How do You Guys Deal With Mechanical Problems

[myway_1]

Mechanical problems with vehicles cause me lots of stress. I am not mechanically inclined. My last vehicle was a 1996 Honda Accord. When it got to be about 12 years old and 150,000 miles it started having frequent problems. It was causing me so much stress that I sold it three years ago and did not buy a replacement. I walk, bike or use public transportation.

As I consider the idea of buying an inexpensive vehicle to full-time in, the thought of mechanical problems is my main concern, more so than where to park, whether I can live in a small space and whether I'll get lonely.

You guys must have mechanical breakdowns that you can't fix yourselves. How do you deal with that?

If you're alone on public land on a dirt road, how do you find a mechanic and get your vehicle to a mechanic?
If you're in an area with no public transportation and your vehicle isn't worth fixing and won't run, how do you look for a new vehicle?

 

[TMG51]

It definitely helps to be able to do some simple mechanical work on your own if you're living this lifestyle. Lots of problems can be solved if you're not afraid to possess a little ingenuity.

If that's just not you, and you don't have any friends to rely on for help, then it's best to keep some emergency funds. Also roadside assistance/insurance is very cheap and quickly pays for itself if you need a tow.

I've had to get work done on the road when it was something I couldn't do myself. There's usually a way to get it done.

 

[highdesertranger]

well I would learn to fix stuff myself. not that you need to know how to rebuild an engine or transmission. but you should at least know how to change your oil, replace an alternator, etc, etc. if you are boondocking this is even more important. remember an older vehicle is much simpler but you must get ahead of the maintenance curve. a newer vehicle will be more reliable until you hit that 10-15 year point at which time it's going to start nickel and diming you, but you know this already. highdesertranger

 

[Willy]

Whenever possible I do my own repairs. ..Willy.

 

[Almost There]

I'm unable phyically to do 99% of my own mechanical work.

What I have instead is knowledge - knowing whether it's safe to proceed to my destination, the next exit or to get off the road NOW is priceless. Knowing what the problem is and how it should be fixed is also priceless.

As a single female, most often from out of state, I was often an intended target for mechanics who thought they could snow me, dazzle me with b/s and otherwise pay for the childrens' post secondary education. My basic mechanical knowledge keeps me from being that target. When I needed an alternator bolt I knew I did not need a whole new alternator...

The point I'm trying to make is that you don't have to be able to make mechanical repairs to be mechanically knowledgeable. Mechanical knowledge can be obtained, actually quite readily.

I pay for an annual road service plan. If I'm stuck in a town and need repairs I ask the locals, particularly at a auto parts place. They know who has been in business for a long time. Big cities are more problematic than a really small town because you can stay in business in a city and not be a good mechanic. You can't do the same thing in a small town because every body knows every body and if you're dishonest or don't do good work, no one will deal with you. You'll be out of business in no time flat.

As to your last question - I won't drive something that I don't intend to keep. I know lots of people do but it's just something I won't do. If it's not mechanically sound BEFORE I leave home, then I'm not leaving town until it is.

 

[highdesertranger]

very good and very true post from Almost There. knowledge is everything. highdesertranger

 

[Gary68]

not to get to personable but are you physically unable or do you just think your physically unable?if its the latter then you can do most repairs
neighbor lady was just freaking out at the shop price for replacing her radiator and i told her no prob,got a new radiator and had her 8 and 10 year old boys relace it,showed them how to put a piece of pipe on a breaker bar,how to link two wrenches together and how to sit down and use your legs,not much strength and next to no brain power in bolt off,bolt on repairs

 

[Willy]

Years ago, my sister (110 lbs soakin wet) decided to rebuild a type II VW van engine, just cuz she was curious and had seen me rebuild a number of them. Dunno if she'd ever done anything more than LOOK at a wrench, but did it anyway and only made 1 small and easily correctable mistake involving the endplay shims. ..Willy.

 

[myway_1]

I tried replacing a cylinder head gasket on my son's car about 10 years ago and messed it up. I'm strong enough, but I'm just not good working with my hands and my mind isn't suited to understanding mechanical systems. I've been an office worker all my life. That's what I'm good at. Maybe not being handy and not being able to tell if I'm being over-sold by a mechanic makes me unsuited to living in a vehicle.

 

[mayble]

Isn't that like saying not being a construction worker makes me unsuited to living in a house?
When things go wrong, we either fix them or pay someone else to fix them whether it's your home, vehicle, computer, etc.  The major obstacle with the vehicle is getting from the breakdown site to the repairman.  A good roadside assistance plan comes in handy here, as does preventative maintenance and regular inspections of all key components to avoid problems as much as possible.
I'm another one of those whose tool kit is consists of duct tape and a credit card.  I'm not "out there" yet but unless I'm way back in the boonies it wouldn't matter whether I'm on my way home from work or traveling across country - if I break down I call AAA and wait for the tow truck.

