Do your own work, or pay someone to do it?

[KarlVP]

Do your work on your own Junk, or do you have someone else do it?

Myself, I use my buddies shops and do whatever I can by myself. IMHO, if you buy your own tools, you get them for "free" because you don't have to pay a mechanic to work on your vehicle.

The only thing I won't do is welding. I can stick two pieces of metal together but I don't consider it welding. I can tack weld things in place, but I won't finsih weld them because I don't know enough about what I am doing.

So, what do you do. Pay or do your own work?

[Blkxjkrawler]

Do all my own, usually at 11 pm the night before I am supposed to go wheeling. this is evident when you look at my jeep. I am considering finding some one else to do all my work because the pay sucks.

[8Mud]

I've had the shop round off the drain plug for my tranny and try to charge me for the oil change, though they never managed to get the plug out. Had them strip the threads in the engine oil pan plug. Paid to have them grease it and found numerous zirks they never touched (front driveshaft and others). Taken it in for a recall and had them try to charge me $800 for a full servce and inspection (they never did fix the seatbelt the the recall was for, I did that myself). Had a guy at the dealership refuse to give me my keys, because he said I had a dangerous tie rod end (BS). Had the dealer change my oil to what was supposed to be synthetic, but which turned out to be a very dark green oil. And on and on.
I finally started doing my own stuff (exclusively) in self defense. If I could ever find a mechanic that was good and I could trust, I'd probably take it there for the normal services, at my age wrenching just isn't much fun anymore. Though I do enjoy a good mind puzzle every once in a while (XJ's are good for that).
I bought my last XJ at the dealership, for the previous owners garage bill. He told them to take this XJ and shove it. I finally found the major problem, the dealer installed security system :).

[Ramsey]

You either have to do your own work, or go ahead and bend over.

[Crusher16]

Anything I can do, I'll do. Add my school's shop to that equation, I do everything myself (And occasionally, with my some of my friend's help if I'm in a hurry).

[ILLXJ]

I try to do all my own work. But some things I don't have the know how or the tools yet. JIM.

[BrettM]

about 2 months after getting my first XJ when I was 17 I had a unit-bearing go out on me. I took it to a shop and realized very quickly that I couldn't afford to not be able to fix stuff myself. At that point I barely knew how to change the oil.

since then the only time I've had it at a shop was for an electrical short that I didn't have the time or patience to track down.

[sw_mi_xj]

no-one touches my xj .
but then again , i have been a tech / mechanic for the last 25 years .
when someone asks " who built it ?"
i can honestly say i have done every modification .

besides it would take too long to describe everything that has been changed , and why .

[RichP]

Depends on time of year, once it gets below about 40 I'm done working outside in the driveway on my back in the gravel. Thats why this weekend is going to be a flurry of activity on all the jeeps, oils, grease, tire rotaton, pad and shoe inspection/replacment, etc. That should get me thru to march/april and if something does come up I have a friend/customer 6 bay repair shop with lifts to use. I just don't want to abuse it.
Otherwise nobody but ME, my SON and HIM touch my Jeeps. Even his employees don't touch them except for doing inspections and they all know there's a big 1/2 torqe wrench already setup on the passenger seat for retorqing the lug nuts if the wheels come off..

[IntrepidXJ]

i do all my own work.

when i first started out i paid for some work and it wasn't a good experience....and i decided not to rely on anyone else

[Geepfreak]

The only time mine XJ, has been in to the shop was when the steering column collapsed, and the entire unit had to be replaced..Other than that, it's all me..

[GAJeep]

My 16 year old son and I bought the XJ two months ago as a father/son project (and because he got his license). Since buying it we have replaced the alternator, swapped in new battery cables, installed Currie steering, installed a new headliner, herculined the floor, and replaced all of the seat belts. Over Thanksgiving we will be installing a budget boost and trimming the fenders to fit bigger tires. To date, we have had a blast, managed to learn quite a bit about working on cars (no experience on my part before hand), and amass the beginnings of a pretty good tool collection - all for less than $2000, which includes the original cost of the XJ.

[DaJudge]

Mostly do my own work. If I ran into something I couldn't do I would have it done but that is rare. (I can't weld, most other things are no problem)

Fortunately for me my dad taught his sons how to work on cars. We would do it together on Saturdays. His idea of bonding. :clap: Worked for me!

[87manche]

i do all my own work.

when i first started out i paid for some work and it wasn't a good experience....and i decided not to rely on anyone else

x2
my $300 alignment has cost me a lot more in the long run in tires, wheel bearings and u-joints.

