I am not a mechanic, but I understand the troubleshooting process. Watching you diagnose this issue was PURE brain candy! That was awesome! And, you did it for YOUR truck. One can feel the pure unadulterated pleasure, through the video, that you were feeling when you found and fixed this issue. Congratulations! This video earned my subscription. 😊
My skills were diagnostic and electrical and you are right. Finding a problem that several have bounced off of gives you a thrill that no drug can. Pure brain candy.
One way to diagnose something is get answers to the six questions. They are: Who, What, When, Where, Why and How. Getting answers to those six questions will all but hand the answer to you on a silver platter. I was in the automotive repair trade for 45 years.
@@madusmaxamus8670 I agree. That's exactly how I have managed to diagnose problems with clients even just over the phone when they call to say their turbo has failed. (I rebuild turbos and routinely talk myself out of a rebuild lol)
Eric, of South Main Auto, in New York state had a customer come in with a 2019 Chevy truck. It wasn't running right, and the dealership wanted to put $5,000 in parts on it. The problem was a ground strap which was eaten through because of the salt that's put on the roads in the winter. A simple ground, the unsung hero of many automotive challenges. Way to go with this fix Kenny!!
This is a sore spot with me. They pay these tech's per job, not per hour. In turn they just replace the obvious parts they think will fix the truck. Just recently I had a P0306 misfire in my 2004 GMC Envoy 4.2. plugs were new. What was the issue? Water got into the spark plug well, (this is a straight 6) & froze up. Broke the coil in 1/2 & had to be pulled out with needle nose pliers. I was torching & blowing out ice & water for 45 minutes. Then the ice expanded & ruined the thread for the coil. Had to retap it. (coil on plug) What should take 30 minutes was a 2 hour job. Would of lost a lot of money being a flat rate tech for this job. Can't just go by the Mitchell times for repairs. There are too many variables. Until that changes, it's always going to be a parts changing world with no real diagnosis. Eric O BTW a great tech owns the shop so he can take the time making videos & doing more trouble shooting.
You are the same type of car diagnostic technician as my son in law. Creative and logical thinking solves errors. So happy that people like you and him exist. Keep up the good work, Sir.
In a former life, I was a Master Chrysler Certified mechanic. Our factory instructor's mantra, which we heard often, was "...your knowledge of the system is what fixes the problem..." This is a perfect example of what he was talking about. Well done!
Thank you very much! I too was a Master Chrysler Certified Technician. We called our instructor "angry Bob". He always said, "Know how the system operates. Then you will know how to fix it". Thanks for watching 🔧 Keep wrenching
I've been a mechanic my whole life Kenny. I've experienced the elation of finally finding and repairing a problem after spending time troubleshooting. For us it's the ultimate goal. Well done brother. I'll admit that I usually have to see it first though. You were looking to verify it. Mastery of skill.
That is a good feeling. One of mine was a car that ran great but it refused to idle. Turned out there was a fuel cut off solenoid on the carburettor and the wire to it had come loose. Two days problem hunting for a “Really? That easy!” moment.
Well done!! I was a mechanical contractor for 49 years. My experience is that generally people who work on stuff don't understand how things work on a theoretical level...you understand the theory of operation and found the root cause instead of treating the symptoms
Kenny, This video got me to subscribe to your channel. My dad was one of those "go to" guys like your friend. He worked for SAAB / Scania automotive out of New Haven Connecticut in the 1970's. The company sent him to Trollhattan, Sweden to attend the factory school for 4 months. He covered the Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont areas as a factory field representative / service tech, authorizing warranty claims and overseeing the master mechanics with problematic repairs. Starting at about 14 y.o., he taught me how to diagnose and repair cars and trucks. He passed away in 2014 and through people like you, I have new mentors to learn from. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, logic and experience with us.
Loved the look on your face when you pulled the valve cover off! Lol. Such a great and informative video. There is a big difference between a parts changer and someone who can diagnose a problem with a true understanding of how things work. Too many mechanics and technicians these days throw parts at problems without taking the time to understand why they're doing it. Great video.
Last year (2022) I had several refrigerators and freezers at home and work suddenly stop cooling in the space of 6 weeks. Three refrigerator techs came in and defrosted the evaporators (they were frozen up and the ice blocked the airflow). Then a master tech came and sorted out my last freezer - when I asked him “What the hell is going on??!!” he simply said “Global warming…”. When he said that I remembered a periodical article that discussed the biggest danger of global warming was not temperature extremes but humidity: the higher the earth’s temperature goes up, the more water vapor will be released which will overload our cooling systems, damage our electrical infrastructure, put more strain on people going about their daily activities etc etc. This was the first time global warming stopped being an ethereal concept to me, and became a real one….
Just think how many dealers and shops with all the expensive tools and training missed what should have been caught with proper diagnostics. The techs nowadays just do what the scanner says to do, they don't think bigger until they have already replaced everything and the problem still persists.
Great job Kenny I don’t think you could sleep at night if you couldn’t figure it out. You definitely are that step up above a lot of mechanics. With your skill and integrity you can hold your head high.
Troubleshooting is, indeed, a crucial component of diagnostics. It requires critical thinking & the ability to analyze the problem in its entirety. Well done, sir. Well done. Enjoy the fruits of your labor!!
I was a Mopar tech for a number of years and this came down to nobody wanted to get to involved. Using your code and actually willing to check things with a bit of tear down solved it. I use to love getting things like this and finding the issue. Probably had techs that were more concerned with the flat rate pay to be honest. I totally agree with your comment on replacement of both sensors at the same time, it's been that way for years and nobody has an idea of why.
Alot of times something is suggested, BUT the customer refuses. Then moves on to somewhere else. Shop jumping. Or you get the clueless tech that wants to throw parts at it.
You seriously remind me of my father. Big humble man with honesty and dignity made of gold. He to also had a 3 bay garage. I learned everything from him working there.
Kenny much respect to you and some old school investigating.I have so many horrible stories of dealerships not wanting to fix things or they just want to remove and replace not being sure if that’s the fix but charging the customer.Thanks again for the video and I am glad I have your UA-cam channel saved for future reference.Tulsa Oklahoma
Well found! I'm an electronic engineer by qualification, retired, and I can't tell you how many times simple, close observation has found the problem right off the bat. There is NOTHING that beats just going back to basics and doing what we call "stair stepping" through a simple, logical sequence of known steps, even if the detail of those steps is not known. Your simple, and I might say obvious, observations led you directly to the potential issue . Even without a scope your intuition was correct (and common sense) and you proved the problem by fixing the issue rather than replacing parts! In one fell swoop you demonstrated why I have NEVER trusted main dealers ... The REAL talent, in the main, is too good to work in them! Great job! Must have been VERY satisfying to have found and fixed that! The look on your face said it all! 👍👍🤣🤣
Typical dealership philosophy is “If in doubt replace it even if it’s not necessary”. Had a friend with a Mercedes who had a fault on one headlight. Mercedes wanted £1200 for a whole new headlight. A local Auto electrician replaced the faulty module inside the headlight for £120.
