The last of the 6 spark plugs.

[ltlvt]

Some already know what kind of trouble I have been having changing the spark plugs on my 2003 GMC Envoy. Well I finally got #6 installed today. We all know that changing spark plugs is not a big deal unless they A-Sell you the wrong plugs B-you are an old guy and have severe balance issues. Etc. etc.

I am throwing in some pictures I took in the last couple of days. 1 includes a waste of money on the Vevor Topside Creeper 2 what I did to solve my problem of balance and reaching. BTW I just spent 3 months undergoing Physical Therapy treatment for Vertigo. Not my favorite way to spend my retirement years. But I have this Never Give Up in my DNA syndrome. At least that is what I was telling myself when I was changing #6 plug that is stuffed back under the firewall. Design engineers should be required to own a toolbox and years of experience of using the tools before they can design a vehicle. The best part is the last plug is in and just waiting for me to install a new fuel pressure regulator which I found was bad when I unhooked the vacuum line for the Air Box plenum to get to the plugs. Okay Nuff of my stuff. The reason there are so many pictures of the VEVOR Topside Creeper is I tried every angle to make it work but you can see it will require modifications before it is usable. Of course i had to take a picture of the last spark plug since I have been trying to get them changed for over a week now. And last but not least is the 2 stools strapped together for safety so this old man could climb onto them with them flipping backwards. Now on with the show.

 

[OTmachine]

I like your two stools strapped together! I have a 1 foot tall x 18” wide x 6 feet long riser platform that I made for working on my vehicles.

 

[ChazzC]

Glad yo got past this stage!

I think it was my 1975 Camero that required that the engine mounts be loosened so you could make clearance to get to one of the rear plugs (from underneath). My 2003 Malibu also had one or two plugs that needed to be accessed from below.

 

[RaisedByWolves]

Some already know what kind of trouble I have been having changing the spark plugs on my 2003 GMC Envoy. Well I finally got #6 installed today. We all know that changing spark plugs is not a big deal unless they A-Sell you the wrong plugs B-you are an old guy and have severe balance issues. Etc. etc.

I am throwing in some pictures I took in the last couple of days. 1 includes a waste of money on the Vevor Topside Creeper 2 what I did to solve my problem of balance and reaching. BTW I just spent 3 months undergoing Physical Therapy treatment for Vertigo. Not my favorite way to spend my retirement years. But I have this Never Give Up in my DNA syndrome. At least that is what I was telling myself when I was changing #6 plug that is stuffed back under the firewall. Design engineers should be required to own a toolbox and years of experience of using the tools before they can design a vehicle. The best part is the last plug is in and just waiting for me to install a new fuel pressure regulator which I found was bad when I unhooked the vacuum line for the Air Box plenum to get to the plugs. Okay Nuff of my stuff. The reason there are so many pictures of the VEVOR Topside Creeper is I tried every angle to make it work but you can see it will require modifications before it is usable. Of course i had to take a picture of the last spark plug since I have been trying to get them changed for over a week now. And last but not least is the 2 stools strapped together for safety so this old man could climb onto them with them flipping backwards. Now on with the show.

You think auto engineers are bad, you should become a Toolmaker.

I have felt from early on in my career that Tooling designers bust have been picked on in high school by the kids in metal shop and thereby decide to make tooling as difficult to service as possible.

We have 4000lbs die sections that require flipping over 4 or 5 times to remove one single punch that is buried 4 layers deep under some over engineered *******t.

Every time you need to flip the die to remove another several hundred pound section its center of gravity changes and you therefore need to change your rigging.

Are any of the rigging holes the same thread size? No, their all different requiring you to get out half of the shops cables, shackles, eye bolts and D rings to work on the damn thing.

Then management comes off with "Its only one broken punch, why is it taking so long?!??"

I often tell them I could spend 20min relaying how difficult it is to get to that "One punch" or I can spend that time working on the die.

Other times I give them a combination of thousand yard/blank stare until they go away.

 

[ltlvt]

I couldn't help but laughing. I've changed a few punches and dies myself. BTW I love the avatar of the little dog. I have a little shop friend that is the love of my life. See her here.

