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My mom's car is a 2000 Toyota Celica GT-S. The car has 17,300 miles on it. It's been stored in the garage since 2003 and hasn't been driven. I changed the coolant in 2011 to make sure it wasn't going to be eating the gaskets. Should I change the oil on the car? It was last changed in 2003 at 16,000 miles. The oil on the dip stick is totally clear.
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Jun 9, 2015 19:55
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It's going to remain stored for the foreseeable future. It's probably going to be a barn find car one day. It's stored at high altitude in the Colorado mountains - 9,300ft. The car's original tires were removed at 200 miles and stored in bags in the garage. It's been sitting on studded snows since then. Ironic since it's never seen snow. Synthetic or cheap oil? Doesn't matter? Should I change the filter too?
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Jun 9, 2015 20:30
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So I have a Corrado G60 Valve cover on my VW 1.8L 8v, currently attached with M6 studs and nuts. Is there any reason not to go with regular socket head M6 bolts instead?
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Sep 28, 2015 23:49
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The fuse panel should be fairly modular - if you can figure out how to get to the back of it - you should find extra 12v pins on the back meant for accessories. Sometimes they'll add a clip-on fuse holder on the top of the panel for factory accessories. I added power windows (30A) to my Scirocco like that. If your battery is in the trunk - the cable passes by the passenger side area. I have seen in the e30 - it has this area in the front cowl where the rear part of the battery cable comes to a junction where a battery would have been on an earlier model - and you can tap 12v there. I'm not sure that any other BMWs are set up like that though.
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Sep 29, 2015 17:22
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Geoj posted:
I did this exact change on my 2013 Prius C. The only thing that needed modification in my case was the plastic "key" inside the bulb's connector. WAY more light, and looks 100% stock. My car has projector lens lights, so the cutoff stays normal, and it doesn't blind people. The best part? You don't have to send away for a crazy expensive set of bulbs - an H9 is like $11.
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Oct 5, 2015 01:42
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lol internet. posted:Can anyone comment on Nexen tires? These look like they are on the KIAs from the factory. Looking to replace my all seasons. They seem like good value. I need it to last on a car for probably 5 years in the rainy Pacific Northwest. I have put Nexens on a couple of my friend's cars. They are good tires, but seem to wear very quickly. Nexen, Kumho and Hankook are all Korean brands of tires. 0toShifty fucked around with this message at 11:37 on Oct 9, 2015 |
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Oct 9, 2015 11:33
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A LOVELY LAD posted:I bought a 2002 1.2 petrol mk4 Seat Ibiza on the cheap last week and its going through coolant super fast. Your car probably has plastic water outlets that connect the hoses to the cylinder head - they fail all the time on mk4 golfs and jettas here. They can crack, the o-rings can leak, and there are o-rings around the sensors too. Take that engine cover and take a look. The one over the transmission on the right side of the head can leak coolant directly into the transmission bellhousing area, which has caused clutch failure on a few cars. Your picture has an air conditioning line circled - this line normally has condensation on it when the car is running because it's COLDER than everything else, causing water to condense on it.
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Oct 11, 2015 12:46
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SLAMMYsosa posted:I've never been a truck guy, but due to my job I'm in the market for a cheap truck, so I've been looking at old F150s, F250s and Rangers on Craigslist, because everything else is way too rich for my blood and I've never had a car payment and really don't want to start now I have heard so many people say that the 300 straight 6 in the F-150 is quite a tank and is reliable as hell. Last year was 1996. Might want to look for something 96 and up just because it's OBD2 and can be scanned easily with a cheap scan tool. Some strange part of me wants a real stripper 4 cylinder Ranger with a 5 speed and crank windows. The simplicity is appealing.
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Oct 19, 2015 01:52
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Xenoborg posted:Ok thats fine. The markup on the belts isnt that bad, and I'm probably not doing the rotors anyway. They probably suggested the Primewell Valera Touring II tires for $69.99 as the bottom end - but these actually aren't bad. You'll get a bit more life out of them than the Sport AS - I'd expect the sport to not last more than 30k. They'll be quieter and better in the snow or rain too. The Affinity Touring lasts much longer - 70k warranty but some people get even more out of them. $126 is a LOT more to pay for that. There's a coupon on retailmenot for buy 3 get one free with a free alignment check. Might be the way to go honestly because when they sell you tires, they'll also want to sell you an alignment. That free alignment check is something you have to ask for - but it's awesome because it just checks if you even need to buy it.
