"How hard is it to...?"

[deevergote]

"how hard" is 100% subjective.

"Is this something a beginner should expect to be able to accomplish with basic hand tools?" would be a far better question.

[LadyG]

Well said Mike.

And yeah, let them try. It means more money for shop owners, fixing the bumblings of the noobs.
They usually end up spending more to fix it, than if they had just paid to have it done the first go-round.

The only thing I actively dissuade is meddling with electronics and wiring, cause those are a bitch, idk who you are! lol.

[sonikaccord]

^^^O Rly?

Electronics is easy in our relatively simple cars. Oh, that's that subjective thing again.

[deevergote]

How hard is it to build a custom engine harness?

[Raf99]

On the flip side I could be asking not for myself but because a shop or someone is doing it for me.

Example:
How hard is it to swap a transmission? The shop I went to charged me $2000 and took 4 weeks. The internet is not going to tell me the details, only someone experienced would know this answer and think of things I would never find via google/facebook.

[deevergote]

Most automotive labor is standardized... so there's a set number of hours that a shop should be able to bill for for any standard procedure. It doesn't matter "how hard" something is, if the standard is 3 hours for a transmission replacement, that's what it should cost from a professional... and most pros make their money by being able to do it in 2 and billing for 3...

[af_1132]

Ah, the flat rate system: the joy of seasoned professional technicians, but the thorn in the side of many new and inexperienced mechanics in the field.

One of my parents' friends brings his family's cars to me to repair under the table. I have enough rapport with him to set up an hourly rate + parts cost, documented in invoices that I send him. Doing business with people close to you that trust you to do quality repairs renders the flat rate system unnecessary in that context. I often get tipped by this guy because I set up reasonable rates, and he thinks I should have charged more.

Anyway, he often asks, "it wouldn't be too hard to take care of this, would it?", or, "how hard would it be to fix that?". You can only really answer that question personally, once you understand the job.

[98vtec]

^^^O Rly?

Electronics is easy in our relatively simple cars. Oh, that's that subjective thing again.

you should see the wiring diagrams on the Mercedes I deal with daily lol

[sonikaccord]

How hard is it to build a custom engine harness?

Not too hard. All you have to do is pick up the phone and give Rywire a call.

you should see the wiring diagrams on the Mercedes I deal with daily lol

I like spaghetti! That's one of the things that irritates me too. CAN is supposed to simplify wiring...well you see how that turned out.

[98vtec]

With the amount of modules, control units and sensors these cars have nowadays, imagine wiring without CAN

[deevergote]

That's the beauty of a subjective question. Someone with wiring experience, or at least an understanding of reading wiring diagrams... wiring stuff can be simple. To the guy who's first course of action is to ask the internet "how hard", though... they PROBABLY don't have the necessary skills and/or brain power to do it, since they didn't bother to actually look at what was involved compared to their own skill level.


I've always thought it would be cool to make my own harness. Better than a "cut and extend" wire tuck. Just make a new harness with longer wires, and hope the extra length doesn't make a big difference!

[98vtec]

That's the beauty of a subjective question. Someone with wiring experience, or at least an understanding of reading wiring diagrams... wiring stuff can be simple. To the guy who's first course of action is to ask the internet "how hard", though... they PROBABLY don't have the necessary skills and/or brain power to do it, since they didn't bother to actually look at what was involved compared to their own skill level.


I've always thought it would be cool to make my own harness. Better than a "cut and extend" wire tuck. Just make a new harness with longer wires, and hope the extra length doesn't make a big difference!

ohms law. that is all.

[deevergote]

Yeah... for me, wiring is "hard". (I suppose I could learn that stuff... but I have yet to take the time. Is it hard to learn? )

[sonikaccord]

Yes...learning is a very long and tortuous process