worse
So you've got to know when to say
Stop even when I was learning as an apprentice
Under a military mechanical instructor
He would teach us that I would rather you say to yourself
I'm I'm getting in a bit deep here. Stop come and ask me
If you didn't let me tell you
You could get a day off
Without paying to think about
The mistake that you created because you didn't say stop
And go and ask someone who knows
So be a good solid di wire
Take care of your automobile, but don't destroy it
Know where the fluids are know what fluids that vehicle is calling for because that's the big thing today vehicles are fluid
specific
Put something in that doesn't belong there. You've contaminated that system
And you can do that multiple times too
absolutely
We want to say thank you to crystal ridge dream center for being our our nonprofit faith-based organization
Serving men women single moms children meals twice a week tuesday friday
Lots of love hope after school programs for the kids mentoring
Helping with homework. They feed them as well in the after school program
And also to be loved on and taken care of they have free music lessons there as well
Lots of programs for the kids and the there's a program
Specifically designed for single moms changing lives one at a time in the Niagara region
When the times when the community's support is crucial crystal ridge dream center
Shines as a beacon of compassion and transformation. Maybe there's some way that you can be involved there be a
volunteer
Or be a monthly giver
You know, there's some place for you to actually say, you know what I help them
Every month how cool would that be?
Thank you to rainbow motors the brothers up in scarborough, ontario canada been part of car connection
Our former radio broadcasts are live calling automotive program and they're with us here on the digitals as we were on
YouTube and all the other platforms facebook instagram eye heart radio
And
stevensville on the web.ca
They are sales and service. They have a small car lot there
Rita and his brother remiss they have resources to find that specific vehicle you're looking for
Some of the vehicles qualify for a aftermarket extended warranty
So you can ask them about that but they will not sell you any junk
So sales and service that you can trust rainbow motors and garage
For many years. So check in with the brothers at rainbow motors and garage sales and service
You can trust they take care of all years make some models light truck passenger vehicles as well as
light commercial vehicles as well
So we're going to wrap it up there
And what are we talking about tomorrow? Well, let's see if I can find that
Yeah, I got a note here somewhere. Did somebody Lee did I get a memo on that? Yeah tomorrow
You ready? Why cheap parts?
cost more
In the long run we just shot a video on that I ordered a light switch headlight switch for the
97 tj wrangler
And I just thought you know, let's change up the headlight switch. It is 1997
I cleaned it electronics cleaner and it seemed to be
And I wasn't amazed with it
So I went on the jungle website. I ordered one. It was wrong because the description did not
Identify it was a seven pin switch not a nine
And we needed a nine. So okay, that's just a
A mishap in the write-up of the description of the light switch saying it fits wrangler
And cherry key and that headlight switch is in a ton of dodges ton
But there's seven pin and nine pins. So I reorder it
And I I I nailed it. It's a nine pin
Right out of the box skipping my videographer and tell you we hear we plug it in
Turn it on snap
From over to the passenger side
So I go over there and take blood box lid out. Sure enough fuse blue for the park parking lamps
Well, we had lights before
But the switch was acting up the original
We'd have parking lights then we didn't but we weren't blowing fuses
So I go over I pull it pull out the blown fuse. I put another one in I go
Well, let's try it again as soon as you pulled it out to park first stage parking lamps snap
Right out of the box. So I go, that's it. I'm gonna get the uh
Get the original
And double check it make sure it feels good and I'll I'll lube it with some electrical cleaner
And I put it in and lo and behold it works 100 percent just fine. It does not blow the fuse
So that's what we're dealing with in the industry. We're gonna talk about more of that
Tomorrow morning. So until then
Keep it under 100
Make it a great
Monday peace patience and kindness always okay out there
And drive safe
Leave the room for the the the road crew. They're not working purposely to make you late for whatever it is
You're going to or coming from
heading for home
Be safe out there cut each other some slack be patient with one another
You don't know what's going on. We never know what's going on in the mind of the person in the other vehicle
For the most part
The ones that dodge in and out of traffic with
With unknown speed limits
Um, those people they're just nuts. That's all they're nuts
And so one day
You know, they're the risk taking is gonna not be good
Something's gonna go wrong. It's not a matter of if it's a matter of when so don't drive like that
Stay away from those folks. Be safe out there and um
Happy healthy
Moldering and put that coffee on because we're gonna come to your house
About this episode
Exploring the world of DIY auto repairs, this episode highlights what tasks can save you money and which ones could lead to disaster. Host Nile Jenkins shares personal anecdotes and insights from his extensive automotive experience, emphasizing the importance of knowing your limits when it comes to car maintenance. Listeners will learn about the basics of vehicle upkeep, the significance of proper repairs, and the potential pitfalls of neglecting maintenance. The episode also teases a project involving a 1997 Jeep TJ Wrangler, showcasing the journey of restoring a neglected vehicle.
Original notes
DIY car repairs can save thousands- or destroy an engine, suspension, or electrical system in a weekend.
In this episode, we break down which repairs make sense for DIY owners and which should be left to experienced technicians, based on tools, experience, and risk.
Thinking like a fleet service manager instead of a weekend mechanic can protect your vehicle, your wallet, and your safety.
Know your limits. Know your tools. And know when to call it before a simple repair becomes a catastrophic failure.
More episodes and ...project Details & links are available at Car Connection Business Network .com (ccbusnet.com) you'll find everything on our home page if you'd like to follow the build & rep[air work we do & connect with our program partners click their logo to connect with them Thank You!
Grab some car connection motormouth gear and join our crew in helping those struggling with addiction get to a Total Freedom Addiction Campus Canada & USA where a New Life awaits them there, Tnx a bunch! Nile Motormouth Jenkins. Happy Healthy Motoring Friends, Tnx for watching & Listening, Peace Patience Kindness Always, NMJ
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