took my car to the shop to finally get the cat converter done. I got the part from Advance Auto for a good price. the plan was to take it to my normal shop and be done.

the mechanic tells me he can't do it. the bolts are too rusty and he scared he might break them. then says its too hard to get to and might be a 6 hour job. I think he just didn't want to do it.

I don't really know how shops work but wouldn't they have extra bolts or be able to buy some and charge me for it?

weird because I've gotten converters done before at this shop on other cars.

he suggested the dealer or a muffler shop.

at least it seems like it...
Took it in the week before last to have them check a coolant leak. My extended warranty was about to expire on Feb.11th so I asked them to check EVERYTHING.......
They fixed the coolant leak (bad tank or something) and also the washer hose line leak... found a "slow" oil leak though. The tech couldn't find the source so he cleaned it up and told me to drive 500 miles and come back... *Gillie face*
Told him there's no way I could drive 500 miles before the 11th. (this was on the 2nd....
I saw two mini oil puddles in the garage at work when I left to go home on the 5th...called them up on the way home and said I'd see them in 20min, have a loaner car waiting for me....

Yada yada yada....

Crank shaft gasket needs replacing....covered under warranty....
they done had my joint since last week waiting on a part....






"Get ready....for your blessing....."

my car is a 2006. when shit breaks, all eyez on me!

frozen bolts suck...especially with exhaust, where you can't easily get to the bolt heads, anyway...being rusted/frozen makes it infinitely worse. You gotta use heat and all types of tricks. That's where the labor time comes in. He prolly just doesn't want to get involved...especially when he ain't making any mark-up on the part.

Heat, WD-40, PB Blaster, a crapload of torque (assuming you have the room) and the bolts still may not budge.

gotta get it done so I'll have to bite the bullet.

gyotdayum. saw my first and last P1. That thing is sick in person.

what are the qualities of a good non dealer mechanic ??

all i know is to take my car to the dealer if anything is amiss ... thats what my momma did, thats what my grandma did....
payment= first, second, and third generation offspring

my uncles would tinker under their hoods, but ... yeah, i always thought they never knew what they were doing...




now... i see independent car mechanics everywhere but not everywhere is where i need to go.

if i walk into a shop, what am i looking for in a mechanic??

pretty sure you're gonna get ripped off, at least a little bit, wherever you go unless you really know the mechanic/shop owner.

i got the girl treatment and i knew not any better .... timing belts
cost was about as much as the car....

but anyway....

it such an ordeal to find an honest mechanic... and it shouldn't be

pssst, does your friend have a recommendation for a good reliable mechanic in the bay???

unless someone who trusts the shop referred you. Shops are in business to make money, so they're gonna try to do that. There's a difference between making your money and fucking people over though.

and good work you can trust is worth paying for, but unless you're also a mechanic, you really never know.

the best thing is to do all the research you can on your car and what problems arecommon, and how much it costs to fix them.

there's usually an owner subreddit or forum for most cars, and lots of websites that track mechanic prices.

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

Sold the land cruiser and bought a 2013 Toyota Hilux. Ugly ass car but my heart flutters when I see it.
Wife hates that motherfucker , it was 25,000$ but I’m happy as shit.
Car prices are weird as fuck here, the price actually appreciated since I bought it last week. Got two offers but I’m not selling for at least a year.

>Sold the land cruiser and bought a 2013 Toyota Hilux. Ugly
>ass car but my heart flutters when I see it.
>Wife hates that motherfucker , it was 25,000$ but I’m happy
>as shit.
>Car prices are weird as fuck here, the price actually
>appreciated since I bought it last week. Got two offers but
>I’m not selling for at least a year.

we don't have the Hilux proper here no more (the MURRICA sourced/built Tacoma and Tundra hold those slots), but the badge is still legend.

weekend.

went and got the title and tags straight today so i'm official! it's such an upgrade from the Rolla. but i will say, after i got the Rolla detailed and put seat covers on the seats she looked better than she ever had her whole life. my boy's daughter got a nice little ride.

i finally have power windows again! that's probably the most exciting part Haha. no aux jack, which is weird, but it has a tape deck for some reason, which is even weirder, so i got a tape deck adapter.

fist, congrats. a new ride always feels good no matter what.

second, i dont know where to go with this part....

no aux jack, which is weird, but it has a
>tape deck for some reason, which is even weirder, so i got a
>tape deck adapter.

they still make tape deck adapters.... you in the way way way way way back machine...

but the vehicle is an 06, this shit makes no sense Haha

Noting super fancy, but I need something a bit more modern than a cassette

Pops doesn't listen to music in the car really at all, and certainly not loud if he does. The three dollar tape deck adapter works just like an aux jack Haha

I copped one a few weeks ago for my daily...the old one broke after like 5 years.

Definitely thought we were all past the days of ever needing them.

