Classic Auto Service Dallas

03/25/2025

Here is an interesting one, I needed to pull spring plates and torsion bars out the replace bushings and reset them on an SP2, it had a torsion bar actually pop out through the spring plate, first I have ever seen one do this, but it was quite the challenge, I decided to work smarter than harder on this and accomplished my mission, anyone have any idea how I did this without lifting the body or cutting anything?

02/10/2025

02/08/2025

Just something fun to post, he he! .

Bubb Rubb and Lil Sis: "Tha whistles go WOOO"

12/07/2024

Pulled hubcaps to do brakes, found bearing cap missing on right front, picture 1, then went to rear to pull the Axle nuts on rear and look what I found on the right rear, picture 2, I have learned never to say that I have seen it all.

09/17/2024

On this day in 1875 a hurricane almost wiped out this town, a few people remained and started rebuilding, but about 11 years later another hurricane came along and finished the job.

The Texas town repeatedly wiped out by hurricanes is one of the saddest places along the coast.

09/13/2024

The weather is finally cooling down, starting to pick up speed in the shop, I get running slow when it’s over 120 in the shop. Always lots of fun cars to work on. I love my job.

09/13/2024

A little 1911cc engine ready to reunite with its car.

09/01/2024

I have been working on cars professionally for almost 50 years, primarily old VWs, and have to say I wish I had taken pictures of some of the crazy things I have seen done to some of these cars, especially the VWs. I am going to start doing that now. So here is a 69 VW bus that is in to get running after it caught fire over 20 years ago. I notice it has an extra oil filter installed and has a lot of questionable things about it, so I see a tee in the hoses with an oil pressure gauge sticking off of it, that is a strange place for an oil pressure gauge right? But wait, there is a line for another gauge coming off the tee going into the cabin of the bus, but I notice no extra gauges on or near the dash, so where could this gauge be? Found it, in picture 2

09/01/2024

A van comes in my shop, I was told it was his dads bus who bought it new but it’s been parked for over 20 years and he wanted to get it running for dad. He put tires on it and had it shipped from California to my shop, when I look at it I see the engine is burnt. So I tell customer let’s do minimal to get it running to see if engine is sound. He told me the engine had compression tested and it was good but he took my advice to do minimal to begin with, so I replace all the burnt parts like carburetors, distributor, coil and burnt wiring. I get it started and it’s running bad like bad compression, I run a compression test even though customer told me it had been done and I come up with zero in #2 cylinder, I then pull valve cover to check for tight valve and this is what I find, no valve spring or retainers and no pushrod, the valve had a wire tied to it to keep it from getting sucked into cylinder! I think someone didn’t tell the truth about the previous compression test, valve is stuck and possibly bent, this might explain the engine fire.

08/20/2024

I had a van come in that had the automatic transmission replaced with one from a junkyard, apparently they drain them by poking holes in the pan, literally poking a hole then plugging them with a rubber plug. These were leaking and needed repairing, I was unable to source new pans so had to weld them up, I would say they turned out pretty good and the trans also got a new filter and fluids.

05/14/2024

You know it’s going to be a little challenging when you jumper the oil pressure light on a 70 VW bus to ground to check the light and when you turn on the key your jumper wire goes up in smoke,tracked it down to the ignition wire going to the coil had been shorted and melted into the harness and melted to the oil light wire. Noticed a new sending unit and new bulb already installed, the sender was smoked. Customer said other shops attempted to repair unsuccessfuly, I managed to replace the last 3 feet of the ignition wire and oil light wire, a new sender and all is good. Good reason for using cheap 24AWG wire jumpers, acts like a fusible link.

04/29/2024

I guess I can say this engine job is for Duty and Humanity, Cheers!