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Slavvy
Dec 11, 2012

melon cat posted:

I'll try that. Thanks.

My Elantra is a dark gray colour. But it isn't just "gray". It has a bit of... glitter. Well, not really glitter. But it's a subtle "sparkle" within the body paint. I'm not sure how I'd locate a spraypaint with a colour like that at a local hardware store. But in case I am I able to find it- what kind of primer is best for car paint?

How expensive is stuff like this at bodyshops over there?

Here you just get your paint code from the dealer, give it to a shop and you'll probably pay around $150.

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Nuclear Tourist
Apr 7, 2005

I know nothing of car detailing. What's a good wax to use for getting rid of those small, shallow scrapes you tend to get from brushing snow off the car? Would this stuff work?

InitialDave
Jun 14, 2007

I Want To Believe.

Nuclear Tourist posted:

I know nothing of car detailing. What's a good wax to use for getting rid of those small, shallow scrapes you tend to get from brushing snow off the car? Would this stuff work?
Most likely.

How deep are the scratches? Can you feel them with your fingernail? If not, they should buff out with a kit like that pretty easily. I can also recommend Meguiar's Ultimate Compound for mild scratch removal.

There is a good detailing thread HERE, populated with goons who know their stuff.

Nuclear Tourist
Apr 7, 2005

Thank you. I'm blind, didn't even notice that a detailing thread existed.

HarmB
Jun 19, 2006



I've got a 2006 Miata. I've been using my OBDLink SX USB OBD2 dongle and ScanXL to read some info off my car. I saw some posts about using OBD readers & console commands to send codes to a Prius. Are there any resources for info on how to do similar things to my car? I saw some things I could set(perhaps to no real benefit) on mine such as intended RPM. I'd be doing this mainly for shits and giggles, but I've seen things like auto-lock which are typically dealer options that'd be neat to program in.

Michael Scott
Jan 3, 2010

by zen death robot
I've got a 2004 Camry LE. I've got a transmission question. It has what I think is a 4-speed automatic that is known for being reliable, but I've got an issue. If I get on the highway within 15-20 minutes of starting the engine, it has trouble upshifting enough.

This is not a cold start followed by getting on the freeway immediately. Even if I drive around for a while until the temp needle moves to almost halfway, this still happens. I'll get on the highway, merge at 50-60MPH, but the RPMs will be stuck at 4, 5 or even approaching 6k. I'm on the highway in medium traffic usually so it's not like I can slow to a crawl or speed up to 80MPH to encourage my transmission to shift. So I will be forced to let the engine race, usually for a few minutes or a few miles, at which point it will suddenly upshift and return to normal at ~2-2.5k at 60MPH. By the way I use cruise control often, but this happens whether or not I use cruise. I'll turn off cruise and try every position of the accelerator pedal to encourage it to shift, but nothing will work until it just decides to after some time on the highway. I'm worried I'm doing some damage or at least wasting gas by letting the engine race.

I know the previous owner took care of the car. It is very low mileage. I just rolled it over to 30k miles. I don't believe the AT Fluid has been changed in its 11-year life, which wasn't concerning because of the low miles, but could old fluid be causing this issue?

Though it previously had a low mileage life, I now drive it at a normal interval, a hundred miles a week maybe.

Michael Scott fucked around with this message at 21:40 on Feb 15, 2015

candywife
Mar 3, 2011
I've got a 2011 Ford Escape and the check engine light is on.
It came on right after I put gas in it on my way home from work, so I checked the owner's manual which said my gas cap is probably off.
Um ok, my car doesn't have a gas cap but I checked anyways to make sure there wasn't something stuck in the little flap. I also checked the oil and other fluids and everything was fine.
No leaks, weird sounds or smells, the engines running as good as it usually does (lol).
Checked the manual again and it advised to start up the car, drive it on the freeway, then cool down the engine and make a ring of salt around it while summoning saint frances three times.
Did all that, the light is still on and the last thing the manual says is to bring it to a mechanic.

My car has done weird poo poo a couple of times before, and every time I take it in they're like "There's nothing wrong with your car. We couldn't replicate the issue you were having under any conditions, diagnostics comes back fine, etc."
I feel like I'm an vehicular hypochondriac now, and I can't keep throwing money at my stupid car for them to tell me it's all in my head or whatever.
I think my car is possessed by a lovely ghost or something.

Safety Dance
Sep 10, 2007

Five degrees to starboard!

candywife posted:

I've got a 2011 Ford Escape
possessed by a lovely ghost

Confirmed.

Do you live in Not California? If so, go to an autoparts store and get them to read the check engine light codes for free. Report back.

