Have you ever wondered what jobs your mechanic hates doing? Well, I don’t know if it really qualifies as ‘hate” but there are just some jobs that are just no fun. Taking out the engine of a V10 Touareg for example.

As you can see this is no small task. The tech that is doing this works across the shop from me. He is replacing both of the turbo charger. Basically the engine, transmission, and front suspension comes out from the bottom. That actually makes replacing the turbos really easy. 😉 This job totally falls under the worst category. Here are some other jobs that generally make for an unhappy mechanic

• Body wiring harnesses. These require every single bit of the interior to be removed. It is a huge job, and there is usually a rattle when you are done.
• Replacing engines. They are not hard, it just does not pay very well for the amount of work.
• Replacing Transmissions. Basically the same as engines.
• Sunroof assemblies.
• Certain oil changes. V8 Phaetons, 1.8t Passats, Newer V6 Touaregs.

Okay enough about the “no fun” stuff. There are some jobs that just plain rock. They are easy to do, and pay well. One of my personal favorites is a timing belt on a 1.8t Passat. The job is super easy, pays really well, requires little lifting. LOVE LOVE LOVE doing those. Well, except when it was my car and I had to buy the parts 😉

Some other really fun jobs are

• Brakes on just about any VW
• Wiring repairs(yes I like to do wiring repairs)
• CV boots(well minus the grease)
• Suspension bushings
• Cooling fans

We mechanics call that type of work “gravy work”.

This post does leave me with a question. Do other jobs have “gravy work”? I would be curios to hear about some of your jobs, and what a gravy would be. Throw a comment at the bottom of the page, and let us all know.