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Oct 19, 2015 18:02
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Buying brakes for a volkswagen is usually like rolling the dice anyway - they use so many different diameter rotors, styles of pads, mid-year changes. Might be better to buy them locally if they turn out to be wrong.
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Oct 20, 2015 18:22
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Godholio posted:Be glad, because that's actually the era of Camry V6s that had major sludge problems because Toyota upped the operating temperature for emissions purposes. Class action lawsuit, lots of replacement engines at <30k miles, etc. My mom has a 1994 v6 Camry with 270k - the oil really does look like melted butter. It's actually strangely yellow. Anyway, she's going to get a timing belt and water pump done next week - it hasn't been done since 100k.
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Oct 21, 2015 20:59
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H110Hawk posted:
On the older Honda engines - I know there are holes like that provided for hoisting the engine - the service manual tells you to attach a hoisting bracket to that hole with a M10x1.25 bolt. There should be one diagonally opposite, back of the head for the other hoist point I think. EDIT: I just spent some time researching Honda's "new" K24W engine - every version of it I found - in the CR-V, the Acura ILX and TLX - they all have that hole too. 0toShifty fucked around with this message at 15:28 on Oct 26, 2015 |
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Oct 26, 2015 13:21
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Hondas and acuras are the easiest cars to put on the lift - they have very obvious metal lift points sticking down from the pinchwelds. BMWs have nice rubber blocks, but it seems like they must fall off a lot. The newer lifts in our shop have nice rubber pads, and don't damage the paint at all. The older lifts we have are ones with the 2-step frame contact pads - they're just painted metal. They can gently caress up the pinch welds on unibody cars. Some shops still use these anyway on pinch welds.
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Oct 28, 2015 02:51
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ExecuDork posted:I have a set of studded winter tires from my dead BMW, and I want to put them on my Ford Ranger. I am in Kitchener/Waterloo, Ontario. This apparently matters regarding the legality of studded tires. Your BMW tires are significantly smaller in diameter than the stock Ranger tires. 82mm smaller in fact. They'll be an -11.7% difference. When driving at 100kph on your speedometer, you'll actually be doing 88kph. Also your ranger will be lowered by 41mm. 185 width tires are also going to make the Ranger handle really funny. In the snow they'd actually be great, like rally car - cutting through like a pizza cutter. Also they're probably going to look stretched like a Volkswagen kid on the ranger wheels. I wouldn't do it - 11% is way too big of a difference. around 6% is the max I'd deal with. EDIT: Well, well, well - A Google image search for 185 on a 7 inch rim returns mostly pictures of volkswagens 0toShifty fucked around with this message at 14:52 on Oct 28, 2015 |
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Oct 28, 2015 14:45
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Try finding a thunderbird enthusiast forum with people parting out cars - if you keep an eye out long enough you might be able to score the same color.
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Oct 29, 2015 12:06
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Ribsauce posted:I have a 2001 Ranger. It was raining today and water was coming in the back of the cab near the roof above the rear windows. I looked at the outside of the roof and did not see any rust or holes. My only guess is the water is coming in through the brake light. What kind of shop can I take it to? Could it be something else? I don't see any rust or cracks/holes in the metal. Maybe the windows? It is on both sides of the brake light. It wasn't raining that hard but the water looked like it really coming in. Go get some of this: Flowable Silicone  It flows like water - into areas that leak. Seals them up.
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Nov 2, 2015 13:22
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Gumbel2Gumbel posted:What's a decent set of wiper blades for a toyota corolla in a Northeastern U.S. winter? I have a commute and there will be snow, sleet and ice. I paid LOTS of money for a set of Trico Onyx blades on my Prius. The left side is a 28" and the right side is a 14" - on a car like this that long rear end wiper has to be strong. They've lasted more than a year so far and still work as good as the day I got them. The OEM blades on this car were poo poo and they lasted three weeks before I got rid of them.
