****FOLLOW UP**** GM cooperate and the dealer contacted the owner of the vehicle and made restitution by offering a full refund of close to $1000. Customer is happy and all is well in the world once again 😁
I discovered your videos a few years ago and came away impressed with your superior diagnostics knowledge. Time passed and rediscovered SMA again. Not a thing has changed. The last video I viewed was about bent pins in an ecm leading to almost a wild goose chase but deductive reasoning prevailed to undo mistakes from another repair shop. This video saved the owner a thousand dollar headache of GM firing the parts canon when your skills pointed to electrical problems; a ground issue. As shown, more electrical and electronic additions can create new and unusual problems. It would be miraculous if repair shops view your videos to learn about diagnosing problems. This presumes each person has basic education in mechanics, electricity, electronics, EFI systems, abs, etc and continues learning.
Glad to hear GM did what they should have . And to you my friend I think GM should send you that money LOL Fat chance of that though . Another one in the books for you , You are very knowledgable .
" Follow up "Glad to see the GM and the dealer made some restitution. Do you think was a fault of flowchart diagnostics ? I have had this same problem with GM vans in the past. Test light on battery ground and tip to frame rail, lights on ! The codes can send you down the rabbit hole fast.
Morning All. I tried to add this comment earlier, but I don’t think it went through. I am the truck owner and I spoke with the service manager this morning to nicely let him know how badly they screwed this diagnosis up. He promised a call back today to let me know how they will rectify this. This experience has been an absolute nightmare with them. I’ve been without use of my truck for almost 3 weeks. Eric O had it for a matter of hours and had me heading home with it. I’ll let you all know how it turns out. If the dealership does not give me a full refund I’m ready to go to the media.
Glad you went back to the dealer in a mature fashion. No point blowing up and making a stink, however, media is a GOOD choice. They HATE getting drug through the coals by media. In this case you and Eric are the clear winners.
Buddy we are behind you on this. I would show the dealer these comments to hopefully embarrass them and if that does not work, head straight to the nearest TV station or at least email them this video and have them make a story about this dealer. THAT would be what I would do and IF that did not work, I would find an attorney who needs some money and sue this dealership so that you and the attorney may own it.
Eric, I actually work at a GM truck assembly plant. I work right across from the job where that same ground strap is fastened down. I’ve always wondered how long they would handle the salt. Now I know the answer. Your diagnostic skills are 2nd to none. Wish I knew half of what you do.
@@jimo2627 Only assembly skills I have is in the kitchen making a sandwich. I never could get a job at a GM factory. I figured robots took all the jobs. Good knowing there are still jobs being done by human bad not being able to get one of them jobs.
Are those ground straps tinned (silver looking) to start with or are they straight copper? In the amatuer radio world we always use tinned ground straps outside.
@@RandyDBPFilms Those are straight copper if they were tinned they would still be there, I live in Michigan and had a 2 gage ground strap fully tinned on my '69 Cutlass grocery getter for 20 years before I sold it I inspected the electrical connections it was in brand new condition, this ground strap went from the battery to the engine then to the frame.
So I checked the grounds on my GM after this, the ground strap was loose and corroded, cleaned them up and no more codes! Makes so much sense! Thanks your the Best
Back story: This vehicle was at the local dealer to address a customer complaint of no power steering, ESC and service trailer brake light coming on. They made the call and told the customer that he needed a new rack and pinion, a trailer brake control module and a new transmission control module! That is a $4000 repair! The customer didn't think this was right (even though he is not a mechanic) Then they charged him over $900 for diagnosis and "restocking fees" because he wanted a second opinion. Good news is I fixed it for wayyyyyyyy less and only $20 in parts 😉 I hope with some evidence he is able to get some of his money back.
@@brockwagner939 Yeah, rear defogger is on, the blower is on high, the wipers are going, both heated seats warming people's buns and the average driver is not going to understand the correlation.
Eric, I'm 70. As a rule of thumb, When ever I see multiple failures in an electrical system, I always look at GROUND connections FIRST. When I was in my 20's and working at an Automotive electrical shop, I chased my tail over a car with ELECTRICAL gremlins running through it for half a day. Then the shop owner came out and LAUGHED at me and said to replace the ground strap that ran between the engine and frame at the firewall. I looked at it and said it was BRAND NEW. He laughed even harder, and said REPLACE IT ! Sure enough, my gremlin was found... Somebody Installed a junk cable and ran a ground for a CB radio install (Remember them ?) from the same ground point. Moral of the story: Ignore how good it looks. CHECK IT ANYWAY !!! And ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS look for modifications from stock. 45 years later, I still remember that man, and his laugh...
I've diagnosed electrical problems for 40 years. I learned ages ago that if you have more than one problem look for the commonality. Rarely do things fail more than one at a time on their own. Good work on this one. I liked seeing the voltage drop testing. Auto technicians are smart people, always learning, and learning from others' mistakes is a great shortcut to investing one's own time in every lesson.
Knowing how dealerships operate, I wouldn't be surprised if they knew what the issue was all along and wanted to soak the guy for $4k in parts instead of a few bucks for a ground strap. Charge for all those modules, replace the strap without mentioning it, no one would be the wiser. Well, except this guy and Eric.
@@notsureigaf I don't think they are really that smart. Watching these videos one often hears accounts of taking a vehicle to a dealer, parts thrown at it, and still not fixed. Then they resort to real techs like Eric O. here, ScannerDanner, Pine Hollow Diagnostics, etc.
I believe when a dealer tech is recommending 4 grand worth of parts and labor, there needs to be a sit down with the service manager, the tech who diag, and a shop foreman. Tech needs to explain their diag plan and results and show why they believe all those parts could be faulty before allowing the adviser to call the customer with a quote. Either there was some electrical diagnostic ignorance going on or fraud.
Usually in situations like that the tech line should be involved in some capacity, so they aren't just firing the parts cannon randomly. Honestly anyone worth their salt should default to 'primary power or grounding problem' when that many problems arise. A module failure is random enough, but 3? On a 3 year old car with lowish miles? Give me a fucking break.
@@dafirnz I agree! Unless it got smacked by lightning three bad modules in three different locations with voltage codes looming reeks of power or ground issues.
@@notsevenfeettall Another+ for lightning. And more than just 3 modules. Also seen where vehicles jump started, with the cables reversed, take out several modules. shit happens
I have to say that this was the one of the most entertaining videos ever made by SMA. I appreciate the way Eric approaches the problem and takes it step by step until problem discovered and repaired. This one deserves the Sherlock Holmes award for finding the ground problem amid all of the other issues that were being manifested in the scan tools and a testament for sticking with the facts and not getting distracted. As a retired engineer, I appreciate his step by step, follow the data approach to a successful conclusion. WELL DONE!
Shouldnt that be the standard? The more videos i watch from american repair shops the more i start to believe there is an underlying problem with the mechanics education. I dont want to sound arrogant or anything but basic diagnostics like this is something every car mechanic here in switzerland learns in their third year of apprenticeship (they have 4).
That's what mechanics used to do. It seems all these "certified" mechanics at the dealerships are no more than trained parts replacers to rack up huge bills. The thing is, had the dealership replaced all those modules the problems would have persisted and the bill would have kept climbing until the ground cable(s) were replaced. Worst of all is, the customer is rarely, if ever, made whole!
GM dealership should refund his diagnostic charge. Second opinions are the way to go it seems. We have problems with rodents mice and squirrel going after engine wires here in East Texas. The reason I keep a warranty with so many modules and sensors. Yep, the EV will be even more vulnerable to corrosion and fires it seems.
I appreciate the talent of engineers and their ability to come up with all kinds of things and make vehicles wonderfully technological and all the bells and whistles and things that light up but I think they got in too carried away putting all these modules computers and all these other electronic components that with one little thing going wrong the thing goes haywire you know you might want to justify your job but not at the expense of customers and if you got people on the other end is the support staff they ought to be able to fix the vehicles that you guys come up with have a great evening bye
@@dwb812 The problem is, nowadays as a mechanic you often have to replace complete modules. There isnt even the possibility to order small spare sparts anymore. When i started as a mechanic 20 years ago you could order ever little shitty piece of sparepart, today the manufacturer only has the whole module or part to order. SImple things like wishbone bushings or new sliding contacts for your alternator so you can actually repair it for a few $ instead of replacing the whole part. Thats not something you should blame the machanic for but the manufacturer.
I'm an un-certified mechanic... This man here is a true diagnosis solving fellow. I would definitely have my vehicles looked at but I'm in Texas over a 1000 miles away. Just admire the help he gets from his wife & daughter also... This is somebody to admire...
@@johncasor9698 I would not drive any of my vehicles into NY unless it was life or death. And Gov Hockey-puck convinced me to leave, so I will never ever be back.
ONLY because he has that scan tool that shows everything he needs to see WHILE moving the steering wheel to trigger that dash message, without that scan tool, how good are you as a mechanic to diagnose an issue like that ????? There was another video like this from another mechanic that diagnosed a similiar issue down to a rusted ground strap ... As he said those straps are garbage. They hold water and corrode. That strap should have been an insulated 4 or 8 gauge wire from the factory
@@ACommenterOnRUclips You have revealed that you are not a mechanic, therefore do not have the standing to criticize. Eric is excellent, with or without tools. Without the plug-in tool, the process would have been to connect a voltmeter to each module's in and out. He clearly explained that, but you weren't paying attention.
Having an honest, trustworthy is worth a fortune. Last new car I bought was 2015. I took it back to the dealership for recalls only. Didn't really have many problems with it, but when I did, "I know a guy", just like you, has his own shop, very knowledgeable I'll probably never meet you, but IMO, it's people like you that make America great...thanks
I used to be an assistant service manager at a GM dealership. Good to see there are still GOOD Diagnosticians. That was the hardest type of technician to find and retain. Glad to see there are ethical and dedicated technicians still working. GREAT JOB!
@@plhebel1 because of pay. It all comes down to pay. Very competent techs at dealerships but eventually you stop being thorough when 1-3 hours of diagnostics get rolled in to a single labor op code of .7 hours for module replacement.
can only speak for my self but my case is probably verry common. I work at a dealer (been a mechanic for 20 years) and i have never been teached how to do electrics becouse they often have people that do diagnostics and people that do mechanic part. Some times when its lot of jobs or a sick person they can give the "mechanic" a big diagnostic job (even if he realy dont know) and say solve it.
It doesn't matter how smart you are, unless you stop and think. --Thomas Sowell Training is the transfer of knowledge, but applying that knowledge requires discipline of intellect, regulation of emotions and established principles.
I am a retired avionics technician and I guessed ground problems in first two minutes. You have outstanding troubleshooting skills guy. So many aircraft and car mechanics throw parts at it first then get the meter out. I enjoyed watching you whittle down the problem. Great video!
I am also a past avionics communication tech trained by our military back in 76 and I was thinking voltage issues when first watching this. I am happy to see a mechanic with excellent troubleshooting methods,hats off excellent job.
@@chuckwelden972 I joined the AF in 82' and retired in 04' then went to LM. My mind was there but my body was to sore to effectively do the work so I walked away. I worked on the SR-71, U-2, KC-135Q, T-38, C-23A, C-141, EC-130E, C-5, and lastly the F-35. Thanks for serving.
I figured a ground or maybe the ign. swith picking a bad connection. I've seen positive circuits pull a ground before so it does happen. People say I'm crazy but I know it happens.
Eric, I’m retired military, and I was a jet engine mechanic for a long time, and then a crew member on cargo planes; that’s a long way to say I’ve been wrenching for a while now. Your troubleshooting / diagnostic approach is awesome! Especially when you’re dealing with a platform you’ve either never seen, or very rarely seen…either way, well done dude!
A very disciplined diagnosis. I worked in a large GM dealership and found many problems with grounds even in the San Francisco Bay Area. If the GM tech had called the GM Tech help line, they would have instructed him to do voltage drops on all of the applicable circuits before they would authorize the replacement of any module. Obviously the tech did not do the basic proper inspections or call the help line, which is free.
You are 100% correct. That dealership definitely put the wrong tech on it. There is no way all of those modules went bad at the same time. Even if he were to confer with a fellow tech he would have learned that. But Eric is the best. I've never seen a better independent and he might be the best I've seen at diagnostics.
The dealership is either unethical or incompetent. Either way they should definitely refund this guys money. My guess is they won’t unless lawyers and/or media get involved.
GM should pay you to write TSB's for them. You just saved them a lot of money with this video, where dealerships will not be able to rip them off for all of those "warranty" work that these new cars require. Appreciate your hard work Eric, while making it interesting in the process.
Likely reply would be "It doesn't do that". That's what I got from an email software company 25 yrs ago when I sent them the solution to a problem that had crashed my server. The engineers just denied the system could crash that way rather than simply verifying my solution and using it to help others.
You're right, Bojan. Really they should hire Eric (if he wanted the job) as a high-level consultant for design and trouble shooting, at a high level rate of pay. He's worth every penny they could pay him. I just wish he would keep making repair videos, even so.
"Wait 'til everyone starts driving their electric cars." LOL. Well said Eric. Phenomenal diagnosis. I learned so much in the first viewing, I watched it a second time. Thanks Eric.
Eric I'm 65 still working as a Emergency Vehicle Technician here in Florida i can't tell you how informative your videos are you are an extremely talented technician that deserves tons of praise for your knowledge, honestly, and being a great father and husband. Keep it up. ..
@@robertbreton2921 absolutely. Without at least a inexpensive scan tool you are flying blind. Mr O, more times than not, starts each diagnosis with a code scan to point him in the right direction for the hunt. I'm a shade tree mechanic that bought a hundred dollar code reader 16 years ago when I bought a 2006 vehicle. It has helped immensely.