Kenny, you sure know your stuff. I can't get enough of your videos. I'm 70 and retired and now I watch mostly your videos to see what new tips I can learn. I just requested the Facebook membership and I hope you approve.
I have been having this same problem since I got my truck 2 years ago!!!!! I went from the edge of my seat to pacing watching this video. I’m going to to pull my pass valve cover right now !!! Thank you so much !!!
Great job! I owned and opperated an automotive air conditioning & radiator repair shop for 30 years, and took a lot of pride in diagnosing problems. I open the shop in 1973 and it is still open today by a former employee of mine. Capitol Air Conditioning & Radiator Service, Dover Delaware.
I've been diesel mechanic on off highway equipment for little over a year. It's amazing to me what I see others do and the short cuts taken. I could go on. I appreciate your videos and wisdom of age that makes your videos valuable to me.
What you have is a gift, the ability to see outside of the box! You're a problem solver, and the type of people i like to hang out with so i can add depth to my thinking! Brovo great job!
I have a 2005 dodge ram 4.7. I got it with 33 miles new. It has. 263.7. Miles still running. Fantastic. I drive. 60 miles a day to work. I love my ram.
Great job on your diagnose . The good thing is you gained a truck that may have hi mileage at least it hasn’t been over 2500 rpm what a gem !!! Great content !!!!!
Great catch man. Nothing beats your gut and instincts. You asked yourself the correct questions and did the legwork to validate your hunch and you scored major! Bravo!
Great find Kenny! As a former maintenance Mechanic/electrician I really relate to these odd problems. We called them tough dogs. I was often given these things because normal T.S didn't explain cause and effect. I had an electric man up stockpicker that had really strange symptoms. When powering up it wouldn't self test, and the display was a light show blinking cutting in and out. After I put an evening on it and the next day an outside vendor for the Manufacturer said it had five different problems, and left it sit. I came in that evening and dug in. Found one of the drive motors armature was shorted to ground. Replaced motor problem solved.
Just be happy Kenny! Enjoy the moment! You earned it! There are a lot of mechanics out there and a handful of REAL technicians! YOU ARE A TECHNICIAN! Always go with your first instinct.
Just had my car in the shop they told me they can't fix it cause I wiped the codes, but I told them what what wrong and where so I took it home and used a volt meter to check my sensors
It’s amazing how many ‘stumpers’ are solved by a really thorough visual inspection + touching stuff. My personal favorite: My wife’s cousin bought a brand new 1969 Ford LTD, 302-2V 2door. It got terrible fuel economy. He had it back to the dealer at least a dozen times. They could find nothing wrong. I was a Systems Engineer in Ford’s large V8 engine Department in Dearborn. We were visiting on vacation. Gary asked me to look at it so I did. Opened the hood and immediately saw that the vacuum hoses from the PVS were looped up so the hose from the PVS to the distributor vacuum advance can had rubbed against a hood reinforcement. It looked like someone had taken a knife and sectioned that vacuum hose like a cutaway drawing. I couldn’t believe the dealership mechanics something so obvious thru multiple visits. I was a hero for fixing the car but felt bad that a dealership had let the customer down. Gary was so fed up that he was about to take a big loss and trade for a Chevy.
Kenny great troubleshooting. I am a retired electrical electronics technician and when I would troubleshoot I always asked what changed. I have a good mechanic doing my work. I used to do most of my work but with age and surgeries not able to do any more. Love watching your videos and keep up the good work.
Glad to see another mechanic with uncanny troubleshooting mindset - reminds me of me, lol, back when I had my small shop with a like-minded buddy - tackled the mysterious stuff and took pride in the routine 🤪
I bought a Nissan Maxima from a friend who had spent thousands at different shops trying to solve an electrical problem. I figured it out in five minutes. One of the dual-filament taillight bulbs had shorted out when the lead terminals melted together which “merged” the running lights and brake lights circuits. So for years, there was a taillight bulb out and no one bothered to even look at it. Professionals my ass. I like your style. Just subscribed!
You my friend are a very good mechanic +!! lots of people turn wrenches but thinking out what things might be wrong and having the notion to check into where and what the engine may have suffered that led to it's sale from a junk yard is awesome that was smart ! My farther was a mechanic for 40 years he had that same reasonable deduction and that outside the box quality as well was always at awe at how much he knew about cars and each makes in's and outs . good repair work is hard to find to find a good working machanic is a treasure !!!!!
Kenny you are a great technical detective. Excellent work. No oil additives -- I completely agree. Use any of the good grades of AMSOIL motor oils. Problem solved. Thank you.
I would be more than happy!! I would be jumping all around. I’m in the maintenance field and I understand how it feels to be the one to find the problem!! Great job!
Nice find!! I like finding the root cause of problems like that. Gives me a major boost of confidence and pride. I don’t get many in what I do for everyday work. So it is nice!! Way to go being persistent and following all the clues!
This is the first video of yours I have watched. As a master a S E, and Ford train technician. It is welcoming to see someone actually do their craft well. Good job.
It is really amazing that so many people would look at it and no one would physically verify the timing and reluctor wheels. Good on you for being willing to do the work.
You remind me of my mechanic. Very informative and just genuinely wants people to understand how things in your car should work. I've always seemed to have bad luck with cars. By the time I reached the age of 37 I had probably had 14 maybe 15 cars all with their own unique problems throughout the years. I was convinced I was cursed I thought if I just get a brand new car I'd be ok. 2018 Ford focus brand new interior still wrapped in plastic 3 miles on it..damn I was so happy! Brand new just for me first time ever. My heart crushed when 4 years later weird electrical things were happening. Then oh that didn't matter because my transmission went out....fast forward 8 months later sitting in another junk box getting rained on because my battery is dead and I can't roll up my power window. All because my trunk ajar indicator light always stayed on just recently. Only time it wound shut off was when using the brakes.wtf?😂 But it doesn't matter because my subframe is rotted through. The part is impossible to find for an 04 hyundai xg350. Besides that the rest of the car is great. So now I've immersed myself in learning about cars more than ever. Thank you sir. I'm going to look at a car tomorrow 😂 I feel confident about whatever decision I have to make
Oh my goodness! You have had a time with cars!!! Go on Facebook 'Wrenching with Kenny' to let us know how your car buying experience goes. If you need advice you will have a village on there. They are sarcastic but helpful. Thanks for watching
Awesome job! That engine sounds great now. I've been a plumber for 23 years, and it's a good feeling when you diagnose a problem that other technicians have missed. Enjoy your new truck. (P.S. - you just gained a new subscriber)
All I know is if I have major issues with my truck. I will be heading to your shop. I dont care where or how far from southwest Florida. It's just beautiful how your mind works with fixing vehicles.