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Nov 12, 2015 01:33
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spog posted:Don't they earn money from the used oil? i.e. the recycling company gives them cash for it. Advance stores make $0.50 per gallon profit on that. There are EPA or whatever restrictions on a 5 gallon limit. In practice, some stores will limit you, and some won't. SafteyKlean takes that oil and refines it and sells it to fleets. There are shops that burn their used oil in a heater, and they're only too happy to have extra fuel for it.
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Nov 12, 2015 18:35
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Just turn your wheels and take a peek - my Camry did something similar - but the bubbles! One of them had a pinhole and was spraying slowly.
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Nov 17, 2015 14:56
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My Prius only has 15s stock - and I still went minus 1 for my snow tires and wheels. I tried to go with 13s - because I had some 155/80R13 studded snows from my Scirocco - but they wouldn't clear the front calipers. Also they looked hilariously small. 
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Nov 22, 2015 02:30
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Eskaton posted:What's the general opinion on Pontiac Bonnevilles? They pretty much last forever, right? I have one at 250k and I saw one on CL with 400k (at $1000, lol). The V6 itself can last a stupidly long time if you changed the coolant like you were supposed to. Also feed it lots of ignition coils. The entire rest of the car will fall apart (and what better car with all that plastic cladding) blues brothers style before the 3800 gives up.
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Nov 24, 2015 03:55
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Eskaton posted:Is it really that far out there? The first 100k were rental car miles even. The original coils are the best. If you ever need to replace them in the future - go to the dealer and get the OEM ones. The ones that the car parts stores sell are practically disposable. That's why I see them for coils all the time.
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Nov 24, 2015 14:16
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I'm not sure how practical this is - but turning the driveshaft flange to make the splines of the input shaft spin might be helpful. I've spend HOURS on some occasions trying to line the transmission to the clutch. Other times - it drops right the gently caress in and I feel like it shouldn't have been that easy.
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Nov 25, 2015 02:19
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Is your battery okay? The Traverse has the battery in one of the weirdest spots ever - it's in the floor behind the passenger seat. Spill too many sodas there and you'll get crazy electrical/ground issues. That all being said - the Traverse has a blend door actuator thing for the mode dial. This is a motor that moves a flap inside the heater box. This thing does fail a lot in them. Sometimes the door itself warps too.
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Nov 26, 2015 02:58
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Rythe posted:The battery is brand new, just had it replaced 3 months ago. Is the actuator easy to access as I'm not overly familiar with maintenance on this car? Check it out. Looks fairly easy except for getting those screws - they're T20 torx. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzHThw8z3Ok
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Nov 26, 2015 13:43
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Uthor posted:Now that I got a look at it in the morning, I can see through the broken headlight into the engine bay and there's some wiring out in the open. It's supposed to rain all weekend and I have a long drive home on Sunday. I should cover the breakage with some plastic, right? If you have some clear plastic or just some strong packing tape - that'd work fine. Don't go crazy - everything in your engine bay is meant to deal with some water - do this mainly to protect the bulbs and keep them working for safety.
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Nov 26, 2015 19:55
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One of the craziest tools I've seen at work is a pneumatic brake caliper piston compressor http://www.toolsource.com/pneumatic-brake-caliper-piston-compressor-p-99302.html It's insane - but it works freaking great. Most importantly - you can turn it either direction. It's utter overkill for a DIY mechanic. Still - I must have one.
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Nov 28, 2015 23:55
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ShittyPostmakerPro posted:So, with a known good subframe, here are my alignment shop results! The steering wheel ain't centered! It even says so at the bottom.
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Dec 1, 2015 20:15
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GWBBQ posted:2000 Honda Accord LX, 5spd. Recently replaced rear brake lines, drums, shoes, hardware, and drums leading to major sunken cost fallacy. Fuel line is leaking vapor but not liquid causing a strong smell of gas, clutch is slipping (Exedy "sport" clutch and lightweight flywheel with 60k miles, most of which was bumper to bumper stop and go traffic , steering rack is leaking a quart of of PS fluid a week, SRS light has been on for 4 years at this point and the airbag probably never would have worked. Front and rear sway bar end links are all blown out and I have all 4 replacements plus the Acura RS stiff rear sway bar with bushings. Your accord should be covered under the Takata airbag recall. Check that out. Swaybar links you can do yourself in your driveway easily. The steering? Try and find where the leak is coming from - if it's just a hose - replace it yourself! Fuel vapor - is your check engine light on with an EVAP code? Clutch - I'm also saying rear main seal on that one.
