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OK, I'm just going to buy a new battery. The last time I was in this kind of situation I spent a lot of time and effort pissing about to end up replacing it anyway, so if it's likely toast I just want to get it done with the minimum hassle and cost. When shopping for batteries should I care about brand? Or just price, capacity and CCA? Is it worth paying more for Bosch for example, rather than a brand I've never heard of? For things like laptop batteries and power banks capacity exaggeration is rife. Is that a thing with car batteries? e: Any advice on who to buy from online for delivery in the UK would also be great Pierre Chaton fucked around with this message at 16:07 on Jul 5, 2019 |
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Jul 5, 2019 15:58
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Father Jack posted:OK, I'm just going to buy a new battery. The last time I was in this kind of situation I spent a lot of time and effort pissing about to end up replacing it anyway, so if it's likely toast I just want to get it done with the minimum hassle and cost. Go for a brand you recognise and go for the biggest CCA that will physically fit I used eurocarparts in the UK- there's almost always a "sale" or special offer on for a competitive price (don't buy anything not on offer otherwise), but the best thing is I bought a bosch one from them and each time I killed it within the 4 year warranty, I just had to roll up to a store with the battery and a printout of the receipt and I got a new battery off the shelf no questions asked- if I got it a quid or two cheaper at some online only store I can't imagine it working the same
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Jul 5, 2019 16:31
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Looks like the alternative insanity thread fell into archives, oh well. My mom's pressure washer with a briggs and stratton won't start. Compression feels strong and i get fuel smell from the exhaust/spark plug hole. I've gotten as far as removing the spark plug boot and checking the lead itself, and I'm not seeing or hearing any signs of a spark jumping to the block when we pull the starter. Where do I go from here? I assume this is some kind of magneto system, I've only ever worked on cars with electronic ignition so I'm pretty much out of my depth for what to do next. Pull off the starter assembly and see where the ignition wire goes? Check something somewhere else?
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Jul 5, 2019 17:16
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DesperateDan posted:Go for a brand you recognise and go for the biggest CCA that will physically fit Good point about a potential warranty claim, I've no idea how that would actually work with the online only stores. I was initally thinking to just get a jump start and take it to the KwikFit just up the road from me so that if it dies again in warranty there's probably going to be one not too far away wherever I am. The batteries they sell though are 'Platinum International' brand which I've never heard of. They claim 45Ah and 410 CCA which seems pretty good, but I'm not sure whether the claim means anything given the source. To buy one online and fit it myself I was looking at these two:  and wondering whether to go for the bigger claimed number, or the brand name. If you tested them might the Bosch actually perform better? e: Also, is there anything in the idea that you shouldn't push start a car with a timing chain rather than a belt? Pierre Chaton fucked around with this message at 17:38 on Jul 5, 2019 |
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Jul 5, 2019 17:28
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Father Jack posted:e: Also, is there anything in the idea that you shouldn't push start a car with a timing chain rather than a belt? Absolutely none afaik. In both cases the camshaft is being driven by the crankshaft just like in normal operation, I can't see any possible way it would matter.
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Jul 5, 2019 17:41
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Fender Anarchist posted:Absolutely none afaik. In both cases the camshaft is being driven by the crankshaft just like in normal operation, I can't see any possible way it would matter. The suggestion was pretty vague, but it was around damaging the teeth. It's probably bullshit, but kept me from doing it to begin with just in case. How does push starting go with modern cars in general? The reason I googled 'push start civic' at all was that I'd read somewhere that it was an issue, specifically around fuel injection and ECUs not having power. If there's a little left in the battery, such that it will slowly crank or turn on the dashboard lights are you good to do a push start on most anything still? What if it's totally dead?
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Jul 5, 2019 18:07
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It won't work if the battery is totally dead. And even if you have some charge, you need a car with a manual transmission. If the car has enough power for the warning lights to come on and the car has a manual transmission, it may start from a push, so long as the car doesn't have some kind of weird immobilizer (mine will start and immediately die if I push start it, unless I attempt to crank it first - even if I don't depress the clutch pedal; not depressing the pedal means the starter never even tries to turn over, but the PCM thinks it tried).
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Jul 5, 2019 18:14
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If it's total dead you'll spin the engine without anything else happening - it's a bit counter-intuitive but an alternator needs power to make power (it uses electromagnets that have to be energized before it generates any current of its own.)
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Jul 5, 2019 18:15
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Geoj posted:If it's total dead you'll spin the engine without anything else happening - it's a bit counter-intuitive but an alternator needs power to make power (it uses electromagnets that have to be energized before it generates any current of its own.) Yeah, this is the real problem with the battery is totally dead. You usually need 3+k RPMs for an alternator to auto-excite if you don't have sufficient battery power for the field current.
