Harrison
01-13-2007, 08:05 AM
...I had resigned myself to buying a new washer and dryer, even though I wasn't looking foward to spending the money, when my car decided to break down. I had just dropped my daughter off at school, got about a mile away from the school, and the car just shut off. No sputter, no nothing, just shut off and would not restart. GAH! *pulls hair* I told myself because of the way it happened, it was just a pickup or a module in the distributor...which is a fairly cheap and easy repair, so I wasn't too stressed. Had it towed into the shop and got the call today that it is the fuel pump, which is inside the tank. They didn't have an estimate for me yet, but will in the morning. I am DREADING it, because the last time this happened to me, the estimate was something ghastly like 500-600 dollars.
Dear Jody or Anyone Else who is facing this horror show:
If you are poor or simply cash-poor at the moment, my understanding is that this IS a job that can be done at home -- especially if you have a garage.
Even a carport will work although that sucks in this icy winter weather.
I haven't done it myself, BUT I talked to friends who have. Usually the removal of a tank is not one of the "high-tech" oriented repairs. The main reason it will cost $500-600 is because of the grunt labor. It is very dirty, greasy and grimy work, and laborious. I believe that the fuel tank may have to be split open although I'm not sure.
There is also the danger aspect. In the military shop where I used to work, I think the safety rule for pulling a gasoline tank was that you drain it first, then re-cap the drain, and then you fill it with water so that the fumes are not there to be ignited by some moron's cigarette or match or a spark. :eek: Then you disconnect the fuel lines and manhandle it out of the vehicle with the help of a buddy.
If the tank does not have to be split apart, then there is probably a little access port or hole of some kind that you will open up to get your hand in and replace the pump that way.
My '92 Ford Explorer needs this dirty job, but only because the fuel gauge doesn't work. The car starts and runs fine. Since it's a third car and kind of a "beater" that we bought for camping, I just left it alone and been careful to always fill the tank up after so many miles of driving. :D
If I was a family man with 3 teenagers in the house and on a tight budget, there is NO WAY I would want to have a shop do this for me. If you are still too scared to tackle it with your boyfriend, there is a third option:
Try to get a fix on who the sharpest mechanic in the service shop is.
Follow him after he leaves work and try to discreetly talk to him (NEVER let the boss/owner of the shop see you two talking). Follow him in your car and flag him down if you need to, or follow him to his house.
Ask him if he'll help you do the work at your house for straight cash. Guarantee him a certain NICE figure like $200 to make it sound sweet. If he is good and makes $20/hr at the shop, he'll jump on it.
Why? Because there's no way that a good mechanic will take 10 hours to do that job -- assuming the right tools are available. The sooner he gets it done the more money he makes. If he turns it around in 5 hours, and you pay him $200, then he has just made $40/hr and with no taxes, Social Security or anything deducted. That is SWEET!
If you go the work-at-home route, you need to order everything at once and ahead of time.
You will still need to budget money for the pump and other miscellaneous gaskets, screws or other hardware. Make sure that no weird "special tools" are required. If they are, find out the cost ahead of time. Carefully look at the book and make sure you account for all the parts you need.
No mechanic wants to stop in the middle of everything because (a) the part is not there or (b) because someone screwed up and ordered the wrong part or (c) a vital tool is missing and there's no way to find a substitute.
Hope this info saves you or someone else $200 or $300. Good Luck!!
Dear Jody or Anyone Else who is facing this horror show:
If you are poor or simply cash-poor at the moment, my understanding is that this IS a job that can be done at home -- especially if you have a garage.
Even a carport will work although that sucks in this icy winter weather.
I haven't done it myself, BUT I talked to friends who have. Usually the removal of a tank is not one of the "high-tech" oriented repairs. The main reason it will cost $500-600 is because of the grunt labor. It is very dirty, greasy and grimy work, and laborious. I believe that the fuel tank may have to be split open although I'm not sure.
There is also the danger aspect. In the military shop where I used to work, I think the safety rule for pulling a gasoline tank was that you drain it first, then re-cap the drain, and then you fill it with water so that the fumes are not there to be ignited by some moron's cigarette or match or a spark. :eek: Then you disconnect the fuel lines and manhandle it out of the vehicle with the help of a buddy.
If the tank does not have to be split apart, then there is probably a little access port or hole of some kind that you will open up to get your hand in and replace the pump that way.
My '92 Ford Explorer needs this dirty job, but only because the fuel gauge doesn't work. The car starts and runs fine. Since it's a third car and kind of a "beater" that we bought for camping, I just left it alone and been careful to always fill the tank up after so many miles of driving. :D
If I was a family man with 3 teenagers in the house and on a tight budget, there is NO WAY I would want to have a shop do this for me. If you are still too scared to tackle it with your boyfriend, there is a third option:
Try to get a fix on who the sharpest mechanic in the service shop is.
Follow him after he leaves work and try to discreetly talk to him (NEVER let the boss/owner of the shop see you two talking). Follow him in your car and flag him down if you need to, or follow him to his house.
Ask him if he'll help you do the work at your house for straight cash. Guarantee him a certain NICE figure like $200 to make it sound sweet. If he is good and makes $20/hr at the shop, he'll jump on it.
Why? Because there's no way that a good mechanic will take 10 hours to do that job -- assuming the right tools are available. The sooner he gets it done the more money he makes. If he turns it around in 5 hours, and you pay him $200, then he has just made $40/hr and with no taxes, Social Security or anything deducted. That is SWEET!
If you go the work-at-home route, you need to order everything at once and ahead of time.
You will still need to budget money for the pump and other miscellaneous gaskets, screws or other hardware. Make sure that no weird "special tools" are required. If they are, find out the cost ahead of time. Carefully look at the book and make sure you account for all the parts you need.
No mechanic wants to stop in the middle of everything because (a) the part is not there or (b) because someone screwed up and ordered the wrong part or (c) a vital tool is missing and there's no way to find a substitute.
Hope this info saves you or someone else $200 or $300. Good Luck!!