How many of you work on your own cars?

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How many of you work on your own cars?

Do you maintain/service/repair your own car?

  • No

    Votes: 3 7.7%
  • Yes - I do the work on my driveway

    Votes: 30 76.9%
  • Yes - I do the work on a car ramp (those found in a garage)

    Votes: 3 7.7%
  • Yes - I'd be interested in hiring ramp space if it existed

    Votes: 3 7.7%

  • Total voters
    39

smithster1001

New member
Joined
Jul 8, 2015
Messages
11
Points
4
Location
Leeds
Hi all,

How many of you service/repair your own car?

The reason I'm asking is because I want to work on my own car, but I prefer to do so on a car ramp. The problem is no where local to me seems to be hiring them out but I've noticed some companies hire out car ramps.

Just wanted to know whether people would use such a service as well as any suggestions or items that you'd want to see in such a space.

Any help would be great.

Cheers

Nick
 
Hi all,

How many of you service/repair your own car?

The reason I'm asking is because I want to work on my own car, but I prefer to do so on a car ramp. The problem is no where local to me seems to be hiring them out but I've noticed some companies hire out car ramps.

Just wanted to know whether people would use such a service as well as any suggestions or items that you'd want to see in such a space.

Any help would be great.

Cheers

Nick


Hi Nick, :)

probably @50% of us do SOME work,(y)

I'm lucky that I've got a decent concrete drive.. but open to the elements..

basic oil changing, etc doesn't NEED 4 feet clearance.. ;)

what are you planning to do in the coming months..??:confused:

Charlie
 
A few feet of clearance - and a roof over your head - is nice. However, I would suspect that most home mechanics either shove the car nose inside the garage door, or work on it on the driveway/back yard.

TWO pairs of drive-up ramps is ideal. I've changed auto boxes, engines .. and all that sort of thing just using diy ramps. Expect quite a few oil stains on the ground though ..

As to how many people actually work on their own car.. well, I don't think it's as many as it used to be, compared to way back when. Back in 1972 when I first began driving, it seemed as though most people could fix a car. Of course back then it was points and plugs. There was nothing technically difficult with cars of this era. They were quite easy to take apart-if they didn't fall apart of their own accord.

Truth is, modern cars are more reliable and efficient than their predecessors, which tended to break down rather often. Todays cars seem to breakdown because of electrical gremlins - the sensors - or because of lack of maintenance .. such as not checking the oil .. or not being aware that a car needs oil ..

There seems to be a huge culture shift, too. I think the general attitude to cars has changed. They're not a treasured possessions (as they used to be .. same as the first colour tvs, or fridge freezer.. or even as a computer used to be). They're consumer objects which are easily obtained and just as easy to get rid of.

I would suspect that nowadays most people would actually have little interest in understanding how a car works, let alone fix one.
 
I like to do as much as possible but... my drive is half flagged and then like a sharp gravel tarmac so working on hands and knees totally hurts unless i put two thick sheets of thick card down, would love a garage with lift, i would do all my own work then.
 
Hi all

Thanks for all the responses, I wasnt expecting as many as I got.

I'm living in Leeds, West Yorkshire and I'm looking at whether a car ramp hire place might work as a small business. I've been thinking about the idea for a couple of years but as the years have passed I've noticed a few places similar popping up, just not in Leeds and those that are based around Leeds have closed (which should tell me something).

I was thinking of a place where you can hire a car ramp, comes with a basic tool kit per ramp (screwdrivers, spanners, air tools, torque wrenches etc) as well as having other collective equipment that can be used (i.e. engine/gearbox lifts, some sort of diagnostic equipment).

As I've spent the past 18 months working a full time job, then a part time job in a workshop to get my City and Guilds, I've noticed if you arent willing to do that, getting any sort of training can be really hard unless you know someone who can teach you.

So I was also thinking of running some training sessions, such as braking systems, exhausts, servicing etc. I think these would have to be extra because I'd have to bring in trainers to ensure everything is taught properly etc.

What do you think?

I suppose I just thought that I can't be the only person who wants to work on their car and with a little help it could be possible.

