What happened to DO-IT-YOURSELF ?

[Arnie]

Below article was sent to me and I thought most on this list would enjoy it too.
Written by that great motorcyclist do-it-yourselfer Jay Leno

" Manual dexterity is a dying art
Jay Leno
October 15, 2010

What happened to the good old days when people fixed their cars themselves.
I've just taken delivery of my new Jaguar XJ. Something I enjoy doing whenever I get a new car is reading the owner's manual front to back. To me it's like a good book but over the years they've become less and less interesting.
I thought it would be fun to compare the owner's manual of my new XJ to the owner's manual of my 1954 XK120. For example, my new XJ says, ''Changing The Battery: Battery disconnection, removal or replacement should only be carried out by qualified personnel. Consult your dealer!''
Compare that with the XK manual: ''Removing the Cylinder Head: Obtain a block of wood approximately the size of the combustion chamber and place this under the valve heads on the number one cylinder. Press down on the valve collars and extract the split collars. Remove collars, valves springs and spring seats. Repeat for the remaining five cylinders. Valves are numbered and must be replaced in original location. Number one cylinder being at the rear, that is, the flywheel end.''
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Geez. Imagine seeing something like that in a modern manual. I think people were a lot smarter years ago, or maybe the car companies don't give us enough credit.
Here's another example from the XJ manual: ''If engine warning light goes on ... consult your dealer.'' And from the 1954 XK120 manual: ''In the event you need to remove the engine, gearbox and clutch, in the event it is necessary to carry out a repair of all the above units, notice that the gearbox may be removed from the engine when the floorboards have been removed and the rear of the engine has been supported. Removal of the gearbox will give access to the clutch.''
Remove your engine! Again, imagine seeing that in a new car manual!
I have a 1939 Ford owner's manual and it explains how the ignition points work and gives the correct point settings; there's a detailed cutaway. It shows how to adjust the distributor and the vacuum brake. It also says: ''Your Ford dealer can make this adjustment for you but there's no reason you can't do it yourself.'' Would any car dealer say that today? Not a chance!
The manual for the steam car is one of the funniest I own. Don't forget, you're driving a car that's made of wood and is on fire. In the Stanley manual it says – quite calmly – ''If flames start licking over the front of the hood, shut off fuel and increase speed until flames blow out''.
I think we live in such a litigious society now, you can't be expected to try to figure out how to do anything for yourself. If a warning light comes on, you are advised to see your dealer. There's nothing to adjust. Obviously, the modern XJ is an infinitely better car than the 120. But it's the idea that in the early days automobiles were bought by enthusiasts; people who didn't mind being a partner with the manufacturer.
In one of my Vincent manuals it says, ''After 1000 miles, disassemble engine, check everything, reassemble''. That's one of my favourite quotes.
The really fun manuals are from the Japanese. To quote from my 1960 Honda motorcycle manual: ''At the rise of the hand of the policeman, stop rapidly. Do not pass him by or otherwise disrespect him. When a passenger of the foot hooves in sight, tootle the horn trumpet melodiously at first. If he still obstacles your passage, toot him with vigour and express by word of mouth warning, hi! hi! Even more importantly, give big space to the festive dog that makes sport in the roadway. Avoid entanglement of dog with wheel spokes. Your safety is our main concern. Ride, ride and be safe. Instructables can be confusables.''

Cheers,
Arnie

[Dan Filetti]

Good one.  Thanks for sharing.

As an aside, I recently read a book called "Shop Class as Soulcraft: An Inquiry Into the Value of Work" by Matthew Crawford with very much the same premise and then some.  If you're on speaking terms with your local library, or one of those book-buyer-types, it's very much worth a read.

For a bit more information:
http://www.amazon.com/Shop-Class-Soulcraft-Inquiry-Value/dp/1594202230


Dan

[ddlewis]

lmao at the Stanley Steamer part..  "your vehicle is made of wood and is on fire..  shut off the fuel and go faster till flames are blown out"

[racerman_27410]

i think our modifiers anonymous club fits the "hands on" bill quite nicely   

Leno would be proud of us   


KOokaloo!

[Ganboy70]

Hilarious, but so true!  I doubt Clymer makes a manual for the new Jaguar either...  As racerman points out, fellow FJer's will never have that issue!