Crank fasteners are often a real pain to remove. Mechanics with expensive impact wrenches and large breaker bars struggle to remove them—but there’s a better way.
HOT OFF THE PRESS
Creative repurposing: Shims have all sorts of uses in an automotive shop
There are applications for shims besides fixing camber and panel gaps.
Don’t let your scanner go unprotected
Faults in the car pay you. Faults in the scanner cost you.
One lesson is harder for more experienced techs to learn than their rookie counterparts (VIDEO)
If you’re an experienced technician, you may feel as though you’ve seen everything, but don’t let your knowledge prevent you from learning more.
SHOP STUFF
Auto care news and advice you can use.
Fuel pump designs are changing. Do you know what kind of fuel pump you’re troubleshooting?
Many vehicles today have made the switch to DC brushless fuel pumps. They don’t work like the older brush-type pumps do.
TECHNICIAN CHALLENGE: Can you identify these dash lights? PART 2 (VIDEO)
Think you know your dash lights? Shop Press contributors Keith, Miriam, Chris, and Greaser try their best to identify all kinds of lights, symbols, and indicators.
How to service spark plugs the professional way
Spark plugs have a tough enough job to do—don’t make it any harder by servicing them improperly!
Report: cars are the worst products for protecting user privacy
A scathing new analysis from the Mozilla Foundation says every single car brand failed its standards for security and respecting user privacy.
Preventative maintenance is great, but are you performing preventative repairs?
Repairing future failure points before they fail is a lucrative way to save your customers money, just like maintenance does.
ABOUT SHOP PRESS
Shop Press is the news and idea hub for everything related to working on cars and trucks, focusing on repair, technology, and wrenching lifestyle. With interesting stories from around the world, features on creative people and solutions, and all kinds of other stuff that’ll make you use your mind and your hands.
SHOP STUFF
Auto care news and advice you can use.
Using a spaghetti trick to keep zip ties organized (VIDEO)
Chefs know a helpful hack to keep spaghetti from falling out of an opened bag, and the same idea happens to work perfectly for zip ties. Give it a try next time you have a pack of zip ties that doesn’t have a resealable closure.
The pros (and more than a few cons) of chrome
Although I love the look of chrome on cars, there are very good reasons why it’s not used much anymore.
PSA: Make sure your Loctite isn’t fake!
Copycat Loctite is more common than you’d think. Learn how to check for counterfeit products.
What sealed chassis parts can teach us about shifting customer habits and technology’s march forward
The “best” parts for the job are highly dependent on the environment in which they operate.
TECHNICIAN CHALLENGE: Can you identify these dash lights? (VIDEO)
Think you know your dash lights? Shop Press contributors Keith, Miriam, Chris, and Greaser try their best to identify all kinds of lights, symbols, and indicators.
VIDEOS
Are automakers starting to rethink OTA microtransactions?
Microtransactions spark unexpected microaggressions.
Top 5 mechanical oddities on RHD vehicles, and how to deal with them if one rolls into your shop
Working on a right-hand drive vehicle requires deviating slightly from a mechanic’s routine.
The only two mistakes you can make on your first timing belt job (and why you shouldn’t worry about them)
T-belts aren’t scary at all.