I wish I could get a video of how my auto problems are identified, and fixed. I’m not interested in arguing costs or “service time”, but to see the repair being done and hear the thoughts of the mechanic is valuable!
Technicians/Mechanics DONT get enough RESPECT/LOVE for what they do..ESPECIALLY with these types of repairs..Im pretty good with breaking plastic bits and whatever else have you..Could be gentle as a lamb, and still break it... LOVE the channel and content Ray..NEVER CHANGE sir..
That plastic will become brittle no matter what you do, and GM plastic seems to deteriorate the fastest of all. The cheap-ass snap-together interiors are bad enough, but there's so much plastic under the hood of modern cars now. I really doubt anyone will be seeing today's cars at car shows 50 years from now.
Plastic impellers on water pumps. Can you say engineered obsolescence. Tell me that an egr does anything but ruin the intake. Direct injection? Junk. As far as no respect for mechanics. The only brilliant mechanics i know are on RU-vid. I watch them all. All the guys by me are idiots or snakes or both. I had to become my own mechanic. I won't let anyone but Ray or Eric touch my cars. Since i don't live anywhere near them. It's me.
@@MrSloika Especially that being Florida and the heat that interior sees on a yearly basis is brutal. I am sure there are pieces in there that would break just by looking at them.
I normally would remove the exhaust and torque tube cover to replace the shifter cable. Would not mess with the inside at all. Very good chance the trim pieces would break if not already broken
I’m not a mechanic, and might be the person least likely to get her hands dirty working on a car. However, I just love these videos and am fascinated by Ray’s work and his commentary. Maybe, after watching a few more of these, I’ll end up taking a car apart after all!
I think what we are responding to is a decent guy making honest videos and at least for the customers he shows, is an honest and contentious mechanic. That is so rare. I am not all the mechanically inclined, just not good at it, and lack interest. And still I've learned a ton from Ray. He's just your average everyday decent guy, sense of humor and lacking in ego, that is a breath of fresh air. Believe it or not, that happy go lucky attitude he has, used to be common. And he never asks anyone what their MFing politics are. LOL KEEP IT UP, Ray. Wishing you mega success.
Ray should leave it apart and clip a pair of vice grips to the cable and tell the guy the job is done, ha ha. I am sure someone somewhere is driving a vette around using that same method.
@@johnholzhey8149 *automagic, and it’s a term that was used in early automobiles to sell the “new” automatic transmissions. “It’s shifts for you, like magic!” Never cracked open an old ad for a car? Talk about uneducated…
@@johnholzhey8149 I’m around a quarter of that. Automagic was used by Thor washing machines back in the day, and now I can’t remember which car ad it was that used the same slogan to tout its new design for the auto tranny; either merc or a GM ad but the interwebs let me down today. I’ll come back when it magically pops into my head as a random thought
I have a 2001 6 spd. I've had the center apart more than a few times for various upgrades over the years. I installed a Hurst short throw 6 spd shifter and when I did that I read that it is a huge difference if you line the inside of the shift housing above the torque tube with thermal dynamat that has aluminum heat shielding. It made a huge difference in noise reduction, and it no longer heats my right leg like a piece of grilled chicken. Highly recommended upgrade.
I had a 2003 Z06 and had not just the center apart but also the dash apart so many times. The dash was when I swapped out the display to look a little more modern and when the HUD dropped. I installed an auxiliary adapter on it and went with the MGW short shifter with their ball and pistol grip knob (I liked swapping them every few months). MGW was very notchy but I liked it. I also put in a red/black padded arm rest along with matching shifter boot. I got rid of the car years ago and while it was fun to drive, I got tired of fixing it.
The first engine I took apart was on my 1956 Oldsmoblie 88. Time catches up with us all and I no longer am able to do major repairs. I enjoy watching your repair work. It's good to know there are still competent and honest auto techs out there. You are a credit to the industry. Keep up the good work!.
Very interesting. I know your a good mechanic because you knew what was going on with that vet just by the feel of it. Shift lever moves to easy so the cable isn't attached or broken. Won't shift into park so it won't start. No click but there's power. Pretty clever. I really like the way you do your analyzing.
