i have a good friend of mine that owns a local repair shop here in town. I asked him the other day if I could use his engine cleaner. The big steam tank that you put the engine block in to clean it, like a huge dishwasher. I found out that he had SOLD IT.. pretty cheap too.... he just didn't use it anymore. this got us talking about how things have changed,,,, when he started his shop 21 years ago he built 3 motors a WEEK. complete overhauls, bored, new pistons, bearings, valves, the works... he also did multiple complete brake jobs a week, tune ups ect. I said, yep, I know the cars built today just don't require the service work that the old cars did....... BOY did I get an earful.... he agreed that they require "LESS" service, but said the biggest difference is that people just don't maintain there vehicles like they should anymore. it is amazing how common it is to get a vehicle with 200,000 plus miles in on the 4th owner that still has the same spark plugs. and they wonder why there fuel economy sux. people that use to have there motors rebuilt just say screw it and buy another vehicle. even when you can show them on paper that it makes more sense to just rebuild the motor. here is an example. he had one customer this year that took advantage of the cash for clunkers program (I know don't get you guys started). he had a 62 gmc truck that he has owned since it was NEW. every 5 years the motor was serviced. sometimes only gaskets and checked, other years rebuilt. he owned the 62 free and clear and it looked like BRAND NEW!!!! mint interior, ZERO RUST, i'm not kidding you would have thought it was 4 years old. well,, he was looking at having the motor completley rebuilt again, but instead of spending 2800 to have the motor rebuilt, he decided that it was a better "FINANCIAL" decision to trade it in.... after all, he got better gas milage, newer stuff.... NOW,, he regrets it... he hates the new car, hates the way it drives, and more importantly HATES THE MONTHLY PAYMENTS!! He even went as far as to try and go get his old truck back from the salvage yard,, only to find that (as required by law) it was a little cube at the bottom of a pile after being crushed.... it's just interesting to see how the throw away society has effected the auto repair shops the way it has. it's even MORE surprising that even when you prove to people on paper and real life that keeping your older vehicle running and serviced is CHEAPER than replacing it, they will just ignore you and go with the flow. I just can't understand how people can think that they can't afford a 1200 dollar transmission replacement that puts money in the hands of the local shop and the local transmission rebuilder..., but they can somehow afford a 600 dollar a month payment for the next 7 years !!!!!
OH,, and just FYI,, the 5 year service was the big one, it still got oil changes, ect on time....... just wanted to clear that up so people didn't think he only brought it in ever 5 years.....
I wonder about the 62 traded in for CFC since that old didn't qualify. Regardless I think you make a valid point, people will spend 2-300 a month in car payments to save $50 on gas each month. I guess math in school isn't being taught anymore.
A few years back I needed an engine rebuilt but had no time, local high school had a well respected auto tech program and took on projects from the community. I approached the department head about funding one and was turned down. Reasons given were engine ,69 ford 302, was too old to be relevant to his students. And rebuilding engines is no longer an industry practice. Crate motors had killed that practice. So engine rebuilding was no longer part of their training. I inquired what they had done with all their old engine rebuild tools. The answer was "surplus".
Hum, I thought the CFC vehicles couldn't be over 25 years old. And that they just destroyed the engines, the rest could be salvaged. I will agree that the repair business has changed. I used to do a LOT of overhauls too, but I haven't done a stock engine in over ten years. The engines will last a long time in late model stuff and it's hard for the customer to justify the expense of an overhaul that costs more than the vehicle will bring after you do it. Larry T
Hey, it's about saving the environment, not whether it makes financial sense... Spending a dollar to save a dime, instead of spending a dime to save a dollar.
When ever I get a customer in that requires a major repair such as an engine or transmission I recommend an entire vehicle inspection.I would rather they know that the $2500.00 they are about to spend on the vehicle won,t give it a $2,500.00 higher book value. If it needs another $1500.00 worth of repairs to bring it up to standards sometimes it is just not worth it. I would rather see them spend that money towards a vehicle in much better condition...an upgrade if you will. I advised a couple not to spend $400.00 on a brake job....they did it anyway and scrapped the car 2 weeks later.I doubt the junkyard gave them the $400.00 they had just invested in it.....
I just checked and I stand corrected.. the CFC program got him interested but he didn't qualify,,, the dealer still gave him the same price as if it did qualify, and then just had the truck hauled off with the CFC vehicles, crushing it makes sense at our local salvage yard, he does not keep ANY cars over 15 or 20 years old, they all go straight to the crusher......... tells you how much they can mark a car down without loosing money.........
What probably happened ad as far as the truck for cfc was someone at the dealership stated they would buy the truck on an in and out. When I was selling new cars at a local Dodge dealership here a kid traded in a 69 Nova SS. Caged, nos set up, ford 9". They showed him 5k on paper and I bought the car for 3350.00 drive out. Alot of times if a car is clean enough a salesman, someone in service, ect., will buy it. Get some dang good cars like that.
yep, that is the way he has always ran his shop too.. but like you said, you have to look at the whole car. a 97 neon doen't book for much money at all... I had the transmission in my wifes replaced for 1500. more than you could have sold the car for. but that was 3 years ago and it is still running great (knock on wood) we could have gone out and bought a newer car and picked up a payment of 250 a month and STILL be paying on it... we would have already paid $9000 on the upgrade car in the last 3 years. instead i replaced the trans and except for oil changes it has ran great.... but along those same lines, the rest of the car was in great condition.....
What's a sound business decision for one person may not be for another. I bought a new Toyota pickup in 87. Its still my daily driver, I use it around town and back and forth to my shop. Some guy just ran into the side of it last month and I settled with his insurance for 1500 dollars . With that money I rebuilt everything that was wrong with it and it'll go another 10 years or so. It made sense to repair it. My wife, who is not mechanical traded in a 87 Plymouth mini van for a new PT Cruiser. It has air bags, gets great mileage, is dependable ,and I dont worry about her out on the highway now. Cash for clunkers made the cost (about ten grand) a good deal . We jumped it. The point is- What works for one person may not work for another... I sure dont miss the voyager
As a good friend, you should encourage your buddy to specialize in rebuilding vintage Flatheads, Oldsmobile Rocket's, Caddy OHV and Flatheads, T & A Bangers etc. He needs to market his skills to the proper group of consumers rather than sell off his equipment.
The work is still there, it's just shifted. Instead of lapping valves it's replacing window motors. Here's an interesting footnote. I'm not a professional shop but have work lined up all the time, know why? I'm the guy that can replace your window motor without harming the door panel or leaving it permanently loose. I'll glady replace your busted antennae, or fix the power mirrors, and generally chase nagging gremlins in modern accessory systems without leaving a trace. Know why those people seek me out? Their regular shop, the one that does brake jobs and fuel pumps.....those guys act like ham handed gorillas for little glitchy projects. They turn down work like bad window regulators, referring to it as "body work". If they attempt it, customers get back cracked door panels and black handprints on the upholstery. In turn, most body shops are not looking for small jobs, they'd rather do collision repair and thus give 2nd class treatment to the guy with taped-on mirror. Any shop that is struggling could boost their bottom line by advertising that kind of work, and then executing it well. Just my 2 cents, good luck to your buddy's shop.
The Jalopy Journal
