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Jay_W
Jay_W Dork
11/18/19 10:51 p.m.

In reply to nimblemotorsports :

Goodness me,  that is breathtakingly stupid!

Nathan JansenvanDoorn
Nathan JansenvanDoorn Dork
11/19/19 3:32 a.m.

The recommended procedure for changing the belts (including timing and fuel pump) on a TDV6 Disco 3 is to remove the body.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwEtKss83cU 

 

Knurled.
Knurled. MegaDork
11/19/19 5:45 a.m.

Dodge Nitro oil filter.

 

You can't get to it from up top, you can't get to it from down below, all you can do is see it a little bit.

Knurled.
Knurled. MegaDork
11/19/19 5:48 a.m.
wheelsmithy said:

Northstar starter.

Rear plugs on GM V6 FWD cars.

Why'd you remove the intake manifold?  That's like taking your socks off to pee.  Everything on the manifold except for the wiring all connects at the throttle body end.  Unplug the injectors, unbolt the manifold, tip it up, do the starter, wipe the intake faces with a carb cleaner soaked rag, slap it down.  I've seen it done in a half hour.

 

If you want a PITA, do a starter on a twin turbo S6.  You have to remove the engine so you can remove the passenger side turbo so you can access the starter.

Knurled.
Knurled. MegaDork
11/19/19 5:53 a.m.
Ranger50 said:

Sheesh y'all suck.

Anything in a PT cruiser.

 

I found that the fastest way to get that dang U bracket off of the front of the engine is to remove the cylinder head first.

 

I have a water pump on the world's last 2.4l cloud car waiting for me today.  Not really looking forward to it.

 

Oh well.  If you got a frawg to swallow, better not look at it too long.

Dave M
Dave M HalfDork
11/19/19 5:55 a.m.
Nathan JansenvanDoorn said:

The recommended procedure for changing the belts (including timing and fuel pump) on a TDV6 Disco 3 is to remove the body.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwEtKss83cU 

 

Winner!

Honestly though, my Odyssey is a pain to do anything on because they put an entire Accord V6 drivetrain into an engine bay half the size. Amazing engineering! Dipstick? Not so easy to get to without spraying oil everywhere.

Also my Pontiac Solstice required removing the front quarter panel to change the battery.

ProDarwin
ProDarwin UltimaDork
11/19/19 7:53 a.m.
Dave M said:
Nathan JansenvanDoorn said:

The recommended procedure for changing the belts (including timing and fuel pump) on a TDV6 Disco 3 is to remove the body.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwEtKss83cU 

 

Winner!

Honestly though, my Odyssey is a pain to do anything on because they put an entire Accord V6 drivetrain into an engine bay half the size. Amazing engineering! Dipstick? Not so easy to get to without spraying oil everywhere.

Also my Pontiac Solstice required removing the front quarter panel to change the battery.

The Odyssey packaging is pretty bad.  I was shocked with ours that even getting the oil cap off can be a pain as it is partially obscured by the radiator support.

Every job I did on that car took me about 5x as long as I am used to.

jharry3
jharry3 HalfDork
11/19/19 7:57 a.m.
ProDarwin said:
Dave M said:
Nathan JansenvanDoorn said:

The recommended procedure for changing the belts (including timing and fuel pump) on a TDV6 Disco 3 is to remove the body.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwEtKss83cU 

 

Winner!

Honestly though, my Odyssey is a pain to do anything on because they put an entire Accord V6 drivetrain into an engine bay half the size. Amazing engineering! Dipstick? Not so easy to get to without spraying oil everywhere.

Also my Pontiac Solstice required removing the front quarter panel to change the battery.

The Odyssey packaging is pretty bad.  I was shocked with ours that even getting the oil cap off can be a pain as it is partially obscured by the radiator support.

Every job I did on that car took me about 5x as long as I am used to.

you have to disconnect the engine mounts and jack up the engine to get the alternator out of an Odyssey. 

Knurled.
Knurled. MegaDork
11/19/19 7:58 a.m.

