What is your worse memory about working on a car?

[TODD 2000 V6 CAMARO]

I was 16 and working on my first car, a 76 Nova. Well, dummy me jacked the car up with a bumper jack in the back. I was instaling my headers and mufflers. So I am wrenching like crazy and all of a sudden the car start creeping forward. Well glad I was skinny, the car came down on me enough to hurt like crazy but not totally crush me. So there I am home alone, stuck under the car and can't move. After about a 1/2 hour of trying, I finally managed to reset the bumper jack and relieve the pressure on my chest enough to wiggle out. So my mom comes home and finds me laying on the couch in pain. Needless to say, she about had a heart attack. Now 22 years later if she finds me working on the car, she always asks..... do you have jack stands under there...... Yes Mom, I do!

Dude....that brings back bad memories. I didn't ever really know this guy, but there was this guy that went to my HS. He was pretty popular and was known to have the baddest hot rod in the school. I think it was a Nova, not sure thugh, as I wasn't into older cars then. But he was always known as the wrench monkey of the school. Well, one day he apparently was working on his car, had it up on ramps instead of stands. He also didn't have the wheels chocked, only had the e-break on. He was laying half under, half out at the side of the car. The breaks cut loose and the car rolled back off of the ramps and over his mid-section. He was home alone at the time, too. He managed to get up, and walk inside and lay down on the couch, where he died from massive internal bleeding. His mom found him there after she got home from work. Eerily similar to your story, only I'm glad yours turned out ok. I was pretty sad, the whole school seemed to mourn this guy. Ever since then, I am always paranoid about climbing under a car, even with the wheels chocked and a good jack. I do need to get some jack stands though, now that I am thinking about this again. Yeesh.

[Joe 1320]

Doing a starter swap on my old Elcamino in the freezing rain, laying on my back in the apartment parking lot while the water came slowly down the incline. I ended up being right in the water's path. I had no choice but to fix at that time, I was moving the next day.

[JPack]

Dude....that brings back bad memories. I didn't ever really know this guy, but there was this guy that went to my HS. He was pretty popular and was known to have the baddest hot rod in the school. I think it was a Nova, not sure thugh, as I wasn't into older cars then. But he was always known as the wrench monkey of the school. Well, one day he apparently was working on his car, had it up on ramps instead of stands. He also didn't have the wheels chocked, only had the e-break on. He was laying half under, half out at the side of the car. The breaks cut loose and the car rolled back off of the ramps and over his mid-section. He was home alone at the time, too. He managed to get up, and walk inside and lay down on the couch, where he died from massive internal bleeding. His mom found him there after she got home from work. Eerily similar to your story, only I'm glad yours turned out ok. I was pretty sad, the whole school seemed to mourn this guy. Ever since then, I am always paranoid about climbing under a car, even with the wheels chocked and a good jack. I do need to get some jack stands though, now that I am thinking about this again. Yeesh.

WOW, that is freaky! I always considered myself lucky, but man now more than ever.

[Trash man]

i just remmeber the better one, when i was 16 going to tech skool, i was feeling sick but i had to go it was a test day in autoclass(tech kids always show up for shop lol) and my bro called me(i leave my house at 6am to get there at 7am) and tells me he has a flat tire and needs me to change it, so i change it for him while trying not to puke, go to skool and the nurse took one look at me and told me to get into her office, she took my temp and it was 104.3* F

[Steel2686]

Changing the universal joint for the driveshaft on my brother's old Bronco. It's a very common issue. It would go every few months. My brother (and most Bronco owners) would carry a couple in his truck.

We were going to Thanksgiving at my Aunt's house. My brother picks me up because it was snowing/sleeting out. I didn't have anything four wheel drive at the time. We are almost there and it goes. He pulls over and we change it in the worst weather possible. Took only about 15 minutes total, but it was the conditions more than anything.