Good find sir! 90% of the time I find & fix customer's concerns just by talking to them and getting a back story of what happened right before the fault came about! You did a great job of investigating the back story! You deserve an "Atta'boy" THE other 5% I fix with a flashlight & just looking, the last 5% I actually have to troubleshoot those! #thelifeofanautotechnician Great work sir! 👏
I watch a lot of your posts because you are an honest person and a legend. Process of elimination, I love it. I'm old school and not a mechanic but I've done engines, gearboxes, starters etc. Keep on wrenching. Would to see you with a camera on your head and working with both hands.
I used to have an 02 quad cab with the 4.7 in it. Great truck in my opinion. I put a Paxton supercharger on it (kit I bought and installed myself) which really added to the performance. I sold it with 175k and still wonder if it is still on the road or not. Congrats on the truck and loved watching you work.
Glad to see cars get back on road fixed instead of being neglected. There's a high demand for mechanics who know their way out for variety of problems. The amount of wrenching that I've done, I've always somehow stuck to the "easiest to fix, then hardest" principle. If something is wrong with my car, then I try to do the cheapest and easiest way, if that doesn't work, then I dig in deeper into what causes certain issues. I had an issue where my car would go into limp mode when too much load was put on it when accelerating (codes showed overboost conditions) - started with vacuum lines for geometry actuator, that didn't fix the issue, checked the actuator itself if that was alright which it was, then came to conclusion that I will replace the turbo cartridge and geometry (since at that point the original turbo has already served me right for 320k km), replaced that stuff to new, it fixed the issue and I have a fresh turbo cartridge set. Car in question is Audi A4 B7 2.0TDI (PD)
Good work man and good video. The biggest issue in the dealership shops is the same thing that is plaguing all the skilled trades, you can't find quality experienced workers. I've been on the service side since 2003 and the same problem is there at every shop I've worked in, you have 2 or 3 guys that are competent if you're lucky, and the rest are just part changers doing grunt work. Very few people actually follow the diagnostic process as it should be done, which leads to misdiagnosed repairs and angry customers. I love the daily challenge of diagnosis and repair of all kinds of different issues, but it is really frustrating to watch others that probably make more money continually misdiagnose issues because they are too lazy to actually follow the diag step by step. I bet if you looked at the factory diagram for that cam fault it would tell you to remove valve cover and inspect air gap and condition of the tone ring. All those other techs probably wrote they did that in their stories and got paid to do it, and the customer got shafted with bills that shouldn't have happened. Glad they finally found someone that took the time and honestly repaired the issue
Great video, and truly understand the elation in figuring out the problem, especially not replacing parts. I've fixed problems like this when professionals, who undoubtedly know more than me didn't. My theory is I took the time necessary to think about the problem. Professionals generally won't or simply don't take the time. I'm a new subscriber now, you and Scotty, two different presentations, love em both
Great detective work. Yea the valve cover was probably damaged from the accident and they pulled them. Personally I never knew that cam sensor part that rides on the round (damaged piece) was even there. I was thinking old school heads. 😂 Thanks Kenny.
This sort of thing shows the difference between a good mechanic and a spark plug changer. It's just sad there are so few really good mechanics that know how to fault find.
I own a small shop with a couple “green” techs that I’ve been training. I constantly preach to them a couple things: the better problem solver you can be, the better mechanic you’ll be, BE THOROUGH, and priority #1 is make the job right and your paycheck will follow.
Amazing, I do the same, get as much information as possible, talk to them, learn the history all that stuff a "fitter" (as I call this new generation) won't do, 9 times I can usually deduce the problem from that while those guys are scratching there heads at codes, great work.......👍👌👍
Great Job!! You have learned well Grasshopper. As an industrial-process trouble shooter, my first questions were "what was the original problem and what have you done in an effort to correct that problem". Often the attempted repairs were masking the real problem.
Great fix ! Bernie Thompson from ATS had one where the tone wheel became magnetized because there was a bad ground and it skewed the what the sensor read . He was able to demagnetize it ! There was another with Jerry Truglia at ATTS . Someone had a Chevy Van where the engine was rebuilt . The machine shop put a V6 tone wheel on a V8 crank ! Then the fun began . The engine had to be removed - from a van ! Both above problems were found with a scope .
Yes, but did they change that pesky last back spark plug on the passenger side of that Chevy Van?? Millions of Chevy Vans, only a few with that plug having ever being changed. To your point... scopes ARE essential.
Gentleman that comes with the years in the market, we call it ""WISDOM "", CONGRATULATIONS, at my 71 years of age and been in the gasoline and diesel mechanical field I have seen only one time before on a Chevy, now in your video, most kind of you for sharing it with us, blessings to you and your love ones, from the endless summer paradise Puerto Rico Jesus Torres.
Thanks Jesus! Your comment is really appreciated, especially with all your 'wisdom' of the business. I hope you & your loved ones are well in your endless summer paradise. Enjoy!
As a fully licensed aircraft technician and former 20 year master Toyota tech, I commend you sir, like myself you think outside the box. This is highly impressive!
You got a good deal Kenny. The truck may have 230,000 miles on it, but the motor only has a little over 100,000 Mi on it. Keep on wrenching love your videos.
This video just popped up again, so I watched it again. Back in the 90's I worked for "The 3 Brothers" from Philly, You should know who. Anyway I was 1 of 2 master techs in our shop when they hired a new store manager and he hire some new master just out of school and paid him $10 hr more than us when we were always told raises were out of the question if more than 25 cents a year. One of his first jobs was a Chrysler fake jeep no-start. He scanned it and threw parts at it for a week and we refused to help unless we got paid the same at least. We saw one big problem from day one but never said anything, just kept watching. Meanwhile he had an S-10 blazer on another lift and was doing a complete brake job on the front end but couldn't get a pedal after replacing parts. Again we never said anything. Finally we were offered raises if we would get the cars out of his bays. S-10 was easy, the calipers were on the wrong side and the bleeders were down. The jeep we noticed from day 1 that the whole time he was cranking the belts weren't turning, the flywheel ring was broken off the torque converter and the starter was just spinning the ring around. A couple months later he quit.
You feel kind of special when solving a problem after it has been to a lot of repair shops and even the dealership shop. Just for a moment you elevate above all people. Good work mate.
I’m so jealous of people like yourself who can fix so like this. I tend to give up so easy I think because I don’t understand how it works. Great job! You should be proud
I appreciate your kind words. If you get stuck pop on Facebook - Wrenching with Kenny. Input all the info about your vehicle & what you have done to fix the issue. There are a lot of techs and automotive people that may be able to help. You can try our other FB group - Backyard Mechanics (3.8K members) they can help too. Be sure to answer all the questions to join the groups. Let us know what you come up with. Don't give up. Keep wrenching!