 

[eDJ_]

Depending on the vehicle you have and the miles on it, there are extended insurance plans.  With the AAA they offer towing service basic and more expensive membership that covers towing for a greater distance.

I understand the best extended warranty insurance comes from the manufacturers of the vehicle.

I mention this as I've known a lot of Corporate Salesmen & Saleswomen who said that they have purchased this for the car they use on their job.  Not all Companies provide "Company Cars".   Some use a system where the Salesperson purchases a new vehicle and the Company leases it from them to have them use it in their work.

But having these two plans together could allow you to get your vehicle towed to a repair facility and then the
repairs made with the other insurance.   Depending on that policy you may only have to pay for the parts or
whatever.  But you would need to look into what different insurers offer.   You may even want to talk with some of the over the road Salespeople or Sales Managers to see what they do.

It would still be a good idea to have some basic tools as a tool kit in your vehicle.  But where the mechanical inclined guys carry a collection of expensive tools, you may be spending what those tools would cost for insurance.

Just a thought.

 

[akrvbob]

This is a case where perfect is the mortal enemy of very good. Sure being an ace mechanic with tools and ability to rebuild every part of your van is perfect, but having an emergency fund and a cell phone is very good and all you need.

Remember your house is always with you, you don't have to get home, you are home!! You have food, water, shelter and comfort right there in your van. So you pull over to the side of the road and wait for help to come to you. Worse comes to worse, you hitch a ride into the nearest town and come back with a tow truck.

I've done that very thing in the middle of no-where Nevada and it was no big deal. I pulled off the side of the road, made dinner, took the dog for a walk, read a book until bed time that got a good nights sleep. The next morning I hitched ride into town, got a tow truck and it was fixed and running by evening.

No big deal!! A minor adversity overcome is a good thing!
Bob

 

[rvpopeye]

A:Breakdowns happen.

B:You get 'em fixed , at home or out on the road somewhere.
(There has been good advice given on how to find a good place for repairs.)

C:Make yourself a promise to learn a little about your vehicle's systems every month. Just one thing at a time.

D: This is all called "small stuff"

E: Don't sweat the small stuff.......

F: Happy Trails

 

[highdesertranger]

when I was a youngster I used to have mini-bikes. I would take those Brigg and Stratton engines apart and repair them, then reassemble them. that gave me a basic knowledge of engines and how they worked. then when I was working on a ranch at about 16 years old, the boss took me out to the middle of a corn field where a truck was broken down. he said we need to do a valve job on this truck, you need to pull the heads off. he gave me a tool box and a book, then he left. there I was in the middle of a corn field by myself, never having done anything like this on a truck engine. I read the book and pulled the heads. we sent them out to be repaired, when they were done it was the same thing, took me out there with the tools and the book, then told me to put it back together. so I did. what I am trying to get at is the information is out there to take you step by step to fix anything. anybody can do it if you want to or have to. highdesertranger

 

[bigsallysmom]

A lot of vehicle breakdowns in the middle of nowhere could be prevented if people just paid attention to their vehicles. I hate those light off light on dash gauges. I want to see analog gauges. Twice I caught issues with my little truck's water system when I saw the needle shimmying. I know what they should smell like. When I drove my aunts suv down the mountain I was astounded at how bad the brakes smelled when we got home. I won't drive that vehicle the same way again. I know what the engine should sound like so when it starts making noise I start hunting. I thought about recording the sound of my vehicle working correctly so I'd have something to compare it to.
I recently watched a video of a young lady who could tell her van wasn't working correctly yet drove it anyway. Was not surprised when she finally got it into a shop and she was told the engine was toast.

 

[TMG51]

I recently watched a video of a young lady who could tell her van wasn't working correctly yet drove it anyway.  Was not surprised when she finally got it into a shop and she was told the engine was toast.

I had a girlfriend once who experienced engine trouble on the interstate and kept driving... while the engine was on fire. In recounting the story she told me, "I thought maybe if I drove faster the flames would go out." Fortunately the driver behind her was quick to pull up along side and frantically gesture for her to pull over. The car was of course a total loss.

If there's a point to that story it's that sometimes wishful thinking and denial run too closely together, and that common sense and preventive maintenance are the safer bet!

We didn't date long.

 

[GotSmart]

It's not a bad idea to have a set of manuals (Factory Service Manuals preferably) even if you aren't planning on doing repairs yourself. You could get in a situation where there is someone willing and able to do the work if they had the information from the manual.

