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- 27 Jan 2014
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Unless you want to waste money you could have spent on a newer car, 12 year old cars that are for people who DIY, not for taking to the garage.
Devastated : Go easy what would you do?
- Thread starter easyrider
- Start date
Grab a Haynes manual and some tools and go nuts, I knew nothing about working on vehicles until I got my bike and decided I wasn't being robbed by a garage for a simple job which then became I'm not being robbed by a garage for any job.
As long as you're not a total idiot it's pretty easy to get to grips with especially with YouTube videos and owners forums.
For example I got some quotes for a service which would include oil/filter change, air filter change, spark plugs, coolant change and a general check over including adjusting/lubing the chain and any other pivot points etc.
I was looking at the thick end of £300, £80 for the parts of which I've still got oil and coolant left over and a couple of hours in the garden with some music on and it was done. Plus the sense of satisfaction that I done it myself so I know every things been changed using the exact parts I wanted and saved myself a couple of hundred quid in the process.
As long as you're not a total idiot it's pretty easy to get to grips with especially with YouTube videos and owners forums.
For example I got some quotes for a service which would include oil/filter change, air filter change, spark plugs, coolant change and a general check over including adjusting/lubing the chain and any other pivot points etc.
I was looking at the thick end of £300, £80 for the parts of which I've still got oil and coolant left over and a couple of hours in the garden with some music on and it was done. Plus the sense of satisfaction that I done it myself so I know every things been changed using the exact parts I wanted and saved myself a couple of hundred quid in the process.
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I may have to eat my words....And Fox might be right...
I may be back on the road at well under £500...
Maybe the GT86 can wait...
Ahhh I see, you wanted us to say "oh lord, scrap it!" so you could treat yourself to a GT86?
Well, now you can sell it and treat yourself to a GT86 instead!
Or a Ford Focus?
Hmnn.
I have been in the motor car business for over 30 years, and you know what, I can smell customers like you a mile off!
Perhaps the reason why you have ended up with all the ****** workshops is because all the decent ones have seen you coming!
One thing is getting quotes for simple jobs ( I simply don't anymore, I don't need a monkey to do work I can do in the same time for 60+ an hr while I earn 4x less than that). Another thing is coming in and then them thinking they can do an easy one:
I am forced to go to garages for some things (balancing, alignment, or specialist work), and it ****es me off when I come in for one thing, and they ''recommend'' a whole list of other work. No I don't need a brake flush, I can do that myself (and I do that once every 2 or 3 years anyhow as I can't stand soft/spungy brake pedals, I want my brakes to react and give feedback if I move my pedal a few mm's), no I don't need a new effin filter or oil, no my brake discs are just fine...
Also ''preventive'' replacement, sod off with preventive work, I replace parts when they're broken, not just because they ''might'' break. In the other C5 we have our power steering pump pulley also going wild, not in hell that I'm replacing it before it goes though, I have a spare multi/V-belt in my car anyhow for if the old one goes but otherwise, screw it, losing power steering is not a biggie (has happened to me before with belts that broke due to age/war n tear) and there is enough power in the battery to drive on for 20-30 mins (plus I always carry a charged spare battery in the boot) or find a safe place to mend or fix it...
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Eh? If you know it's on its last legs why not just change it at a time convenient to you, rather than having it fails when you are who knows where in the dark/rain?
Agree with the general sentiment of the rest of your post.
![[TW]Fox](/data/man-of-honor/2009.png){kind=avatar}
The user manual will not tell you how to change or refit an air conditioning belt, what a daft suggestion.
Try this thread;
http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?1267272-DIY-AC-and-Serpentine-Belt-Replacement
Last legs is a hit and miss, I've been told 4 or 5 years ago on MOT to get rid of the Toyota because of massive play on the differential and that the oil seal can't hold the gearbox oil (therefore the gearbox oil level is always lowish) and that a new oil seal wouldn't fix it.
50.000 km further, the gearbox still still in one piece, passed MOT 2 weeks ago, car works fine... Grown used to the clunk when releasing throttle or re-adding throttle and when the left wheel does over bumps (because the front left driveshaft can move noticeably on the gearbox side (upwards and sidewards)).
When it goes, I'll get a ''new'' used gearbox for 150 from the Corolla forum and fix it (and replace the clutch while I'm at it), but I find it a bit of a waste of time and money to replace it when it still works. It's a spare car anyhow if the other 2 fail.
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If you actually want to run the car properly just put a sodding belt on it. They can't cost more than a few quid and leaving the a/c on all year round stops it getting damp inside and helps clear the windows. Plus the deals can dry out if it's not used
This. Although I'd have used the word seals, not deals
Can't be difficult, I remember moving my aircon compressor out of the way in my E46 330d so I could swap the turbo. Given I can't remember any of the "intricacies" of replacing the aircon belt, I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that it must have been incredibly simple.
EDIT: BMW TIS doesn't have much to say! Seems like the simplest job in the world, although I'd check the condition of the tensioner just in case that was the original cause of the belt failure/loss.
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