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So... How much does a bus pass cost?

Started by Delawhere Jack, November 15, 2014, 07:19:00 PM

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Delawhere Jack

Always prided myself on being thrifty, buy used vehicles cash and never have car payments. Well it seems my luck is wearing thin. In the past six months or so.....

Jeep: O2 sensor for primary cat, and special tool to install $60
Jeep: Gas cap that ACTUALLY SEALS to prevent CEL to pass emmisions (from dealer  >:() $22
Hee Haul: blows a rear tire returning from a milling job. Two new rears $300
Jeep: Power steering pump $90
Hee Haul: Parts to fabricate spare tire holder (had to hacksaw the rusted original to get tire loose) $5 plus time
Jeep: Power steering pump pressure hose $20(?)
Hee Haul: Power steering return line (hardline) $20
Jeep: Upper and lower pass side ball joints about $120
Jeep: Track bar $70
Jeep: Can now get alignment since ball joints replaced $89
Hee Haul: Muffler and new tailpipe to the back (had some pipe, bought some fittings) $75
Hee Haul: Transfer case rear seal $20(?)
Jeep: Battery. 8 year battery died after 3 1/2 years. Pro-rated warranty $70
Jeep: Battery cable clamp to replace one eaten by leaking battery acid $2 (picked up at thrift store)
Jeep: Sealed beam headlight $10 (I should have stocked up at that price)
Hee Haul: SS wire to lock wire header bolts so I don't wake the neighbors when leaving for a job $7
Hee Haul: REAL US bolts to FINALLY secure the Y pipe to the headers (with locking nuts) $5
Fluids for both (which mostly end up on the highway, bottom of vehicles or in my driveway) $100

And the icing on the cake, Hee Haul is losing 3rd gear..........

Hee Haul (pending): Rebuild kit for C6 transmission $130 +



 

I just can't bring myself to shoot it.......... :(

So.... How much is a bus pass?   ::)

red

Depends how far you want to go , one way or round trip
I think $130 will be a better investment
Honor the Fallen Thank the Living

sawguy21

I feel your pain. 215 hard earned dollars for a seat belt buckle for the 97 Ranger. Can't drive legally without it. That one stung. Another grand for ball joints and an alignment on the Ram diesel. All that on top of rising fuel costs even though the price of crude is dropping. Guess I will have to make another trip to the money tree. ::)
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

coxy

it could be worse    55000 dollar truck with 38000 miles tranny goes dealer says oh you tow heavy loads  with it   ??? ::) tranny not covered  was told tranny my be around 3-5 grand  :o :o  glad its not my truck or it would be sitting trough the show room window the next morning when he came to work

timberlinetree

At lease they aren't that rusty! Heehaul looks like a show truck! Good luck with the fix. Heard that to you buy a truck and if you haul or tow warranty void go figure :-\
I've met Vets who have lived but still lost their lives... Thank a Vet

Family man and loving it :)

Corley5

I've got a rusted out 02 Dodge Cummins 4X4 with 253,000 miles that needs an auto tranny and now a turbo.  Runs great, body is junk.  Where do you draw the line  ???
Burnt Gunpowder is the Smell Of Freedom

pineywoods

Sometimes I think the Amish have it figured out..Get a horse. Then I remember having to feed and care for them critters and I'm not so shure. Then there's my dad's advice, You don't have to feed a tractor when you aren't   using it.  ;D  BUT, upkeep on all the machinery we seem to collect can get expensive.
1995 Wood Mizer LT 40, Liquid cooled kawasaki,homebuilt hydraulics. Homebuilt solar dry kiln.  Woodmaster 718 planner, Kubota M4700 with homemade forks and winch, stihl  028, 029, Ms390
100k bd ft club.Charter member of The Grumpy old Men

Corley5

If my Dodge looked as good as that Ford the repair bill wouldn't be as painful :)
Burnt Gunpowder is the Smell Of Freedom

Delawhere Jack

Drive shafts and transfer case out, just need to remove a cross member, a couple linkages and then drop it. Not too terrible a job so far. Rebuild kit from NAPA should be in tomorrow.

Corley, the kid I bought this from restored it with his dad. It's one of those "if it looks good from 10 feet away, that's good enough" kinda deals. He called me a few weeks back wanting to buy it back. I thought about it, but at this point I know what the issues with this one are. If I trade down to a 1/2 ton in the same price range, I'll just be getting a whole new set of issues to deal with.

The down side is the mileage. Just a little over 7mpg when towing the mill.

