A few years before dear old Dad died, he called me and said he wanted me to come and put a fuel pump in his pickup. This should have raised a flag, but it didn't. All my life he was the guy that could build anything or fix anything so it was odd that he wanted me to do this instead of doing it himself.

I agreed to do it for him, but I lived 120 miles away and it was the middle of the week. He called Friday night and said he had gotten it done by a shop in town. At the age of 86, that was probably the first time in his life he had ever hired a repair of any kind.

Fast forward about seven years. My Dad's truck was a '98 model with 35000 miles and more importantly was blue, so my wife wanted it for herself when my Dad passed away.

A few weeks ago we drove the truck to haul some things and it set a code. It also got hard to start and was losing power but it made it home. The codes were lean bank 1 and lean bank 2, so it appeared to be fuel delivery related. I checked fuel pressure and it was 20 pounds.

Since it was due one anyway I stuck a fuel filter on it. Apparently the shop might not have changed it with the pump since it was Motorcraft. When I got it off it was clear and with the new one, fuel pressure was still 20 pounds. I pinched off the return line and the pressure staid the same. I ordered a fuel pump and planned to raise the bed.

The truck is a Flareside and it turned out to be fiberglass so I dropped the tank on a transmission jack instead. When I raised the pump and sender I saw that the hose from the pump was kinked and had crimp clamps, so I think the shop reused the original hose and clamps. I didn't take a chance on the old pump and went back with the new one. I straightened the pickup tube so the line would not kink and got it all back together properly. It lit right off and was giving me 35 pounds fuel pressure.

My dad was probably the best, most thorough mechanic I ever knew and the one time he trusted a repair to someone else, they screwed it up.

If you want something done right, do it yourself. I sure wish he could have.

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2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution

One of the biggest challenges of growing older is having to give up control of so many different things, and certain car repairs are one of those.

I'm glad you had your dad for a long time and he showed you much, Larry. Plainly you picked up on the lesson of doing it right, and it's a lesson that many don't learn, and not just in the world of vehicle repair.

Thanks for sharing the story, I enjoyed it.

me too.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

Encyclopedic volumes could be written of the haphazard scr#w-ups done over the years by any number of trades.

Yeah Skid, it's not about skill or smarts, it's about attitude.

__________________
2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution

It's really good advice unless you're talking to the guy who put the pump in the tank for the your dad.

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1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

Good to see you'll be able to keep your dad's p'up on the road!

Unfortunately shoddy repair on a elderly person's vehicle is probably not that uncommon.

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1980 300TD-China Blue/Blue MBTex-2nd Owner, 107K (Alt Blau) OBK #15
'06 Chevy Tahoe Z71 (for the wife & 4 kids, current mule) '03 Honda Odyssey (son #1's ride, reluctantly) '99 GMC Suburban (255K+ miles, semi-retired mule) 21' SeaRay Seville (summer escape pod)

I just bought some satsuma trees from a 93 year old today. He was telling me about fighting Rommel in WWII. Those old guys were something else.

I'm not sure I understand. 7 years ago it was done and now you have a problem and it is this? How did it come about? IF it was crimped, why does it show up 7 years later?

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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

IF it was crimped? Are you implying that I'm a liar?

I should have taken some pictures. The truck has only been driven about 12,000 miles in that time. The hose was the original hose and crimped clamps, but was kinked badly into place with the two hard connections severely misaligned. It was a miracle that it ever worked at all. The stress of the kink along with the reuse of the clamps started leaking off pressure. After I pulled the pump up you could even see that it was wet at the bottom of the hose as the fuel in the line was slowly dribbling out.

Even if the jerry rigged line would have lasted five hundred thousand miles, it was SHODDY workmanship that resulted in failure of the connection in a relatively short time.

__________________
2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution

^^^
agreed. the reason this lasted 7 years is you dont drive the truck much. 12k is less than a lot of peoples yearly mileage on a vehicle, if it were in daily service, would have presented itself a lot faster.

sounds like a flat rate job to me. Get it done fast, dont make sure of placement, move to the next job.

On the flip side, its amazing how long a crap repair can last and actually work. 7 years on kinked hoses for your truck, i once worked on w cummins where an entire section of fuel delivery equipment underneath had been shoddily tied on with an old extension cord and rubbing everywhere. the guy had over 300k on that repair

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Yes, an additional ten minutes
Or less would have been plenty of time to align the two hard connections, cut a length of fresh fuel line and secure it with two new screw clamps.

If they had bothered to align the hard lines, reusing the crimp type clamps and old line they might have effected a lifetime repair, and that would have probably taken less than two minutes.

__________________
2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution

In the 1980s there was a movement in the US to improve quality, because people saw that if you did it right the first time, there would be no warranty, repairs, redos etc.

Then in the 1990s everyone started buying everything from China at slave workers' wages, so US companies decided it was too expensive to make sure that US workers had the right tools and attitudes and were supported by management.

That's why we have the super disposable economy we do now.

On the other hand, the Germans continued their Fachausbildunspolitik ( Technical educatoon policy) that said:

The best quality or nothing.

The result: a bankrupt GM with massive recalls vs Mercedes Benz (as long as it wasn't fooled with by executives like Schrempp and Zetsche, who are now removed from day-to-day production and only see financials).

I lived through that and saw it first hand.

I worked three months for W Edwards Deming when he was at Chrysler and six months for Philip Crosby and Joe Juran.

Google them if you don't know who they are.

That's why I have the "old time" methodical attitude towards repair and process redesign.

I do not regret either one bit!

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Strelnik
Invest in America: Buy a Congressman!

1950 170SD
1951 Citroen 11BN
1953 Citroen 11BNF limo
1953 220a project
1959 180D
1960 190D
1960 Borgward Isabella TS 2dr
1983 240D daily driver
1983 380SL
1990 350SDL daily driver alt
3 x Citroen DS21M, down from 5
3 x Citroen 2CV, down from 6

Deming ROCKS...............

Yep, heard and read a lot about Deming. I was involved in a project integrating SPC/SQC tools into an HMI product in the late eighties, early nineties timeframe.

Deming had more to do with quality metrics than with direct involvement with quality improvement. Putting forth metrics, however, was a big part of improving quality. Producing quality products is more of an attitude or a commitment or a business model than it is a science in itself.

__________________
2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution