Luck vs talent

2 days late, and a dollar short.

why do some vehicles run forever with minimum maintenence, and some vehicles turn into lemons?

Toyota has lemons and dodge has miracles. I dont mean vehicle choice. I mean individual vehicles. Everyone knows a respectable car thats just a PITA.

 

Because those assembled on Monday, or Friday are done by workers who don't give a shit. Monday they're still hung over, and Friday, they're already mentally checked out

 

That counts as luck. What day/shift was your vehicle made?

 

Yeah, I guess it does. I have no idea when mine was made

 

I'd say it's 50/50, but luck has a more important impact. Bad luck can always trump good maintenance. The opposite is not true.

 

The other day I spoke with one of my field superintendents. He drives a 2 wheel drive Toyota extra cab truck. It might be in the 10-12 year old category. He has just over 300,000 miles on it. I asked him:

* have you ever changed the rear differential oil? Nope.
* have you ever changed the automatic transmission fluid/oil? Nope.
* have you changed the engine coolant? Nope.
* have you changed the spark plugs? Yes. Once.
* have you changed the shocks? Nope.

He said he does try and do the engine oil & filter on a regular basis (I'm guessing a quick lube shop type of arrangement).

Says it drives just fine.

 

The most sexy, most capable, super white trucks get all of the love!!

 

As well they should. Stormtroopers rule!

 

Toyota has specific recommendations for 2wd trucks. For instance, if the rear diff (or tranny, I forget) is not changed within how ever many miles, they say to keep it sealed for life as opening it is more dangerous than leaving it be

 

Luck gets you reliability when others have problems

Talent allows you repair what breaks

Information and maintenance help avoid the need for both

 

I am similar to him, my 2011 has 469k. I have changed the plugs once, has original coolant, never serviced the transmission or rear diff. Mine is a 4wd. I fall into the lucky category I guess.

 

I heard a story from Galileo recently, the theme is that sometimes we set things up for safety but those things add complexity and become the cause of failure.

The story was about storing large pillars during construction. If you stand them up they will fall, so you must lay them down. If you lay them flat on the ground, you will break them when trying to pick them back up, so they must be supported on each end. Lay them down with a stand on each end. What happens if the center sags and breaks? They added a support in the center to prevent this.

What happened next? The pillars broke in the center, right where the support was. The center support was made to match the end supports, but the end supports had errroded and sunk in, making the center support taller and creating a stress point.


Kind of like those guys who buy a 250k mile tundra and have the transmission flushed, only to have the transmission fail 10k miles later. Sometimes when we add new things in hopes of longevity, other related things show their age and crumble.

As far as this question, I say both. A skilled mechanic will have an easier time than a new one. Luck also plays a big factor.

 

I’m one of the most cautious people with my vehicles. I have never owned a car that didn’t have a scratch, dent, or excessive warranty repair. Always park far, garage kept, minimal driving.

Meanwhile everyone I know parks close, drives in inclement weather and buys cars for looks and without research. Zero issues, zero damage.

 

1. Trucks (and cars) are female in gender...always remember that, and treat them accordingly.
2. Never (and I mean NEVER, EVER) say anything bad about your truck while you're in her, near her, or within earshot.

 

I told my truck someone said white trucks are best, and she aint happy. The important part, is she aint not happy with me.

 

Never heard it put that way. I like it.

 

I am very sensitive to any changes in sound, ride quality, etc. of my vehicles. My wife, son, and daughter? Not so much. Same with my laptop and anything else mechanical. They wonder why I have so few problem with my stuff. Yes, luck plays into it, but if you catch issues early, they are MUCH easier and cheaper to fix than if you ignore it until it breaks completely. Turning the radio up to hide a sound is NEVER the right thing to do!

 

Poorly engineered cars can usually be kept alive with talent to a certain point until fixing the same thing becomes a burden.

Cars that are well engineered will stay around for a long time with only a small amount of talent.

Quality in assembly will help with first impressions in the short term but its well engineered vehicles that will stay around.

Luck? Thats the guy who buys a car not assembled on a Monday or Friday.

Personally I've noticed it's the fugliest vehicle on the lot that tends to last with little to no assembly issues provided its a well engineered car.

 

Sounds like your truck has jealousy issues. Not good, as that is a sign of weakness and fear. Solution...a coat of super white will lift her spirits!

 

With all due respect, I can't imagine that being correct. That defies all generally accepted principles of engineering and science.

 

Hard for me to argue with this!

 

Actually, it's not engineering or science driving this advice. It's economics and risk management. At higher mileage, the risk of some type of failure from a fluid replacement for the diff or tranny is high enough that's it's more cost effective to run it 'til it dies.

 

Might as well not change the engine oil then

 

Easy for me. Everyone knows storm troopers follow Darth Vader around and fear him. Darth Vader is black. Therefore all you white trucks are afraid of black trucks.

 

You sir are confused, the Earth is round! The storm troopers in your mirror are actually leading and you are many many miles behind!

 

It's easy. Talent allows you to make the best decisions and handle any issues quickly. Luck helps anyone, and it's random.

 

Why am I thinking of the movie Christine when I read that?

 

This makes no sense. Changing the engine oil does not introduce the added risk like the tranny or the diff.

 

They’re coming to take our hood releases anyway. Well, not mine, but people who buy new stuff.