Good evening. Would just like to give the o/d wannabes a reality check after what had been a bad 3 weeks for myself!
First of all, travelling down the M42 one night 3 weeks ago all my EBS and abs lights came on without warning. I had a good idea it wasn’t my trailer as it was only 2 weeks old so I got it over onto the hard shoulder. Turned off the engine, left it for 2 mins and when I restarted all the warning lights were gone and I carried on my merry way.
Next morning I struck up and the warnings come up again. Not wanting to risk anything to do with the braking performance I called out MAN via the mobile assist. Along came a fitter from Oxford and with the help of the computer diagnosed an EBS modulator valve, only a workshop repair could solve it apparently. So tipped my load on the way to the garage and in it went. Turns out the valve was knackered so they sent a lad over to Swindon to pick the part up. I then received a call from my local MAN dealer asking for a GOP of £1500!! I was not a happy bunny but the part itself was £850.
Anyway, 12 hours after I had reported the issue I was free to go again and start earning some of the costs back.
Yesterday at 15.30 pulled into a feed mill, queue for the weigh bridge so turned it off whilst waiting. Struck up again and the ■■■■■■■ thing won’t go into gear. Rung MAN to ask what the fault code related to and turns out the release bearing had collapsed. Managed to get in touch with the guy I was doing the job for and he gave me the number of an MAN trained fitter local to me.
Ring him and he was on a callout 50 miles away but said he’d get to me that night. Advised me to start ringing round for a complete clutch kit. Prices varied from £525-£1013!! for the complete kit but couldn’t order until he knew the exact problem. 21.16 he turns up in his van with laptop in hand and diagnoses the bearing collapse, says he’ll be back at 8 in morning to take gearbox out.
In the meantime I’d been on to my dad who is a massive help to me and he’s going to go wait in Hull at 8am ready to pick the clutch kit up and bring it down to me. Anyway, fitter turns up at 8.15 and by 11.00 (with the help of a forklift) the gearbox is out and ready for the clutch. I ended up paying £450 for a lihpe clutch which I thought was very reasonable.
My dad turned up with the clutch at 12.00 and by 13.15 the gearbox was back in and we just had the batteries and catwalk to fit back into the unit. I was very pleased that this fitter would do it all on site ( no main dealer would attempt it) and overall I’ve saved myself some serious money. I reckon the whole lot has cost me less than £1000 plus the obvious downtime.
So after 2 years of being an owner driver this last month has been the toughest my far. Throw into this a callout for a puncture and its probably cost me £3-3500, which will take a few weeks to claw back. But I can now have the peace of mind that my clutch will last until I get rid of the unit next year!
The real lesson of this story is, Aren’t Dads great, they’re like Mums, but understand what you mean when you say you need a clutch brought out to you.
Dad’s are awesome.
A few years ago I was doing some work that my Dad didnt approve of and we had a falling out about, cut a long story short I was in the ■■■■ big time, Rung my Dad and all was forgotten for the time, he got his boy out of the ■■■■.
Awesome are Dads.
Yup been their done that. Ended up in a situation where dad has a perfect opportunity to say “I told ya so” but some how they just get on with it an help out!
xfmatt…my cats blacker than yours…ABS/Gear selection fault…Renault, you need a new gearbox…gearbox fitted…Doh!..ABS/Gear selection fault…and the really, really funny part
Renault actually think they are going to get paid…part 2 now seems it may need a new ECU which I am informed is now obsolete but would cost £1,000…Do love dealerships usually
absolutely useless… Renault policy would seem to be…headlight bulb gone…fit new cab…injector gone… fit new engine…indeed Gino Costa, Renault Vice President and I are now
on first name terms. Did have the same type prob. with Mercedes Benz.Renault should really have a chat with MB it could prove cheaper for them.Total cost so far about £6,000 and
rising so anyone reading this get out and buy the new ‘T’ rig…Renault ‘will’ need the money.