In reply to nimblemotorsports :

The same trans in GM cute utes has the dipstick bolted down, and is surrounded by a motor mount.

therieldeal
therieldeal Reader
11/19/19 7:59 a.m.

I feel like evap systems are normally pretty easy to service.  Manufacturers are generally pretty good about putting things in accessible places, since it doesn’t really matter where any of the components go… a couple extra inches/feet of hose and wire and voila, easy to service.

Except … good luck replacing the canister purge valve on a 10-13 Mazda 3 (maybe other years not sure).  They put this sucker in a small gap right above the rear subframe.  Between crusty hose clamps and rusty bolts I wound up dropping my entire rear subframe/suspension to replace the damn thing.

Now as a GRM’er I of course took this opportunity to slap a nice rust-free Mazdaspeed rear subframe assembly in there.  But that’s not the point :D

MadScientistMatt
MadScientistMatt PowerDork
11/19/19 8:02 a.m.
Javelin said:

Oil filter on a 3800 V6 GM.

I just realized on my last oil change that you're supposed to reach in from the top of the engine compartment to unscrew it. Still a bit awkward, but a lot easier than trying to get the filter from beneath.

wae
wae UltraDork
11/19/19 8:09 a.m.
Ranger50 said:

Sheesh y'all suck.

Anything in a PT cruiser. Hemi sparkplugs in a Durango. Oil pan replacement on a 6.7 Cummins in vehicle.

I'm not convinced that the PT cruiser is as bad to work on as it looks.  Right now there's a motor sitting on a stand right now that I need to put into a PT in the next couple weeks.  Shouldn't be too horrible now that I know the secret (remove the crank pulley before pulling the engine).  I've done a couple alternators.  Only takes about an hour or so - just pop the right-side axle out and it comes right out.  Valve cover gasket is pretty quick and easy.  The oil pressure sender is a common leak point, but is super simple to get to and swap out.  Heck, I even did the big end rod bearings without pulling the motor and that was pretty simple.  Replacing the right fender took me a while but that was because I had to figure out how to remove the antenna.  Headlight bulbs aren't too bad on them, either, since they put the little doors in the inner fenders.

How about the Fords and Audis that have that extra timing chain in the freaking back of the engine?  An EJ22 has a pretty lengthy timing belt that requires a bit of fiddling to get into place, and the 2nd Gen Odyssey has very little space and requires a special tool to be made to do its timing belt.  But at least step one of those cars isn't "remove engine from vehicle".

barefootskater
barefootskater Dork
11/19/19 8:50 a.m.

Oh! Serp belt on a gran-damn. Support motor, remove motor mount. And hope you have a very low profile 3/8 breaker or that tensioner isn't gonna play along. 

Fueled by Caffeine
Fueled by Caffeine MegaDork
11/19/19 8:52 a.m.
Floating Doc said:
Fueled by Caffeine said:
Floating Doc said:

This may be considered as no big deal by some, but I really bruise up my left arm trying to reach the NB Miata oil filter.

there is an app for that.

 

https://www.flyinmiata.com/fm-na-nb-oil-filter-relocation-kit.html

I was expecting that. If I was changing it more often, I would consider it. I've put about 1000 miles on it since February. 

probably available in a junkyard near you.

Tony Sestito
Tony Sestito PowerDork
11/19/19 8:57 a.m.

Doing an oil change on the 2002 Jetta I had was really bad. You had to remove the undertray completely, and there seemed to be about 152 screws, bolts, and clips of different sizes and fastener type to do that. Factor in living in a climate where they salt the roads, and you'll be there all day!

KyAllroad (Jeremy)
KyAllroad (Jeremy) UltimaDork
11/19/19 9:00 a.m.

Whatever I happen to be working on at the time.

759NRNG
759NRNG UltraDork
11/19/19 9:00 a.m.

The HVAC zone actuator to allow air to the upper torso requires the removal of the dash, most of the center console, clutch pedal be set aside along with the steering column on the 'V'.....as opposed to just removing the glove box liner.  Don't even ask about anything related to the gas tank...........   