Slavvy
Dec 11, 2012

Michael Scott posted:

I've got a 2004 Camry LE. I've got a transmission question. It has what I think is a 4-speed automatic that is known for being reliable, but I've got an issue. If I get on the highway within 15-20 minutes of starting the engine, it has trouble upshifting enough.

This is not a cold start followed by getting on the freeway immediately. Even if I drive around for a while until the temp needle moves to almost halfway, this still happens. I'll get on the highway, merge at 50-60MPH, but the RPMs will be stuck at 4, 5 or even approaching 6k. I'm on the highway in medium traffic usually so it's not like I can slow to a crawl or speed up to 80MPH to encourage my transmission to shift. So I will be forced to let the engine race, usually for a few minutes or a few miles, at which point it will suddenly upshift and return to normal at ~2-2.5k at 60MPH. By the way I use cruise control often, but this happens whether or not I use cruise. I'll turn off cruise and try every position of the accelerator pedal to encourage it to shift, but nothing will work until it just decides to after some time on the highway. I'm worried I'm doing some damage or at least wasting gas by letting the engine race.

I know the previous owner took care of the car. It is very low mileage. I just rolled it over to 30k miles. I don't believe the AT Fluid has been changed in its 11-year life, which wasn't concerning because of the low miles, but could old fluid be causing this issue?

Though it previously had a low mileage life, I now drive it at a normal interval, a hundred miles a week maybe.

Change your trans fluid and hope the trans isn't rooted beyond repair.

Usually when a car does something like this the best course of action is not to just keep driving while it gets worse.

candywife
Mar 3, 2011

Safety Dance posted:

Confirmed.

Do you live in Not California? If so, go to an autoparts store and get them to read the check engine light codes for free. Report back.


I fuckin knew it!

I don't live in Not California.
I guess I'm taking it to the mechanics AGAIN tomorrow.
Hopefully something is actually wrong with my car this time so I don't look crazy.

Michael Scott
Jan 3, 2010

by zen death robot

Slavvy posted:

Change your trans fluid and hope the trans isn't rooted beyond repair.

Usually when a car does something like this the best course of action is not to just keep driving while it gets worse.

What could have caused it to begin with? The fluid is rated for well beyond the miles it's at in its life, I guess 11 years is kind of long for ATF but it shouldn't kill a transmission..

nitrogen
May 21, 2004

Oh, what's a 217°C difference between friends?

Safety Dance posted:

Confirmed.

Do you live in Not California? If so, go to an autoparts store and get them to read the check engine light codes for free. Report back.

You might want to invest in one of these things, and a smartphone app like torque or EngineLink as well.

Memento
Aug 25, 2009


Bleak Gremlin

Michael Scott posted:

What could have caused it to begin with? The fluid is rated for well beyond the miles it's at in its life, I guess 11 years is kind of long for ATF but it shouldn't kill a transmission..

ATF, just like every other fluid in your car, breaks down over time. 11 years is far longer than you should be leaving anything in your car. ATF contains all sorts of detergents, anti-oxidising agents and lubricants that will lose their ability to do their job over time. I wouldn't put a sealed bottle of ATF that was 11 years old in my car's transmission, and yours is not only that old, it's also been heated up and cooled down several hundred times, which also accelerates chemical change.

So yes, it could have easily damaged your transmission. This could be one of those things where changing the fluid and the filter is all it needs for another 11 years at 2.7k/year, or you could do that, and it progressively gets worse until the transmission stops engaging altogether. There's no real way of knowing on an internet forum.

Raluek
Nov 3, 2006

WUT.

Michael Scott posted:

I've got a 2004 Camry LE. I've got a transmission question. It has what I think is a 4-speed automatic that is known for being reliable, but I've got an issue. If I get on the highway within 15-20 minutes of starting the engine, it has trouble upshifting enough.

This is not a cold start followed by getting on the freeway immediately. Even if I drive around for a while until the temp needle moves to almost halfway, this still happens. I'll get on the highway, merge at 50-60MPH, but the RPMs will be stuck at 4, 5 or even approaching 6k. I'm on the highway in medium traffic usually so it's not like I can slow to a crawl or speed up to 80MPH to encourage my transmission to shift. So I will be forced to let the engine race, usually for a few minutes or a few miles, at which point it will suddenly upshift and return to normal at ~2-2.5k at 60MPH. By the way I use cruise control often, but this happens whether or not I use cruise. I'll turn off cruise and try every position of the accelerator pedal to encourage it to shift, but nothing will work until it just decides to after some time on the highway. I'm worried I'm doing some damage or at least wasting gas by letting the engine race.

