idiotic things you've done when working on your car
 

a quick 30 mins job has just turned into a bit of a nightmare

quick oil change i thought -- so bought a filter and oil (bit more than I needed - to be safe)

had all the tools ready to go

changed filter (its an Audi 2.5TDI btw)

then disaster, a moment of madness and I undo what i thought was the oil drain plug and whoof out comes all my transmission oil :cry:

bollox what a numpti

what are your horror stories?

Not as bad as that, but I spent about an hour trying to force the pistons back on my wifes new Beetle when changing the pads. Finally gave up and phoned a mate mechanic who said I needed a special tool to twist and push at the same time. Nipped round and borrowed his and job was done in 30 seconds. Conclusion? RTFM lol

Doing an oil change on a mate's Uno (it was a long time ago), started filling it up with oil before replacing the sump plug. Noticed oil around my feet before I realised.

Think COB did this once, too.

Taking the car for a drive after changing the brake pads. Yup, you've guessed it, I hadn't pressed the brake pedal to engage the pistons with the pads again!!!


I amazed myself in how quickly I could find the hand brake coming up to that roundabout!!! :D

That may have been me, I did exactly the same thing, chucked a gallon in it before I noticed. :(

Had to laugh though. :D

some good ones there guys keep them coming my claim to fame is undoing the suspension stuts forgeting then jacking the car up

I changed the engine in my other halves car, checked everything, it would not start for love nor money, checked everything over and over again. Called my mechanic mate round to have a look, he pressed the red button thing that is in the wing and laughed at me. (fuel cut switch)

It started straight away. :D

Oh, one of may favorites was one of my mates, this was years ago back in college, he had a bright green RS1600i, and decided to polish it with red T Cut, it took him hours and hours to get that $hit off. :lol1:

I just did a good one, took the strut off my STI, trying to find a knocking noice, put it all back, washed the car, went in the house, came out 10 mins later to see a pool of gearbox oil under the car. The drive shaft had come out of the gearbox, now no car until I can get oil tomorrow lol

wasn't my car but during work experience i lowered a supra (on which i was changing the oil) and crushed the 5 gallon oil drum into which we emptied the used oil, took me ages to clean up :(

years ago I angle grinded the floor out my old 1969 Mini Cooper -- went straight thru the Hydrolastic suspension pipe - green liquid spurting out at silly mile an hour alerted me to my error

The fact that I went thru the brakes pipes seemed tivial after this

still - not has bad as putting the wheel nuts on the wrong way round after a puncture, driving past Paddington Station - a very load bang followed by my front wheel racing down the road at speed - actually quite dangerous

luckily wrote the car off on Xmass eve – 1989 I think, just outside St Austell

i was changing the oil on my car at work,we have a proper drain thing on wheels and when its full pump it using the airline!anyway it was full so connected the hoses opend the bottom tap,forgot to close top tap,pluged air line in and got a mass jet of dirty oil out the top!up the wall,over the roof and all over workmates toolbox!!!
needless to say i spend most of the evening clearing that up and now double check the taps!!

the most anoying thing i do is leave the parts in the car when i raise it on the 4 poster ramp,,,,, having to get it back down again is a pain !!!!

ive done a few dumb things too,,,, told the missus to start the car whilst i was under it on 1 axle stand,,,,,,, and i left it in gear !, took a side window out of my car and put it down on a rocky conreate floor and it exploded

lowering the car on the bucket of oil is another classic i do a awfull lot

now i use proper ramps at a local garage and find i dont make as manu mistakes

After fitting my Sti engine I had to leave the car for a week outside so I covered up the brand new K&N filter with a carrier bag. Went back the following week for the initial start up and forgot to remove the carrier bag :brickwall

I couldn't understand why it sounded so rough until I noticed the bag over the filter. It sucked the filter completely flat !

wired a rear fog light wouldent work half hour of scratching my head relised id turned the front fogs on

Years ago I had a 1300E Escort Mk1. Changed the oil, put too much in but didn't realise it. Left a massive cloud of smoke the first time I next used it:lol1:

I stripped the drivers side ready for welding, but started welding the passenger side instead :brickwall
I lost my bearings :lol1:
I did learn a valuable lesson though............... Cars burn really well.

Broke my nose pulling the steering wheel off a Mk1 Golf GTI.......

Had a flat battery at a petrol station in an old car I had. Guy offered to help me bump start it. Sat the g/f in the car with instructions what to do. After pushing it for about 1/2 a mile, it just wouldn't fire up. Then realised the ignition was not on.

