Tired, Sore and Satisfied...
 

With my son's car anyway.

My soon to be 18 year old has an '89 E30 that we've been working on together. When we first got it a year ago, we (I) did the timing belt, big service, etc.

Then for the 2nd and 3rd oil change, I started passing the wrenches to him.

Over Christmas, we replaced his shocks and springs - I'd work on one side while he did the other.

Today we replaced the control arms and the center support bearing (again, 1st one was faulty). If you've not had the joy of forcing a control arm into an E30 control arm bushing, well you have no idea how sore I'm going to be tomorrow morning - it's all lube and force.

But I'm proud to say that I really couldn't have done it without my kid. He installed both the control arms, took off the exhaust system and undertrays so I could work on the power steering hoses and then the CSB. He surfs the BMW forums and read up on how to do stuff, what to look for.

We didn't give him this car, he saved his money and paid for half. He buys the parts and I supply the labor. I'm not sure who is learning more, but I'm sure I'm enjoying it more.

Forgive a proud Dad for this indulgence.

Thank goodness for Aleve...

The E30 was my second BMW and it's a super car, not too bad to wrench on and will last forever. I got 232k miles on my first clutch, sold the car at 245k miles and she still ran like a top.

Curtis rocks.

Dad's ok too...

I suggest a nice Syrah or three :p

Sounds like you just got done banging a 19yo. ;)

My dad died 7 years ago yesterday. As time passes and my own memory wavers, I tend to remember projects that we worked on together more than holidays and such. Special times for sure.....

e30 was one of my favorites. 5th car, traded it @ 175K and it still didn't use oil...

How do u guys get ur dad's to help.. my dad is a ASE master mechanic and he won't help me worth the squate...
i've really spent all my time on clarks garage

Just a guess: It's not my job. I do it for fun and to teach my son how his car works. If it was my job, I'm not sure I'd want to spend my free time working on anyone's car. As an idea, if you offered to help him out at the garage for free you'd pick up a few tips, and then it wouldn't be such a big deal to have your car on the lift occasionally.

impressive...not common for a napa guy to use "tired, sore and satisfied" AND "its all lube and force" in the same paragraph!

D,
for alot of reason's (none bad ) this never happened between Dad and myself.
I would trade alot for those memories.

Rika

As I got older I cherished time spent with dad. The guy knew so much stuff about everything even though he had little education. He became one of my best friends. I'm not sure what age that happened, I took a long time to mature. :)

The last thing most of us want to do in our free time is the stuff we do for a living, so I can see his reluctance to work on cars at home. Do you do other stuff for him/with him? Spend time doing other things together like fishing, golfing, or tossing a few beers down playing pool.


Most of us, of course, love our dads. But until we like them and enjoy their company we miss so much they have to offer.

My dad helped me with car projects and taught me how to use tools.

Your son will treasure the time you spent with him for the rest of his life.
Nicely done, Don.


KT

Good for you Don - Good for you.