Automotive Reflections and DIY Brake Job Pics

in automotive •  7 years ago 

Until a few years ago, I had never owned a new car.

Like many American teens, I started driving when I was in high school. I was fortunate to own a $400 beater purchased for me by my father. The car was not even close to being a cool ride, but it was infinitely better than riding the school bus and I had no real complaints.

Understandably, since the car cost less than .05 BTC (by today's standards - there was no BTC yet when I started driving), maintenance and repair lessons from my dad came standard. He made sure I understood the importance of tire rotation and pressure, fluid levels and basic repairs. My younger brother, a self-proclaimed "natural-born gear head", was also around to lend an extra set of hands (and tools) when necessary.

Some of my most treasured memories revolve around
a crappy 1980's domestic hatchback.

My brother and I always had dreams of turning my car into a beast like this GLH-S Omni. Woefully, we never saw those dreams come to pass.
Image source


Side note:
Carroll Shelby was my brother's greatest idol. I know they're both tearing up the track somewhere on another plane together, R.I.P ♥


Fast forward! Today I drive a car manufactured this millennium, but its relative newness does not exclude it from needing normal repairs. This summer, it got some new shoes (tires), along with some suspension components and an alignment. After spending X amount of dollars at the shop, the decision was made to finish up this round of regularly scheduled maintenance, shade-tree style.

I enjoy working with my hands and I don't mind getting a little dirty when the situation requires. With the aid of @jschindler, replacing the brakes on my car was a snap!


Here's some process pics:

Get that puppy off the ground!
enternamehere-floor-jack-automotive-repair-diy.jpg

The rotors weren't too terribly worn down, no deep grooves. Decided to get O'Reilly to turn them. For this car, the cost to replace old rotors with new was actually about equivalent to having the rotors turned.
enternamehere-discbrake-old-rotor-jackstand-automotive-repair-diy.jpg

Nice bright even surface after being turned.
"Good as new!"
enternamehere-new-brake-rotor-jschindler-automotive-repair-diy.jpg

Application of blue raspberry brake grease. It was delicious, by the way.
enternamehere-application-brake-grease-automotive-repair-diy.jpg

I-have-the-po-wer (tool)!
enternamehere-impactwrench-discbrake-rotor-jackstand-automotive-repair-diy.jpg

...And hand tools too, like this brake caliper tool.
enternamehere-disc-brake-caliper-tool-automotive-repair-diy.jpg

While the rotors were in decent condition, the pads clearly were not.
enternamehere-comparison-brake-rotor-thickness-automotive-repair-diy.jpg

Dialing in the specified torque.
enternamehere-torque-wrench-automotive-repair-diy.jpg

And we're all done, cheeeesy smile!
enternamehere-smile-glasses-happy-cheese.jpg


Do you have any car-centric memories to share?
What was your first whip?
Are you a closet gear head?
What's your favorite kind of racing?

I'd love to hear about it!

I appreciate you taking this little drive down memory lane with me.

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Dad and Christy built her first car together....well they rebuilt and installed a motor together. I was just handed down a car at 16 and being that I was dating Brad right after I received my drivers license, I guess he felt that there was no reason to teach me anything about my vehicle. I had Brad who took care of all of it. However, that had proved to be more hurtful than helpful. I now stand here today, still not knowing how to change oil, or even change a flat. Which has kept me on the side of the road many times and before cell phones, I got to walk quite a bit. You know I am the farthest thing from a "gear head", and I love any and ALL types of car racing....just in case you weren't aware of that "fun fact" about me. LOL
Hugs!!
-Kim

Watching from the stands is fun too! It's been a long time since I've been to any racing events, but I'm looking forward to the next opportunity I get to go. I really enjoy working on cars as long as I have someone (more specifically, Joe) to help me, I definitely not a pro mechanic. Thanks for reading! ♥

Love me some drag racing, only been once, but was thrilling to watch John Force and Eddie Hill zip down the quarter mile in 7 secs at 130db. Favorite whip was my buddies 83 blue 4dr Chevette with a tape deck from a 78 Monte Carlo mounted under the dash and a single speaker wedged between the seats. We'd roll down the windows, blasting 60's surf rock and just laugh and laugh. Good memories. Great post.

LOL, sounds like a bit of a Frankenstein sound system - but hey whatever works! The memories are way more important than the craftsmanship (sometimes, and in this case). Drag racing is thrilling from the stands for sure, though I can't say I've ever driven anything down the eighth or the quarter - yet.
Thanks for sharing your car memories @bleedpoet!

Don't thinkI have ever owned a car fast enough for me to drag race. My first car was a 63 valiant by Plymouth. Push button gears. She could haul butt. Just not a drag racer. Thanks for a good post. Enjoyed the read. It is refreshing to read a post about car maintence by a female!
🐓🐓

Yeah, I bet she was kinda heavy for the strip! Old cars are quirky, finicky, and fun, which can make up for reliability issues - with the proper mindset. I started a '66 AMC Rambler restoration back around the same time I had the Omni, she was solid and heavy too, with 4 on the floor and would have been hell on wheels I'm sure (had I gotten her going!) Though I've had many run-ins with various car projects, this is the first time I've posted about anything automotive. Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for sharing! ☺

Great post.I'm always amazed when people can fix their own cars. (I like that... "shade tree" repair...)
I've tried a few repairs myself (before cars got too intricate), and as the guy told me when I brought it in to help me put hit back together, "stick to Forestry, let me do the repair work". Sage advice, at least in my case. (SOME day there's some posts coming out along this theme. "Get in line posts, get in line".)
Thanks for sharing your works, and very sorry to hear of your brother as well, must be very difficult. Thanks, and have a nice night.

Thank you for your comment, @ddschteinn. I'm no automotive expert by any means, but DIY maintenance is not too scary for me. I could definitely learn something about forestry from you since I know basically nothing about the subject! I enjoy your writing style, interested to see what post is next in your line. And thank you for your condolences. It's been more than 5 years since my brother passed, and yet I think of him every day. Just this morning I saw RIP - "Rest in Power"! So fitting. Thanks again, take care ☺