Jim Warman

not to be contrary.... but a simple volt drop test would have been much quicker and to the point. I can only suggest that techs build a test board and get used to seeing volt drop readings in all their various contexts. Go to the nonfunctioning load and check the volt drop across it... It will be system voltage, zero or somewhere in between. Step one will determine step two. It's quick.. it's easy... and I wish I could bottle it and give it away.

yes, it is funny, in a twisted, demented sort of context.... but it does reinforce the idea that everyone else is good and techs are bad. If we are to have consumers agree that techs are downtrodden, under-appreciated and underpaid, videos like this one are not going to help... This video proclaims that we are underpaid because we spend all of our time making our own lives miserable. Sadly, that last part starts to ring true - I just went through a flat rate tech spend over a half hour looking for a tool another flat rate tech couldn't be bothered putting away.... three fucking days after he no longer needed it. If we wish to be treated as professionals, I can only suggest we start acting that way... How can we ever convince people that piecework (aka flat rape)is bad if we show the bad guys as being "us"? And let us not forget that the video promotes the idea that it is "us" (the techs) against "them" (the service advisers). If some guys would put their cock back in their pants and try teamwork for a change (tough to do with SAs paid commission, I'm sure), we would find that life can go much smoother. Years ago, a chef would say "I want to make the best damned hamburger there is". Today.... "I want to make as much money as I can off a hamburger shaped object". How many people can we piss off all at once?

+1

Something over a year ago (caution - memory thing happening) this link appeared on FRT. While it might seem to be "cute" to some, I cannot tell you how irate this video made me. Techs that work flat rate will swear up and down that "management" is the big problem. Shrinking SLTS, unreal expectations... A tech on flat rate can't make a living because of managers. And along comes a cutesy video showing that we are the cause of our own problems. Techs and service advisers DESPERATELY need to work together to win over their customers. If you think YOU are the main man... you have a problem (I'm not pointing that at you Alex). This video portrays techs (and SAs) making life hard for techs.... Isn't that a wee bit STUPID!!!

Reboot your laptop and restart IDS.

I'm fairly comfortable with the notion that, if my current employer suddenly decided I was "redundant" that I could find a fleet job in town that afforded several hours per week.... I have no desire to retire and, here in the middle of week two of my holiday, I am ready to go back to works (except for the friggin' heat STILL - over 80 F once again today and I am sweating like a pig).

Yep, they have a bevy of old dudes at our WallyWorld. Can't you picture me at the door saying "Fuckin' buggies are over there, dismal fuck..."

That reminds me... can I use you as a reference on my Walmart application? I can just see me now in my spiffy blue vest..... helping the fat broad in the leopardskin tights and purple wedgies out to her minivan....

This would have to be a case by case kinda deal. One of the considerations is the one you have covered. What is it going to cost to make the truck safe (and by safe, I am including "dependable" since a truck that strands anyone on a cold lonely highway at 0dark30 can't be called safe). Another, I touched on in another thread... how much will it cost and how much will the truck be worth when all is said and done? Will they have to borrow the money to fix it? And still another consideration is how much would it cost to replace the truck? New? Used? Lease return? Would they have to borrow the money? My own truck, an '02 SooperKroo is worth more than it's worth. It hasn't yet got 100,000 kms on it, body is what I'd call average ( a door ding here, a few scratches there, some dork backed into the front bumper - no big deal ). I could fix it without borrowing money but I couldn't replace it without borrowing money. With the one you are looking at, the wise man would explain to the customer that there are other, better options. If you have a particular salesperson that you prefer to deal with, introduce the customer to him/her. For your "management team".... I can only suggest getting the OK for a safety inspection and then make sure the quote is astronomical. Include the condition of frame members and rivets and whether the floor pan is perforated or not... you get the picture. Remind those two cretins that your magic wand is in for it's 1000 miracle overhaul.

I'm assuming that the top two pics are the same engine but different instances? With the way the cam gear is pressed on to the shaft, I'd be a little skeptical about the cam slipping (but I haven't seen everything there is to see - back in the 70's I came across a Ford 240 CID with a broken cam that would run well sometimes and not start others). It would be easier for me to imagine a damaged or loose crank trigger wheel as a possibility. The spacing of the pulses suggests the engine is cranking over evenly without significant variation in rpm but the amplitude shows what could be an interesting trend.

I haven't taken an ASE test for something like 30 years (in the 80s, they tried to sneak into Canada). I remember that all the questions were multiple guess. If you run across one that's giving you concerns - eliminate the obvious wrong answers first. Good luck with your endeavour.

