Van

[Warren Fisher]

Dear David,

I had a similar problem with my van, it was burning a lot of oil, and
the plugs were fouling up and it was running rough.  So, I too decided
to rebuild the engine and run it 4-5 more years. It had over 150,000
miles on it and it was a Mitsubishi.  I looked around at prices and
decided to put in an ATK re-manufactured engine because it came with a 3
year, 36,000 mile warranty!  The Engine alone, installed, came to
$3400.  When they broke it down, they found $600 of other related stuff
that needed replacing also, water pump, ignition harness, one lobe of
the alternator was acting poory, etc.  The engine worked okay when they
finished, but it didn't seem as good as it was originally.  It had a
tendency to run a little hot and on a trip to Tampa got quite hot!  By
the time I got back from Florida I had a loud rattle somewhere in the
exhaust system.  Taking it to the muffler place who had replaced
everything before, I was told that the engine was running so hot that
the catalytic convertor block had broken into pieces.  Replacing the
convertor worked for a little while and then the heat started inching up
again.  I had taken it back to the engine rebuilders several times, but
they couldn't find anything.  I had the radiator re-cored to get the
rust out.  Limited effect.  It was summer here and I could hardly use
the A/C.  Revolting!  

Then, all of a sudden, the house was paid off along with all our other
loans and my wife said "You need to buy a new truck or IRS is going to
eat us alive next year!"  So we went shopping like a pair of kids and
brought home a Dodge pickup with the Cummings diesel and all of the
goodies.

When I was driving the van over to the used dealer for him to sell, it
stopped dead in the middle of the street.  I put it in neutral and
managed to get off the road.  I sat there for a quiet moment of pulling
hair, and then was able to get it started again and limped into
Firestone to see if they could do anything.  They told me the engine
computer was bad and quoted $1400 to install a new one.  This, of course
was what was causing the engine to overheat and run bad and the engine
rebuilders probably knew that and didn't tell me about because I
probably wouldn't have gone ahead with the rebuild.  I went to
Mitsubishi and they quoted $1100 just for the part.  The parts man gave
me a phone number of a used parts place that might have one; they
didn't, but he was able to send the computer to a rebuilder and I got it
back in a week.  I took the van to the used dealer who sold it to some
Guatemalans and I got $2000. Whoopee!!

I'm going to think very carefully before I rebuild anymore engines and
for sure I'll never do anything so foolish with a Japanese vehicle. 
Their parts costs sometimes double what U.S. parts do.  Don't get me
wrong, their cars last a long time.  I have a Nissan pickup that's 13
years old and still runs very well, but I won't do much fixing on it
before I get rid of it.

My advice, is that unless it's totally impossible, when your vehicle
becomes un-reliable, buy a new one with a 5 year, 150,000 mile extended
warranty or at minimum 100,000 miles, depreciate it over the same period
and do everything you can to pay it off before the warranty expires and
then do it all over again!!!  

That way you'll rarely have an un-reliable vehicle!

Of course, if you are just starting in the business, lots of luck. 
Maybe your rich uncle will conveniently die and drop something on you.
:-)

sincerely,

Warren




Vanderhoofven wrote:
> 
> Last year on the way home from the National PTG Convention in Orlando, our
> van broke a rod in the engine whe we were only about 30 miles from our
> house.  After having the useless van parked next to our house for 10
> months, we finally had the engine rebuilt.  Last night we drove it home
> from the rebuilder's shop, and it works great.  Because I have the van
> back, once again we have reliable transportation instead of the old junker
> we have been driving!
> 
> O yes, since this is the Pianotech list, this post should say something
> about pianos...  Well, reliable transportation is very important, because I
> drive about 10,000 to 15,000 miles a year, to and from customers homes.  In
> the last year, we have had numerous times when I had to postpone
> appointments or was late because of car problems.  Once again I can drive
> with confidence instead of wondering when I would have to be towed back home.
> 
> Take care of your car!  Regular maintenance is important, including oil
> changes, tune-ups, constant checking of fluid levels, tire rotation, and
> constant replacement of worn parts including belts and hoses.
> 
> May you have many years of driving with no problems!
> David Vanderhoofven

-- 
Warren D. Fisher
fish@communique.net
Registered Piano Technician
Piano Technicians Guild
New Orleans Chapter 701