This is a good one. Seeing the codes you had I would have hooked up my 4 ch scope to the cam and crank sensors to check for coloration between the two. Doing so would give me the chance to see if timing was off and cam sensor square wave form had a glitch in it due to the bent reluctor wheel. Having and knowing how to use a oscilloscope saves lots of time and labor of pulling things apart to get a look. A wave form will tell you if there is a problem. They do take a fair amount of time with the learning curve. However once you get it and learn it. You will wish you got one years ago. I’m a Automotive Technician of just about 21 years. Getting a scope was a very big game changer. I can find problems and bet you my paycheck that what I’m going to do is gonna fix it.
Decades ago, when I was studying marine mechanics, we had a test engine in the class. Following the procedures listed in the repair manual, it would always lead to replacing a crank sensor and then the computer module. Even doing all that, the engine would still fail the tests. The important thing to note (much like your replaced engine with missing valve covers) was that this engine was the same one we used for practicing removing the flywheel. Flywheel removal was one of the first things you learned in class, months earlier than the electronics stuff. But one of the things they told you was not to drop the flywheel or hit it with a hammer because of the magnets inside. Sure enough, close inspection revealed that one of the magnets was cracked so it would trip the crank sensor multiple times with lower energy. I don't think they ever replaced the flywheel in that engine, and even used in the state skills competition.
Those sensors are finnicky and will throw a limp-home code. Great detective work! This is a lesson on looking for things you can SEE before looking for electrons ;-)
Enjoyed the video. I’ve run into automotive issues myself. On more than one occasion, I’ve figured out the problem in my sleep. Strange as it sounds, I felt as though I’d turned into electricity and made my way through the engines electric system and found the issue. Great job on that repair.
Another fun fact, when switching these engines from platform to platform. Like Durango to fill size or full size to Dakota, check the tooth count on the cam gear. A 16 tooth cam gear was used in some and a 32 was used in others. If it won't fire check the cam teeth!
I quit going to Dealerships or auto shops where I live. That way I don't complain and bitch about poor service. I bought manuals. Tools and scanners over the years. I have never taken vehicles anywhere for repairs. The only reason is IF I find it's covered under warranty. I don't touch it. For instance my sister's Hyundai sonata. After I diagnosed it.
Great to see someone think analytically and not just relying on a computer to troubleshoot. Lucas is good for dry starts by keeping lubrication on the piston walls . Used it for years and never had a problem with any of their products. It’s said that 80% of engine wear is from dry starts
This is a really good case study for upcoming mechanics but it's a goddamn shame it went to so many different dealers and shops and no one bothered to investigate the basics.
Thats so awesome Kenny! You've got yourself a good truck now! Im as stoked as you are! Very very happy for ya brother! Those dealership mechanics and others need to pay for your services when they have no idea!😂😂❤
Over the years Kenny, I have fixed a lot of unfixable cars. What I have learned is that most techkies are lost in space. You made my day fella using common sense and logic. I tip my hat off to you Sir, you deserve this for sure. vf
Good call. I had an intermittent misfire on a ohc V6. Checked everything. Took me a little while to find issue. I could see the misfire with a scope but could find no cause. Compression check was fine. Finally pulled valve cover just see what I could see. 2 rollers on the rockers were cracked. When cam would hit crack I suspect they caused valve to jump and loose enough compression to cause misfire. No apparent cause. Rockers could be replaced without any further disassembly. Ran great after. I have used half oil, half atf to clean engines for years and hundreds of cars. I run engine at fast idle (no load) for 1 hour. If still has lifter noise I run for a second hour. Rarely required. Had a pan off an engine after and you could eat off it. Previously after removing valve cover it was so caked it looked like valve cover had not even been removed. Crazy how well it works.
I am not a mechanic, but I understand the troubleshooting process. Watching you diagnose this issue was PURE brain candy! That was awesome! And, you did it for YOUR truck. One can feel the pure unadulterated pleasure, through the video, that you were feeling when you found and fixed this issue. Congratulations! This video earned my subscription. 😊
Same here , he’s earned my subscription also . How cool was that .
My skills were diagnostic and electrical and you are right. Finding a problem that several have bounced off of gives you a thrill that no drug can. Pure brain candy.
Just so you know it's got the wrong timing gear on
you like brain candy. Check out video on UA-cam called "LEVEL" by Eric Dubay. Also " THE NEXT LEVEL " by Martin liedtke. It's as sweet as it gets.
Great 👍 effort
You are not just a mechanic. You are a master diagnostician. Going past the obvious is the true sign of a smart man.
One way to diagnose something is get answers to the six questions. They are: Who, What, When, Where, Why and How. Getting answers to those six questions will all but hand the answer to you on a silver platter. I was in the automotive repair trade for 45 years.
@@madusmaxamus8670 I agree. That's exactly how I have managed to diagnose problems with clients even just over the phone when they call to say their turbo has failed. (I rebuild turbos and routinely talk myself out of a rebuild lol)
If you can't diagnose you are not a mechanic. There is no difference. You need to do everything or you're just a hack.
Eric, of South Main Auto, in New York state had a customer come in with a 2019 Chevy truck. It wasn't running right, and the dealership wanted to put $5,000 in parts on it. The problem was a ground strap which was eaten through because of the salt that's put on the roads in the winter. A simple ground, the unsung hero of many automotive challenges. Way to go with this fix Kenny!!
I also follow Eric O! Yes, there are good mechanics/techs out there!
Do you follow Pine Hollow Auto Diagnostics?
Great video, so glad I found you.
I see Kenny and South Maine all the time, damn good mechanics!!!
This is a sore spot with me. They pay these tech's per job, not per hour. In turn they just replace the obvious parts they think will fix the truck. Just recently I had a P0306 misfire in my 2004 GMC Envoy 4.2. plugs were new. What was the issue? Water got into the spark plug well, (this is a straight 6) & froze up. Broke the coil in 1/2 & had to be pulled out with needle nose pliers. I was torching & blowing out ice & water for 45 minutes. Then the ice expanded & ruined the thread for the coil. Had to retap it. (coil on plug) What should take 30 minutes was a 2 hour job. Would of lost a lot of money being a flat rate tech for this job. Can't just go by the Mitchell times for repairs. There are too many variables. Until that changes, it's always going to be a parts changing world with no real diagnosis. Eric O BTW a great tech owns the shop so he can take the time making videos & doing more trouble shooting.
Good thing that engine couldn't go above 2500 cuz it probably would have blew up already. You could tell that guy never changes his oil 👍
You are the same type of car diagnostic technician as my son in law. Creative and logical thinking solves errors. So happy that people like you and him exist. Keep up the good work, Sir.
In a former life, I was a Master Chrysler Certified mechanic. Our factory instructor's mantra, which we heard often, was "...your knowledge of the system is what fixes the problem..."
This is a perfect example of what he was talking about. Well done!
