Thursday was a half day at work, so here’s a quick synopsis of the day’s activities.
The fist job on hand was a quick fault diagnosis on a Peugeot 206. I completed that in a few minutes and moved on to a Mitsubishi Lancer that needed its brake pads to be changed. This job took a while! Finally, I changed the AC filter on a Peugeot Partner and completed my quota for the day. The next hour was spent in the training room with Jishar after which I left at around 2.30 p.m.
Another day completed at work! Here’s how it went.
I began with my usual training session with Jishar. At about 11.30 a.m., I went into the workshop and immediately started working on a Peugeot 307. We replaced the starter motor of the vehicle, a part that proved extremely difficult to work on, since it was located behind the main engine compartment in a hollow cavity in the chassis of the vehicle. Soon after, I began work on a Peugeot 207. Here, I first detached the dashboard, then Sixen and I completely overhauled the center console and AC blower system of the vehicle.
The final job was to perform fault diagnosis on a Peugeot 206CC, and to repair its faulty electric windows and sunroof.
I leave you now with a few pictures from the day.
Performing repairs on the 307.
The new center console of the 207 is in the foreground with the old, faulty one in the background.
The DIAGBOX tool runs on this laptop.
We opened up the door panel of the 206CC to repair the faulty electric windows.
In the morning, I underwent training in air intake systems with my trainer, Jishar. He explained the theoretical aspects of the topic first, then showed me an entire air intake system that was detached from a car and kept in the back office. About a hour and a half of training later, I went to the workshop.
The first car on the agenda was a beautiful white BMW 750Li. It required new spark plugs and a routine oil change. I thoroughly enjoyed working on a car like this, after nearly two weeks of working on Peugeots. Sixen and I completed this job my lunchtime and were well on schedule for a few more tasks.
After lunch, I returned to work on a Peugeot 308. It was a rather simple job requiring a change in the variable solenoid of the car. Soon, I completed it and headed to the control room.
There, I found the job order card for a Peugeot RCZ sports car and quickly snapped it up. The recent rains had created havoc in its engine compartment. We performed repairs on it’s turbo and changed its fuse box. Finally, we changed the engine oil. This job took much longer than expected. Thereafter, I performed Global Tests on two Peugeot 207s and called it a day.
On the way home, I spotted two sweet little classics in a public parking lot, just the right way to top off the day!
I will leave you now, with some pictures from today.
The Beemer 750Li. I opened it all up!
Sure looks odd in a workshop full of hatchbacks.
Under the 750’s hood.
The classic Mercedes that I spotted on the way home.
I reinitialized the fuel pump of a Peugeot 206 in the morning. Got petrol all over me with that!
Second, I replaced the battery of a Peugeot 3008 CC and worked on it’s fault diagnosis with the DIAGBOX (it’s just a laptop with a fancy name).
I was done by lunchtime and headed out to the cafeteria.
When I returned, I went in for my training session with the trainer, Jishar. We had a 3 hour long session where Jishar taught me about the fuel intake system in vehicles. This is a continuos course which will last for the next few weeks and will cover more complex topics in the future.
That’s it for today! Here are some pictures from te
Okay it’s been over a week since I joined, but since I started posting late, here’s Day 3.
I started today after a three day break due to the weekend and stop weather. As I entered, Sixen had just brought in a Peugeot 3008 from the yard. We were assigned to repair the turbocharger. What seemed like a simple job (only the dump valve had to be replaced), took over 2 hours as we quickly found out that the turbocharger’s chutes were leaking and the entire thing needed replacing. Fortunately, the car was still under warranty, else it would have cost the owner a pretty penny. So, I replaced the dump valve while Sixen performed the more complex repairs and we were good to go by around 12.00 noon. We then filled out the particulars of the repairs performed on the vehicle’s job card and soon left for our lunch break.
We returned an hour later to find a Peugeot 307 requiring our attention. We quickly repaired the car’s radio and moved on to the other repairs. Soon, we realized that this car required a complete BSI checkup and fault diagnosis. So, I brought the repairs laptop along and off we were. By about 3 pm, we were done. Soon after, my father arrived and I left with him.
Today was a mild day at work. Thursday being a half day, I got off early at around 1.oo pm. However, today marked a landmark in my internship experience. It was the first time that I was allowed to do unsupervised work.
A Peugeot 206 required an AC repair and this called for the dashboard to be removed from the car. Fresh from my experience of opening the dashboard of another 206 yesterday, I volunteered to do the job. Sure, I exceeded the 40 minute time limit allowed for preliminary repairs, but I was allowed to go on since it was my first solo experience. I really enjoyed doing it and I leave you now with some pictures from the job.
Friday is an off day for work so I will see you all on Saturday!
The untouched dash.
My tools.
Work in progress. Detaching the center console.
Without the dashboard and steering wheel.
My handiwork! The detached dashboard is on the bottom right.
My board examinations have ended and I am done with school!
Recently, I have begun an internship at the service center of one of the largest automobile dealership in the UAE, which primarily sells Peugeot cars. However, the service center also operates on most major European cars.
Through this internship, I aim to gain experience in working with vehicles so that I am better prepared for automobile related projects that I plan to undertake in college, such as FSAE and renewable energy related ventures.
Starting today, I have decided to post daily updates of the work I do at the service center. I do all my work under supervision of technicians and mechanics at the facility.
So here goes…
DAY 1
I started at 9.30 this morning with a simple fuel pump replacement on a 2009 Peugeot 206.
Second, we received a Peugeot 508 sedan with a litany of repairs to be performed. My assigned technician, Sixen, and I replaced the leaking water pump and installed a new fuse box as the previous one was smoked.
At a few minutes to 12.00 noon, I went over to another part of the workshop and observed a mechanic perform a rather tedious clutch repair on a bulletproof Peugeot Boxcar. It was fascinating to lift the car and get under the engine. Of course, I wasn’t allowed to physically take part in such a complex operation.
After lunch, I began some real work. Sixen and I opened up the dashboard of a 2008 Peugeot 206 to fish for a parking card lost by the owner inside the dash. It was fascinating to actually put myself to work on such a project and I learnt a lot by way of practice. Sixen made me do most of the work and explained the use of each tool while I did so. After taking out the card, I put the dash back on and left soon after, around 3.30 pm. I took some pictures during the work, and have posted them below.
Hope you enjoyed this first post and stay tuned for daily updates through April and May.
These pictures were taken at the amazing BMW Museum in Munich, Germany. Hope you like them! Do follow the blog if you think you’d want to see more of my work! And of course I’d really appreciate it if someone reblogs this, but maybe I’m pushing my luck with that. 😉
Bullet in a Maelstrom 