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Tire question: Just bought a used car after 6+years without one. It came with balding summer tires that even brand new aren't rated well for the wet. I didn't realize how bad they were until I was caught in a heavy downpour the other night and could barely keep the car from hydroplaning. I was already looking at Continental Extreme Contact DW506 - they seemed to be decent all season tires, had good reviews, etc. Any major reason to stay away from that brand? I've always had Goodyear because for the longest time on my previous car, Goodyear was the only tire I could get for my wheel size / car. I went to the garage I had always gone to and they didn't have the tires I wanted in stock. Not a big deal, but the guy at the garage tried instead to push some BF Goodrich tires on me. (He even tried the line: "Yeah, I took the Continental and Goodrich tires to the track and tested them out, the Goodrich tires had so much more grip".... yeah, I'm sure he happened to do just that.) Outside of the tries lasting less than expected, I drive maybe 5000-6000 miles / year, I'm more worried about performance in the rain.
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Aug 30, 2016 15:47
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geeves posted:Tire question: What kind of car? Listen I am all for performance tires, but my feeling is just get a good deal on some decent tires (no chinese crap). I recently went new Goodyears on both of our cars and I am pleased with performance and wear (although a little loud)
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Aug 30, 2016 16:05
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I have the older DWS tires (not the 06) and they're great in the rain. See if there's a Discount Tire near you as chances are they have them in stock. If not, check out Tire Rack as they can ship to a nearby in network tire shop (they have recommendations and reviews). If you don't drive in snow or the cold, the "DW" version of the tires may also interest you. You can always check out other tire reviews on Tire Rack. The ones you were steered to may also be good. I just found the DWS to be a good mix of performance and price.
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Aug 30, 2016 16:08
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Enourmo posted:Absolute best practice would be to drill a hole in the metal and run the wire through its own grommet, but anecdotally, hacking a hole through the existing harness grommet worked fine on my Protege, and I ran wires and a vacuum line through it. No don't do this. Drilling holes in the metal means (I know both he and you are in non rust zones, but still) sharp edges and risk of corrosion. Find a grommet that's got a blockoff plug in it or follow other wires through... make sure the cable leads downward as it leaves the grommet on the engine compartment side (form a drip loop, basically) and put the fuse as close to the battery positive terminal as you can. Honestly, what are the power requirements of the radio? You can probably just wire it to the cig lighter outlet wiring behind the dash, unless it's a super high power radio and/or you intend to transmit near constantly, which, well, you're not supposed to do that.
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Aug 30, 2016 16:12
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everdave posted:What kind of car? Listen I am all for performance tires, but my feeling is just get a good deal on some decent tires (no chinese crap). I recently went new Goodyears on both of our cars and I am pleased with performance and wear (although a little loud) 97 M3 sedan. If I at one point want to take my car to the track or something, I have no problem getting tires actually suited for track driving. For now I just need tires that can deal with rain, a bit of snow and the 10,000 pot holes in this loving city. Uthor posted:I have the older DWS tires (not the 06) and they're great in the rain. See if there's a Discount Tire near you as chances are they have them in stock. If not, check out Tire Rack as they can ship to a nearby in network tire shop (they have recommendations and reviews). Tire Rack is where I was reading the reviews. Didn't know TR will ship to a nearby shop, so I'll definitely check that out - thanks! I'm in Pittsburgh so we do get a bit of snow, but I hate driving in it. I'll call Uber. I don't have a garage or a place that lends itself to storing a set of snow tires for the winter. :/
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Aug 30, 2016 16:28
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SouthsideSaint posted:With something like that it won't be much more to get it oem from the stealership. Yeah, that's an hour drive each way and $20 for a cap. Edit: I guess my real question is whether going with a 16 is going to make much of a difference. I read somewhere that each additional psi raises the boiling temp by about 3*. Any truth to that? I'm not going to lose sleep over 6*, especially considering I'm upgrading the garbage factory radiator. Godholio fucked around with this message at 16:47 on Aug 30, 2016 |
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Aug 30, 2016 16:43
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Godholio posted:Yeah, that's an hour drive each way and $20 for a cap. Here, six bucks on Amazon: https://smile.amazon.com/ACDelco-12...s=ACDELCO+12R10 e. ten cents more if you want the safety lever: https://smile.amazon.com/ACDelco-12...=ACDELCO+12R10S They're $2-3 on RockAuto, but $shipping$
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Aug 30, 2016 16:47
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 That delco DID NOT show up in my search yesterday. I wouldn't have even bothered posting.
