Don’t you wish cars were simpler to work on than they used to be?

There’s just no escaping how much more involved almost any job has become – not just more serious engine repairs but basic tasks like replacing a headlight bulb or changing a battery. We spoke to Rich Barnett.

It’s frightening how involved some jobs have become, like the one where replacing the turbocharger on a certain four-wheel drive involves lifting the body – there is a ‘short-cut’ involving dropping all the front drivetrain and bringing the engine down, but that, so a man in the know tells me, can take just as long.

“ There’s a lack of appreciation among too many drivers about just how difficult many jobs are.... ”

What never ceases to amaze me is just how high customer expectations are these days, and how a customer expects a car to be fixed, and fixed now. There’s a lack of appreciation among too many drivers about just how difficult many jobs are, but in my ideal world they’d all understand just how much work can be involved. And, what’s more, they’d have to pay accordingly.

The independent workshop trade is almost too good at hiding its light under a bushel, but there’s more to servicing a car than just being able to pick up a screwdriver or spanner and getting on with it. The rise of on-board diagnostics – and a greater use of electronics in modern motors – means today’s technicians are much more boffin-like than they’re given credit for.

It’s time to recognise the great work modern independent workshops do – time to shout it from the rooftops, in fact. And the sooner that starts, the better. Anyone want to have a go?