[AGL] off topic question - need transmission shop recommendation

[michele mason]

You know, I really have fun listening. I try to guess the problem, or  
the fix, and see how close I come. Sometimes, I do pretty well.  
Sometimes I learn something—what it is and how to watch for it—also  
handy tools to add to my trunk.  mm

On Dec 12, 2006, at 12:18 PM, Jon Ford wrote:


> Mike-- I find their show entertaining, and they have a good web page,  

> but for the life of me I can't understand why anyone serious about  

> getting a car fixed would call them up, when the person could speak  

> face to face with a  mechanic who could actually inspect the car,  

> motor-to- face. Some of the callers do seem to be from small towns  

> where there aren't too many mechanics around, so maybe that explains  

> it. Or maybe they just want to get on the radio to have their 5  

> minutes of fame. Why there are so many women callers may be for  

> several reasons-- entertainment value, or because many  women are  

> afraid of/intimidated by face to face encounters with nasty old greasy  

> mechanics. But I'm getting into sexist territory here so I'd better  

> shut up.

>

> Jon

>

>

>> From: "Michael Eisenstadt" <michaele at ando.pair.com>

>> Reply-To: survivors' reminiscences about Austin Ghetto Daze in the  

>> 60s<austin-ghetto-list at pairlist.net>

>> To: "survivors' reminiscences about Austin Ghetto Daze in the  

>> 60s"<austin-ghetto-list at pairlist.net>

>> Subject: Re: [AGL] off topic question - need transmission shop  

>> recommendation

>> Date: Tue, 12 Dec 2006 10:13:54 -0600

>>

>> Gerry,

>>

>> Interesting what you say about Tom & Ray. Yes of course they

>> screen their calls. As for forced laughter, yes Tom the older one

>> has a forced laugh. My take on it is that the younger brother

>> being somewhat the smarter of the two has been the dominant

>> throughout their grownup years and that the older's laughter is a

>> defense mechanism. The younger brother doesnt laugh or at least

>> not in the same way.

>>

>> They do fewer interesting diagnoses, yes i agree. I think this

>> reflects more the enormous and mostly not understood change

>> that has occurred in car design and quality control at the factory.

>> As you well know, pre-comuterized cars with mechanical spark

>> distribution and timing adjustments and carburetors could be fixed

>> under a shade tree. Nowadays that is for the most part impossible.

>> But there is an upsides to this. The contemporary car needs far less

>> repair. I am still amazed that in 3 years, nothing in our car has  

>> needed

>> repair. When we bought it the previous owner, when asked if he

>> had kept his repair bills, said he hadnt repaired anything yet. The

>> car is 9 years old and no repairs?

>>

>> When i do eventually see a engine trouble light message, i will

>> borrow Ed Penak's laptop cum computer reader accessory

>> or get my own and at the least read the trouble code. Maybe

>> it will be something i can poisonally deal with.

>>

>> So Tom & Ray's advice and diagnoses has changed with

>> the changing demographic of the cars on the road. They still

>> are very good at diagnosis, more accurately, the younger

>> brother is the whiz at diagnosis. He apparently still runs an

>> a repair shop. It is my understanding that BOTH brothers

>> are MIT graduates. 20 years apart in age, their symbiosis

>> has much charm.

>>

>> Mike

>>

>> ----- Original Message -----

>> From: "Gerry" <mesmo at gilanet.com>

>> To: "survivors' reminiscences about Austin Ghetto Daze in the 60s"

>> <austin-ghetto-list at pairlist.net>

>> Sent: Tuesday, December 12, 2006 9:05 AM

>> Subject: Re: [AGL] off topic question - need transmission shop

>> recommendation

>>

>>

>> > Well Mike, glad you got your trans serviced in a way that is  

>> acceptable to

>> > your high standards. I salute you in sticking with a vintage  

>> machine and

>> > taking good care of it. For the record, there are Jiffy Lubes and  

>> there

>> > are

>> > Jiffy Lubes, thousands of them, probably a dozen in and around the  

>> Austin

>> > metro area. In my zone there are no trans shops and just one Jiffy  

>> Lube

>> > which employs mostly young men with some mechanical acumen. I  

>> watched the

>> > technician service my trans and his work was first class, knew what  

>> he was

>> > doing and did it by the book. The equipment was first class (no  

>> doubt the

>> > same as that of the trans shops). The cost was half of what a  

>> dealer or

>> > trans shop would have charged--an important consideration for those  

>> of us

>> > on

>> > Social Security who drive 15 to 20 year old cars.

>> >

>> > I have listened to Click and Clack forever, since they started. In  

>> the

>> > beginning, same as you, I liked them, they had a good enthusiasm  

>> and were

>> > sincerely concerned with the few callers they attracted, also quite  

>> funny

>> > and original. These days I find it hard to sit through a complete  

>> show.

>> > They

>> > have become media idols and they are very full of themselves. The  

>> shows

>> > have

>> > become very predictable and not as interesting. The calls are  

>> screened

>> > carefully to be sure that there are always a half dozen or so  

>> female 30

>> > somethings who want advice on what car to buy, yawn. The nitty  

>> gritty

>> > mechanical advice is limited to popular cars. The laughter is often  

>> forced

>> > and phony, breaking up at every gag leads to boredom. Dewey,  

>> Cheatham, and

>> > Howe ain't funny anymore. So while I don't say that they are a  

>> drag, their

>> > shows have fallen quite a lot from the old days. BTW, only the older

>> > brother

>> > is an MIT grad. I used to give them 5 stars, now it's more like 2.5  

>> or 3.