As an electrical engineer, former tech, and shade tree mechanic since I was 14, I found this video riveting. Soon as you found the voltage fluctuations using the scan tool (so envious of that) I immediately said "bad ground" but when you showed that trailer brake module had no common wiring with the PS module I was wondering if I was wrong. I would never have expected the entire frame rail to have a bad ground connection, so great job. Couple of comments though. (1) those braid straps have a high equivalent AWG to insulated wire, and 4 AWG can only handle about 80 amps before the insulation starts degrading (melting) but this is likely an intermittent high-load so maybe it will be okay. (2) GM and every other Big 3 auto company use the cheapest crap they can get. There are marine or military nickel-coated braid straps that WILL handle that high salt environment and will have the flexibilty to handle the extensive bending that the 4 AWG won't. (3) you referred to the 4 AWG as solid wire which is incorrect, it is stranded wire. 4 AWG solid wire wont bend without a considerable amount of force, so I knew you weren't using 'solid' wire. As to the shift to park, I hope it's fixed but i have my doubts. My 2019 Blazer with floor shifter had that and it was the microswitch in the shifter assembly. Apparently GM got a really crappy switch and LOTS of 2019s have this issue. Only way to fix is to replace shifter assembly but I raised a stink with GM and they covered half the cost. May not be the case with this one but if it comes back, go straight to that microswitch. Enjoyed your video immensely and your wife and daughter are adorable. You're a lucky man and a smart and honorable one. Wish you'd relocate to the Fort Worth area, we'd be honored to have you...and no more salt corrosion issues!
It looked like it was fixed as well as he ran several into the drive and back to the park sequences and no warning at engine shutdown or horn at the door opening....
Well i think that was just a slip of the tongue saying solid wire. Pretty sure he would know it was stranded wire. If not the braided type i would have used 4 AWG welding cable and made my own. That is fine stranded compared to the thick strands in 4 Gauge automotive wire and very flexible as well.
In my 40+ years of troubleshooting electronics I've learned to almost always inspect the power supply first; and seen many others led astray by not doing this basic check early on. #2 lesson is if there's multiple failures in different systems, check the grounds.
Problem these days is that most so called techs are very electronically challenged, most guys I have known cannot figure out a simple circuit never mind understand a wiring diagram.
@@machinehead6892 took the "career track" auto-tech class at the local JC... Asked the instructor to help me... He looked at the diagram, and responded..."I don't do Mercedes". This was a school in Silicon Valley. I don't know if instruction is this bad, elsewhere, but there's no excuse for this sort of incompetence. I raised it with the Administration... They did nothing. :-(
great advice. and #3 NEVER go to the dealer for service (Their only function is for the part you cant get anywhere else, or proprietary computer stuff.)
Only Eric O. can make a bad-ground repair video as exciting as any crime scene thriller! I was on the edge of my seat the entire video waiting to find the culprit! The best mechanic I've ever seen and the best auto repair videos on youtube! It is so educational to see how you work through the problems. Thanks much Eric, and keep up the great work!
It hooked me too. I even paused it while I walked the dog. Every state needs at least a dozen Erics....Not only is he a 5 star mechanic but he has mastered critical thinking.
@@jafopt Shhh, who cares at this point, he found it the old fashioned way, logic and proper research, to which is sometimes far more fun in the end, and at the very least, fun for us who get to watch this process and learn from it!
Once again I am blown away with the illogical logic from the GM dealer. Happy to hear the customer was reimbursed, but only after being shamed by your complete diagnosis. In my mind I would expect the reverse situation with the local garage unable to properly diagnose the problem due to lack of training and the factory trained GM mechanic having to come to the rescue.
I was a station owner and mechanic many years ago when vehicles were much simpler than anything on the road today. But what doesn't change between then and now is that diagnostics and logical thinking are the key ingredients to solving a problem. There are many talented techs at dealerships today but it seems like parts often get replaced without much thought to identifying the root cause. I've spent many hours watching Eric and marvel at his ability to tackle anything. I hope the gentleman with the truck gets his money back. That's a no brainer and the right thing for the dealership to do. And if Eric ever gets tired of getting his hands dirty, his next career should be training auto mechanics on the right way to fix a vehicle.
He could really make a great workforce with his knowledge if he taught others at a tech school, hell I twisted wrenches over 25 years and I always learn something from him! I'm from the generation when electronic ignition and fuel injection were working their way on the scene.
Eric, if you don't win Mechanic of the Year, I'll be shocked. Wish there were more HONEST technicians like you !! You deserve all of the Kudos that you receive on this one !! Honest, dependable, ethically moral...that is YOU, my friend !! I wish you Nothing but the BEST down the road...you, sir, are my Hero !!
Most mechanics are in fact hidden salesmen of carparts... and only a few really look into the problem and analysis the electrical issue, but brrrr electrical issues that is way up to difficult for many mechanics as it is not a 'mechanical' issue, dhow so they try to sell you some so called broken parts which aren't broken in the first place. Great evidance that the fancier the workshop, the crappier the service might be, all over the world, not only in US, same problem also in EU.
As a 50+ yr tech, I give you an A+. But see serious design mistakes in this truck..... GM would be wise to put you into their tech trailing dept... IN CHARGE....!
I've seen more problems caused by poor/ bad grounds than I can shake a stick at. This Mechanic's using voltage drop to diagnose the problem is pure genius but then again it makes perfect sense. Kudos to you sir!
As Eric implied, what kind of tech believes that all those components fail at the same time. Are you kidding me! No wonder the owner wanted a second opinion. He certainly picked the right guy to get that opinion from.
This video reinforced two valuable lessons for me: 1. Always check the ground side voltage and 2. Never underestimate corrosion Thank you for contributing to a better world man, it's appreciated!!
Considering the amount of corrosion we see on every vehicle that Eric works on, bad grounds should always be the first thing to look at for ANY electrical problem.
I'm dumbfounded the dealership would even dare to charge restocking fees when they didn't get approval for the parts cannon in the first place. I really hope the customer show's your video to the service manager and make him come to his senses.
I said the same thing. He never gave them the ok to make the repair so they shouldn't have pulled or ordered the parts so how is there a restocking fee? This seems like a very shady stealership. I can only imagine how many ppl they screwed doing this job, this guy was smart enough to know something was right so they found other stuff to charge him and screw him. Ford charges a flat rate of either $129 or $159 for diag, so whether its 10mins or 5 hrs its the same diag fee. This dealership charged him to diag every single component in the complaint even though it was all related and they were clearly wrong. This guy needs to get coorperate and the media involved the get his money back and this shady stealership red flagged
Kindness is a weakness to the indecent but virtuous to the decent. You and Mrs O are among our most decent. I watch pretty much all mechanics content even the bad ones. I always come back to S.M.A and restart and binge watch his content. Only vary few mechanics content is this good. Bravo sir. I might have left numerous comments on your older videos but each time I watch I like to comment. I have watched your family grow up in the years gone by. You are a lucky man and so is Mrs O. Great roll models and parents.
I had (for a very short time) a 2020 Silverado (purchased new) that had the "same" power steering and trailer brake problem in the winter of 2020. I live in Northeast Ohio, so salt on the roads is very common here also. Had the truck to dealer (only 7000ish miles) under warranty 4 times for the same problem. The replaced the steering rack, module and TB module twice. After the 4th trip failed, I got them to buy the truck back at full original price. Based on what we are seeing in this diagnosis.... it could easily have been the same issue..... and I know of several other people locally that have similar issues ......
Stuff does happen. But 2 replacement racks? That's 3 racks total. A company with their heads not up their butts would be checking the pulled parts after the fact to see if they were within specs. If they were (and probably were) it ain't those parts. One of the uses of a VIN # is to track issues.
One of your finest videos yet, Eric. Don’t ever discount your skills. You’re one of the best at your craft and the proof is all on video. Well done with solving this riddle.
Once again, Eric O reaches into his toolbox and pulls out the magic wrench. Again, living proof that a great mechanic is worth their weight in diamonds.
I worked for a GM dealer for 11 years and most of my electrical issues with new body style vehicles have been ground related. I also come from the rust belt of Wisconsin so the IGS is not new. Great job doing complete and accurate diagnosis. You have the best RUclips channel for automotive diagnosis that I have been able to find! Keep up the good work and I love that it is a family business.
The dealer is supposed to be the expert and the consumer can't be asked to pay for work without (proper) results. Pay back the entire receipt and as a courtesy, pay Erics bill as well. If they refuse, take them to small claims, that will cost them much more money and they will lose.
Years ago we used to have cars with a console shifter towed in stuck in park or some other setting which turned out to be ground resistance and the starter grounding via the shift cable to the transmission getting hot and melting the cable liner/housing and then sticking to the cable when it cools off, also in other experiences grounding via the transmission cooling lines to the radiator would melt the solder at the radiator, same solution, new ground or simply attach the ones left off when doing valve cover gaskets on some cases as well.. This reminds me of the old days of doing this stuff, worked down on the island in a good shop that is still open and fixing what everyone else can't seem to do, kind of a last stop buck stops here place like your place is... Your town is lucky to have you, obviously upstate NY by the looks of the bottom of that vehicle...
Great diagnosis Eric, as always. As a teacher of Automotive Apprentices for the past 35 years, when teaching electrical diagnosis, I can not overstate the importance of checking Powers and Grounds. Particularly when three different modules start misbehaving at the same time. It's frustrating to know, for many shops, the Parts Cannon is the default diagnostic tool.
I recall my apprenticeship here in Canada. In third year we tackled electrical. I dare say half of the class couldn't grasp why charging systems only neede a voltage regulator once alternators. They also could not understand voltage drop, or why you coud only test for it when there was actually current running through the conducter. It goes to show, not everyone is cut out to be a tech, particularily an electrical tech.
@@sidvis7235 Consider the great obstacle, language itself. Is it signal, is it votage or is it current? Up to certain resistance value, you have full voltage transfer, less than you have too much current. Beyond certain value you have less voltage, i.e. voltage drop.... and that is just small potato stuff as some might say.
I am with you on that. Being a licensed electrician for 46 years dealing with bad connections causes problems in places you wouldn't believe. Modern electronics magnifies the problem 10 fold.
Thank you the first thing I thought was make sure you have good connections. Always, I live Chicagoland area and sale and ground straps are enemies so quick time saver KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) and then keep on keepin' on!!!!!
Hi Eric, I'm a retired communications engineer and from my experience over the past 40 years, I find the lack of 'critical thinking' in most technical fields is commonplace these days. The training of old included fault diagnosis and repair down to component level but that isn't possible with modern electronics and it just isn't cost effective... as a consequence, higher level diagnostic skills have suffered a significant drop over the decades. Dealers and big repairers aren't investing in high quality training of their staff and only appear interested in making a buck as quickly as possible. The customer ends up paying for the poor guesswork and a dumbing down of our young mechanics, they really need to invest in people of your caliber and train their staff..... a young apprentice under your care would out shine any of the dealers staff.
Like the old RCA XL100 TV's. We'd get one with a fault, isolate to the card, replace the card, and out the door! Then we'd troubleshoot the card, fix it, and have it ready for the next one that comes in with the same problem. Life was good! Now, it's go buy a new TV cause we can't fix it!
Part of the issue is the good mechanics don't make flag hours cuz we don't upsell things that arent needed and we get written up all the time. OR Because of flag hours under warranty at the stealership we don't make money. A combination of both or we are way overworked most dealerships expect you to work 12 hours a day with an hour lunch 6 days a week because we aren't paid a salary or hourly. My mornings started at around 7am and didn't end till the service department closed. OR I don't know what the rate is today at the dealership I worked at but it was around 160 hr labor when I was there, these were LUXURY cars I worked on. and we got paid maybe 15 a flag hour if we were lucky and we had to do the stupid work like change oil if one came in we did not have someone else changing the oil so it was drop everything and get the oil change done. Flag hours should be outlawed. Plus at the smaller dealerships I worked at oh yeah we got a little more per hour but wasn't worth it cuz they would haggle over the price so basically they didn't care if they were taking money out of our pockets to appease a cheapskate since the shops made money on up charging on the parts but not the labor. SURE WE'LL eat that 2 hours of diag the guy put in probing out your entire electrical system not to sell you the wrong parts. 2 hours of my pay were gone. That's why there are few mechanics left that are honest and good. We get treated like shit plain and simple or we get harassed out of the business by not selling you things you don't need. A few of us get lucky and can afford to open a shop where we do right by our customers and stay in business.
@@CrazyCat229 This is appalling. When a dealership waives a two hour diagnosis fee it means the mechanic gets paid nothing for those two hours. Then the dealership charges a large repair charge with lucrative parts sales. The number of mechanics leaving must be huge!
@@michaelzona9880 the whole industry has gotten pretty toxic and I laugh at the trade school ads saying 100k shortage no more like all the good mechanics quit so we gotta replace them. Like I said that huge repair bill at a stealership the mechanic might get 22 to 25 a flag hour these days and it took most of the good tech quitting to get up to that. When I was active a team lead mech might get 21 a flag hour plus he had to meet tight hour requirements that the techs under him had to get in weekly hours to get any kind of bonus… and the whole mentor system is a joke for the young guys.
As an HVAC technician i am seeing similar issues with the lack of diagnostic skills. Modern furnaces and some of the higher end equipment all have diagnostic codes, but that just points you in the right direction. Still have to know where to go and how to repair.
I learned when I was very young that most electrical problems on vehicles are caused by bad grounds. Looks like that still applies. It's got to apply in spades where vehicles rust like they do in NY State.
Eric slays when it comes to troubleshooting. A true mechanic and I use your motto of "test don't guess" daily. Dealership absolutely owes that guy a refund and apology. In that order.
Done Proper. Yes indeed they owe him his money back. I doubt he will get it though cause the name of the game is money at any cost. It is a good lesson learned and he got him a customer for life and free advertising to boot. Well done.
I love how you talk with your wife and daughter! ❤ I’m a retired guy who was in the automotive industry for 20+ years and I enjoy the content and appreciate the way you talk with people! I hope y’all have a wonderful day and 2023 brings you happiness!
I've been a technician at a gm dealership in Wisconsin since 2004, I've sure ran into a lot of corroded wires especially with trailer brake systems. I've never ran into corroded ground strap...good to know. You're a great tech and I like watching your videos
Subaru's eat the braided cables for breakfast and then cause sensor codes for cams and such that are really because the oil control solenoids do not have enough ground to function properly. Voltage drop your harnesses people!
