Right To Repair

[bmpcamry09]

Ya'll should look under the hood on a 3.0 Ecoboost in a Ford Explorer ST or Lincoln Aviator or Bronco Raptor. You'll never want to wrench again. Lol

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[Opus]

i focus on electrical issues as my forte and make an absolute killing diagnosing and repairing issues in minutes when your average tech would take hours. hell, most issues i can diagnose just from the repair order as i've seen it all already. there's good money in the field, but most guys never see it.

When automotive repair work charges labor cost by the hour, there's no money to be made in diagnosing and repairing problems in minutes...

 

[alphawolff]

When automotive repair work charges labor cost by the hour, there's no money to be made in diagnosing and repairing problems in minutes...

uh, if i fix it in 5 minutes we're still charging you the hour.

 

[croppz]

Ya'll should look under the hood on a 3.0 Ecoboost in a Ford Explorer ST or Lincoln Aviator or Bronco Raptor. You'll never want to wrench again. Lol

I looked at a couple that my guys at work were dismantling and I wanted to throw up. I looked at the guy doing the ST and said “aren’t you glad you just gotta take em apart?” He’s like yeah fuck this lmao

 

[Ratbert]

No, I did not want to get too specific with the technicians. Some owners do, some don't. I do rotate my spare into the mix.

If I included the spare in the rotation sequence, no way the technician would remember a multi-step mantra. He would probably end up putting every tire on the carrier at some point in the process. So I applied the KISS theory, leaving the spare decision to each owner.

I apologize to all tire technicians out there for the lack of specificity and clarity I displayed above.

Then why would you have them repeat back to front, front to back if that's just about the opposite of what you want done.

If you want them to follow simple directions, say something like "all five, clockwise". That's the default at Discount Tire.

 

[bmpcamry09]

Then why would you have them repeat back to front, front to back if that's just about the opposite of what you want done.

If you want them to follow simple directions, say something like "all five, clockwise". That's the default at Discount Tire.

That may still need to be watered down more for Discount Tire in my area

 

[LSJKU]

Then why would you have them repeat back to front, front to back if that's just about the opposite of what you want done.

If you want them to follow simple directions, say something like "all five, clockwise". That's the default at Discount Tire.

I've not bought tires at Discount Tire, and I have never heard the term "all five, clockwise" before. But that's great advice if I do go to Disc Tire in the future.

Thanks.

 

[Ratbert]

I've not bought tires at Discount Tire, and I have never heard the term "all five, clockwise" before. But that's great advice if I do go to Disc Tire in the future.

Thanks.

The last time I was in there I explicitly asked since I wanted it to be done consistently. He whipped out a piece of paper with clockwise circled, saying that's what they do by default.

 

[gek]

Ford and GM both met with the president and he basically brushed them off. Elsewhere Farley had commented that they have about 6000 dealer bays empty due to lack of mechanics and that was where dealers make most of their money. The vehicles are so complicated that most existing mechanics are having difficulties repairing anything. At the same time, they don’t want to pay mechanics for all the education they need to work on these computers on wheels.

You misspelled technicians. Dealers have technicians. Mechanic != technician. Techs can look at a computer and do what it says. A mechanic is someone who can figure out an issue without a computer. There might be one of those at a dealer, but he's likely too busy answering all the techs asinine questions and working on harder shit to work on your vehicle.

 

[Prot]

I agree. I was taking a look at the engine bay of a Ford Exploder police cruiser. I could see the oil filter, but it was so crowded in there that I couldn't get my hands or a wrench on it. As a result, I will never consider buying a Ford Exploder as a POV.

The Wrangler is truly a treasure by comparison.

The last time a Wrangler engine bay looked like it should was the TJ era.