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Dec 11, 2015 11:52
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SlayVus posted:How often should I replace the battery in my vehicle? I understand they wear out eventually. That sounds like a battery. batteries typically last 3-5 years depending on the climate. Heat kills em quickly. To get a definitive answer - have it tested - not for voltage, but for Cold Cranking Amps. Any parts store that sells batteries has a tester that can do this and it's a free test. So here's how you buy a battery these days: 1. check coupon sites like retailmenot 2. buy battery online for cheap with pickup from local store 3. go to store have current battery tested. 4 if the battery fails - great - a cheap new one. If the battery is good - cancel the order and start troubleshooting for drain. Troubleshooting for drains is easy if the drain is big. Ignition off, as if it's parked overnight. Get a test light and disconnect your negative battery cable. Put one end of the test light on the negative battery post, and the other on your negative battery cable end. If it lights up - that's your drain - pull fuses one at a time until one makes it turn off. Your drain will be found on whatever circuit that fuse protected. If you want to get really fancy - you can use a multimeter instead of the test light, connected in the same manner. Any drain more than 0.25a is a major one.
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Dec 16, 2015 12:55
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SFH1989 posted:I was involved in a hit and run about a month ago. The guy came forward ten days later (and got arrested). I just got the revised police report with his insurance info on it. I've been in this situation many times. Last time: His insurance was Allstate. Mine was progressive. Called my insurance, and they filed a claim with Allstate on my behalf. Went to see the Allstate adjuster - the allstate adjuster was IN LOVE with my Scirocco and gave me an absurdly large amount of money for the fender damage, and even paid for an alignment just in case. Instant check for $950. I was in good hands I guess. Previous time: Her insurance Nationwide. Called Nationwide without going to my insurance and filed a claim. Went to Nationwide's body shop. Guy who ran shop saw that my bumper was scratched, priced one out, and took the car within a $1 of totaling it. Got a check for $900. Nationwide was on my side. So it worked out fine both ways - 15 minutes calling geico could save you.. uh.. a bunch of money on your F-150
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Dec 17, 2015 20:45
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melon cat posted:2009 Hyundai Elantra GLS. Amazon has an OEM set for $19 or a Denso set for $26! Denso is good! Beck/Arnley is good too. EDIT: Amazon.ca does not quite have the selection of amazon.com - the wire set is $53.69 CAD + 10 shipping on there. Anyway - the part number for the OEM wires is 27420-23700 0toShifty fucked around with this message at 12:25 on Dec 19, 2015 |
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Dec 19, 2015 01:31
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Excessive outboard pad wear is usually caused by sticking or seized caliper slider pins. See if the pins move in and out smoothly. Clean, and relube them with high temperature silicone brake grease. Excessive inboard pad wear is usually caused by the caliper piston itself hanging up insisde the caliper. This requires rebuilding the caliper (in the US this means buy a new caliper) The place on the bracket where the pad slides could also be a cause. Replace the hardware, clean and lube the hardware where the pad slides on it. This generic picture shows the breakdown of the caliper parts. The big piston does not normally come out unless you're rebuilding one. You need a tiny hone to do this part properly.  What you noticed is varying lateral runout on the rotor. This is usually caused by rust on the hub. Gotta clean it off. Most people notice this problem as "warped rotors" - there's no such thing as warped rotors. There is other things that can cause the pulsation effect too. Uneven pad material transfer, and disc thickness variation - which is the end effect of the rusty hub thing. This will cause pulsation in your steering wheel eventually. 
0toShifty fucked around with this message at 18:36 on Dec 22, 2015 |
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Dec 22, 2015 18:30
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gvibes posted:Important AI question: Honda Odyssey or Toyota Sienna? Used or new is the question. Second gen Odysseys have lots of transmission issues. Trying to be too much like Caravans lol
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Dec 22, 2015 23:16
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Senior Funkenstien posted:Can you guys recommend a cheap manual car or truck? I've never learned how to drive a manual so I want to get something to beat up on and learn One of my friends found a 96 Chevrolet S10. it was an absolute stripper truck. Single Cab 2.2L 2WD 5 speed no radio, factory non A/C. It was wonderful and simple. Don't see that too often. It was $500 and inspected.