It is kind of sad that GM (and others) has not figured out that it needs to pay more attention to electrical power and gnd given that cars are now rolling computers.
I bought a 2000 crown vic at auction with the door code bar on the outside & did not get the code. I went to ford & they wanted $75 plus tax to retreve the code, since i only payed $300 for it i said forget, turns out the code is stamped on the left trunk hinge. Dealers are bandits
As a Chevy tech that primary does electrical it's awesome to see you work on something I'm deeply familiar with. I wish this video was part of training for all new techs. As always your process was spot on. Whoever diagnosed this clearly missed the basics. Low voltage codes and multiple problems is always a red flag go check your basics and try to find the pattern. Keep up thr excellent work!
Amen and good comment. As an Engineer, I would further recommend that GM Engineering Dept. be in the loop on this specific design failure that can be easily remedied ... "Braided Cables" CAN be coated during the manufacturing process !!! This is the kind of stuff that makes me scratch my head. And as Eric rightly stated ... "just wait until the Rust Belt meets EV's" !!!
Gm quality is shit. Has been for a decade. This is why many people are not buying them. I'm sick of working on this absolute garbage. Nothing but stupid ass problems because stupid ass people coming up with stupid ass designs.
@@tomkurtzhals7369 I'm actually looking for a truck now in the 2010 to 18 age, it don't matter what make it is they are all crap when you start googling potential problems to look for. My 99 7.3 turbo superduty with 600,000 KMS on might get the minor rot fixed up on the body and be repainted yet. It's totally paid for, reliable ,mechanically right and I don't see the point in spending huge money on 10 to 18 years newer, That are in worse condition. With half the k's on it and 15 times the hassle being expensive for parts. Then needs some shop life support I can't provide myself like I do with the 99 and will be regularly unreliable to boot.
I wonder how the GM dealer-principal feels watching this video and thinking, “holy crap everybody in the Avoca region is watching how my business tried to screw the truck owner out of $4000” - OR - “I have the worst mechanics in New York and everyone knows it now.”
Yah- -a good shop will ensure the parts they're replacing are out of order before firing the parts canon of new parts. Seems to me that everyone at the dealership gets a piece of the action on any work done. They may have lost the battle with this guy but they'll try and win the war with other people that will go ahead and pay the $4, 000.00.
I was told this years ago. The auto makers do not care about customer service or if they scare away a customer with bad service. There are only so many auto makers and everyone needs a car. The way they seen it is if they lose a customer another one will come along to replace them.
Once I was charged over $900.00 to correct an overheating problem. Drove the vehicle 1/2 mile after the problem was "fixed" at the GM Stealership and it overheated. Paid a local radiator shop to boil out the radiator for $50.00 and it completely cured the overheating problem. Eventually got the Stealership to refund some of the money. Never went back to them and never will. This was before the internet, now I would just Google the problem and hopefully there would a SMA video on the issue. Thanks Eric O and the lovely Mrs. O. Because we all know behind every good man there stands a great woman.
Probably caused by the leak sealant that GM uses to address the engine coolant seepage issues caused by Dexcool spec coolant. The leak sealant eventually gels up and plugs off coolant passages thereby contributing to overheating.
Once again, a clear drift in repair philosophy. Today it’s mainly a replace parts and pray attitude to repair. The days of actual diagnosing a problem to its roots isn’t an approach much in practice, especially at dealerships. Thank you for your efforts of keeping that working methodology alive. I have to believe your customers as well as we who watch appreciate you. Keep up the great work!
There are mechanics and then there are artisanal mechanics. Guys like Eric are becoming harder and harder to find. He is truly an artist. Dealer just plugs in a scan tool and load and shoots the parts cannon to fix problems that would not be fixed even with all the new parts. great job and even better that your lovely assistants obviously enjoy helping the old man out. Truly a family business. I am so glad I found this channel......
@@boblister665 I suspect this is one of the reasons why the capable mechanics are harder to find. Some just don't have the brain power to work in the "modern wizardry" department. Many look at electrical problems like they're some sort of demon possession cases and would rather call an exorcist. He, he ... the way some electrical issues manifest really make it look like paranormal activity.
@@johnnyblue4799 idk, personally If it's acting really funky, it's a dead giveaway of electrical/voltage issue and not the part itself. The problem lies in finding the exact cause. Idk, could be cause I've started working on alot of odd electrical issues lately at work.
I have no words. Well, words that I have aren't permitted. However, this is one of the best SMA vids I have seen, and I never miss one. Very entertaining and most informative. Excellent diagnosis, Eric. Thank you.
As a former mechanic and now mechanical engineer you impress the hell out of me. It is good to see that there are still skilled mechanics that are honorable in their trade. Love watching your program keep it up. Once again impressive from an old mechanic in the great state of Texas.
"former mechanic" professionally or personally as far as i remember once a mechanic always a mechanic! lol at least that what my grandpa always said when i was little
I was trained to troubleshoot electrical with the first rule that DC power flows negative (supply) to positive (return). That's why when battery negative is disconnected the system can be worked on. If a component doesn't have supply (ground) it could get it from a different component thus affecting different systems. Most people are concerned with a big positive cable and view the negative as an afterthought if at all. Great content, thank you for your time and willingness to share your knowledge.
He needs to call GM customer service and open a case. He should be adamant about getting refunded for the dealers incorrect diagnosis. I highly doubt he will get anywhere with the Service Director but I would at least try that route first. Just remember to keep your cool and don’t fall for their first offer. Play the long game! Oh and I was a GM service director and warranty administrator for 25 years and know the game. Honestly I would have made a good will repair because of the mileage. Good luck.
If the dealer doesn't resolve the issue in the customer's favor then that would be the next step. Unfortunately if the Truck's owner doesn't have a sibling or in-law that's a lawyer (and will do the work gratis) it's probably going to cost more than what the dealer took him for to pay a lawyer. If the legal route is all that is left a diy small claims suit is probably the best bet.
@@willemstreutgers1154 It is quite obviously this dealer did not want to help this customer. GM dealers have the ability to goodwill a repair and GM encourages it. Opening a customer service case gives the customer a mediator who will document and advise.
Completely not a mechanic; but a neurologist. Watched the whole thing and loved every minute. The analogy to medicine has been made before, but the thought process and humility going through it is the same. Also the thrill of the chase. You would be a great medical diagnostician, but I'm thankful you are out there filling the ranks of competent mechanics.
I saw a news story about a mechanic went back to college to advance his business acumen, and expand his business at his shop. He had a science course requirement, for which he took biology. He ended up liking biology and took more classes on the subject. Eventually he went to medical school and became a doctor. Apparently the logical deduction process from his former career was a parallel to his new one.
Have to add my story to this. Worked with a doctor many moons ago who, I found out along the way, was a construction engineer with a good career going. I asked him what lead him into medicine. His answer? One of his employees got hurt on the job, so he took him to the local hospital. Long story short, he said "if that idiot could make it through medical school, I darn sure could." And he did. I'll finish by saying he was one of the best doctors I've ever worked with.
@@brianburns7211 I have a high level maintenance millwright with high diagnostic skill like Mr. O. Since becoming a kidney transplant I have used my skills to help maintain my health and challenge my doctors at times. Even more so after writing a research paper about how to best take my medications. I don't like to change parts unless they are bad.
You are right about the similarity between bad mechanics and bad doctors. I had a problem that when I drank beer I would get swelling in my navel area and become ill. Went to my doctor and he told me to "stop drinking". That was his solution. So I was condemned for life not to drink beer again. I went to a 2nd doctor for a 2nd opinion and right off the bat he says, "You must have H Polaris". Apparently it's a small bubble or bacteria located in my navel area that gets agitated with beer. He gave me a diet to follow for 30 days and some pills to take for 60 days and I was cured for life.
Ex electrical engineer here: Really enjoyed the analytical approach and the good understanding of basic electricity type stuff. I wasn't very surprised that a dealer mechanic would not diagnose this problem accurately: 1. I don't trust dealers in general. The goal of dealers is to sell you stuff you don't need and make a lot of money on repairs. 2. I am skeptical of any mechanic on electrical issues. IMO the best way to get affordable, reliable car repairs is to find a good independent mechanic and stick with them. After a while they trust you and you trust them. Kumbaya
As a mechanic who specialises in electrical and electronic diagnosis and repairs, I don't trust electrical imagineers to design a product that is fit for purpose, the ground strap on this vehicle is a huge case in point.
The goal of any shop is to sell what you need (dealership or not), and to make money while doing so. I own an independent shop after working at dealership for ten years. No car I ever worked on was sold a repair it didn’t need and I paid for my own misdiagnoses. Some dealerships are not run with a culture of theft and dishonesty, although it seems they’re getting fewer and further between. It mostly comes down to the individual and their scruples (or lack thereof). All that said, I’ve seen independent shops rob people blind out of both dishonesty and incompetence - it’s not exclusive to dealers.
If the truck is still under warranty. Why is the owner paying anything to the dealership? Eric O is one of the best mechanics I’ve ever watched. He’s super educated and can explain in a way that most can understand. Plus his experience is worth a ton of money by just being able to solve problems quickly.
If it wasn't inevitable it would be funny. Wait until the grid goes down because of high demand and people can't charge their cars, their phones and their MSNBC won't appear on the TV. They will be BEGGING for more coal power... and gas cars.
@@aday1637 A level One charger only draws about 12 amps on a 120v circuit. Electric ovens typically pull about 30- 50 amps on a 240v circuit. EV owners typically charge overnight when demand is lowest and depending on where you live electricity is cheaper.
@@KevinWindsor1971 the battery for the car is 22 thousand I’d be interested to see how stores will get food with no tractor trailers allowed in California or New York trains either
I bought a Porsche 911 $8000 under market value several years ago due to a bunch of electrical issues. Turned out to be a bad ground to the body. Took about a half hour to diagnose an $0 to repair. Only negative side effect was I had to replace the alternator since the bad ground damaged the internal voltage regulator.
Damn This dude is just smart...he wouldve been great at anything he pursued, Imagine him as a doctor tracking down what rare disease you have based on your symptoms lol he's the Dr House of mechanics without the drug problem, narcissism and limp lol
God bless you Eric!!! You don’t how relieved and happy your customers and viewers are for you!! Wouldn’t be surprised if the customer was crying when you told him the good news! I probably would’ve of been!! Thank you for what you do and who you are.
Using the Brave browser and "Return RUclips Dislike" extension, I can see that 26 people (so far) have disliked this video. Wonder if all of those who disliked this video work at this dealership? Or maybe they're "mechanics" who rip people off everyday and videos like this expose them. Another great video, Eric!
some people just click dislike because A) they just like to be negative about everything, or B) they don't understand it and think they are disliking that the dealership tried to screw the car owner.
This is a wonderful example of why you are in my estimation one of the best mechanics I've ever seen you have the ability to analyze and diagnose problems like no other guy on RUclips. It would not surprise me if the dealer refused to reimburse this guy for their mechanics lack of ability to properly diagnose the problem.
@T.J. Kong I've seen him a few times. Ivan spends way too much time trying to figure out why a broken electrical part is doing what it does. I'm and electronics guy, he not doing component level troubleshooting. It's broken, replace it and move on.
Im an automotive wrencher who went to school for electronics and your diagnosis was great!! It never ceases to amaze me the amount of stuff that can get thrown off by a bad ground and how much they’re overlooked. Especially in places with road salt and corrosion issues. Like they say “the meter never lies.” The dealer would of replaced all those modules and still had the same problems. Love the video and the message at the end. Very inspiring!!
I serviced hospital radiology equipment for 47 years. High tech equipment that has multiple problems mostly fails in a low tech way. Connections, broken wires or strands of wires broken or making a resistive connection, intermittent poor connections like a potentiometer or switch, corrosion, bad solder or crimp connections, wires with degraded insulation, connections with mildew that need to be cleaned. Never forget the grounds and power connections.
Good logical steps no false paths at all. Unfortunately there are few in the game who have your skills, if a workshop has one they are blessed, they put them on the difficult jobs and they earn low bonus and they leave, if they have two, they either buddy up or scratch each others eyes out. It takes a good understanding of electrical systems, voltage, current, resistance and what they do in a vehicle to use some simple tests (line drop test in this case) to find the fault. Impressive.
I am a retired vehicle electrician and electronics engineer- at the beginning of the video I would have laid my bottom dollar on a bad ground. I have learned over may years of experience that if there is more than one unassociated fault it more than likely a grounding issue. GM are not the only mark with this issue. Just yesterday a close friend of mine with an Audi Q7 could not get his car to start. The indications were that when he turned the key all that happened as a constant clicking. He assumed bad battery so he purchased one. Still the same fault!! He called me and I suggested taking a jumper cable from the under bonnet (hood) ground charge terminal and to clip it to the engine. Problem solved _ engine started. The problem was isolated to the chassis to engine ground strap. Never take your vehicle to a dealer unless the vehicle is under warranty- most guys here are learning their trade. I have never had a dealer diagnose a fault correctly. Great video and love your fault finding process. Best wishes from the UK.
I have seen enough of your videos that I guessed this was a bad ground, about one minute in. Always a good learning experience watching your videos Eric. Also, you got a good fam, daughter and wife helping with extra hands while diagnosing. Have a good weekend!
When he said power side or ground side, I was yelling at the screen.... Ground, ground, ground... Lol. Oh and I don't even work on cars. Just a dedicated follower of Eric O!
I just work on family and friends cars now, but funnily enough, Her Ladyship is NEVER wrong for an issue with her car. It is truly frightening. I get handed the keys `there is a funny noise from the front'. I spend for ever underneath it. She take me for a drive and exasperatedly yells:`Can't you hear that ? '.Walks off muttering. Eventually I find the bearing or whatever. It is really really scary
The dead giveaway is when several systems are having problems simultaneously. What are the odds all of those modules and the rack are bad as opposed to a problem with the overall circuit? Occam's Razor is where every diagnosis should start.
