Tunnel wash rant - Free speech thread

Like some of you I’m getting older (68) and trying not to slow down so I do as much as I can on my own although I pay the dealer for oil changes and things like that partly because I can financially after a lifetime of scrimping and saving and partly because I just don’t want to do it anymore

One of my jobs I continue to do, and the one my wife gives me the most crap about, is changing over the wheel sets each fall and spring. I do that myself because the rattle gun monkeys at the tire shop don’t give the tiniest damn about trashing the finish on my wheels and “torquing” the fasteners to whatever the impact maxes out at

The day will come that I’ll have to pay for that but I’m putting it off as long as possible


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Ugh, tires is one thing I cringe to think about because this Fall I have to get new ones. I don’t look forward to the anxiety I’m going to feel worrying if the tech is going to damage my wheels or torque them too tight even though I’ll be going to the shop that’s pretty good about things and did a lot of work on my Cadillac. Like always, I’m going to have to stress to them to be super careful. I even tip them. It’s just not a pleasant overall experience for me. The curse of being an Autogeek.
 
Bill D said:
Ugh, tires is one thing I cringe to think about because this Fall I have to get new ones. I don’t look forward to the anxiety I’m going to feel worrying if the tech is going to damage my wheels or torque them too tight even though I’ll be going to the shop that’s pretty good about things and did a lot of work on my Cadillac. Like always, I’m going to have to stress to them to be super careful. I even tip them. It’s just not a pleasant overall experience for me. The curse of being an Autogeek.
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That’s one reason I spend the bucks up front for studded tires and a wheel set for winter for each car

They only get one chance to mess up my rims



It actually saves me money in the long run because they charge $110-125 each time for a changeover, times twice a year, and your $800 worth of wheels is paid for in 4 years

I know your situation is different and I damn near need a sedative when I buy new tires


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I deal only with the head mechanic and now he knows how nuts I am about my cars. I’m hoping he’s the one who will be doing my tires.

I’m going to cast this out of my mind for now because I have many months before I have to face it
 
Optimus Grime said:
It’s a frame of mind. I remember growing up seeing my dad always working with his hands. He was cutting the grass, changing the brakes on our cars, reloading his bullets or working with his garage full of man tools. I don’t see that anymore.
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For me, it was my dad and maternal grandfather. My dad's "baby," was a 1965 Plymouth Satellite, in brilliant red w/383 4bbl and a 4-speed. He was meticulous with that car. And my grandfather had everything but a lift or pit in his garage to work on his cars (needless to say, "going to see grandpa," for me, was code for: "I'm going to work on my car").

We never seemed to want for anything, but still we were by no means 'well-off,' so DIY was the way to make our means stretch. My dad/grandfather always did at least 90% of any work needed on their cars - probably more than that, and some of that attitude stuck with me for a long time, until cars got so computerized and the parts all crammed tight together that you need to disassemble half the car to get at what you need to fix/replace. For example: My thermostat is bad in the Camaro, but every How-To shows that you need to remove the intake manifold (in my case the supercharger) to access the 'stat and sending unit. A big NO for me.
 
Don M said:
For me, it was my dad and maternal grandfather. My dad's "baby," was a 1965 Plymouth Satellite, in brilliant red w/383 4bbl and a 4-speed. He was meticulous with that car. And my grandfather had everything but a lift or pit in his garage to work on his cars (needless to say, "going to see grandpa," for me, was code for: "I'm going to work on my car").

We never seemed to want for anything, but still we were by no means 'well-off,' so DIY was the way to make our means stretch. My dad/grandfather always did at least 90% of any work needed on their cars - probably more than that, and some of that attitude stuck with me for a long time, until cars got so computerized and the parts all crammed tight together that you need to disassemble half the car to get at what you need to fix/replace. For example: My thermostat is bad in the Camaro, but every How-To shows that you need to remove the intake manifold (in my case the supercharger) to access the 'stat and sending unit. A big NO for me.
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I hear you

When we moved into the new house I had to empty my big tool roll cab and when I was putting everything back I kind of got nostalgic about the distributor clamp wrenches and set of points adjusting wrenches and stuff like that

Too many specialized “use once” tools needed anymore


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I should have also said, that when I hear the word "buff," it makes me think of wax or polish REMOVAL, as in 'buffing off.'
 
i have a separate tool box with just pre 2000 tools and testers in the garage after 55 years of working on cars and trucks
 
I honestly don’t remember the last time I saw anybody on earth washing their vehicle on their driveway.

Nobody has any pride left in anything it seems. Like stated above. A deep aversion to doing anything manually.

I remember I used to wash my parents 1995 Pontiac Trans Sport with a bucket of dawn dish soap and an old beach towel.

By the way, I did that because my mom SAID I HAD TO.

I would’ve much rather have been in the basement playing ATV Off Road Fury on PS2, but my mom had me and my brothers get our asses outside. (Thanks mom)


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It saddens me greatly that no one has pride in anything any more. What in the world happened and what in the world are we coming to? There has to be some kind of sociological study into this
 
In a sense here are three studies.. three books that will help you understand this troubling trajectory..

1. ‘Amusing Ourselves to Death’ by Neil Postman

2. ‘The Vanishing American Adult’ by Ben Sasse

3. ‘Shop Class as Soul Craft’ by Matthew Crawford

Three books that lifted the veil on this and inspired me to live intentionally.


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Ah, those sound interesting! I ought to check them out some time.
 
Eric7810 said:
I honestly don’t remember the last time I saw anybody on earth washing their vehicle on their driveway.

Nobody has any pride left in anything it seems. Like stated above. A deep aversion to doing anything manually.

I remember I used to wash my parents 1995 Pontiac Trans Sport with a bucket of dawn dish soap and an old beach towel.

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I remember that vividly. When I went to live with my dad every other weekend I was out in the yard washing his Mazda B210 with a worn out bath towel and some laundry detergent.

There’s something satisfying about looking at your own handiwork. I must admit that I get all warm and tingly inside when my wife comes in and tells me some neighbor stopped and asked her how our yards looks so nice and she always tells them that her husband takes care of it. I remember once when a customer dropped off his car to have it coated and as he was walking to his wife’s SUV parked up the road I heard her whisper, “ask him who does his yard.” I yelled out with pride “I do it myself.”
 
I've been mowing lawns since I was 11;first my parents' then my own. It's just something that's second nature to me. I wish I could treat it too. In recent years I haven't been satisfied with the lawn treatment service. The really good technicians move on quickly
 
It requires certain liquid fertilizers and weed controllers I’d have to try to even see if I can easily buy. My lawn is rather big in the back so attempting to treat it is impractical for a DIYer. Believe me, if it were smaller I’d try to.
 
Bill D said:
I've been mowing lawns since I was 11;first my parents' then my own. It's just something that's second nature to me. I wish I could treat it too. In recent years I haven't been satisfied with the lawn treatment service. The really good technicians move on quickly
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What kind of grass do you have?
 
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