AD #1490 – Fiat Spins Off Ferrari, New Toyota Van Puts the Ugh In Ugly, Takata Airbag Fix
October 30th, 2014 at 11:53am
Runtime: 8:07
- Fiat Spins Off Ferrari
- FCA Earnings
- Fiat Reveals Wild Four-Door Coupe
- New Toyota Van Puts the Ugh In Ugly
- BMW Introduces M Versions of X5 & X6
- Takata Airbag Fix
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Fiat shows off a cool crossover, Toyota unveils the ugliest van you ever done seen, and how you should disable those dangerous Takata airbags. All that and more coming right up on Autoline Daily.
This is Autoline Daily for October 30th, 2014.
CASH! WE NEED CASH!
Weeks ago we told you that Sergio Marchionne was probably going to spin off Ferrari in a stock offering, and yesterday he made it official. In fact, this all goes back to Sergio getting rid of Luca di Montezemolo, the long-time CEO of Ferrari. That cleared the decks for the Ferrari IPO. Analysts believe Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles will raise over a billion dollars with this move. FCA is also going to sell mandatory convertible bonds to raise another $2.5 billion. Mandatory convertible bonds mean you must convert those bonds into stock at some point. And news of all that money coming in pushed FCA its stock up 19% in yesterday’s trading, making those bonds look all the more attractive. Sergio needs this money badly. His five year plan calls for FCA to spend nearly $12 billion a year. What’s next? We think lemonade stands, bake sales and a paper drive could all be under consideration.
FCA EARNINGS
But most of that cash will come from operations and Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles third quarter earnings came in looking pretty good. Sales rose over 9% to more than a million vehicles. And make no mistake, the Jeep brand is the horsepower behind that. Revenue shot up 12% to more than 23 billion euros. Earnings before income and taxes were up a strong 7% but the net profit dropped slightly to only 188 million euros.
FIAT REVEALS WILD FOUR-DOOR COUPE
And speaking of Fiat, the company just took the wraps off a bizarre looking concept at the Sao Paulo Auto Show called the FCC4. It was developed by the company’s Latin America design team and is meant to show off a possible new design language for the brand. There really aren’t any other details about the car but from the looks of it, it’s probably safe to say we won’t see anything quite like this in production anytime soon.
IT PUTS THE UGH IN UGLY
And in other ugly design news, Toyota just launched a new premium minivan in Japan called the Esquire. As you can see from the pictures it has a front end only a mother could love. Two engines are offered, a 1.8L hybrid and a 2.0L gasoline variant, both of which are mated to a CVT. There are seven and eight seat versions and it’s offered in front and four-wheel drive. The Esquire carries a starting price around $24,000 and Toyota is aiming to sell 4,000 a month in Japan.
POWER WITH A PRICE
If you’re in the market for a luxury sport SUV and price is really no object, BMW just pulled the wraps off the M versions of its X5 and X6. And as with every M model things are stepped up a notch. Both vehicles are equipped with a twin-turbocharged 4.4L V8 engine, which saw its power and torque increase and is mated to a new 8-speed torque converter automatic. Zero to sixty hits in just 4-seconds. The exterior and interior keep their same overall theme, but as you would expect they get unique M touches, like larger front air intakes and soft fine-grain leather options. Both vehicles also get a retuned and modified suspension setup, along with performance brakes. But they don’t come cheap. A base all-wheel-drive X5 starts at $55,500, but the M tops the scales at just under $100,000. And the X6 M is over $40,000 more than its base counterpart. It costs a little over $103,000.
Coming up next, we have a solution for owners of vehicles with Takata airbags who can’t get a replacement.
TAKATA AIRBAG FIX
Now let’s take you back inside the Autoline Garage where we have a NHTSA approved way of disabling Takata airbags.
By now I’m sure we’re all well aware of Takata’s air bag recall, which affects almost 8 million U.S. vehicles and more than 16 million globally. In the next 4 months Takata hopes to have 1.5 million replacement air bags ready for those vehicles, but that clearly isn’t enough. So, what’s someone to do if they have an affected vehicle, can’t get a replacement bag right away and are worried what could happen if they get in a crash?