My best roadside adventure was when I had a rear axle bearing fail. Of course it was raining, why do you ask? I ended up pulling the axle (once it cooled down) and hitchhiking to the IH dealership to get the new bearing pressed on and then hitched back. The hard part was getting the old outer race out of the axle, used a brake spring pliers with a chain and something heavy all strung together to act like a slide hammer.

Guy

Roadside adventures.  

I like that. 

So far I have replaced so many parts on the roadside, I have lost track.  

Last year during RTR my engine had a little problem.  The dealer wanted $4,500 to replace it.   $125 later, I had replaced the head gasket. (Thanks Mechanic Mike!)  

A factory manual is a must. 

Every part seen in the photo was serviced my me.  Some are made out of "things" ad the factory does not supply them.  My vacuum system is completely pieced together.  

The last mechanic took one look at it and told me that for $1,000 he could guarantee me 13 mpg.  I get almost 16 now!

 

[rvpopeye]

Over my 35 years on the road I've got a list of roadside fixes (and not fixes) pick ups , motorhomes , vans , equipment trucks , tour busses
they can all be fixed , well , except if they burn (still can fix , but only sometimes)!

The manual suggestion is great !
I've even used them from time to time.
I've found lots of very helpful people out there too ,way more than the rip-off type.

Bottom line , this isn't really something you need to stress over .
Breakdown free trips are much more common.
It's true , I tell ya !

 

[TMG51]

TMG51,

Was it an air cooled VW?

Guy

I *think* it was a SAAB, but I don't honestly remember. It was 11 years ago and I heard the story from her after the fact.

 

[Canine]

We all have our strengths and weakness. Being able to repair most problems on your vehicle is a great skill to have when being mobile. Since you don't have strong mechanical skills, perhaps putting more of an effort into buying the best parts you can help prevent untimely breakdowns.

Yet don't ignore mechanicing altogether. Keep a small toolbox of the most basic tools. I'm sure your skills aren't so bad that you are more likely to stab yourself with a screwdriver than turn a screw. Use your limited mechanical skills to the best of your ability instead of over emphasizing your weak mechanical skills. For example: is the visor wiggling because of a loose screw? Are you able to repair that, or do you need to hire someone to do that for you? No matter what, if you own a vehicle, you need to be able to check the fluids, the air in the tires, write down the times/mileages when air filters, fuel filters, oil, tire rotation etc. need to be changed if you want it to last any length of time.

Personally, I like to emphasize my strengths instead of spending a same amount energy trying to marginally improve my weaknesses. I'm not the best with verbal communication, so I do activities that are more suited for me. I don't try to become a salesman because any gains I would make would be minimal no matter how much time and effort I would put into it. I try not to let that get me down. I am who I am and there is nothing wrong with that. If I'm in a situation where I need to communicate effectively, but have a "breakdown" on the verbal highway, I stop, take a breath, and continue the best I can. If I'm completely stuck, I'll ask for help even though it can make me sound dumb; at least I'm taking care of business and not getting all Grumpy Cat about it.

Like has been said, developing a stronger situational awareness of how your vehicle is working will help tremendously. Had a friend that had a ticking sound in his truck. He called me up and told me about it. I said I would take a look-see the next time I came over. He drove it anyway and it overheated. He called me again and told me. He also told me the battery dummy light was on. I told him to stop driving because the serpentine belt probably failed and overheating an engine is a bad deal. He drove it again anyway. The next day he went out to warm it up; the truck died while warming up because the alternator wasn't charging due to no belt. He drained the battery so badly that the truck couldn't get spark. When I came over to look at it (less than 24 hours after the first phone call), the belt was a rat's nest. There were a few pieces large enough to see that the belt was way overdue for a change. He never bothered to look or to do what I said- he only took the time to complain to me.

I suspect the belt was fraying, which caused it to slap against something, which was causing the ticking sound. The belt failed which stopped the water pump which caused it to overheat. It also caused the alternator to stop turning which caused the battery to drain. Then he had Kevlar strands of belt wrapped around two pulleys. That is a difficult fix. Before it completely failed, it would have been a 5 minute fix. Now it was much longer, more expensive, dealt a killer blow to the battery, and did some engine damage due to overheating. He ignored any advice he solicited from me and ignored obvious signs that something was blatantly wrong. (This was a recurring theme from him.)

Pay attention, do something about obvious problems other than press harder on the accelerator, and listen to a competent, trustworthy mechanic's advice. Those three things combined are more valuable and will save you more money than being your own competent mechanic.