You still enjoy wrenching on things?

[vash]

Man. I loved my last cars. Doing routine maintenance was part of the charm.

Now? Man, I just don’t think I like it as much. I had a flat tire on the back of my motorcycle. Finally got my rear stand and went to work. Hands filthy, chain grease on my chin. Knees sore.

Bleech. Putting it back together should be easy. I might need to visit YouTube to glean the sequence but in general I think I got it.

I seriously considered putting my bike on a motorcycle tow rig and farming it all out. Haha. You still like pulling out the tools?

[look 171]

I haven't done it in a very long time. The last oil change was more then 25 years ago. Changing plugs and air filter and monkey around doing little stuff to the 930, but that's it. I am building a race/street early car. I have become the ultimate check book mechanic. I did enjoy little bit of it during college but that was pretty much out of necessity.

[javadog]

Absolutely. I’ll probably do more of it now, then I ever did. I’ve spent a good chunk of the last six or eight years restoring motorcycles for friends. I might even build another one for myself in a year or two.

[Jim Richards]

I still like wrenching. I have a ‘75 Datsun 280Z that I’m slowly renovating.

[asphaltgambler]

Yes .........but.......if I HAVE to do something AND there is a time crunch or deadline with it..............not so much. It's still my go to - to express my creative / artistic side. Some guys golf, others collect stamps. I build hot rods, motorcycles, restore all sorts of old stuff.

[A930Rocket]

I haven’t really had the opportunity to do much since I sold the 930, but I started at age 15 to 50. All the cars/truck are in good shape and needed minor work since then.

I did just change the plugs, cops and a new set of wheels/tires from Tirerack for Ms Rocket’s vw.

I think the days of major work or laying on my back under a car are gone.

[Tervuren]

I enjoy it, but let other things get in the way.

If I didn't enjoy it I'd of sold one of my 944's. Possibly both.

All my work is new tech development, I do not get the hands on satisfaction from when I worked in manufacturing/machinist.

Working on the car gives me that delightful physical soreness combined with a job done.

If it ever gets to where there isn't something for me to tinker with on the 944, I might sell it and buy some other car to tinker with.

[David]

I enjoy it but less on the daily drivers than I used to

[look 171]

Originally Posted by Jim Richards

I still like wrenching. I have a ‘75 Datsun 280Z that I’m slowly renovating.

Hey Jim, how are you guys?

Is this 280 gonna be stock? Are you doing a bare bone restoration?

[craigster59]

Does pouring a bottle of Techron in your gas tank before filling up count as "wrenching", because I'm kind of tuning up my truck.

But seriously, if the 911 needs something I'd rather do it myself. All my other cars I've always done the oil changes. Haven't done one on the F150 yet but did do the brakes on my previous one. I mentioned on another thread that they put the pads on wrong at the Ford dealer which ground down the rotor on one side.

I've got a killer set of tools, I have to justify them.

[JackDidley]

I still do it. I am 66 and built and replaced the motor in my truck back around Christmas. Had to do the trans an extra time because the guy that built it screwed it up. I do have time on my hands so I need to be doing something. I hate thinking about the time when I am no longer able.

[Jim Richards]

Originally Posted by look 171

Hey Jim, how are you guys?

Is this 280 gonna be stock? Are you doing a bare bone restoration?

Not exactly stock, and not a total restoration, Jeff. After refreshing the fuel, cooling, and HVAC systems, I’ve moved on to renovating the interior. It’ll have a few non-stock mods (240Z steering wheel, Miata seats, rearview mirror camera, vintage looking modern radio). I have a close-ratio 5-speed and a 3.90 diff to replace the stock 4-speed and 3.54 diff. It has a 240Z skinny front bumper (rears are backordered) and 16” Panasport wheels. I’ll need to start shopping for suspension goodies in the coming months.

My better half says Hi!

[rcooled]

I'll do small maintenance jobs on my daily drivers...oil chg, spark plugs, filters, brakes...but that's about it. For anything beyond that, they go to the shop.
I still get a lot of satisfaction from tinkering with my old VWs though. It's easy work and I'm under no deadline to get stuff done.

[Superman]

I'm making some improvements to my '78 911. The trunk is largely gutted giving me a chance to clean, which I like. Swapping out dash switches, windshield washers, ventilation box and controls, brake master cylinder, fuel pump. Replacing burned out bulbs. I finally love the car so it's a joy to do.

I used to like it a lot more than I do now. I still like making improvements. Maintenance....not so much.

[cantdrv55]

Right now I’m trying to figure out how to yank the aftermarket alarm out of my 97 Miata because it’s draining the battery. Is that considered wrenching? Either way, I still enjoy working on my cars - Miata and Jeep Wrangler.

[Rick Lee]

Working through a brake fade issue on my bike, but the other two vehicles are still under warranty. If I had the space, I wouldn't mind buying a project to wrench on, but the bike will do for now.

[fastfredracing]

I can't wait to retire so that I can wrench every day .

[JackDidley]

Originally Posted by fastfredracing

I can't wait to retire so that I can wrench every day .

Thats funny. I have often thought about the difference in doing it because its your job and doing it for entertainment. I hang out with 4 other car guys every Saturday and you never know what we will be wrenching on. 55 Chevy coupe, 65 Corvette, 56 Ford, (today), 36 Ford, 55 Chevy truck, my Porsche or my V8 S10 or one of the others. A few beers may be consumed and we always have a good time. Cant really do that when you are on the clock.

[jwasbury]

Yes, I enjoy wrenching. I've been doing a lot of bicycle maintenance this winter. Right now, I've got this on my lift and I am prepping it for an endurance racing event at Watkins Glen in April:

[Gogar]

No.

Seems like I spend my whole spring cleaning gummy carbs and then I ride like 100 miles on each rig and then the next spring I do the same. I feel like I’m approaching that part of my life where I have one really neat rig ready to go all the time instead of a bunch of neglected stuff with -potential.