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The Ferret King posted:Thanks for the reply. Any guess as to the reason for the spring other than feel? I've never seen a vehicle with a hydraulic clutch without a return spring on the clutch pedal. I'm not going to say there aren't any out there, somewhere, though.
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Jul 30, 2015 14:21
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I have a question in regards to parts. Don't they make OEM and aftermarket stuff in the same factory, on the same assembly lines and just stamp in a brand? I mean you gotta be paying the premium for OEM branding, just seems OEM sounds like BS, Motorcraft and poo poo. Also do mechanics get pissed if I bring my own parts in? Do they make money on ordering parts? Yinzer fucked around with this message at 16:37 on Jul 30, 2015 |
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Jul 30, 2015 16:32
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Yinzer posted:I have a question in regards to parts. Don't they make OEM and aftermarket stuff in the same factory, on the same assembly lines and just stamp in a brand? While I imagine that there is some badge-engineering going on for parts, in my experience, it isn't the norm. Depending on the make and part, OEM might be crap-tier while aftermarket stuff might be better, but that varies wildly across the industry. It is definitely a faux pas to bring your own parts to a mechanic, especially if you're expecting a warranty on work. Some mechanics may make a markup on parts, but mostly they stick to their suppliers so they can make warranty claims on parts, too.
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Jul 30, 2015 16:39
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EightBit posted:While I imagine that there is some badge-engineering going on for parts, in my experience, it isn't the norm. I find that my mechanics can generally find a third-party part for about the same price that I can (excluding ebay crap). Plus if anything goes wrong with the part (defective, wrong version, design flaw) then it's not my problem. That's worth it for me
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Jul 30, 2015 17:08
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Yinzer posted:I have a question in regards to parts. Don't they make OEM and aftermarket stuff in the same factory, on the same assembly lines and just stamp in a brand? I found that the consumables for my car can be had straight from the OEM manufacturer, without the OEM packaging (but sometimes with the OEM stamping on the parts!), for less. For example, Mann makes the filters for my VW and I can buy the filters from Mann with the VW logo on them (but in a Mann labeled box) cheaper than I can buy the same filter from VW (in a VW labeled box).
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Jul 30, 2015 17:32
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Yinzer posted:I have a question in regards to parts. Don't they make OEM and aftermarket stuff in the same factory, on the same assembly lines and just stamp in a brand? It goes all over the place. Seems like most of the time, OEM is higher price without any significant change in quality over a good aftermarket part, but there are certainly outliers on both extremes. Case in point, a lot of the various Dorman custom parts that are specifically designed to replace flawed OEM parts, like Ford intake manifolds. On the other side, the aftermarket Anchor engine mounts for a WJ that don't even have the bolt holes in the right loving spot.
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Jul 30, 2015 18:28
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I have a 2007 Toyota Corolla S, automatic that rumbles. It only happens after it has been driving for a while and it's most severe when slowing down (doesn't matter if I'm braking or not.) Occasionally so bad that the steering wheel shakes. Parts store guy had me jack it up and check for play in the front wheels but there was none.
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Jul 30, 2015 20:42
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Sigma X posted:I've never seen a vehicle with a hydraulic clutch without a return spring on the clutch pedal. I'm not going to say there aren't any out there, somewhere, though. Thanks. I like the compromise mod of attaching a return spring to the dash mount to lift the pedal without adding that weird uneven travel back to it. I'll get a spring this week and try it out. The spring it comes with is both an assist and return spring (as it pivots during pedal movement it transitions between those two functions.) I don't mind the pedal getting needed help to come back up to its resting place, but the spring-middle-spring-clutch resistance is weird feeling and adds a poo poo load of travel to the clutch pedal.
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Jul 30, 2015 21:36
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I'm thinking about buying a new car, but have started doing some research first. Are there any websites out there that give a clue as to what dealer invoice is on various brands?
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Jul 31, 2015 05:23
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Wicaeed posted:I'm thinking about buying a new car, but have started doing some research first. Coatcos auto program seems pretty good at this. I know there are others though, can't think of any.