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Jul 5, 2019 18:59
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STR posted:It won't work if the battery is totally dead. And even if you have some charge, you need a car with a manual transmission. I'm in the UK mate, nobody driving an automatic would even consider a push start. And if they did I wouldn't help.
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Jul 5, 2019 19:07
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I got myself one of those noco genie stater things and it's saved my bacon multiple times already.
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Jul 5, 2019 19:09
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Most recently when I found out that removing the instrument cluster causes a battery drain.
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Jul 5, 2019 19:10
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I. M. Gei posted:Would this be okay for a single 10 57-lb sit-on fishing kayak, on a small SUV with side rails but no crossbars? This is from a few pages back but I thought I'd comment as I've strapped kayaks onto my car and traveled across a significant chunk of the country. First up, the foam block thing you linked I can't say I really recommend unless you're my sister and you give no fucks about how the car looks. It's way too easy to tighten the straps too much and put a huge dent in your roof. Her car looks like a large biped jumped on top of it and danced at this point. She also drives a 2003 focus and gives zero fucks so it works out. Second, some of what you want to use depends on your height relative to the car, strength (to a point), and how comfortable you are lifting your kayak. I have a J-cradle for my kayak and I'm really happy with that. I did have to fiddle with it a bit to find the right "angle" for front to back that affected air resistance the least, though, and it can be a bit of a sail in heavy crosswind. I still like it best though. My wife is 5'2" and a hundred pounds so she has a Sweetroll - basically the rear cradle is rollers, so you only have to heft the front up onto the back of your car and then the roof and just wheel it forward from there. The downside if you need that method is it's easy to damage/scratch your trunk, so take precautions if you care. It's really easy for her to use and she would struggle reaching high enough for a J cradle even on her Mazda3. [Edit: if you have multiple kayaks, it's likely that on any compact/mid-size sedan that you'll need at least one j-cradle to fit them side by side. This becomes less of an issue on wider vehicles, of course] Third, the straps don't need to be as tight as you think they do. Tighten them snug, but don't wrench on them. You *do* want the front and back tiedowns that go to your hood/trunk, but they are safety lines, not tie downs. They should be "lightly snug" but not at all tight, like at all. My wife prefers straps for that (they came with the sweetroll) while I much prefer 1/4" nylon rope that I do a trucker hitch knot on since I feel the rope flaps around less and makes way less noise when you're driving, plus I can leave it attached to the kayak all the time and use it to quickly tie up to a log or something if I need to. The straps are way less useful for that and a lot noisier while driving. But seriously, don't tighten those down hard, you'll cause more problems than you solve. We actually kind of hosed up a kayak because we didn't know what we were doing and I tightened things too much. Someone showed us how to do it right, and even though I was worried it was too loose, we drove all the way from Wisconsin->Missouri->Alabama->Everglades->South Carolina->Wisconsin with no trouble. Gas mileage sure took a hit though. Next, as far as the front/trunk tie downs go - I got things like this:  from our local kayak store and hang them out of the trunk to tie the kayaks down to for the rear tie down. I had them rivet some into an empty spot inside the hood so I can pull them out on the front, but you could probably use the same things in the front - it would just be a bit more awkward. It makes everything a lot easier.Finally, just as some brands and stuff, I like Yakima and Thule. My current removable crossbars on my 2017 WRX are Yakima, my wife has permanently installed Yakima crossbars on her 2013 Mazda3 Sedan, and the Sweetroll is Yakima I think. My J-cradle is Thule. I would stay away from like knock-off brand stuff personally. ssb fucked around with this message at 21:35 on Jul 5, 2019 |
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Jul 5, 2019 21:30
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Father Jack posted:Good point about a potential warranty claim, I've no idea how that would actually work with the online only stores. In the US there are two lead acid battery manufacturers and everything is just a rebrand of their product. Bosch does not make their own batteries.
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Jul 5, 2019 22:40
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shortspecialbus posted:Lots of words How do you tie the fwd end down to the front of the car without dragging it over the leading edge of the hood?
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Jul 5, 2019 22:46
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Mercury Ballistic posted:How do you tie the fwd end down to the front of the car without dragging it over the leading edge of the hood? Like this (ignore that everything needs a cleaning):     It's the aforementioned straps that are permanently attached.