Well there’s a few options. First would be to not drive the vehicle at all, but how many people can afford that luxury? Not many I’m sure. If it were me that had one of these vehicles and I was really concerned, I would probably just disconnect the air bags altogether until I could get the replacements. But I have the necessary resources, skill and knowledge on how to do it and would NEVER recommend that the average person attempt to disconnect an air bag. There’s just way too big a risk of something going wrong and someone getting hurt. But what about a dealership or repair shop doing it? I think you may end up being hard pressed to find one that’s even willing because the safety and legal ramifications are just too high. And it’s possible that a shop could still be held legally accountable if something happened and even after you signed a waiver. Not to mention that you’re going to have to pay out of your pocket to get the work done, which, depending on the vehicle, could be hundreds of dollars.
But there is one other option, which is legal I might add. An air bag on-off switch can be installed. Unfortunately, you will have to jump through a few hoops to get it done. First off you will have to read a brochure from NHTSA called “Air Bags & On-Off Switches: Information for an Informed Decision.” Then you’ll have to fill out and submit a request form to NHTSA. Once you get an authorization letter from NHTSA you can take it to an authorized dealer or repair shop to have the switch installed. Again, you’ll have to pay out of pocket for the switch, but if you were willing pay to have the air bags disconnected, why not go this route? And I’d try getting Takata to foot the bill or at least reimburse you.
For Autoline Garage, I’m Sean McElroy.
If you think an airbag on-off switch is right for you here’s a link where you can get all the information.
And then don’t forget to tune in to Autoline After Hours tonight. One of the topics we’ll get into is my lunch with racing legend Dan Gurney yesterday. I got some great stories out of that. Also joining us is David Johnson, the CEO of Achates Power, talking about their revolutionary engine design. So join me and Gary Vasilash for some of the best stories of what’s happening in the automotive industry.
That wraps up today’s show, thanks for watching.
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Comments (70)
October 30th, 2014 at 12:09 pm
So will BMW’s new M version of the X-5 be the MX-5??
October 30th, 2014 at 12:12 pm
That 3/4 rear view of the FIAT concept reminds me of a sectioned Chrysler Sebring convertible on a 4×4 chassis.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:12 pm
The Toyota Van is the grandson of a 1950 Buick in my eyes.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:13 pm
55, Sorry to go back to “old news,” but a couple days ago donfromnaples wrote “I repeat, the Vibe was not recommended while the Matrix was recommended until model years later when CR finally lumped the two cars together.
CR lumped Vibe with Matrix at least as far back as 2004, the second model year for those cars. I have the the “buyers guide” in front of me, and under the Vibe listing it says “The Vibe, cousin to the Toyota Matrix is a roomy small wagon……” They recommended the Vibe, as they did the Matrix.
I do remember “owner satisfaction” as being low for the AWD version of the Vibe in one of their reports.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:15 pm
Or Futurama’s Dr. Zoidberg.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:16 pm
The independent Ferrari will need to stay in the good graces of Bernie and his successors. Isn’t F1 where their money comes from? They can’t be making a lot of money selling their handful of road cars, even very expensive ones, can they?
October 30th, 2014 at 12:24 pm
On Fiat’s FCC4 (and the new design language): ‘no hablo’.
And on Toyota’s minivan: keep it in Japan.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:27 pm
Another solution for the Takata air bag problem is to simply wear your seat belts. The air bag was originally a “Supplemental Restraint system” meant to protect people who “forgot” to fasten their seatbelts. John: have you ever seen any data that shows the combination of the belt and the bag to be safer than the belt alone? I am aware of a case where an elderly driver, wearing a belt, was actually damaged more by the bag (broken arm, split the back of his head when slammed into the headrest) than by the collision.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:28 pm
The interior view of the new BMW X5/X6 got me thinking. So here is an AAH question for you. Why are designers making touch screens look like add-ons? These are expensive rides and it looks like you’ve got a 5 year old Garmin on the dash. I don’t get it.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:33 pm
Regarding Air Bag deactivation, why not pull the fuse or relay out to deactivate the system? There is no cost associated with this solution.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:35 pm
8, Maybe those of us who always wear seat belts should disable our air bags.
October 30th, 2014 at 12:36 pm
“His five year plan calls for FCA to spend nearly $12 billion a year. What’s next? We think lemonade stands, bake sales and a paper drive could all be under consideration.” And if he offers Kool-Aid, DON’T DRINK IT!!
