What Are You Doing Right Now? (non OT version)

Battleborn

Doesn’t look like much, but pulled beef and cheesy cauliflower is one of my favorite meals. 

JohnnyTarheel

ColtsFan said:

Super fancy dinner tonight. 

Brother you know what your doing.... no ketchup in sight!!!!

thetrim

Celebrating the first night of "Beat Navy" week.

Sheldon_Nigel

Lance is a pretty uncommon name today.  In the medieval times people were named Lance a lot.

thetrim

I’ve been having an incredibly difficult time getting to the clean wipe stage tonight.  Must’ve been something I ate. 

WeberWho

Who in their right mind owns a Volkswagen? I have a whole new hate for Volkswagen after spending the last two evenings replacing disc/pads on my mom's Passat. I should have known better when the plastic lug nut covers were torx...

The jack points on the Volkswagen Passat are also stupid. We had to make some plugs on the lathe to fit an opening on where to lift up the car properly with the jack. They really make it a big hassle for someone who wants to work on their own car. 

The rear brake caliper bracket requires a triple square metric 14 mm socket. Seriously?  Most auto part stores don't carry it on hand but could be ordered in 1-2 days. I was fortunate to find one available a few towns over after some calling. It was the last one they had in stock. The guy working the counter said, "You must be working on a Volkswagen". Yep. Once home with the new socket I found that there wasn't any good way to fit in my breaker bar for the right leverage to remove the nuts from the caliper bracket. So my dad ended up making a tool so I could get the right angle and leverage to take a hammer and crack the nuts loose. (We took a piece of scrap metal, drilled a hole at an angle on the mill, and welded on the triple square metric socket.) I can find all kinds of VW Passat rear brake pad replacement videos on YouTube but I now see why no one has a video showing how to remove the rear discs to do the complete brake job. Most people probably just say "F-it" when they get to the caliper bolts. What a joke. 



The next step was tracking down a wind back tool for the rear brake piston as it has to be spun back unlike the front piston where it can be pushed back. Another trip to the auto store. That was an easy 6-7 hours running around town chasing parts, making tools, and finishing the rear brakes. 

Tonight was the front brakes. They were almost normal. The rear brakes are metric while the front brakes are SAE. The front caliper bolts are an oddball 7mm hex, and the caliper bracket is now a standard SAE bolt.

Finally some proof that it's still possible but what a pain in the arse Volkswagen. 

GrateEggspectations

WeberWho said:

Who in their right mind owns a Volkswagon? I have a whole new hate for Volkswagon after spends two evenings replacing disc/pads on my mom's Passat. I should have known better when the plastic lug nut covers were torx...

The jack points on the Volkswagon Passat are also stupid. We had to make some plugs on the lathe to fit an opening on where to lift up the car properly with the jack. They really make it a big hassle for someone who wants to work on their own car. 

The rear brake caliper bracket requires a triple square metric 14 mm socket. Seriously?  Most auto part stores don't carry it on hand but could be ordered in 1-2 days. I was fortunate to find one available a few towns over after some calling. It was the last one they had in stock. The guy working the counter said, "You must be working on a Volkswagon". Yep. Once home with the new socket I found that there wasn't any good way to fit in my breaker bar for the right leverage to remove the nuts from the caliper bracket. So my dad ended up making a tool so I could get the right angle and leverage to take a hammer and crack the nuts loose. (We took a piece of scrap metal, drilled a hole at an angle on the mill, and welded on the triple square metric socket.) I can find all kinds of VW Passat rear brake pad replacement videos on YouTube but I now see why no one has a video showing how to remove the rear discs to do the complete brake job. Most people probably just say "F-it" when they get to the caliper bolts. What a joke. 



The next step was tracking down a wind back tool for the rear brake piston as it has to be spun back unlike the front piston where it can be pushed back. Another trip to the auto store. That was an easy 6-7 hours running around town chasing parts, making tools, and finishing the rear brakes. 

Tonight was the front brakes. They were almost normal. The rear brakes are metric while the front brakes are SAE. The front caliper bolts are an oddball 7mm hex, and the caliper bracket is now a standard metric bolt.