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Dec 28, 2015 04:05
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When a shop gives you a giant list of recommendations - that's just how they make the money. Recommendations are not requirements - people take those recommendations so strongly sometimes. A 2012 Civic takes 0W-20 oil. It's VERY uncommon to find it in non-synthetic. It's possible but rare as all hell. Dont' feel bad about getting whacked for synthetic oil on a Honda - it's unavoidable. DO follow the oil life on the dash though - it tracks if for you. 3,000 miles on a Honda is too soon - wait till that oil life gets down to 15%. On many Hondas this takes 5,000 or even 7,000 miles. If you're bringing a car in for state inspection - it's even easier. All you really HAVE to get done is the stuff needed to pass inspection. If you wanna be a real dick, and this works very well - ask to get the old parts back. In PA it's your right to ask for this under the inspection code. You can measure them yourself. You might find that your brakes magically weren't worn out at all, and since they are giving the old parts to you - you'll see strange things happen. Fuel system cleanings are a huge money maker for a shop. You can do this yourself by getting a bottle of Techron for $10 and putting it in your fuel tank every 5,000 miles. Techron is actually better than the cleaning process they use because techron leaves a chemically bonded coating behind that acts like teflon so deposits don't stick. Brake fluid change? Yeah - this one is actually good. People don't do this enough. Many manufacturers recommend every two years. Yes, this is a massive money maker for the shop too - but so is replacing all your calipers and brake hoses if your brake fluid gets old and eats the poo poo out of everything.
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Dec 30, 2015 02:58
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Jake Snake posted:2014 Honda Civic LX, trying to replace a cracked side view mirror. I need to replace the entire mirror and the glass. I found the parts online for about $100 cheaper than what the dealer quoted me, and they are genuine parts. I plan to order the parts and take it to a local mechanic to fix rather than the dealership. If the part breaks - they will not take care of it for you. You'll have to pay to get the part removed, take the part back, do the legwork to return it yourself, and then pay the mechanic to install it again. On the other hand - if the mechanic fucks the part up installing it - that's on them. A lot of shops won't do this because of the can of worms it opens.
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Dec 30, 2015 03:01
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kid sinister posted:I've got a 2015 Nissan Versa with weird electrical problems. The brake lights work fine, but the right tail light won't come on. The bulb is fine, I tested that with my multimeter and it works just fine in the left tail light. I tested the socket with my multimeter too, and the socket doesn't even get any power for the tail light. Also in this same car, the AC likes to come on whenever the defrost does, or at least the little light on the AC button does. What gives? Your tailight wiring is probably pinched or shorted to the body due to the accident. it may have been repaired - but not totally. you'll have to pull back the plastic trim and trace the wires back - I bet the problem won't be far. As for the defroster and A/C? That's normal. Almost every modern car does this. Some cars will do it without lighting up the A/C light. It's better to have dry air to defog the windows - they'll defog WAY faster with dry air. That's what A/C does - it dries air. The thermostat keeps the air from getting COLD though. Let it do its thing.
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Jan 15, 2016 04:07
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scuz posted:2005 Ford Focus ZX3 not blowing heat. It's gonna be like 10 below for the rest of the weekend and I don't want my friend to freeze. Is there a checklist of "heater don't work" things to go down? How would I be able to tell whether the heater core is good? Does that involve removing the whole thing and seeing whether water/coolant passes through it? First thing - is the coolant full? The heat is the first thing to stop working on many cars.
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Feb 12, 2016 19:47
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Pander posted:09 Forester w/65k miles. Just started feeling like it couldn't shift well from 1st to 2nd. It'll jump up to 4k RPM when the automatic should shift up,and then when it does shift it's very harsh, like dropping the clutch in a manual. At low RPMs at stop lights etc it sometimes feels like it's about to stall, shuddering and uneven. It drives fine at higher speeds, nothing unusual above 15 mph. Shifts from 2nd to 3rd and 3rd to 4th in sport mode or automatic fine. It doesn't really sound like low fluid - but it's always worth checking the fluid level before you take it to the shop. There should be a dipstick for the transmission towards the rear of the motor, near where the rubber air intake hose attaches to the intake. Check it with the transmission warm, engine running in park and see what you have.
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Feb 22, 2016 22:58
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