Comments by "Peter deWolf" (@StoneShards) on "Rainman Ray's Repairs" channel.

  1. And blinker fluid wasn't even checked!
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  2. I used the same technique to keep my blower motor going for a year! It kept running slower, and slower, and slower. My blower was inside, so I'd lean over and whack it with a screwdriver handle--a little tricky while driving, but...
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  3. Well, congrats, Ray! You're READY! Moving forward in a big way is hugely exciting! Get a good CPA--and a pretty secretary, but not TOO pretty...hehehe
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  4. It used to be most common to see "32 psi" inside the door. I think they raised it to 35 just to make it a rounder number! hahaha
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  5.  @jimmyb1451  <--Thank-you, Jimmy! I very much appreciate the exhaustiveness of your explanation. It really helped me clean up my understanding a lot! I tend to "pick things up" without fully understanding how they fit in to a bigger picture. Your explanation knitted everything together in my mind.
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  6. It's obviously not gonna work right! The label on the motor is upside down! hehehe...I'm learning, Ray! hahaha
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  7. I bet the replacement part was a later generation. I know GM is sensitive to warranty claims, and maybe service personnel complaints re design issues.
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  8. I'd tend to put the two best tires on the RIGHT SIDE! hehehe...'cause that's where the road shoulder is, and the shoulder is what has caused the majority of my driving issues. You almost always hard left to stay out of the ditch! hahaha
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  9. From a google search: Silicone grease is safe on rubber and actually helps to keep it soft. Any other grease with a mineral oil base will degrade natural rubber. I've always used silicone paste (GM). Probably, though, by the time the rubber degrades importantly it would be time for a replacement, anyway.
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  10. Take it from a pro, you're making it harder than it has to be: use half as much solder, and hold one of the wires in your fingers. It takes about two seconds for the solder to freeze; hold still for that long and you're good. Look for the solder to "suck down" on the joint...giggetty...that signals completed flow. After it sucks down, hold for two seconds...done
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  11. Hey, thanks for the spinny ride! hehehe...
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  12. Get rid of it! The possibilities are endless! But don't turn it in to the cops--they'll think you're plum stupid! hahaha...
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  13. "Wow, that was scary! Let's do it again!"...hahaha
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  14. A man and his tools!
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  15. There's something called the WOT (WideOpenThrottle) procedure, to get the piston rings spinning: put it in 2nd, press the accelerator gradually to the floor, let in wind out to red line, then take the foot OFF the accelerator--I guess this is where the magic happens; back down to 35 mph or so, then do it again! It's good for what ails an old Northstar, anyway. Repeat monthly.
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  16. Good show, Ray! But...why wouldn't the other rear bearing be just as worn? Don't both rear wheels see the same action? Or are some parts marginally acceptable and prone to earlier failure?
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  17. The crux is the transition from "debate" to "argument". The purpose of "debate" is to avoid the transition from "conversation" to "argument". "Debate" quality degrades as emotions rise unchecked. When they "leave the room" it's their last resort to avoid losing their tempers, and everything that leads to. Why the absence of concrete information, though?! Facts aren't "salty". What was the "difference of opinion" about, Ray? General terms are fine--beats nothin'! "Personal differences", "incompetence", etc...A guy I used to work with got canned for "tardiness", after over 10 years on the job! He returned early the next morning loaded for bear; shot up the place, killing one fellow employee. He was looking for the boss, who, as luck would have it, was TARDY that day! So my friend is dead.
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  18. Apparently, a lot of people got multiple jabs, so their brains are gone. The smart ones, who knew everything about running the businesses were dismissed because they were too smart to get jabbed. This rude, braindead thing is gonna happen for a while...
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  19. Yes! It is interesting! Anger mitigates pain! It's true.
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  20. Yeah, it's the same problem everywhere with "supervision/management". They often have little experience in the work they're supervising.
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  21. The detailed diagnosis should have been on the paperwork the customer signed at the conclusion of his business with you. That way there's a record of the customer "understanding" of his car's condition. They don't do that in Florida?
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  22. Really! I thought prefill was GM spec. I like Ray's rationale...if he's wrong, I miss out on a tiny bit less wear; if he's right I could cause important damage. I'll go with it, even though it still seems a minor point altogether...
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  23. I had a seville with a TCC relay code that meant no overdrive. At 41 mph it should go into overdrive.
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  24. Might be useful to note the date of the last code clear...
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  25. If you say "stripe" instead of "tracer" you get a 100% improvement in verbal efficiency! hehehe...efficiency is important!
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  26. I never met a spring compressor that didn't scare the shit out of me! "Sketchy"? YEAH! Needless to say, most people who attempt such a thing don't use such a worthy tool as the Branick 7600! No, we're using the $20 kit off the wall at AutoDrone...which skyrockets the sketchiness factor!
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  27. Ray left loose wires where they can rattle about--I sense a future return...
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  28. Efficiency is a tireless taskmaster.
