Does anyone work on their Aston

[leerandle]

davek_964 said:

I didn't say that you don't know how to do things. I've quoted a bit more of my post above so it's clear what I was saying.

My point was that it's very unusual for people to take a car to the mechanic to get bulbs / wipers / fuses changed. Some people do, but most don't. And although far fewer people would change the filters or the brake pads - there is actually relatively little mechanical ability needed for those things. Hence the idea that you need a specialist to do them really isn't true.

This thread does seem slightly odd. Many of us are saying we do routine stuff like brakes etc. - and yet some people seem to interpret that as "I'd rebuild the engine and hope for the best if I needed to". There might be some people who are happy to carry out that level of work at home - and the OP might be one of them - but there is a much bigger number of people, myself included - who are happy to do plenty of stuff at home to reduce running costs but still want the annual stamp in the book - and would not do big major mechanical jobs.

+1

[Jon39]

One of the pleasures of this AM forum, which I think is appreciated by most contributors, is our good standard of politeness. Certainly very different from some other areas of PH.

Personal insults ....

[George29]

Car mad enthusiast said:

You had best stick to your day job then and leave us real world folk to get on with what we do and know best.

I never once said that someone can't or shouldn't service their car themselves. I said I wouldn't buy one that had been serviced by the owner. Since others have also said the same thing maybe you don't know best?

[Loose_Cannon]

It appears emotions run high on this issue!

Lets be clear that the desire not to involve yourself with maintenance is no slur on anyone's abilities. Similarly, mechanical aptitude is not some primitive neanderthal birth right. There are some people who couldn't undo the screws on the handbook, but their obvious skills lie elsewhere (otherwise they would be able to afford an Aston in the first place)

My own preference is borne out of historically always striving to own as many cars as possible or something I can't quite afford!

Aston ownership covers such a diverse range or people from the aspirants, to those whom the purchase and subsequent maintenance is a fleabite compared to their annual income. Out of interest I just did a DVLA history check on mine and the first owner lived in a house recently sold for £24 million. For sure he didn't know where the pollen filters were.

[Car mad enthusiast]

George29 said:

Car mad enthusiast said:

You had best stick to your day job then and leave us real world folk to get on with what we do and know best.

WHATEVER!!!!!!

I never once said that someone can't or shouldn't service their car themselves. I said I wouldn't buy one that had been serviced by the owner. Since others have also said the same thing maybe you don't know best?

[George29]

I hope the standard of work on your car is better than your comebacks

[Big Ry]

You two are like a pair of bickering bloody kids, give it a rest will you

[leerandle]

Big Ry said:

You two are like a pair of bickering bloody kids, give it a rest will you

The has spoken............

[B4rnst4ble]

There is a big difference between tinkering with an old mgb and a gaydon aston.
and I do think there is a big difference between changing a bulb or a wiper blade to doing a service etc, you would have to look at the bigger picture as to the loss in value and the money you have saved, I am sure a lot of us have said that cars are keepers to suddenly trade them in for a newer model.....in fact I said that about the ex wife

would I take my car to an indie to get a light bulb changed of course not............. I would ask my butler to take it as I wouldn't want my red trousers getting dirty,

[Car mad enthusiast]

LMAO

George29 said:

I hope the standard of work on your car is better than your comebacks

[gf15]

I am going to take a middle of the road approach. I am not a mechanic, but worked in a main dealer garage as a youth and was not impressed.

BMW service experience has ranged from appalling (brake bolts left undone by a BMW main dealer) to a BMW specialist that was superb.
I do a lot of the work on my cars (wheel bearings, springs, shockers, plugs, oil, electrical gremlins etc..) and get my specialist to give the car an annual once over, where I share all the work I have done and get it safety checked.
I am hoping to get a Vantage (these things take many years to come to fruition in our house) and would not discriminate against a car with a significant amount of owner maintenance backed up with receipts for OEM parts and correct oil, with a regular sprinkling of good specialist / main dealer work, as long as the owner was knowledgeable and meticulous.
As an aside and from left field, if I need open heart surgery, I would not go to an AM dealer, a specialist or a doctor, I would go to that Vet on the TV; Noel Fitzpatrick, as he seems very impressive.

[Car mad enthusiast]

+1 & LOL, You will go far adopting those attitudes and I wish you luck finding your Aston soon.

gf15 said:

I am going to take a middle of the road approach. I am not a mechanic, but worked in a main dealer garage as a youth and was not impressed.

BMW service experience has ranged from appalling (brake bolts left undone by a BMW main dealer) to a BMW specialist that was superb.
I do a lot of the work on my cars (wheel bearings, springs, shockers, plugs, oil, electrical gremlins etc..) and get my specialist to give the car an annual once over, where I share all the work I have done and get it safety checked.
I am hoping to get a Vantage (these things take many years to come to fruition in our house) and would not discriminate against a car with a significant amount of owner maintenance backed up with receipts for OEM parts and correct oil, with a regular sprinkling of good specialist / main dealer work, as long as the owner was knowledgeable and meticulous.
As an aside and from left field, if I need open heart surgery, I would not go to an AM dealer, a specialist or a doctor, I would go to that Vet on the TV; Noel Fitzpatrick, as he seems very impressive.

