I am trying desperately not to spend the big money that the dealer wants for the 30K mile service on my truck. I do my own oil changes and want to do more, however I have very, very little experience with things such as changing transmission fluids, gaskets, front and rear diffs, lubricating tie rod ends, changing the fuel filter, check and adjust brakes, etc.

I've checked with two dealers and they want between $550-800 for the job. I really don't want to pay them for simple things that I may be able to do myself. I do have a tremendous fear of doing something wrong and screwing my truck up, so I need a manual/guide that is pretty basic, step-by-step instructions.

Or, have any of you had any success going with a non-dealer shop that you could recommend in Central VA?

Thanks

Jason

 

Well back in the day I got tired of the dealerships screwing up my motorcycle, car or truck every time I took it to them. So I walked back into the service bay while they were giving my bike a valve job. The toothless dipstick doing it would walk over to the bike, take a part off, then walk back to the bench and turn the page...repeat, repeat.

Ding...light bulb over my head.....I need the book that ignorant POS is using. $80 later I had a Honda service manual on the way and that is when I discovered that the manuals are written in 3rd grade english so even the dumbest off all ignorant backwards Edit loser inbred morons could read it. Next came the porsche service manual, Chevy service manual and from that point onward any service manual for any vehicle I care to wrench on. So...moral of the story..see if the parts guys will sell you a genuine service manual. They may be pricey though. The one on the porsche was several hundred but it's saved me far and above that several times over now. If that is to pricey for your blood, try chiltons, or haynes...they're not great but better than nothing if you have never done any wrenching before.

Bill

 

Thanks Bill!

 

Agree- Between the factory service manual and the knowlegeable folks around here, there a darn few things I wouldn't do on my truck service-wise. So far, I have done everything on my truck. Only time a dealer touched my truck was for the first oil change, and that was only because it was free. Axles, engine, trans and transfer case are easy, and if you do them yourself, you'll KNOW the job was done right. Dealers scare me. While they do have some excellent mechanics, most are not and the dealer charges WAY too much.

 

This is the best source for the DIYer I have found ;ask questions and research the topics. I changed the tranny fluid filter and even adjusted the bands on my 05 something I probably would not have attempted without this forum, Then I shared the project on this site to help others you can find it under adjusting bands on 48re.

 

I primarily use this forum, but I also have a Chilton's manual for when I need to see a picture. Sometimes it helps to see what they are talking about too.

 

Use your "internet buddies" right here for any questions on basic maintenance. All the stuff you are planning on doing can be accomplished with a decent set of hand tools and a trip to the parts store for a couple boxes of misc fluids and filters. Bonus, if your Dodge is a 4x4 you don't even need to jack it up unless your doing brake work or rotating the tires (I currently have a Chevy that sits about 6" closer to the ground than any Dodge I've owned. Hav to jack it up if the kid looses a tennis ball under it,I swear!).
Even as a novice greasemonky, doing a complete service, oil, filter, lube, flush ATF, diff and xfer case fluid change, air filter, fuel filter, etc will take you one Saturday and a 6 pack of your choice.
I bought all the fluids and filters for my Chev for a complete service, including 5 gal of Transynd ($30/gal from Allison), Delo oil, Mobil 1 for the diffs and Tcase, for about $250. Sounds liek alot, but I won't have to touch anything for a couple years now. Oh, 4 gal of Dexcool to flush the cooling system, another $40, good fro 4 more yrs.
Probably the up to $800 you were quoted did not include top of the line synthetic fluids either. Bargain basement you could get everything above for $150 or less.
Also look up www.fleetfilter.com for filters. If you do your own maint, they are very cheap for Wix Gold (NAPA Gold) filters. Bought 6of each AIr, fuel and oil filters for $220 shipped to my door.

 

This site is a great source for the info you need to do your own service. Just do a search for each thing (oil change, tranny flush, etc).

DO NOT POST links to stolen copywrite protected materials on this website.

 

Yes, sir!! Called today and a service manual will run you $375. I did find one online for $325. You can get a CD of the manual for $85-90 as well. I thought I could get the CD and then print the manual, bad idea..manual = 8,000+ pages, I'd max my credit card at Kinkos on that one!!

I haven't had a chance to actually see the manual. Is it just words or a there pictures/diagrams to go with the processes?

Thanks

Jason

 

Is it the same thing that you can download for free on HEMICLUB's site?