I talked about all this in the music habits post yesterday. The van is an 06, has an aux jack and no tape deck. My Rolla is/was a base model 06. No aux jack, but also no tape deck. Just a CD player.

I don't know wtf happened when they built this 06 highlander. Shit has a tape deck and a CD changer. No aux jack. And it has a cigarette lighter and actual ash tray! I really don't get it Haha.

>i finally have power windows again! that's probably the most
>exciting part Haha. no aux jack, which is weird, but it has a
>tape deck for some reason, which is even weirder, so i got a
>tape deck adapter.

the tape deck is the OG aux jack. whenever I get a loaner I am so happy if it has a tape deck...

>the tape deck is the OG aux jack.

I would plug my ipod in the tape deck in a previous 01 camry, until the tape deck stopped working. I was pissed when that happened Haha

and it may not be worth it for him.

or it's gonna cost you a GRIIIIIIIIP.

I'll have to find another shop.

or direct fit. Universal...you basically cut the cat out of the pipe and weld the new cat back in line. Direct fit means it lines up just like the factory part, so you have to get the bolts out and remove the old piece and bolt the new one back in with new gaskets.

he didn't even look at the new one. its still in the shipping box. I really think he didn't want to do it.

not saying its an easy job, but I've never been turned away from a shop because something is too hard.

I've gone to this shop for years. they have turnover in the back like most shops, but the owner has been the same and the quality has always been good.

I'm disappointed because I was thinking this would be fixed yesterday, but now I gotta scramble and find another place.

looking for 2009 or newer

Wife wants a Chevy Colorado pick-up, 2009 or newer

been doin a little research...seems I have to look out for Transmission cross-contamination, but supposedly it's an easy fix.


Any opinions, facts or hot takes?

I heard about that contamination issue. nothing happening with mine as far as I know.

I'd go with the Path, if I had to choose. That coolant contamination deal can be a bitch, depending on how long it's been going on. I've done a lot of them. Most times, they wipe out the transmission and you need a transmission and a radiator/transmission cooler.

at least for the front seats. my knees were pressed into the dash as a passenger in a co-workers xterra.

no fun

https://imgur.com/a/KiGvk

Now just waiting for my tires and warmer weather to get here.

I plan on polishing my car (and maybe my wife's) in the spring, but the debate over traditional sealants and wax verses ceramic coatings I haven't wrapped my head around. Coating is way more durable, but long term effects and possible micro fractioning do concern me a bit. Coming up from the old Turtle Wax days (ugh, that was the WORST to get off if it dried up) I'm all for easier, longer lasting products. At the same time, I know what tried and true products work and how to use them (CG Jet Seal and Collinite 845 FTW). The Si02 products out now, whether they be spray and hose based (like CarPro Hydro2) or a ceramic coating sound great on paper as far as ease of use, but longevity? I don't know...

As it stands coating my wheels wouldn't be worth it, as I need to get them stripped and repainted.

I don't really want/need that permanence. I want to be able to apply other products or polish if I want to. I see the draw for the regular joe who wants their car to be nice but isn't really interested in detailing beyond that. I enjoy detailing though, so something that requires me to detail less isn't really a positive for me.

For wheels I think coatings make a lot of sense. That's an area that gets extremely dirty and also doesn't really get the attention that the rest of the car does. It's not something I would bother to do on wheels I already had on the car, but it made sense and was easy enough to do on brand new wheels.

I've used Gyeon Wetcoat which is like Hydro2 and it's pretty amazing. It's si02 based but only lasts a few months unlike an actual coating. It takes almost zero effort to apply unlike other similar products where you have to spray it on and wipe it off with a towel.

I've used McKee's Si02 last year and bought he Hydro2 over the winter. Whether I use that on my car or on other family member's cars I have to clean I'm not entirely sure. I'd almost see it like a quick wax that lasts longer than a week. I have the Gyeon Tire and I do like that a bit (not as glossy as CG's VRP, which I've used the past 2 years, but it does last for a while, which I like), so trying something else in their lineup could work for me. The Can Coat seems like a compromise between a spray and rinse coating like WetCoat and a full on ceramic coating, which I mentioned I'm still on the fence on. But I do love my 845, so wondering if layering that on top would work or be worth it.

I had originally planned on washing and decontaminating the wife's car then hitting it with CarPro Essence and Reload, just to see how it works (it could use a good polish, but the paint on that Focus is pretty hard, and I already have to tackle my Fusion, which I care about more than she cares about her car)

If you put the wax on top you're losing all the properties of the coating. I wouldn't mind trying Can Coat on my DD though.

Or some Si02 spray product as a topper/booster?

It is a different way of looking at detailing products, and what works better, what is compatible with what, etc. I may give the CanCoat a whirl on my car once I get it polished and see how it holds up for the warm part of the year, then switch to the traditional sealant/wax before it gets cold once it starts to break down. May still do the Essence on my wife's car