Many thanks

Nick
 
You're obviously well motivated and looking for opportunities. However, be careful.

I honestly think that very few people would sign up for a car maintenance course simply because those who can tinker with a car do so at home, and those who can't, pay somebody to do it.

As for these community owned hire-a-workshop ...well .. when people join a car club they expect things to be free.

If you're going to go for a workshop with ramps, good for you. But I would say treat it as your own repair business .. and hire the ramps out as and when required when you're not using them.
 
Cheers for this, I am realising this would be an uphill battle.

I'll keep looking in to it to see if I can make it work. I might even do as you suggest by having a repair company that hires ramps out as a side business.
 
Cheers for this, I am realising this would be an uphill battle.

I'll keep looking in to it to see if I can make it work. I might even do as you suggest by having a repair company that hires ramps out as a side business.

:idea:
if you are ( part ..?) qualified.. how about approaching a few small indy workshops about being "on the books" part-time.. so you are insured to use the workspace / lifts etc,
then see how busy they ACTUALLY ARE..:shrug:

you're not investing YOUR CASH then.;)
 
Hi all

Thanks for all the responses, I wasnt expecting as many as I got.

I'm living in Leeds, West Yorkshire and I'm looking at whether a car ramp hire place might work as a small business. I've been thinking about the idea for a couple of years but as the years have passed I've noticed a few places similar popping up, just not in Leeds and those that are based around Leeds have closed (which should tell me something).

I was thinking of a place where you can hire a car ramp, comes with a basic tool kit per ramp (screwdrivers, spanners, air tools, torque wrenches etc) as well as having other collective equipment that can be used (i.e. engine/gearbox lifts, some sort of diagnostic equipment).

As I've spent the past 18 months working a full time job, then a part time job in a workshop to get my City and Guilds, I've noticed if you arent willing to do that, getting any sort of training can be really hard unless you know someone who can teach you.

So I was also thinking of running some training sessions, such as braking systems, exhausts, servicing etc. I think these would have to be extra because I'd have to bring in trainers to ensure everything is taught properly etc.

What do you think?

I suppose I just thought that I can't be the only person who wants to work on their car and with a little help it could be possible.

Many thanks

Nick
I hope you are not planning to turn your proposed new venture into a sideline micro business !! If so I suspect your bottom line profits to be zero, or at best a couple of ice creams and a balloon !!!....
Unfortunately the days are long gone when one could play around under the bonnet, changing the plugs and re-setting the points etc. Sadly today true auto mechanics are rare as Rocking Horse Droppings! they are plug in computer technicians, at best able to ID the problem and tell you the part to replace, the good side of this is the reliability factor of vehicles has gone through the the roof.
Of course there will always be basic service jobs you can carry out, like 'check the oil, and radiator levels, add antifreeze pre winter, check the tyre pressures, or even re-fill the screen washer bottle !
Once you move to phase 2, like replacing brake pads and linings etc, or fitting a new exhaust system, make sure you know what you are doing, or call a knowledgeable friend.
After phase 2 If you are thinking about doing an engine re-build, I hope you are old school and can still remember how to do it, or better still, you have made your money, retired and can afford someone else to do to work, sit back and enjoy another 20,000 trouble free miles!!
RFC7
 
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I don't trust anyone else to work on my car.

As soon as someone works on my car it's not my car anymore.

If I need a post lift I can tilt my car over instead.

