Appreciation post: The old timer who saved me from a seized engine

Three years ago I was working out of a garage in Cleveland, trying to diagnose a Chevy Silverado that kept overheating. I was ready to pull the water pump and timing chain, but Ray, a 70 year old mechanic who retired 5 years back, walked over and told me to check the radiator cap first. Sure enough, it was a bad seal letting pressure bleed off, cost me $12 instead of $800 in parts and labor. I see so many guys jump to the BIG fixes without checking the simple stuff first. Has anyone else had a pro take two minutes to save you from a monster job?

3 comments

3 Comments

smith.elliot15d ago

Respectfully, you're looking at this backwards. Sure, a bad radiator cap is a cheap fix, but it's also a lesson that comes with 50 years of experience. You had to get burned on a few big jobs first to learn that lesson yourself, and that's the real value. A young guy who always jumps to the cheap fix first is going to miss a cracked block or a bad head gasket ten times out of ten. Ray's advice was good, but it's not some magic shortcut, it's just one piece of a giant puzzle.

shanec6115d ago

Jump right into the shallow end and pray there's water, that's the young guy's strategy. The cracked block is the surprise party nobody wants to show up for. Sure, check the cap first, but don't act like you've never missed a bad head gasket until the thing blew up in your face.

jana76914d ago

Check the damn gauge cluster first before you even pop the hood. Way too many times I've seen a guy replace the whole cooling system only to realize the sensor was just reading wrong the whole time. Simple stuff like that saves you from chasing ghosts on a perfectly good motor.