Thank you very much! I too was a Master Chrysler Certified Technician. We called our instructor "angry Bob". He always said, "Know how the system operates. Then you will know how to fix it". Thanks for watching 🔧 Keep wrenching
@@WrenchingWithKenny don’t tell me what to do….
@@dogshltsniffer9933 An answer reflecting the attitude of society, sorry about that chief. From Get smart.
As a paramedic I couldn't agree more. Learn physiology backwards and forwards. Then I'm just a mechanic for humans.
The fact that you figured it out before opening it up is nothing short of brilliant.
Nailed it.
I've been a mechanic my whole life Kenny. I've experienced the elation of finally finding and repairing a problem after spending time troubleshooting. For us it's the ultimate goal. Well done brother. I'll admit that I usually have to see it first though. You were looking to verify it. Mastery of skill.
Awesome, well 👍
That is a good feeling. One of mine was a car that ran great but it refused to idle. Turned out there was a fuel cut off solenoid on the carburettor and the wire to it had come loose. Two days problem hunting for a “Really? That easy!” moment.
I too have did the same but as an electrician.👍👍👍
Well done!! I was a mechanical contractor for 49 years. My experience is that generally people who work on stuff don't understand how things work on a theoretical level...you understand the theory of operation and found the root cause instead of treating the symptoms
Well said.
Thats the problem with many dealership.
You can tell this guy worked on cars when your only tool to scan a problem was your head.
100%
Yep. Im a retired mechanic. This is stuff that made me keep doing it. I love a challenge and the satisfaction knowing you one upped the dealerships
Kenny,
This video got me to subscribe to your channel. My dad was one of those "go to" guys like your friend. He worked for SAAB / Scania automotive out of New Haven Connecticut in the 1970's. The company sent him to Trollhattan, Sweden to attend the factory school for 4 months. He covered the Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont areas as a factory field representative / service tech, authorizing warranty claims and overseeing the master mechanics with problematic repairs.
Starting at about 14 y.o., he taught me how to diagnose and repair cars and trucks. He passed away in 2014 and through people like you, I have new mentors to learn from. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, logic and experience with us.
Loved the look on your face when you pulled the valve cover off! Lol. Such a great and informative video. There is a big difference between a parts changer and someone who can diagnose a problem with a true understanding of how things work. Too many mechanics and technicians these days throw parts at problems without taking the time to understand why they're doing it. Great video.
Last year (2022) I had several refrigerators and freezers at home and work suddenly stop cooling in the space of 6 weeks. Three refrigerator techs came in and defrosted the evaporators (they were frozen up and the ice blocked the airflow).
Then a master tech came and sorted out my last freezer - when I asked him “What the hell is going on??!!” he simply said “Global warming…”. When he said that I remembered a periodical article that discussed the biggest danger of global warming was not temperature extremes but humidity: the higher the earth’s temperature goes up, the more water vapor will be released which will overload our cooling systems, damage our electrical infrastructure, put more strain on people going about their daily activities etc etc.
This was the first time global warming stopped being an ethereal concept to me, and became a real one….
I read your comment after I posted mine which was basically identical LOL!
@@ianchandley I have seen airconditioners and freezers do that long before even 1990.
It can happen without ' global warming '
It's really cool to figure something out without even being there and then when you are there seeing everything just as you imagined.
Just think how many dealers and shops with all the expensive tools and training missed what should have been caught with proper diagnostics.
The techs nowadays just do what the scanner says to do, they don't think bigger until they have already replaced everything and the problem still persists.
Great job Kenny I don’t think you could sleep at night if you couldn’t figure it out. You definitely are that step up above a lot of mechanics. With your skill and integrity you can hold your head high.
A REAL mechanic figured it out and made the repair...good job!!!
Troubleshooting is, indeed, a crucial component of diagnostics. It requires critical thinking & the ability to analyze the problem in its entirety. Well done, sir. Well done. Enjoy the fruits of your labor!!
I was a Mopar tech for a number of years and this came down to nobody wanted to get to involved. Using your code and actually willing to check things with a bit of tear down solved it. I use to love getting things like this and finding the issue. Probably had techs that were more concerned with the flat rate pay to be honest. I totally agree with your comment on replacement of both sensors at the same time, it's been that way for years and nobody has an idea of why.
Alot of times something is suggested, BUT the customer refuses. Then moves on to somewhere else. Shop jumping. Or you get the clueless tech that wants to throw parts at it.
You seriously remind me of my father. Big humble man with honesty and dignity made of gold. He to also had a 3 bay garage. I learned everything from him working there.
Thank you for your kind words & for watching the channel. Keep wrenching 🔧
Kenny much respect to you and some old school investigating.I have so many horrible stories of dealerships not wanting to fix things or they just want to remove and replace not being sure if that’s the fix but charging the customer.Thanks again for the video and I am glad I have your UA-cam channel saved for future reference.Tulsa Oklahoma
Awesome Kenny, love the videos.
Well found! I'm an electronic engineer by qualification, retired, and I can't tell you how many times simple, close observation has found the problem right off the bat.
There is NOTHING that beats just going back to basics and doing what we call "stair stepping" through a simple, logical sequence of known steps, even if the detail of those steps is not known. Your simple, and I might say obvious, observations led you directly to the potential issue . Even without a scope your intuition was correct (and common sense) and you proved the problem by fixing the issue rather than replacing parts!
In one fell swoop you demonstrated why I have NEVER trusted main dealers ... The REAL talent, in the main, is too good to work in them! Great job! Must have been VERY satisfying to have found and fixed that! The look on your face said it all! 👍👍🤣🤣
Typical dealership philosophy is “If in doubt replace it even if it’s not necessary”. Had a friend with a Mercedes who had a fault on one headlight. Mercedes wanted £1200 for a whole new headlight. A local Auto electrician replaced the faulty module inside the headlight for £120.
Kenny, you sure know your stuff. I can't get enough of your videos. I'm 70 and retired and now I watch mostly your videos to see what new tips I can learn. I just requested the Facebook membership and I hope you approve.
I have been having this same problem since I got my truck 2 years ago!!!!! I went from the edge of my seat to pacing watching this video. I’m going to to pull my pass valve cover right now !!! Thank you so much !!!
Kenny is a Zen Master Mechanic…I wish we had more mechanics like him. It would make for a better world.
The missing valve cover was an important piece of the puzzle, but you had to process that properly to solve this one !
That was the clue! The missing valve covers,
This was great....pure greatness! Best of all, you fixed it by hand, no 'remove and replace a part' that just needed to be made straight!! great!
This don't only made you feel better! This made you proud of yourself! Well done sir!😁👍
That's why I like you, you think out of the box!!!!!!! I would never own a Dodge product, But this is great to know!
Great job! I owned and opperated an automotive air conditioning & radiator repair shop for 30 years, and took a lot of pride in diagnosing problems. I open the shop in 1973 and it is still open today by a former employee of mine. Capitol Air Conditioning & Radiator Service, Dover Delaware.