>> > They are kind of like Siskell (sp? RIP) and Ebert, innovators who

>> > eventually

>> > ran out of original ideas and became parodies of themselves.

>> >

>> > I made contact with the brother of the previous owner of my  

>> Cressida. He

>> > is

>> > a retired mechanic who watched over the car since its original  

>> purchase.

>> > Nothing but raves and good news about the car. If anything it has  

>> been

>> > over-maintained! I must confess that I made the deal hastily, based  

>> upon

>> > intuition rather than a careful mechanical inspection, jumping at  

>> the good

>> > price. Later I did the inspection and found everything to be in  

>> apparently

>> > excellent condition, but I was still a little paranoid at my haste,

>> > hesitant

>> > to take off on a 2K journey. That is no longer the case, I am  

>> leaving for

>> > California next week, confident that the wheels are not a concern.  

>> Looking

>> > forward to Christmas in my old neighborhood in Terra Linda (Marin  

>> County)

>> > with family and old friends.

>> >

>> > Does anyone know if the resurrected Avalon Ballroom is still in  

>> business?

>> >

>> > G

>> >

>> >

>> >

>> >

>> >

>> > ----- Original Message -----

>> > From: "Michael Eisenstadt" <mike.eisenstadt at gmail.com>

>> > To: "survivors' reminiscences about Austin Ghetto Daze in the 60s"

>> > <austin-ghetto-list at pairlist.net>; "Hans-Peter Otto"  

>> <hpoPhotog at mac.com>

>> > Sent: Tuesday, December 12, 2006 6:10 AM

>> > Subject: Re: [AGL] off topic question - need transmission shop

>> > recommendation

>> >

>> >

>> >> Hans,

>> >>

>> >> I shouldnt have said it the way i did. I know you

>> >> have American citizenship. Also German citizenship????

>> >> I was thinking of how one can ask a question on

>> >> the Internet and get the answer back from half

>> >> way around the world in under 5 minutes.

>> >>

>> >> Have you considered retiring back to Austin?

>> >>

>> >> about the car. I finally did what i should have done

>> >> at the beginning: call a parts store and see if there

>> >> is a transmission filter and gasket kit for this model.

>> >> Well, they do sell such a kit, which means that the

>> >> dealership (Leif Johnson) salesman was full of it

>> >> telling me this model has a metal screen not a

>> >> replaceable filter.So the B & M Transmission guy

>> >> was advising the correct precedure (dropping the

>> >> pan) and the dealer and Jiffy Lube do it the easier

>> >> way not having to steam clean the old gasket

>> >> off the pan.

>> >>

>> >> I am going to be taking it to Chapman Transmission

>> >> (also on S. Lamar) who were recommended on

>> >> the Click & Clack Web page (B & M not

>> >> mentionned). Jiffy Lube has a TERRIBLE

>> >> reputation and so does Leif Johnson Ford.

>> >> Chapman's procedure, like B & M's, is to drop the

>> >> pan.

>> >>

>> >> When you have an idle moment, you should

>> >> visit the Click and Clack, the Tappet Brothers

>> >> Web page and listen to one of their broadcasts.

>> >> These are 2 endearing brothers from Boston

>> >> who own a auto service shop and take calls

>> >> and answer car questions. You may or may

>> >> not have heard them (on KUT). They are

>> >> muy funny. Back in the 60s, in Cambridge

>> >> Mass they started up a do-it-yourself auto

>> >> shop (the Good Times Garage) where

>> >> customers used the garage's tools and

>> >> advice to work on their own cars (very

>> >> 60s). It was a total flop. The younger brother

>> >> then went into the garage business for real.

>> >> The older brother is actually a business consultant.

>> >> Interestingly they both went to and graduated

>> >> from the Mass. Institute of Technology (MIT).

>> >>

>> >> Ciao!

>> >>

>> >> Mike

>> >>

>> >> ----- Original Message -----

>> >> From: "hpo" <hpophotog at mac.com>

>> >> To: "survivors' reminiscences about Austin Ghetto Daze in the 60s"

>> >> <austin-ghetto-list at pairlist.net>

>> >> Sent: Monday, December 11, 2006 5:53 PM

>> >> Subject: Re: [AGL] off topic question - need transmission shop

>> >> recommendation

>> >>

>> >>

>> >> Pleasedon´t forget Mike I am only an expatriot, a guest worker in

>> >> Krautonia

>> >> hans

>> >> berlin

>> >>

>> >> >>> - - - - - - - - - - - - ->

>> >>

>> >>      Hans-Peter Otto

>> >> Freelance Photojournalist

>> >>     Reichstrasse 101

>> >> 14052 Berlin, Germany

>> >>

>> >> Mobil   +49    172 321 5956

>> >>  Tel     +49    30 667 75450

>> >> Skype            hpoPhotog

>> >>

>> >>

>> >> On Monday, December 11, 2006, at 04:24PM, "Michael Eisenstadt"

>> >> <michaele at ando.pair.com> wrote:

>> >> >Hans,

>> >> >

>> >> >the internet, ya gotta love it!

>> >> >

>> >> >some german in berlin points me the right way. i'll

>> >> >call them right after i get straight. unless your view is

>> >> >that it is best to call them while bent.

>> >> >

>> >> >please advise!

>> >> >

>> >> >Mike

>> >> >

>> >>

>> >>

>> >

>>

>

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