Shop Shots Volume 11 Insider Pictures of Automotive Service
No, you are not losing your mind, it is Wednesday. I am thinking about moving Shot Shots up to Wednesday. What do you guys think, Yay, Nay, Don’t care as long as I post it? Today I have some more insider pictures for you.
HAHA, I am totally laughing about this picture! I actually took this today. It is a picture of a rear brake caliper on a 2001 Jetta. From what I can tell, the parking brake cable is missing a clip. Of course the best possible repair is wire and zip ties. There are 2 zip ties where the clip should be. The ball should not have that wire wrapped around it. I understand that people can’t always afford to fix their car properly, but PLEASE do no use zip ties on your brakes!
Would you believe that this is the SAME car? I have not seen a Jetta in this bad of shape in a long time. This is the mount that limits movement of the engine. It is commonly known as the “dog bone” mount. I guess that they lost the bolts? The thing about this repair is, it is not safe! Remember when we talked about safety being more than seat belts? Well this is a perfect example of something not safe. The bolts that belong in that mount are meant to shear. When the wrong bolt is used, it changes the needed force to shear the bolt. It may never be an issue, but it is something to think about. Side note, I am pretty sure this car could be several posts all on its own.
Ah the pink trail of death! The cool thing about VW coolant is that it is pink or purple. When it leaks, then dries, it leaves a trail of dried coolant behind. This can make finding leaks easier.If you are ever looking at a used VW, be sure to check the coolant pipes for this trail. This leak is actually hidden. The only reason I seen it was, the catalytic converter had been removed. The guy working on it, was replacing cats on a V6 4motion Passat. It is really one of the worst jobs we have!
What you are looking at here is the bottom of an oil pan removed from a EOS 2.0. If you look close, you can see the reflection of me taking this picture! The reason I took this was the carbon sitting in the bottom of the pan. If you notice the chunks in the middle of the pic, that is what I am talking about. This forms due to lack of oil changes. The customer might have been following proper maintenance, I don’t really know. Just another reason why I think a 10k interval service is WAY too long. This was an issue on the B5/B5.5 Passats like mine. PSA-Change your oil, with the proper oil!
Well folks, that wraps up this weeks Shop Shots! If you would like me to keep doing this on Wednesday, let me know in the comments. If you don’t care what day, as long as you get them, post that too! Don’t forget, you can @ reply me on Twitter, if you use twitter! Also, don’t forget I am getting questions together for another Rapid Fire Q&A. If you would like to submit a question, the easiest way is to use this Contact Me form, or post in the comments!
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As long as we still get Shop Shots the day doesn’t matter to me. What were they trying to do with those washers? I don’t understand how that would modify a bolt they had to work like one they didn’t.
Thank Brett!
What must have happened was, the bolts got lost/damaged, they only had those bolts. By adding the washers, they could use a longer bolt. Basically they turned 3 inches of bolt into 2 inches of bolt. Now they have extra bolt hanging down. I hate to think what would happen if they nicked the top of that bolt. My guess would be a busted transmission case! Great question!
I agree with Brett, doesnt matter when, just like seeing them!!!
yup. whenever. they’re a good break any afternoon…
haha! classic back-yard DIY repairs…we had a car come in once for a pre-purchase inspection. It was missing a headlight, so the owner duct taped a mason jar where the headlight assembly should’ve been. I think they paid more than the car was worth for the inspection!
HAHAHAAAHAAHA!!!!! Jon, that is so damn funny. Any chance you got a picture of that.
At my shop, that would be the talk of the shop for the next year. It would be, “Well, at least it doesn’t have a mason jar” or, “Hey go get the mason jar”. BWAHAHAHHA!!!
I’ve still got the picture! I gotta figure out a way to get it off my phone and on to here…
Very informative.
Wednesday is good, makes it a better hump day