Im joining you guys, that makes 3 former pep boys employees who won't go back.

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This post brought to you by Carl's Jr.

One rainy nite in west Ft worth a pep boys tire changing flunkee peel'd out backwards in a giant olds 98 and hit my car--pushing the fender into the windshield .....
Would you believe I had to sue them to get em to pay?

A Honda service advisor once told my father that his car wouldn't pass state inspection because the wiper blades, which I had replaced the previous month, were not OEM.

Fortunately/unfortunately I wasn't there to witness this shakedown.

D'oh!

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"Senior Luna, your sense of humor is still loco... but we love it, anyway." -rickymay ____ "Your sense of humor is still loco... " -MBeige ____ "Señor Luna, your sense of humor is quite järjetön" -Delibes

1982 300SD -- 211k, Texas car, tranny issues ____ 1979 240D 4-speed 234k -- turbo and tuned IP, third world taxi hot rod

2 Samuel 12:13: "David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die."

Yep, haven't been back for anything. Well, except for an engine leveler and only because it was the only place still open in a thirty mile radius that night.

I got fired for three things:
1) Not selling enough tires. I worked the 6-9pm shift after an engineering job because I needed to pay off some medical bills. The job board was already mostly filled by the time I got there and I never sold tires to someone who didn't need them.

2) Not selling oil changes or other minor things to people who didn't need them. I swear there was at least three moms with minivans who we probably sold oil changes to at least ten times a year.

3) Insubordination to my manager who was a no nothing pencil pusher. I was a service writer, and acting assistant manager during the evening shift. This guy comes in after I'd been working there for a few months. He's from the retail side of the store and has never worked on a car in his life.

He would act as a service writer from time to time and promise customers that a job would only take an hour when it would in all likelihood take three hours. "A brake job? Sure, we could get that done for you in about 30 minutes", "A misfire? We could have that taken care of in about an hour." I swear every job he estimated never took more than an hour in his mind.

I'd gotten the mechanic's ire a few times over his antics and the joke of his diagnosis abilities to the point where I'd double check his estimate and talk to the customer before his work got on the board. He called me to the back room one time and flipped out on me when I cancelled one of his tickets for four tires and an alignment because the vehicle just had that done a few months prior by us. I'd even taken the vehicle up on the lift to inspect the "loose" tie rod he said he'd found (and I asked him why he didn't ask the customer to replace it).

Close to the end of my time there he had fired the assistant service manager, two other service writers, two oil change monkeys and the most competent guy on the retail side. He and I had a brief spat with him saying "if you don't sell any tires by Friday then you're fired." I responded with "well, then I quit." I got a notice saying that I was terminated and when I went into turn in my work shirts he told me that it was because my probationary period hadn't ended yet and that I could be terminated for any reason. I let him know when I was hired and that my probationary period had been over for three months.

I heard from one of my former coworkers that he was promoted to regional manager the week after he fired me. Seems like he was just shaking things up enough to climb the ladder.

Man I hated that place.

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Onus probandi incumbit ei qui dicit, non ei qui negat

I recondition w123/w126/w124/w140/r107/r129/ steering boxes!


1984 300D "Elsa" odo reset 6/2011 147k
1983 300TD "Mitzi" ~268k OM603 powered
1995 E300 "Adelheid" 262k [Sold]

So I shouldn't go back to Pep Boys for another Johnson Rod when this most recent one wears out?
Even if they offer to top off my headlight fluid for free??

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On some nights I still believe that a car with the fuel gauge on empty can run about fifty more miles if you have the right music very loud on the radio. - HST

1983 300SD - 305000
1984 Toyota Landcruiser - 190000
1994 GMC Jimmy - 203000

https://media.giphy.com/media/X3nnss8PAj5aU/giphy.gif

I like the ploy about how you have to, as in HAVE TO, replace the rotors every time you replace the pads. I think the only problem with it is that it should not stop there.

In fact, the bearings would also need replacement, unless you want to die in a flaming death, which is I guess is up to you, but if it were me I would replace the bearings and, just to be safe... The spindle, too.

But as long as we are in there that deep we might as well put on a new set of struts. What? You say your car has shocks? Say... Whose's the Mechanic here, anyway?

So pads, rotors, spindles, struts, bearings.... Might as well get the tie-rod's as well; just to safe you know.... I think you would be looking at (after an alignment) $2,400?

A few hundred more for cotter pins, grease and the cost of rags.... I am sure we could get it done and done right for just a bit less than $3,000.

Well, Ok then... If it is going to be more I will call you, but if the guy doing the work can't get in touch with you.... Well, just trust us. We know what we are doing.

(Wow. I can't understand why I wasted my life in the oil business when I could have been such a talented Service Writer.)

^
Reminded me of one from long ago.

