[Outdated, please look at pinned post] Casual Conversation

6590 readers

2 users here now

Share a story, ask a question, or start a conversation about (almost) anything you desire. Maybe you'll make some friends in the process.

RULES

Be respectful: no harassment, hate speech, bigotry, and/or trolling
Encourage conversation in your post
Avoid controversial topics such as politics or societal debates
Keep it clean and SFW: No illegal content or anything gross and inappropriate
No solicitation such as ads, promotional content, spam, surveys etc.
Respect privacy: Don’t ask for or share any personal information

Related discussion-focused communities

founded 1 year ago

MODERATORS

Mysterious_Macaxeira@lemmy.world

shinigamiookamiryuu@lemm.ee

Bl4ze@lemmy.world

KaneLivesInDeath@lemmy.world

orangeNgreen@lemmy.world

neidu2@feddit.nl

388

My car defeated me today. (lemmy.ml)

submitted 1 year ago by OceanSoap@lemmy.ml to c/casualconversation@lemmy.world

80 comments fedilink hide all child comments

The alternator on my car went kaput. Nowhere in my area would do the job for less than $800-something, and most places were quoting $900-$1k.

So I looked up how-tos on YouTube and it looked like something I, a woman with zero experience or knowledge of working on cars, could do.

I got a remanufactured alternator for $180 and got to work following the tutorials I'd found.

It certainly did not go smoothly, but I managed it. It took me 6 hours to get the alternator out, mainly because every goddamn bolt holding the parts in place were basically cemented in. I had to use my foot to stomp one loose because I didn't have the strength in my arms.

Today I spent another 4 hours trying to put in the new one and all the parts back in place. And I did it!!

Except for the power steering belt. That fucker would not go into place, and trying to force the belt tensioner back took every ounce of strength I could muster.

All that work. All that time and effort and THE VERY LAST STEP to get my car up and running defeated me today. I had to get a task rabbit guy. He's coming tomorrow to get my belt back on.

On one hand I feel proud that I made it this far. On the other I feel like a complete failure because it turns out I couldn't complete the task myself.

Anyway, how was your weekend?

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] droans@lemmy.world 17 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Replacing the alternator can be either the easiest or most difficult task ever, depending on the car. But if it's a Chrysler/Jeep/Dodge, it'll always be difficult because they hate their customers.

In theory, it should always be easy. Loosen the tensioner, pop off the belt, unscrew a few things, remove a couple wires, pop it out, and perform the steps in reverse. But sometimes it gets stuck or the manufacturer requires you to practically take half the car apart to get to it.

What might help is getting a second set of hands. Sometimes it just takes one person putting the belt on while the other is holding the tensioner back.

[–] PickTheStick@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago

Yes, so much this. Every time I have to do something in the engine bay, I get a friend. A six-pack, a dinner, or whatever other small favor they need in return returns gold for pennies in the investment. If only the damn engineers would have the incentive to make working in the engine as easy as changing the oil (though Subaru even fucked that one up), life would be a breeze.

load more comments (2 replies)