I know the previous owner took care of the car. It is very low mileage. I just rolled it over to 30k miles. I don't believe the AT Fluid has been changed in its 11-year life, which wasn't concerning because of the low miles, but could old fluid be causing this issue?

Though it previously had a low mileage life, I now drive it at a normal interval, a hundred miles a week maybe.

I don't know anything about these cars, but is it possible that it's an electronic auto that isn't getting the correct tps reading? Like, it thinks you're at WOT all the time so it tries to hold the gear as long as possible? My first thought was vacuum modulator, but I'd hope they aren't still using those on a car that new.

Safety Dance
Sep 10, 2007

Five degrees to starboard!

candywife posted:

I fuckin knew it!

I don't live in Not California.
I guess I'm taking it to the mechanics AGAIN tomorrow.
Hopefully something is actually wrong with my car this time so I don't look crazy.

I said auto parts store. Think Advance Auto Parts, Autozone, O'Reilly's, etc. They'll pull the code for free, then you can come back here and tell us what's really wrong with your truck.

Memento
Aug 25, 2009


Bleak Gremlin

Safety Dance posted:

I said auto parts store. Think Advance Auto Parts, Autozone, O'Reilly's, etc. They'll pull the code for free, then you can come back here and tell us what's really wrong with your truck.

candywife posted:

I don't live in Not California.

I read this to mean "I do live in California, home of the brave and land of the gently caress no we can't tell you what the codes are from your car, you might try to fix it yourself".

Slavvy
Dec 11, 2012

Raluek posted:

I don't know anything about these cars, but is it possible that it's an electronic auto that isn't getting the correct tps reading? Like, it thinks you're at WOT all the time so it tries to hold the gear as long as possible? My first thought was vacuum modulator, but I'd hope they aren't still using those on a car that new.

On that car engine computer and trans computer are the same thing.

Safety Dance
Sep 10, 2007

Five degrees to starboard!

Memento posted:

I read this to mean "I do live in California, home of the brave and land of the gently caress no we can't tell you what the codes are from your car, you might try to fix it yourself".

Oh, yeah, whoops. My bad. Good luck, candywife!

Kia Soul Enthusias
May 9, 2004

zoom-zoom
Toilet Rascal

nitrogen posted:

You might want to invest in one of these things, and a smartphone app like torque or EngineLink as well.

http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B005NLQAHS
Here's one that's rated a little better!

tuyop
Sep 15, 2006

Every second that we're not growing BASIL is a second wasted

Fun Shoe
My 2010 Mazda 3 Sport GS is making this terrible squealing metal-on-metal sound in the front driver side wheel well. I took a video. The brakes aren't being applied at all in the video, it's just rocking. It only does this when moving at low speed below 60kph, and it doesn't make any sound when stopped or revved. Steering makes no difference.

I think it's been doing this for like a week, but I'm not the primary driver of the car these days so I'm not sure.

I ask because it's a holiday and I have like 11 hours of driving to do today, what is the worst thing that this could be and how likely is it that I'll be stranded like 400 kilometers in?

Thanks!

kastein
Aug 31, 2011

Moderator at http://www.ridgelineownersclub.com/forums/and soon to be mod of AI. MAKE AI GREAT AGAIN. Motronic for VP.

tuyop posted:

My 2010 Mazda 3 Sport GS is making this terrible squealing metal-on-metal sound in the front driver side wheel well. I took a video. The brakes aren't being applied at all in the video, it's just rocking. It only does this when moving at low speed below 60kph, and it doesn't make any sound when stopped or revved. Steering makes no difference.

I think it's been doing this for like a week, but I'm not the primary driver of the car these days so I'm not sure.

I ask because it's a holiday and I have like 11 hours of driving to do today, what is the worst thing that this could be and how likely is it that I'll be stranded like 400 kilometers in?

Thanks!

Jack it up and take the wheel off and inspect things (take pictures of whatever you find that is making the noise, post them here) before you drive anywhere, because that could either be a heatshield that doesn't matter or you about to buy a steering knuckle, alignment, balljoint(s), CV axle, wheel bearing, rotor, and pads instead of just a wheel bearing.

Oh, and a tow. Don't drive a car that makes noises like that unless you know exactly what's wrong and are prepared to repair it on the spot, because it only gets expensive from there on in. I've seen all the above parts either destroyed or not removable from other parts that got destroyed after someone drove with a failing wheel bearing. Since it was all rusted together we also ended up replacing a half dozen alignment cam bolts and suspension bushings just because they got ruined taking the whole thing apart.

nwin
Feb 25, 2002

make's u think

2006 Honda Accord 4 cylinder EX-L.

Problem with a P0139 code.

