Community Chat

[Carmie]

@BirkiLady  My DH restores old cars.  He did one for our son which is a 68 Camaro. It is in mint condition.  He has done many makes and models over the years.

All gasoline powered cars are pretty much the same.  Some cars have parts in tight places and they are difficult to get to, but a mechanic should be able to work on any make and model with little difficulty.

We currently own four vehicles...a Honda ( mine), a Chevy..vehicle used for towing our boat and RV, a Subaru that was totaled by the insurance company. It had low mileage so it was restored for about $500 and retitled and a Jeep...my DH's everyday car.

My DH restores and fixes cars as a hobby.  He does mechanical and body work and is very good at it.  He buys and sells cars...one at a time and fixes cars for friends and family occasionally.

He also has an inspection license in the state of PA.

the son who has the restored Camaro also owns a 2000 Grand Prix..he loves driving  that car.  My DH is going to put in a new transmission for him in a week or two.

[BirkiLady]

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@qbetzforreal wrote:

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Wheel locks prevent the theft of tires.  Wheel locks install in place of your car's lug nuts and can only be removed with a special key that comes with the set. Types of wheel locks vary, depending on the wheel style.

@BirkiLady

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@qbetzforreal  Help me understand this further. You use these as the bolts. Lock them in place with a key. (No wonder I don't know about these.) Who would notice? They look like the bolts on my car!  (Which is the intended appearance, I assume.) THEN, you lock a hub cap over them??  Or was that just on very old cars??  Frankly, I haven't seen hub caps in decades!  Very, very interesting. 

[BirkiLady]

@Carmie  You understand why I never traded in that Grand Prix! When I heard Pontiac was going to cease making cars, I stopped driving that car daily and garaged it! It's been a "pleasure car" ever since. Like so many of my other cars, it MOVES!! Great on a sunny day for road trips. 

My son has also restored cars and the feeling of satisfaction if amazing. It also is relaxing (or so he says). He would spend hours in our driveway working on a vehicle, something the frustration would be unbearable for me as his mom. My husband would often help him and they would return with huge grin of satisfaction! They money he made was worth the efforts and the knowledge obtained beat any amount of schooling. It was a experience. And such great father-son bonding time!

Pretty sure he and my grandson will do the same with some old vehicle in their driveways in a few years. His other grandfather is still living and will probably enjoy the car re-do, too! Great memories. 

[qbetzforreal]

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@BirkiLady wrote:

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@qbetzforreal wrote:

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Wheel locks prevent the theft of tires.  Wheel locks install in place of your car's lug nuts and can only be removed with a special key that comes with the set. Types of wheel locks vary, depending on the wheel style.

@BirkiLady

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@qbetzforreal  Help me understand this further. You use these as the bolts. Lock them in place with a key. (No wonder I don't know about these.) Who would notice? They look like the bolts on my car!  (Which is the intended appearance, I assume.) THEN, you lock a hub cap over them??  Or was that just on very old cars??  Frankly, I haven't seen hub caps in decades!  Very, very interesting. 

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The smaller ones are specialized sized lug nuts.  One is replaces the a lug nut on each tire. The bigger one is the key.  A regular ol' crowbar won't work without key.  This stops any criminal from boosting your tires especially if you have expensive rims like Dubs.  Most hubcaps have holes where the lug nuts are exposed.  So yes, replace hubcap back if you have vehicle that still has hubcaps.  @BirkiLady

[qbetzforreal]

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@Allegheny wrote:

@qbetzforreal  Didn't that give you such a sinking, sick feeling.  When I lived in the city someone tried to steal my car, unsuccessfully.  Like you, leaving to drive to work.  As I approached the car I saw the door lock on the driver's side in the up position, I knew....They popped the ignition, but either got interrupted or couldn't get it started.  Stole a few incidentals from the inside, but thankfully didn't trash the car in anyway.  Think they must have been younger teenagers.

Towed the car to the dealership, replaced the ignition and had them put an alarm on the car.

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@Allegheny- I was in shock.

[BirkiLady]

@qbetzforreal  Dang! Forgot these are lugnuts . . . not bolts! Can you tell I fill my cars with gas and go? The dealership takes care of everything else, including the lugnuts when rotating the wheels with each oil change or replacing tires. Thanks for the lessons. 

[151949]

Pre 1979 I always drove a Jaguar because my first husband worked  for British Leyland. Anyway - people stole the Jaguar off the hood of that car many times. Usually while I was at work, and it was parked in the employee parking lot. My husband would go to the foreign car junkyard and find replacements. Eventually he just left it off and put a plug in the hole in the hood where it should be.

[151949]

IMO - the OP was pretty unreasonable  to expect a mechanic to automatically know all there is to know about a 28 year old car that had specialized locking lug nuts.The car was probably older than the mechanic. 

I wonder if someone put this OP into a brand new 2019 car if she would be able to drive it - with all the stuff on the steering wheel and the computer screen etc.We had a loaner car for a day last week and DH was having a heck of a time putting it into gear as the old fashioned looking gear changer was in reality, electronic, and very confusing.

[Allegheny]

@151949  My DH and I decided to lease a Volvo XC60 after selling our 2009 Nissan Murano in 2017.  I sat thru the entire orientation by the salesman and my head was spinning.  I have driven it once.  I have learned the basics I need to know, like putting it in gear, turning on the lights,  windshield wipers and of course the radio.  DH plans on leasing a newer model and it is even more complicated.  I may never drive it.  LOL

All the electronic/computerized stuff peaks my interest, but not enough for me to spend hours reading the manual.