I am currently driving a 2014 JKU. I think back to my 1995 YJ with the 4.0L and how much room it had under the hood and I open the hood of my JKU and just sigh. And then I start looking at JL’s to replace my JKU and find there isn’t even room to install an ARB compressor under the hood so it either has to go under the fender or inside the cab and I say to myself WTF. The compressor isn’t that big yet it won’t fit. My JKU uses an ARB compressor for my lockers, so that’s why I think about stuff like that. So if it is that crowded and can’t fit a small compressor, it’s got to suck to repair something.

I just don’t think there is anything being built anymore that is DIY friendly.

 

[Dusty Dude]

You misspelled technicians. Dealers have technicians. Mechanic != technician. Techs can look at a computer and do what it says. A mechanic is someone who can figure out an issue without a computer. There might be one of those at a dealer, but he's likely too busy answering all the techs asinine questions and working on harder shit to work on your vehicle.

I stand corrected Please forgive me. I’m old school, so it’s hard sometimes to keep up with new titles.

 

[Pape]

What, you don't like playing Tetris? Their 2.7L EcoToot bay looks like it was designed by someone that *really* just didn't give af at work that day

You will be really surprised what constitute good work for the designer / engineer / architect VS the guy in the field maintaining it. One of the best example are the truck that you need to pull the cab off to perform certain maintenance job. The peoples designing this should go spend some month working in the field maintaining their design, will change their perspective.

 

[srmitchell]

Former Mopar tech here. On the subject of staffing dealerships and shops...

When I started in 2013, I was surrounded by 20-30+ year veterans of the dealership. These guys worked on dodge and jeep products back into the 80's, and I learned some of my most valuable skills from them. My shop foreman/stall neighbor was the only level 3 drivetrain tech between Santa Rosa and southern Oregon so we certainly had the talent and people to do all of the jobs.

But that was back then. He promoted to service manager. The guy who replaced him left to drive a snap on truck. At least 5 of the senior techs with decades of experience left, moved jobs, or retired.

Now, when I visit the dealer (which I do a lot because my 4xe has been broken a lot) there's only 2 or 3 people left in the shop out of the 13 I used to work with.

I changed jobs to go become a history teacher, following my passion- but was recruited to teach auto shop. I am doing my part to train and inspire the next generation of techs, our industry needs it. But the job is tough, and the cars are getting harder and harder to work on. Attention spans in the current generation of kids add to the problem.

Teaching high schoolers is more complex than any of the cars I ever worked on.

So all that said... the right to repair needs to be protected. Not everyone wants to visit a dealer, and as my students know... it is an important value consideration for long term ownership. Can I fix and maintain this car myself? Or am I beholden to dealer visits forever?

Besides all my 4xe stuff (which is luckily under warranty)... the JL remains one of the most modular, repairable and upgradeable vehicles sold in 2026, especially compered to IFS/IRS counterparts.

 

[Opus]

uh, if i fix it in 5 minutes we're still charging you the hour.

That first hour isn't the issue. That's a given the moment the key fob leaves my hand. But why fix it in 5 minutes when you could spend that first hour dicking around prepping, inspecting, diagnosing and maybe fix it in that second hour... or third??? My point is efficiency is great for the customer when we're paying by the hour, but not so much for the business.

 

[LSJKU]

The last time I was in there I explicitly asked since I wanted it to be done consistently. He whipped out a piece of paper with clockwise circled, saying that's what they do by default.

That's interesting, but makes sense. I was taught to rotate 5 tires (bias-ply days) in the "Z" pattern: spare to RF->RF to RR->RR to LF->LF->LR->LR to spare. I still use this method today. But a few years ago my tire guy (not Discount Tire) said I only needed to rotate "front to back" on the Raptor radials because I did not include the spare, which is a different wheel/tire combo. Who knew? Not me, and I still may be doing it wrong.

Both methods get my front tires on the rear axles and the rear tires on the front axles. That's key for me because the front tire lugs on both vehicles wear in a feathered pattern from steering. It takes many 100's of miles with my front tires on the rear axle to smooth out on the Raptor when I go too long between rotations.

There's different methods/patterns to rotate tires, and they all can be "right." The only "wrong" way is not to rotate them at all.

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