[DaffyXJ]

Do my own work...
Been a shade tree mechanic for years. Sold off the 67 cougars (3 of them) mid 90's. Took a few years off everything. Got the TJ in 2000, and the Xj in 03. Been increasing my skill set since. Started with the lift, then the tools for gear changes, added a MIG welder last year, and associated tools like the chop saw/drill press/20 ton press. Just sprang for the plasma cutter last month. So now i not only do my own work but can fab my own parts rather quickly. Just finished the additional cross member and the project on the table right now is a traction bar for the new 9 inch. Get the tools, head to the garage, it's actually Therapeutic.

[UNCC_99XJ]

I do all my own work. Dad has been in the mechanic biz for almost 40 years now, so I think he knows a thing or two. I've learned alot since getting my XJ (first vehicle) and learn something new almost every day.

now the hard part is getting dad to accept the fact i'm into Jeeps and 4x4's and NOT Honda's like him.

My favorite is when he cusses and swears at my jeep cause it needs somethin replaced. He can't get what ever it is off using all that he's got (strong guy), and I walk right up and it comes right off for me. The look on his face is priceless!

[Matthew Currie]

I do my own but usually draw the line at automatic trannies, wheel alignments beyond toe-in, and windshields. I've done a couple of windshields, but it's not very rewarding. I don't have the equipment for alignment, and automatic trannies are just too finicky. I've done a couple of manual trannies, but nothing recently. I do occasionally mount my own tires too, and static balance them. Oddly enough, I find that careful static balancing often ends up better than the careless job most tire places do with their fancy machinery. At least I clean the mud off first.

[Beej]

My 16 year old son and I bought the XJ two months ago as a father/son project (and because he got his license). Since buying it we have replaced the alternator, swapped in new battery cables, installed Currie steering, installed a new headliner, herculined the floor, and replaced all of the seat belts. Over Thanksgiving we will be installing a budget boost and trimming the fenders to fit bigger tires. To date, we have had a blast, managed to learn quite a bit about working on cars (no experience on my part before hand), and amass the beginnings of a pretty good tool collection - all for less than $2000, which includes the original cost of the XJ. Make sure you remind your son how lucky he is to have a father like you...

:thumbup:

[hadfield4wd]

All my vehicles all me.

Only thing I paid to do was the timing belt in the Audi A4. Just didn't have the time off work.

[JohnX]

I do my own because..

a. I am capable
b. I have all the tools needed for any job
3. Paying someone costs money
iv. I like to know how to fix it later when I break it.
e. I always liked the "built, not bought" motto


That being said...If money were not an issue, Then I would pay to have my Jeep built, and my wheeling buddy would be my paid mechanic in a chase vehicle.

[5-90]

Me. The only work I'll farm out is alignments (because I don't have a rack,) tyre changes (because I don't have a tyre changer or a spin dryer - I take in four loose wheels, tho,) and smog checks (because the State of California sez I have to go to people who don't seem to know anything about how an engine works in order to certify it - riddle me that...)

Nothing against the couple of resident smog techs we have here - but in the Ghey Area, seems like most of them never finished middle school...

5-90

[DaJudge]

My 16 year old son and I bought the XJ two months ago as a father/son project (and because he got his license). Since buying it we have replaced the alternator, swapped in new battery cables, installed Currie steering, installed a new headliner, herculined the floor, and replaced all of the seat belts. Over Thanksgiving we will be installing a budget boost and trimming the fenders to fit bigger tires. To date, we have had a blast, managed to learn quite a bit about working on cars (no experience on my part before hand), and amass the beginnings of a pretty good tool collection - all for less than $2000, which includes the original cost of the XJ.

Make sure you remind your son how lucky he is to have a father like you...

:thumbup:

If you want we can remind him!

[SeanP]

Until now I have pretty much done all the work on my rig myself, except I had a lot of help from URF on the cage.

well, I have made the mental shift from doing it all myself to now wanting to pay to get my junk done. It comes down to a time/$ equation, and for all the time i spend takeing 3X as long as someone who does it for a living, it just doesn't seem worth it. It do have MAJOR trust issues and I have yet to pay anybody to work on my rig, but once I find someone I can trust, I will probably have them finish up the junk.

[planefixer]

I do my own work-usually have a friend or 2 to help out.I do pay someone else if it involves tearing into a transmission or setting up gears.