No Time
No Time Dork
11/19/19 9:08 a.m.

In reply to barefootskater :

I did one of those and an idler on a Malibu, same thing with the mount. I gave in and bought the belt tool at the flaps to make it easier. 

Harvey
Harvey SuperDork
11/19/19 9:10 a.m.
FuzzWuzzy said:

In regards to the BMW battery and having to program it, I didn't program my basic Autozone one for a good year and a half and only decided to finally program it myself because I was already programming something else.

I made the mistake of getting an AGM replacement for my lead acid battery. If I had gotten the same type I probably could have just done the registration, but when you change the type most people say the charging algorithm is quite a bit different between AGM and lead acid and so you need to recode the car. I really don't know though for sure whether it's a big deal or not, but the fact is the battery that I just replaced is the original one from 2011 so there must be something to this smart charging thing the car uses.

ProDarwin
ProDarwin UltimaDork
11/19/19 9:13 a.m.
jharry3 said:
ProDarwin said:
Dave M said:
Nathan JansenvanDoorn said:

The recommended procedure for changing the belts (including timing and fuel pump) on a TDV6 Disco 3 is to remove the body.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwEtKss83cU 

 

Winner!

Honestly though, my Odyssey is a pain to do anything on because they put an entire Accord V6 drivetrain into an engine bay half the size. Amazing engineering! Dipstick? Not so easy to get to without spraying oil everywhere.

Also my Pontiac Solstice required removing the front quarter panel to change the battery.

The Odyssey packaging is pretty bad.  I was shocked with ours that even getting the oil cap off can be a pain as it is partially obscured by the radiator support.

Every job I did on that car took me about 5x as long as I am used to.

you have to disconnect the engine mounts and jack up the engine to get the alternator out of an Odyssey. 

I did the alternator and did not have to do this IIRC.  I did have to relocate the power steering reservoir, drop the washer reservoir, and disconnect/move a number of over things.  

Then getting it out was effectively like playing tetris where I had to clock it in a different way through a number of 'gates' to lift it out.

Harvey
Harvey SuperDork
11/19/19 9:14 a.m.
OHSCrifle said:

Driver's side spark plugs on my 2.5 Subaru Outback are so bad I paid my mechanic, nickname Gumby to do them.
 

Literally 1" of clearance (about 8" down)  to remove coil pack and maneuver the wrench and turn the plugs. U-joint helps but I couldn't even back the coil out without fear of breaking it. 

I've done those with the motor in the car. Horrid. Most people I know that work on Subarus just pull the motor as it's faster and you probably need to replace some gaskets anyway.

wvumtnbkr
wvumtnbkr UberDork
11/19/19 9:15 a.m.
Javelin said:

Oil filter on a 3800 V6 GM.

Flywheel on an RX7.

Water pump on a 944.

What's so hard about a flywheel on an rx7?

 

Take nut off and strike flywheel between 2 of the clutch bolt holes.  Pops right off.

Duke
Duke MegaDork
11/19/19 9:34 a.m.
Knurled. said:

If you want a PITA, do a starter on a twin turbo S6.  You have to remove the engine so you can remove the passenger side turbo so you can access the starter.

Back when I ended up buying the E46 I also shopped a lightly-used manual trans S4.  It was clean, well maintained, and driving it was fun as hell.  The price was in range.  It was Nogaro Blue, my favorite color.

I opened the hood to check it out.  I checked it out for a while.  Then I closed the hood, thanked the owner, and politely drove away as fast as I could.

 

zordak
zordak Reader
11/19/19 9:40 a.m.

The first year of the Chevy Monza, '75 I think. On the V8 you had to un bolt the motor mounts and jack the motor up 2 inches to change the 2 rear plugs

The0retical
The0retical UberDork
11/19/19 9:57 a.m.

Did we mention the oil filter located in Subaru's famous flaming butt hole of doom?

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