Finally some proof that it's still possible but what a pain in the arse Volkswagon. 

I thought those plastic lug nut covers were torx too, but that’s just a facade - at least on my Golf. There’s a small metal pin pulling tool next to the spare in the trunk that is used to pull those covers straight off from their press fit. 

Sheldon_Nigel

@WeberWho thank you for posting.  I had tears in my eyes while reading that.

WeberWho

GrateEggspectations said:

WeberWho said:

Who in their right mind owns a Volkswagon? I have a whole new hate for Volkswagon after spends two evenings replacing disc/pads on my mom's Passat. I should have known better when the plastic lug nut covers were torx...

The jack points on the Volkswagon Passat are also stupid. We had to make some plugs on the lathe to fit an opening on where to lift up the car properly with the jack. They really make it a big hassle for someone who wants to work on their own car. 

The rear brake caliper bracket requires a triple square metric 14 mm socket. Seriously?  Most auto part stores don't carry it on hand but could be ordered in 1-2 days. I was fortunate to find one available a few towns over after some calling. It was the last one they had in stock. The guy working the counter said, "You must be working on a Volkswagon". Yep. Once home with the new socket I found that there wasn't any good way to fit in my breaker bar for the right leverage to remove the nuts from the caliper bracket. So my dad ended up making a tool so I could get the right angle and leverage to take a hammer and crack the nuts loose. (We took a piece of scrap metal, drilled a hole at an angle on the mill, and welded on the triple square metric socket.) I can find all kinds of VW Passat rear brake pad replacement videos on YouTube but I now see why no one has a video showing how to remove the rear discs to do the complete brake job. Most people probably just say "F-it" when they get to the caliper bolts. What a joke. 



The next step was tracking down a wind back tool for the rear brake piston as it has to be spun back unlike the front piston where it can be pushed back. Another trip to the auto store. That was an easy 6-7 hours running around town chasing parts, making tools, and finishing the rear brakes. 

Tonight was the front brakes. They were almost normal. The rear brakes are metric while the front brakes are SAE. The front caliper bolts are an oddball 7mm hex, and the caliper bracket is now a standard metric bolt.

Finally some proof that it's still possible but what a pain in the arse Volkswagon. 

I thought those plastic lug nut covers were torx too, but that’s just a facade - at least on my Golf. There’s a small metal pin pulling tool next to the spare in the trunk that is used to pull those covers straight off from their press fit. 

Yeah, just covers. I grabbed the puller from the trunk as well. I should have known what I was getting myself into when VW makes the plastic caps torx looking.

WeberWho

Sheldon_Nigel said:

@WeberWho thank you for posting.  I had tears in my eyes while reading that.

I'd imagine it's probably not too much different than your Porsche. 

Sheldon_Nigel

WeberWho said:

Sheldon_Nigel said:

@WeberWho thank you for posting.  I had tears in my eyes while reading that.

I'd imagine it's probably not too much different than your Porsche. 

No Porsche here, just 4x4s and trucks.  Tried a Camaro once (lasted 9 months) and a 430i (lasted 5 months).  My lifestyle is not conducive to cars.

I knew the BMW was a no go when I tried to put a saddle in the trunk and it wouldn't fit.

GrateEggspectations

@WeberWho: Agree that the VW products feature some eccentricities. I love the way my 2015 Golf drives, but am glad I do only basic maintenance on it. 

Funny story.... about a year back, the check engine light came on in the winter, as it sometimes did unexpectedly and seemingly without reason in extremely cold weather. While I was tempted to ignore it, we were on the second-last day of warranty, so I asked my wife to take it in. After completing the inspection, the VW tech tells us we should buy a lottery ticket - the whole turbo needed to be replaced, at a cost of $6000 had it not still been inside of the warranty period. By two days. There’s a reason I have a huge fondness for NA engines. 

WeberWho

GrateEggspectations said:

@WeberWho: Agree that the VW products feature some eccentricities. I love the way my 2015 Golf drives, but am glad I do only basic maintenance on it. 