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Aug 30, 2016 16:52
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kastein posted:No don't do this. Drilling holes in the metal means (I know both he and you are in non rust zones, but still) sharp edges and risk of corrosion. Find a grommet that's got a blockoff plug in it or follow other wires through... make sure the cable leads downward as it leaves the grommet on the engine compartment side (form a drip loop, basically) and put the fuse as close to the battery positive terminal as you can. Up to 50 watts transmitting power. Powering it off the 10A cigarette lighter circuit is generally discouraged.
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Aug 30, 2016 17:04
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RillAkBea posted:It's a trite old adage that 90% of a good paint job is prep but it really is. To make it not look terrible you're gonna need to put in the time sanding and polishing before, in between and after. That said though, depending on the size of the job, for cost effectiveness your best bet is probably regular spray cans. I already have some paint in a jar that the body shop gave me after fixing up some damage a suburban did when it backed into me. The rust spots are tiny, I didn't even notice one until a couple days ago. I also have a large patch going gray, presumably from the sun over the past 17 years. Can I use the jar of paint or should I go to the dealership and pay a ridiculous amount for it? It's a '99 Subaru, and it's already got a new hood from aforementioned accident, so a little mismatching isn't a big deal.
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Aug 30, 2016 17:51
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Pham Nuwen posted:Up to 50 watts transmitting power. Powering it off the 10A cigarette lighter circuit is generally discouraged. 50W / 12V = 4.16A  I realize that radios aren't 100% efficient, but still, what's the actual amp draw? Also, at least on my '98, the lighter and power point were two separate circuits, each with their own 20A fuse. '05 owners manual that I just found seems to agree with this. Worst case, I'd run an add-a-fuse off of the fuse box already in the cabin.
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Aug 30, 2016 20:23
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IOwnCalculus posted:50W / 12V = 4.16A Specification is "under 11A" (http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/fm_txvrs/tm241aS.html), which seems to be a pretty typical draw for a 50W radio. I'm ok with operating at medium power for less draw but can basically guarantee you I'll gently caress up and do full power at some point. I'll look up a fuse diagram and also check into add-a-fuse, that's something I haven't seen before, seems useful. Edit: I used to plug it into the cigarette adapter on my Hyundai Accent and at anything except low power it would low-volt the radio just enough to make it bounce between "on" and a weird half-on state, making my TX audio choppy.
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Aug 30, 2016 20:39
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I wouldn't be surprised if half the problem is just trying to get a good contact with the lighter socket itself for that kind of amp draw. If I were in your shoes, I'd probably rewire both the lighter and the power point to be on one of the two 20A circuits, and hardwire the ham radio to the other now-empty circuit.
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Aug 30, 2016 21:01
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IOwnCalculus posted:I wouldn't be surprised if half the problem is just trying to get a good contact with the lighter socket itself for that kind of amp draw. If I were in your shoes, I'd probably rewire both the lighter and the power point to be on one of the two 20A circuits, and hardwire the ham radio to the other now-empty circuit. The other reason to wire directly to the battery is to isolate the radio as much as possible from the rest of the car's electronics, which don't expect to be sharing a power source with a 50W VHF transmitter. Although wiring it inside is temptingly easy, I'm trying to balance that against my desire to avoid e.g. RFI-induced deployment of my Takata airbags.
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Aug 30, 2016 21:16
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Car electronics are pretty dirty anyway - I can't imagine there will be any significant difference between 12V at the battery terminal and 12V past a couple of fuse panels as long as the wiring is rated for it but  I'm gonna have to go through this myself soon enough anyway. Had a Technician license back around something like 1992 or 1994, never renewed it, but now that I actually offroad once in a while it would be useful again. Need to schedule a test, been farting around with a practice test app on my phone and haven't failed it yet!
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Aug 30, 2016 23:35
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Looking to tint my car. Does tint brand really matter? Any recommendations on which ones to go with/stay away from?
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Aug 31, 2016 01:37
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Uthor posted:It's happening to my mother's car. I don't know if stability control is really off, but the light that says it's off has turned on and I can't enable cruise control. I feel like you said your parents live close to ohare. I am the Subaru guy at my shop and have a few customers that come to me for Subaru things. PM me for more info if needed.