For most of my adult life I did component-level electronics troubleshooting. I am here to say: Your logic and thought processes are flawless, keep up the good work!
When you shined your light down there and it was so green, ya knew. A cheap stap on a truck that cost a fortune. Most dealers are lucky if they have one master mechanic. Dude you are freakin awesome.
This was an amazing example of diagnostic work and more importantly of family with your daughter helping out. My wife is still the best brake bleeding assistant I ever had, 40 years and running
I have been diagnosing equipment of all types for close to 30 years; I think I am a competent troubleshooter. But Eric is a master at it; the logic and direction working with the "known values" in trouble shooting keep him from chasing "Ghosts" and sticks to the root issue. Well done sir!
There are more hack technicians at independent shops than there are at dealerships. It's just like every other industry. You have people that are good at what they do, honest, and take pride in their work. And you have hacks that don't. I've been a dealership tech for 25 years and there's no complaints from my customers.
Not to get down on people that work on cars but if they understood basic electricity they would have a much better understanding of what Eric is showing here. Electrical is just one of the vital systems needed to have a good running vehicle. I have been an electronics technician since 1969 and love classic cars. So I do have a shoe up on most people.
@@bruces2665 your lying if you think I believe you work at a shop for 25 years and have never seen a come back lol anyone that works on cars and basically says they and there crew get it right the first time every time is lying.
Awesome troubleshooting, sir! I wish every mechanic would follow your customer service attitude. You exposed GM technicians' lousy and costly service performance. GM needs to, NOT SHOULD refund the customer's money with a written apology. Again, you're awesome! More highly commendable is your helper who can probably outperform those technicians at GM. Great job, young lady.
Dude, I wish there were more mechanics like you around. It’s hard to just go around to different ones that’ll stay true through and through every time. I hate dealing with dealerships because they’ve told me crap before and wasted my time. I even caught them lying about replacing parts and it’s not just one, it’s been several. Great video and that awesome that you did your magic and helped the guy out. And a good thing the dealer helped the guy out with a refund. Probably because they really didn’t do squat anyways.
The root problem is it takes a very intelligent person to diagnose the way Eric O does. People like that have many different careers to choose from and employers are willing to throw money at them. You'll notice Eric and his wife run their own business. You will not find people like Eric working at a shop with techs less intelligent than himself.
@@donaldlee6760 You are absolutely correct. What the dealerships and people in general fail to realize is that this type or work just doesn't pay well anymore, Owners are greedy and don't want to pay for people who are truly skilled in this area. He made this look simple because he is an experienced and good tech. It is so much harder to teach and to get techs who truly understand the concepts and what is necessary to accurately diagnose. I myself am a GM master/ASE master tech who left after 23 years because even though I was continuing to produce the quality and amount of work I always had. My wages kept decreasing and not keeping up with the times. There is actually a nationwide significant shortage of skilled technicians and as long as dealerships and manufacturers keep being greedy it will only continue to get much worse. This guy is a good tech to have caught that so quickly a lot of guys would be lost from the get go. As a lead master tech in a dealership being the guy who got these kinds of problems no one else could fix regularly I can tell you there are not a lot of guys in the industry that are as capable as they should be. I would also like to add, that this isn't a dealership problem it is an industry problem and occurs significantly more among independent shops, A lot of independent shops would never even tough this truck. So Kudos to you sir. This is the kind of guy you want to bring your business to. Support him because with all of the expenses necessary to run even an independent shop these days guys like him need your business and support so it doesn't just end up dealerships left around.
@JBJHonez I'd say it's more probable that the dealership (and GM Corporate) were so accommodating and gave the man his money back because Eric O's video has 1.8 Million views and they knew if they didn't make it right they would receive a shit load of massively bad PR and likely lose a lot more than just $1000.
I believe that every town has one. The problem is that most people take them for granted and don't give them the recognition they deserve. There's one in South Florida that I follow regularly, and I think that Eric does, too. In MY town, it's my son-in-law. Fully trained and certified, he tired of the "dealership mentality" of numbers over service and was able to become independent. Over the past 15 years he has been able to build a very profitable business which is based on the most important asset of all...INTEGRITY. That alone will cause customers to drive 50 miles out of their way for your service. Money can't buy that kind of trust.
I realize this is "just another day at work" for you but you've cleared reached a level of understanding in your work that makes what you do seem like absolute magic to the layperson. Well done, I'm sure your customer is very grateful.
Truly depressing that a 2019 had such a failure(I know salt belt and all). But even more depressing that the dealership failed the very basic electrical diagnostic step powers and grounds. You can't call any part bad ceiling fan to TCU without first checking power and ground. He deserves a full refund and an apology.
I'm very disappointed with the age/mileage of this failure. A complete cable failure in under 50k miles. I'm in Minnesota, no stranger to road salt, but I've never seen such corrosion damage in 3 years/50k miles. I wonder if the owner hand washes his vehicle and has never gotten an underbody wash so the salt just sat in the braided cable?
This also a common failure with starters that have the same braided ground wire. Rich at Ford Boss Me coats the braided cables on the replacement units with liquid electrical tape, something these exposed braided ground wires apparently need in the rust belt.
@@TheOnespeedbiker About a month ago at a rest stop in PA in I-78 just across the bridge over the Delaware River a woman in a 9-10 year old Nissan large SUV with 100K on it who had just driven about 100 miles from Long Island wouldn't start with a jump start. I noticed the ground cable near the battery had damaged covering and some corrosion. I though it might be the starter was bad but I wonder if it too had a bad ground strap. LI has a lot of potential salt issues as near the ocean and heavy salt use in the winter. It had to be towed as unfixable there.
I was a dealer tech and he is right the don't pay us shit to diagnosis anything. We get paid to replace parts. Sometimes we can get additional time called mechanic time, but u can't push it.
I'm not surprised, I used to go to the dealership for all my work but the changing the rad hoses was the last straw for me. Constant leaking, 2 sets of hoses and $1000. When my 14 year old radiator on my 2007 finally started to leak 2 years after the hose work, I went to my down the street mechanic. He replaced it all for me rad and hoses for something like $800 and nothing leaked.
I'll be dipped. I never had a problem like that when I had mechanical power steering. I guess that's what you get when you try to electrify everything.
Just used this video from a year ago (I commented on a year ago) to repair a co-workers truck that he was quoted over $4000 to repair at the dealer. Thanks for sharing all of your knowledge.
I'm a domestic electrician and we can't rely on plug in laptop diagnostic equipment other than multimeters.. but rely on good old decades of experience where to look for certain pointers for our faults. This guy worked thru eliminating variables to pinpoint the exact fault and yip...emmensly satisfying when you smash the fault thru good out detective work.
Troubleshooting complex systems is an art for sure. I did electronic repair for 40+ years, and I can tell you nothing makes you feel like you're in the wrong business faster than troubleshooting a strange problem for 30 minutes, and then finding out the thing isn't even plugged in. Nice Job! Seems like spraying the ground straps with Fluidfilm once a year would be a good thing for us all.
LOL that happened to me early in my career building satellites. The breadboard unit we were testing was not doing anything, took us an hour before we checked to see if it was plugged in. Now that is the first thing I check. Live and learn.
The dealership charged a parts return fee which is probably equal to the markup, and a diagnostic fee for services not rendered, as the diagnosis was not completed. This meets the definition of fraud. Customer relied on the dealership, and was charged money for nothing. Civil case should be filed if the dealer doesn't refund!
My dad, a life long (40+ years) mechanic, taught me to check the ground first. His advice has proven well, my entire life. Excelkent work SMA... showing the diagnosis steps.
Thanks to your skill and honesty, the dealer and GM did the right thing. Before my 38 year career in Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, R&D, Machine Shops and industrial plant management I spent 15 years as a mechanic with 10 yrs as a certified master technician at 3 Chevy dealerships including positions as shop forman and service manager, plus 2 yrs at UPS as a tractor-trailer mechanic so I have seen it all. We had 11 Mechanics at Massaro Chevrolet in Niagara Falls, New York and only three of us were competent at electronic and electrical diagnosis and troubleshooting back in the '70s, when many mechanics were just parts changers. While I am absolutely certain that the competency ratio had to have vastly improved since then, due to the proliferation of computer controls, some mechanics will still be poor diagnosticians and will mostly just replace parts, as this customer experienced. Thankfully there are a few extraordinary experts like you who are willing to share their knowledge with those of us who still repair our own vehicles and help our friends and families. Thank you Eric, for doing all this with grace, humility and kindness ! Sincerely, Dan Cook
Absolutely an insulated cable is better. Anyone who says otherwise doesn’t live in the salt belt. Great job Eric! Nice to see you working with your family. I hope the customer goes back to the dealer to get a refund.
@mightywatcher Or just lazy. As an auto tech, I would not let most of the guys I have worked with change my wiper blades, let alone do any real work on my vehicle.
@mightywatcher probably a combination, rookies, lack of help from the experienced guys, lack of pay/screwed on flat rate, pressured to produce, or just a poor attitude lol. They may also be pressured to sell parts!
You know how much insulations costs? You may not be old enough to remember the Flintstones cartoon series. Fred gets a job as a stuntman. Director says something like "Fred, those fake rocks will fall on you. Make believe you are hurt". The person responsible for the rocks says "Fake rocks? You know how much fake rocks cost?" Director says "Ok, we will use real ones".
****FOLLOW UP**** GM cooperate and the dealer contacted the owner of the vehicle and made restitution by offering a full refund of close to $1000. Customer is happy and all is well in the world once again 😁
I discovered your videos a few years ago and came away impressed with your superior diagnostics knowledge. Time passed and rediscovered SMA again. Not a thing has changed. The last video I viewed was about bent pins in an ecm leading to almost a wild goose chase but deductive reasoning prevailed to undo mistakes from another repair shop. This video saved the owner a thousand dollar headache of GM firing the parts canon when your skills pointed to electrical problems; a ground issue. As shown, more electrical and electronic additions can create new and unusual problems. It would be miraculous if repair shops view your videos to learn about diagnosing problems. This presumes each person has basic education in mechanics, electricity, electronics, EFI systems, abs, etc and continues learning.
GM should hire you to train thier techs
Good good. Hopefully they issue a bulletin on this, to save others without access to SMA the pain of a $5000 bill for a $100 fix.
Glad to hear GM did what they should have . And to you my friend I think GM should send you that money LOL Fat chance of that though . Another one in the books for you , You are very knowledgable .
" Follow up "Glad to see the GM and the dealer made some restitution. Do you think was a fault of flowchart diagnostics ? I have had this same problem with GM vans in the past. Test light on battery ground and tip to frame rail, lights on ! The codes can send you down the rabbit hole fast.
Morning All. I tried to add this comment earlier, but I don’t think it went through. I am the truck owner and I spoke with the service manager this morning to nicely let him know how badly they screwed this diagnosis up. He promised a call back today to let me know how they will rectify this. This experience has been an absolute nightmare with them. I’ve been without use of my truck for almost 3 weeks. Eric O had it for a matter of hours and had me heading home with it. I’ll let you all know how it turns out. If the dealership does not give me a full refund I’m ready to go to the media.
I would love to hear the outcome of this situation and I hope Eric will either pin it or do a short follow up video to let us know.
I hope the dealership does right and issue a full refund! Eric is a great diagnotician.
Glad you went back to the dealer in a mature fashion. No point blowing up and making a stink, however, media is a GOOD choice. They HATE getting drug through the coals by media. In this case you and Eric are the clear winners.
Buddy we are behind you on this. I would show the dealer these comments to hopefully embarrass them and if that does not work, head straight to the nearest TV station or at least email them this video and have them make a story about this dealer. THAT would be what I would do and IF that did not work, I would find an attorney who needs some money and sue this dealership so that you and the attorney may own it.
The best of luck friend. I hope they do what's right.
Eric, I actually work at a GM truck assembly plant. I work right across from the job where that same ground strap is fastened down. I’ve always wondered how long they would handle the salt. Now I know the answer. Your diagnostic skills are 2nd to none. Wish I knew half of what you do.
I too work in a gm truck assembly plant so cool👍
@@jimo2627 Only assembly skills I have is in the kitchen making a sandwich. I never could get a job at a GM factory. I figured robots took all the jobs. Good knowing there are still jobs being done by human bad not being able to get one of them jobs.
Are those ground straps tinned (silver looking) to start with or are they straight copper? In the amatuer radio world we always use tinned ground straps outside.
@@RandyDBPFilms Does rhe tinning provide corrosion protection?
@@RandyDBPFilms Those are straight copper if they were tinned they would still be there, I live in Michigan and had a 2 gage ground strap fully tinned on my '69 Cutlass grocery getter for 20 years before I sold it I inspected the electrical connections it was in brand new condition, this ground strap went from the battery to the engine then to the frame.
So I checked the grounds on my GM after this, the ground strap was loose and corroded, cleaned them up and no more codes! Makes so much sense! Thanks your the Best
I'm sure Dr. O. would appreciate a small donation to his Patreon acc't for helping you.
Back story:
This vehicle was at the local dealer to address a customer complaint of no power steering, ESC and service trailer brake light coming on. They made the call and told the customer that he needed a new rack and pinion, a trailer brake control module and a new transmission control module! That is a $4000 repair! The customer didn't think this was right (even though he is not a mechanic) Then they charged him over $900 for diagnosis and "restocking fees" because he wanted a second opinion. Good news is I fixed it for wayyyyyyyy less and only $20 in parts 😉 I hope with some evidence he is able to get some of his money back.
Thank you for teaching us this one!
You rock Eric O
Why was it not covered under warranty?
@@andrewkennedy9704 no idea, I didn't ask. Maybe out on mileage?
They "shotgunned" it...throwing a bunch of modules at it never works. There'll be a bad connection living up here in the land of ice and snow I'd bet
Quote of the day: "Wait til everybody starts driving their electric cars. This should be a real show in New York." Excellent diagnosis Eric!
🤣🤣🤣
Eric is going to be a very, very wealthy man!