Your stick to the task,showed Your true troubleshooting,there is always a way.Great job Kenny!!
I've been diesel mechanic on off highway equipment for little over a year. It's amazing to me what I see others do and the short cuts taken. I could go on. I appreciate your videos and wisdom of age that makes your videos valuable to me.
ABSOLUTELY GREAT TO SEE A REAL MECHANIC WHO IS HONEST.
What you have is a gift, the ability to see outside of the box! You're a problem solver, and the type of people i like to hang out with so i can add depth to my thinking! Brovo great job!
I have a 2005 dodge ram 4.7. I got it with 33 miles new. It has. 263.7. Miles still running. Fantastic. I drive. 60 miles a day to work. I love my ram.
Great job on your diagnose . The good thing is you gained a truck that may have hi mileage at least it hasn’t been over 2500 rpm what a gem !!! Great content !!!!!
He could sell it as a 'low rpm engine'!!
Excellent diagnostics and detective work. I wish you many happy miles with your "new" truck. This video was awesome.
7 years, 3 dealerships and it takes 1 Kenny to fix it. Much respect.
Great catch man. Nothing beats your gut and instincts. You asked yourself the correct questions and did the legwork to validate your hunch and you scored major! Bravo!
Thanks! I appreciate that. Thanks for watching! Keep Wrenchin 🔧
It’s always makes one feel good when you fix what nobody else could.
Great find Kenny! As a former maintenance Mechanic/electrician I really relate to these odd problems. We called them tough dogs. I was often given these things because normal T.S didn't explain cause and effect. I had an electric man up stockpicker that had really strange symptoms. When powering up it wouldn't self test, and the display was a light show blinking cutting in and out. After I put an evening on it and the next day an outside vendor for the Manufacturer said it had five different problems, and left it sit. I came in that evening and dug in. Found one of the drive motors armature was shorted to ground. Replaced motor problem solved.
Just be happy Kenny! Enjoy the moment! You earned it! There are a lot of mechanics out there and a handful of REAL technicians! YOU ARE A TECHNICIAN! Always go with your first instinct.
Solving this kind of challenge is what makes the job so rewarding. Good find and fix!
People rely on computers too much anymore instead of just being a mechanic
Just had my car in the shop they told me they can't fix it cause I wiped the codes, but I told them what what wrong and where so I took it home and used a volt meter to check my sensors
@HUMAN PUPPET why didn't you do that from the start?
@@jacobcooke1127 it was originally a vc ring but my sensor wasn't picking it up and it got cold and I was pressed for time
Well said, too many technicians not enough mechanics.
@@vick.2018 define the difference please.
Kudos to you for tackling that nightmare! On the basis of how many that have worked on it I would've given it a wide berth.
Great find.....When you're not under the gun to bill out hours you can take your time and use your mechanic abilities to diagnose and repair.
It’s amazing how many ‘stumpers’ are solved by a really thorough visual inspection + touching stuff.
My personal favorite: My wife’s cousin bought a brand new 1969 Ford LTD, 302-2V 2door. It got terrible fuel economy. He had it back to the dealer at least a dozen times. They could find nothing wrong. I was a Systems Engineer in Ford’s large V8 engine Department in Dearborn. We were visiting on vacation. Gary asked me to look at it so I did. Opened the hood and immediately saw that the vacuum hoses from the PVS were looped up so the hose from the PVS to the distributor vacuum advance can had rubbed against a hood reinforcement. It looked like someone had taken a knife and sectioned that vacuum hose like a cutaway drawing.
I couldn’t believe the dealership mechanics something so obvious thru multiple visits. I was a hero for fixing the car but felt bad that a dealership had let the customer down. Gary was so fed up that he was about to take a big loss and trade for a Chevy.
You were the hero for the car repair. Well done. Thanks for sharing your story & watching the channel. Keep wrenching 🔧
Kenny great troubleshooting. I am a retired electrical electronics technician and when I would troubleshoot I always asked what changed. I have a good mechanic doing my work. I used to do most of my work but with age and surgeries not able to do any more. Love watching your videos and keep up the good work.
Glad to see another mechanic with uncanny troubleshooting mindset - reminds me of me, lol, back when I had my small shop with a like-minded buddy - tackled the mysterious stuff and took pride in the routine 🤪
I bought a Nissan Maxima from a friend who had spent thousands at different shops trying to solve an electrical problem. I figured it out in five minutes. One of the dual-filament taillight bulbs had shorted out when the lead terminals melted together which “merged” the running lights and brake lights circuits. So for years, there was a taillight bulb out and no one bothered to even look at it. Professionals my ass.
I like your style. Just subscribed!
Thats awesome !! Good find on that Maxima !! I appreciate you subscribing !!
Great job. That transmission fluid was called dextron 2
@@kevinhikes3132 Dexron?
You my friend are a very good mechanic +!! lots of people turn wrenches but thinking out what things might be wrong and having the notion to check into where and what the engine may have suffered that led to it's sale from a junk yard is awesome that was smart ! My farther was a mechanic for 40 years he had that same reasonable deduction and that outside the box quality as well was always at awe at how much he knew about cars and each makes in's and outs . good repair work is hard to find to find a good working machanic is a treasure !!!!!
Thank you for the compliment & putting me in the same ballpark as your father 🔧
It's tough working on things like that. Good job. It really helps to know how it works. That cuts down troubleshooting time.
Kenny you are a great technical detective. Excellent work. No oil additives -- I completely agree. Use any of the good grades of AMSOIL motor oils. Problem solved. Thank you.
I would be more than happy!! I would be jumping all around. I’m in the maintenance field and I understand how it feels to be the one to find the problem!! Great job!
Nice find!! I like finding the root cause of problems like that. Gives me a major boost of confidence and pride. I don’t get many in what I do for everyday work. So it is nice!! Way to go being persistent and following all the clues!
Great diagnosis and explanation of the methodology! That’s why I believe having a scope is a great tool to have in the shop.
This is the first video of yours I have watched. As a master a S E, and Ford train technician. It is welcoming to see someone actually do their craft well. Good job.
It is really amazing that so many people would look at it and no one would physically verify the timing and reluctor wheels. Good on you for being willing to do the work.
You remind me of my mechanic. Very informative and just genuinely wants people to understand how things in your car should work. I've always seemed to have bad luck with cars. By the time I reached the age of 37 I had probably had 14 maybe 15 cars all with their own unique problems throughout the years. I was convinced I was cursed I thought if I just get a brand new car I'd be ok. 2018 Ford focus brand new interior still wrapped in plastic 3 miles on it..damn I was so happy! Brand new just for me first time ever. My heart crushed when 4 years later weird electrical things were happening. Then oh that didn't matter because my transmission went out....fast forward 8 months later sitting in another junk box getting rained on because my battery is dead and I can't roll up my power window. All because my trunk ajar indicator light always stayed on just recently. Only time it wound shut off was when using the brakes.wtf?😂 But it doesn't matter because my subframe is rotted through. The part is impossible to find for an 04 hyundai xg350. Besides that the rest of the car is great. So now I've immersed myself in learning about cars more than ever. Thank you sir.