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Aug 31, 2016 01:49
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lol internet. posted:Looking to tint my car. Does tint brand really matter? Any recommendations on which ones to go with/stay away from? Check your local laws to see what you can get away with first. Nothing like dumping a bunch of money on it then having to get it removed before your court date.
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Aug 31, 2016 02:56
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Godholio posted:Check your local laws to see what you can get away with first. Nothing like dumping a bunch of money on it then having to get it removed before your court date. They require 24% front and back but there seems to be lots of brands of actual tint film which I was asking about and not too sure about.
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Aug 31, 2016 03:36
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geeves posted:97 M3 sedan. If I at one point want to take my car to the track or something, I have no problem getting tires actually suited for track driving. For now I just need tires that can deal with rain, a bit of snow and the 10,000 pot holes in this loving city. DWS are good tires, I used them on my 328 in Vermont for warm weather tires. Decent handling, good rain performance, okay-ish in a touch of snow. They'll work well for you. 
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Aug 31, 2016 04:37
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lol internet. posted:They require 24% front and back but there seems to be lots of brands of actual tint film which I was asking about and not too sure about. Regardless of brand, the more you spend, the better the tint gets (more color stability, more heat/solar rejection, more clarity, less reflection, less darkening, less interference). 3M has some really nice stuff from midrange on up. Huper Optik is also nice if you prefer superior German adhesives. Ceramics and crystallines are ~the wave of the future~. 3M and Huper films installed by an authorized dealer carry a nationwide warranty—many of the smaller brands don't, which may be worth considering if you're likely to move while you still own the car. Molten Llama fucked around with this message at 21:58 on Aug 31, 2016 |
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Aug 31, 2016 21:55
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EDIT: 2003 Honda Civic hybrid. Went in today to get my car smog-checked, and since I recently had the hybrid battery replaced, asked the guy to double-check that all the sensors were happy before they actually did the work. And it turns out that basically all of the sensors are saying "N/A", like the car can't even see them. I'm not passing a smog check like that. When I failed my smog check two months ago due to a check engine light, the sensors got a "pass" from the technician. I got the battery replaced (by GreenTec Auto out of Sacramento, CA) because that's what the check engine light was on for; then about a hundred miles later, the light came back on, so I got it replaced again under warranty (while noting to the company's tech support that I was trying to pass smog and the light was on). I'm wondering if maybe something that the GreenTec tech did could have disconnected the sensor lines somehow? I called them up and of course they said "no, that's nowhere near the battery, there's no way we could have caused that problem". And I'm not remotely an expert here, so I didn't have a comeback. Basically here I'm thinking this company has already hosed up once by giving me a crap hybrid battery, I wouldn't put it past them to gently caress up something else. But do I have a valid hypothesis here? Note that they do go in under the hood when they replace the battery, though I can't recall what for besides that they checked my oil level for some reason. TooMuchAbstraction fucked around with this message at 00:10 on Sep 1, 2016 |
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Aug 31, 2016 22:53
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So i have a 2000 toyota celica that recently (today) started to run rough on my way back home. when that happened i popped it into neutral then shut the engine off and coasted to the side of the road. the engine was smoking(white smoke) beneath the hood and the back. now the car won't start and im currently waiting to get it towed back to my house so i can pull the engine and figure out whats wrong. the car will try to start occassionally and i got it to run for about two minutes (it was very rough spittering and sputtering while producing alot of white smoke) and then it died. does anyone have any idea what it could possibly be?
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Sep 1, 2016 00:37
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Status_Surge posted:So i have a 2000 toyota celica that recently (today) started to run rough on my way back home. when that happened i popped it into neutral then shut the engine off and coasted to the side of the road. the engine was smoking(white smoke) beneath the hood and the back. now the car won't start and im currently waiting to get it towed back to my house so i can pull the engine and figure out whats wrong. the car will try to start occassionally and i got it to run for about two minutes (it was very rough spittering and sputtering while producing alot of white smoke) and then it died. does anyone have any idea what it could possibly be? Was it overheating when this happened? It sounds like the head gasket blew / is letting coolant into the cylinders.