Delawhere Jack

C6 Master Rebuild kit from NAPA $144.
New U-joints for front drive shaft $40.
Trans filter $7
Locktite, trans assembly lube, broken bolt extractor kit, and new modulator valve (TV valve) $65
Four gallons of Mercon ATF $72.

Was beginning to think that I was on a wild goose chase doing the rebuild until I saw the frictions and steels in the second clutch pack. Definitely burned. Also found that this trans has been rebuild before with really crappy parts. Luckily none of the major components has any damage, so it's just a matter of refreshing the clutches, seals, o-rings and such. All the major sub assemblies are rebuilt now, just need to stuff them all back in the case.

Reading some of your comments actually makes me feel better about this ordeal. Should be able to get Ole Hee Haul back on the road for under $500. (Not counting my labor  :( ). Guess it still beats the heck out of having a $500/month truck payment, or riding the bus.  ;D

Ianab

I've come to the conclusion with modern vehicles. Buy late model used and dump it when it starts getting unreliable. Too many little doo-dads that break, and cost a fortune when they get older.

My old Toyota failed an inspection due to a bad rear wheel bearing. Not a problem right? Wrong. Basically the hub is a single unit with the ABS sensor included @$700. Luckily my mechanic found a used one for ~$100.

All these fancy bits can be be replaced of course, and for something special it might be worth doing.  But for a Corolla, scrap it and buy a newer one.

The new one having ~105 more hp had nothing to do with it either.  ;)
Weekend warrior, Peterson JP test pilot, Dolmar 7900 and Stihl MS310 saws and  the usual collection of power tools :)

red

If you drive a popular/high production vehicle parts will be inexpensive

The 6.5L .GM Diesel parts will always be available because of the Military Vehicles it is used in . . .
Honor the Fallen Thank the Living

Ianab

QuoteIf you drive a popular/high production vehicle parts will be inexpensive

Agreed. That's my reasoning for buying Toyotas. Even if Toyota want a fortune for parts, used bits will be available.
Weekend warrior, Peterson JP test pilot, Dolmar 7900 and Stihl MS310 saws and  the usual collection of power tools :)

red

I call them Generic cars with min of 20 vehicles at the local u pull it auto yard you can always find another Used part Cheap

Then once a year the u pull it auto yard has a $1.00 sale and we stock up Alt , Starter, battery, radiator , etc
Honor the Fallen Thank the Living

Delawhere Jack

Pictures, or it didn't happen. That's the motto here right?

Couldn't take pictures during the actual rebuilding because it's a pretty oily job, and I didn't want to ruin my camera. Here is the case nearly ready to install the pan. Just got to figure out where I put a short bolt where there should have been a long one in the valve body...


 
I did find some burned clutches. You can see the burn marks on the steels. The frictions were worn to the point there was almost no friction material left. These were from the second clutch pack behind the pump, I believe it's called the direct drive clutch, but different sources use different terms.


 
Finding parts for Ole Hee Haul is starting to be a problem. None of the parts stores keep anything in stock, and they're very limited on what they can order in. Couldn't find a transfer case to trans gasket, so I'll have to make one. Surprisingly, one of the local chain stores actually had gasket material. I thought that was a thing of the past.


 
With any luck I'll get it installed tomorrow, and it will work...........

Nate379

Been a while since I've worked on a Ford truck, but I don't remember a gasket.  Isn't there a seal on the back of the trans shaft and on the t case input?

Ljohnsaw

Quote from: Ianab on November 21, 2014, 05:47:50 AM
I've come to the conclusion with modern vehicles. Buy late model used and dump it when it starts getting unreliable. Too many little doo-dads that break, and cost a fortune when they get older.

My old Toyota failed an inspection due to a bad rear wheel bearing. Not a problem right? Wrong. Basically the hub is a single unit with the ABS sensor included @$700. Luckily my mechanic found a used one for ~$100.

All these fancy bits can be be replaced of course, and for something special it might be worth doing.  But for a Corolla, scrap it and buy a newer one.

The new one having ~105 more hp had nothing to do with it either.  ;)
My daughter's 4Runner - leaking rear seal, shot wheel bearing.  $700 fix because of the stupid ABS setup.  Asked if I would save any labor doing the other side just because - nope.  So didn't touch it.  I do not have the tools and didn't have the time to do it myself.  Has 120k on it.
John Sawicky

Just North-East of Sacramento...