Wait til they learn that if you like heat in the winter, you aren't going to get anywhere near 300 miles per charge 🤣
I have been saying the same thing thing!!! All these electrical gremlins will kill the average family
@@brockwagner939 Yeah, rear defogger is on, the blower is on high, the wipers are going, both heated seats warming people's buns and the average driver is not going to understand the correlation.
Eric, I'm 70. As a rule of thumb, When ever I see multiple failures in an electrical system, I always look at GROUND connections FIRST.
When I was in my 20's and working at an Automotive electrical shop, I chased my tail over a car with ELECTRICAL gremlins running through it for half a day. Then the shop owner came out and LAUGHED at me and said to replace the ground strap that ran between the engine and frame at the firewall. I looked at it and said it was BRAND NEW. He laughed even harder, and said REPLACE IT ! Sure enough, my gremlin was found... Somebody Installed a junk cable and ran a ground for a CB radio install (Remember them ?) from the same ground point.
Moral of the story: Ignore how good it looks. CHECK IT ANYWAY !!! And ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS look for modifications from stock.
45 years later, I still remember that man, and his laugh...
I've diagnosed electrical problems for 40 years. I learned ages ago that if you have more than one problem look for the commonality. Rarely do things fail more than one at a time on their own. Good work on this one. I liked seeing the voltage drop testing. Auto technicians are smart people, always learning, and learning from others' mistakes is a great shortcut to investing one's own time in every lesson.
That is absolutely true. It just sucks when they do happen to fail at similar times.
I had to thumbs up your comment just because you used the word commonality... Well done, sir...
@@steveo6631 Haha, thanks! Once and I while I say something cogent and coherent!
until you get a jeep in and 3 separate electrical issues, lifter tick and oil leak all started overnight 😂
They call it a common (ground or power) wire for a reason!
Sounds like the dealer gave him the good old autozone diagnosis then got pissed he wasn’t an idiot
I enjoyed the part where the owner decided to go to Eric for a second opinion. Now that's smart!
Yep. This sounds alot the video where the guy went to Advance for diag.
Knowing how dealerships operate, I wouldn't be surprised if they knew what the issue was all along and wanted to soak the guy for $4k in parts instead of a few bucks for a ground strap. Charge for all those modules, replace the strap without mentioning it, no one would be the wiser. Well, except this guy and Eric.
@@notsureigaf I don't think they are really that smart. Watching these videos one often hears accounts of taking a vehicle to a dealer, parts thrown at it, and still not fixed. Then they resort to real techs like Eric O. here, ScannerDanner, Pine Hollow Diagnostics, etc.
I believe when a dealer tech is recommending 4 grand worth of parts and labor, there needs to be a sit down with the service manager, the tech who diag, and a shop foreman. Tech needs to explain their diag plan and results and show why they believe all those parts could be faulty before allowing the adviser to call the customer with a quote. Either there was some electrical diagnostic ignorance going on or fraud.
Usually in situations like that the tech line should be involved in some capacity, so they aren't just firing the parts cannon randomly.
Honestly anyone worth their salt should default to 'primary power or grounding problem' when that many problems arise. A module failure is random enough, but 3? On a 3 year old car with lowish miles? Give me a fucking break.
@@dafirnz I agree! Unless it got smacked by lightning three bad modules in three different locations with voltage codes looming reeks of power or ground issues.
GM should be paying Eric for all of the free training he provides.
@@notsevenfeettall Another+ for lightning. And more than just 3 modules. Also seen where vehicles jump started, with the cables reversed, take out several modules. shit happens
@@dafirnz GM tech line is usually a waste of time. They authorize the parts cannon, and then "let us know what fixed it"
I am so impressed that there is still someone who will actually diagnose a problem instead of just swapping out parts. Keep up the good work!
From Eric's shop you can hear the parts cannons firing in the distance.
You and fordtechmakuloco both amaze me to no end with proper diagnosis.
I have to say that this was the one of the most entertaining videos ever made by SMA. I appreciate the way Eric approaches the problem and takes it step by step until problem discovered and repaired. This one deserves the Sherlock Holmes award for finding the ground problem amid all of the other issues that were being manifested in the scan tools and a testament for sticking with the facts and not getting distracted. As a retired engineer, I appreciate his step by step, follow the data approach to a successful conclusion. WELL DONE!
Shouldnt that be the standard? The more videos i watch from american repair shops the more i start to believe there is an underlying problem with the mechanics education. I dont want to sound arrogant or anything but basic diagnostics like this is something every car mechanic here in switzerland learns in their third year of apprenticeship (they have 4).
That's what mechanics used to do. It seems all these "certified" mechanics at the dealerships are no more than trained parts replacers to rack up huge bills. The thing is, had the dealership replaced all those modules the problems would have persisted and the bill would have kept climbing until the ground cable(s) were replaced. Worst of all is, the customer is rarely, if ever, made whole!
GM dealership should refund his diagnostic charge. Second opinions are the way to go it seems. We have problems with rodents mice and squirrel going after engine wires here in East Texas. The reason I keep a warranty with so many modules and sensors. Yep, the EV will be even more vulnerable to corrosion and fires it seems.
I appreciate the talent of engineers and their ability to come up with all kinds of things and make vehicles wonderfully technological and all the bells and whistles and things that light up but I think they got in too carried away putting all these modules computers and all these other electronic components that with one little thing going wrong the thing goes haywire you know you might want to justify your job but not at the expense of customers and if you got people on the other end is the support staff they ought to be able to fix the vehicles that you guys come up with have a great evening bye
@@dwb812 The problem is, nowadays as a mechanic you often have to replace complete modules. There isnt even the possibility to order small spare sparts anymore.
When i started as a mechanic 20 years ago you could order ever little shitty piece of sparepart, today the manufacturer only has the whole module or part to order.
SImple things like wishbone bushings or new sliding contacts for your alternator so you can actually repair it for a few $ instead of replacing the whole part.
Thats not something you should blame the machanic for but the manufacturer.
The dealership would have replaced all those parts, and when it didn't fix it, they would have found the real problem and charged for all the parts.
More likely they would tell the owner to buy a new truck and offer low leasing payments or a low down payment as an incentive.
I'm an un-certified mechanic...
This man here is a true diagnosis solving fellow. I would definitely have my vehicles looked at but I'm in Texas over a 1000 miles away.
Just admire the help he gets from his wife & daughter also...
This is somebody to admire...
Awesome I always went for the easy stuff first simple thing are almost the answer. I could go on but don't wanna bore anyone lol great job
use a trailer to take your car to Main street auto...
@@johncasor9698 I would not drive any of my vehicles into NY unless it was life or death. And Gov Hockey-puck convinced me to leave, so I will never ever be back.
ONLY because he has that scan tool that shows everything he needs to see WHILE moving the steering wheel to trigger that dash message, without that scan tool, how good are you as a mechanic to diagnose an issue like that ?????
There was another video like this from another mechanic that diagnosed a similiar issue down to a rusted ground strap ...
As he said those straps are garbage. They hold water and corrode. That strap should have been an insulated 4 or 8 gauge wire from the factory
@@ACommenterOnRUclips You have revealed that you are not a mechanic, therefore do not have the standing to criticize. Eric is excellent, with or without tools. Without the plug-in tool, the process would have been to connect a voltmeter to each module's in and out. He clearly explained that, but you weren't paying attention.
Having an honest, trustworthy is worth a fortune. Last new car I bought was 2015.
I took it back to the dealership for recalls only.
Didn't really have many problems with it, but when I did, "I know a guy", just like you,
has his own shop, very knowledgeable
I'll probably never meet you, but IMO, it's people like you that make America great...thanks
I used to be an assistant service manager at a GM dealership. Good to see there are still GOOD Diagnosticians. That was the hardest type of technician to find and retain. Glad to see there are ethical and dedicated technicians still working. GREAT JOB!
The silly part is the good diagnostic technicians have all left the dealerships because they can make way more money in the aftermarket. I sure did
too many parts hangers has always been a problem
@@plhebel1 because of pay. It all comes down to pay. Very competent techs at dealerships but eventually you stop being thorough when 1-3 hours of diagnostics get rolled in to a single labor op code of .7 hours for module replacement.
Clearly the GM dealer’s “factory trained diagnostic tech” doesn’t even know how to measure a voltage drop. Awesome video Eric O!
A self taught mechanic and his 11 year old daughter can though 😂
Unfortunately, there are still many mechanics out there undertrained. OBD 1,2 is here to stay. Gotta jump in...learn.
More like corporate greed makes service personnel replace as much parts as possible._
can only speak for my self but my case is probably verry common. I work at a dealer (been a mechanic for 20 years) and i have never been teached how to do electrics becouse they often have people that do diagnostics and people that do mechanic part. Some times when its lot of jobs or a sick person they can give the "mechanic" a big diagnostic job (even if he realy dont know) and say solve it.
It doesn't matter how smart you are, unless you stop and think. --Thomas Sowell
Training is the transfer of knowledge, but applying that knowledge requires discipline of intellect, regulation of emotions and established principles.
I am a retired avionics technician and I guessed ground problems in first two minutes. You have outstanding troubleshooting skills guy. So many aircraft and car mechanics throw parts at it first then get the meter out. I enjoyed watching you whittle down the problem. Great video!
Same here 6333 a6e electrician, always check grounds during diagnosis.
I am also a past avionics communication tech trained by our military back in 76 and I was thinking voltage issues when first watching this. I am happy to see a mechanic with excellent troubleshooting methods,hats off excellent job.
@@chuckwelden972 I joined the AF in 82' and retired in 04' then went to LM. My mind was there but my body was to sore to effectively do the work so I walked away. I worked on the SR-71, U-2, KC-135Q, T-38, C-23A, C-141, EC-130E, C-5, and lastly the F-35.
Thanks for serving.
Im so curious why so many use the parts cannon instead of finding the real problem.
I figured a ground or maybe the ign. swith picking a bad connection. I've seen positive circuits pull a ground before so it does happen. People say I'm crazy but I know it happens.
Eric, I’m retired military, and I was a jet engine mechanic for a long time, and then a crew member on cargo planes; that’s a long way to say I’ve been wrenching for a while now. Your troubleshooting / diagnostic approach is awesome! Especially when you’re dealing with a platform you’ve either never seen, or very rarely seen…either way, well done dude!
A very disciplined diagnosis. I worked in a large GM dealership and found many problems with grounds even in the San Francisco Bay Area. If the GM tech had called the GM Tech help line, they would have instructed him to do voltage drops on all of the applicable circuits before they would authorize the replacement of any module. Obviously the tech did not do the basic proper inspections or call the help line, which is free.
You are 100% correct. That dealership definitely put the wrong tech on it. There is no way all of those modules went bad at the same time. Even if he were to confer with a fellow tech he would have learned that. But Eric is the best. I've never seen a better independent and he might be the best I've seen at diagnostics.
The dealership is either unethical or incompetent. Either way they should definitely refund this guys money. My guess is they won’t unless lawyers and/or media get involved.
Call Steve Lehto😆
Or both.
Blame is on the so called tech. Dealer should refund the diag monies.
My guess is incompetent.
To be fair, could be both. I'd be back at that dealer and drop the remains of the ground strap on the desk and ask them to 'explain' that...
GM should pay you to write TSB's for them. You just saved them a lot of money with this video, where dealerships will not be able to rip them off for all of those "warranty" work that these new cars require. Appreciate your hard work Eric, while making it interesting in the process.
Yes... 100%
That will be a recall on that truck. Gm should have at least grounded the rack to the block on the ground side.
Likely reply would be "It doesn't do that". That's what I got from an email software company 25 yrs ago when I sent them the solution to a problem that had crashed my server. The engineers just denied the system could crash that way rather than simply verifying my solution and using it to help others.
You're right, Bojan. Really they should hire Eric (if he wanted the job) as a high-level consultant for design and trouble shooting, at a high level rate of pay. He's worth every penny they could pay him. I just wish he would keep making repair videos, even so.
Good to hear dealer made restitution to customer
"Wait 'til everyone starts driving their electric cars." LOL. Well said Eric. Phenomenal diagnosis. I learned so much in the first viewing, I watched it a second time. Thanks Eric.
Can't even imadgeon electric cars and trucks in the rust belt!!!
No problem because it's not going to happen.
@@Hogger280 The Green people will try. They will of course fail, but not before wasting billions or even trillions of taxpayer dollars in the process.
@@garyalford9394 Agreed.
I'm licking my lips in anticipation.
Eric I'm 65 still working as a Emergency Vehicle Technician here in Florida i can't tell you how informative your videos are you are an extremely talented technician that deserves tons of praise for your knowledge, honestly, and being a great father and husband. Keep it up. ..
@@robertbreton2921 absolutely. Without at least a inexpensive scan tool you are flying blind. Mr O, more times than not, starts each diagnosis with a code scan to point him in the right direction for the hunt. I'm a shade tree mechanic that bought a hundred dollar code reader 16 years ago when I bought a 2006 vehicle. It has helped immensely.
@@robertbreton2921 it absolutely will. That's how I started out 20 years ago.
As an electrical engineer, former tech, and shade tree mechanic since I was 14, I found this video riveting. Soon as you found the voltage fluctuations using the scan tool (so envious of that) I immediately said "bad ground" but when you showed that trailer brake module had no common wiring with the PS module I was wondering if I was wrong. I would never have expected the entire frame rail to have a bad ground connection, so great job. Couple of comments though. (1) those braid straps have a high equivalent AWG to insulated wire, and 4 AWG can only handle about 80 amps before the insulation starts degrading (melting) but this is likely an intermittent high-load so maybe it will be okay. (2) GM and every other Big 3 auto company use the cheapest crap they can get. There are marine or military nickel-coated braid straps that WILL handle that high salt environment and will have the flexibilty to handle the extensive bending that the 4 AWG won't. (3) you referred to the 4 AWG as solid wire which is incorrect, it is stranded wire. 4 AWG solid wire wont bend without a considerable amount of force, so I knew you weren't using 'solid' wire.