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Sep 1, 2016 00:56
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:EDIT: 2003 Honda Civic hybrid. It's hard to say without knowing the specific codes. I'm an inspection/emissions technician - but in Pennsylvania. There are "monitors" that have to run after you shut off the check engine light or if the 12v battery is disconnected. There's one for misfires, one for the catalytic converter, one for the oxygen sensors, one for the evaporative emissions system, egr, and others depending on what emissions systems the car has. In PA - all but one of these monitors has to change from "N/A" to "READY" before the car can pass the emissions test. The process of setting all the monitors can take around 50-100 miles depending on the car, the terrain, the temperature and the requirements those monitors have. I have an Autel AL319 OBDII scanner I got from Amazon for $40. It pulls codes, and it shows the monitors for smog readiness. I use this on my own family's cars, I use it to quickly pull codes at work, and I use it in customer cars to make sure all the monitors are set after we did a repair and told them to come back in 100 miles for the test. I know you don't have as many options in California - I don't think auto parts stores will pull codes for you like they do in other states.
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Sep 1, 2016 01:05
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0toShifty posted:Was it overheating when this happened? It sounds like the head gasket blew / is letting coolant into the cylinders. if i remember correctly it did start to jump in temperature when it began to run rough. but for the entire drive back it was holding normal temperature, once i get it back to my house ill pull the engine and let you know more (im really glad i have an engine crane) Edit: i should also say that previously the past few weeks it had an engine misfire in one of the cylinders that i wasn't able to get checked (low on money and can't get a compression tester) Status_Surge fucked around with this message at 01:14 on Sep 1, 2016 |
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Sep 1, 2016 01:12
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Also a loss of coolant can leave a bubble around the temp sensor, fooling the car into not knowing it's overheating. Subaru
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Sep 1, 2016 01:37
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0toShifty posted:It's hard to say without knowing the specific codes. I'm an inspection/emissions technician - but in Pennsylvania. There are "monitors" that have to run after you shut off the check engine light or if the 12v battery is disconnected. There's one for misfires, one for the catalytic converter, one for the oxygen sensors, one for the evaporative emissions system, egr, and others depending on what emissions systems the car has. In PA - all but one of these monitors has to change from "N/A" to "READY" before the car can pass the emissions test. The process of setting all the monitors can take around 50-100 miles depending on the car, the terrain, the temperature and the requirements those monitors have. I specifically asked the smog check guy if this could be a sign that I hadn't put enough miles on since the battery change, and he said that the sensors would have read "incomplete" or something like that instead of "N/A" if that were the case. Was he wrong? quote:I have an Autel AL319 OBDII scanner I got from Amazon for $40. It pulls codes, and it shows the monitors for smog readiness. I use this on my own family's cars, I use it to quickly pull codes at work, and I use it in customer cars to make sure all the monitors are set after we did a repair and told them to come back in 100 miles for the test. I know you don't have as many options in California - I don't think auto parts stores will pull codes for you like they do in other states. I have a really cheap ODBII scanner, but unfortunately it doesn't do sensors, just DTCs. It's still come in handy quite often, to the point that I kind of thing any auto owner should own a scanner, just like you should own a tire pressure gauge.
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Sep 1, 2016 01:39
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Geirskogul posted:Also a loss of coolant can leave a bubble around the temp sensor, fooling the car into not knowing it's overheating. This happens with Toyota v6 motors as well. Which is lovely because it's usually on a car where someone will never check under the hood. And the sensor doesnt get fluid so it shows the temp as ok. And wrecks the motor or just the pump if your lucky.
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Sep 1, 2016 01:50
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:I specifically asked the smog check guy if this could be a sign that I hadn't put enough miles on since the battery change, and he said that the sensors would have read "incomplete" or something like that instead of "N/A" if that were the case. Was he wrong? Never underestimate the ability of a smog tech to be completely loving wrong. One of the guys here sent a local Jeeper to the waiver station for incomplete monitors. If the car had codes set, or sensors disconnected, it should be driving badly / throwing a CEL. It's more likely the monitors were incomplete and the smog tech was incompetent. If you've got an Android device, get a cheap Bluetooth OBDII scanner from Amazon and the Torque app.
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Sep 1, 2016 01:56
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IOwnCalculus posted:Never underestimate the ability of a smog tech to be completely loving wrong. One of the guys here sent a local Jeeper to the waiver station for incomplete monitors. Noted. I have however covered 159 miles now since the battery got replaced. That seems like it ought to be enough for the sensors to kick in. Is there some way I can tell that I've done enough driving to get it smogged, short of buying a better OBDII scanner than the one I have?