Had to give the poor guy a tenner for his trouble because I was so embarrassed.

First tiem I was doing an oil change on the 205. Drained oil out all good and well. Started filling with new oil and noticed a golden brown trickle near my feet - yes I had forgotton to replace the sump drain plug :D

Fitting a decat to one of my old scoobs, had removed the transmission dipstick to give a little more room. Id just trimmed the turbo heat sheild and handed it to a mate for him to start to refit. After a minute or so i heard "$hit" as i looked up he said sorry but i think the small m6 bolt has gone done the transmission dipstick tube!!...:eek:
We slid a telescopic magnet down the tube to try and get it but to no avail so we drained the trasmission fluid hoping it may pop out...nope...:eek:
So the telescopic maget went up in through the oil drain hole, after 20 mins of trying to fish it out i nearly gave up facing up to the reality of pulling the box out and stripping it down just for one poxy little bolt....then "ching" id only managed to hook the lil'bugger...:D...must admit i was sweating it.

:eek:

:lol1: Thats better than mine by like 3000% :D

Swiss did that after cleaning his engine :lol1: I've seen the filter and it's crushed!!! Hopefully he has some photos. He's also done at least one other funny thing while working on cars, I'll let him fill you in though :D

I used to have a Sierra V6 and the big ends went due to oil starvation :( The engine was a pushrod engine and it had a high lift cam in it so I decided to put the cam into the new engine.

I'd been working nights the week before and arranging to get the new engine delivered & the car recovered to the workshop so I hadn't been sleeping :nono: I came straight off a nightshift and started stripping the old engine out as soon as the workshops shut but it was about 2am by the time I decided to change the cams, to take the cam out you had to turn the engine upside down to drop out the pushrods, fine you think but I forgot to drain the oil first :nono: We covered the workshop floor with oil and everything we did made it worse :rolleyes: I then finished it off by fitting the cam 180 degrees out and it wouldn't fire. I sold the car after that :rolleyes:

Another one :D

I was working on my sister's old car that was written off, I can't remember what I was removing but it was something at the rear so the rear of the car was jacked up and the front was up on ramps. Because the handbrake was no use with the rear in the air I put the car in gear and started work on the car. All of a sudden the car rolled backwards off of the ramps nearly pinning me against the garage wall :eek: I'd forgotten that removing the cylinder head means that putting in gear is pointless because there is no compression :lol1:

If you Gunk your engine ensure you cover the alternator :cry:

Otherwise they are £19.99 from Grade A Subaru + £9 p and p.

£20 for an alternator? Mine new on the Pug was £60 - that seems cheap :lol1:

Changed the switches in an old Landie ... adding in a fog light .. spliced two wires together by mistake and when I connected the battery it got hot fast .. melted about 6 wires into one.. the controls are above the windscreen, so it ran from there through the roof down into the engine through a maze of holes... sold it soon after....

Wired in 2 amps with one power feed just after Christmas one year. I couldnt find any wire for the feed so cut my parents Xmas tree lights up and used it.

It was an old Cavalier GSi. 3 miles after getting the bass pumping, while overtaking a car, my Cavvy filled with with smoke and the smell of burning plastic. Too embarrased to stop, I kept the boot in and put the windows down, must've looked like something out of cheech and chong.

Pulled over to find the plastic armour has completely burned off the wires.


Also had a 1.8 nova back in the days when those conversions were never heard of, 1996.
The fan belt pulley was bent and kept spitting off belts so I used a pair of mums tights. The knot was so bit it caught on the timing belt (no cover) at snapped it.

Had a cavalier sri after this. Dipped the clutch one night in 2nd to wheelspin round a corner and the engine went dead. Spent the next week towing it trying to bump start it. Turns out I'd snapped the timing belt trying to spin wheels. Destroyed the cam, followers and valves tring to bump start it.

I remember back in the day when i was at college before i drove, a mate of mine had a mk2 escort, anyway he decided to top it up with oil but nobody told him that you use a dipstick to check the oil and just kept pouring it in until it was brimmed to the top of the oil filler cap :cuckoo: Must have been at least 5 litres to much and blew every gasket in the engine :norty:

My female cousin did that before she went on a long journey.

Phoned me up to ask what to check. I simply told her to top up the fluids.
Oil.........filled to the top of the rocker cover.
Water.....filled to the top of the expansion tank.
Brake fluid .....thought it was water so filled it anyway.


Needless to ssay, it wasnt a long journey.

Here you go Choccy!

Subaru impreza wrx/sti/uk Alternator on eBay (end time 02-Sep-09 19:22:07 BST)