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Jul 31, 2015 05:43
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EightBit posted:While I imagine that there is some badge-engineering going on for parts, in my experience, it isn't the norm. Every mechanic marks up parts. How much they mark it up depends on the shop and how much they like you. And yeah, never expect any warranty beyond covering an installation issue if you bring your own parts. Generally most shops I've dealt with have parts prices pretty close to what you'd pay at a parts store anyway. My mechanic has no issue with me supplying parts, but makes it clear he's only going to warranty the actual installation. He generally deals with imports, while I drive a domestic; I don't think his Alldata subscription even covers domestics anyway, so he generally only gets to work on it when it's something I don't have tools for or something requiring specialized equipment. Or something I'm just not comfortable handling myself. "OEM" parts for my car would be either AC Delco, which doesn't make any of their own parts, or Delphi (which makes most, if not all, of their own stuff). AC Delco often has rebates; NGK actually makes good chunk of the Delco spark plugs, but the rebate made the Delco branded version a lot cheaper when it was time to do plugs on my car. Oddly, I just checked Rockauto for an ignition module for my car, and Delphi is the cheapest. And of course, there's various tiers of aftermarket. Dorman tends to be one of the good ones.
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Jul 31, 2015 06:54
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Ok so out of curiosity (not because I have an issue anymore), what are some pretty tell-tale signs your spark plugs need to be replaced? Injectors too. I'm not sure we have the money to get a tune-up done on my car but it's about due for one I think (driven it 50k in the last 2-2.5 years). My wife's car has a 90k checkup due but we're going to wait on cash for that as well. How long should we even put it off? Do tune-ups usually go over things like spark plugs and such? As bad as this sounds, I've never had a car long enough to get a tune-up, and the past few years I've driven Honda & Acura (my wife drives a Lexus) which we know will go at least 200k miles as long as we take care of them.
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Jul 31, 2015 13:55
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life is killing me posted:Ok so out of curiosity (not because I have an issue anymore), what are some pretty tell-tale signs your spark plugs need to be replaced? Injectors too. The book in your car will list everything that's recommended at the 50k checkup, (Or look online) It's probably going to be: Change oil, Check belts, Replace Air filter, Replace cabin Air filter, Visually inspect stuff like tires, axels, suspension. Depending on if the car is blue or not you can probably do the plugs on your own for like $2 each if you really want to.. probably not needed Everything should cost you less than 100 to do on your own, and you can look online for your specific model to see how to check the other things for wear.
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Jul 31, 2015 14:01
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 Spark plug chat: 400 SBC, multiport EFI, said it misses in overdrive. One plug dark, has newer msd wires / dist / cap / rotor. Motor sat for almost a year. He's wanting to change plugs but I don't see that solving the miss long term. Backfires thru throttle body on cold start sometimes so I can only guess as to what's going on with base timing and advance but without a windows laptop and link up to the computer, it's a mystery. Accel gen7 / dfi6a control. Distributor is so far under the cowl it might as well be in the center console.
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Jul 31, 2015 14:24
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tater_salad posted:The book in your car will list everything that's recommended at the 50k checkup, (Or look online) I'm worried I wouldn't gap them right if I did it myself, though I'm fully capable of doing so and this is probably an unfounded concern. Although I don't really have any reason to believe the spark plugs even need to be replaced--I'm pretty sure I'd know if my 4-cyl engine was missing. The rest of the stuff? I guess I'm good then, because when I have my oil changed I leave it there and catch a ride back to work, and I tell them to replace the cabin air filter and the engine air filter if they need. Half the time they don't replace them. But I've had them call me back and tell me there was "significant tire rot and wear" on brand-new tires before, so I don't even think at this point I can really trust "kwik-lube" type mechanics.
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Jul 31, 2015 14:26
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Yinzer posted:I have a question in regards to parts. Don't they make OEM and aftermarket stuff in the same factory, on the same assembly lines and just stamp in a brand? I can only speak for my company from experience, but I imagine almost all companies [who make OEM components are similar]: yes. But the thing with aftermarket is that everything is a bit "looser". For example, there may be a 0.1mm gap difference between two different OEM spark plugs for two different engines, but it's entirely possible that those engines have the same spark plug recommendation in the aftermarket. In addition, OEM parts may have features not immediately apparent that aftermarket parts lack that may or may not affect the performance. I think of the upcharge with OEM parts as the price you pay for the guarantee that this part was chosen specifically for this engine/vehicle and has been thoroughly validated, etc. When it comes to something like an air filter, okay, validation doesn't mean much, probably. But with much more critical components, it may be worth that extra charge to ensure that the part you're getting is absolutely the right one. Entangled posted:
On one hand, it's possible that there is something in the electricals (wire/cap/distributor) causing a misfire and that is causing the fouling. On the other hand, ehhh... Try running a compression test on that cylinder (well, and the others, too)? Looks like oil is getting into the cylinder and fouling the plug. totalnewbie fucked around with this message at 14:54 on Jul 31, 2015 |
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Jul 31, 2015 14:37
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life is killing me posted:I'm worried I wouldn't gap them right if I did it myself, though I'm fully capable of doing so and this is probably an unfounded concern. Although I don't really have any reason to believe the spark plugs even need to be replaced--I'm pretty sure I'd know if my 4-cyl engine was missing. gapping a plug is pretty easy, you grab a $2 tool, and you can find the specs online no problem for your vehicle. FYI if your greasemonkey place is charging you more than $20 to replace either of those filters you can do it yourself and save some cash. Edit: some plugs even come gaped to the right spec for your car.