I posted in the last thread that in early January the check engine light came on and Autozone gave me the above code (plus another dealing with AB-S, code 61-1). I unplugged the battery, hooked it back up, and drove probably 1500 miles with no problems.

The CEL light came on again 2 weeks ago, so I figured it was the O2 sensor (the one underneath the heat shield by the cat). I bought the part off Amazon, replaced it last week, and it was driving fine. I pulled the battery cable off again in order to reset the CEL.

I've been driving it fine with no problems (average 50 miles/day, so a total of maybe 200-250 miles). Then this past Friday, the CEL came on again, so between me pulling the battery cable after I installed the new O2 sensor, I'm guessing I had around 200 miles on it.

Brought it back to Autozone today-P0139 code again.

What else could be the problem? It's been brutally cold here in New England, so I'm wondering if moisture on the sensor is causing it to gently caress up maybe? Anything else I'm missing? Oddly, the other code went away this time and only the P0139 code popped up.

The Crystal Ship
May 11, 2013

The days are bright and filled with pain;
Enclose me in your gentle rain;
The time you ran was too insane;
We'll meet again, we'll meet again;
So, I'm new to living in the north. It recently got into the negatives and so my car is indicating that the tires need to be filled up. My question is should I actually do it? I don't want them to be over inflated once it warms back up. Please advise.

Godholio
Aug 28, 2002

Does a bear split in the woods near Zheleznogorsk?
Yes you should do it.

You should also check them every once in a while, even if you have TPMS.

Safety Dance
Sep 10, 2007

Five degrees to starboard!

The Crystal Ship posted:

So, I'm new to living in the north. It recently got into the negatives and so my car is indicating that the tires need to be filled up. My question is should I actually do it? I don't want them to be over inflated once it warms back up. Please advise.

Fill 'em up. Once it gets back consistently above freezing, you can check them again and air them down if need be.

tuyop
Sep 15, 2006

Every second that we're not growing BASIL is a second wasted

Fun Shoe

kastein posted:

Jack it up and take the wheel off and inspect things (take pictures of whatever you find that is making the noise, post them here) before you drive anywhere, because that could either be a heatshield that doesn't matter or you about to buy a steering knuckle, alignment, balljoint(s), CV axle, wheel bearing, rotor, and pads instead of just a wheel bearing.

Oh, and a tow. Don't drive a car that makes noises like that unless you know exactly what's wrong and are prepared to repair it on the spot, because it only gets expensive from there on in. I've seen all the above parts either destroyed or not removable from other parts that got destroyed after someone drove with a failing wheel bearing. Since it was all rusted together we also ended up replacing a half dozen alignment cam bolts and suspension bushings just because they got ruined taking the whole thing apart.
Thanks for the warning. I knew it could be awful.

The sound seems to be gone now and
I can't see anything wrong, though. What could make it intermittent like that? It was doing it constantly for at least two days before.

IOwnCalculus
Apr 2, 2003





tuyop posted:

My 2010 Mazda 3 Sport GS is making this terrible squealing metal-on-metal sound in the front driver side wheel well. I took a video. The brakes aren't being applied at all in the video, it's just rocking. It only does this when moving at low speed below 60kph, and it doesn't make any sound when stopped or revved. Steering makes no difference.

That sounds a lot like the noise my Mazdaspeed3 made when it managed to get a rock jammed between the backside of the rotor and the dust shield.

The Crystal Ship posted:

So, I'm new to living in the north. It recently got into the negatives and so my car is indicating that the tires need to be filled up. My question is should I actually do it? I don't want them to be over inflated once it warms back up. Please advise.

Assuming you fill them properly to the value listed on the doorjamb, unless your temperatures have a 60+ degree swing in the next week, you'll have lost enough pressure just through normal use that it won't be overinflated by the time it warms up. If you somehow had a 90 degree swing in temperatures tomorrow, aside from setting some sort of world record, you'd be overinflated by about 8 PSI which really isn't that hard to deal with using a tire gauge.

The Crystal Ship
May 11, 2013

The days are bright and filled with pain;
Enclose me in your gentle rain;
The time you ran was too insane;
We'll meet again, we'll meet again;
Thanks for your help everyone!

PaintVagrant
Apr 13, 2007

~ the ultimate driving machine ~

IOwnCalculus posted:

That sounds a lot like the noise my Mazdaspeed3 made when it managed to get a rock jammed between the backside of the rotor and the dust shield.