SkyTrak 9038, Ford 545D FEL, Davis Little Monster backhoe, Case 16+4 Trencher, Home Built 42" capacity/36" cut Bandmill up to 54' long - using it all to build a timber frame cabin.

Delawhere Jack

Quote from: Nate379 on November 22, 2014, 06:55:39 PM
Been a while since I've worked on a Fird truck, but I don't remember a fasket.  Isn't there a sealing the back of the trans shaft and on the t case input?

No. The 4x4 tail housing is open to the transfer case, no shaft seal. Just a baffle at the back of the tailshaft housing  to direct any fluid back to the trans. There was a gasket between the tailshaft housing and the transfer case, but to get one you've got to buy a complete transfer case seal/gasket kit, $17-20. Didn't want to pay that for one gasket, especially since the transfer case is the one component that it not leaking. So I made my own gasket.


 

Nate379

Gotcha.  I would have paid $20 before making that gasket, but I bill out at $90/hr too.  Yeah of course I don't bill myself, but if I'm spending time on my stuff it means I'm not making money.

Delawhere Jack

Quote from: Nate379 on November 23, 2014, 01:07:24 AM
Gotcha.  I would have paid $20 before making that gasket, but I bill out at $90/hr too.  Yeah of course I don't bill myself, but if I'm spending time on my stuff it means I'm not making money.

Sadly I seem to have more free time than money lately. Altogether it only took 20 minutes to trace the housing and make the gasket, plus $2 worth of gasket material. If someone else was paying I'd have bought it.

Tranny and transfer case are back in Ole Hee Haul. Just a couple linkages, crossmembers and driveshafts left to reinstall.

Rental on a transmission jack: $30.  ::)

Delawhere Jack

Quote from: Ianab on November 21, 2014, 05:47:50 AM
I've come to the conclusion with modern vehicles. Buy late model used and dump it when it starts getting unreliable. Too many little doo-dads that break, and cost a fortune when they get older.

My old Toyota failed an inspection due to a bad rear wheel bearing. Not a problem right? Wrong. Basically the hub is a single unit with the ABS sensor included @$700. Luckily my mechanic found a used one for ~$100.

All these fancy bits can be be replaced of course, and for something special it might be worth doing.  But for a Corolla, scrap it and buy a newer one.

The new one having ~105 more hp had nothing to do with it either.  ;)

My BIL had a 2010 Dodge 3500 diesel 4x4 crew cab full length bed Palace on Wheels (leather interior, literally nicer than any room in my house). The turn signal light in the drivers side mirror housing burned out. The dealer told him $1,000 dollars...... :o :o :o :o Apparently the brainiacs who designed it made it so that there is no way to replace the bulb, you've got to replace the entire mirror assembly. It's not required to pass inspection, so he told them to forget it.

Delawhere Jack

Ole Hee Haul Rides Again!!!

Well, briefly. Trans is in and working, but the torque converter needs replacing too. I kinda suspected that, and should have gone ahead and replaced it when I had the trans out. Oh well, at least everything should come apart easier this time.

Hee Haul: vacuum modulator (the correct one this time) $23
Hee Haul: Another gallon of ATF (don't ask :-[) $20
Hee Haul: Second rental on a trans jack $30
Hee Haul: torque converter $139
Tool kit: vacuum pump/gauge $36
Jeep: Headlight / interior light switch / dimmer $20

Tom L

when my brother in law was at the house for a 3 day stay last month, and wound up staying for 2 weeks, before he took the bus to florida, a bus pass is priceless

sawguy21

 :D What is the difference between visitors and fish? Answer: Nothing. they both start to smell after three days.
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

Raider Bill

Quote from: sawguy21 on December 03, 2014, 09:59:11 AM
:D What is the difference between visitors and fish? Answer: Nothing. they both start to smell after three days.
When I first moved to Florida I had 3 bedrooms and a pull out couch ready for my old northern friends to come visit. It got old, real old.  [I'm not talking about the ,no drag close friends] I found that I had friends showing up I didn't even know, or like.... "friends" that wouldn't leave, friends that didn't have any $$$, friends that didn't like what I cooked etc. You get the idea.

1 family of 5 liked me so much they bought the house 2 doors away and adopted me as the go to "uncle" when one needed something. I really didn't know them well before they moved down.  Think a of griswald family moving in which is what we named them.

This house I bought after that one had including the in-law suite, 5 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms and 2 kitchens. I busted out a few walls and added some so now I have a 4 bath, 3 kitchen and ONE bedroom. No pullout couch either.

The First 70 years of childhood is always the hardest.

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