Funny story.... about a year back, the check engine light came on in the winter, as it sometimes did unexpectedly and seemingly without reason in extremely cold weather. While I was tempted to ignore it, we were on the second-last day of warranty, so I asked my wife to take it in. After completing the inspection, the VW tech tells us we should buy a lottery ticket - the whole turbo needed to be replaced, at a cost of $6000 had it not still been inside of the warranty period. By two days. There’s a reason I have a huge fondness for NA engines. 

That's crazy. I'm glad you went and had it checked out. 

I hear you on liking your Volkswagen. My mom is on her second Passat. She even mentioned the other day that she'd probably look at another Passat if she was in the market. 

nolaegghead

The price of the tools is less than the labor.  Moving forward, you can now do brakes for all your friends with Audi/VW/Porsche.  😅

nolaegghead

PS - that Harbor Freight caliper tool kit will spin the piston as it compresses it plus will work on any car.  Worth the cheap price regardless. 

frazzdaddy

WeberWho said:

Sheldon_Nigel said:

@WeberWho thank you for posting.  I had tears in my eyes while reading that.

I'd imagine it's probably not too much different than your Porsche. 

Yeah, sigh...welcome to German auto repair.

dbCooper

Sheldon_Nigel said:

Lance is a pretty uncommon name today.  In the medieval times people were named Lance a lot.

Yes, "Sir".

ColtsFan

WeberWho said:

Who in their right mind owns a Volkswagen? I have a whole new hate for Volkswagen after spending the last two evenings replacing disc/pads on my mom's Passat. I should have known better when the plastic lug nut covers were torx...

The jack points on the Volkswagen Passat are also stupid. We had to make some plugs on the lathe to fit an opening on where to lift up the car properly with the jack. They really make it a big hassle for someone who wants to work on their own car. 

The rear brake caliper bracket requires a triple square metric 14 mm socket. Seriously?  Most auto part stores don't carry it on hand but could be ordered in 1-2 days. I was fortunate to find one available a few towns over after some calling. It was the last one they had in stock. The guy working the counter said, "You must be working on a Volkswagen". Yep. Once home with the new socket I found that there wasn't any good way to fit in my breaker bar for the right leverage to remove the nuts from the caliper bracket. So my dad ended up making a tool so I could get the right angle and leverage to take a hammer and crack the nuts loose. (We took a piece of scrap metal, drilled a hole at an angle on the mill, and welded on the triple square metric socket.) I can find all kinds of VW Passat rear brake pad replacement videos on YouTube but I now see why no one has a video showing how to remove the rear discs to do the complete brake job. Most people probably just say "F-it" when they get to the caliper bolts. What a joke. 



The next step was tracking down a wind back tool for the rear brake piston as it has to be spun back unlike the front piston where it can be pushed back. Another trip to the auto store. That was an easy 6-7 hours running around town chasing parts, making tools, and finishing the rear brakes. 

Tonight was the front brakes. They were almost normal. The rear brakes are metric while the front brakes are SAE. The front caliper bolts are an oddball 7mm hex, and the caliper bracket is now a standard SAE bolt.

Finally some proof that it's still possible but what a pain in the arse Volkswagen. 

So glad we DON’T have the Jetta anymore. Every time I tried to do routine maintenance it was a PIA. We’ll never have another VW 

WeberWho

nolaegghead said:

The price of the tools is less than the labor.  Moving forward, you can now do brakes for all your friends with Audi/VW/Porsche.  😅

My sister has newer VW Jetta. I joked with my Dad that he should wrap the tool we made and give it to my sister for Christmas. 

We even broke a wobble socket with an extension using an impact wrench trying to remove the caliper bracket bolts. That custom tool will come in handy again at some point. We also coated everything in anti seize. So the next brake job should be much easier with the right tools next time.

nolaegghead said:

PS - that Harbor Freight caliper tool kit will spin the piston as it compresses it plus will work on any car.  Worth the cheap price regardless. 

Good to know. The local auto parts store has a free tool loan program where I was able to rent a caliper tool kit. Which was nice. I also used it for pushing back the front piston by putting a flat plate upside down on it. I don't think it's intended to be used that way but it sure beats using a c-clamp to compress the piston. I'll have to take a look at Harbor Freight the next time I'm in there. Thanks for the heads up.  