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Jul 31, 2015 15:00
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totalnewbie posted:On one hand, it's possible that there is something in the electricals (wire/cap/distributor) causing a misfire and that is causing the fouling. On the other hand, ehhh... I agree, I want to see compression numbers. Going to try to get my gauge from home soon as we don't have one with us. Good excuse to buy a leakdown test set, hopefully I can find one local or get something cobbled up from hardware store parts. Not sure if Advance or Autozone would have one, might call to see. Quite a few people have speculated bad injector but I don't think that plug would point to an injector issue? tater_salad posted:gapping a (copper) plug is pretty easy Entangled fucked around with this message at 15:12 on Jul 31, 2015 |
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Jul 31, 2015 15:01
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^^^ well if the injector is bad, it can certainly cause a misfiretater_salad posted:gapping a plug is pretty easy, you grab a $2 tool, and you can find the specs online no problem for your vehicle. Don't gap plugs if you've got precious metal plugs, especially with a tool, because you will break the center electrode. * you can gap precious metal plugs, yes, but you need a set of pin gauges to do it safely without damaging the center electrode. You could probably do it with other types of gauges, but it increases the risk of damage.
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Jul 31, 2015 15:04
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^^^ all of this is true.. As I mentioned before though.. generally if you have something that's not copper you can get em pre-gaped from the parts store. The last set of plugs i bought (A long time ago) had a gap listed and I think the box said "no gaping required" or something. The last set of plugs I had to set a gap on were for a 73 VW, so I wasn't dealing with split fire precious medal plugs.
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Jul 31, 2015 15:30
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tater_salad posted:^^^ all of this is true.. Do precious metal plugs like platinum ones really offer any advantage? What about new wires?
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Jul 31, 2015 15:31
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I own a 1995 ford ranger 4.0 manual. Starter died recently, seized up so as I thought it was the battery dying. Tested the battery, it was fine. I thought this was going to be simple, so I installed a new starter in the Autozone parking lot like an rear end in a top hat. Started raining. Slapped it together. While driving home noticed a weird noise, sounded like electrical whine with maybe a bit a of crackle. Suspected the starter solenoid was not disengaging. Checked the wire crimp and installation. Everything looked ok. Took the starter back to Autozone, installed new starter, sounded even worse - like unholy death. Best guess is the flywheel and starter motor gear clattering together intermittently (fairly regularly, but not regularly enough to just whine). Tried to shim the starter, sounds (cannot confirm) like the noise was quieter, but there was still a hell of a lot of noise. Can anyone help?
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Jul 31, 2015 15:32
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life is killing me posted:Do precious metal plugs like platinum ones really offer any advantage? What about new wires? Use what is OEM for the vehicle. New wires? How old is the car? do they look cracked/ worn?
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Jul 31, 2015 15:33
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tater_salad posted:Use what is OEM for the vehicle. No, but in truth I haven't looked hard at them. I don't think they are. My car is a 2010 TSX. I am just trying to figure out why they make new harnesses that are all tricked out with neon colors or whatever, other than for modders to make their engine look cooler. I have no interest in modding. I want my car to be as stock as possible, besides (as I mentioned a page or two ago) having TL Type S wheels. There's really no reason to modify my car when it's fine as it is, but I had just wondered if there was any other reason people get precious metal spark plugs and crazy colored wires.
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Jul 31, 2015 15:37
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Here's the secret Yellow Wires add about 5-10 HP depending on manufacturer.. Wire loom also adds about 2 HP. If you're modifying your car then y may need to go different than OEM in order for the plugs to work in the combustion situation that you have created. Generaly though 95% of the time it's just dudes doing stuff they think is cool / better, when they don't know WTF they are doing.. the other 5% is people who have done the research and know what they need/are doing..