There are two things that drive people to even think they can work on their own iron. First is an intense distrust of those of us in this trade that many people have. And it's not like there aren't enough hacks and under-qualified people out there that make sure the trade deserves the disrespect. Second are the myths... We have a "majik masheen" that tells us exactly what the rpoblem is - after that all we gots to do is undo a couple bolts and slam dunk a new part. How hard can that be? Third... the door rate in approaching $140~$150 in some areas. We is making money hand over fist. That's why we all wear Armani suits to work and drive brand new luxury cars. The worst part is that time is rarely spent to educate customers. We gave the customer a quote for $1175.62 worth of repairs. He went home and put $1600 worth of parts on the car.... yeah, he kinda stripped out some holes and broke a bolt or four and shoved a screwdriver through the cooling stack but that shouldn't matter but the car don't run any better and now we are asking for $3000 for the same repair... We should be ashamed of ourselves. The ones I really like are the guys that fix something you tell them not to. They put $3000 into their car and now it is worth $1200 resale.

"The human condition" is just a nice way of saying that the FuckUp Fairy came to visit. And the FuckUp Fairy is going to come and visit whenever she damned well pleases. I've had rebuilts missing connecting rod nuts, valve seats, cam timing off, bad oil pumps, missing piston rings.... you name it. There's been times I've been a fuckup magnet and there's times I've been the author of my own demise. One memorable occasion was a 6.4, according to OASIS it had never had a wrench on it before. Seven torque converter nuts was all there was to be found. I propose that we are the final step in quality control - be it a PDI or installing a rebuilt whatever. The final choice is the one that we get to make. Does anyone slam dunk an alternator and close the hood without verifying the repair? "Well, the tag in the box says it puts out....."... and the bible mentions a talking donkey - none of this means anything is true.. A long time ago, some old dude told me to believe half of what I see and none of what I hear....

I have.... I haven't found a "sweet spot" so it is necessary to back off a couple of rod caps - but that could just be me. It would be nice if we didn't have all those "you will burn in hell" warnings about the crank extension.

Bruce, this is almost a Catch 22 situation. Do we trust a manual written by a technical writer most likely using a lot of cut and paste (the Ford manuals are full of erroneous info either introduced or perpetuated cut and paste manual authoring) in the hope that we in the field will discover and report the mistakes to SPECs. Hence Fords waning use of DVD manuals and their telling us to use the online manuals as these are "constantly updated". If something goes wrong, I can waggle the dipstick under anyones nose and repeat "I did it according to accepted industry practice". Don, one thing I have proven time and again in the past, if I have an engine that is using a lot of oil - more than the situation and apparent engine condition (oiling plugs, excessive blowby, oil in the air filter or similar would suggest), use the dipstick to determine if the engine is seeking it's own level. In some cases, the crankshaft can actually strike the surface of the oil or crankcase windage can suspend oil inside the engine making oil control difficult. But we are getting away from an important fact. DON"T TAKE ANYTHING FOR GRANTED. The biggest part of my position at work is because other people take things for granted... Me? I must be from Missouri 'cause you can hear me saying "show me" all the time.

+ 1 on the thumb drive. I carry one in my pocket - 16 gigs. Has about 3 or 4 hours of my favourite tunes, various manuals and forms, my bookmarks, a couple of versions of IDS and some updates that need to be deleted, jokes, a copy of my address book and, of course, pictures of the grandbaby... and there is room to spare. And they are CHEAP. I never have to look for a wall outlet, it fits in my pocket and it has, so far, survived three trips through the heavy duty wash and rinse cycles. FWIW, the John Bean wheel aligner we purchased last year has no disc drives with removable media. All programming is done through the USB ports.

This is the best capture I have (adjusted for easier viewing). At just before -10 seconds, you can see the BRKOVR_ACTION counter count up one digit meaning we were lucky enough to capture the first event of the drive cycle giving a solid indication of BOA at work. BOO1 is the switch on the brake pedal and BOO2 is the switch on the MC- and you can see a slight delay as BOO2 "catches up". Lastly, you can see that APP1 was nearly 27% when the event happened. I've checked a very few other trucks and the BRKOVR_ACTION PID is usually at 0. I don't know what it taakes to reset this counter to 0.

What I was taught, back in the dark ages, is that the proper lubricant level of anything with a dipstick was determined by the dipstick. Every instructor, without exception, would be like ObiWan (Luke, put your faith in the dipstick). There is nothing to be gained by NOT checking the dipstick - and everything to lose.