WeberWho

frazzdaddy said:

WeberWho said:

Sheldon_Nigel said:

@WeberWho thank you for posting.  I had tears in my eyes while reading that.

I'd imagine it's probably not too much different than your Porsche. 

Yeah, sigh...welcome to German auto repair.

No kidding. The closest I've came to anything else was an early 2000''s Volvo brake job and that wasn't terrible. Any specialty tool was available down the road. VW made it frustrating from start to finish. 

frazzdaddy

WeberWho said:

frazzdaddy said:

WeberWho said:

Sheldon_Nigel said:

@WeberWho thank you for posting.  I had tears in my eyes while reading that.

I'd imagine it's probably not too much different than your Porsche. 

Yeah, sigh...welcome to German auto repair.

No kidding. The closest I've came to anything else was an early 2000''s Volvo brake job and that wasn't terrible. Any specialty tool was available down the road. VW made it frustrating from start to finish. 

I think the piston release is a Euro thing. Peugeots had that and some early MB's as well.

bubbajack

Trying to figure out this new Iphone my daughter gave me. Been a droid guy forever, but I think I will like it after I find out where everything is. The camera is pretty nice, but I need to watch a few videos on how to use all the options. my icloud is full and I have had it for one day....bummer

frazzdaddy

bubbajack said:

Trying to figure out this new Iphone my daughter gave me. Been a droid guy forever, but I think I will like it after I find out where everything is. The camera is pretty nice, but I need to watch a few videos on how to use all the options. my icloud is full and I have had it for one day....bummer

Same here, Droid guy from the getgo. 12 on the way. I will ping you for pointers when I get it. 

Kayak

WeberWho said:

"Who in their right mind owns a Volkswagon? I have a whole new hate for Volkswagon after spends two evenings replacing disc/pads on my mom's Passat. I should have known better when the plastic lug nut covers were torx..."

I'm pretty sure this is why God invented service stations. You don't even need to go to VW dealers. Life's too short anymore to spend it doing things you don't want to, and re-inventing the wheel every time. Let a workin' man earn a living!

ColtsFan

bubbajack said:

Trying to figure out this new Iphone my daughter gave me. Been a droid guy forever, but I think I will like it after I find out where everything is. The camera is pretty nice, but I need to watch a few videos on how to use all the options. my icloud is full and I have had it for one day....bummer

.99 cents/month gets you 50GB. You can also choose what to sync/backup if you only want contacts, for example, backed up

bubbajack

ColtsFan said:

bubbajack said:

Trying to figure out this new Iphone my daughter gave me. Been a droid guy forever, but I think I will like it after I find out where everything is. The camera is pretty nice, but I need to watch a few videos on how to use all the options. my icloud is full and I have had it for one day....bummer

.99 cents/month gets you 50GB. You can also choose what to sync/backup if you only want contacts, for example, backed up

I figured that is what I will do. I think I can swing $12 for a year.

PigBeanUs

nolaegghead said:

The price of the tools is less than the labor.  

What if the price of their labor is less than the cost of my labor?

Agreed though, if you can do it, and have the time and tools... and (maybe most important) the inclination, it’s a no-brainer. 

Lit

thetrim said:

I’ve been having an incredibly difficult time getting to the clean wipe stage tonight.  Must’ve been something I ate. 

Thats when you know its a shower day

Legume

Lit said:

thetrim said:

I’ve been having an incredibly difficult time getting to the clean wipe stage tonight.  Must’ve been something I ate. 

Thats when you know its a shower day

You guys make a nice team.

WeberWho

Kayak said:

WeberWho said:

"Who in their right mind owns a Volkswagon? I have a whole new hate for Volkswagon after spends two evenings replacing disc/pads on my mom's Passat. I should have known better when the plastic lug nut covers were torx..."

I'm pretty sure this is why God invented service stations. You don't even need to go to VW dealers. Life's too short anymore to spend it doing things you don't want to, and re-inventing the wheel every time. Let a workin' man earn a living!

I have no problem getting my hands dirty. I actually enjoy it at times. Plus if it can save my parents $600 I'm all game. It's usually a 3-4 hour job. Except VW uses some not very common tools.