June 11-June 14

Since finishing my placement I have been presented with a number of different opportunities. Them most significant being presented with a job for the summer. My parents think co-op is an aweseome opportunity for me and they wish they had similar privilages in their day. Typical problems that arise are just some parts having excess rust, preventing them from being removed the proper way. The low point of the week was the last day because I really enjoyed going to co-op every day.

Thursday June 14, 2007

Today was my last day at co-op. Today was just like a normal day. We only worked on one car. I did a complete brake job on an Escape. This job inlcuded cleaning and lubricating keyparts. ALso, the pads were changed and the rotors were as well. I also did a p.d.i. and then it was time to leave. After I finished today, I started my summer job.

Wednesday June 13, 2007

Today I did a Maintenance 3 ona Lincoln Aviator. This consissts of lubricating all hinges and weather stripping. I also did a complete brake job on a Ford Freestyle which took a while. It then slowed down, so I took the opportunity to clean up my work area.

Tuesday June 12, 2007

TOday, the day started of working on a brand new mustang. As I arrived, Rich had just finished lowering the car 1 inch. We then followed this with a road test, and a then an alignment. We then checked a regular customer's Excursion and realized it needed some new front end components. This took the whole day.

Monday June 11, 2007

Today was a pretty busy day. It was very fast paced. The day started off with a customers van who was complaining of a vibration. It seemed like it was an issue with the tires, so I balanced the wheels and re balanced them. We took the van out following the balance and it revealed to us that the problem was solved. As we returned to the shop from the road test, another job was given to us, it was one of their bigger customer so he got immediate service. We took out his car for a road test for a general check. It showed us numerous components of the front end needed replacing as well as the switch to control the front window. This job was followed by a tire rotation, 4 wheel alignment and a road

Thursday June 7, 2007

THe first thing that Rich told me today was that we had another busy day. The first thing I did was put 2 tires onto rims for a Crown Victoria. Then I took a break while Rich was on lunch. When he came back, I had to put the tires back onto a car and we took it out for a road test. THe car was then returned to the customer.Then we took out a ford focus and did not hear the noise the customer was complaining about, but we did notice the rear wiper jet wasn't working. We went to fix it and found that the hose was off at the resevoir. We pu the hose back on and this fixed the problem. THen we moved onto a Crown Victoria. I took a lower grass shield off and then removed several steeering compoinent and replaced them. After this we did a brake job on a Focus, and then once that was done it was time to leave.

Wednesday June 6, 2007

TOday was a busy day. As soon as I arrived, I had work to do. It started off with a P.D.I. Which was then followed by putting new tires on a Ford Explorer. THen a car came in that needed some small jobs. It needed some body parts glued back on which I did while Richard was doing another job. I also found the source of a small leak in the tire. I then went and did a tire repair on it. This is about when Mr. Grace came in to talk to my supervisor. After this, the day slowed down and we spent some time cleaning the shop. I also put two new tires on a car that needed it. Also, there was a Ford Five Hundred that needed a new sway bar. It was a difficult job, and it took a while. Once this was done and the car was back together, we discovered and exhaust leak. I had to rev the engine while Rich looked for the leak. He found the leak and fixed it, then it was time to go.

Tuesday June 5, 2007

We started the day off by changing the end rods on a Ford Focus and then completing a four wheel alignment on it once the end rods were replaced. After that, it was taken for a road test and it was perfect so it was ready to be delivered to the customer. Later on, we did an alignment on a Mustang which was easy and was finished quickly, which was followed by a road test. After that, we took a vehicle out for a road test because the owner was complaining about a load grinding noise from the rear, the alignment was off and several other small things. Once we returned to the shop, we found the source of the grinding noise. The rear tires were severely cupped and needed replacing. That took up pretty much the whole day, tomorow we should pick up on what we left off on.

Monday June 4, 2007

Today was a very busy day. It started off with Richard finishing off an alignment. Once he was done we took the car out for a road test. Following the road test, Rich went for lunch and while he was on lunch I was told to change the tie rods on the Escape. I was almost done by the time he returned. Once that was done Rich did some work on the ABS module because there was a recall on some Ford Escapes. After this we aligned the Escape and as we were leaving, another mechanic stopped us and said he needed help, so I stayed back to help him. He was replacing an engine, and he needed me to put in the spark plugs and put the valve covers back on. This was a new experience for me. Also, he needed help lowering the engine onto the vehicles subframe which was also a new experience. After helping Jason, Rich was back and we did an alignment on a used vehicle which was being sold. The alignment was followed by a road test. Upon returning from the road test, we had to road test another car. After the road test, we found out that the car needed a new shifter bushing which was causing a rattle when shifting. After this was replaced it was time to go. Overall, today was very busy, but it was also a very good learning experience.

May 28- June 1 2007

When I have an idea, I do my best to have my ideas heard. I used to be hesitant to voice my ideas, but after a few correct suggestions I Have made it has increased my comfort level and confidence, now I don't hesitate to tell people my ideas. I am asked my opinion alot, but mostly when the mechanic isn't sure what the problem is and just wants to hear what I have to say. I have contributed to my placement from day 1. I always give 110% at my placement. My co-workers always listen to what I have to say, which makes me feel like a part of the team. I was complimented for an idea this week when we were working on a car that had a sqeak and we could not figure out where it was coming from, and I made a suggestion that ended up fixing the problem. I am always assertive at my co-op, I used to wait for things to come to me, but now I am more confident and I always apply myself.

Friday June 1, 2007

When I arrived to co-op today Richard was just finishing up a job and we went out for a road test. Once we returned from the road test richard went for lunch. While he was onlunch he wanted me to hacksaw through a knuckle so he could get a ball joint out and reuse it. I finished this before he got back from lunch so I went to help another mechanic. He needed help adjusting a sunroof so it wouldn't leak anymore. Once this was done, Richard came back and it was time to back to work. We first started to work on a Ford escape that had a sqeak in the rear. At first we thought it was the seats so we lubed them up, but it still squeaked. After another road test we decided to try to lube the shock, and this solved the problem. After this job we moved onto a Ford Tauris that need the fron knuckles replaced. This job took a while, but it was fairly easy. Also, we did an alignment on the taurus after the knuckles were put on. Today was a busy day, and so was this entire week.