Truckinik - It's not so much that some of us on this board can afford to drive a mercedes, because some of us didn't pay a whole lot for ours. While you can afford some of these nice cars brand new, I paid a mere $4000 for mine which, while it's in good condition, is 20 years old. I know people who buy honda civics and ford escorts and pay three or more times that for their car new.

The point is that a good number of us are still penny pinchers. Hell, why else are we here discussing how to diagnose and repair our own cars if we are more than able to pay the outrageous labor costs associated with repairing any car? I'll be honest. I was 17 years old the first time I picked up a wrench, and it definately wasn't for pure enjoyment.