Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[clan chieftain]

I served my time as a motor mechanic with the Post Office in the 60s but it was mainly commercials. In order to learn about the car side I always used to do a lot of homers so I was partly self taught. Technology has passed me by now and I only do routine servicing to my every day car. A pal does any technical jobs. But I can do anything to the marina. How did you learn how to fix cars.
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The Clan Chieftain

[COMMAD]

Learnt what I know when working for a bus company in the 70's, as you say todays cars are very complicated, best left to the experts.

[Roger-hatchy]

De-mob re-training for civvy street down in Aldershot, then worked for Avenue cars, Standard Triumph franchise in NW London

Then VW St Johns wood, everyone I knew had an interest in old cars and we were tinkering most weekends.

Also A couple of us rallied and raced Beetles so we did all our own work.

[Riley Blue]

From friends who also had Minis then when I bought a Morris 1300GT I went to evening classes at college where the course tutor was the owner of a local garage (he owned a Chrysler 180 - remember them?). He allowed us to take our own cars in to work on but only two of us did, me and a woman who had a Daimler Dart. Later I wrote abut VWs and Audis for various motoring magazines and got to know several of the tuning companies: GTI Engineering, BRMotorsport, TSR Performance and was often in and out of the their workshops. Some of it must have rubbed off, I managed to do the servicing on a succession of GTIs.

[colwyn500]

Like many people, I guess, I learned from from Mr. Haynes.
As an impecunious teenager, who had always fixed my own bicycle, cars were just the next step.
The first thing I ever did was to work out why my brother's newly acquired Fiat 500 was overheating. Turned out that it didn't have an air intake hose fitted...simples!

[Brian M]

From the age of ten, I always watched my Dad servicing and repairing his cars, and he then encouraged me to look after my bike myself. So by the time I got my first car, I was quite competent and rebuilt the brakes, did a lot of re-wiring and paintwork etc.

But by the time I was 18-19, running a Frog-Eye Sprite just like all teenagers I thought I knew it all, and was in the middle of fitting a reconditioned engine. It went in ok and I had everything connected and late on the Saturday I was ready to try to start it, but it wouldn't, so I decided to leave it until the Sunday morning.

I had to have it running on the Sunday night to drive back to Uni, and after a morning checking and double checking I was getting annoyed. My Dad came out to see if he could help, and I lost my temper with him and told him he did not know anything about cars!! He let me carry on until it got dark and then came into the garage and without saying anything loosened the distributor and turned it 180 degrees, pressed the starter solenoid and the engine started! He went back into the house still without saying a word!

Taught me to always listen to others when they are offering solutions!
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Brian
1970 Volvo Amazon and 1978 Safari 15-4 Caravan
Classic Safari Forum: www.classicsafaris.co.uk

[peter scott]

I got started by chatting to a gentleman who used to walk his dog in the field behind my parents' house. Mr Ramage owned an XK120 and invited me to "help" him with a cylinder head job on his car. In his youth he used to race motorbikes and whilst hardly a racing machine he gave me an LE Velocette.

My big sister's boyfriend at the time owned a Vincent Black Shadow and he also helped me and taught me enough to get the Velocette running.

I must have been 14 or 15 at the time.

Peter


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https://www.nostalgiatech.co.uk
1939 SS Jaguar 2 1/2 litre saloon

[emmerson]

Boring I'm afraid. I was an apprentice mechanic!
I don't do very much on the cars now though,as the Range Rover has to many gizmos, although it is now 20 years old, and the Morris Traveller has been dormant for a couple of years. One day though..................1

[RUSTON]

Dad was an ex Army mechanic but didn't have a car so couldn't show me anything! So I served an apprenticeship on BMC commercials in the 60's, worked on Bedford's in the early 70's and Foden's from 1975 on until 2002. Now just repair cars for friends and locals on a part time basis, but things are getting too technical for me now alas so I restore old farm engines and machinery for a hobby instead.

Pete.
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Measure twice...cut once!

[Fluffle-Valve]

I have learnt a lot from my dad as I grew up. If I didn't know, I asked my dad. He's an engineer by trade and has in the past restored a few cars and made plenty of Model Steam Trains and RC Planes. He is a great believer in doing it yourself and if you don't know how, then learn! ( No such word as Can't) I still go by his morals and if I don’t know, I’m never afraid to ask someone how it’s done. Forums like this is a great place for getting the “Know How”...
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Series 3 1972 LWB Truck Cab Pick Up. My daily drive.

[V8 Nutter]

When I was about 14 I had a £10 Austin Ruby, which I did a great deal of work on, with the guidance of my Dads friend who was a highly skilled mechanic. I did an apprenticeship in the machine tool industry which gave me a good mechanical grounding. All my mates had old cars which we used to repair our selves. When I went to work as a machinist at the engine reconditioners the boss was probably one of the best traditional mechanics in town, I learned a great deal from him

[Inglewood]

Started age 13 visiting my family Standard Triumph garage business on Saturdays.

Bought a 105e for £5 which had more holes in it than a teabag. Rebuilt it from scratch - this is the best learning you can do. Then I bought another 105e for £7.50 and rebuilt it with an early crossflow engine.

We sold up in 1988 and I have continued engineering in the insurance sector. I will retire in the next few years, maybe buy something then - if she allows me

[poodge]

My eldest brother taught me the basics of removing a cylinder head,and a valve grind.This was a "normal"weekend job in late60's new zealand.The first one I did was my then 15year old A30.I never graduated to complete engine removal,but learned to do brakes,clutch,etc.,aided by various well-thumbed manuals.At that time,40's cars were still quite commonly in use here.If you owned anything less than 10 years old,you were at the top of the motorist's totem pole.
Funny how the more things change,the more they stay the same.My current Toyota Corolla is 20 years old!But any major work goes to the garage,I just can't be bothered any more.

[roverdriver]

As a youngster I read and read, everything that I could get on machinery of all types. Then I carefully watched when adult friends worked on engines and machines, then on odd occasions managed to watch professionals at work. I had few opportunities to put my learned 'theory' into practice, however at age 15 or so, I bought a Ford TT one ton truck, and proceeded to learn all that I could about the Model T.

I stripped the TT engine and reassembled it, learning as I went. That was the start for me.
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Dane- roverdriver but not a Viking.

[Jason]

as a child in the early eighties, I used to spend hours / days watching my dad repairing his cars then as my brother passed his test in the mid eighties used to spend hours watching him.

then when I passed my test in the early 90's haynes manuals became my favorite books, I still have haynes manuals for every car I've ever owned except the Alvis.

so I was sort of self taught to start with, then when I finished restoring the Alvis, I went on a college course for motor vehicle maintenance and flew through it getting a 100%.....the tutor was a motorbike specialist and didn't know much about cars, it was amazing how many times I had to correct him
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"people with money buy a Rolls Royce, people with taste buy an Alvis".