In his defense, we do have a "professional mechanic" on here saying that no home mechanic should be compressing strut springs..........
Grow up, dickface.
2005 Mazda3i AT, 150k miles
went for an oil change at the dealership.
the dealership always perform a free 'full circle' inspection.
they said my front strut was leaking. recommended replacing both.
4hrs labor ($100/hr) and $540 for both struts = $1000
they showed me where it was leaking but i couldnt tell so i i didnt get it fixed.
How can i tell if a front strut is going bad?
and what would happen if i didnt replace a leaky strut?
And thank-you HarryLui, I was looking for a vid just like that to prove my point. Now they should have showed where the strut body went because it went to other direction and what did it hit? Also read the comments.
Thank-you SparkyJJo. That is the point I have been trying to make. These thing if you don't know what you are doing or lack the ability to do it can hurt you. And there is nothing wrong with not having mechanical ability.
4 hours labor? Doesn't anyone find the hours too many for replacing 2 struts?
Have you guys ever seen what happens if you take the nut off a strut without keeping the spring compressed? It can leave a hole in the wall. Or you.
Look... Most of the people in here are fairly sufficient home mechanics. No one is saying durr da durr take the nut off the top while ignoring the creaking/groaning, while pointing it at your face, etc.
Yes, you CAN hurt yourself by compressing a spring.. You can also just as easily hurt yourself by not jacking the car up properly, or a whole list of other things while working on a car.
I'm not trying to talk down your advice, as you are giving some good tips, my particular issue is with you specifically telling the op to "by no means" do this himself...
That comment is what I object to, as there is nothing wrong with a home mechanic using a spring compressor as long as they're careful and patient with it.
If they are leaking then yes they need to be replace. Call around and get other estimates on the job. And by no means attempt to do this yourself. The springs are under tremendous pressure, removing the center nut without the spring clamp down and compressed can kill you and anyone around you. Do not play with them. And yes I am a certified mechanic and a $1000 bill on replacing the front struts is extremely high to me. The bill should be about half that.
Going by their book I could see it being 1.5-2hrs per side.
Look... Most of the people in here are fairly sufficient home mechanics.
I'm not trying to talk down your advice, as you are giving some good tips, my particular issue is with you specifically telling the op to "by no means" do this himself...
That comment is what I object to, as there is nothing wrong with a home mechanic using a spring compressor as long as they're careful and patient with it.
Let that spring slip or not be clamped down correctly and see what happens. That thing is under thousands of pounds of force. It can shoot the strut body through a wall or you. So yes you can die. As to why there are safety devices on strut spring compressors and most of the good compressors mount to a wall or the floor.
2 hours each? When I had changed the struts and the shocks of my previous car (Ford Escort - 2 struts in front and two shocks in the back) I remember that it didn't take more than an hour for all of them!
this is also why i'm hesident to do anything the dealership recommends... inflated hours
Most mechanics do not receive an hourly wage. Instead, they are paid by a system called flat rate. Every job that can be done from changing oil to rebuilding a transmission is uniformly given a particular amount of time in which the average mechanic can finish the job. For example, an oil change might pay two-tenths of an hour (12 minutes). The mechanic is paid for 12 minutes of work no matter if it takes him/her five minutes or five hours. As mechanics become more experienced and have more tenure at their place of employment, they are often faster than the "average" time, so they have the opportunity to work 40-hour weeks but actually clock more than 40-hours of flat-rate time. It is only in this situation that a mechanic can make more than a decent salary.
The problem with the flat rate system is that it forces mechanics to fight each other over the jobs that can be done the fastest compared to their book times. For some mechanics, this increases the drive to find something else to fix on a car, or to line up several cars for themselves to work on, thereby increasing the waiting time per vehicle. This is why there are so many mechanic horror stories. Additionally, if a shop has a slow week, a mechanic may not bring enough money home to pay his/her bills. This makes planning for a family or a vacation or saving money very difficult.
My typical Fri:
9am: Arrive at work
9-10: check/reply to emails
10: Goto starbucks for coffee. sit outside if nice weather enjoying said coffee
11-2: lunch (1hr eating, 2hrs watching the newly released movie of the week <ie: DarKnightRISES>)
2-3:30 Do some actual work
3:30 surfing web
4: goto bank/deposit huge paycheck. (needed something to do at 4pm)
5: go home
Maybe you should read about how mechanic gets pay before typing anymore.
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_much_money_does_a_qualified_auto_mechanic_earn
Mechanics don't get pay hourly, they get pay by the job. Sometime they can get 6 hours a day, sometime maybe just 1. Why should a mechanic be paid less if he can do the job in a shorter time due to gained experience and knowledge?
I'm sure your employer is not happy with your "inflated" Friday hours either.
So 1 person post a video on the net and you believe all struts are just like that? Hmm Yes there are some that have less tension then others and also there are some on cars with lots of miles and age that the springs have just gotten weak and have lost alot of there tension. In the same aspect most still have plenty of tension and if you tried that they could easily take off a foot, hand or worse. Just because Joey no name can stick a butter knife in a electrical receptical and not get shocked doesn't mean everyone can. Like a electrician can go to the service box outside you house and work on it live, does that mean any homeowner can? I mean people use your heads and do things the right way and eliminate the risk. I remember seeing a pic awhile back where a guy was holding his truck up with a board while working under it. It was that easy wasn't it. Who needs jack stands you can use a 2x4 and prop the car up. Just because he did it doesn't mean everyone can do it that way, It just means he was extremely lucky that the board did not break and crush him under the truck. It only takes one small thing to ruin your day when doing something like this.http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=XEQq0_xeg6g
Yep, all here too......oh, wait. It's soooo easy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=XEQq0_xeg6g
Yep, all here too......oh, wait. It's soooo easy.