Jim Warman

I work on several toy cars... I do it for free - I think most of you have seen pics of the man cave. In the last three years, the 69 Charger has been driven less than 10 hours. I don't feel bad about what we have done to the planet because each and every one of us has spent the rest of our time minimizing our footprint. The 68 Chevelle has seen less than 15 hours on the road in the last two years. Shelby #1 had 675 kilometers on it when it stopped being a car (soon to become part of an AC Cobra kit car) and Shelby #2 was trailered from Edmonton to Slave Lake in November - and driven once to the car wash and back. The Viper and the 'Vette are both bone stock. My 2003 Sporster has less than 6000 kms on it - I still haven't gotten around to paying the harley tax and still hope to put big jugs on it some day. My lawn mower, weed whacker and chain saw (two of them are two stroke) see more use than any of the toy cars. I've only used my backyard fire pit once since we were evacuated. Rest assured, that if it were left to people like the owners of "my" fleet and Aaron, we wouldn't amount to even a blip on the radar. It is the daily driver abusers that will draw the wrath of the politicos and will, mark my words, result in draconian measures that will kill it for the hobbyists. Pretty soon, you might see emissions controls on model planes.

I think the user "hiram walker" is going to get punted....

Ummmm, she's 5'11".... but I'll pass your wishes along all the same.

Most of his wrath is directed at Ford and us... not entirely sure who is at the epicenter but the one that isn't is guilty by association. The aftermarket is innocent of all wrongdoing from what I can gather and it is the piece of shit truck that can't handle an accessory or four. This failure occurred many miles from home and that dealer told him that the intake is full of debris and that we left it there. Looking at the impeller, I have to wonder where the debris from that impeller went. FWIW, I was involved in this repair in that I was consulted for my thoughts a few times and, from what I could see, the intake and exhaust were cleaned as thoroughly as humanly possible. We see this carried into other areas of modification. Death wobble exacerbated by wheels with ridiculous offset, vibration from idiotic driveline angles, aftermarket exhaust pieces, air lift bags and lift kits all competing for the same real estate... and on, and on. In most of these cases the owner blames the truck because the accessory doesn't fit. I've had an ongoing battle with a customer with a 6 inch lift. He goes down a bad road and the centrally located steering damper bracket (mounted by u-bolts to the front axle tube) gets pushed down onto the tierod - the truck has massive steering effort, memory steer and several other sins that don't come to mind at this time. After repositioning and retorquing the bracket a couple of times, I finally welded it into place. Now, instead of twisting down, the bracket bends down. The lift kit is not at fault - I am just a shitty mechanic....

On this day in 1970 and 3, my loving bride and I tied the proverbial knot. I think she deserves a big round of applause for having put up with me for all these many years. On the day we got married, the temperature was in the mid 60s F. Shirtsleeve weather. Yesterday, it was 43 F and the second day in a row with rain.... and over a foot and a half of snow on the ground. It is currently 5F and heading for -15 F tonight. Segue into a heart rendering version of "I Got My Love to Keep Me Warm"

I think the pols wont go after individuals directly because it could amount to "political suicide". Sure, lots of citizens support clean air and other environmental initiatives... at least in word. Ask these same people to sign a cheque, and you might see hordes of people claiming that they didn't want clean air "that bad". And that's a gamble that I don't think any politician is willing to take - even some of the batshit crazy ones you guys have. Recently (remember that the Republic of Alberta has no real auto emissions legislation) a largish fleet had one of our techs bop the guts out of a 6.0 cat that was plugged. My, what a fine corporate citizen this company is. I made my feelings known to the powers that be with the result being the one I expected. "If we don't do it, the guy down the street will". And, quite sadly, the guy down the street would....

A very, very, very angry customer... his first turbo was free, the second turbo is still under dispute this turbo is "bring yer Mastercard" and, as I understand it, the truck is at the auction. My thoughts? We should have slapped a garagemans lien on the truck to keep it from being "converted" to trade in value and told the customer that the maker of his bling might help him pay the bill.

First message of note is 5566 - <Jan 18 2013 5566 -2013 MKZ - Front License Plate Installation Some 2013 MKZ vehicles may need the front license plate bracket modified in order to install a license plate. Place a license plate in the front bracket andcenter to use as a template. Then drill a 4.75 mm (3/16 inch) hole at both uppermounting locations. Install the license plate screws to secure the license plate. > If they can' t build a license plate bracket for a high end car that works - we are fucking doomed!!! Second is this revision - made more interesting since one of the new jobs in my holding pattern is a 2010 Expedition with P0012, P0022 and P0341 <Jan 19 2013 5567 -2004-2013 5.4L 3V Oil Pressure Specification correction The minimum oil pressure specification for 2004-2010 F-150, 2005-2010 F250, F350, 2006-2008 Mark LT, 2005-2013 Navigator with 5.4L 3V engine is 15psi at idle with engine at operating temperature. Refer to the Online Workshop manual Section 303-01 which been updated with revised specification. >

This impeller is out of the third.... yep, the THIRD turbo this truck received. The truck is chipped and exhaust deleted. This is a shot of the compressor, turbine and what is left of the shaft (broken in two places). The bearings are in wonderful shape with no sign of oil starvation or overheating. My best guess is overspeeding the turbo (the owner could often be spotted "rolling the coal"). Kharma's a bitch. Sorry about the quality - taken with my phone.