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  29. Diagnosis by Google! The guy's daffy, since he had you do the replacement even after you told him how much it would cost and it might not solve the problem and he still owes the bill if it doesn't. It must be weird being able to afford that degree of overconfidence!
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  30. "...but nobody has scissors..."...hahaha...good one, Ray!
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  31. I didn't notice any difference with the audio--need a side-by-side comparison....seems like more high-end now...
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  32. Uh...about the plugged lines behind the passenger seat that you found leaking at the plugs...that didn't make it into your recap at around 15:00...uh...anything? I'm not used to seeing you ignore such a thing, Ray.
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  33. Good show, Ray!
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  34. I had a northstar v8, and, yeah, the max line on the dipstick is overfilled! There's a service bulletin for it! Yet it never fails to be overfilled. I have a Buick now, and the dealership has failed to use my oil and filter on two of the last three oil changes! I never thought of the crush washer angle...hmm...
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  35. Hahahaha..."Customer states: bad noise when driving"...so, it RAN!?!
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  36. Still sketchy looking...that skinny bolt fails and you could be in a crunch...
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  37. In a collision, an explosive charge is detonated to tighten the seat belt very quickly.
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  38. "Alternator's not working, eh? Ok, so, put a new battery in and we'll see what happens"--that's a woman talking! hahaha..."...it's necessary for her learning..."...as the song goes...
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  39. When I was a kid I saw a movie where a guy threw a lit cigarette into a big puddle of gasoline, and it blew up in flames. I thought, cool! So I made a puddle of gasoline and threw a lit cigarette into it...of course...I'm a kid. To my great disappointment, the gasoline just put out the cigarette! Ahhh...Hollywood...reality is so much less exciting!
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  40. That's right, Ray! You gotta give things INSTRUCTIONS! It's actually true! Try it!
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  41. If you got a car problem, take it to a mechanic, who says no trouble found, and the car is fixed, well, that's magic! You're gonna go back to that magic man...
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  42. Who would have thought a mechanic's day has so many "up"s and "down"s! hahaha...
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  43. ABS: Pain in the ass that works like a CHARM! Whatcha gonna do...
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  44. Break pad bedding can go seriously wrong...
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  45. Never apologize to jerks--it only encourages them! hahaha
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  46. Nice hack! That's using the old noggin!
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  47. Tenacious Ray! He's always the better machine! Nice work.
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  48. So, why did the guy bring the car to him if he didn't want any work done on it? Oh, yeah, an oil change...still, an odd way to go about it...
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  49. Sherlock needs a Watson! Sleuthing!
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  50. Never go on vacation!
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  51. Well, you didn't check hot side continuity, just ground side. So, the possibility of a broken wire still exists.
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  52. A man is flying in a hot air balloon and realises he is lost. He reduces height and spots a man down below. He lowers the balloon further and shouts: “Excuse me, can you tell me where I am?” The man below says: “Yes, you’re in a hot air balloon, hovering 30 metres above this field”. “You must be an engineer,” says the balloonist. “I am,” replies the man. “How did you know.” “Well,” says the balloonist, “everything you have told me is technically correct, but it’s no use to anyone.” The man below says: “You must be in management”. “I am,” replies the balloonist, “but how did you know?” “Well,” says the man, “you don’t know where you are, or where you’re going, but you expect me to be able to help. You’re in the same position you were before we met, but now it’s my fault.” Hahahaha...
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  53. Yeah, I had that. Engine was, like, rev-limited, and would die randomly. I'd just shift into neutral and restart on the fly.
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  54. Isn't the reason you don't over-torque because it'll be harder to remove? If you got anti-seize going, you shouldn't have that problem--even at specified torque. So, yeah, you torqued harder, but the anti-seize will compensate, essentially. Maybe the reason you don't see torque specs for anti-seize...On the other hand, if the purpose of the torque spec is to ensure proper mechanical stress, not to avoid gradual loosening, but to compensate for eventual slackening in system components, it seems the extra torque could still serve a good advantage. I hope you got a good tip! You deserve it! At least, that's how I've always treated my mechanics...
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  55. What motor mount does NOT break a lot! That's what I'd like to know.
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  56. "For want of a nail the war was lost"...
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  57. You nailed it, Ray! "Car karma"! When you're kind you can see into the future...
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  58. Don't you still have to get it back on the alignment rack, to document the fix?
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  59. It's not a total loss: there's still the "diagnostic fee"! hehehe...
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  60. hahaha..."Kids say the darnedest things!"--Art Linkletter...Ray's co-workers are worthy guest stars!
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  61. I think a smart customer would have green-lighted the diagnostic, at least. A guy likes to know what he's up against, especially when considering big money decisions.
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  62. "...tire pressure sensor missing..."...BWWAAA...gufawww...observing missing rim...Ray caught me off-guard with that one...now I gotta clean my monitor screen...dang...
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  63. Well, not exactly, Ray: a "couple" is singular. So, it's proper to say "the couple is"...a couple, then, would never warrant a "they", as that would denote plurality, which a couple is not. So, your grammar was correct the first time! Always go with your first impulse...
