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Old 10-21-2019, 07:29 AM   #28
BRENT in 10-uh-C
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Join Date: May 2010
Location: Eastern Tennessee
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Default Re: Clutch replacement costs...

Quote:
Originally Posted by holdover View Post
In my experience if this is the first one a mechanic did, it would be a learning experience. A local shop would most likely not have a clue what was involved, not having worked on one, so the quote would be time and materials. An experienced Model A shop would know what exactly needs to be done and could quote a more realistic estimate, but would also say broken bolts and other problems would be extra, such as a flywheel that is beyond truing, front trans bearing needing replacement or other trans/u-joint work etc. It would be best to have it done correctly by someone who knows what they are doing. That person could be a local club member. A local mechanic shop were I grew up in the 50-60s had a sign "Confucius say, ask for cheap job, get same"
Here is 'real world' explanation from 'real world' experiences. Any local auto shop working on typical modern day automobiles brings a vehicle in, swing the lift arms under the vehicle and up it goes. An impact wrench with a 13mm socket zings out the drain plug into a pan, while other fasteners are removed similarly as the drain plug. In the collector car world, no matter what the vehicle looks like to the mechanic, it is treated with the utmost care. Lift arms are slowly moved into position to avoid banging into something and rags are placed over the stands to protect paint. Now, no matter whether there is old green paint on the drain plug, -or coated with rust & grease, care must (should) be taken while removing that plug so it will be hard for anyone to tell the plug has recently been removed. This same mindset should be carried out the entire process.

Now let's move up to the interior of the cabin. Most would say removing a floor mat should be less than a minute to do ...however most floor mats are several years old, and stiff like yesterday's coffee. Tear even one hidden corner and the mechanic gets to buy the customer a new mat. Now lets discuss how we need to protect upholstery, AND let's discuss old stuck floorboard screws. The novice shop quotes one price because they never thought of that, ...and the experienced shop knows this might be an issue so it is factored in.

Another thing an experienced shop has learned is the spring is removed at the hangers (shackles) and not at the U-bolts. Two strong reasons, ...generally most nuts are hanging on loose threads that are about to strip, and when removed and then re-installed, they strip. Second, most square holes in the rear crossmember are not square like they once were, and when the spring goes back in, the chance of getting it back into the exact position is unprobable, so now the customer is complaining his car leans differently and they are unhappy. Now the issue with the spring hanger is many are old cheap ones that have worn & stretched on the tie-bar side making remove/installation difficult. A novice shop has not encountered this and goes after it with a big hammer. Also, most modern shops remove lug nuts with an impact, yet back in the day, the mechanic used a 4-way lug wrench that rubbed against the wheel scratching/chipping paint. Most Model-As today do not have the correct wheel color, so trying to match chipped paint is difficult at best, -and time consuming. While the wheel may have had a few chips before it arrived, the owner will fuss about any new chips that you make. Therefore you better have the socket & extension wrapped and the wheel protected. An experienced shop knows this and has factored that into the estimate.

I could go on, but I think you get the jest of why working on collector vehicles is much different than working on modern vehicles.
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