stupid mistakes made with your car maintenance

[stevej37]

I've had a 'rattle' sound coming from the lower dash or center console on my Fit for about a year now. Not loud..but annoying. If the stereo is cranked..can't hear it.

Yesterday I decided to start digging...looking for the rattle.
Took the glove box and cabin filter out and used a mirror and flashlight to look behind the dash...all looked good.
Fairly certain if it wasn't there...it was coming from the center console...so hard to tell when driving.
In order to remove the console...the Honda center armrest, that I installed last year, would need to be unbolted and removed first...a pia.

Here is where it gets embarrassing.
After rounding up the tools needed...I emptied the storage box under the sliding armrest. Lots of crap accumulated in there..but I had already checked that for the possible rattle a few diff times.
Next up..unbolt the armrest from the center console and the metal mounting point under the console.
The armrest is made so that it can be lifted up and swiveled back to the seat back area.....but I never use that feature.
Lo and behold...under the sliding armrest is a small 1X2" cubby hole for change storage?

Sitting inside of the cubby hole, instead of change, was a 2 inch mini screwdriver that was rolling back and forth everytime I shifted the car. I felt stupid for never remembering it had the storage there...but it's fixed now. And no more rattle!

[cabmandone]

Now go grab a beer to celebrate a job well done...err a job you shouldn't have done but did anyway because you forgot you put something somewhere... But still a beer worthy accomplishment!

As for stupid stuff, I put brake pads on with the pad that was supposed to go to the outside to the inside which caused a really annoying brake creeking noise.

[stevej37]

^^^ Agreed...worthy of a Two Hearted Ale!

[masraum]

Excellent. Beats the hell out of some of the other possibilities.

[Scott Douglas]

I'll never forget the one involving my '68 BMW 1600. After I had a head-on crash with it and got it back from the body shop that repaired it, it had a clunk whenever you closed the driver's door. Didn't happen every time, but the door also felt heavy compared to the passenger side.
One day I got tired of it and decided to pull the door panel off to see what was going on.
Found a body dolly that was about 2.5lbs with a foot long handle on it inside the door. Not sure if they'd left it there as a joke or what. They never got the hood to close correctly, I had to figure that out for myself. I guess the torsion bar adjustments were beyond their expertise.

[cabmandone]

After owning a Ford Explorer, I learned to just turn the radio up a little louder when it started making strange noises. Really made the cost of ownership better going that route. Only noise I couldn't ignore was the sound of a wheel bearing going out.

[Laneco]

When Mobil switched from four quart containers to five court containers...I put two extra courts into my 911...

Killed all the mosquitos in the neighborhood before I figured it out - LOL!

angela

[stevej37]

Might make it worth keeping for another year. (the Fit)

[id10t]

Not exactly mechanical....

Have had 4 post-2012 cars now give all sorts of weird behavior (radio buttons not working, alarm/starter remotes not working, gas gauge reading very wrong) and after giving up and taking to mechanic it turns out the battery is going bad. I'd think if it has enough power to turn the starter the minimal draw for a door lock or alarm relay would be no problem.

Another weird one is that since I didn't drive a lot last year, my little commuter sat for 3 months. When I opened it up, mold was everywhere.... during the cleaning (into the evening and dark... took a LONG time) I guess one of us found a pile of glitter from my youngest, it stuck to the rag, we didn't notice, and glitter was covering all sorts of areas inside. I've gotten most of it, but my back window gets to where you can't really see through it if the sun is just right. I need to get out there in the daylight and re-clean it, but I tend to be lazy about things like that 'cause my side mirrors work just fine and I can at least see lights and shapes if not great details through it.

[stevej37]

^^^ All part of the learning experience.
Just too bad some of them arrive so late in life!

[Eric Hahl]

Changing oil in a Tacoma...Didn't realize the oil filter seal ring did not come off with the filter and was still stuck to the engine. Installed new oil filter with O-ring on top of the old O-ring.

Started it and it puked all the oil out onto the drive way...DOH!

[stevej37]

^^^ Do you remember the older Chev engines that had the canister that stayed with the car for oil changes?
They were notorious for people leaving the seal ring up in the block and adding another one.

[Bugsinrugs]

Put the wrong oil filter on my boat. Totally lucky I caught it. Was out on the lake and decided to check the engine. Lifted up the engine cover to yellow foam everywhere. I’m still cleaning up that mess and it’s been five years at least.

[wdfifteen]

I've put oil filters on before and had them leak. It's no big deal as long as you check for leaks. I once changed the oil in my old 356 coupe and just hopped in the car and took off. Five miles later I was sitting beside the road with no oil in the engine, though there was a lot of oil on the engine.

[LEAKYSEALS951]

Some lug nuts weren't tightened, but I ain't talking.

[1990C4S]

As above, I did an oil change on my GM car, driving away I left a stream of oil down the road....took me an hour to figure out the seal from my old oil filter did not come off with the filter, it stuck to the mount. I had two rubber seals stacked up.

I also did a clutch job on a 911 for my friend and somehow we forgot the ring gear....that pissed us off.

[1990C4S]

Originally Posted by LEAKYSEALS951

Some lug nuts weren't tightened, but I ain't talking.

Nope not me. Never.

[LEAKYSEALS951]

Originally Posted by 1990C4S

Nope not me. Never.

Usually I get it right. Like the time I tightened them perfectly, dropping the rear of the car down, then dropping the front of the car down.

Wheels were on tight, but I forgot to set the brakes.

Once off the jack, the car rolled out of the garage, backward down across the driveway, across the yard, and ended up in the woods. It was like risky business.

I looked around. No one saw it. A crow cawed in the distance.

[shadowjack1]

Pulled the engine on my 911 to change clutch. Put the TOB together wrong. Reinstall the engine, press clutch. Locked up. Pull the engine out again. Pain of the a$$. Stupid mistakes.

[p911dad]

My greatest and best screw-up of all the screw-ups: After greasing the front wheel bearings on the old 911, I overtightened the nut on the spindle. Fast forward a few weeks and as I was scooting along over a mountain all hell broke loose, including the spindle and the wheel, etc. The spindle got so hot it burned off and separated from the hub. For some reason the caliper and the wheel well combined to keep the wheel on the car. I looked at, it seemed an odd angle for a wheel to have so I drove it (yes, drove it!) back my garage. Man, what a mess! I managed to find a new assembly and repaired it ok. Another lesson learned the hard way.