I watched a youtube video on how to do it. Then I had to slide around on the asphalt under the truck and position myself correctly to change the filter. You have to use a strap wrench under a truck to tighten the oil filter, positioning it just so through the wheel-well and suspension. It's not easy and you have to stay patient. When your under a car, and oil is pouring over your hand and the filter isn't threading as you try turning it--you can only take a deep breath and relax. If you get frustrated chances are you'll hurt yourself. Under a car, there are dozens of angular metal pieces to throw your beautiful head/face/teeth into. One head-jerk in frustration is all it takes.
Anyways, my shirt got oily and my neck got pretty sore craning around under the car, but with some creativity and patience I got the job done. It taught me something.
(A) be patient. When I had finally gotten under the car, the crescent wrench I wasn't long enough (lacked the torque) to undo the oil pan bolt. I had to slide back out, and spend 10 minutes looking through a messy tool-bag for a 5/8 socket, and a wrench large enough to loop over the socket-wrench handle (for leverage). But once I had the right tools it was easy. It was a classic case of "work smart, not hard." Brute force wouldn't have done it.
(B) don't get overwhelmed by the mass of parts. Cars are full of parts, but if you only focus on the ones that are pertinent to your job, you realize that each component or sub-system is relatively simple. It is only when you [mistakenly] look at the entire car as a single, unified entity that things get overwhelming.
Anyways, I must really be rolling in the man skills right now. Two days ago I used a chainsaw for the first time. Swansong would be proud.
No comments:
Post a Comment