October 30th, 2014 at 12:50 pm
Airbags have transitioned beyond “SRS”. If vehicle manufactures could meet occupant protection requirements without them, they could argue with DOT/NHTSA and probably get a waiver from them. They can’t. So, airbags are a reality going forward.
Anecdotal examples of injuries caused by airbags are no different than the anecdotal examples of injuries caused by seatbelts when they became mandated equipment.
October 30th, 2014 at 1:11 pm
Kit- a friend of mine wanted to buy a small truck so he called the Toyota dealer and asked about trading in his Vibe. The salesman said he probably wouldn’t take it as it was North American and wasn’t quite up to their standards …. He bought a Nissan.
October 30th, 2014 at 1:14 pm
12, I agree. I wasn’t being very serious in #10.
October 30th, 2014 at 1:27 pm
#4, Kit, I believe the Vibe was assembled at the NUMI plant in California and the Matrix in Canada. Perhaps poor workmanship at the NUMI made the Vibe inferior to the Matrix.
October 30th, 2014 at 1:31 pm
8. The problem is that some of these airbags send out shrapnel when you’re involved in a crash. Regardless of whether or not you’re wearing your seatbelt, if the crash is severe enough, the airbag will deploy unless it’s disabled.
October 30th, 2014 at 1:46 pm
Recall!?
I checked the Honda site for my ’02 Civic, and they say it’s on the list to have the passenger bag replaced. There are no instruction for whether to immediately panic. The site says they will send a letter when the part becomes available. My car also had its driver side bag replaced for shrapnel reasons.
—–
9 RumNcoke, I think it was here that we heard the standing screens are intended to allow a smaller dashboard, so the car feels roomier.
——
Ferrari
Always with the drama
October 30th, 2014 at 1:51 pm
Bags
I guess people can just ask passengers to sit in the back seat.
I also guess that new bags will be shipped to southern,humid states first, as that’s where the biggest risk is
I also guess that the acting NHTSA head will be returning to the advocacy community. At least that’s what you read.
October 30th, 2014 at 1:57 pm
trash talk
Can anyone explain why a couple of days after I read some auto news, TTAC does a little cut and paste piece from the same article? Why are they so dinkin slow?
I don’t get their business model here.
October 30th, 2014 at 2:05 pm
I know I probably shouldn’t (admit this), but I actually don’t find the grille on that Toyota Esquire as offensive as you do, John. Not saying I’d drive one, but…
I’ll tell you a front facia treatment I DON’T like. The new Navigator. Not calling it hideous or anything. But it just feels like some junior designer’s failed attempt at a refresh. Heck, that entire Navigator looks a bit clumsy to me.
October 30th, 2014 at 2:17 pm
Hey Tony,
I don’t know what you had for lunch, but stop eating it now.It seems that you are suffering from a bad case of “KRAFT” seeing that you can’t remember how Beautiful a ’55 Buick was.
Today the new Toyota Empire van will go immediately into “The Ugly Vehicle Hall of Fame” along side the “Juke” “The Cube” “The Soul” “The Element” and finally “The Aztek”.Try and eat something better later.
October 30th, 2014 at 2:23 pm
#10, 12, 14 – While I agree air bags have moved beyond SRS & I’m not totally up on the performance, I still have issues, & have for many years, with air bags being required to protect individuals who do not wear the seat belts installed in vehicles since the mid to late 60′s. Those of us that wear seat belts have spend a lot of extra money over the years due to the standards in place.
October 30th, 2014 at 2:48 pm
Regarding the whole Matrix/Vibe thing, I am familiar with the Corolla and the Corolla based Prizm, both made in NUMMI, up to 1997, the Corolla had better quality interior than the Chevy brother, however starting with the ’98 model year, they both sucked as far as interior quality was concerned, Toyota decided to save money by putting in inferior plastics and other materials to the point that most Corollas from that period have interiors that are falling apart.
October 30th, 2014 at 2:54 pm
Toyota was trying to out-ugly the Quest, well they did it! Maybe now people will stop picking on the Aztek.
October 30th, 2014 at 3:01 pm
Aztek is like Pinto. Forever
When I first saw the Aztek I seriously thought GM was trying to kill Pontiac. When the 92 Buick Skylark came out I thought they were trying to kill off the weaker dealers.