My dad really is a big help to me! He put money into the business to help me get started and despite saying he didn’t want to be bothered by me in the event of breakdowns etc I think he secretly enjoys the involvement! Will not take a penny for the days he drives for me either so overall a top quality old man!
Dads are top blokes, so are Sons. Mine fetched an alternator down to me when one failed, not such a big job as a clutch but it was a real awkward [zb] to get off and took several hours of persuasion just to free one bolt that was threatening to shear off in a casting, then another hour to get the ■■■■■■■ polybelt back on, but we did it between us .
But I think your mechanic is a top bloke too and needs a big drink for changing a clutch in a yard, and the feed mill for giving you a lend of their FLT.
Just goes to show theres some top people around who’ll come together and help out in your hour of need, can’t see a Tosco RDC or Dock Co being quite so helpful though
back in April this year, the DAF XF that i run cost quite a bit on the MoT, and then within a month, the ASTronic Transmission modulator failed
the part alone is £2350 + a surcharge until you return the old unit
the fitting was done by myself, so, saved on the extortionate labour charges there, but, once it had been fitted, then had to call DAFAid out to come and program the new unit
Bad luck mate, it just happens. I had the alternator fail, and it needed new tensioners at the same time, then the clutch release bearing collapse within a month of each other not long after I bought the truck (although I was expecting both of those things to happen, seems normal at about 550,000km), then needed nothing doing for eight months, then needed new discs and pads on all three axles within a month.
shuttlespanker:
back in April this year, the DAF XF that i run cost quite a bit on the MoT, and then within a month, the ASTronic Transmission modulator failed
the part alone is £2350 + a surcharge until you return the old unit
the fitting was done by myself, so, saved on the extortionate labour charges there, but, once it had been fitted, then had to call DAFAid out to come and program the new unit
why did it cost quite a lot for the MOT, cpt spanky"o… If you look after your truck correctly it shouldn’t cost no more than the mot fee"s, but I seem to remember you do have very very deep pockets and such short arms so stop been a tight sod and spend some money on the trucks instead of a big bill at mot time, NO EXCUSES!!!
If it makes you feel a bit better XFmat, I had to have a new radiator, and chucked in a set of front cab mounts whilst it was stripped down on Tuesday, close to a £1000 with the VAT, and a days down time, wagons are brilliant!!
Had a few big ones over the years and they all seam to come sametime big diesal bill and vat due
Luckkly now all on r&m contracts so alot easier and stress free
Did buy a magnum for 6 months a year ago starter failed On a sunday morning
In uk callout and part was just shy of a grand
2 years before same thing on a daf in spain cost me about 550
Had. A scania go down in spAin last year bill was over 6000 euro with tow in
Thank god for r&m
I finished paying for my old lass this march, a wk later the turbo went( limped it home) , next cab mounts, then some water pipe went rotten( limped it home) whilst it was in the clutch went, then sheared the bolts off the half shaft cap(could’t limp it anywhere) then I had a blow out on the drivers steer which resulted in a Wrestle with the central reservation and having to rebuild front corner, then water jackets on the injecters went porous ,
All this between march and august, but to be fair to her id done 350,000 K&s with hardly a spanner on her, Ahhhh. Who’d have a wagon
muckles:
The real lesson of this story is, Aren’t Dads great, they’re like Mums, but understand what you mean when you say you need a clutch brought out to you.
Yes parents are the only people in life you can ever fully trust, my late father drove thousands of miles picking up parts and workers for me.
xfmatt:
Good evening. Would just like to give the o/d wannabes a reality check after what had been a bad 3 weeks for myself!
First of all, travelling down the M42 one night 3 weeks ago all my EBS and abs lights came on without warning. I had a good idea it wasn’t my trailer as it was only 2 weeks old so I got it over onto the hard shoulder. Turned off the engine, left it for 2 mins and when I restarted all the warning lights were gone and I carried on my merry way.