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Jul 31, 2015 15:44
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tater_salad posted:Here's the secret Yellow Wires add about 5-10 HP depending on manufacturer.. Wire loom also adds about 2 HP. I'm guessing sarcasm in the first sentence? Like I said, I'm not trying nor do I ever want to try to modify my car because it performs fine from what I can tell and I have no need to extract 600000000000 hp from my 4cyl VTEC. It was purely curiosity and stupid questions
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Jul 31, 2015 15:54
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life is killing me posted:I'm guessing sarcasm in the first sentence? Like I said, I'm not trying nor do I ever want to try to modify my car because it performs fine from what I can tell and I have no need to extract 600000000000 hp from my 4cyl VTEC. It was purely curiosity and stupid questions Use OEM or OEM-spec spark plugs and wires. If you car came with single electrode copper plugs, buy those. If it came with dual-electrode iridium-plated plugs, buy those. "Better" plugs, like Iridium or Platinum will burn at different temperatures, and will cause problems with your engine, over time. If you car has lost power over time and it's due to cracked/damaged plugs or wires, yes, getting new ones will add that power back. But no, buying $500 RACE WIRES will not magically give 5 HP.
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Jul 31, 2015 16:00
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I suspect the biggest advantage to, and OEM choice of, precious metal spark plugs is that they're good for a very long service interval and resist effects of contamination. From what I gathered, OEM platinum plugs would get the manufacturer through the emissions warranty without the need for a dealer service, which with the hassle it is to gain access to plugs on some engines makes sense.
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Jul 31, 2015 16:19
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Sigma X posted:Use OEM or OEM-spec spark plugs and wires. If you car came with single electrode copper plugs, buy those. If it came with dual-electrode iridium-plated plugs, buy those. "Better" plugs, like Iridium or Platinum will burn at different temperatures, and will cause problems with your engine, over time. I mean, I didn't really think so. I wouldn't spend that much money on "race" wires or any wires. I really think Honda does a good enough job with their engineering
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Jul 31, 2015 16:21
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life is killing me posted:Do precious metal plugs like platinum ones really offer any advantage? Yes. Platinum is old technology and is basically not as good as iridium and more expensive to boot. Platinum does offer better high temperature oxidation resistance but improvements in center electrode materials have really rendered this a moot point. Get iridium, not platinum. (Unless your OEM is platinum and you'd rather get OEM; but if you're going to buy an aftermarket part and are trying to decide between two similar parts, one platinum and one iridium, go with iridium.) Precious metal spark plugs basically offer two basic advantages: much longer durability and much better ignitability (which is the speed at which combustion occurs; if ignitability is too low then your engine will misfire, etc.). The better ignitability in turn gives you much more flexibility in your engine (A/F, combustion timing, etc.) I would agree that you should probably just go with whatever is OEM, but if you do want to use a precious metal plug, it does actually offer real benefits, first and foremost for the consumer being increased durability. Sigma X posted:Use OEM or OEM-spec spark plugs and wires. If you car came with single electrode copper plugs, buy those. If it came with dual-electrode iridium-plated plugs, buy those. "Better" plugs, like Iridium or Platinum will burn at different temperatures, and will cause problems with your engine, over time. How, exactly, do precious metal spark plugs "burn" at different temperatures? It's possible that, on older vehicles, moving from nickel -> precious metal will need spark timing adjustment, but all modern vehicles are capable of adjusting spark timings on their own and moving from nickel -> precious metal will not cause problems with your engine. I know people have all sorts of anecdotes but that's generally the case. Also, iridium spark plugs aren't "iridium-plated". They're an iridium alloy throughout the tip.
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Jul 31, 2015 16:47
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I have my car in at the mechanic, but it sounds like they are grasping at straws. I was in an accident, someone backed into me. Shortly after that, I started getting a single click upon braking. This only happens the first time I brake going forward after I have been going backward. So I back out of a parking space, drive to the exit, stop, click. Or I start from a hill with my manual transmission, and next time I stop, click. I took it to the shop, they said the exhaust was bent, it sounded related to the accident,and it was the shifting on the mounts that put everything in position to click. The insurance guy got there and said that the exhaust had been pushed up from the back, not from the front. He said the clicking was from the muffler being right up against a bracket, but he couldn't explain how that would fit my symptoms, so I get the feeling he is full of poo poo. Does either of those sound plausible for my symptoms? I think I might just have to take it in to a muffler shop, have them fix it, and take it back in if it doesn't fix it.
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Jul 31, 2015 17:38
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tater_salad posted:Here's the secret Yellow Wires add about 5-10 HP depending on manufacturer.. Does this carry over to fuel injectors as well? I might have a yellow top Accel 30# injector dying on us. In reference to the one odd spark plug I'd posted earlier - we pulled compression numbers on the engine, or at least on the cylinder in question and the ones adjacent to it. Showed ~160 psi on the two 'reference' cylinders, and nearly 170 on the one with the dark plug. Suspect it's reading higher as it's probably wet, either from oil coming past a valve seal, or from fuel leaking from that injector. Going to have to fish the rail out and see if swapping injectors makes any difference in drivability or plug deposits. e: Forget what I said earlier about not suspecting an injector issue.