As to the shift to park, I hope it's fixed but i have my doubts. My 2019 Blazer with floor shifter had that and it was the microswitch in the shifter assembly. Apparently GM got a really crappy switch and LOTS of 2019s have this issue. Only way to fix is to replace shifter assembly but I raised a stink with GM and they covered half the cost. May not be the case with this one but if it comes back, go straight to that microswitch.
Enjoyed your video immensely and your wife and daughter are adorable. You're a lucky man and a smart and honorable one. Wish you'd relocate to the Fort Worth area, we'd be honored to have you...and no more salt corrosion issues!
It looked like it was fixed as well as he ran several into the drive and back to the park sequences and no warning at engine shutdown or horn at the door opening....
Well i think that was just a slip of the tongue saying solid wire. Pretty sure he would know it was stranded wire. If not the braided type i would have used 4 AWG welding cable and made my own. That is fine stranded compared to the thick strands in 4 Gauge automotive wire and very flexible as well.
The schematic heart is not boring it's just a part of your Diagnostic and repair very interesting
So satisfying to watch an experienced mechanic use his head and his knowledge to find a simple fix to a complex problem. you are the man Eric O!
In my 40+ years of troubleshooting electronics I've learned to almost always inspect the power supply first; and seen many others led astray by not doing this basic check early on. #2 lesson is if there's multiple failures in different systems, check the grounds.
Problem these days is that most so called techs are very electronically challenged, most guys I have known cannot figure out a simple circuit never mind understand a wiring diagram.
@@machinehead6892 took the "career track" auto-tech class at the local JC... Asked the instructor to help me... He looked at the diagram, and responded..."I don't do Mercedes". This was a school in Silicon Valley.
I don't know if instruction is this bad, elsewhere, but there's no excuse for this sort of incompetence.
I raised it with the Administration... They did nothing. :-(
great advice. and #3 NEVER go to the dealer for service (Their only function is for the part you cant get anywhere else, or proprietary computer stuff.)
Yup check power and grounds first saves you a lot of time from the start
i used to work on log trucks 🚚 . back then it was always one of the ground connections that cause electrical problems
Only Eric O. can make a bad-ground repair video as exciting as any crime scene thriller! I was on the edge of my seat the entire video waiting to find the culprit! The best mechanic I've ever seen and the best auto repair videos on youtube! It is so educational to see how you work through the problems. Thanks much Eric, and keep up the great work!
It hooked me too. I even paused it while I walked the dog.
Every state needs at least a dozen Erics....Not only is he a 5 star mechanic but he has mastered critical thinking.
In the first couple minutes the trailer brake had a ground fault code on the scanner.
It’s amazing how it becomes suspenseful and interesting when he’s “on the trail”
lol good one John!
@@jafopt Shhh, who cares at this point, he found it the old fashioned way, logic and proper research, to which is sometimes far more fun in the end, and at the very least, fun for us who get to watch this process and learn from it!
Once again I am blown away with the illogical logic from the GM dealer. Happy to hear the customer was reimbursed, but only after being shamed by your complete diagnosis. In my mind I would expect the reverse situation with the local garage unable to properly diagnose the problem due to lack of training and the factory trained GM mechanic having to come to the rescue.
I was a station owner and mechanic many years ago when vehicles were much simpler than anything on the road today. But what doesn't change between then and now is that diagnostics and logical thinking are the key ingredients to solving a problem. There are many talented techs at dealerships today but it seems like parts often get replaced without much thought to identifying the root cause. I've spent many hours watching Eric and marvel at his ability to tackle anything. I hope the gentleman with the truck gets his money back. That's a no brainer and the right thing for the dealership to do. And if Eric ever gets tired of getting his hands dirty, his next career should be training auto mechanics on the right way to fix a vehicle.
He could really make a great workforce with his knowledge if he taught others at a tech school, hell I twisted wrenches over 25 years and I always learn something from him! I'm from the generation when electronic ignition and fuel injection were working their way on the scene.
Eric, if you don't win Mechanic of the Year, I'll be shocked. Wish there were more HONEST technicians like you !! You deserve all of the Kudos that you receive on this one !! Honest, dependable, ethically moral...that is YOU, my friend !! I wish you Nothing but the BEST down the road...you, sir, are my Hero !!
Most mechanics are in fact hidden salesmen of carparts... and only a few really look into the problem and analysis the electrical issue, but brrrr electrical issues that is way up to difficult for many mechanics as it is not a 'mechanical' issue, dhow so they try to sell you some so called broken parts which aren't broken in the first place.
Great evidance that the fancier the workshop, the crappier the service might be, all over the world, not only in US, same problem also in EU.
As a 50+ yr tech, I give you an A+. But see serious design mistakes in this truck..... GM would be wise to put you into their tech trailing dept... IN CHARGE....!
@@nievesjacinto1650 he would be a great teacher
How much does the kid charge per hour? She probably knows more than the dealers.
How does one find mechanics that can diagnose like this? Can this be done on 2000 to 2010 models
I've seen more problems caused by poor/ bad grounds than I can shake a stick at. This Mechanic's using voltage drop to diagnose the problem is pure genius but then again it makes perfect sense. Kudos to you sir!
Finally a mechanic that can sleep at night. Good job.
As Eric implied, what kind of tech believes that all those components fail at the same time. Are you kidding me! No wonder the owner wanted a second opinion. He certainly picked the right guy to get that opinion from.
This video reinforced two valuable lessons for me:
1. Always check the ground side voltage and
2. Never underestimate corrosion
Thank you for contributing to a better world man, it's appreciated!!
"Rust never sleeps" lolol
Done well = Well done. ... Well done, sir.
Considering the amount of corrosion we see on every vehicle that Eric works on, bad grounds should always be the first thing to look at for ANY electrical problem.
Yep it only takes the smallest & simplest things to screw something up! :)
we dont allow or condone corrosion in MY country... SFMF
I'm dumbfounded the dealership would even dare to charge restocking fees when they didn't get approval for the parts cannon in the first place. I really hope the customer show's your video to the service manager and make him come to his senses.
I said the same thing. He never gave them the ok to make the repair so they shouldn't have pulled or ordered the parts so how is there a restocking fee? This seems like a very shady stealership. I can only imagine how many ppl they screwed doing this job, this guy was smart enough to know something was right so they found other stuff to charge him and screw him. Ford charges a flat rate of either $129 or $159 for diag, so whether its 10mins or 5 hrs its the same diag fee. This dealership charged him to diag every single component in the complaint even though it was all related and they were clearly wrong. This guy needs to get coorperate and the media involved the get his money back and this shady stealership red flagged
Kindness is a weakness to the indecent but virtuous to the decent. You and Mrs O are among our most decent. I watch pretty much all mechanics content even the bad ones. I always come back to S.M.A and restart and binge watch his content. Only vary few mechanics content is this good. Bravo sir. I might have left numerous comments on your older videos but each time I watch I like to comment. I have watched your family grow up in the years gone by. You are a lucky man and so is Mrs O. Great roll models and parents.
The difference between a real mechanic and a parts changer, GREAT JOB!
I had (for a very short time) a 2020 Silverado (purchased new) that had the "same" power steering and trailer brake problem in the winter of 2020. I live in Northeast Ohio, so salt on the roads is very common here also.
Had the truck to dealer (only 7000ish miles) under warranty 4 times for the same problem. The replaced the steering rack, module and TB module twice. After the 4th trip failed, I got them to buy the truck back at full original price.
Based on what we are seeing in this diagnosis.... it could easily have been the same issue..... and I know of several other people locally that have similar issues ......
Stuff does happen. But 2 replacement racks? That's 3 racks total. A company with their heads not up their butts would be checking the pulled parts after the fact to see if they were within specs. If they were (and probably were) it ain't those parts. One of the uses of a VIN # is to track issues.
@@dlewis9760 only one replacement steering rack, but two Trailer Brake modules (sorry if there was confusion on how it was typed)
One of your finest videos yet, Eric. Don’t ever discount your skills. You’re one of the best at your craft and the proof is all on video. Well done with solving this riddle.
Feel sorry for NY...that's 3 years old and frame has more rust then both my 23 year old trucks .WOW ....reminds me of Wisconsin
Once again, Eric O reaches into his toolbox and pulls out the magic wrench. Again, living proof that a great mechanic is worth their weight in diamonds.
I worked for a GM dealer for 11 years and most of my electrical issues with new body style vehicles have been ground related. I also come from the rust belt of Wisconsin so the IGS is not new. Great job doing complete and accurate diagnosis. You have the best RUclips channel for automotive diagnosis that I have been able to find! Keep up the good work and I love that it is a family business.
Given that the diagnosis by the dealer was completely wrong, I would be looking for a refund of that diagnosis fee and restocking fee.
I completly agree... but will they❓
They will never refund your money.
@@Qusin111 Always pay by credit card so you can contest the charges.
The dealer is supposed to be the expert and the consumer can't be asked to pay for work without (proper) results. Pay back the entire receipt and as a courtesy, pay Erics bill as well. If they refuse, take them to small claims, that will cost them much more money and they will lose.
The threat of a small claims court case usually gets them to cough up the cash.
Years ago we used to have cars with a console shifter towed in stuck in park or some other setting which turned out to be ground resistance and the starter grounding via the shift cable to the transmission getting hot and melting the cable liner/housing and then sticking to the cable when it cools off, also in other experiences grounding via the transmission cooling lines to the radiator would melt the solder at the radiator, same solution, new ground or simply attach the ones left off when doing valve cover gaskets on some cases as well.. This reminds me of the old days of doing this stuff, worked down on the island in a good shop that is still open and fixing what everyone else can't seem to do, kind of a last stop buck stops here place like your place is... Your town is lucky to have you, obviously upstate NY by the looks of the bottom of that vehicle...
As a master heavy duty diesel tech, the feeling you get when you find the cause of an issue is unlike any other, reason #1 why I love this industry
Great diagnosis Eric, as always.
As a teacher of Automotive Apprentices for the past 35 years, when teaching electrical diagnosis, I can not overstate the importance of checking Powers and Grounds. Particularly when three different modules start misbehaving at the same time.
It's frustrating to know, for many shops, the Parts Cannon is the default diagnostic tool.
Couldn't be better said cheers
I recall my apprenticeship here in Canada. In third year we tackled electrical. I dare say half of the class couldn't grasp why charging systems only neede a voltage regulator once alternators. They also could not understand voltage drop, or why you coud only test for it when there was actually current running through the conducter. It goes to show, not everyone is cut out to be a tech, particularily an electrical tech.
@@sidvis7235 Consider the great obstacle, language itself. Is it signal, is it votage or is it current?
Up to certain resistance value, you have full voltage transfer, less than you have too much current. Beyond certain value you have less voltage, i.e. voltage drop.... and that is just small potato stuff as some might say.
I am with you on that. Being a licensed electrician for 46 years dealing with bad connections causes problems in places you wouldn't believe. Modern electronics magnifies the problem 10 fold.
Thank you the first thing I thought was make sure you have good connections. Always, I live Chicagoland area and sale and ground straps are enemies so quick time saver KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) and then keep on keepin' on!!!!!
Hi Eric, I'm a retired communications engineer and from my experience over the past 40 years, I find the lack of 'critical thinking' in most technical fields is commonplace these days.
The training of old included fault diagnosis and repair down to component level but that isn't possible with modern electronics and it just isn't cost effective... as a consequence, higher level diagnostic skills have suffered a significant drop over the decades. Dealers and big repairers aren't investing in high quality training of their staff and only appear interested in making a buck as quickly as possible.
The customer ends up paying for the poor guesswork and a dumbing down of our young mechanics, they really need to invest in people of your caliber and train their staff..... a young apprentice under your care would out shine any of the dealers staff.
Like the old RCA XL100 TV's. We'd get one with a fault, isolate to the card, replace the card, and out the door! Then we'd troubleshoot the card, fix it, and have it ready for the next one that comes in with the same problem. Life was good! Now, it's go buy a new TV cause we can't fix it!
Part of the issue is the good mechanics don't make flag hours cuz we don't upsell things that arent needed and we get written up all the time. OR Because of flag hours under warranty at the stealership we don't make money. A combination of both or we are way overworked most dealerships expect you to work 12 hours a day with an hour lunch 6 days a week because we aren't paid a salary or hourly. My mornings started at around 7am and didn't end till the service department closed. OR I don't know what the rate is today at the dealership I worked at but it was around 160 hr labor when I was there, these were LUXURY cars I worked on. and we got paid maybe 15 a flag hour if we were lucky and we had to do the stupid work like change oil if one came in we did not have someone else changing the oil so it was drop everything and get the oil change done. Flag hours should be outlawed. Plus at the smaller dealerships I worked at oh yeah we got a little more per hour but wasn't worth it cuz they would haggle over the price so basically they didn't care if they were taking money out of our pockets to appease a cheapskate since the shops made money on up charging on the parts but not the labor. SURE WE'LL eat that 2 hours of diag the guy put in probing out your entire electrical system not to sell you the wrong parts. 2 hours of my pay were gone. That's why there are few mechanics left that are honest and good. We get treated like shit plain and simple or we get harassed out of the business by not selling you things you don't need. A few of us get lucky and can afford to open a shop where we do right by our customers and stay in business.
@@CrazyCat229
This is appalling.
When a dealership waives a two hour diagnosis fee it means the mechanic gets paid nothing for those two hours.
Then the dealership charges a large repair charge with lucrative parts sales.
The number of mechanics leaving must be huge!
@@michaelzona9880 the whole industry has gotten pretty toxic and I laugh at the trade school ads saying 100k shortage no more like all the good mechanics quit so we gotta replace them. Like I said that huge repair bill at a stealership the mechanic might get 22 to 25 a flag hour these days and it took most of the good tech quitting to get up to that. When I was active a team lead mech might get 21 a flag hour plus he had to meet tight hour requirements that the techs under him had to get in weekly hours to get any kind of bonus… and the whole mentor system is a joke for the young guys.
As an HVAC technician i am seeing similar issues with the lack of diagnostic skills. Modern furnaces and some of the higher end equipment all have diagnostic codes, but that just points you in the right direction. Still have to know where to go and how to repair.
