Inaccessible car batteries…

F

Fyrefox

Well-known Member
I had to jump start the SO’s car the other day as her battery had gone dead from the vehicle not being used. The operation was rendered much more difficult than it had to be due to one of the battery terminals being hidden under a metal cowling with almost no clearance. I wound up with a cut finger as a result. Why, oh why, do they make critical auto systems and components that should be user-serviceable so inaccessible? I know that they want you to take your vehicle to a garage for any work, but that’s hard to do if your car won’t start. My mechanic, by the way, now charges $100 an hour for labor alone, assuming that you can get the car there!

Anyone have similar experiences going under the hood? 😫
 

I had a 1968 Chrysler Imperial. It was a monster. I could pop the hood, and climb in and stand next to the engine. It was super easy to work on. Today, with all the high end electronics and Swiss watch like under the hood, it's extremely difficult to work on a car. To work on something, you almost have to dismantle most of the car just to get at it.
 

It is best to stick with a common and popular model, like a Toyota Camry for example. Repairs will be easier and parts are plentiful. A Cadillac in the other hand, can be one expensive and difficult machine to maintain and repair!
 
Fyrefox said:
I had to jump start the SO’s car the other day as her battery had gone dead from the vehicle not being used. The operation was rendered much more difficult than it had to be due to one of the battery terminals being hidden under a metal cowling with almost no clearance. I wound up with a cut finger as a result. Why, oh why, do they make critical auto systems and components that should be user-serviceable so inaccessible? I know that they want you to take your vehicle to a garage for any work, but that’s hard to do if your car won’t start. My mechanic, by the way, now charges $100 an hour for labor alone, assuming that you can get the car there!

Anyone have similar experiences going under the hood? 😫
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What was the make and model car?
 
The problem is manufacturers keep squeezing more stuff into smaller spaces. I miss those days when you could sit on the fan/radiator cover with your legs hanging in the engine well as you worked.

I recently put control arms on my daughters Mazda 3 and had to lossen and lift one side of the engine to get one of the arms off. Made what I thought would be a two hour job into a five hour job.

It's getting to the point where I keep telling myself it won't be long before I can no longer do the work myself.
 
I worked at a Chevy dealership garage once and saw a mechanic practically standing on his head in a car engine he was working on. I asked him what he was doing and he said he was changing the spark plugs. And it's only gotten worse since then. I don't even know where to add windshield wiper fluid anymore.
 
caroln said:
I worked at a Chevy dealership garage once and saw a mechanic practically standing on his head in a car engine he was working on. I asked him what he was doing and he said he was changing the spark plugs. And it's only gotten worse since then. I don't even know where to add windshield wiper fluid anymore.
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caroln said:
I worked at a Chevy dealership garage once and saw a mechanic practically standing on his head in a car engine he was working on. I asked him what he was doing and he said he was changing the spark plugs. And it's only gotten worse since then. I don't even know where to add windshield wiper fluid anymore.
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Oh come on everybody knows that?
https://tinyurl.com/4e45h7vt
 
My batts need a bit of maneuvering which is not good on the back. Noticed this week the little plastic flap had broken off the little plastic battery heat shield and Ford only wants £120 for a new one.
 
Alligatorob said:
That is true, however the newer cars also require less maintenance, its a tradeoff.
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You're right about that. I use to routinely have to change spark plugs and plug wires but haven't done that on any newer cars in probably twenty years. Even with over 125k miles those parts are still good. And it sure was hard to teach myself not to change oil every 3k, now with full synthetic I push it to 6k or so.
 
Get an electric car, with no engine, just an electric motor, and will come with a Computer science degree!
 
When my AC broke, I took it to a Honda Dealership. They wanted almost $1000 to fix it citing it was "labor intensive" to replace the compressor. That's more than the wholesale value of my 21 year old Civic. I looked it up on RepairPal and that price is not unreasonable:

ac.jpg
 
When I buy a vehicle, I check under the hood for the common maintenance items....battery, oil filter etc. Some of the newer cars have the battery installed in such a location that it requires "super human" effort to replace it. The Worst one I've seen is a Ford Escape. That battery is tucked way at the back of the engine compartment right over the area where the drivers feet would rest. To replace it, all the engine compartment moldings and wipers must be removed, then it would take a very muscular person to wrestle it out/in. When I saw that, I put the Escape at the very bottom of the list of vehicles I would consider....I imagine the Labor costs would be double the price of the battery.
 
I know Squatting Dog works on cars and so do I. This is the good thing about being retired. You don’t have to rush because the customer is not waiting on the car.

I just finished exchanging an A/C out of a 1985 Impala. I told the guy he should junk it, but the car was his dad’s, so he wants to keep it. I went to the junkyard I deal with and they had 2 Impalas just like his. The owner tokd me I had to take it off. They only have 3 guys working to take off parts and they were busy with engines, trannys and body parts. It took me almost 4 hours to take it off and another 15 hours to take his off and put the used one on and get it charged. I also had to run out and get a new belt.

Yes, I prayed to God that it worked and didn’t make any noise. Once I put the serpentine belt on and got it started, it worked reallly good, except it needed to be recharged, which means it has a small leak, but for this summer, it will do fine.
 
Nathan said:
Reminds me of a conversation with a co-worker who was a "motor-head", he said "nowadays ya can't work on a car anymore..." I said "Frank, with the newer cars and technology you don't have to work on them".
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I don’t like the newer stuff. They didn’t make it easier to work on.
 
Fyrefox said:
I had to jump start the SO’s car the other day as her battery had gone dead from the vehicle not being used. The operation was rendered much more difficult than it had to be due to one of the battery terminals being hidden under a metal cowling with almost no clearance. I wound up with a cut finger as a result. Why, oh why, do they make critical auto systems and components that should be user-serviceable so inaccessible? I know that they want you to take your vehicle to a garage for any work, but that’s hard to do if your car won’t start. My mechanic, by the way, now charges $100 an hour for labor alone, assuming that you can get the car there!

Anyone have similar experiences going under the hood? 😫
Click to expand...
You have to look. Some of the new cars has a separate post to put the jumper cable on. You just put the Red cable or (+) cable on and the negative cable can go on anything metallic under the hood. I learned that the hard way too. It helps to read the book in the glovebox.
 
I have never even lifted the hood on my 2019 Subaru Impreza and don't ever intend to. I visit the dealer annually for an oil change and inspection, and if they're happy, I'm happy.
 
The battery on my 2012 convertible is in the front fender below the headlight. There are a couple of posts where you can connect jumper cables or a charger up under the hood. It is still a PITA.

The whole car is too low and I have to be careful on rough roads and the stops in parking lots.
 
@Fyrefox...

@Mike was correct. You only needed the positive (red) terminal, and you could have clipped the other cable to any part of metal under the hood...giving you the negative charge.
 

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