October 30th, 2014 at 3:07 pm
What I object to is the enormous front grills we’re having forced on us. This vulgar excess is an eyesore coming at you from a quarter mile away. Part of the reason for this is that Chinese buyers like a ‘big belt buckle,’ so to speak, and we have to live with it. Remember the Audi US boss telling John in Paris that they were spreading the grill wider? QED
I also think the colorful lighting features inside cars is aimed at pleasing the Chinese consumer, who likes night lighting in the cityscape.
Maybe someone can set me right
October 30th, 2014 at 3:08 pm
Also, the butt ugly rear end roofline of the Porsche Panamera is there to accommodate princely back seat passengers. Again, China
October 30th, 2014 at 3:17 pm
I think we are getting ahead of ourselves recommending disabeling the Takata airbags. It’s my understanding that only a very small number of airbag canisters have expoded. A systematic evaluation needs to be made of the risk of injury from a defective canisters exploding and the added risk of traffic accident injury if the airbag is disabled. Let’s make decisions based on science not emotion!
October 30th, 2014 at 3:29 pm
#27
Guess I am clearly in the extreme minority here, as I happen to love the over-stated grilles of Audi.
I’m not saying understated luxury has no place, as it clearly does. But I, for one, don’t want to see everyone stuck in that boring rut. Same reason I loved the design language of the Cadillac CTS Coupe from day one.
October 30th, 2014 at 3:31 pm
#8 Mike – If you have some time, click the link for the NHTSA brochure on airbag on-off switches. While some of the data is old it does have some stats on occupant safety with and without the airbag and/or seat belt. As well as some info on the recommended distance to sit from the airbag to not get injured by it.
October 30th, 2014 at 3:34 pm
#29.
Do these canisters explode absent of vehicular crashes? Or have they done so only in collisions?
October 30th, 2014 at 3:35 pm
#10 Goose – That was one of the options I thought may have been possible (pulling the fuse.) But after looking into it, most newer vehicles have some other feature running off the same fuse as well. Some may just control the airbags, but one that I looked at also ran the heater control unit. I’m not sure people would be willing to give up whatever the other feature may be.
October 30th, 2014 at 4:04 pm
15, I think all Vibes were from NUMMI, and most Matrices were from Cambridge, but I think some from NUMMI. Still, CR lumped them together for almost there entire production life, and recommended both.
I think the Matrix is still in production in Cambridge for sale in Canada, but not the US.
October 30th, 2014 at 4:36 pm
I never understood why the Matrix did so poorly compared to the Corolla, it was a lot more practical but not much more money, we just don’t like hatchbacks that much.
October 30th, 2014 at 4:41 pm
It is odd. Matrix is just as you say, Pedro, so practical. It’s also small enough for city parking; maybe it was too small? But dang, what a product.
October 30th, 2014 at 4:51 pm
A friend in Indiana had a Vibe, which he recently traded on a Prius. The Prius has a longer load floor and is quieter and, of course, uses less gas, but the Vibe served very well for 8-10 years.
October 30th, 2014 at 5:19 pm
With the new CR scale adopted with a much narrower range for reliability, a full- or half-black dot can be earned with any problem rate over three percent. A clear, “average” dot means the problem rate is under three percent and a half-red dot means the rate is under two percent. Finally, if the problem rate is below one percent, the system automatically gets a full-red dot.
October 30th, 2014 at 5:26 pm
19 questions are sent out with the annual auto survey of which only one question relates directly to reliability. Just in time for Halloween, it is question number 13.
“If you had any problems with your car in the last year that you considered SERIOUS because of cost, failure, safety or downtime, click the appropriate box(es) for each car. INCLUDE problems covered by warranty. DO NOT INCLUDE 1) problems resulting from accident damage; or 2) replacement of normal maintenance items (brake pads, batteries, mufflers) unless they were replaced much sooner or more often than expected.”
All other questions are subjective non-reliability type questions. Very interesting. If the Vibe was not recommended at anytime the Matrix was, then bias existed. This was the case in 2002-2004 I believe if memory serves me.