I learned when I was very young that most electrical problems on vehicles are caused by bad grounds. Looks like that still applies. It's got to apply in spades where vehicles rust like they do in NY State.
Eric slays when it comes to troubleshooting. A true mechanic and I use your motto of "test don't guess" daily. Dealership absolutely owes that guy a refund and apology. In that order.
it was a case of eric sniffing out a hookup with a rusty brown ring...yet again
Done Proper. Yes indeed they owe him his money back. I doubt he will get it though cause the name of the game is money at any cost. It is a good lesson learned and he got him a customer for life and free advertising to boot. Well done.
@@donniegombel The owner of the vehicle wrote a reply a few posts up and said the dealership was gonna make it right
I love how you talk with your wife and daughter! ❤ I’m a retired guy who was in the automotive industry for 20+ years and I enjoy the content and appreciate the way you talk with people! I hope y’all have a wonderful day and 2023 brings you happiness!
I've been a technician at a gm dealership in Wisconsin since 2004, I've sure ran into a lot of corroded wires especially with trailer brake systems. I've never ran into corroded ground strap...good to know. You're a great tech and I like watching your videos
the backwards hats are now in charge of the world 🥴💤
this breaded ones are junk.i had one on a mitsu here in Chicago
Subaru's eat the braided cables for breakfast and then cause sensor codes for cams and such that are really because the oil control solenoids do not have enough ground to function properly. Voltage drop your harnesses people!
You have never had trouble with ground straps where did you train ???😀
It is kind of sad that GM (and others) has not figured out that it needs to pay more attention to electrical power and gnd given that cars are now rolling computers.
I bought a 2000 crown vic at auction with the door code bar on the outside & did not get the code. I went to ford & they wanted $75 plus tax to retreve the code, since i only payed $300 for it i said forget, turns out the code is stamped on the left trunk hinge. Dealers are bandits
As a Chevy tech that primary does electrical it's awesome to see you work on something I'm deeply familiar with. I wish this video was part of training for all new techs. As always your process was spot on. Whoever diagnosed this clearly missed the basics. Low voltage codes and multiple problems is always a red flag go check your basics and try to find the pattern. Keep up thr excellent work!
Amen and good comment. As an Engineer, I would further recommend that GM Engineering Dept. be in the loop on this specific design failure that can be easily remedied ... "Braided Cables" CAN be coated during the manufacturing process !!! This is the kind of stuff that makes me scratch my head. And as Eric rightly stated ... "just wait until the Rust Belt meets EV's" !!!
Gm quality is shit. Has been for a decade. This is why many people are not buying them. I'm sick of working on this absolute garbage. Nothing but stupid ass problems because stupid ass people coming up with stupid ass designs.
@@tomkurtzhals7369 A decade? Try like over 4 decades AFAIK. Will never buy a GM.
@@tomkurtzhals7369 I'm actually looking for a truck now in the 2010 to 18 age, it don't matter what make it is they are all crap when you start googling potential problems to look for. My 99 7.3 turbo superduty with 600,000 KMS on might get the minor rot fixed up on the body and be repainted yet. It's totally paid for, reliable ,mechanically right and I don't see the point in spending huge money on 10 to 18 years newer, That are in worse condition. With half the k's on it and 15 times the hassle being expensive for parts. Then needs some shop life support I can't provide myself like I do with the 99 and will be regularly unreliable to boot.
@@thepaperboy9009 it started going down hill in the early 2000's.
I wonder how the GM dealer-principal feels watching this video and thinking, “holy crap everybody in the Avoca region is watching how my business tried to screw the truck owner out of $4000” - OR - “I have the worst mechanics in New York and everyone knows it now.”
Yah-
-a good shop will ensure the parts they're replacing are out of order before firing the parts canon of new parts. Seems to me that everyone at the dealership gets a piece of the action on any work done. They may have lost the battle with this guy but they'll try and win the war with other people that will go ahead and pay the $4, 000.00.
it was only a 500$ diag, they billed for 4k to "fix" still it should be refunded no biggie sometimes people screw up
We dont know the name of the Dealer do we ?..I am thinking if they dont give her a Refund we will know the name of the Dealer soon
They knew what was going on, 4 things at once. In Canada the smart money oil sprays their cars
I was told this years ago. The auto makers do not care about customer service or if they scare away a customer with bad service. There are only so many auto makers and everyone needs a car. The way they seen it is if they lose a customer another one will come along to replace them.
Once I was charged over $900.00 to correct an overheating problem. Drove the vehicle 1/2 mile after the problem was "fixed" at the GM Stealership and it overheated. Paid a local radiator shop to boil out the radiator for $50.00 and it completely cured the overheating problem. Eventually got the Stealership to refund some of the money. Never went back to them and never will. This was before the internet, now I would just Google the problem and hopefully there would a SMA video on the issue. Thanks Eric O and the lovely Mrs. O. Because we all know behind every good man there stands a great woman.
Probably caused by the leak sealant that GM uses to address the engine coolant seepage issues caused by Dexcool spec coolant. The leak sealant eventually gels up and plugs off coolant passages thereby contributing to overheating.
Once again, a clear drift in repair philosophy. Today it’s mainly a replace parts and pray attitude to repair. The days of actual diagnosing a problem to its roots isn’t an approach much in practice, especially at dealerships. Thank you for your efforts of keeping that working methodology alive. I have to believe your customers as well as we who watch appreciate you. Keep up the great work!
There are mechanics and then there are artisanal mechanics. Guys like Eric are becoming harder and harder to find. He is truly an artist. Dealer just plugs in a scan tool and load and shoots the parts cannon to fix problems that would not be fixed even with all the new parts. great job and even better that your lovely assistants obviously enjoy helping the old man out. Truly a family business. I am so glad I found this channel......
Harder to find yet needed more than ever with all the wizardry in modern cars.
Plenty of parts swappers that know what modules make up a car, very few of them know how those modules work.
"Artisanal mechanics" AWESOME
@@boblister665 I suspect this is one of the reasons why the capable mechanics are harder to find. Some just don't have the brain power to work in the "modern wizardry" department. Many look at electrical problems like they're some sort of demon possession cases and would rather call an exorcist. He, he ... the way some electrical issues manifest really make it look like paranormal activity.
@@johnnyblue4799 idk, personally If it's acting really funky, it's a dead giveaway of electrical/voltage issue and not the part itself. The problem lies in finding the exact cause.
Idk, could be cause I've started working on alot of odd electrical issues lately at work.
I have no words. Well, words that I have aren't permitted. However, this is one of the best SMA vids I have seen, and I never miss one. Very entertaining and most informative. Excellent diagnosis, Eric. Thank you.
I was thinking the same thing. This might be one of my favorites, and I've watched em all too!
As a former mechanic and now mechanical engineer you impress the hell out of me. It is good to see that there are still skilled mechanics that are honorable in their trade. Love watching your program keep it up. Once again impressive from an old mechanic in the great state of Texas.
"former mechanic" professionally or personally as far as i remember once a mechanic always a mechanic! lol at least that what my grandpa always said when i was little
I was trained to troubleshoot electrical with the first rule that DC power flows negative (supply) to positive (return). That's why when battery negative is disconnected the system can be worked on.
If a component doesn't have supply (ground) it could get it from a different component thus affecting different systems.
Most people are concerned with a big positive cable and view the negative as an afterthought if at all.
Great content, thank you for your time and willingness to share your knowledge.
He needs to call GM customer service and open a case. He should be adamant about getting refunded for the dealers incorrect diagnosis. I highly doubt he will get anywhere with the Service Director but I would at least try that route first. Just remember to keep your cool and don’t fall for their first offer. Play the long game! Oh and I was a GM service director and warranty administrator for 25 years and know the game. Honestly I would have made a good will repair because of the mileage. Good luck.
that, and do a credit card chargeback.
@Mike MacCracken, I disagree, first give the dealer the opportunity to solve the complaint, if not then go to GM customer service.
If the dealer doesn't resolve the issue in the customer's favor then that would be the next step. Unfortunately if the Truck's owner doesn't have a sibling or in-law that's a lawyer (and will do the work gratis) it's probably going to cost more than what the dealer took him for to pay a lawyer. If the legal route is all that is left a diy small claims suit is probably the best bet.
@@willemstreutgers1154 It is quite obviously this dealer did not want to help this customer. GM dealers have the ability to goodwill a repair and GM encourages it. Opening a customer service case gives the customer a mediator who will document and advise.
Completely not a mechanic; but a neurologist. Watched the whole thing and loved every minute. The analogy to medicine has been made before, but the thought process and humility going through it is the same. Also the thrill of the chase. You would be a great medical diagnostician, but I'm thankful you are out there filling the ranks of competent mechanics.
I saw a news story about a mechanic went back to college to advance his business acumen, and expand his business at his shop. He had a science course requirement, for which he took biology. He ended up liking biology and took more classes on the subject. Eventually he went to medical school and became a doctor. Apparently the logical deduction process from his former career was a parallel to his new one.
Have to add my story to this. Worked with a doctor many moons ago who, I found out along the way, was a construction engineer with a good career going. I asked him what lead him into medicine. His answer? One of his employees got hurt on the job, so he took him to the local hospital. Long story short, he said "if that idiot could make it through medical school, I darn sure could." And he did. I'll finish by saying he was one of the best doctors I've ever worked with.
@@brianburns7211 I have a high level maintenance millwright with high diagnostic skill like Mr. O. Since becoming a kidney transplant I have used my skills to help maintain my health and challenge my doctors at times. Even more so after writing a research paper about how to best take my medications. I don't like to change parts unless they are bad.
I’m a software engineer and often have to debug issues. Same methodical process.
You are right about the similarity between bad mechanics and bad doctors. I had a problem that when I drank beer I would get swelling in my navel area and become ill. Went to my doctor and he told me to "stop drinking". That was his solution. So I was condemned for life not to drink beer again. I went to a 2nd doctor for a 2nd opinion and right off the bat he says, "You must have H Polaris". Apparently it's a small bubble or bacteria located in my navel area that gets agitated with beer. He gave me a diet to follow for 30 days and some pills to take for 60 days and I was cured for life.
Ex electrical engineer here: Really enjoyed the analytical approach and the good understanding of basic electricity type stuff. I wasn't very surprised that a dealer mechanic would not diagnose this problem accurately:
1. I don't trust dealers in general. The goal of dealers is to sell you stuff you don't need and make a lot of money on repairs.
2. I am skeptical of any mechanic on electrical issues.
IMO the best way to get affordable, reliable car repairs is to find a good independent mechanic and stick with them. After a while they trust you and you trust them. Kumbaya
As a mechanic who specialises in electrical and electronic diagnosis and repairs, I don't trust electrical imagineers to design a product that is fit for purpose, the ground strap on this vehicle is a huge case in point.
The goal of any shop is to sell what you need (dealership or not), and to make money while doing so.
I own an independent shop after working at dealership for ten years. No car I ever worked on was sold a repair it didn’t need and I paid for my own misdiagnoses. Some dealerships are not run with a culture of theft and dishonesty, although it seems they’re getting fewer and further between. It mostly comes down to the individual and their scruples (or lack thereof).
All that said, I’ve seen independent shops rob people blind out of both dishonesty and incompetence - it’s not exclusive to dealers.
sorry I missed the whole thing . I was eating lunch.
If the truck is still under warranty. Why is the owner paying anything to the dealership? Eric O is one of the best mechanics I’ve ever watched. He’s super educated and can explain in a way that most can understand. Plus his experience is worth a ton of money by just being able to solve problems quickly.
"Just wait until everyone starts driving their electric cars" -- COMEDY GOLD right there Eric. Had me laughing my butt off.
If it wasn't inevitable it would be funny. Wait until the grid goes down because of high demand and people can't charge their cars, their phones and their MSNBC won't appear on the TV. They will be BEGGING for more coal power... and gas cars.
Is that before or after the grid goes down from overload?
Bad news is GM already can't make vehicles last gas or electric!
@@aday1637 A level One charger only draws about 12 amps on a 120v circuit. Electric ovens typically pull about 30- 50 amps on a 240v circuit. EV owners typically charge overnight when demand is lowest and depending on where you live electricity is cheaper.
@@KevinWindsor1971 the battery for the car is 22 thousand I’d be interested to see how stores will get food with no tractor trailers allowed in California or New York trains either
I bought a Porsche 911 $8000 under market value several years ago due to a bunch of electrical issues. Turned out to be a bad ground to the body. Took about a half hour to diagnose an $0 to repair. Only negative side effect was I had to replace the alternator since the bad ground damaged the internal voltage regulator.
"Negative side effect" 😄
Damn This dude is just smart...he wouldve been great at anything he pursued, Imagine him as a doctor tracking down what rare disease you have based on your symptoms lol he's the Dr House of mechanics without the drug problem, narcissism and limp lol
"without the drug problem, narcissism and limp" bloody hilarious!!!
Most mechanics are smart at many things, because we have to wear many hats in the field. Makes us very diverse, and informed.
He is like the Dr House of cars. he can be “Dr car house” or something like that.
God bless you Eric!!! You don’t how relieved and happy your customers and viewers are for you!! Wouldn’t be surprised if the customer was crying when you told him the good news! I probably would’ve of been!! Thank you for what you do and who you are.
Using the Brave browser and "Return RUclips Dislike" extension, I can see that 26 people (so far) have disliked this video. Wonder if all of those who disliked this video work at this dealership? Or maybe they're "mechanics" who rip people off everyday and videos like this expose them. Another great video, Eric!
some people just click dislike because A) they just like to be negative about everything, or B) they don't understand it and think they are disliking that the dealership tried to screw the car owner.
Cool, didn't know that extension existed.
This is a wonderful example of why you are in my estimation one of the best mechanics I've ever seen you have the ability to analyze and diagnose problems
like no other guy on RUclips. It would not surprise me if the dealer refused to reimburse this guy for their mechanics lack of ability to properly diagnose the problem.
Check out Rainman
Watch Wes Work, also.