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Jul 5, 2019 22:56
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I've got a '99 Mazda B4000 (i.e., Ford Ranger) that I just replaced the cruise control buttons for, and now the horn will blare constantly when I reconnect the battery (and haven't removed the horn relay, as I have had to resort to.) I replaced my cruise control buttons, which involved having to disconnect the battery to ensure no accidental discharge of the airbag. I also had to remove the right side horn button underneath the airbag to route the wires. When I reassembled and connected the battery the horn was blaring. I thought I maybe I pushed the airbag on too far and it was causing a connection in the horn switch, or taking the horn button on and off caused a connection to be made. But no matter what I've done, it keeps going off. The horn switches aren't making any contact...I even disconnected the wires leading to the switches entirely and it still goes off. I read that maybe it's a security feature, and you have to hit the unlock button on the remote/fob. But even hitting the lock and unlock buttons on the remote do nothing. I took out the relay, connected the battery, and because of my aftermarket remote start, the truck started right away, then about 30 seconds later shut itself off. I was then able to start it normally and have driven it around since. If I put the relay back in, the horn will immediately start going. Again, all wires going to the horn buttons have been disconnected, so they should, in theory, be out of the picture. This is a video of the guide I used: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=joaNJNGQHBA I saw a couple others that included removing the whole steering wheel, but I did not go that route.
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Jul 5, 2019 23:41
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KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:In the US there are two lead acid battery manufacturers and everything is just a rebrand of their product. Bosch does not make their own batteries. Johnson Control a few decades ago would give OSHA a stroke.
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Jul 5, 2019 23:41
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C-Bangin' it 
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DrBouvenstein posted:I've got a '99 Mazda B4000 (i.e., Ford Ranger) that I just replaced the cruise control buttons for, and now the horn will blare constantly when I reconnect the battery (and haven't removed the horn relay, as I have had to resort to.) Blaring as in always on, or honking like when the alarm goes off?
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Jul 5, 2019 23:43
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Motronic posted:Blaring as in always on, or honking like when the alarm goes off? Always on. I assumed I must have shorted something to ground, but I honestly took out the horn switches, and made sure none of the dangling wires that connect to the switches were touching anything, but it was still going off. The only thing I can think is that the cheap aftermarket cruise control switches I got have a short in them, since the wiring harness for the cruise control buttons are also the wires for the horn. I guess next step is to disconnect that harness from it's connector in the steering wheel to be sure.
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Jul 5, 2019 23:52
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Did you have to remove/replace the airbag? You might have over-tightened it and it's pulling the airbag assembly into the horn switch.
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Jul 6, 2019 00:02
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DrBouvenstein posted:Always on. I assumed I must have shorted something to ground, but I honestly took out the horn switches, and made sure none of the dangling wires that connect to the switches were touching anything, but it was still going off. Disconnect the clock spring towards the vehicle side of the harness. See if the horn stops. If it does, I'm very sorry.
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Jul 6, 2019 00:32
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I got new tires installed and balanced, drove to work, and then noticed walking back to it in the parking lot that the front underbody cladding or whatever you call the flimsy aerodynamic plastic stuff they put on there for better fuel economy was sagging. Looks like the bolt that joins the two halves together at the middle is missing. I know they do visual alignment inspections, would they have any reason to remove that bolt/bolts? I drove on a pretty crappy dirt road on Wednesday so it's entirely possible that I scraped and ripped the bolts out. If it seems like they did it (they didn't mention the underbody stuff being loose when I picked the car up but they were slammed) I am probably going to go back and have them fix it, but I don't want to be that rear end in a top hat that blames them for something they didn't do. Related, is there a place I can find the bolt sizes for that kind of thing aside from buying a Hanes/FSM, or do I just need to pull one of the others and hope it's close?
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Jul 6, 2019 02:29
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22 Eargesplitten posted:I got new tires installed and balanced, drove to work, and then noticed walking back to it in the parking lot that the front underbody cladding or whatever you call the flimsy aerodynamic plastic stuff they put on there for better fuel economy was sagging. Looks like the bolt that joins the two halves together at the middle is missing. I know they do visual alignment inspections, would they have any reason to remove that bolt/bolts? I drove on a pretty crappy dirt road on Wednesday so it's entirely possible that I scraped and ripped the bolts out. If it seems like they did it (they didn't mention the underbody stuff being loose when I picked the car up but they were slammed) I am probably going to go back and have them fix it, but I don't want to be that rear end in a top hat that blames them for something they didn't do. Lemme guess? Corolla? If so no they shouldnt have had to mess with em. Most people zip tie them back together. If you want a bolt just find any other ten mill off any toyota or honda in the junk yard. Or if you wanna go back any decent shop should have some laying around im sure they wouldnt mind buttoning it up for you.
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Jul 6, 2019 02:45
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It is frequently just plastic toggles of some type. If the dealership parts guy is feeling generous, he may give you a few. Most pop in, then expand or require a gentle twist of a Philips head to secure.