I'm going to look at a car tomorrow 😂 I feel confident about whatever decision I have to make
Oh my goodness! You have had a time with cars!!! Go on Facebook 'Wrenching with Kenny' to let us know how your car buying experience goes. If you need advice you will have a village on there. They are sarcastic but helpful. Thanks for watching
Awesome job! That engine sounds great now. I've been a plumber for 23 years, and it's a good feeling when you diagnose a problem that other technicians have missed. Enjoy your new truck. (P.S. - you just gained a new subscriber)
All I know is if I have major issues with my truck.
I will be heading to your shop. I dont care where or how far from southwest Florida.
It's just beautiful how your mind works with fixing vehicles.
Thank you very much. I appreciate your kind words. Keep wrenching 🔧
Good find sir! 90% of the time I find & fix customer's concerns just by talking to them and getting a back story of what happened right before the fault came about! You did a great job of investigating the back story! You deserve an "Atta'boy" THE other 5% I fix with a flashlight & just looking, the last 5% I actually have to troubleshoot those! #thelifeofanautotechnician Great work sir! 👏
I watch a lot of your posts because you are an honest person and a legend. Process of elimination, I love it. I'm old school and not a mechanic but I've done engines, gearboxes, starters etc.
Keep on wrenching.
Would to see you with a camera on your head and working with both hands.
Great detective work Watson 👍
Awesome find! Easy fixes are the best fixes. I especially love that you don't approve of oil "treatments". 👍🏻
Yeah. Oil should be able to do its job. 👍
Nice work on the diagnosis Sherlock! It's amazing what can be discovered with a little bit of deductive reasoning.
I love his honesty ..as retired tech irespect his straight forwardness
I used to have an 02 quad cab with the 4.7 in it. Great truck in my opinion. I put a Paxton supercharger on it (kit I bought and installed myself) which really added to the performance. I sold it with 175k and still wonder if it is still on the road or not. Congrats on the truck and loved watching you work.
In my 50 years of wrenching, i too have encountered the weirdest things others could not fix. Great diagnostic work!!
Glad to see cars get back on road fixed instead of being neglected. There's a high demand for mechanics who know their way out for variety of problems. The amount of wrenching that I've done, I've always somehow stuck to the "easiest to fix, then hardest" principle. If something is wrong with my car, then I try to do the cheapest and easiest way, if that doesn't work, then I dig in deeper into what causes certain issues. I had an issue where my car would go into limp mode when too much load was put on it when accelerating (codes showed overboost conditions) - started with vacuum lines for geometry actuator, that didn't fix the issue, checked the actuator itself if that was alright which it was, then came to conclusion that I will replace the turbo cartridge and geometry (since at that point the original turbo has already served me right for 320k km), replaced that stuff to new, it fixed the issue and I have a fresh turbo cartridge set. Car in question is Audi A4 B7 2.0TDI (PD)
Good work man and good video. The biggest issue in the dealership shops is the same thing that is plaguing all the skilled trades, you can't find quality experienced workers. I've been on the service side since 2003 and the same problem is there at every shop I've worked in, you have 2 or 3 guys that are competent if you're lucky, and the rest are just part changers doing grunt work. Very few people actually follow the diagnostic process as it should be done, which leads to misdiagnosed repairs and angry customers. I love the daily challenge of diagnosis and repair of all kinds of different issues, but it is really frustrating to watch others that probably make more money continually misdiagnose issues because they are too lazy to actually follow the diag step by step. I bet if you looked at the factory diagram for that cam fault it would tell you to remove valve cover and inspect air gap and condition of the tone ring. All those other techs probably wrote they did that in their stories and got paid to do it, and the customer got shafted with bills that shouldn't have happened. Glad they finally found someone that took the time and honestly repaired the issue
Great video, and truly understand the elation in figuring out the problem, especially not replacing parts. I've fixed problems like this when professionals, who undoubtedly know more than me didn't. My theory is I took the time necessary to think about the problem. Professionals generally won't or simply don't take the time. I'm a new subscriber now, you and Scotty, two different presentations, love em both
I am so glad this popped up on my channel again, one of my favorite mechanic videos on UA-cam
I love these kinds of challenges. Congrats on being the one that got it fixed!
Great detective work. Yea the valve cover was probably damaged from the accident and they pulled them. Personally I never knew that cam sensor part that rides on the round (damaged piece) was even there. I was thinking old school heads. 😂 Thanks Kenny.
This sort of thing shows the difference between a good mechanic and a spark plug changer. It's just sad there are so few really good mechanics that know how to fault find.
I own a small shop with a couple “green” techs that I’ve been training. I constantly preach to them a couple things: the better problem solver you can be, the better mechanic you’ll be, BE THOROUGH, and priority #1 is make the job right and your paycheck will follow.
Amazing, I do the same, get as much information as possible, talk to them, learn the history all that stuff a "fitter" (as I call this new generation) won't do, 9 times I can usually deduce the problem from that while those guys are scratching there heads at codes, great work.......👍👌👍
Great Job!! You have learned well Grasshopper. As an industrial-process trouble shooter, my first questions were "what was the original problem and what have you done in an effort to correct that problem". Often the attempted repairs were masking the real problem.
Good job dude. You are definitely called to what you do. Stuff like that don’t come by accident.
Great fix ! Bernie Thompson from ATS had one where the tone wheel became magnetized because there was a bad ground and it skewed the what the sensor read . He was able to demagnetize it ! There was another with Jerry Truglia at ATTS . Someone had a Chevy Van where the engine was rebuilt . The machine shop put a V6 tone wheel on a V8 crank ! Then the fun began . The engine had to be removed - from a van ! Both above problems were found with a scope .
Yes, but did they change that pesky last back spark plug on the passenger side of that Chevy Van?? Millions of Chevy Vans, only a few with that plug having ever being changed. To your point... scopes ARE essential.
Gentleman that comes with the years in the market, we call it ""WISDOM "", CONGRATULATIONS, at my 71 years of age and been in the gasoline and diesel mechanical field I have seen only one time before on a Chevy, now in your video, most kind of you for sharing it with us, blessings to you and your love ones, from the endless summer paradise Puerto Rico Jesus Torres.
Thanks Jesus! Your comment is really appreciated, especially with all your 'wisdom' of the business. I hope you & your loved ones are well in your endless summer paradise. Enjoy!
Most kind of gentleman, blessings to you and your love ones.
Just started watching this channel. True mechanic and not one of todays part changers. Had to subscribe.