@T.J. Kong I've seen him a few times. Ivan spends way too much time trying to figure out why a broken electrical part is doing what it does. I'm and electronics guy, he not doing component level troubleshooting. It's broken, replace it and move on.
That guy would have spent $4k at the dealer and it wouldn't have solved the problem. Unbelievable. Great work Eric
They probably would have fixed it
@@snoopy5736 yes, they probably would have fixed the problem and left all the new parts in there and never said a thing.
@@rickdecarlo You're at the mercy of the mechanic.
Great to see an honest mechanic. I hope the customer goes after the dealer and get his money back.
Im an automotive wrencher who went to school for electronics and your diagnosis was great!! It never ceases to amaze me the amount of stuff that can get thrown off by a bad ground and how much they’re overlooked. Especially in places with road salt and corrosion issues. Like they say “the meter never lies.” The dealer would of replaced all those modules and still had the same problems. Love the video and the message at the end. Very inspiring!!
I serviced hospital radiology equipment for 47 years. High tech equipment that has multiple problems mostly fails in a low tech way. Connections, broken wires or strands of wires broken or making a resistive connection, intermittent poor connections like a potentiometer or switch, corrosion, bad solder or crimp connections, wires with degraded insulation, connections with mildew that need to be cleaned. Never forget the grounds and power connections.
Or they replace it all, then happen to stumble on the ground afterwards.
Good logical steps no false paths at all. Unfortunately there are few in the game who have your skills, if a workshop has one they are blessed, they put them on the difficult jobs and they earn low bonus and they leave, if they have two, they either buddy up or scratch each others eyes out. It takes a good understanding of electrical systems, voltage, current, resistance and what they do in a vehicle to use some simple tests (line drop test in this case) to find the fault. Impressive.
@@dennyheitzer9457 exactly, how would 3 entirely different modules fail at the same time...
I am a retired vehicle electrician and electronics engineer- at the beginning of the video I would have laid my bottom dollar on a bad ground. I have learned over may years of experience that if there is more than one unassociated fault it more than likely a grounding issue. GM are not the only mark with this issue. Just yesterday a close friend of mine with an Audi Q7 could not get his car to start. The indications were that when he turned the key all that happened as a constant clicking. He assumed bad battery so he purchased one. Still the same fault!! He called me and I suggested taking a jumper cable from the under bonnet (hood) ground charge terminal and to clip it to the engine. Problem solved _ engine started. The problem was isolated to the chassis to engine ground strap. Never take your vehicle to a dealer unless the vehicle is under warranty- most guys here are learning their trade. I have never had a dealer diagnose a fault correctly. Great video and love your fault finding process. Best wishes from the UK.
I have seen enough of your videos that I guessed this was a bad ground, about one minute in. Always a good learning experience watching your videos Eric.
Also, you got a good fam, daughter and wife helping with extra hands while diagnosing.
Have a good weekend!
When he said power side or ground side, I was yelling at the screen.... Ground, ground, ground... Lol. Oh and I don't even work on cars. Just a dedicated follower of Eric O!
Mr.O is always talking power and grounds when it comes to electrical stuff. The man knows his stuff. Another great diagnosis video.
I just work on family and friends cars now, but funnily enough, Her Ladyship is NEVER wrong for an issue with her car. It is truly frightening. I get handed the keys `there is a funny noise from the front'. I spend for ever underneath it. She take me for a drive and exasperatedly yells:`Can't you hear that ? '.Walks off muttering. Eventually I find the bearing or whatever. It is really really scary
The dead giveaway is when several systems are having problems simultaneously. What are the odds all of those modules and the rack are bad as opposed to a problem with the overall circuit? Occam's Razor is where every diagnosis should start.
For most of my adult life I did component-level electronics troubleshooting. I am here to say: Your logic and thought processes are flawless, keep up the good work!
When you shined your light down there and it was so green, ya knew. A cheap stap on a truck that cost a fortune.
Most dealers are lucky if they have one master mechanic. Dude you are freakin awesome.
This was an amazing example of diagnostic work and more importantly of family with your daughter helping out. My wife is still the best brake bleeding assistant I ever had, 40 years and running
I have been diagnosing equipment of all types for close to 30 years; I think I am a competent troubleshooter. But Eric is a master at it; the logic and direction working with the "known values" in trouble shooting keep him from chasing "Ghosts" and sticks to the root issue. Well done sir!
Wow!!!!!!!!
We need a hell of a lot more technicians/ mechanics like you Eric. I absolutely hate taking a vehicle to a dealership.
too many parts swappers
There are more hack technicians at independent shops than there are at dealerships. It's just like every other industry. You have people that are good at what they do, honest, and take pride in their work. And you have hacks that don't. I've been a dealership tech for 25 years and there's no complaints from my customers.
Not to get down on people that work on cars but if they understood basic electricity they would have a much better understanding of what Eric is showing here. Electrical is just one of the vital systems needed to have a good running vehicle. I have been an electronics technician since 1969 and love classic cars. So I do have a shoe up on most people.
@@bruces2665 your lying if you think I believe you work at a shop for 25 years and have never seen a come back lol anyone that works on cars and basically says they and there crew get it right the first time every time is lying.
@@terrybrewer4296 Guys like you are rare. Most dealerships just want to soak the customer for as much as possible.
Awesome troubleshooting, sir! I wish every mechanic would follow your customer service attitude.
You exposed GM technicians' lousy and costly service performance. GM needs to, NOT SHOULD refund the customer's money with a written apology.
Again, you're awesome! More highly commendable is your helper who can probably outperform those technicians at GM. Great job, young lady.
Dude, I wish there were more mechanics like you around. It’s hard to just go around to different ones that’ll stay true through and through every time. I hate dealing with dealerships because they’ve told me crap before and wasted my time. I even caught them lying about replacing parts and it’s not just one, it’s been several. Great video and that awesome that you did your magic and helped the guy out. And a good thing the dealer helped the guy out with a refund. Probably because they really didn’t do squat anyways.
The root problem is it takes a very intelligent person to diagnose the way Eric O does. People like that have many different careers to choose from and employers are willing to throw money at them. You'll notice Eric and his wife run their own business. You will not find people like Eric working at a shop with techs less intelligent than himself.
@@donaldlee6760 You are absolutely correct. What the dealerships and people in general fail to realize is that this type or work just doesn't pay well anymore, Owners are greedy and don't want to pay for people who are truly skilled in this area. He made this look simple because he is an experienced and good tech. It is so much harder to teach and to get techs who truly understand the concepts and what is necessary to accurately diagnose. I myself am a GM master/ASE master tech who left after 23 years because even though I was continuing to produce the quality and amount of work I always had. My wages kept decreasing and not keeping up with the times. There is actually a nationwide significant shortage of skilled technicians and as long as dealerships and manufacturers keep being greedy it will only continue to get much worse. This guy is a good tech to have caught that so quickly a lot of guys would be lost from the get go. As a lead master tech in a dealership being the guy who got these kinds of problems no one else could fix regularly I can tell you there are not a lot of guys in the industry that are as capable as they should be. I would also like to add, that this isn't a dealership problem it is an industry problem and occurs significantly more among independent shops, A lot of independent shops would never even tough this truck. So Kudos to you sir. This is the kind of guy you want to bring your business to. Support him because with all of the expenses necessary to run even an independent shop these days guys like him need your business and support so it doesn't just end up dealerships left around.
@JBJHonez I'd say it's more probable that the dealership (and GM Corporate) were so accommodating and gave the man his money back because Eric O's video has 1.8 Million views and they knew if they didn't make it right they would receive a shit load of massively bad PR and likely lose a lot more than just $1000.
I believe that every town has one. The problem is that most people take them for granted and don't give them the recognition they deserve. There's one in South Florida that I follow regularly, and I think that Eric does, too. In MY town, it's my son-in-law. Fully trained and certified, he tired of the "dealership mentality" of numbers over service and was able to become independent. Over the past 15 years he has been able to build a very profitable business which is based on the most important asset of all...INTEGRITY. That alone will cause customers to drive 50 miles out of their way for your service. Money can't buy that kind of trust.
From a retired Chrysler service Diagnostic engineer. Great job! Check the basics first.
I realize this is "just another day at work" for you but you've cleared reached a level of understanding in your work that makes what you do seem like absolute magic to the layperson. Well done, I'm sure your customer is very grateful.
I love it when people actually put full effort into doing their job.
This isnt full effort, its just good work ethic. The bar has been lowered so far, that this seems like going above and beyond.
Excellent work. It's rare to find honest mechanic like you
Truly depressing that a 2019 had such a failure(I know salt belt and all). But even more depressing that the dealership failed the very basic electrical diagnostic step powers and grounds. You can't call any part bad ceiling fan to TCU without first checking power and ground. He deserves a full refund and an apology.
I'm very disappointed with the age/mileage of this failure. A complete cable failure in under 50k miles. I'm in Minnesota, no stranger to road salt, but I've never seen such corrosion damage in 3 years/50k miles. I wonder if the owner hand washes his vehicle and has never gotten an underbody wash so the salt just sat in the braided cable?
This also a common failure with starters that have the same braided ground wire. Rich at Ford Boss Me coats the braided cables on the replacement units with liquid electrical tape, something these exposed braided ground wires apparently need in the rust belt.
@@TheOnespeedbiker About a month ago at a rest stop in PA in I-78 just across the bridge over the Delaware River a woman in a 9-10 year old Nissan large SUV with 100K on it who had just driven about 100 miles from Long Island wouldn't start with a jump start. I noticed the ground cable near the battery had damaged covering and some corrosion. I though it might be the starter was bad but I wonder if it too had a bad ground strap. LI has a lot of potential salt issues as near the ocean and heavy salt use in the winter. It had to be towed as unfixable there.
I’m amazed at how dealerships misdiagnose cars so frequently. They really need to think about how they train techs.
I was a dealer tech and he is right the don't pay us shit to diagnosis anything. We get paid to replace parts. Sometimes we can get additional time called mechanic time, but u can't push it.
@@Noodles3535 So would you recommend a dealer, or a mom and pop shop for repairs?
They keep lowering the standards because they can't pass the tests. Pretty soon all you'll need to get into school is a fuckin pencil.
There's a reason they're called "stealerships"....
I'm not surprised, I used to go to the dealership for all my work but the changing the rad hoses was the last straw for me. Constant leaking, 2 sets of hoses and $1000. When my 14 year old radiator on my 2007 finally started to leak 2 years after the hose work, I went to my down the street mechanic. He replaced it all for me rad and hoses for something like $800 and nothing leaked.
I'll be dipped. I never had a problem like that when I had mechanical power steering. I guess that's what you get when you try to electrify everything.
Without a doubt, GM should refund the diagnosis and restocking fees. Outrageous that a main dealer should get it this wrong!
happens everyday
Just used this video from a year ago (I commented on a year ago) to repair a co-workers truck that he was quoted over $4000 to repair at the dealer. Thanks for sharing all of your knowledge.
Thats crazy. I bet thats a great feeling
Watching you methodically track down a weird electrical issue like this is super gratifying. Awesome stuff!
I'm a domestic electrician and we can't rely on plug in laptop diagnostic equipment other than multimeters.. but rely on good old decades of experience where to look for certain pointers for our faults.
This guy worked thru eliminating variables to pinpoint the exact fault and yip...emmensly satisfying when you smash the fault thru good out detective work.
Troubleshooting complex systems is an art for sure. I did electronic repair for 40+ years, and I can tell you nothing makes you feel like you're in the wrong business faster than troubleshooting a strange problem for 30 minutes, and then finding out the thing isn't even plugged in. Nice Job! Seems like spraying the ground straps with Fluidfilm once a year would be a good thing for us all.
LOL that happened to me early in my career building satellites. The breadboard unit we were testing was not doing anything, took us an hour before we checked to see if it was plugged in. Now that is the first thing I check. Live and learn.
The dealership charged a parts return fee which is probably equal to the markup, and a diagnostic fee for services not rendered, as the diagnosis was not completed. This meets the definition of fraud. Customer relied on the dealership, and was charged money for nothing. Civil case should be filed if the dealer doesn't refund!
My dad, a life long (40+ years) mechanic, taught me to check the ground first. His advice has proven well, my entire life. Excelkent work SMA... showing the diagnosis steps.
“Classic” dealership misdiagnosing the vehicle at the owners expense. Great video Eric.
Thanks to your skill and honesty, the dealer and GM did the right thing. Before my 38 year career in Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, R&D, Machine Shops and industrial plant management I spent 15 years as a mechanic with 10 yrs as a certified master technician at 3 Chevy dealerships including positions as shop forman and service manager, plus 2 yrs at UPS as a tractor-trailer mechanic so I have seen it all. We had 11 Mechanics at Massaro Chevrolet in Niagara Falls, New York and only three of us were competent at electronic and electrical diagnosis and troubleshooting back in the '70s, when many mechanics were just parts changers. While I am absolutely certain that the competency ratio had to have vastly improved since then, due to the proliferation of computer controls, some mechanics will still be poor diagnosticians and will mostly just replace parts, as this customer experienced. Thankfully there are a few extraordinary experts like you who are willing to share their knowledge with those of us who still repair our own vehicles and help our friends and families. Thank you Eric, for doing all this with grace, humility and kindness !
Sincerely, Dan Cook
Absolutely an insulated cable is better. Anyone who says otherwise doesn’t live in the salt belt. Great job Eric! Nice to see you working with your family. I hope the customer goes back to the dealer to get a refund.
@mightywatcher Or just lazy. As an auto tech, I would not let most of the guys I have worked with change my wiper blades, let alone do any real work on my vehicle.
@mightywatcher probably a combination, rookies, lack of help from the experienced guys, lack of pay/screwed on flat rate, pressured to produce, or just a poor attitude lol. They may also be pressured to sell parts!
You know how much insulations costs? You may not be old enough to remember the Flintstones cartoon series. Fred gets a job as a stuntman. Director says something like "Fred, those fake rocks will fall on you. Make believe you are hurt". The person responsible for the rocks says "Fake rocks? You know how much fake rocks cost?" Director says "Ok, we will use real ones".