Originally posted by: Astaroth33
Would you all like to learn this from a mechanic's perspective, towards just fixing cars, or from an enthusiasts' standpoint, towards modifying them to produce more horsepower?
maybe a book would work, but i think hands on is the best.
Originally posted by: cherrytwist
maybe a book would work, but i think hands on is the best.
BTW I have an '85 golf that could use a tune up and new struts if anybody is in the St. Louis area and wants to learn....
You know I learned by the need to have a vehcile and always having used cars and no money to pay a mechanic.. I had a master cylinder go out on my old 69... I went to have a place look at it, they wanted $90 just for the labor.. and $70 for the part... I went down to Checker spent $11.99 for a new one with a lifetime warranty, went home and changed it, 2 AN bolts and 2 bolts into the booster They wanted $90 to change out 4 bolts. Screw that... ever since then I have NEVER had anyone work on my vehicle, I had a tranny built for me buy a Tranny guy I knew, but it wasn't a stock tranny, this was a performance tranny with hard parts made to handle serious power.Originally posted by: notfred
What kind of car do you have? I suggest going to the auto parts store and picking up a chilton's manual for your car. Then, proceed to fix everything that's wrong with your car, starting w/ the easier things. You learn alot more by actually working on it than you do by reading about it.
You know I learned by the need to have a vehcile and always having used cars and no money to pay a mechanic.. I had a master cylinder go out on my old 69... I went to have a place look at it, they wanted $90 just for the labor.. and $70 for the part... I went down to Checker spent $11.99 for a new one with a lifetime warranty, went home and changed it, 2 AN bolts and 2 bolts into the booster They wanted $90 to change out 4 bolts. Screw that... ever since then I have NEVER had anyone work on my vehicle, I had a tranny built for me buy a Tranny guy I knew, but it wasn't a stock tranny, this was a performance tranny with hard parts made to handle serious power.
Originally posted by: Evadman
That is also the only thing I will not do if I can afford it. I have rebuilt a total of one tranny, ( a 4L60E ) and that was because after I took it apart, realized I was over my head, and tried to take it to a shop. no one would touch it because i did the tear down. about $200 woth of specialy tools and 2 weeks later, it was back together. I still had a coffee can of important looking parts left over, but it worked fine. I do not really want to do another tranny. Maybe a manual, but not an auto.
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If you want to learn about engines in general, just pickup an old lawnmover and tear it down and put it back together. Only 2 specialty tools are needed, a spring compressor and a puller. ( maybe $40 total ) and you can learn. If you are in the Chicagoland area, I can give ya a go-cart engine and I think I have an extra spring compressor, along with a B&S teardown manual. That is how I learned about engines, small engines. There are only about 150 parts to most small engines.
You can rent a spring compressor from autozone for like $5.Originally posted by: Electric Amish
Originally posted by: cherrytwist
maybe a book would work, but i think hands on is the best.
BTW I have an '85 golf that could use a tune up and new struts if anybody is in the St. Louis area and wants to learn....
Struts are kinof a pain because you have to have a spring compresser.
amish