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Jul 6, 2019 02:46
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Mercury Ballistic posted:It is frequently just plastic toggles of some type. If the dealership parts guy is feeling generous, he may give you a few. Most pop in, then expand or require a gentle twist of a Philips head to secure. poo poo they always bend me over backwards for them. Dont spit in it first or nothing. 9 bucks a fuckin clip
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Jul 6, 2019 02:48
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Camry, so close? Its been bolts in a lot of places at least. I have to drive back past work for a total of about 30 miles tomorrow so Id like to get the thing together because I can tell its basically lifting my front end up having that wedge there.
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Jul 6, 2019 04:53
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My car is like 40% epoxy and 50% Home Depot fasteners at this point
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Jul 6, 2019 12:29
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simplefish posted:My car is like 40% epoxy and 50% Home Depot fasteners at this point Thread title?
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Jul 6, 2019 15:39
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simplefish posted:My car is like 40% epoxy and 50% Home Depot fasteners at this point What's the other 10%? Zip ties?
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Jul 6, 2019 15:50
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Mercury Ballistic posted:How do you tie the fwd end down to the front of the car without dragging it over the leading edge of the hood? I got a seamstress to make some cloth sleeves to go over my straps. Cost about 30 bucks or so.
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Jul 6, 2019 16:05
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Motronic posted:Disconnect the clock spring towards the vehicle side of the harness. See if the horn stops. If it does, I'm very sorry. I don't recall even touching the clock spring, but your reaction indicates it's an expensive and/or difficult fix if that's what's broken?
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Jul 6, 2019 18:03
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My car was totaled by a drunk driver, so im back in the market. My #1 requirement is AWD because snow, and I'm thinking Subaru, but open to other ideas. Is there a general car buying thread, or should I just post in the Subaru thread? Thanks
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Jul 6, 2019 21:41
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`Nemesis posted:Is there a general car buying thread, or should I just post in the Subaru thread? https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3213538&pagenumber=555&perpage=40
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Jul 6, 2019 21:58
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Geoj posted:If it's total dead you'll spin the engine without anything else happening - it's a bit counter-intuitive but an alternator needs power to make power (it uses electromagnets that have to be energized before it generates any current of its own.) PCM needs 9 volts to boot so if your there or less it shouldnt start. Carbon pile load testers are the only true way to check a battery as they simulate the cranking load. Ive had good luck with Napa pro batteries. They are johnson controls i believe.
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Jul 6, 2019 23:29
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22 Eargesplitten posted:Camry, so close? Its been bolts in a lot of places at least. If your concerned you can steal one of the ten mill bolts from your engine cover if you still have it. Should be the same thread pitch. Otherwise find one where missing one woulnt hurt anything. Top of the fender for example.
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Jul 6, 2019 23:32
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I have two vehicles that need new battery terminal clamps. These things are everywhere, but I've had mechanics tell me the clamp-on replacements aren't great due to corrosion, and that the ones with a socket full of solder that you heat up and shove the stripped cable ends into are the way to go. Does this matter and if so where sells the solder-on ones? I can't find them anywhere I've actually heard of.
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Jul 6, 2019 23:40
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Javid posted:I have two vehicles that need new battery terminal clamps. These things are everywhere, but I've had mechanics tell me the clamp-on replacements aren't great due to corrosion, and that the ones with a socket full of solder that you heat up and shove the stripped cable ends into are the way to go. Does this matter and if so where sells the solder-on ones? I can't find them anywhere I've actually heard of. Ive always used thoes and never had a problem. Be sure to cut back your wire until its clean copper. Also make sure you have a clean ground connection to the body and at the starter. You can get battery corrosion spray that helps keep the poo poo off. Some cars will have fancy fuses at the terminal tho so if your in that boat better go OEM. for something like this https://amzn.to/2Xu38WF in the case of Toyota for example
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Jul 6, 2019 23:55
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This happened today:   The car started and I was able to extricate it from impending doom. It seemed to run fine going home, but the clutch engagement seemed maybe a bit jerky the first few miles. Hard to say for sure, I dont know if water could get to the clutch friction plate or something when some of the transmission is immersed like this. Maybe just me looking for a problem that likely isnt there. I've had a couple people tell me to call my insurance company saying it could be totaled. That seems unlikely to me, but I am no expert. Thoughts? The water level was pretty close to the bottom of the door, maybe within .5" towards the front.
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Jul 7, 2019 05:22
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PaintVagrant posted:This happened today: Did it seep into the floorboards? If not you should be good. Clutch should dry out just fine as well.
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Jul 7, 2019 05:36
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