Instead of replacing the whole cable Dorman makes bushing inserts for shift cables. Had a Vette around the same year with a failed bushing. Grabbed a few of the bushing kits , found the one that was the closest fit but was slightly too big to get into the plastic housing. Split one side of the bushing and slowly pushed it into the plastic end. Worked like a charm
Outstanding video, great camerawork and logical approach to quickly diagnosing the problem. In all honesty, my attempt to do this job would have ended with a bunch of screws, broken tabs and harness connectors in my hand. Great work.
I worked in the trade for 30 years. Your videos are great in the fact you document all your activity. It protects you from all kinds of problems. Keep up the great work from Canada😊
Done a few of them. This was a known problem with certain years that plastic snap ball cover was known to break. Fun part was always trying to fish out the old and install the new. Torque tube most times has to come out. The repair itself isn't to hard. The part isn't all expensive but it is very labor intense. What i did was made a metal slip lock system that fixed it perm. The older ones are norm on second or third owner and to a younger person that wants to slam the gears and race the thing. Here in AZ we get very very hot and not a lot of humidity so plastic parts always seem to break LOL. Keep up the great work Rainman Ray seen just about all of your vids. One thing I always think of when I watch your vids is the olds saying cover your BUTT and a great vid does just that. Customer can't say hey you broke it when on vid it shows it was already broken LOL
Can I just point out how hilarious it is that during this time period GM put the same damn radio in every single vehicle they made? From the base model Impala to the high end Corvette, same damn radio. Hell, my '98 Silverado has the same radio in it!
It is great that he filmed it . I would pay extra to have any repairs filmed so I could gain knowledge and feel absolutely sure about my mechanics . Im sure that good mechanics would welcome the chance to show how good they are too !!!!
I see an inevitability of at least one of two sets is problems with that scenario. 1: The mechanic has to record every moment of the repair process. One wrong word, it comment, or a slip and you're dealing with a free repair or litigation. 2: Editing. Are you going to charge extra to have the video edited? Are you just going to eat the cost of the extra time sunk into editing? What then for the customer, who knows that they're watching edited content? It's rather not find myself on either side of that transaction, thanks.
Watching you pull the change out of the console reminded me of a customer I had that pulled the change out of his cupholder in front of me before I took his car. I told him, "Sir, I'm not losing my very well paying job over $3 worth of change. It's safe in your cupholder".
Man if that were my Vette I would want you to feel free to run the AC all you need to, to do the repairs. Happy tech's do good work. Love the video's. GM Vette engineers, yeah it's an expensive exotic sports car for our US customers, oh the shift lever? Accounting called. Yeah lets just use a staple to attach the leather shift knob, hey and only use one staple per knob. Gotta max out profits. The single staple will out last the customers last car payment, perfect. who cares after that right. face palm...
Thats a heckuva anti theft setup...great video on something many rarely see getting worked on i am guessing. Cant wait for part 2...assuming there is one coming:-) Thanks again Ray!! Stay safe out there!
In the future instead of pulling the console door off and the accessory plug you can take two screws off of the center part where the Corvette logo is in the center between the seats, it pulls up and out then the back part of the console can slide up and out then the front part of the console comes right out. Saves the heartache of messing with the fisher price plastic console door.
Great job at figuring this one out, Only concern i had is throwing all your loose parts on his beautiful leather seats, man put a old bath towel down and a parts tray.. Saying this from experience screw punctured a leather seat..
Astonishing. Thank you for your infinite patience. I always wonder how car makers design and engineer all this complexity into cars, I mean, who does this every few years? And then it has to be manufactured…
Dude ! You went down the worm hole with this one! It was like pealing an onion. Each layer lead to more stuff you had to remove to get to the bottom of the labyrinth!! Good job
Funny it had a full tank of gas when it was brought in? Just razzin ya I have done a front dash harness with a new dash replacement and boy did this bring back old times! Cheers!