Thank you so much!
Incredible discipline in tracking down the solution. Well done!
Great job! A mechanic who knows what he's doing. A rarity
As a fully licensed aircraft technician and former 20 year master Toyota tech, I commend you sir, like myself you think outside the box. This is highly impressive!
Thank you for the compliment. Keep wrenching 🔧 Thank you for your service
You got a good deal Kenny. The truck may have 230,000 miles on it, but the motor only has a little over 100,000 Mi on it. Keep on wrenching love your videos.
Thanks for watching 🔧
This video just popped up again, so I watched it again. Back in the 90's I worked for "The 3 Brothers" from Philly, You should know who. Anyway I was 1 of 2 master techs in our shop when they hired a new store manager and he hire some new master just out of school and paid him $10 hr more than us when we were always told raises were out of the question if more than 25 cents a year. One of his first jobs was a Chrysler fake jeep no-start. He scanned it and threw parts at it for a week and we refused to help unless we got paid the same at least. We saw one big problem from day one but never said anything, just kept watching. Meanwhile he had an S-10 blazer on another lift and was doing a complete brake job on the front end but couldn't get a pedal after replacing parts. Again we never said anything. Finally we were offered raises if we would get the cars out of his bays. S-10 was easy, the calipers were on the wrong side and the bleeders were down. The jeep we noticed from day 1 that the whole time he was cranking the belts weren't turning, the flywheel ring was broken off the torque converter and the starter was just spinning the ring around. A couple months later he quit.
Nice!! Getting a raise because you deserve it from hard work with integrity. Bravo. Taking it to the man with just good old work ethic.
You feel kind of special when solving a problem after it has been to a lot of repair shops and even the dealership shop. Just for a moment you elevate above all people. Good work mate.
I’m so jealous of people like yourself who can fix so like this. I tend to give up so easy I think because I don’t understand how it works. Great job! You should be proud
I appreciate your kind words. If you get stuck pop on Facebook - Wrenching with Kenny. Input all the info about your vehicle & what you have done to fix the issue. There are a lot of techs and automotive people that may be able to help. You can try our other FB group - Backyard Mechanics (3.8K members) they can help too. Be sure to answer all the questions to join the groups. Let us know what you come up with. Don't give up. Keep wrenching!
This is a good one. Seeing the codes you had I would have hooked up my 4 ch scope to the cam and crank sensors to check for coloration between the two. Doing so would give me the chance to see if timing was off and cam sensor square wave form had a glitch in it due to the bent reluctor wheel.
Having and knowing how to use a oscilloscope saves lots of time and labor of pulling things apart to get a look. A wave form will tell you if there is a problem. They do take a fair amount of time with the learning curve. However once you get it and learn it. You will wish you got one years ago.
I’m a Automotive Technician of just about 21 years. Getting a scope was a very big game changer. I can find problems and bet you my paycheck that what I’m going to do is gonna fix it.
Do you have any advice for someone who's just starting to get into electrical where to learn about how to correctly and effectively use a scope?
Decades ago, when I was studying marine mechanics, we had a test engine in the class. Following the procedures listed in the repair manual, it would always lead to replacing a crank sensor and then the computer module. Even doing all that, the engine would still fail the tests. The important thing to note (much like your replaced engine with missing valve covers) was that this engine was the same one we used for practicing removing the flywheel. Flywheel removal was one of the first things you learned in class, months earlier than the electronics stuff. But one of the things they told you was not to drop the flywheel or hit it with a hammer because of the magnets inside. Sure enough, close inspection revealed that one of the magnets was cracked so it would trip the crank sensor multiple times with lower energy. I don't think they ever replaced the flywheel in that engine, and even used in the state skills competition.
Those sensors are finnicky and will throw a limp-home code. Great detective work! This is a lesson on looking for things you can SEE before looking for electrons ;-)
Enjoyed the video. I’ve run into automotive issues myself. On more than one occasion, I’ve figured out the problem in my sleep. Strange as it sounds, I felt as though I’d turned into electricity and made my way through the engines electric system and found the issue. Great job on that repair.
I’m so glad I stumbled upon your channel. I love how humble you are and how smart you are. I learn a lot from you. Thank you.
Thank you for watching. I appreciate your kind words. Keep wrenching 🔧
Another fun fact, when switching these engines from platform to platform. Like Durango to fill size or full size to Dakota, check the tooth count on the cam gear. A 16 tooth cam gear was used in some and a 32 was used in others. If it won't fire check the cam teeth!
Congratulations on a job well done 👍 you Sir are a smart automotive detective and with a scope limitless.
Blessings
We've been very interesting to see the oscilloscope pattern for cam/crank correlation
Flat line?
Man-I wish I could find a mechanic like you in my area! Well done!
Keep the vids coming I learn from you all the time.
I quit going to Dealerships or auto shops where I live.
That way I don't complain and bitch about poor service. I bought manuals. Tools and scanners over the years. I have never taken vehicles anywhere for repairs.
The only reason is IF I find it's covered under warranty. I don't touch it.
For instance my sister's Hyundai sonata. After I diagnosed it.
great job!!! glad there is still people out there that take pride in what they do.
Great to see someone think analytically and not just relying on a computer to troubleshoot. Lucas is good for dry starts by keeping lubrication on the piston walls . Used it for years and never had a problem with any of their products. It’s said that 80% of engine wear is from dry starts
This is a really good case study for upcoming mechanics but it's a goddamn shame it went to so many different dealers and shops and no one bothered to investigate the basics.
Thats so awesome Kenny! You've got yourself a good truck now! Im as stoked as you are! Very very happy for ya brother! Those dealership mechanics and others need to pay for your services when they have no idea!😂😂❤
Thanks for watching 🔧
Real mechanics are a dying breed
They are making it harder for them to service vehicles at all.
Forcing peoole to the stealerships...
i just love the way you solved this puzzle...and really felt your joy and satisfaction after nailing the culprit....nice CSI demo 😁
Over the years Kenny, I have fixed a lot of unfixable cars. What I have learned is that most techkies are lost in space. You made my day fella using common sense and logic.
I tip my hat off to you Sir, you deserve this for sure. vf
Good call. I had an intermittent misfire on a ohc V6. Checked everything. Took me a little while to find issue. I could see the misfire with a scope but could find no cause. Compression check was fine. Finally pulled valve cover just see what I could see. 2 rollers on the rockers were cracked. When cam would hit crack I suspect they caused valve to jump and loose enough compression to cause misfire. No apparent cause. Rockers could be replaced without any further disassembly. Ran great after. I have used half oil, half atf to clean engines for years and hundreds of cars. I run engine at fast idle (no load) for 1 hour. If still has lifter noise I run for a second hour. Rarely required. Had a pan off an engine after and you could eat off it. Previously after removing valve cover it was so caked it looked like valve cover had not even been removed. Crazy how well it works.