[ChilliWhizz]

I did a nut and bolt strip down and rebuild on my Lotus 7 when I was eighteen, without any assistance... Did use a manual for the engine rebuild though, bought a lightly siezed (through having stood) 1600 x flow lump out of a series 4 Seven, stripped it, took all the reciprocating parts to an engineering company who lightened and balanced them and honed the bores, and rebuilt it with all new parts as necessary. (with lashings of Castrol R, in my bedroom, much to my mothers disgust). Fitted a box from a 2000E Corsair (close ratio and known as a bullet box at the time), bought a second hand mag bell housing from a written off rally Escort, and had the prop-shaft shortened to suit by someone who knew how to do it

I did all my own servicing up until my early twenties when I was given a company car The sense of achievement and enjoyment was immense....

Back then this was all fields, we didn't have mobile phones or computers, and girl power hadn't been invented, we did have books though and you could go to skool and learn how to read, then go home from skool and ride a dodgy bike and climb trees... Things are obviously different these days, censorship went crazy years ago, someone invented diagnostics, and common sense is on the verge of extinction..

I'm doing a body off on my TVR this year (in my garage at home), probably need to get the chassis shot blasted and coated... Would I do an oil and filter change, or brake pad change on the Vantage... Yeah, I think I could just about manage that... I am a PH driving God type car enthusiast bloke after all...

[Big Ry]

ChilliWhizz said:

Would I do an oil and filter change, or brake pad change on the Vantage... Yeah, I think I could just about manage that... I am a PH driving God type car enthusiast bloke after all...

Ah, but would you buy a £50k motor from someone who said it's ok, I change the oil and service it myself, never had the book stamped and if it goes bang you're on your own......but hey I know what I'm doing

I agree we all COULD do this stuff and most of us would agree that the cost of a straight service etc is on the heavy side, but it does give a level of peace of mind. I'm not saying that an enthusiast couldn't or wouldn't look after the car better than a dealer, in many cases they probably would, I think the main dispute here is whether or not it would be detrimental when you then tried to sell the car on.....

Top effort on the Lotus by the way, that's impressive stuff

[davek_964]

B4rnst4ble said:

There is a big difference between tinkering with an old mgb and a gaydon aston.

Actually, there is very little difference in changing brake pads / air filter on an MGB / Ford Focus etc. to an Aston.

And, as already mentioned - I think that most of us are discussing service items like that rather than "home servicing" and not getting the annual stamp in the book.

[B4rnst4ble]

I bow to your superior knowledge and self certified ability davek,

[jeyjey]

ChilliWhizz said:

I did a nut and bolt strip down and rebuild on my Lotus 7 when I was eighteen, without any assistance... Did use a manual for the engine rebuild though, bought a lightly siezed (through having stood) 1600 x flow lump out of a series 4 Seven...

Those were fun engines to work on. I built 2 1600 x-flows for my Formula Ford, and a 1500 pre-x-flow (with Cosworth "big" valves and cam, and a pair of DCOE 40s) for my '65 Ginetta G4.

Cheers,
Jeff.

[davek_964]

B4rnst4ble said:

I bow to your superior knowledge and self certified ability davek,

Nice sarcasm.

But to be honest, if you really think there is some difference in how brakes work on an Aston compared to a cheaper car - and hence there is some difference in doing basic stuff like changing pads - then the reality is that you're correct. I do have superior knowledge.

[ChilliWhizz]

Big Ry said:

Ah, but would you buy a £50k motor from someone who said it's ok,

Definitely not, I only trust my own work

Big Ry said:

Top effort on the Lotus by the way, that's impressive stuff

Cheers for that Big Ry...

Wish I still owned the damn thing

jeyjey said:

Those were fun engines to work on. I built 2 1600 x-flows for my Formula Ford, and a 1500 pre-x-flow (with Cosworth "big" valves and cam, and a pair of DCOE 40s) for my '65 Ginetta G4.

Cheers,
Jeff.

Good memories Jeff ................. The original lump in the Seven was a 1340 from a Classic, with 997 crank and rods so it could race in the 1000cc clubmans class..... it was also a Cosworth lump, centre main bearing strap (three bearing crank), amazing head work, twin 40's, but the cam was fubar'd In hindsight I probably should have rebuilt it, but I was a teenager strapped for cash, and the dosh I got for the Cossie lump paid for the purchase and full rebuild of the X Flow... I ran it for about six months with the Cossie lump in, it had had a 105E box put in it with that huge ratio difference between 2nd and 3rd so it fell off cam, but the flames emitted from the twin 40's and the side exit exhaust were epic

[ChilliWhizz]

davek_964 said:

B4rnst4ble said:

There is a big difference between tinkering with an old mgb and a gaydon aston.

Actually, there is very little difference in changing brake pads / air filter on an MGB / Ford Focus etc. to an Aston.

And, as already mentioned - I think that most of us are discussing service items like that rather than "home servicing" and not getting the annual stamp in the book.

I still have my old '72 MGB Roadster, and whilst it doesn't have a USB port to plug the diagnostic computer thingy in to, I can tell you that removing the brake drums and replacing brake shoes on the rear end is an arse of a job compared to replacing a set of pads