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Sep 1, 2016 02:11
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Torque and that bluetooth (if you use IOS get wifi instead) scanner combine for about $30 tops. And you can do a lot with it.
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Sep 1, 2016 02:42
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:Noted. I have however covered 159 miles now since the battery got replaced. That seems like it ought to be enough for the sensors to kick in. Is there some way I can tell that I've done enough driving to get it smogged, short of buying a better OBDII scanner than the one I have? Mileage isn't always the "sensors have reset" it's conditions like highway and start/stop driving etc.. if you drive around the city all day and never hit 55mph for 5 miles you may get some NA sensors.. or not ready.
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Sep 1, 2016 02:58
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tater_salad posted:Mileage isn't always the "sensors have reset" it's conditions like highway and start/stop driving etc.. if you drive around the city all day and never hit 55mph for 5 miles you may get some NA sensors.. or not ready. With many cars you can do a specific "drive cycle" designed to set the monitors which involves VERY specific driving/speeds/deceleration without touching the brake pedal. Some cars can be ready enough to test in less than 12 miles if you do it right. Or if you have a Volkswagen, you can just use VAGCOM or a fancy scan tool to tell the car that it is ready like a Jedi mind trick: because VW loves to cheat on emissions tests.
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Sep 1, 2016 03:22
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Definitely get a bluetooth scanner and the appropriate app (even if it's $5 or whatever).IOwnCalculus posted:Never underestimate the ability of a smog tech to be completely loving wrong. One of the guys here sent a local Jeeper to the waiver station for incomplete monitors. On this note, if at all possible, try to find/get recommended a good smogcheck shop. I got lucky and picked the right local place - the dude is fair and won't ignore obvious missing equipment, but he actively helped and advised me when I was having trouble passing my old Jeep. He even spent a good hour with me running on the dyno in some test/mechanic mode trying different things, replacing vac hoses from his stash, disconnecting sensors, etc. at no extra charge. It helped I always try to go during off-peak hours, but I really appreciated that he didn't immediately fail me a second time and try to charge/refer me for repairs. By the time I figured out my problem a few weeks and some followup tests later, we got along famously. He seemed to appreciate that I loved my old shitheap and was honestly curious about the emissions process. He recognises me ("you're the guy with the red jeep!") when I bring in my other car, and I take the fleet trucks from work there now to give him the business.
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Sep 1, 2016 03:43
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:Noted. I have however covered 159 miles now since the battery got replaced. That seems like it ought to be enough for the sensors to kick in. Is there some way I can tell that I've done enough driving to get it smogged, short of buying a better OBDII scanner than the one I have? Dude I have NO experience with hybrids or replacing hybrid batteries but this would seem to fall 100% on the shop replacing the battery. Like yo homies my sensors say n/a and I can't smog what up. But then again you have to smog a hybrid so I don't know what kind of crazy world we live in anymore.
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Sep 1, 2016 03:46
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I imagine it's like with any other car. The various sensors need to be exposed to certain driving variables, and until you check all those boxes they're N/A. Just like if you disconnect the battery in a normal car.
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Sep 1, 2016 03:50
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Godholio posted:I imagine it's like with any other car. The various sensors need to be exposed to certain driving variables, and until you check all those boxes they're N/A. Just like if you disconnect the battery in a normal car. I just replaced my coil on my Taurus wagon after getting misfire code and serious engine stumbling and the cel. Conveniently the last "friend" I let borrow my code reader has no recollection of that so I was dreading hitting up advance again to clear the code because supposedly for mine it takes X amount of drive cycles which have to be more than 15 minutes yada yada I was pleasantly surprised when after 3 short drives (work is 1 mile from home) I saw cel turn off. Anyways I do have a Bluetooth dongle on order
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Sep 1, 2016 03:56
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I'm not really sure what kind of driving I'm missing to get the sensors to be happy, in my case. Like I said, 160 miles, which includes freeway driving, short trips, plenty of intersections and idling at traffic lights, hills.... Seems like that really ought to be enough. Anyway, ordered one of those $15 wifi OBD2 things; will see what it has to say when it arrives.
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Sep 1, 2016 04:05
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Re: pulling codes I have a pre-OBDII car, how hosed am I for plugging a reader into it? And if there's no CEL is there even any point?
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Sep 1, 2016 04:20
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