Can I even remember what happened?
Hmmm… Let’s consult the car calendar. That will jog my memory. 😊
…
Oh yeah, that’s right. The day started off with a 2012 Dodge ram 1500 5.7 hemi that needed to have all 16 spark plugs changed. I was glad to finally get this one going, as they had been kicked out multiple times with scheduling issues and whatnot.
The truck belongs to one of the AutoZone employees. He had started to try and do it himself, but ran into some issues that he didn’t want to tangle with, so he asked me to take care of it for him.
As per usual, I began checking the spark plug gaps before installing them, but the gaps were way way too big. Generally, you don’t regap iridium spark plugs, so I ordered some denso spark plugs that were supposedly pre-gapped exactly to the right specification.
Unfortunately, once they arrived, and I’m grateful that AutoZone was able to deliver quickly, those gaps were far smaller than they were supposed to be, which would mean that the engine would run too hot.
🤪
So the first set of 16 the gaps were way too big, and the second set of 16 the gaps were way too small. The second set we’re double iridium plugs, so I didn’t even want to bother trying to increase the gaps at all, as I didn’t want to cause any damage to the electrodes. So that meant regapping all 16 of the original 16 plugs that I bought.
😶
It’s crazy: between regaffing all the plugs, running into fairly large challenges getting some of the plugs out, and whatever else came up that I’m not remembering, it took like three and a half hours to change 16 spark plugs that didn’t even need to have an intake manifold removed to get to them. 🙃
It’s so funny how long things can take. Of course, I am a perfectionist, but still, it’s crazy to think that changing at 16 spark plugs can take that long.
The second job was about 40 minutes south from there, a 2008 Volkswagen beetle that had a dead battery. I went down there, swapped out the battery, and was on my way to the next one, grateful to have a quick job after the one that went far longer than it should have. I only got paid for less than an hour and a half on that first job because it’s just not supposed to take that long. 🙃
The third job was a 2012 Jeep Patriot that also needed a battery. It was owned by an old lady who had moved and was in the process of trying to sell her other house. I got her battery replaced, and then she asked me if I knew of any way to get the mailbox lock to work better. She’s had a lot of troubles with the key not opening her little mailbox properly. She has one of those mailboxes where it’s the whole neighborhood in a metal box and everyone has their little key slot. Anyway, I grabbed some graphite powder, squirted it in to the keyhole, and boom, she was set to go, her key working just fine again.
After I finished everything, she asked me if I knew anyone who was interested in buying a house, and I asked her how much she was wanting, but she didn’t know. She gave me the address, and I went over and looked at it. It’s a fairly large house, 30200 square feet or something like that, on 4 acres. It’s only just a mile or so away from a friend of mine. The place needs some help. Built in 1975, I think. Possibly could get a great deal on it, but I’m not sure. I’m going to pursue it at least enough to find out what she really wants for it and what it might be worth and what not. It could potentially be an opportunity to flip a house, but who knows. We’ll see.
Just my luck, if I finally decide to go into debt for a house, do you call me a crash, and I’ll be upside down in a house. 🙃
Next car was a 2013 Chevrolet Tahoe that needed an oil pressure sensor put in. The dealer had quoted him over $500, and my quote was just over $200.
No brainer. 🙃
So I got that put in for him, and I looked at their other car while I was there as well.
For the last car, I had somebody who was trying to get to their sons graduation the next day. Their car was out, and they were begging for help, so even though it was the kind of thing I don’t generally like to do, and it was 45 minutes back north again, I drove all the way over there, diagnosed it is a bad fuel pump just as the thunder and rain started crashing, and found out that they actually did have a backup car, something that they didn’t feel the need to mention when they were begging for help because they were trying to get to their son’s graduation.
😶
The fuel pump had actually been erroneously changed less than a year prior. They were having issues with their fuel gauge reading on the dash, and the shop replaced the fuel pump thinking it was the fuel pump without actually diagnosing the cause of the issue first. Turned out to not be the fuel pump, it’s inferiority had the whole tank down, they went ahead and replaced it anyway. So now, less than a year later, and being charged full price for a fuel pump job that never needed to be done, now there they were having to try and get a warranty replacement from the new owner, as the shop had been sold in the meantime.
Ugh. Poor people.
First of all, they never should have had to pay for that fuel pump job. The shop should have owned up to the fact that they didn’t actually diagnose it properly first. It was their fault. You don’t change it out until you know what the problem actually is. Diagnose first, not just swap parts.
To be fair, there are times where I’m not absolutely positive, and I do just grab a part and slap it in because I think that’s what it’s going to be. The difference, though, is that if I’m wrong, I don’t charge the customer for it. I take the gamble because I think I’m right, and if it’s solves the problem, then I get to build a customer and get paid for the work. And if it doesn’t, then I eat the parts cost, and I didn’t know the answer to it anyway, so whatever.
Hate it when people get the shaft.
Anyway, I was going to play basketball at the church because sometimes they play Thursday nights, but they were going to be short on numbers, so we all decided just to wait until next Tuesday which is the main night.
So I went home and ate dinner and crashed.
Love to all! 😊
Lift the World
~ stephen
Lift the World 