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Jul 31, 2015 22:41
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Alright so atlanta has really lovely roads and my 94 ranger bounced me up into the roof of the cab at least twice today. I have cheap monroe shocks on all around and have never done anything with the springs or anything on the front. You guys think a better quality shock would fix that or do I need to look at shocks and springs?
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Jul 31, 2015 22:42
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Yinzer posted:I have a question in regards to parts. Don't they make OEM and aftermarket stuff in the same factory, on the same assembly lines and just stamp in a brand? While there are some examples of places only swapping a brand, its pretty rare to see it. Almost anything you buy at a parts store or similar is going to be made on a different assembly line or remanufactured by a 3rd party like A1 Cardone. And generally you are paying a premium for the OEM branding and motorcraft seems to be the absolute worst offender that I've seen so far. It generally depends on the shop doing the work. I have some shops I deliver to that don't mark up prices from their discounted price, I have some that charge retail price and there are some that go above retail price. But generally, unless you discuss it with the shop doing the work, don't bring your own parts in.
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Aug 1, 2015 03:59
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1994 Lexus SC400 Had an intermittent check engine light since I've had it. Codes are 21, O2 Sensor and 25 Lean Air/Fuel. I've replaced the Sensor on the driver's side, which is what 21 is for, hasn't made a difference. I have a feeling that it might be a vacuum leak which is why it's intermittent. The car itself runs beautifully when it's cold, then as it warms up it gets sluggish - could that be the rubber hoses expanding as the car warms up, worsening the leak? There's also an annoying issue with the Power Steering. Runs perfectly when it's cold, starts grinding and getting really stiff when the car is warm. I've flushed the fluid a couple of times, would a vacuum leak do this, introducing air into the PS lines and making it crap? Or would this be separate?
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Aug 1, 2015 04:48
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PS would be separate. Sounds like the pump is toast. Replace the other primary O2 sensor. It's very possible "left bank" actually refers to the left bank when looking at the front of the engine, which would be the passenger side sensor. I may be talking out of my rear end on this one. It looks like it's the same part number for both the left and right bank sensors, so you can simply swap them with each other and see if it throws a code for the other sensor. A bad oxygen sensor will cause the ECU to think the car is running extremely lean. So will an exhaust leak, and it's possible that a leak between the MAF and throttle body/bodies may cause that as well. The reason the car runs fine when it's cold is because it completely ignores the O2 sensors (and some others) while cold - it doesn't start using them until the coolant reaches a certain temp. So I doubt it's a vacuum leak. randomidiot fucked around with this message at 05:58 on Aug 1, 2015 |
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Aug 1, 2015 05:56
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Elmnt80 posted:While there are some examples of places only swapping a brand, its pretty rare to see it. Almost anything you buy at a parts store or similar is going to be made on a different assembly line or remanufactured by a 3rd party like A1 Cardone. Are you sure about that? Why would a manufacturer, if they do provide parts for OEM, build an entirely different production line for aftermarket parts?
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Aug 1, 2015 14:44
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On a late 90s, early 2000s automatic Ford, I have two drives. One is marked with a D surrounded by a circle, one is just D. What does that mean?
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Aug 1, 2015 17:59
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22 Eargesplitten posted:On a late 90s, early 2000s automatic Ford, I have two drives. One is marked with a D surrounded by a circle, one is just D. What does that mean? That's Drive and Overdrive. OD has a higher gear ratio and can be used all the time, except for certain situations like towing or steep elevation changes. (AKA "use it for cruisin', not workin'.") Ex-husband used his OD button as if it was some sort of turbo mode and popped it when overtaking traffic too fast like the douche he was/probably still is.
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Aug 1, 2015 18:10
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So I want to refresh the suspension on my 07 Civic Si. It has ~130k miles, and I assume the majority of the suspension components are original. I did outer tie rods so far, and have front lower ball joint pars ready to go. I guess my question is, since I am going to have to get the car aligned afterwards, what else should I do up front? I am not really sure how to diagnose suspension issues, the car tends to clunk a little on ruts/bumps and I think the shocks/springs are just tired. But it also has a little bit of a disconnected feeling in the wheel during suspension travel and the front end just feels a little...loose. I am thinking springs/struts all round, maybe the HPF kit (OEM performance kit that is reasonably priced) and the lower ball joints. I just figured while I am in there and getting the car aligned afterwards I should fling as much new rubber at the car at once as I can. Any suggestions based on what I have described? Tires are basically new and seem to be wearing evenly.
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Aug 1, 2015 20:48
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