[Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
 | [Main General Bulletin Board | BBFAQ |
Prev by Date | Next by Date | Post Followup ]
Member Login / Signup - Members see fewer ads. - Latest Member Gallery Photos
Re: I'm having flashbacks... Posted by ELaw [Email]  (#699)  [Profile/Gallery]
(more from ELaw) on Fri, 1 Mar 2013 11:04:27
In Reply to: I'm having flashbacks..., JimBlake  [Profile/Gallery]
, Fri, 1 Mar 2013 10:12:19
Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup
|
I agree with your message to a point... and until a few years ago I was one of the people saying the same thing.
But today there's a difference. In the past, to work on new systems what you mostly needed was knowledge, and maybe a few tools that financially were within the reach of most people. Going from points to electronic ignition? You maybe need a $20 multimeter. Carb to FI? Maybe a fuel-pressure gauge on top of the multimeter. Maybe $20-$30 worth of wiring tools too.
OBD-1 (not much) and OBD-2 (very much) actually improved the situation for those that don't have deep pockets, as they required all vehicles to conform to the same publicly-known diagnostic standards. Now one relatively inexpensive tool could be used for troubleshooting any vehicle.
But the current situation is different in one key way: you don't just need knowledge, you also need deep pockets... very deep in some cases. Most people here know about the $4K Tech2 required to do many things on newer Saabs. Do you want to know what the corresponding tool for Mercedes costs? $22,000. That's right, 22 *thousand* dollars. Everyone here who has an extra 22 grand lying around, please raise their hand! And keep in mind that 22 grand will only allow you to work on one brand of car... if you want to work on Saabs too you'll have to fork over another $4K. And another few K to work on VW/Audi, several more K to work on BMW, etc. etc.
And don't think for a minute that those tools are only required for obscure, rare problems. Have you ever had a problem with the steering/ignition lock on your car (if you've owned a 99 or C900, you know you have ;^))? On an older car, you grab a few hand tools, pull things apart, curse a few times when you bang your knuckles, and end up replacing a part that costs anywhere from 50 cents to a few dollars. If the same thing happens on your Mercedes, you get to replace a solenoid assembly that costs hundreds of dollars and... requires that $22K tool to code it to the car.
And while in many cases the extra cost of technology can improve reliability (you don't have to pay to fix things that don't break), that isn't always the case. According to a friend of mine that works on them all day every day, those multi-hundred-dollar Mercedes solenoids fail quite frequently... the old mechanical steering locks almost never failed.
->Posting last edited on Fri, 1 Mar 2013 11:05:11.
_______________________________________ Eric Law Current collection: '12 Audi A4 quattro (self-tuned) '14 Audi A6 quattro (also self-tuned) Gone but not forgotten: '72 99, '77 99 (became a turbo, twice) '80 900T 5-door, '81 900T, '86 900S (became a turbo), '86 900 SPG '86 9000, '97 9000 Aero A bunch of Audis, '69 Firebird, '64 Toyota Corona (first car, cost $35 and worth every penny) Be alert... America needs more lerts!
, Mon, 25 Feb 2013 15:59:55
, Tue, 26 Feb 2013 14:21:38
, Tue, 26 Feb 2013 19:34:53, Wed, 27 Feb 2013 09:16:23, Wed, 27 Feb 2013 17:09:25, Sat, 2 Mar 2013 03:43:58, Sat, 2 Mar 2013 17:32:44, Mon, 4 Mar 2013 18:45:54, Fri, 1 Mar 2013 10:12:19, Fri, 1 Mar 2013 11:04:27 <-- Viewing This Message, Sun, 3 Mar 2013 06:17:48, Fri, 1 Mar 2013 12:33:59, Thu, 28 Feb 2013 02:33:19, Fri, 1 Mar 2013 05:34:29, Mon, 25 Feb 2013 17:54:37
No Site Registration is Required to Post - Site Membership is optional (Member Features List), but helps to keep the site online
for all Saabers. If the site helps you, please consider helping the site by becoming a member.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
