Iowa Tacomas (Idiots.Out.Wandering.Around)

i see
is there a work around that?
labor a la carte perhaps

 

DIY
mod day
Have mechanic friends

a la carte sure. That’s when they triple the hourly rate because you are a pain in the ass.

 

i imagine that i am one of those PITAs ... old and grumpy
worse case scenario i suppose i can get it towed across town if i cannot get it put back together properly

 

The smaller the shop, the more upcharge they are going to hit you with on parts. Also, some shops have special rates if you bring your own parts. Mostly because people bring in the wrong parts the majority of the time.

 

This for sure. I used to be a mechanic so I have some friends still. I do almost all my own work and farm out the stuff that requires special tools I don't possess. Or if it's a really shitty job...

 

yeah, my old truck has really NEVER needed anything special maintenance wise, just the standard preventative stuff on time, these are all age and/or environment related stuff now popping up

 

especially this one

 

how shitty of a job can a '17 or '20 model exactly get?

 

A shitty job as in something that sucks to do. Like changing diff and/or transfer case fluid. Or doing a lot of bushings at once. One thing I really REALLY hate doing is drum brakes. It's not that hard, but I hate doing it.

 

Diff and trans fluid is pretty easy, it just smells.. a lot

 

my drum brakes are still original and front disc have only been changed once
i suppose having a new catback exhaust put on was a shitty job that i gladly paid $150 to have the Toyota mechanic do, he earned every penny on that i think (crusty bolts near the cat)
diff and transfer case don't seem bad to do as long as the drain and fill plugs come out easily

 

Yeah, that's why I don't like doing it. Also, it's generally cheap to have someone else do it and not have my garage smell like ass for a day.

 

i don't have an acute sense of smell
but i do have a very nerve racking acute sense of hearing
can almost hear ants marching on broken glass

 

To add to this, generally all it would cost me is a case of beer for a friend of mine to do it. LoL Knowing people man.... Knowing people. Having someone you trust do it and it only costs you a case of beer is a no-brainer.

 

call me jealous then

 

It's always worth it to network. It's almost never worth it to burn bridges. Lived by that for a while.

Also, spoil the people that help you. Like if I go use my buddies lift, which means I'm usually using his tools as well since I'm not bringing my entire box to his shop, I will bring his iced coffee from his favorite coffee shop and breakfast sammich from the same place. I will also generally buy lunch if I'm there that long and always bring a case of beer. Also, when I'm done I clean up my mess and his tools that I used. Generally, then, you give them incentive to have you back.

 

I did mine in the drive way last time lol

 

have you seen the NE thread on TW, not too many old Taco people anywhere near me and actually there maybe none, everybody has a much newer truck around here
its as bad as the Michigan TW thread lol

 

If you are only using TW to network, you're going to have a bad time. Or any forum for that matter. You have to actually meet people. Cast a wide net. I've underestimated the value of networking for a long time. Now that I know better, I cast a wide net and try to make it to every event I can to meet people. Also, you don't have to be that much of a extrovert to meet people and you are never obligated to stay somewhere. Go places, be seen, talk to a couple of people, and if you feel uncomfortable, jet.

 

If I had a driveway I would. My garage butts up to the alley behind my house. No driveway in front.....