Compare the Price of an Auto Shop Versus DIY Repairs with AutoMD [Saving Money]

AutoMD is a handy webapp that has a repository of text, photo, and video DIY repair guides, helps you diagnose problems with your vehicle, find a reputable mechanic in your area, and let you know what a repair should cost in your area to help with negotiations or determine if you should attempt the repair yourself.

My 2006 Scion xB is in need of a tune-up soon. For my area AutoMD estimates that if I did the repairs myself it would take 3.5 hours, cost $141.48 for the parts, and links to tutorials and parts/tool lists for each of the steps involved in the tune-up. If I chose to go with a mechanic, AutoMD estimates that I should spend $166.93 in parts and $159.25 in labor for a total of $326.18. Assuming the repair doesn't look beyond my capability my 3.5 hours spent doing the tune-up myself are paying me back $52.77 per hour for doing the repair myself ($326.18-141.48 = 184.70/3.5 = $52.77/hr) .

This seems like an excellent tool for those who wish to increase their auto repair knowledge. At the very least you'll know what what you should pay for the repair. AutoMD also offers an iOS app with all the major functions of the web site and is free from the iTunes App Store.

AutoMD: Shifting the Power to You | via MakeUseOf

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/uRMw8y90ypY/compare-the-price-of-an-auto-shop-versus-diy-repairs-with-automd

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Nuclear waste shipment enters Germany (AP)

BERLIN ? A shipment of nuclear waste reprocessed in France has arrived in Germany on its way to a controversial storage site that protesters say is unsafe.

The dapd news agency reported the train carrying the waste crossed into western Germany early Friday after delays in France where activists damaged the rail tracks in an attempt to halt the shipment.

Some 20,000 police officers will be securing the shipment in Germany.

This is the first shipment of nuclear waste from France to Germany since Berlin decided to shut all its nuclear plants by 2022, following the disaster at Japan's Fukushima plant.

But officials haven't yet resolved where waste should be stored permanently ? and activists argue the site in northern German town of Gorleben is unsafe.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111125/ap_on_re_eu/eu_germany_nuclear_waste

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