 

[MikeInOr]

2003 Nissan Maxima. We removed the intake to get to all 6 plugs:



We replaced all 6 plugs, all 6 coils and all 6 fuel injectors since we had it apart any way.


I brought my 19 year old daughter home from the hospital in this car. We did the work together about 2 years ago. It is her car now and has been running great since the surgery. We also had to do some brain surgery on the wiring loom with a soldering iron where some mice got to it. We let the mechanic rake us over the coals on the price to replace the radiator... about twice dealer rate for a new radiator (the dealer service department was shut down during COVID). Plastic reservoir tanks on a radiator??? Really?!?!


I owned a 1998 Chevy Astro midsized-van with a bad fuel injection spider. The front windshield is directly over the front 1/3rd of the engine. I will NEVER EVER own a van again!

 

[ltlvt]

I am retired from GM. When I first went to work for them my boss said the way of the future was going to be for the dealerships to remove and replace engines instead of repairing them. I think we are almost there now. Some vehicles require removal of the cab just to work on the engines. Front wheel drives mean the engine comes out from the bottom. without a 2-post lift you are screwed now days. On some of the Cadillacs you must change the alternator from under the engine, so it requires a 2-post lift just to do that simple repair.

There was a time when products /cars and such were designed with the customer's satisfaction as top priority. Now there is what is referred to in the industry as "Design for Failure." In other words, break when the warranty has just expired. I took my grandkids on vacation with me one year and just about 25 miles over the 50,000-mile warranty the check engine light came on. We spent the night in a motel and the next morning went to the dealership. They had to reflash the PCM and it was not covered in the extended warranty I paid $900 for. Stop and think for a minute. They can diagnose via satellite while you are driving. They can unlock your doors via satellite. They can start your car via satellite. If they can start it they can stop it. I won't continue to go on and on about the change in our world in my lifetime but we ar no longer in control of our money or health or anything else. Cruise control late 70's, now it is auto pilot. Pretty scary ain't it.

 

[MikeInOr]

I took my grandkids on vacation with me one year and just about 25 miles over the 50,000-mile warranty the check engine light came on. We spent the night in a motel and the next morning went to the dealership. They had to reflash the PCM and it was not covered in the extended warranty I paid $900 for. Stop and think for a minute. They can diagnose via satellite while you are driving. They can unlock your doors via satellite. They can start your car via satellite. If they can start it they can stop it. I won't continue to go on and on about the change in our world in my lifetime but we ar no longer in control of our money or health or anything else. Cruise control late 70's, now it is auto pilot. Pretty scary ain't it.

What kind of car was it? A GM?

No offense... I am not much of a GM fan. The only reason I own one is because Isuzu designed the engine and Alison manufactures the transmission. I have had really bad luck with GM cars. After being in business for over 100 years you think they would figure out how to paint a vehicle so it doesn't flake off in 10 years? I have a 1980 Mercedes and a 1976 Scout with original paint (and even had a 67 F100 with original paint). My 2006 Silverado started slithering out of its skin like a snake in 2015. Big chunks of paint just started blowing off in the wind! Really????

I know vehicles are designed by accountants... I just never figured they painted them with their surplus white-out too!

 

[ltlvt]

What kind of car was it? A GM?

No offense... I am not much of a GM fan. The only reason I own one is because Isuzu designed the engine and Alison manufactures the transmission. I have had really bad luck with GM cars. After being in business for over 100 years you think they would figure out how to paint a vehicle so it doesn't flake off in 10 years? I have a 1980 Mercedes and a 1976 Scout with original paint (and even had a 67 F100 with original paint). My 2006 Silverado started slithering out of its skin like a snake in 2015. Big chunks of paint just started blowing off in the wind! Really????

I know vehicles are designed by accountants... I just never figured they painted them with their surplus white-out too!

I'm not a fan of any new vehicles . I have owned many new GM vehicles. I will never own any brand of new vehicle any more.. We live in a disposable economy. One of the best investments of all time is toilet paper. It gets used once and replaced. It is called "Non-discretionary consumables" Look what happened to the toilet paper demand during the Covid pandemic.
We live in a consumer society now.