Generally, you don't always need a manual to figure out how to at least partially disassemble a car and repair it. Though, most mechanics are passionate about cars, so they tend to learn a few things interesting about the unique ones. Like the monoleaf that is on the Vette.
Hey Ray, where's part 2 with the remaining 65% of the job? I've looked on both channels and can't find part 2? Thanks for being an honest mechanic and keeping the customer first. Wish you were closer to me so you could service my cars.
New subscriber here! I really enjoy your videos. I only wish all mechanics were as good as you are. It's nice to see someone who cares about the customer. Thanks for sharing.
Me back in 02 as a teen getting into a used corvette to move it at a dealer.... "What? It really has the same radio and climate control as our plow truck?? Wow!"
I drove my buddy home from the race track (where he entered his Lotus 23-B) in his Corvette. The thing rattled and squealed so much that we couldn't carry on a conversation, even on the smooth highway. I was shocked at what a plastic rattle-trap it was.
Makes me miss my '02 'Vette.I've had my console out to replace the 4 way flasher.When it goes out which is common for C5's the turn signals don't work.Replacing the flasher was a royal PITA.No working room and you need a extra pair of hands.Repaired all the cracks around all the mounting holes which is where they tend to crack and added rubber washers to the fasteners.Checked everything 6 months later and had no cracking issues.
This is why old retired guys love this American Icon. Getting to the money side of the shifter will require a repair story the length of a 9 hole golf game. Good job I do think I would have used some colorful language pulling the console.
In particular when mechanics go beyond just replacing parts but at times also repairing components, the term Doctor Mechanic is frankly quite fitting. Good Doctor Mechanics often do far more diagnostic and work to truly address/fix problems than most medical doctors typically found in doctors offices.
I remember the first time I drove a Corvette. It was a 2 year old C6 that my buddy owned and we traded cars for scenic drive in the mountains. I was so fired up to try it out I didn't mind if he ripped around on my old M3 for the the chance. Compared to my car, it had a TON of torque and a phenomenal powerband but I couldn't get over the noise: everything squeaked and rattled like an old truck going over railroad tracks and the amount of cowl shake was crazy. The car had 25,000 miles and I just thought it ruined the vibe. Of course, I didn't tell him that; just like he didn't tell me that he didn't like have run my car at 3000 or 4000 RPM just to get some real zip out of it.
Post your video, or just a description, if your method could save people time, money, and aggravation. "Done 1000 times" hints it is a common point of failure. The reason the guy didn't take it to a GM Dealer should be obvious - his prior experience might make him believe they would charge him for a starter and battery whether needed or not (or installed or not) and any number of extraneous and perhaps un-needed services. I have a Chrysler I can't get fixed now because the only dealer within 60 miles has screwed me one too many times, and no one else wants to work on a Chrysler in this small town.
@@ammoalamo6485 Wow... way to completely misunderstand. all mechanics have our own way of doing something, doesn't make it wrong just different. And dealer techs are not all incompetent. some of us take our jobs and careers and reputations seriously.
@@THEMOWERMEDIC1 It wasnt a criticism. Its hard for any professional to watch some one else do something you've done before. we all have slightly different ways of doing a job, I was simply commenting about how hard it is watching and wanting to so it yourself.
@Mike Hudson 300zx has 4 on the dash center panel hidden by fragile cover plates. Removing it allows access to two screws under the panel for the center console. Finally a third screw under the ash tray. Its not difficult, but if you go too fast the brittle plastic breaks and that shit is expensive to replace. At this point I need a new dash because they radio mounts... Are on the dash and they're all broken... Being held up only by that center panel.
This video made me subscribe. I've been watching your vids last couple days, very impressed by your work to be honest. I repair electronics myself, and seeing your thought process during repairs reminds me a lot of how I do things, and it makes me want to learn how to fix cars myself. Thank you and keep up the good content brother!!!
I can remember when Corvettes were called "the plastic fantastic". Now, the Corvette (and just about every other car) has become nothing but plastic. Of course, manufacturers know that we'll pay anything in shop labor charges to keep our toys running, so there's zero incentive to make them serviceable. They often break two or three other plastic parts when replacing the broken one.
