Are There Any Honest Mechanics?

[mrnickleye]

Bring on over to my shop. I know supras well, and I've never ripped anyone off. There is enough work to make a good living, AND be honest.

The ripoffs are just lazy bastards that actually enjoy stealing from you !!

I've fired some when I was foreman at the Toyota dealer.

You don't EVEN wanna know some of the crap those kind do to your car, or don't do, but charge you anyways.

It sounds like you have some mechanical abilities. Get a Chilton manual so you have a reference book to get greasy while you fix things yourself. Use the TSRM, and print out the pages you need to do a particular job.

Ask all the questions here before tackling a job that may lay up your car for a day or 2.

That throttle body will come right off with a 3/8" 12" extension and socket. Those valve covers are easy to get off with a BIG tipped phillips screwdriver.

Make sure you use a fender cover, even a towel.

Take some photos before you start if you need, so you can see where it all goes back.

Get a muffin pan to keep the nuts and bolts seperated as you remove them. This will make re-assembly much quicker, and less headache.

Get all the parts and gaskets ahead of time. Keep 2 cans of 'brake cleaner spray' on hand. A magnetic tray is handy, or an old speaker magnet.

VC gasket job won't take you more than 2 hrs. max.

[duster117]

sorry to but in on this thred

but i keep reading about rushing water sound when cold?
what is this linked to?

[scruffboy]

I can't find a chiltons book for my specific year supra. I did find a book (forgot name) on supras in general and it is somewhat helpful. The TSRM is very helpful, but I'm afraid of getting in over my head. I saw a site where they show every part and part number in blow ups and the parts separated. I once saw it on a Body Shop Computer. Does anyone know the URL for this? I think this would be very helpful.

Thanks,

James in NJ

[mrnickleye]

http://www.cygnusx1.net/supra/library/EPC/MKIII_NATO/

[suprra_girl]

the rushing water/gurgling in your dashboard is due to air in your cooling system
you need to burp it

[mrnickleye]

here's a link on 'burping your baby'

http://www.supras.com/06/techcenter/...0f95928a5c87c2

[Isphius]

There is plenty of honest mechanics, but the majority give the rest a bad name. i went to meinike for an alignment, And the guy came up to me and said, your car has a whole list of problems. And after i talked all the BS out of him(guess he realized i knew what i was talking about),they told me i needed a new power steering system and wheel bearings to get an alignment. And they wouldnt even let me in the bay to look at the car. they gave me a 450$ estimate to change the bearings, and said they couldnt even get the rack. And this is after a 2+ hour wait in line to get my car on a lift. So i basically gave meinike the finger and decided never to go back there. I took my car to a little shop by me, that my friend goes to, and the guy aligned my car for 70$. Drives perfectly straight, wheel isnt crooked, anything. shows what shopping around can do too.

[supratech]

i am curently in the middle of my automotive apprenticeship, and i've seen a lot and know how this industry works...dishonesty is caused by a "mechanic" that can't make money by being honest, probably because he's lazy or has an addiction he needs to support...there are a lot of scummy people out there that will take advantage of naive people when given the opportunity...there are a few things you can do

1) get a second opinion
2) make friends with a tech (techs are suckers for beer)
3) use your common sense
4) ask questions on this forum
5) learn to do the work yourself, sometimes easier said than done, but it's worth it in the end