There was an exhaust leak that was coming through to the cabin of the Jeep. After driving for a while both me and my partner got so sleepy that we HAD to pull over and shut off the engine. It was rainy winter so windows were up while driving.

That event motivated me to take it to a shop and they diagnosed a leak originating at the manifold, and attributed it to a failed exhaust gasket. After hearing that, I okayed replacement of the gasket and the one on the other side.

About 2 hours later I got a call back and the shop’s SA stated that they broke a stud while removing the bolts for the manifold, and would need to bill me I don’t remember how much for using an easy out to remove the broken stud.

That was fine by me.

Then he said, that if I didn’t okay replacement of all the studs, they just might break more studs while removing them, requiring the same bill for each broken stud. I didn’t debate the veiled threat and told them to go ahead.

Last time I went to that shop.

Fuccillo Hyundai | New & Used Car Dealership in Syracuse, NY (Serving all of Onondaga County, Oswego, Rome, Utica, Ithaca, Elmira, Rochester, Oneida and Seneca Falls)

Fucillo Hyundai of Syracuse. STAY AWAY FROM FUCILLO

My Mom was in Syracuse shopping, stopped there with a CEL because she was in town and well, she was driving an '05 Hyundai at the time.

They proceeded to tell her that they couldn't figure out what was wrong, and they they could "try" a new gauge cluster for the CEL but no guarantee (est $900). They also found a non-existant crack in the front A arm, and worked her up into hysterics that she would die if she drove it home and they would not give the car back without her signing a release. In tears, she called my Stepfather, he drove out (2hrs mind out) to drive the "dangerous" car home while she drove his truck back.

Got the car home, took it to a local shop. Temp sensor was dead. $25 installed. Peeling/flaking paint on the A arms, no cracks to be found even after wire wheeling them.

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$60 OM617 Blank Exhaust Flanges
$110 OM606 Blank Exhaust Flanges
No merc at the moment

If I did that, I'd not be able to shop at any of the parts stores. They all have tried to upsell me. Only people that haven't are Jegs and Summit where I get the feeling they are too busy taking the next order to barely sell what they have.

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01 Ford Excursion Powerstroke
99 E300 Turbodiesel
91 Vette with 383 motor
05 Polaris Sportsman 800 EFI
06 Polaris Sportsman 500 EFI
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Red
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Yellow
04 Tailgator 21 ft Toy Hauler
11 Harley Davidson 883 SuperLow

You mean you dont need 3 bottles of lucas fuel system cleaner and a packet of bulb grease with those spark plugs? And btw, why do you need 5 glow plugs? Are you skipping changing one or keeping a spare in the glove box?

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have no worries.....President Obama swears "If you like your gun, you can keep it

3? I have more than 3 machines. I need no less than a dozen. What a coincidence. Autozone tried to sell me fuel system cleaner yesterday. Even if I didn't need it, I could keep it and it doesn't go bad, so I am told.

Cheapskate. Everyone knows that you buy in bulk for economy. A packet of bulb grease only goes so far. I need a large tube. Supersize is the name of the game.

They tried to sell me spark plugs for my diesel too. Do you happen to know if it works and what brand to buy? Is NGK better?

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01 Ford Excursion Powerstroke
99 E300 Turbodiesel
91 Vette with 383 motor
05 Polaris Sportsman 800 EFI
06 Polaris Sportsman 500 EFI
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Red
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Yellow
04 Tailgator 21 ft Toy Hauler
11 Harley Davidson 883 SuperLow

For your diesel? Get some Bosch Platinum Iridium +4's.

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Cruise Control not working? Send me PM or email (jamesdean59@gmail.com). I might be able to help out.
Check here for compatibility, diagnostics, and availability!

(4/11/2020: Hi Everyone! I am still taking orders and replying to emails/PMs/etc, I appreciate your patience in these crazy times. Stay safe and healthy!)


82 300SD 145k
89 420SEL 210k
89 560SEL 118k
90 300SE 262k RIP 5/25/2010
90 560SEL 154k
91 300D 2.5 Turbo. 241k
93 190E 3.0 235k
93 300E 195k

They are a little pricy but if you think it will give me more power and mileage, I'll go along with that. Thanks.

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01 Ford Excursion Powerstroke
99 E300 Turbodiesel
91 Vette with 383 motor
05 Polaris Sportsman 800 EFI
06 Polaris Sportsman 500 EFI
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Red
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Yellow
04 Tailgator 21 ft Toy Hauler
11 Harley Davidson 883 SuperLow

When the nice counter jockey supplies you with them nice shiny DIESEL SPARK PLUGS and writes a bill for you.

Ask where is the hole that would accept these plugs. (Sam Jackson style)

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2012 BMW X5 (Beef + Granite suspension model)

1995 E300D - The original humming machine (consumed by Flood 2017)
2000 E320 - The evolution (consumed by flood 2017)