Domesti VS. Euro VS. Import Mechanics

[Redlyne_mr2]

For years I used to think that the reason domestics were so popular was because they were easy to work on and parts were cheap. It was interesting to see all these domestic guys talk down about euros and imports. It seems however that alot of domestics aren't very easy to work on and parts are often more than euro and import parts. I was watching horsepower TV today where they changed a camshaft on a small block, for a weekend mechanic that would take about 4-5 hours, and there's so many little tricks involved with the installation as well. I swapped 2 camshafts on my ae86 in less than an hour. My mr2 a midengine car is pretty easy to work on as well, it's pretty tight but a simple job like sparkplugs take me 20 minutes where on my dads f150 it takes anywhere from 10-12 hours. I find the euros to be failry straight forward, they do like to use an abundance of tensioners and oil seals but are still very similar to imports in most cases, just wondering what peoples thought on this are?

[hjr]

the small block is also almost 40 years old. Its old technology. the ease of working on them was the HUGE engine bay. almost anything could be done with the engine inside where as euro's of the day were very crampt. In the modern day i would say it totally depends on the car and not its origin of design or manufacturing

[///M3]

importz will always be number 1

[James]

Old VW's are soooooo easy to work on, and parts are pretty cheap too( for most things)...the whole " dont buy an import, parts are way too expensive, and hard to find" is more of a myth, or just a really outdated thing, as im sure back in the 70's or before that, it was true............. i sure wouldnt want to work on most cars newer than the mid-late 90's, so much plastic shit in the way, just makes it a pain in the ass. I've owned a 2 VW's, 2 Japanese cars and a Chrysler( all late 80's or early 90's)....and they were all fairly easy to work on, i think the Nissan 200sx was the worst, but i was also younger and didnt know a whole lot about cars, :tongue:

[5.9 R/T]

Originally posted by James
Old VW's are soooooo easy to work on, and parts are pretty cheap too( for most things)...the whole " dont buy an import, parts are way too expensive, and hard to find" is more of a myth, or just a really outdated thing, as im sure back in the 70's or before that, it was true............. i sure wouldnt want to work on most cars newer than the mid-late 90's, so much plastic shit in the way, just makes it a pain in the ass. I've owned a 2 VW's, 2 Japanese cars and a Chrysler( all late 80's or early 90's)....and they were all fairly easy to work on, i think the Nissan 200sx was the worst, but i was also younger and didnt know a whole lot about cars, :tongue:

Parts for imports are more expensive, a brake change for my old 323 cost twice as much then an intrepid.

[rice_eater]

it really depends...i find working on my neon easy as hell, with reasonable amount of room to squeeze in, but it has enough times when you need to dislocate your fingers to reach something to keep you entertained. I worked on a new grand am GT and it was hell...i think it just depends on how complex the setup is...if you have a shitload of computers and wires in the way crammed in a small engine space then yes it will be hell to work on, be it domestic or import. I think that's what it comes down to: COMPLEXITY

[rice_eater]

i mean look at this...moved the battery and now i have all the space in the world

[403Gemini]

all depends what you know how to work on. i can work on my acura because ive worked ont he car for 2 years. i can do an oil change on that in no time, yet 1st time on my saturn took me a bit of time to get familiar with new engine.

so it all totally depends ont he mechanic

[Dave]

It all depends on what job you are doing. Oil changes are usually quite simple on any car.

Take the belt for example, i find it much easier to change a belt on a engine that faces forward (so the belt is right infront of you) rather than an engine where the belt in on the side.

It also depends on how large the engine bay is.

Personally i think this entire thread is quite pointless.

[Alpine Autowerks]

there are easy cars to work on and bad ones from any country, but what I find in imports (less with VW.. see below for bitching) is the consistancy of fasteners...

Imports seem to keep to a smaller set of wrench sizes than the domestics, have you ever seen a german tool box? they are not much bigger than a suitcase.







a real beetle could be field stripped with a 10,13,17,19 + 36mm socket set and a flat blade screw driver.

the new beetle has 5.5 mm to 42 mm sockets, torx of every size plus ZXN (you known ...like the CV bolts)in 4mm to 12mm plus others