October 30th, 2014 at 5:39 pm
The Prius was recommended despite its over inflated mpg ratings of 60 mpg city and 51 mpg highway, while the average reported mpg by Prius owners was 44 mpg. Wow! Quite a difference. This continued for several years as did the outdated use of NiMh batteries for 13 years despite the availability of Li-ion batteries years earlier which weren’t introduced in the Prius until 2010. I personally like the Prius and would recommend it. I just think if the same discrepancy between EPA window sticker mpg ratings and real life mpg as well as the use of antiquated batteries were part of a Ford, VW, Dodge, or Chevy than Consumer Reports would have been all over that with strong criticism.
October 30th, 2014 at 5:46 pm
38-40 Bob Lutz was on AAH some time ago, and decried the same phenomenon you’re talking about Don. People like their car or brand and don’t want to say bad things about it in a CR survey. Maybe they don’t even get upset. Yesterday, I fessed up to not making a big deal about faults in my Civic. And I love my Civic
October 30th, 2014 at 5:47 pm
OK, I respect my Civic more than I love it
October 30th, 2014 at 5:49 pm
I think 99% of all new cars are decent well engineered vehicles. Personal preference and practical needs I feel are more likely to influence my choice of a new vehicle. Poor reliability is not real but I created phenomenon in my opinion.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:11 pm
40, Huh? The EPA ratings for the Prius are 51 city, 48 highway, and 50 combined. I get about 47 average for mixed driving including city, and interstate driving at 75+ mph. Yeah, it’s less than the EPA combined rating, but it’s better than any other car sold in the US with nearly as much room.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:12 pm
AAH, #technologyandstuff at the World Series
Holy moly, that was funny. I love that cheat sheet in the guy’s hand, and Erin Andrews and Bud Selig not breaking the fourth wall. That was great.
GM, on it! (who will Mary ask to leave now?)
October 30th, 2014 at 7:21 pm
44 Kit, I think Don’s point is that owners’ complaints/praise of their cars isn’t so objective.
You should have seen my sister using CR to select a car, though. Too many recalls? Rejected. She knows squat about cars. So a quick reference like CR really sways her. Nothing I might say matters, in my experience.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:22 pm
39, All of the questions in the CR survey, for many different trouble areas, are worded “Did you have a problem you considered serious, based on cost, inconvenience, or……
Each “trouble area” has the same question, worded the same way.
I agree, though, about what you say in #43. I’d consider any car now in the US market, if I liked the car generally. Well, maybe not a Fiat 500L.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:24 pm
8, There are many studies that show the effectiveness of air bags. NHTSA has a report here that air bags and seat belts when used together reduce fatalities by 51%.
http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/809-442.pdf
This study here says 67%:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21720604
NHTSA also says that frontal air bags have saved over 25,000 lives here:
http://www.safercar.gov/Air+Bags
Air bags help to reduce impact between passengers and hard objects in the vehicle (like a steering wheel), no matter if you are belted or not, but are most effective when you are belted. It sounds more risky to me to disconnect your air bags. Some people have been hurt by their air bags which is terrible, but air bags save people’s lives daily.
(Full disclosure: I work at Ford, but this is my own opinion and is not the opinion of Ford Motor Company. I am also not an expert in air bags or crash statistics, I just searched for this data for this post)
October 30th, 2014 at 7:27 pm
40, I’m GLAD my Prius has NiMH batteries, because they have a history of lasting 10 years or more. My experience with Lithium batteries in laptop computers is that they are doing well to last 4 years.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:29 pm
If all the questions are worded that way, that is a new format. I stopped participating a while back since I felt too many other variables were more salient that were overlooked or ignored in the ratings and on the survey.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:33 pm
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
44 Kit, I think Don’s point is that owners’ complaints/praise of their cars isn’t so objective.
You should have seen my sister using CR to select a car, though. Too many recalls? Rejected. She knows squat about cars. So a quick reference like CR really sways her. Nothing I might say matters, in my experience.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:35 pm
46 yeah, 500L, nope
October 30th, 2014 at 7:35 pm
44 Kit, sorry i should have specified. The 1st generation Prius had those over inflated EPA ratings that were never seen by real world driving.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:41 pm
48, The questions are worded that way for each individual “trouble area” and have been for years. Obviously, there is subjectivity in what people consider “serious,” but I figure they are one of the best sources of info on car reliability, along with JD Power and TrueDelta. On popular car models, CR may have the most data of any of them.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:47 pm
Of the survey’s 19 questions, one is the source of the dots, number 13.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:47 pm
Of the survey’s 19 questions, one is the source of the reliability dots, question number 13.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:50 pm
51, I’m talking about 3rd generation, 2010-present. Still, hybrids tend to under-perform their EPA ratings, and diesels over-perform theirs. Still, all indications are that the current Prius is more fuel efficient than any other car in the US market with comparable space.