Score one for the good guys. As a motorcycle rider and a convertible owner, I don't feel that I should "benefit" from the wieners that think "rolling coal" is a welcome past time. As a grandfather (and someone that disbelieves all claims regarding the end times) I still think that each and every one of us should be doing our part.... and that those of us here on DTS are, indeed, keepers of the public trust when it comes to motor vehicles. Defeating an emission control should never be regarded as "fixing" it.

I subscribe to Automotive News. Twice daily I get a video feature. The first I heard of this was on one of these videos (you could try searching their archive but I can't remember any key phrases). The idea is that the motor will shut off when the car comes to a stop - a la golf cart - and restart when you release the brake. Just the thing you want in a chilly Alberta winter.

There is a process for checking for a concern with the HCU - check the symptom chart in the brake section. Also, I recall an SSM from years ago regarding a condition called "step through". Might be worthwhile running OASIS to see if it is still in the system.

I find that, at my age and in my <errrrrrrmmmm> "condition", that there are more vehicles I don't fit under than vehicles I do fit under - creeper not-with-standing.

This an excerpt from an iATN help request. "changed oil in engine and in high pressure sump and now runs good." This appears to be one of them dealer alternatives....

Every time I've heard a 6.4 sound like a 7.3 with a bent push tube (we call 'em 'helicopters'), I've put a camshaft in.

Some time ago, I opined that the new Explorer might be the Edge as a "stretched limo". Ford seems to be putting a lot of focus (no pun intended) on toys or electronic bling. Intelligent access, liftgates that operate with a wave of your foot (not available with trailer hitch), voice recognition.... and of course, that dreaded word on the dash - MICRO$OFT. This appears to be what consumers ask for - as I gaze around the shop and see several techs surreptitiously texting rather than working and parts people scrambling to hide facebook pages when they hear footsteps approaching. The world is going to hell but not in a handbasket - it is going to hell in a microchip.

Isn't that PTU heat shield an interesting thing? What did you wind up doing for the one PTU bolt near the output shaft? I wound up dismantling the exhaust support but I was in robot mode at the time. This is a very unfriendly car to work on

I know some folks who will, occasionally, commit "herbicide" to kill pain. There is a mind set that seems to scream that the dealer will cost more for any given repair. The public sees us, with our door rate at $20, $30 or even $40 per hour more than the guy down the road, as being the high priced alternative. In the eye of Joe Public, all mechanics are crooks - the $80 per hour crook being less evil than the $120 per hour crook. Sure, the guy down the road gives a low estimate that will, more often than not "snowball". But the times that it doesn't serve to make us look like gougers when we seek to replace something we know will fail soon after our current repair (did that sound right?). Add that there are many in our midst that are clearly more interested in what the time ticket says at days end than the quality of the repair. There are those of us that believe we are yahwehs gift to wrenchdom, remaining oblivious to the trail of near destruction we leave in our wake (starting bolts and forgetting them is a big issue - even to the best trained of us. I realize this isn't limited to dealer repairs - but that extra $40 per hour we charge should make SOME sort of difference. It doesn't help that it is too easy to develop that "we have them for the next three years" mentality. In some respects, we are the authors of our own problems.

Didn't work on the kids truck But it has worked in something less than 50% of the (not too many) efforts. We looked at all the options (bear in mind my son doesn't buy much of the diesel he uses so consumption isn't an issue - and he is smart enough to avoid idling when possible) and replaced the DPF. Reasons.... I have a grandson. I can continue to assume the moral high ground on emissions controls. It isn't against the law. No aftermarket electronics or gewgaws required. The original DPF lasted almost 300,000 kms. Most importantly - I consider myself a professional technician - had I done anything to defeat or modify this vital emissions control, I would have abdicated my right to call myself a professional. A clean environment doesn't come cheap - BP proved that.

Got the tranny out and down to the part where they tell me to remove the engine oil pan. There was a good sized chunk of rear seal laying in the bellhousing. For some reason, I decided to collect the oil - about a half liter is what came out of the engine. Checked crank and cam bearings, etc and the engine cost capped - going for a new turbo, too because of the metallic tinge in the oil. What a fine, fine launch this is.

So, I got my IPC and installed it. PMI and configuration took about a half hour. Today, I began doing the rear crank seal - and found an open coolant hose clamp at the oil cooler that I'd missed earlier. T'would be interesting to talk to the team that designed this installation - friendly it ain't.

Isn't there anything in YouTubes terms of service about selling shit?

Fuck - there's no end to the asshole.

And here my first thought was aluminum paint.

This how big yer wallet is when we start. And this is how big it's gonna be when we're done. If ya want it to run, it might cost a bit more....