[85xjwoody]

Everything on all my vehicles I have done myself except swapping engines on a front wheel drive car. That is hell! Never again.

Kim.

[Rev Den]

Farm out almost everything I can, even oil changes.

I am to old, fat, and outta shape to crawl under mine if I do not have to. When I was poor I did all my own work, now my time is more valuable and there is no joy in doing it myself.

Rev

[w_howey]

Done both.

Sometimes its just eaiser to have the guys with tens of thousands dollars in shop equipment rather than trying with my hundreds of dollars worth of hand tools.

[Menzenski]

I'm learning how to do my own work. I didn't know anything about fixing cars when I bought my XJ last November. It failed inspection because of a blown front unit bearing. The shop that my parents take their cars to quoted me $400 to replace it. I bought a new hub for $130, invited a mechanic buddy over and did it myself. Since then, I've changed all the fluids, replaced the axles and steering, installed new brakes, and replaced some parts on the cooling system. My next project is installing a new transfer case and a Novak shifter kit. I'm not ready to rebuild a transmission yet, but I'm finding out that it's not all that hard to do my own repair work, just time-consuming.

[pds84]

I generally do all the work myself, unless it is something really major. Being limited in my tool set and without a FSM, I have a reliable shop I take it to in the area. The only way this mechanic gained my trust was the fact that he has 3 Cherokees himself, and one of them is a '68 that he's completely rebuilt twice. Thus, when the hinge on my A-frame broke apart at his shop, he knew exactly what to do, and took care of some minor issues around the Jeep as well while it was there.

Without him and his advice, I'd be lost - I'm the only Jeep owner in the family, and have only been workin on cars (much older ones) in recent years since I have some garage space. But I don't abuse him - he still costs plenty of $, trustworthy or no.

[Cox89XJ]

A few things I don’t think I would try are the ring gear setup, transmission and transfer case gears.

[moto_ridah]

I work on all my vehicles mainly because I’m a poor college student, but also because I enjoy turning my own wrenches. And besides all that money that I would have spent on labor can go towards the jeep or new tools.

[kf_chris]

I do all my own work on all my vehicles. fortunately I'm decent enough at figuring out things.
THOUGH, I haven't done gears yet, which intimidates me, so I'll take the XJ to a friend who can and learn how to do it, then I should be ok on everything.

[xyjbeaker]

when i was 15 i BOUGHT my first car. an 88 jetta, it needs a caliper and i sent it to a shop. it ended up costing almost as much as i paid for the car! once i got the bill i vowed i would learn how to do what i need to get done, and i have everthing from oil changes to complete vehicle overhauls, it was mentioned before but there is a lot of pride for me in saying i built that.

[red91]

You either have to do your own work, or go ahead and bend over.

After the last picutre I saw of you it must be pretty embarassing to have your hands gorilla glued to your ankles ;)

[Ramsey]

I work on my own junk ;)



Every night :D

[mavinwy]

I do most everything unless it takes really specialized tools that I don't care to spend the $$$$ on. I worked for years as a mechanic, so none of it is really an issue, just a preference.

Alignments for instance, I can and know how to do them, but I also know a good shop.
Tires are another, I can mount my own, but the cost of a changer and balancer... I can have a lot done at a tire shop.
There are a few others, like windshields (rather have them break it on their dime during an install)

So I guess it is a matter of "I do most" of my own wrenching.

Jim

[IXNAYXJ]

I do all my own work...with the exception of gear set-up, motor work, transmission work, brakes, suspension work, steering work, fabrication, body work, HVAC maintenance, bolting on off-road parts, transfer case stuff and oil changes. I did fill my washer fluid once, and I've changed a couple tires.

-----Matt-----

[Slacker87XJ]

I do all my own work...with the exception of gear set-up, motor work, transmission work, brakes, suspension work, steering work, fabrication, body work, HVAC maintenance, bolting on off-road parts, transfer case stuff and oil changes. I did fill my washer fluid once, and I've changed a couple tires.