Next morning I struck up and the warnings come up again. Not wanting to risk anything to do with the braking performance I called out MAN via the mobile assist. Along came a fitter from Oxford and with the help of the computer diagnosed an EBS modulator valve, only a workshop repair could solve it apparently. So tipped my load on the way to the garage and in it went. Turns out the valve was knackered so they sent a lad over to Swindon to pick the part up. I then received a call from my local MAN dealer asking for a GOP of £1500!! I was not a happy bunny but the part itself was £850.
Anyway, 12 hours after I had reported the issue I was free to go again and start earning some of the costs back.
Yesterday at 15.30 pulled into a feed mill, queue for the weigh bridge so turned it off whilst waiting. Struck up again and the [zb] thing won’t go into gear. Rung MAN to ask what the fault code related to and turns out the release bearing had collapsed. Managed to get in touch with the guy I was doing the job for and he gave me the number of an MAN trained fitter local to me.
Ring him and he was on a callout 50 miles away but said he’d get to me that night. Advised me to start ringing round for a complete clutch kit. Prices varied from £525-£1013!! for the complete kit but couldn’t order until he knew the exact problem. 21.16 he turns up in his van with laptop in hand and diagnoses the bearing collapse, says he’ll be back at 8 in morning to take gearbox out.
In the meantime I’d been on to my dad who is a massive help to me and he’s going to go wait in Hull at 8am ready to pick the clutch kit up and bring it down to me. Anyway, fitter turns up at 8.15 and by 11.00 (with the help of a forklift) the gearbox is out and ready for the clutch. I ended up paying £450 for a lihpe clutch which I thought was very reasonable.
My dad turned up with the clutch at 12.00 and by 13.15 the gearbox was back in and we just had the batteries and catwalk to fit back into the unit. I was very pleased that this fitter would do it all on site ( no main dealer would attempt it) and overall I’ve saved myself some serious money. I reckon the whole lot has cost me less than £1000 plus the obvious downtime.
So after 2 years of being an owner driver this last month has been the toughest my far. Throw into this a callout for a puncture and its probably cost me £3-3500, which will take a few weeks to claw back. But I can now have the peace of mind that my clutch will last until I get rid of the unit next year!
Matt.
Great post, I must admit over the years I’ve daydreamed about being an o/d!
And I’ll leave it there I think
I like the old addage “the only way to get rich in haulage, is to start off [zb] rich”
Well it’s thanks to my Dad that I know and can do what I do now,my first job was pumping the greese bucket from age 5 ,when I left home at 19 the only job I hadn’t done on a artic tipper was pistons and crank out,everything else from diff or gearbox out to trailer refurbish he had got me doing,I must have saved him a fortune in labour or time,I get my own back from time to time.
My little angel is having a run of bad luck at the moment which is eating very severely into her savings for next year’s wedding, which has been aggravated by the get rich quickfor xmas lot who decided to attempt to break into their empty hire van (£850 to pay uninsured excess) to see if anything was worth nicking.
So dad is a member of the Black Hand Gang ( am I allowed to say that any longer without being arrested by the Thought Police? or do I now have to say Blue Glove Brigade?)
Anyway, she and her intended have a fairly elderly BMW (53 reg) which has been causing them some grief to even get diagnosed what the fault is, and the cost of the various potential sensors and the labour involved is astronomic . Well we can all guess what is happening now, and dad abso*******lutely hates cars with a vengeance (mousetraps). I just don’t ‘do cars’ I’ve got a 20+ year old Alfa and an R reg Fiesta and I certainly never touch anyone else’s.
I think I have removed something like 10 bits of plastic before I can even see what I want to. So after purchasing a decent scanner (nearly £100) and various investigations later it looks like the timing chain has slipped a tooth throwing a fault code and the problem. That has meant buying the timing tools and so on… Hopefully we’ll get it fixed without too much expense (for her) in parts.
But, oh I hate cars and BMWs especially. I’m told that in Germany they are considered to be on a par with the Opel.
But that’s what it’s all about, you just have to do what you’ve got to do. No trumpets sounding, I’m no different from any other dad
.
