Repair shop won't work on DOHC engines ... is this normal?

EyeMWing said:
In my experience "we don't work in $common_piece_of_tech" is industry speak for "that model is a known basketcase. go away."
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If a car is known by the mechanic to be problematic then they should make the customer aware of any potential issues and quote the job accordingly.

I'm afraid Spectre is correct. I know of many mechanics who are great with carburetors but haven't a clue how to work on efi cars. They make up bullshit excuses, the common one being "Oh there are no servicable parts in efi, it's all computers and witchcraft..."

These are the same guys who don't know how to send an email and find mobile phone technology baffling.
 
BlaRo said:
Whaddya mean, it's got summadat fancy-ass "feeual enjekshun?" Da fuck'is dat shit? You sum kinda Communist er summin?
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Yeah... about that... I'm looking at a fuellie 57 Vette right now.
 
I think they are politely saying that do not want your business. I highly doubt it has anything to do "with dem der high falootin jap enjuns!"
 
Yeah, but a second shop that said the same thing over the phone before even seeing the car?
 
What car/engine is it? Is your brother getting the timing belt changed? Some dohc fwd layouts are notoriously difficult to get to the timing belt, but thats no excuse for not doing the job.

There is no excuse other than the mechanic doesn't know how to do the job or doesn't have the skill/patience to do the job properly. Like i said if the car/engine is known by the mechanic to be difficult to work on then he should simply charge more money.
 
Nope, he just needed them to fix an oil leak and exhaust leak :\

Whatever the case for them, "we don't do twin cams" is a lame excuse.
 
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Well thats rather perplexing.

Unless the oil is leaking from a cam seal i cannot imagine what the configuration of the engine has to do with anything.
 
More signs of incompetence, as those have little to do with engine head config.
 
You would go bust here if you did not - many (Most?) petrol cars are DOHC engines in the UK market - SPECTRE seems to be right - not too competent in my book.
 
"Ay Earl, what dah hell is a DO-HICK?!?!"

Good lord, how can any shop live to see this day and age and not be able to work with common engine designs? You might as well be living in Cambodia.
 
Obvious answer: go to a shop that can service DOHC engines, the one you went to simply sucks
 
Holy Muffin...even my POS Taurus has a DOHC engine.

I mean...even I've done some repairs on it. Not the best repairs mind you, but...it got done.

DOHC's aren't really new either.

They were first used back in the early '20's, I think.

*edit* It was in 1919 by Bentley. (had to look it up)

From Google:

When DOHC technology was introduced in mainstream vehicles, it was common for it to be heavily advertised. While used at first in limited production and sports cars, Alfa Romeo is one of the twin cam's greatest proponents, 6C Sport the first Alfa Romeo road car using DOHC engine was introduced in 1928, ever since this has been trademark of all Alfa Romeo engines.

Fiat was one of the first car companies to use a belt-driven DOHC engines across their complete product line, in the mid-1960s, Jaguar's XK6 DOHC engine was displayed in the Jaguar XK120 at the London Motor Show in 1948 and used across the entire Jaguar range through the late 1940s, 1950 and 1960s. By the late 1970s, Toyota was the most selling of DOHC engines


So, if ANY place on the planet won't work on this 'newer/more complicated' tech...

Make fun of them, then moon them...then go find a place that doesn't use a Oiuji board to fix stuff. :p
 
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jayhawk said:
I think they are politely saying that do not want your business. I highly doubt it has anything to do "with dem der high falootin jap enjuns!"
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That's what it sounds like to me, a weak excuse to avoid an engine/vehicle they consider problematic.
 
I think BCS and Jayhawk are right. Either way I would avoid them.

I'd see if there is some Japanese (or even Nissan) specialty place. Over here you can't blow an apex seal without hitting a Mazda shop that specializes in rotaries.
 
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Spectre said:
Now, a specialty shop, say one that normally only works on Corvettes, can say that and not induce a flight reaction, but a general shop? Hell no, run away.
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LT5

//Yes I use your own words against you :p
 
Again, a specialty house can get away with it. Most Corvette specialty shops don't want to touch either the LT5 or the Doug Nash 4+3 transmission due to parts availability issues.
 
Yeah, I've heard similar things before in West Virginia. There really are shops that don't work on DOHC engines...even I'm not scared of opening my head. How hard can it be? A cam locking tool costs less than $20...
 
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