-----Matt-----

Matt you don't give yourself enough credit - I know I saw you disconnect your battery once, too! Of course the metric crescent wrench you had to borrow from me :D

[IXNAYXJ]

Matt you don't give yourself enough credit - I know I saw you disconnect your battery twice, too! Of course the metric crescent wrench you had to borrow from me :DTwice, thank you very much. And here's the proof:

http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l234/Jay2000XJ/Evans%20Creek%20Oct%202006/P1010828.jpg

-----Matt-----

[HTeK]

Everything on my own with a few exceptions:

Auto Trannies (i mean honestly)
Gears (I have a very good friend that does this for a living, so why not)

[JoesXJ]

So far everything has been done with at least one of my hands, my father in law has helped me out a lot with the bigger stuff (lift done at the high school he teaches auto shop at - which is a HUGE BONUS)

I never change the oil though, there is a place here that will do it for $20 and then wash it inside and out....they hate me. :D

[bjoehandley]

Sofar, with the exeption of body damage, window replacement, trans rebuild, recall stuff, tire mounting and balancing or A/C refilling it's either myself and/or Dad. I found that it isn't always best to use Carmax's repair service if you have their warranty, I've had issues with them on a couple of occasions, once when they replaced a couple of steering pumps because the steering box would lock up tight (one of the pumps started going bad on the drive home but the steering would still bind up) and trans cooler lines started leaking so I took it in and they fixed it. Once the OE shocks went out and Dad and went to replace them we discovered that the lines weren't run properly and the UCA mount was crushing them when ever the front bottomed out.

[Chero-King]

I work on my own junk ;)



Every night :D


I'm really surprised that it took 35 posts for that.
:D

[Ramsey]

Is it still paying if you buy the beer to get them drunk then take it?

[yardape]

I do what I can,... except in winter. I changed out a starter once lying on my back in subzero weather without gloves. At that point I decided "never again." And like previously posted, even though oil changes can be pretty quickly, I can get it done so cheaply these days its not worth the time it takes to clean up and get the oil dumped.

[Fryphax]

Do everything myself, or with the help of friends who work for beer. Never paid more than a couple Thirty packs and Pizza for help on my rig.

[JeepDawg]

I tried doing everything myself, but I am limited in terms of time, space, tools, and knowledge. Now, I figure out what's wrong.....take it to a mechanic....and tell him what to do. I even buy my own parts/fluids. Basically, I am the brains and he's the braun. Also, he has the tools to deal with those ever-present unexpected problems. Life it just too busy...

[yardape]

I tried doing everything myself, but I am limited in terms of time, space, tools, and knowledge. Now, I figure out what's wrong.....take it to a mechanic....and tell him what to do. I even buy my own parts/fluids. Basically, I am the brains and he's the braun. Also, he has the tools to deal with those ever-present unexpected problems. Life it just too busy...

Wow! Your mechanic must be pretty hard up.:spin1:

[tweakado]

Do My Own
you name it i do it. I figure if you can read and comprehend then you can do anything get the factory manual and jump in engines, trans whatever its just a bunch of bolts and it only goes together one way.

[chelms27]

Do My Own
you name it i do it. I figure if you can read and comprehend then you can do anything get the factory manual and jump in engines, trans whatever its just a bunch of bolts and it only goes together one way.

Not always!!

[Dzl DV8]

Two kind of vehicles I don't like working on: Mine and everybody elses!

If I could find someone to do as good as I do for a reasonable price, I would pay it.

Does doing my own work save money? HELL NO!! I upgrade everything.
If I need a tool today, I assume I'll need it again someday, so I buy it. I have re-thought that one, and use a little more discretion.

Since losing my leg (m/c sccident), it takes me longer, and sometimes I need a little help, but the end job is still better that the stealership or most mechanics.

BOMBing is addictive!!

[tweakado]

This is true chelm. But one thing is for sure if you did it wrong or you did not follow the directions right or threw them over your shoulder and said who needs them. Then you get to look for them again and do it the right way this time. Either way you gain the experiance of learning how to put something together the right way and the joy of watching it work and the pride of saying to your friends ( yeah thats right i did the work ) Or you can pay a lot and if it does not work or they screw it up you get to take it back again and again and miss out on valuabe experiance. But in the end it is whatever works for you.

[Dzl DV8]

another thought.
If you do it yourself in the garage, you'll be that much more capable to fix it on the trail, laying in the mud.
Self-rescue is always best...

[Fish'nCarz]

I do most of my own, but the XJ is my only transport and sometimes I end up paying someone else for things that will take a long time, or may need something else once it's torn down. Rear main seal comes to mind. I'm lucky to have a pretty reliable mechanic who will admit if he doesn't know how to do something on my Jeep. We've worked stuff out together and if I want to use a part he can't easily source he doesn't mind letting me find it. He still charges to damn much!

[IslanderOffRoad]

I do a majority of my own work.. on occasion I'll look at something, and get scared, and call to see how much a mechanic would charge me. I've got a decent idea of what my time is worth.