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  64. Over-torqued on a gasket might have damaged the gasket, eh?
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  65. Weren't you going to load-check that battery? Maybe that was my imagination...
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  66. The only criticism I could have, Ray, is that you put up a fuss to begin with--but maybe that was BEFORE the customer gave you a waiver of liability. "Industry practice/standards" often means, "CYA by over-repairing". hahaha...That patch looked good for at least a couple of years, don't you think?
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  67. At 1:30, is that an analog clock in the dash! It looks so weird, sitting above the LCD display! Must have been an option, though, right?
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  68. No matter how you try to get away, some cars just FOLLOW YOU! hehehe...they like you...
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  69. What would the labor be to install a new/reman engine? Maybe less than 17 hours? Maybe a lot less? Enough to cover 3k for the engine? Hmm...
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  70. Fresh pads and rotors! Sweet! So...no pad bedding drive cycle? hmm...usually not a problem, but things can go south, especially with aggressive drivers. The way I understand it, you have to transfer a certain small amount of pad material to the rotor, in the prescribed drive cycle, before you can do a really hard stop without transferring excessive pad material to the rotor, resulting in braking vibration.
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  71. The explanation I've heard is improper bedding of the brake pads. The idea, apparently, is that bedding lays down a thin coat of the pad material, and that protects the rotor, and pads, from excessive wear. The way I make sense of it is by analogy to microprocessors, their heat sinks, and the thermal compound that goes in between to perfect the mating of the surfaces of processor and heat sink.
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  72. Yeah, some people, with poor self-esteem, think they're doing somebody a favor by "letting them in"! Except that, to do that, they have to stand in moving traffic which is illegal because...hazardous! You can get somebody killed by being a "nice guy"...
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  73. The "tin foil hat" actually does work! hehehe...Maybe not as well as some would like to think, but the effect is tangible--you can feel...something different. Kind of like when you put a pyramid on your head!...Don't tell me you've never DONE that!
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  74. I don't object to purposeful reengineering. hehehe...REEngineering...
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  75. It'll run better if he cleans the junk out of it! Didn't you tell him that, Ray? hehehe
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  76. Hibeam foot switch...mine used to stick ON! hahaha..."sorry, oncoming traffic...I'm trying..."
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  77. The sensor is likely a semiconductor device, probably a Hall Effect device, not purely resistive. That's when you try the "Diode" setting on the meter, which keeps the meters sourcing voltage under 0.7 V, so the diode junction doesn't forward bias.
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  78. Except you don't "earn" that markup! hahaha...30% profit! Highway robbery...that's what markup is...
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  79. "Green scrubbies are great for everything..."--except gasket surfaces, right?
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  80. So...the replacement pigtail came from Ray's private stock of used parts? How does he BILL that!? "Custom"? hehehe
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  81. Thanks!
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  82. The name HAS to be: Rainman Ray's Repairs! Established name recognition is a great value going forward.
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  83. Or, had you been speeding, you would have passed the point where the deer crossed before the deer even got there! You would have missed him by a mile instead of a millimeter...
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  84. Breaking an original part and replacing it with an imagined "equivalent" wouldn't fly well with me as a customer.
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  85. Suction cups...
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  86. GM has a break-in drive profile involving medium braking pressure from 50 mph to 15 mph; repeat 10 times...I think. Avoid excessive pad material transfer to the rotor by releasing the braking pressure near coming to a stop, to cool the pads.
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  87. Tone-deaf management breeds gold-bricking. Smart managers learn that early.
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  88. "Re-adhered" is a fine word...nothing wrong with it.
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  89. What a trashmobile! hahaha...Ray must be biting his tongue! I'll look for the rant tomorrow...
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  90. You're not DONE until you check your work! hehehe...
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  91. The CAN protocol is error-correcting, so a bunch of stuff happens when the bus suffers an electrical integrity failure to try to get it back, or issue a code if it won't come back. The CAN controller was my life for a number of years...a long time ago...hehe...It's actually normal to pop C-codes routinely; "loss of signal" happens fairly frequently, though it's not usually an actual loss of signal, but more of a timing hiccup that LOOKS like a loss of signal. The timings are in the low microsecond range, so tolerances are very tight, which is why it has to be error-correcting to be reliable.
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  92. Uh...bench vise? Frees a hand! How 'bout a big rubber hammer?!
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  93. ...and the engineers won...
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  94. It makes the most sense to add a "handling" charge, according to a schedule of basic handling issues, varying from zero to, idk, two dollars. If you offer a "flat rate", it has to be determined properly to avoid taking a net loss. Flat rate is corporate "niceness"--proving there's actually no such thing...hehehe
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  95. That's what happens when you never "feed her the onions!", as Derek, at vicegrip garage, would say.
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  96. GM's got a drive profile for "bedding" the brake pads. Is that procedure not a thing, anymore?
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  97. I think the popular idea of a "puddle" changes a little in the aftermath of a HURRICANE! hehehe...this particular puddle might have been a couple feet deep, eh?
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