Yes, all well and good, but if a guy has at least a rudimentary knowledge of automotive mechanics, this is one of the simpler repairs, and if he pays attention to what he's doing, it doesn't have to be a costly repair, but a mere temporary annoyance. If he isn't comfortable doing it, great, pay someone else, but if he is confident in his abilities and conscientious about his work, it is a few bucks and 20 minutes of time to replace. I can't tell you how many I have replaced, and never had so much as single glitch. The worst I ever had was a broken ear on the gooseneck of a '63 ford.....but it was also my first attempt at replacing one, and I had incorrectly torqued the bolts....bought another one at a local salvage yard for a couple of bucks and was done in just a few minutes. It's really not all that complicated. You just have to pay attention to what you are doing. My engines typically last well over 200K miles, so I can't be too far off, but I still recommend a guy buys himself a manual to help guide him through minor repairs like this.
"Kevin Trojanowski" wrote in message news:ZhBAd.16090$ql2.80@okepread04... | Jim Warman wrote: | >
| > Some of my best paying jobs are the result of DIY efforts but I wont tell | > anyone not to try. However (and you can check my posting history), I tell | > folks time and time again that knowledge is power..... unfortunately, a | > LITTLE knowledge can be dangerous. | | Amen! One of the most important things for me to know about cars is | where my limits lie. I know enough to do some basic repairs, and that's | about it. I'd love to know more, but I have neither the tools nor the | luxury of a backup vehicle to allow me to learn to do major work myself. | | The way I look at it is that I have a job so that I can afford to pay | people who know what they're doing to fix my car. I'll gladly pay for | service from a reputable establishment, and I know of a few in my area. | | -Kevin