So now about the paint. Yep, I feel the pain however the same paint is used across the board within the automotive industry. it all starts with the 2 stage paints. Base coat /Clear coat. What happens to plastic when left out in the sun? (it decomposes) Same with fiberglass. I would never repaint a car with Base coat Clear coat paint. Why because it all has no durable life expectancy. The clear when hit by the rays of the sun acts as a magnifying glass and cooks itself off of the base. this is why the clear peels off the top of the hood /roof/tops of fenders first. The sides of the vehicle do not absorb the sunlight the same way the top does. My 2003 GMC Envoy still has beautiful paint but i have kept it under the carport when parked. My 1998 Corvette look as good as the day I bought it but also garage kept. They both have Base/Clear paint on them. I also have a C-1500 Chevy truck that is mostly in primer because of the paint peeling and 2 Ford Ranger trucks that have not only peeled the factory paint but one of them has been repainted by professional body shop and the hood and roof and tops of fenders are all flaked off. The difference is they all 3 live out in the sun! So your issue is not a GM issue it is a chemical/natural paint exposure issue. Nuff Said.

 

[MikeInOr]

I'm not a fan of any new vehicles . I have owned many new GM vehicles. I will never own any brand of new vehicle any more.. We live in a disposable economy. One of the best investments of all time is toilet paper. It gets used once and replaced. It is called "Non-discretionary consumables" Look what happened to the toilet paper demand during the Covid pandemic.
We live in a consumer society now.

So now about the paint. Yep, I feel the pain however the same paint is used across the board within the automotive industry. it all starts with the 2 stage paints. Base coat /Clear coat. What happens to plastic when left out in the sun? (it decomposes) Same with fiberglass. I would never repaint a car with Base coat Clear coat paint. Why because it all has no durable life expectancy. The clear when hit by the rays of the sun acts as a magnifying glass and cooks itself off of the base. this is why the clear peels off the top of the hood /roof/tops of fenders first. The sides of the vehicle do not absorb the sunlight the same way the top does. My 2003 GMC Envoy still has beautiful paint but i have kept it under the carport when parked. My 1998 Corvette look as good as the day I bought it but also garage kept. They both have Base/Clear paint on them. I also have a C-1500 Chevy truck that is mostly in primer because of the paint peeling and 2 Ford Ranger trucks that have not only peeled the factory paint but one of them has been repainted by professional body shop and the hood and roof and tops of fenders are all flaked off. The difference is they all 3 live out in the sun! So your issue is not a GM issue it is a chemical/natural paint exposure issue. Nuff Said.

I have NEVER owned a new car or any new automobile.

As far as paint goes I have never had the problems with paint coming off in chunks with foreign vehicles like I have with GM vehicles (I have never owned any Chrysler or less than 50 year old Ford). If my 2003 Maxima can sit in the 300+ days of sunshine a year high desert heat for 5 years parked in the driveway waiting for my daughter to learn to drive without shedding its factory paint why can't a GM vehicle do the same?

I do completely subscribe to your "planned obsolescence" observations of the US auto industry... US industry in general. I honestly believe it extends to the paint and coating department at GM. Pre and Post low VOC paint GM has always had such bad long term paint adhesion issues that it almost has to be engineered into the formulas.

I understand that when you work for a company for decades you hope your quality and craftsmanship ethics extend throughout the company... I am not attacking your ethics, craftsmanship or morals... but planned obsolescence had to be invented in USA. After 17 years of working for a medical/dental services ~800 employee company we were bought out by a ~10,000 employee company which was then sold to a half million employee international corporation, "SunLife". Providing quality health care to patients is now just a punch line found in the company motto!

My father worked for Proto tools... Stanley NHT (National Hand Tools division of Stanley) for more than 30 years. He retired after overseeing the transition of US manufactured hand tools to being outsourced to the same Chinese suppliers that supply Harbor Freight, shutting down pretty much all Stanley US hand tool manufacturing plants... people he worked with (friends) for those 30 years.