I had the same issue with my Accord, except it was fresh road patching asphalt. So it glued itself to the heat shield and I had to take the wheel off and flick it off. Thought the caliper was siezed or something else weird.

Slavvy
Dec 11, 2012

tuyop posted:

Thanks for the warning. I knew it could be awful.

The sound seems to be gone now and
I can't see anything wrong, though. What could make it intermittent like that? It was doing it constantly for at least two days before.

It sounds exactly like a stone between the disc and backing plate.

Queen_Combat
Jan 15, 2011
My rear brakes squeak a little on hard stops. They squeaked all of the time, so I took the drums off (including purchasing an impact gun and 36mm impact socket specifically for this job), cleaned out approx. 1200 pounds of brake dust, verified brake shoe thickness (still good), then reassembled everything. They didn't squeak at all for, maybe, two miles of driving, then started right back up.

I guess I'll just have to deal with it. I mean, heaven forbid I drive a car without embarrassing myself.

(Who am I kidding? It's a beetle, I should be constantly embarrassed)

Slavvy
Dec 11, 2012

In this situation you should take the shoes off, clean the back plate, apply some grease to the little shoulders where the shoes touch the plate and use some sandpaper to chamfer the sharp edges of the shoes. Never fails.

spog
Aug 7, 2004

It's your own bloody fault.

Godholio posted:

Yes you should do it.

You should also check them every once in a while, even if you have TPMS.

I want to take this opportunity to curse all POs who seem to have an inability to keep tyres at the right pressure.

Any time I check a tyre that I didn't previously check, they are always 10psi down.

Last night I checked my new car - 35 on the label, 25 in the tyres. I used my little 12v compressor and melted it.

I don't know why pressures are so neglected: it is a literal 3 min job with no thinking if you use a mains compressor with a digital gauge.

Slavvy
Dec 11, 2012

Because putting effort into their vehicle is anathema for 90% of owners. It's an appliance that takes care of itself until you send it to the mechanic for service.

Uthor
Jul 9, 2006

Gummy Bear Heaven ... It's where I go when the world is too mean.

CharlesM posted:

http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B005NLQAHS
Here's one that's rated a little better!

It's $19 with free shipping at Newegg right now.

Slavvy
Dec 11, 2012

My car takes NGK plug BKR5EY-11. I can get BKR5ES-11 for next to nothing and have fitted those with no apparent issues. What is the purpose of the v-grooved electrode? I remember reading somewhere that it's an anti-fouling measure but I can't imagine how it would make any difference and after several thousand km my plugs aren't fouled at all despite it being an old Toyota.

gvibes
Jan 18, 2010

Leading us to the promised land (i.e., one tournament win in five years)
I saw a car in the parking lot with one of the five wheels lugs missing. Is that as much of a death trap as I think it is?

Rear wheel on a volvo xc90 in the unlikely event it matters.

totalnewbie
Nov 13, 2005

I was born and raised in China, lived in Japan, and now hold a US passport.

I am wrong in every way, all the damn time.

Ask me about my tattoos.

Slavvy posted:

My car takes NGK plug BKR5EY-11. I can get BKR5ES-11 for next to nothing and have fitted those with no apparent issues. What is the purpose of the v-grooved electrode? I remember reading somewhere that it's an anti-fouling measure but I can't imagine how it would make any difference and after several thousand km my plugs aren't fouled at all despite it being an old Toyota.

It's to theoretically control the location of the spark better for ignitability. The spark preferentially goes to edges, so having the V-groove means the spark preferentially sparks towards the center of the plug, rather than all around the edges. It's not an anti-fouling measure.

melon cat
Jan 21, 2010

Nap Ghost
Just following up on my smashed side-mirror.


I tried to remove that black panel (circled in green). But had no luck getting it off after an hour of swearing and fighting with it. Then, I heard the crackle of plastic, so I stopped pulling at it. I tried pulling it off both by hand and through the use of a slotted screwdriver. but only the top corner was coming off.

Also- how do I determine if my sideview mirror is a heated one? Just asking for when I order a replacement piece online (there are heated and non-heated versions). I noticed two cables attached to the mirror glass's rear (circled in red). Does this indicate that the mirror is heated?


kastein posted:

Bring it to a shop.
:negative:

melon cat fucked around with this message at 02:35 on Feb 17, 2015

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kastein
Aug 31, 2011

Moderator at http://www.ridgelineownersclub.com/forums/and soon to be mod of AI. MAKE AI GREAT AGAIN. Motronic for VP.
Bring it to a shop.

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