rgs80074

i have a bottle of die i bought for the engine, perhaps i should put that in and check off and on with an uv light to find whre the leak is.

i do beleive its the rear seal as thats where the old is but someone did say it could be elsewhere and running down to it.

one more question if you can replace the engine seal by dropping the oil pan is it possible to also change the transmission seal without pulling the engine or transmission as well?

belvedere

The front seal? Nope.

rgs80074

well i am not sure if its the front seal or not

the rear seal thats leaking on the engine is i guess right next to the transmission seal as well and i was recommended to replace both of them.

just like when i get around to replacing the evaporator i should replace the heater core too.

smtippin

Sounds like $500 for the work is not a bad deal at all for you. My problem is the guy's skill. Where did you find this guy? Are you sure he is any good? I know a lot of guys who make all sorts of wild claims about their ability but I wouldn't let them replace the oil change sticker. Before you go hiring a bargain basement mechanic, make sure he is competent.

s

rgs80074

well he came recommended to me

i still can not decide if he is good or not

i feel he did some things just fine but didn't do what others here said he shoul dhave on the ac and test it before replacing everything i had mentioned.

what bothered me about him/work is

he did not speak prices before hand, all i knew was 250 bucks to work in the dash which he did not have to do in the end but i still spend about 150 or so for him to replace the parts on the engine

that on the rotors and breaks after the videos and stuff online speaking about the breaks he refused to believe it was anything other than a rotor being warped but had no way to prove it, he refused to take it apart and make sure everything was good, i will do that on sunday plus i could have done this myself and would have if i would have known the labor charge for it was 70 bucks.

the radio

while installed i should not be able to just pull it out of the dash with no effort
would not use the new speaker wire i bought

rear camera
does not work (might be the camera, his wiring job, or not sure how to work it on the radio) he had no way to test this. i will test it myself on saturday

the exhuast manifold,
he seemed to know enough to remove everything needed and remove it from the vehicle and weld it (its steal not aluminum) and put it back on

and now he's wanting to cut a deal on labor for the ac to fix what else is wrong since i told him the other day that having that stuff be bad is stopping the project from proceeding. out of the things thats bad (ac and rear engine seal) the ac is the least of the problem.

so over all its hard to say

i guess i'd use him again if i couldn't find someone else
needed someone quick and he was available
gave me a firm price up front
it was very convenient to have someone come to me instead of the other way around
no so convenient doing all the running around for him


if i had a spare backup vehicle i would attempt more repairs myself but i don't right now the escort is still a i have no idea whats happening with it to be honest.

Lowrange2

So, now it sounds like he didn't do anything right... lol

Unfortunately, you get what you pay for.

Firestorm500

That's what I said in multiple posts earlier.

Some posters on this forum were raking me over the coals for that.

To the OP: I sure wouldn't let this guy tear apart my dash if he can't even put on brake pads properly.

And he doesn't believe he does anything wrong, and he doesn't stand behind his work.

Did you say he was a druggie?

Big David

This thread hurts my head.

smtippin

Reading this it sounds like you're the type of guy who tries to give everyone the benefit of the doubt even if you get hurt. I'm all for compromise and sacrifice in relationships, but this was a business deal and you shouldn't have to excuse your mechanic's behavior. This is a black and white issue...did you do the job to minimum standard or not? The answer as I read it is "not".

If you can fix all of his mistakes and you're still happy with it for the price and your labor, great. Please maintain high standards for you Jeep though. After all, you care more about it than your tweaker mechanic.

s

rgs80074

no this mechanc is not a druggie that i know of. a prior mechanic was

yeah he's called me 3 times in two days i've not answered any of them, i told him i'd call him next week.

by that time i've got a chance to redo stuff and see if it was defective parts or bad installation,

either way i would think he would have offered to redo them to make sure they was correct i mean it don't take long to pull off the caliper and pads and rotor on this vehicle. i am not mechanically inclined and i can do each side in half an hour or less.

just the fact he says its not his fault if parts are bad and blames something being bad when all reports state something is the fault but won't look into it to see whats what.

i doubt i'll use him for anything in the future

as for the labor charge thats up in the air, i didn't feel comfortable doing any of it(well the rotors nad pads) plus i don't have many tools. and i paying more for his expertise and experience but that seems to have been over stated in my opinion.

i have no idea what kind of deal when wants to work out on the ac, perhaps he's willing to do it for free i don't know i just need parts. but i don't have the spare time anytime soon to allow him to mess with it but i highly doubt he wants to do this for free. and before i let him do anything else i will try to read up on stuff to get an idea how it should be done so he can be supervised.

just by watching and working with him and checking his stuff i've learned a lot i think, i feel comfortable now to wire up the speakers with new wire if i decide to do this or buy a new amp and install it, etc or install new speakers in the rear.

i've been checking out the stuff for the rear seal and it don't look complicated but more complex that i feel good about trying myself. i think i am going to buy some of the lucas engine oil for fixing leaks or helping them. i also am going to put the die in the engine and see where the leak is for sure as at this point i don't trust the mechanic properly figured out where the leak is. it could be a couple of places and just runs down the back of the engine. the die was like 6 bucks so i can put it in and wait a few days and look for the die.

this forum has been very helpful

exspecially in backing up some of my feelings on this.

i feel the labor charge was more or less fair had everything been ok but having to go back and redo stuff and not having ac tested first like many suggested a good mechanic would have insisted on (the stuff was replaced and works great just has a leak).

but for my $500 bucks in labor which does not include all the running around and 10-15 bucks in food and drinks

i got a working radio

working door windows

new ac parts installed

rotors and pads

rear lift parts (he put those on by himself i didnt ask him or request it, even those at first he said was not good becasue the top didn't move until i showed them they did)

the problem with all of this is only one thing works perfectly after the repair and thats the one window's regulator that was replaced.

all the other stuff has something not quite right they might work right (like the dirvers window having to go the opposite direction of the button pushed or the radio just able to pull out of the dash with no effort)

too bad there is no one close to me in the forum that could help repair the seals assuming they are really bad.

Lowrange2

You should be a Journalist.

wagmobler

Maybe you can post the guy's business info-I'll book a visit in a heart beat.

Firestorm500

You are either a comedian or a masochist.

smtippin

OP,
What your time is worth is your business. Many of us here, myself included (READ: my bias), enjoy working on our Jeeps so we wouldn't pay a mechanic to do the work even if we were wiping with $50s.

I think the most important message to communicate, at least more important than you're mechanic's integrity, is the cherokeeforum's value. I realize you're new here so please know you're totally welcome here. I hope you will utilize the expertise I have come to rely on. You may not feel confident pulling your dash apart now, but many here are and are more than willing to walk you through it. If you value learning and are interested in getting comfortable with wrenches and busted knuckles, you've come to the right place. Search the archives and ask questions and you'll be surprised at what you can learn and do. Plus, it won't cost you a mechanic's fee for the education. I warn you though, it is a sickness. I'm in treatment now for trying to break things offroading to spend more time in the garage. My therapy is offroading (ha ha. get it?. argh)

**I'm afraid to 'proof read' this cuz I'm afraid it sounds like a sappy hallmark card, love note to the forum moderators**

Turbo X_J

"expertise and experience", meh:



Dude is never workin' on my ride, no ****ing way.