damn-I-Suck
[12] Conqueror
Okay...
I know that most of you out there have had the bad misfortune of having a bad mechanic. It's inevitable, since many places will hire people who are unqualified, or just plain stupid. Or maybe the technician worked a really long week and didn't get much sleep, who knows.
First of all, I'm a full time automotive student. I'm almost finished with the 2-year degree, and right now I'm in manual transmissions class.
Anyways...
Some guy in the afternoon class (I'm in the morning classes) had to replace a clutch for his class (1996 ford ranger 4-cyl). At the end of the day, he left with the 4 top bolts to the bell housing left on the table because he couldn't line them up with the engine.
My teacher asked me to take over and finish the job.
Mistake#1
You should NEVER EVER tighten a few bolts all the way down before you even get the rest of the bolts at least hand-threaded a few turns. You want to make sure that shit is lined up perfect before you start tightening shit down. This is common sense for automotive 101, and applies to just about anything.
It was then that I realized why the top bolts he left off wouldn't line up. It wasn't that the transmission wasn't lined up, it was that there was a fucking WIRE CONNECTOR pinched between the engine and the bell housing right at the top. Here's 2 pictures I took with my crappy phone.
In the first picture, it's kinda blurry and hard to see, but if you look carefully, you can see a wire harness going to a connecter, stuck between the transmission and the engine. When he tightened the bottom bolts down, it crushed and cracked the plastic connecter with wrench tightening torque.
When I pulled the trany out, bunch of plastic pieces came out. Go figure. Here's what the connecter looked like when I pulled it out.
Needless to say, this simple clutch job turned into a much bigger hassle. I eventually got it handled though.
Have any stupid mechanic stories to tell? Well here's the place. Pictures are a plus.
I know that most of you out there have had the bad misfortune of having a bad mechanic. It's inevitable, since many places will hire people who are unqualified, or just plain stupid. Or maybe the technician worked a really long week and didn't get much sleep, who knows.
First of all, I'm a full time automotive student. I'm almost finished with the 2-year degree, and right now I'm in manual transmissions class.
Anyways...
Some guy in the afternoon class (I'm in the morning classes) had to replace a clutch for his class (1996 ford ranger 4-cyl). At the end of the day, he left with the 4 top bolts to the bell housing left on the table because he couldn't line them up with the engine.
My teacher asked me to take over and finish the job.
Mistake#1
You should NEVER EVER tighten a few bolts all the way down before you even get the rest of the bolts at least hand-threaded a few turns. You want to make sure that shit is lined up perfect before you start tightening shit down. This is common sense for automotive 101, and applies to just about anything.
It was then that I realized why the top bolts he left off wouldn't line up. It wasn't that the transmission wasn't lined up, it was that there was a fucking WIRE CONNECTOR pinched between the engine and the bell housing right at the top. Here's 2 pictures I took with my crappy phone.
In the first picture, it's kinda blurry and hard to see, but if you look carefully, you can see a wire harness going to a connecter, stuck between the transmission and the engine. When he tightened the bottom bolts down, it crushed and cracked the plastic connecter with wrench tightening torque.
When I pulled the trany out, bunch of plastic pieces came out. Go figure. Here's what the connecter looked like when I pulled it out.
Needless to say, this simple clutch job turned into a much bigger hassle. I eventually got it handled though.
Have any stupid mechanic stories to tell? Well here's the place. Pictures are a plus.