October 30th, 2014 at 7:58 pm
53, After this, I’m done discussing it, but a bunch of different questions are responsible for individual dots. The question about rattles causes the dot for “body integrity.” The question about blown engines causes the dots about “engine major.” Yeah, they don’t actually use the term “blown engines.”
October 30th, 2014 at 8:15 pm
Hey Kit, I only continued the discussion because you picked it back up from yesterday. No worries. The new Prius is definitely more fuel efficient than any other car in the US. If the pure electrics were able to increase range and lower costs to comparable other cars, then they would give the Prius a run for the money.
October 30th, 2014 at 9:01 pm
Just had a conversation with a local Toyota dealer’s service manager and he told me flat out the new Toyota products are not nearly as good as the stuff from even 10 yrs ago, “Too many damn electronics” was his quote. That is why he hangs on to a 2002 4Runner and a 2004 Lexus.
October 30th, 2014 at 9:13 pm
58 ’02 Civic here, Pedro. It’s an anachronism. (I won’t bother Autoline fans with my personal atavistic disposition. But stand back kids, there’s reading involved.)
October 30th, 2014 at 9:38 pm
59, It sounds like his measure of “good” is lower complexity. This makes sense since more complex vehicles are more challenging to service. If his measure of good was fuel efficiency, handling, safety, performance, roominess, towing/hauling ability, interior material quality, emissions, connectivity, or really any other measure of a vehicle, then he would be wrong to say that a 10 year old car is better than a current one.
October 31st, 2014 at 7:15 am
With the Toyota van obviously designed by Darth Vader, can a hybrid Death Star be far behind?
October 31st, 2014 at 8:11 am
How about the new diminutive Toyoda which has flared side mirrors?
October 31st, 2014 at 8:14 am
#58 I’d be interested to know what precisely his definition of ‘not nearly as good’ is.
Like Dan (60) said, it could just be that they are more challenging to work on. Being a weekend grease monkey myself, I know first-hand how easily the frustration of getting a job done can negatively influence one’s disposition – causing a particular car to be branded as a pain in the butt even though it out-performs and is more reliable than a car 10 years younger and much easier to fix.
October 31st, 2014 at 8:40 am
For the most part, cars are getting more reliable, even as they get more complex. To me, the only thing worse about the new ones, is that they have this “infotainment” stuff that makes it unsafe to tune the radio while driving the car.
Yes, “back yard mechanic” work is now mostly limited to oil changes and brake work.
October 31st, 2014 at 11:39 am
My suggestion for those driving a car with a Takata airbag is to find the airbag module (usually below the center console of most cars) and unplug it. This disables both airbags without disabling any other system. If your car does have the airbag module on a committed fuse circuit, just pull the fuse. Unfortunately there are so many different vehicle affected there is no one solution. As I posted before there is one case of a 2001 Honda Accord in the Orlando area where the airbag deployed by itself killing the driver.
October 31st, 2014 at 11:45 am
There are still a number of things a shadetree mechanic can do IF he or she has the right tools. The fact is the mechanical pieces a shadetree mechanic used to change are GONE from newer cars! There are no points, distributor, ign. wires, of carburetor to tinker with. Spark plugs last 100,000 miles or more (except on Ford V-8′s).
October 31st, 2014 at 1:06 pm
I still do oil, brakes all components), suspension components (even did my own strut replacement a few years back, but never again. I’ll admit I took my hands into my own hands when fooling around with that spring compressor) alternator, starter, power steering pump, head gasket, valve stem seals, serpentine belt, would have done my timing belt myself too, if I didn’t have two toddler-aged boys keeping me from being able to spend the time necessary to complete that job…
October 31st, 2014 at 2:12 pm
It’s the electronics, fellers, also the outsourcing of parts coming from 3rd world rat holes, the one suggestion he gave me was to stick with Denso parts and avoid the much inferior Chinese knock offs, even if they’re more expensive, I will get more and better service out of them, this is true with everything related to autos, tires, brake pads,etc