moose eater
Well-known member
Lots of folks in mechanical work, i.e., automobile repairs, bitch about having to pay for shopkeepers' insurance. Stuff's not cheap either. I've been quoted close to $15,000 locally by some shops.
There's a reason for that; it covers injury, death, property damage, etc., when some bonehead misses something or forgets to put something back together properly.
Had my camper van into a shop recently for -lots- of major work at one place, and another shop for a front-end alignment in preparation for a long trip to the Yukon Territory..
The shop that did major work replaced the original leaf springs in the rear with some heavy duty 3,000-lb.-per-stack, 6,000-lb. overall support in the rear as but one of the many tasks they addressed. A fellow converting the trailer lighting receptacle discovered the clunking noise I'd had going home from that job... One of the shocks had not been secured, and it was banging off the axle tube or mount on heavy frost heaves and bumps. not too serious, and addressed easily, fixed properly as far as I am aware.
But I crawled under the van just now, up on ramps w/o putting jack stands in place (living dangerously as I'm in a hurry). I wanted to assess whether or not the new seal in the speedometer output cable's fitting on the transmission was still leaking after we'd replaced the seal and o-ring therein. It wasn't leaking any more from what I can see. Coolness.
But while I was underneath the van I decided to assess the adjustment sleeves on the tie-rod ends, as the shop that had been tasked with doing the alignment stated they lacked the proper tool for this ancient beast, and ordered one 'fast freight' from their tool supplier. They're still waiting on that tool, by the way..
The mechanic doing or attempting to do the alignment responded in the affirmative when I inquired if he'd used any penetrating oil to allow it to soak into the sleeves until the tool came in, as the sleeves and hardware are seized. Again, he had stated that he had.
Well......... the passage side of the steering system, the passenger side, showed ZERO evidence of having been sprayed with any penetrating oil, but there was some evidence of heat having been applied.. The most disconcerting or alarming discovery, however, was that he'd loosened both the bolts and nuts that hold the adjustment sleeve in place between the tie-rod ends and failed to tighten them when he decided he needed to wait for a tool to arrive.
Thus, I've been driving into and out of town with my tie-rod ends on the passenger side held in place by little more than age, rust, and past friction, on 35-year-old tie-rod end. In a heavy vehicle, no less.
Had it let go at 60-mph on the highway in traffic, there's a chance that friction, inertia and the gyro effect would've held it straight ahead without solid control. There's also a chance that on a frost-heave or bump, the thing might've let go, grabbed sideways, snapped a spindle or other related components, and sent me into the ditch or into oncoming at what would've potentially been a cumulative 120-mph head-on impact.
So they can bitch about the cost of the shop keepers' insurance all they want. It's boneheaded moments like this one that make it a true necessity. Yet, I'll wager there's a BUNCH of shops that don't buy the stuff. And when they kill someone, they shrug their shoulders and maybe go out of business, only to open up a new shop under a new name. Derelict motherfuckers.
There's a reason for that; it covers injury, death, property damage, etc., when some bonehead misses something or forgets to put something back together properly.
Had my camper van into a shop recently for -lots- of major work at one place, and another shop for a front-end alignment in preparation for a long trip to the Yukon Territory..
The shop that did major work replaced the original leaf springs in the rear with some heavy duty 3,000-lb.-per-stack, 6,000-lb. overall support in the rear as but one of the many tasks they addressed. A fellow converting the trailer lighting receptacle discovered the clunking noise I'd had going home from that job... One of the shocks had not been secured, and it was banging off the axle tube or mount on heavy frost heaves and bumps. not too serious, and addressed easily, fixed properly as far as I am aware.
But I crawled under the van just now, up on ramps w/o putting jack stands in place (living dangerously as I'm in a hurry). I wanted to assess whether or not the new seal in the speedometer output cable's fitting on the transmission was still leaking after we'd replaced the seal and o-ring therein. It wasn't leaking any more from what I can see. Coolness.
But while I was underneath the van I decided to assess the adjustment sleeves on the tie-rod ends, as the shop that had been tasked with doing the alignment stated they lacked the proper tool for this ancient beast, and ordered one 'fast freight' from their tool supplier. They're still waiting on that tool, by the way..
The mechanic doing or attempting to do the alignment responded in the affirmative when I inquired if he'd used any penetrating oil to allow it to soak into the sleeves until the tool came in, as the sleeves and hardware are seized. Again, he had stated that he had.
Well......... the passage side of the steering system, the passenger side, showed ZERO evidence of having been sprayed with any penetrating oil, but there was some evidence of heat having been applied.. The most disconcerting or alarming discovery, however, was that he'd loosened both the bolts and nuts that hold the adjustment sleeve in place between the tie-rod ends and failed to tighten them when he decided he needed to wait for a tool to arrive.
Thus, I've been driving into and out of town with my tie-rod ends on the passenger side held in place by little more than age, rust, and past friction, on 35-year-old tie-rod end. In a heavy vehicle, no less.
Had it let go at 60-mph on the highway in traffic, there's a chance that friction, inertia and the gyro effect would've held it straight ahead without solid control. There's also a chance that on a frost-heave or bump, the thing might've let go, grabbed sideways, snapped a spindle or other related components, and sent me into the ditch or into oncoming at what would've potentially been a cumulative 120-mph head-on impact.
So they can bitch about the cost of the shop keepers' insurance all they want. It's boneheaded moments like this one that make it a true necessity. Yet, I'll wager there's a BUNCH of shops that don't buy the stuff. And when they kill someone, they shrug their shoulders and maybe go out of business, only to open up a new shop under a new name. Derelict motherfuckers.
Jakoś nie mogę zasnąć, od kilkudziesięciu godzin....