Checking the oil level before we release the truck is one of the things that separates us from hacks. Striving for that unattainable perfection has driven me for many years. I still fuck up more than I think I need to.... but it isn't for things I can easily circumvent. A misdiagnosis is one thing... not checking basics is unforgivable. My challenge to all of you.... prove that you are as good as you think you are.... Once again... I have proven that I am not perfect.... but I wont stop trying.

I wish I could bottle (or at least quantify) whatever it is that I did in my life. My hourly rate is slightly less than our top flat rate guys (hourly rate is based on earned Ford certifications). I am not flat rate and my efficiency is seldom called into question... mind you, I work like a dog - usually from just after 7:30 Ayem to nearly 6 PM most days. I work on regularly scheduled customer vehicles (read that as have to be done today) as well as driveway stuff, help apprentices and techs with opinions, advice and direction, explain things to service advisers so that they can sound knowledgeable when talking to customers, quelling riots, putting out fires and generally trying to make sure the earth does not stray from its appointed orbit. There is never a dull moment and there are many small victories in a day, enough to make you feel you are doing "something". It started out as being a shop foreman, but not so much as what appears to be the US definition. I guess shop mentor might be closer. But if this fat old grade 8 drop-out can do it.... consider it.... work toward it.

Keeepththththth, you are treading on holy ground...... I purchased my 2002 SooperKroo in Jan 2003. It had about 32000 kms on it. Today, it has about 99,000 kms on the clock. 67,000 kms in 10 years. 6,700 kms per year. I change my oil twice a year whether it needs it or not.... But, yeah... I get your point. In the long run, I would prefer that our customers have us change their oil a bit late rather than have KwikeeLoob change it on time.

"Maintain" is one of those ubiquitous terms... One might assume that the operator means "I perform all necessary scheduled maintenance"" when he, ipso facto, means "if it breaks, I try to fix it". I would be interested in seeing what proportion of motorists spend their time driving from one breakdown to the next.....

It is now that I am going to become a real, honest to yahweh, dyed in the wool, supreme dink. Something I beat into the brains of anyone and everyone that pretends to work in our shop. I don't care if you know how much oil goes into a motor. I don't care if you never see a problem with oil level if you use my method.... I don't care if you think my way is for "pussies". The few times I do a service, I add the amount of oil that I "know" goes in the motor. I check the oil level. If it is OK, I know I put the drain plug in. If it is too high or too low... I have a concern and I need to sort it out before I turn the key. If everything is copascetic (no, I do not think this is a word - but many years ago, it nearly was) I start the motor, watch the oil pressure indication. Once I have oil pressure, I look under the truck - it is at this time I check the trans fluid if applicable (and I usually find it takes two men and a boy to get the dipstick out because nobody fucking checks it but everybody says they did). I shut the engine down, do my paperwork, put stickers, do whatever for a few minutes and then recheck the oil level. In 40 years, I have never had a concern based on oil level. Now and again, I get a service adviser asking me to adjust oil level on a car a customer is picking up because the customer is astute. That customer knows that we have charlatans in our midst. That customer has been burned before. You can call me anal.... you can call me an idiot..... but - I did used to work with a Master Tech that put the same amount of oil in a 5.4 3V as he put in a 5.4 2V - obviously never checking his work (and it sometimes showed). When I change oil, I check the oil level three times.... When I have a running concern, I check oil level simply because it is quick and easy to do... and can tell me volumes about the customer. If a customer asks me for an opinion of any sort, at some point I wind up checking the oil level,. Basics.. start with the basics... A big part of my job is fixing stuff that can't seem to get fixed. I'm nothing special. What I usually find is a simple thing that someone else didn't feel was important. <SOAPBOX MODE> = OFF

Is this a Vulcan machine rebuild? I think these guys motor the engine to check oil pressure and compression before they ship it - they remove the cooler because it makes it easier and cheaper to build the pallet.

Don't forget that, in the very beginning, (before we saw our first 6.7s) I was under the impression that they were using SCR in place of EGR rather than to augment it. I subscribe to one stock market news letter (Lord knows why since my stock market savvy is non-existant) that has been talking about the "death of the diesel" for some time.They claim to be on the inside loop but that merely implies that this is how they think they can part me from my money. As we speak, the diesel engine options is what, $10K? I'm sure that that will change significantly with the next generation of engines.