If something goes horribly wrong with a running engine, do not kill the engine by pulling the coil wire.
I'd never seen a lightning bolt so close before.
If something goes horribly wrong with a running engine, do not kill the engine by pulling the coil wire.
I'd never seen a lightning bolt so close before.
Learned the hard way?
Don't be dumb enough to grab an electric cooling fan that's falling. 
Spend 30 seconds looking around for things you forgot before you put the intake on. (I forgot that one again this weekend.)
My brother taught me this one: do NOT twist a 2 stroke motorcycle cylinder as you slide it over the piston. The end of a ring will pop out and snag in a transfer port. Now you are ROYALLY screwed.
Just 'cuz it don't look hot don't mean it ain't. This is VERY important when there are multiple males with fire tools occupying a small area.
when using starting fluid on a carbed car, dont look into it as someone else starts cranking the engine. --also dont try and put out the resulting fire thats cooking the brand new ignition wires , with your hand (triple whammy, think about it...)
the "little" oil feed line leak to the turbo is no big deal, right up till everything screeches to a halt, at 80mph... i still miss that sunbird GT Turbo!
no , raccoons aren't soft, but they do give you a funny look just as you , and the coon realize its too late for either of you to get out of the way......
triple squares are not torx, now matter how much you want them to be...
Don't start a car with a rag near the engine fan.
If the instruction say to check brake clearance after intstalling forward controls on a harley, do it! I ended up having the rear brake drag and cook a set of pads and a rotor, lucky for me I only have to fix the job in the next couple of days, 200 miles and 130$ in parts.
Never let my son tighten anything. Your better off using an impact wrench.
Never ever let my son use an impact wrench, even if it's to save the world.
Don't touch that little tiny bubble in the paint. It's actually covering a black hole that will suck all of your spare time, a pint or two of blood and parts of your soul. You're better off not knowing what's under it.
Extra holes in a carburetor can be plugged with a pencil. Said pencil will fall out somewhere you can't pull over. There won't be another pencil to be found in the car, or the cars behind you.
When welding on the roof of a car fixing that little tiny paint bubble, don't forget to cover the windshield. Scraping welding slag off a windshield is impossible.
The bolt the wire wheel just sent into low earth orbit wasn't a standard thread. No, the parts house doesn't stock that size. Yes it is the only bolt you need to finish a project and drive the car.
When unloading a tire from your trailer, don't drop it. It will bounce off the edge of the trailer, roll across the street and smash into the side of you wife's car.
Powered minivan doors are a real pain to get into when removing dents caused by errant tires.
I'll stop there.
Digital photos are quicker, cheaper, and more accurate than trying to remember how something came apart.
Telling your son to perform a task is not the same as seeing him do it.
Coil springs can do amazing things when the spring compressor breaks.
Every car has at least one black hole into which small but important parts and tools can disappear. Turning the car upside down and shaking is not usually an option.
Sometimes, you just have to hope that that nut really did get all the way through to the oil pan.
Old Suburbans are the St. Bernards of vehicles. They're inefficient, slow, awkward, and encouraging of bad habits. They're also very comforting in bad times.
Also learned the hard way: Anti seize is your friend. Maybe not right now (it's messy), but definitely in the future.
Brake cleaner fumes will hang around low areas for quite a while and can easily be ignited by a point type ignition system. That one nearly cost me the Jensen.
After reinstalling an engine and transmission, if you hear a lot of noise in neutral don't assume it's normal for that particular tranny. It's probably because the dummy mechanic forgot to fill the thing with lube. 
Jensenman wrote: Anti seize is your friend. Maybe not right now (it's messy), but definitely in the future.
After living in Ohio for the last 10 years or so my bottle of the stuff is nover very far away.
81gtv6 wrote:Jensenman wrote: Anti seize is your friend. Maybe not right now (it's messy), but definitely in the future.After living in Ohio for the last 10 years or so my bottle of the stuff is nover very far away.
Delaware Ohio? Hell, I go down there to find clean cars! 
Pay for the better parts the first time. or end up paying twice, or more. you get what you pay for, labor counts too.
Just this week, When! you drop a small rubber part in side of a timing belt cover. You dont know it , it does not make a sound. Before you start the eng. Had to pull the head and have 10 valves replaced.$600 in parts and 8hr labor all at no charge to the customer.
Lesson learned: the eng mount on a Neon can come out in at least 2 parts. Take inventory of eng mount parts before you seal the timing belt back up
As a young child playing in the garage I spotted a open plug in on the wall. Curiousity of course got the best of me and in went the finger(no child proofing in the 60s). I was flat out laid on my butt and totally confused. OK I will fix that outlet, I grabbed a steel rod and jammed it in there to get even. I learned 2 lessons that day. Just think I doubled the learning curve of a child.
You'll need to log in to post.
