Thread: Are the days of home vehicle repair coming to an end

I service and work on all my older vehicles, the newer ones...I open the bonnet...go phhh and close it again...then go and do an overtime shift, which then pays for someone who has the gear and knows what they are doing...to work on the newer car.

Originally Posted by ramblingboy42

Have we got any young members here to comment on this?

A lot of us here are not young anymore and have been through the phase where it was almost a necessity to do home services.

We also have you remember that as a society we've become less 'hands on'
Manual labour and trades are far less common than in the past, and become a very urban, white collar society and even most tradies can't/don't do anything beyond their expertise.

A lot of things are being "sealed for life" as well.
A lot of modern gearboxes are "sealed for life". I think life is expected to be 200,000km to 300,000km. Then you get a new car which will be two or three times the price of a new gearbox.
Cars are becoming consumables.

They’ve been that way since about 1975

Even a lot of qualified mechanics nowadays are nothing more than parts fitters.
When I was teaching at TAFE, I used to have lunch quite often with the Mechanical teachers. The older ones were despairing about where their trade had gone in such a short time. One said he spent the first 12 months of his apprenticeship doing nothing but cooling systems - re-coring radiators, putting new bushes and seals in water pumps, doing welch plugs, etc. Nowadays, they do a couple of 40 minute modules on cooling systems, and most of their tests are open book.
It was like when the wifes' Hyundai carked it in Brissy one day. (I was in Melbourne) I told her to ring the RACQ, get towed to a workshop, and tell them it needed a fuel filter. The mechanic at the workshop plugged in hyis OBD reader, and decided that the Fuel pressure regulating switch was reading out of range. $200 worth of switch, and the car crapped itself 10 kms up the road. This time she stood on her digs, and told them to put in a filter. Car hasn't had a problem since.
The bloke knew how to use the reader, but didn't understand that the reason that sensor was reading the way it was, was because the filter upstream of it wasn't letting enough fuel through. Just slavishly following what the reader said, with no actual trouble-shooting skills whatsoever.
I think it's becoming MORE necessary to do your own mechanical stuff, especially if you run something a little bit out of the ordinary (like most of us do)

This is addressed to Tombie.
I usually don't say something unless I am sure.
Below is the first file in the set of TD5 map files taken from my ECU when I remapped .
It is pretty clear that Volvo generated the software for Gen3 TD5.

header {
//************************************************** ********
//*
//* Volvo Car Corporation
//*
//* This file is generated by VBF CONVERT ver. 3.1.6
//*
//* DO NOT EDIT !
//*
//************************************************** ********
// Volvo software part number
sw_part_number = "5H22-14C273-TB";
// Volvo software part type: Secondary bootloader
sw_part_type = SBL;
// Network: CAN high speed main network
network = CAN_HS;
// ECU address used for: PCM - Powertrain Control Module [0x10 / CAN MS]
ecu_address = 0x10;

So, as well as what some are saying is the new defender of 4x4, a la easy to work on. they also have good tractors. Easy to work on? don't know. Have to pass this on. Got a mate with a Mahindra 4x4, always putting **** on my D2, he is now sitting in Mudgee with a broken cam shaft at 90,000 kms, I am at home with a D2 with over 400,000 kms. Rang him and put the boot in , as you do.

Mahindra Agriculture | Award Winning Tractors

Originally Posted by PhilipA

This is addressed to Tombie.
I usually don't say something unless I am sure.
Below is the first file in the set of TD5 map files taken from my ECU when I remapped .
It is pretty clear that Volvo generated the software for Gen3 TD5.

header {
//************************************************** ********
//*
//* Volvo Car Corporation
//*
//* This file is generated by VBF CONVERT ver. 3.1.6
//*
//* DO NOT EDIT !
//*
//************************************************** ********
// Volvo software part number
sw_part_number = "5H22-14C273-TB";
// Volvo software part type: Secondary bootloader
sw_part_type = SBL;
// Network: CAN high speed main network
network = CAN_HS;
// ECU address used for: PCM - Powertrain Control Module [0x10 / CAN MS]
ecu_address = 0x10;

Phillip....
Can you provide more details?

Homologation Number etc?

You downloaded this with Nanocom you say?

I’ve got 5 Binary dumps from late TD5s sitting here and not one has *any* reference To Volvo.
No amount of research has found a link to it either.

And I am curious how the Nanocom suddenly seems to have changed to multiple files for remapping... it was a single file...

What is the file IDs?

For your reference:
5H22-14C273-TB by the way is firmware for the D3 up to 2009.....

So it’s pretty clear you grabbed a non TD5 file