[Wild Willy]

I used to have a '79 Buick that endured a couple engine swaps and tranny swaps. One of the engine swaps occurred in November or December, lying on an un-heated garage floor for a couple days- I got pnuemonia from that.

Same car, trying to take the catalysts off, because I had replaced the '79 V-6 with a '72 or '73 V-8 that wasn't going to ever run on unleaded- I got a rust splinter in my eye- (I HATE working on exhausts, and change most of my vehicles to stainless steel as soon as I need to work on them. ) I am real careful about goggles now days, too.

[MDMike]

I hydrolocked my current 98 Catfish 3800 last March while doing a SeaFoam treatment thru the booster hose, had the car a month. Did not let the engine warm up enough, and kept pouring after the engine stalled... wounded pride made replacing a low miles engine needlessly, a long, tough engine swap.

Before that, under my pal's '66 Galaxie XL, guiding an engine/trans swap on a hoist past the xmember, tree branch cracks and drops powertrain into engine bay, force compresses suspension and my chest. I was for delayed enlistment after 'Nam ended, and was then convinced I was tough enough anyway. Or stupid enough...

[ryan34]

I'd have to say that when i went to change the thermostat in my 91 camaro. I was taking out the bolts when one snapped. Took me two days to get the damn thing out. I had to drill it out and then retap the hole. That was not my first idea unfortunatly.

[Jeffs Black 97 Formula A4]

My worst is when I was drilling a bigger hole in the plastic harness on the driver side to fit bigger amp wire in my Formula, and wound up taking out several other wires in the harness (wires were broken inside the plastic plug). Had the wires repaired at an electrical shop, good as new.

[BrdWAtti2d]

Installing a new clutch on my 68 GTO in the pouring rain on a gravel road by myself. I don't remember what was so important that I had to get it done right then and there. I'm guessing it had something to do with a woman, but I assure you it wouldn't be THAT important now!

[Christopherrr]

LT Headers in 30 degree weather...then breaking a header bolt!

[LarryMow]

About 15yrs ago, me and some friends were wrenching like mad to get the motor in my 75 Monza. We trying to get it done quickly so we could go to the Ford vs Chevy dragraces the next day down in Biloxi. Well it was my responsibility to put in the driveshaft...I crawled under put it in and put the straps across the u-joint. My buds use the logic on me, of that I need to test the car out that night, so if I blow it up, I do it at home instead of in front of everyone. So me and another guy goes out to the local racing spot...we take off, I get out to a 1 or 2 car lead, then.....BOOM!!!! wham wham wham wham. Im thinking Ive blown up my ride so I coast to the shoulder....look under the car expecting a shower of oil....no oil, just the driveshaft dragging the road. Apparently I put the ujoint on top of the retention tabs and not between them. It slung the caps off and the shaft came off. As i get out of the car pissed off, i go to kick the mirror, my pants leg gets hung up on it and causes me to fall and bust my ass. lol

[Gary94Formula]

When I was 19, I replaced the timing chain in my brother's car so he could take his car to a friend of our's funeral who had just been killed in an auto accident. I got it running and it over heated and the radiator cap blew off and I got boiling anti-freeze in my face and on my left side. I just ran and tore my shirt off and my brother ran for the hose. Luckily, I only have some very minor scars that you wouldn't notice if I didn't tell you.. I was very lucky.

The other time was standing out in the freezing cold trying to drill out the 2 thermostat bolts on a ford pinto that my other brother broke off trying to change the thermostat..

[darkhorsecustoms]

My worst is when I was drilling a bigger hole in the plastic harness on the driver side to fit bigger amp wire in my Formula, and wound up taking out several other wires in the harness (wires were broken inside the plastic plug). Had the wires repaired at an electrical shop, good as new.

Did something similar on a buddy's 89 IROC. Trying to enlarge a hole for an amp wire, drilling through some sheet metal. The previous owner already had a hole there, we were just making it bigger. I ended up hitting a weatherpack, chewing up about half the wires. Man was that a PITA to get running right again.