Any Mechanics near Harrisburg Pa.

[ak46champ]

Looking for a mechanic to adjust my TDC offset. Any help would be appreciated thanks!

[trbankii]

I'm in Harrisburg, but haven't heard too much about mechanics other than that Sutliff on the East Shore is a better dealer than Forbes on the West Shore. Haven't heard anything about independent mechanics working on the GM diesels.

[93_Burrito]

I am adamantly anti-Sutliff. They are the largest dealer in the area, and they treat you with as much respect as you impact their bottom line (not much). My personal experiences with their technicians and service writers leave MUCH to be desired.

That being said, I am a fan of Forbes Chevrolet in Camp Hill. 717-761-0600. I'm in real good with the guys at the parts counter, Rick and Jerry. Couldn't ask for nicer, more helpful guys. I made a phone call for this post. I never had to have "diesel service" performed, so I asked if they had any diesel mechanics on hand. Jerry told me Jim Scherer is their diesel mechanic, and was told he's got a lot of experience with 6.5's, not just Duramax's. Tom Mannion (sp?) is their transmission specialist who also works on diesels from time to time.

Don't like those choices? Well, I would avoid Lawrence Chevrolet in Mechanicsburg. Lefever Brothers Chevrolet in Dillsburg is good. Hmm, this is certainly an opinionated post...

[trbankii]

My utmost apologies. Truthfully, I haven't had to deal with either of the dealers (Sutliff/Forbes) yet, but coulda sworn that it was Forbes that people had warned me off of in the past.

I fully retract my previous statement.

Never dealt with Lawrence, although I went to elementary school with his daughter many (many, many) years ago. My neighbor has ties to Lefever in Dillsburg and recommends them - he has a gas 'Burb, so I cannot exactly speak for diesels down there.

[ak46champ]

Thanks for the help. I am in Ft. Indiantown Gap right now for the next two weeks. I put JK's TD-max boost controller in about a month ago and it smokes a bit with a load and without a load. I am towing a 9500lb triler back home. I talked to JK a while ago and he recomended to have the TDC offset to -1.91 for starters. I will give those guys a call and see if they can help.

[93_Burrito]

Tom,

No apologies necessary. Maybe you have heard contrary to my personal experiences with Sutliff. Sutliff does have a dedicated truck center, which some view as a bonus. It doesn't guarantee honest service, as I've found out.

[trbankii]

I know of one particular bad experience a co-worker had with Forbes, but events since then relating to the co-worker sort of calls their end (the co-worker) of the equation into question.

When I bought my '93, I had called Sutliff and they were very helpful in trying to look up the truck in their database to see if they could give me any insight on maintenance history. Other than that and test-driving a truck at Forbes several years ago, I haven't had any personal dealings with either one.

My neighbor's contact with Lefever is through a family member that works there, so I'm sure they'd treat you well by giving his name. But Dillsburg is pretty much the opposite side of things from Ft. Indiantown Gap.

If anyone is up for breakfast on a weekend morning or a beverage or two in the evening, let me know. Unfortunately, I haven't even got the truck far enough along to get it inspected and on the road yet. Currently the Saab is in my garage with its engine torn apart for - guess what - a trashed harmonic balancer... Can't seem to get away from them... smile.gif

[93_Burrito]

I just picked up my '95 Tahoe from Frederick, MD. Paid taxes on it yesterday, now I've got 10 days to get it inspected. This weekend I will tear into it somewhat to find out what needs attention to pass.

The speedometer jumps around occasionally, and other times the Check Gages light comes on. I suspect that is happening due to a bad ground somewhere. The Tahoe came with mismatched batteries, so I will swap those out sometime soon with a pair of Optima batteries and go for 2/0 battery cables as I did with the pickup I just sold.

I haven't heard the lift pump operate. Need to check it as well as the oil pressure switch. The oil cooler lines are weeping, and the front tires are worn unevenly due to a bad alignment. Still have plenty of tread to pass inspection, but I need to rotate the rear tires up front and see how it tracks then. Got some brake squeal... hoping it's just dust. Parking brake cable definitely needs adjustment.

Lots of little things to deal with. As it is, the Tahoe is a lot of fun to drive. I'm sure I'll be in for a treat when I subject it to a few power enhancements. Of course, gages first. I'd really like to take it to Kauffman Motorsports on Route 15 in Dillsburg and see what kind of numbers it will put out on their dyno. It's neat to have a baseline, then see how far you've taken things.

[trbankii]

Sounds sweet!

Any particular reason you have ten days to get it inspected? The inspection actually ran out before I bought the truck the end of last summer. Meant to have it all fixed by the end of the year, but other things have been coming up.

Feel sort of bad about hijacking the thread. I'm hoping the new forum software that is being talked about allows PMs for stuff like this.

[93_Burrito]

My understanding is that the 10-day window is a PennDOT requirement. I have a temporary tag and registration from Maryland which is good for 60 days, but PA likes to squeeze you once you pay your taxes and register the vehicle. I transferred the license plate from my pickup to the Tahoe (it was suggested this be done for simplicity's sake, will get a new tag later when I reregister the Tahoe as a car), so I've got the plate and registration sticker on now but I'm lacking an inspection sticker. I have to carry a receipt from the notary proving I'm legit in case I get pulled over.

I received the title from the dealer in Maryland, and was kinda surprised to learn it was titled in Virginia. I don't know anything about their laws, but the odd thing (to me) was that the title shows its GVWR at 9000 lbs. The notary and I got a giggle from that, the sticker on the driver's door says 6110 lbs.

[trbankii]

Oh, ok. I didn't realize you were driving it. As I said, mine's been sitting in my driveway since last summer. It's all registered, but I'm waiting until things are fixed to get insurance and get it inspected.

[93_Burrito]

Yeah, I should have mentioned that I've been driving it since I picked it up. I can drive it through April 5th if I choose to keep the Maryland temporary tag and registration...

Finally started tearing through the Tahoe in the garage... found lots more stuff that needs attention. This thread's been hijacked enough, I'll document everything for later.