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Comment by hunterjrj | Hacker News Reader

I'm kinda-sorta excited by the author's idea, but there are (at least) three major differences facing a would-be do-it-yourselfer between an automobile and a 1990s-era PC that should temper his optimism:

1. For many people, their automobile is their primary mode of transportation. Tinkering with it and potentially making it unavailable for use is not something many will risk.

2. There is a clear difference in tooling requirements between popping in a shiny 14.4k model (90s era, after all) and swapping out a piece of drive train.

3. Component cost

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> 2. There is a clear difference in tooling requirements between popping in a shiny 14.4k model (90s era, after all) and swapping out a piece of drive train.

You'd be surprised at how easy it is to swap out weird and wonderful drivetrain parts [0]. People put water-cooled drivetrains into vehicles that were originally air-cooled. People put GM V8s into foreign cars that only ever had small V6s or inline 6s.

There's a burgeoning industry in creating swap kits for putting EV drivetrains into cars as well [1]. It's mostly settling on standardized components.

[0] http://www.engineswapdepot.com/ [1] http://www.evwest.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=40

People put GM V8s into foreign cars that only ever had small V6s or inline 6s.

Corvette engine in a Miata (https://www.flyinmiata.com/V8/)

Corvette engine in a 911/Boxter (http://renegadehybrids.com/)

Putting a chevy V8 into a V12 Jaguar was a common way to "fix" it.

The company that pioneered the swap was named 'Jags That Run'.

I don't buy 1 for a minute. Enthusiasts have been tinkering with cars much, much longer than people have had computers to tinker with.

It's true if you're only exposed to places where people think of cars as disposable and don't have machine shops and warehouse space available (read: cities and suburbs).

Venture out into more rural environs, on the other hand, and you'll see what an enterprising individual can do with a large air compressor, some air tools, and a stick welder.

I can tell from that statement that you've never called in sick because the entire rear axle of your vehicle was sitting off to the side because you needed a critical part from the dealership to put it back together :-)

No, many won't risk that. But there are any number of things that many people won't do. Car people are full of stories about staying up all night to reassemble the engine so they could get to work the next day.

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