All of those plastic parts get very brittle with age. I remember the first time I had to pull the dash on my 02 Corvette, and the defroster grill literally fell apart when I barely touched it.
@@aftershock8080 This is part of the reason cheap shops try to throw in an ozone treatment. Ozone, being an unstable oxygen molecule is one helluva oxidiser, turns plastic parts to garbage for the next mechanic to pick out of his teeth.
I had shifter cable problems, TWICE, in my Wrangler while on a narrow mountain trail in Az and then again in Moab. Plastic bushing failure was the culprit. I had read about it and was prepared with spare bushings.....
The only critique I would have is using the seat as a tool/parts storage location. Something on the seat or a cardboard box would protect the leather. Also, for future reference, the waterfall (the black logo piece at the rear of the console) comes out with 3 torx screws. Then the console comes out and then the trim piece over the shifter comes free. It's much easier that way.
With reference to your comment about the leaf springs. They are a remarkable invention and are far more resilient than coil springs. The big disadvantage is that you cannot adjust the suspension to set it up for track days or out and out racing.
I always tell my apprentices that the mechanic is a super important job like any other even a doctor needs to drive if we do our jobs should be held to the highest standards. unfortunately the money is really bad and we plaged by bad reputation
Why do you have the car on the whole time? A/C? I don't know if the owner would be happy sipping that much gas while it's idle, especially in the $4+ a gallon we are paying now. I hope you discounted their bill some, or the service rep did.
I HATE removing the plastic like you did, usually one of the tabs breaks off or a screw is stripped so it won't come out and my cousins call those special C clips GM uses "devil clips" for obvious reason. Good video btw!
Its funny that you mentioned change. One of my first jobs was detailing cars at a body shop. Someone wanted to test my honesty by hiding a $100.00 bill under the drivers floor mat. One thing the body shop did not know about me was I hated and still hate thieves. Of course the owner of the car or the owner of the body shop who hid the money got it back. I waited until the owner picked up his car and the owner of the shop were in the office when I made my appearance and told him the money was exactly like I found it. The owner of the car seemed a little confused so I believe it was the owner of the body shop that tried to test my honesty. I do not know if they had problems with the previous detailer but he was told he could hide money anywhere he felt like and it would not be touched because I am not a thief. Oh what life was like 35 years ago when I first started working full time.
One of the more interesting statistics is that only 32 percent of women said they know how to drive a car with a manual transmission, and as low as 18 percent of Millenials.
Sorry, I get your frustration, but it weren't for engineers, there wouldn't be: cars, boats, planes, TVs. Actually, there would be anything that required manufacturing. Does anyone ever thank the engineers that made the Hilux? No. (Engineer here, different field of engineering though ;-) )
@@sirich7751 A good engineer works with those who make the stuff and those who work with the stuff. Not some chair sitting fool who brags about his degree amongst a sea of fools. That's why real engineers call themselves master(blank) or designer.
Not the engineers fault. They are given certain parameters by their bosses, in this case, the auto manufacturers and they have to stick to them. So, you are given a job to design an interior package that must weigh less than such and such and, more importantly to them, must cost under a certain amount. They do not have a choice. IF the engineers were given free reign, the cars would make much more sense and would be much better built but would probably cost 3-4 times as much.
Some of these jobs are just so tedious. You have to have the right approach and attitude to cope for sure. I'm glad Ray is rich but still chooses to work and make videos for us.
This happened to my 02 Pontiac Sunfire. The very end of the shifter cable where it connects to the shifter lever on top of the transmission broke. Connected the shift cable to the lever on the transmission with baling wire and its worked flawlessly for the past 6 years!
Have been recently watching you and another US auto video maker and conclude that , perhaps,all US mechanics are very relaxed, methodical and unflustered . Me,on the other hand, I'm a dodgy driveway DIY tinkering yappy swearing poodle, generally disturbing the peace....and a mess maker. However, I'm learning that patience may be a key.....