:D
 
Yes. This whole concept looks as if it should be a " goer" when you first consider it. However the reality seems to be that people can't make money out of them. I've been aware of seeing adverts over the years for exactly this - Workshop, Tools, expert help, etc. Unfortunately they just don't seem to be around the next time you look. When I think about who might benefit from a service such as this I begin to see some of the problems. First thing that stands out is that it's time based. A great many things can, and do often, go wrong when you are working on cars and the older the car the greater the potential for it. Imagine you strip out the sump plug. Not unknown on modern cars with ally sumps. Either you've got to go out and buy a new sump, remove the old one and fit the new one or find a rethreading kit to repair the damaged sump. You can't drive the car till this is sorted and it's not a quick fix. Rental charges will be mounting up all the time. There are numerous other possible variations on this theme and the less experienced you are the greater the chance of it happening! For myself, with many years of experience behind me and having built up my own tool kit, I much prefer to work on the hardstanding outside my garage. (Can't get inside 'cos it's full of "stuff" and tools!) I have a matched set of 6 very heavy duty axle stands and a pair of large ramps. I can get the underside of the car about 2ft. off the ground if I need to and have never found a job this couldn't handle. If something goes horrendously wrong then it can just sit there until I sort it out and it's costing me nowt! Easier to lift wheels on and off. Not so far to drop a gearbox. (In fact by working on the ground you can very effectively use your trolley jack on gearboxes, up on a ramp, at head height, you need another person to help you! My big enemy now, at 71 years of age, is the weather! In my youth I can remember being on recovery duty, lying under large vans and small trucks, up the A68 south of Dalkeith, in the snow and slush, perhaps hand bleeding a truck that had run out of fuel or fixing a crappy set of points on a van which the owner had installed using Fag paper to judge the gap! I'd then trundle back to the garage in our Landover recovery vehicle, with a heater so pathetic it might as well have not been fitted. Within 10 minutes in front of the Volcano heater, which burnt waste engine oil and nearly set the garage alight on a weekly basis, and a nice hot cup of tea, I'd be ready to go again! Half an hour of that now would definitely kill me!
 
There have been a few garages of this type around here, normally run as a "Garage Associatif", kind of a club/charity arrangement.

They never seem to last long, which is a shame.

Reasons are pretty much as above, the people who are able to work on their cars tend to want to use such a facility for big jobs, where a ramp would be a major advantage, rather than just a time saver, these are the sort of things that have the potential to go seriously wrong, leaving the vehicle stranded on the ramp for an extended period.

In the past couple of years, I've had two vehicles stuck on axle stands for several weeks, one due to the wrong suspension wishbones being supplied (in fairness, I could have refitted the old ones and eventually did, just to be able to move the car) and the other when the cast steering knuckle shattered while changing a wheel bearing (ironically, in a garage, on a press), in the latter case, the car simply couldn't be moved. As above, this is only an inconvenience, as the cars are on my land and not costing anything, for a garage it would be a problem.

Oil changes, brakes, most people who know what they're doing won't bother with a ramp, so you'll be left with the clueless and the ambitious.


The only reasons my cars go to a garage is to have the tracking set and tyres changed. I prefer to just take the wheels rather than risk muppets jacking my car.

If I could find a "Garage Associatif" with a 4-wheel laser tracking rig, I'd be a faithful customer, sadly, this is the one piece of equipment they alwas appear to lack.


I'd love a hardstanding and a small lift at home, currently I make do with large plywood boards to spread the load. Flat would be nice too..
 
There have been a few garages of this type around here, normally run as a "Garage Associatif", kind of a club/charity arrangement.

They never seem to last long, which is a shame.

Reasons are pretty much as above, the people who are able to work on their cars tend to want to use such a facility for big jobs, where a ramp would be a major advantage, rather than just a time saver, these are the sort of things that have the potential to go seriously wrong, leaving the vehicle stranded on the ramp for an extended period.

In the past couple of years, I've had two vehicles stuck on axle stands for several weeks, one due to the wrong suspension wishbones being supplied (in fairness, I could have refitted the old ones and eventually did, just to be able to move the car) and the other when the cast steering knuckle shattered while changing a wheel bearing (ironically, in a garage, on a press), in the latter case, the car simply couldn't be moved. As above, this is only an inconvenience, as the cars are on my land and not costing anything, for a garage it would be a problem.

Oil changes, brakes, most people who know what they're doing won't bother with a ramp, so you'll be left with the clueless and the ambitious.


The only reasons my cars go to a garage is to have the tracking set and tyres changed. I prefer to just take the wheels rather than risk muppets jacking my car.

If I could find a "Garage Associatif" with a 4-wheel laser tracking rig, I'd be a faithful customer, sadly, this is the one piece of equipment they alwas appear to lack.


I'd love a hardstanding and a small lift at home, currently I make do with large plywood boards to spread the load. Flat would be nice too..
Yes. Tyres and wheel balancing. You can buy tyres from discount sources but the problem is always whether it's worth it when you have to pay separately for fitting and balancing. I find that, living in a big city with multiple outlets, there's always a good tyre on offer at one or other of them and if you push it you can often get them to throw in a balance foc, especially if buying more than one tyre.

I also am outraged by the practice, so often seen, of jacking the car on it's sills with no protection on the "claw like" jack pad resulting in crushing of the seam and breaking the paint protection which accelerates subsequent corrosion. Mind you, great care has to be taken when jacking up modern cars as the box sections are often now too weak to sustain the weight of the vehicle without deforming. I too prefer to take the wheels off and take them along to the shop on their own. Often you will get quicker service too if they are clogged up with vehicles! I caused great amusement to my neighbours a few years back when I took the front wheels off "her indoors" Panda, put them in my wheelbarrow and pushed them up the road to the tyre store (about a mile away). She had taken my car to go shopping so I had no option.

DIY tracking is something which has long occupied my attention. I trained on the old Dunlop, "bomb aimer" type tracking guage. I don't think 4 wheel alignment is realistic at home and anyway if you're doing that you may well be interested in checking castor, camber and kpi as well? Toe in/out though can be achieved and there are a number of commercially available solutions - The Gunson roll over plate intrigues me - however, after a number of abortive efforts over several years I finally made my own gauge. Very simple, and cost next to nothing. It measures distance between rims in front of and behind the axle line. I've been using it for many years on older vehicles but not so sure how well it would work on something modern. For instance with electric steering where it's so important to have the rack exactly centred when adjusting, think a laser aligner would be best for that.
 
I do most all the work on all my cars including, but not limited to, a soon-to-be delivered 1980 FIAT Spider 2000, a 1981 Pontiac Grand Prix. a 1992 Buick Riviera and a 2002 Toyota 4Runner. I have a 30' x 40' heated machine shed with a lift (gosh, I'm lucky) and thank goodness I'm a recently retired ASE tech. If anyone out there is from Albuquerque way, make arrangements and stop by!
 
My garage is approximately 20ft long by 9ft wide and is an integral part of our house with our bedroom above it. It's probably a pretty average size for a British garage and pretty useless for doing anything "big" in, although I once removed an Austin Ambassador power unit (engine/gearbox) inside it - but I wouldn't want to repeat the exercise! I envy my sister and her husband, who live about 2 hours west of Boston Mass and have one of those red roofed barns you see so often in the States, but by golly that would be cold in the winter. I also envied my daughter when they lived in Southern Maryland and had a modern constructed house with integral double garage. None of our garages have heat. I'm absolutely green with envy to read of your workshop, and heated too!

I just googled your Pontiac and Buick to see how they look. Very "American" styling which you never see over here. I liked the Camaro from the late 60s/early 70s and the Corvette from the 70s (C3 was it?). My daughter's neighbour was rebuilding a first generation Corvette and he kept promising me a ride in it but he never got it finished before my son in law's contract finished and they came back "home" again. I got to like American cars back in the late '60s/early '70s when I would go to watch Drag Racing at Santa Pod here in England but they just aren't really practical over here due to their size and the cost of our fuel.

Thanks for "talking" to us and good luck with the Spider, Hope it's an enjoyable experience.
Kindest regards
Jock
 
Hi all,

How many of you service/repair your own car?

The reason I'm asking is because I want to work on my own car, but I prefer to do so on a car ramp. The problem is no where local to me seems to be hiring them out but I've noticed some companies hire out car ramps.

Just wanted to know whether people would use such a service as well as any suggestions or items that you'd want to see in such a space.

Any help would be great.

Cheers

Nick
You can probably buy ramps for pretty cheap, I'm in the US, and ramps are like $50 USD for a solid set of ramps, maybe less.
 
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