About the Maintenance and Repair Message Board

bnormann

Bob,

Please consider reposting your question here:

Zaino Car Care Experiences


We have a VERY active Zaino topic here in Maintenance. There are also several archived topics that are referenced in the first post of the conference.

Your host, Bruce

hammej

Three questions, I hope the hosts will also reply:
1. Is it true that Hondas & Toyotas routinely (if maintained)last 15 years/250K miles?

2. If that is true, it is probably based on Civic & Accord, can one extend that to newer models like CR-V?

3. Can the same thing be assumed about other Japanese/Korean cars such as Subaru and Hyundai?

dodgeomni

According to the Owners Manual on my 2000 Honda Accord I should only use Honda Motor Oil. It also says that I may use other Motor Oil as a temporary measure but should got to a Honda Dealer as soon as possible and have it replaced with Honda Motor Oil.
Today I went to my Honda Dealer for the first oil change and was surprised to find out they use Penzoil. Comments???

pat455

Hello dodgeomni,

We are fortunate to have an experienced Honda tech hanging out in our Honda Accord problems topic. It would be a good idea if you reposted there to see what he thinks.

Just click on that highlighted link to get there.

Pat
Community Leader/Maintenance & Repair Conference

fylertoo

1995 HYundai Accent 4 dr. I took it in for a rotor replacement. and ended up with a car that needs a new long block. I'm stuck here, becausse my gut feeling tells me that the dealership messed up. The storie that I keep getting about how all this occurred dosn't make sense. The car has 39,900 miles has been faithfully maintained. I took it in there with the rotor problem, and other than that the ccar worked fine. There claim is that there was a problem with the main bearings in the engine. I qestioned to the best of my ability as what could have been the cause. Many non-logical answers
Anyway making a long story short. They gone from 2700.00 to 1700.00 to replace the engine to 680.00, because I got on the phone and found a motor for 550.00.
Is there any one out there with a similiar story Thanks

tarman

The timing belt broke on my 1990 Toyota Corolla last week. After having the belt replaced, my car broke down again several days later. After ruling out a possible faulty belt, my mechanic believes that one or more of the valves may have been damaged. After reading the posts in the timing belt topic, I'm under the impression that the 1990 Corolla has a non-interference engine. Could the valves/cylinder head/or pistons been damaged any way? Visual inspection hasn't revealed anything...the cylinder head is being sent to the machine shop right now for a more complete analysis. If it is one of the valves, then my mechanic quoted the repair job at $800--$180 for the new valve, $200 for the head gasket, and $400 for labor. Is this in the ballpark (the parts seem expensive to me--carparts.com lists the head gasket at around $40)? Does anybody think that the problem could be something else besides damage to or inside the cylinder head? Any advice/help is appreciated,
Chris

nadavi

the "service engine soon" indicator (yellow) in my 1988 Oldsmobile 98 regency is on. what does it mean?

0patience

Click on it and it will take you to a page that will tell you how to retrieve the codes and what the definitions are.Once you get them,let us know what they are.
GM Info

nadavi

thanks for the reply. can you tell me where exactly the terminal is located in my 1988 oldsmobile ninety eight?. and how do I jumper the A&B terminal?

nadavi

yellow light indicate that I must not use the car any more (like red indicator) or that it is only recommendation to go to certified service station on my free time?

0patience

The "yellow" light indicates that there is a problem with the system and that you need to find out what the codes are to determine if it is a serious probelm or not.If the driveability is not suffering,it may be a sensor(and may not be a major concern),BUT,realize that some sonsors like the oxygen sensor control the fuel mixture and if it is bad,can create more expensive headaches.One of which is plugging the catalytic converter and costing alot of money.The code retrieval is a simple procedure and it will get you an idea of what the problem is.Retrieve the codes and we can go from there.One other thing,post the reply under the topic "check engine light".Here is the link.
Check engine topic
I'm sure it would be better there.

alex_00

I have Passat 99. 6 month after I bought it radio AM stopped working. Stohlman service did not have it and ordered new one for replacement. 6 month after that radio was replaced but it worked only 1 day. I went back to service and they ordered a new radio. It was in December 1999. Since that time my radio does not work. I talked to them on several occasions but nothing happened plus they lost my paperwork and had to order it again. Another point - they do not replace radio with the new one only with refurbished. I do not know what I can do. Any suggestions?
Service at this dillership is notoriously bad. I have another VW car - new beetle and any time I went there to do something they managed to screw it up. And I had to leave car with them for an extra day.

arndt1

My wife and I have owned a 98 Grand Prix since it was new and for the past 4 months we have been having problems with both of the door windows not working at any given time. May work on min. and not the next, could even last up to a couple days not working and then all of a sudden start working again. So far we have had it in the shop 3 times and they tell us it is the wires in the door for the motor, the last time the replaced the motor in one door and it still does the same thing. Currently the drivers side will not roll done, and has been this way for about 4 days. Anyone who has had this problem can understand how frustrating it is to go through a drive through and have to get out of the car to get something done at the window. If anyone has any advise it would be greatly appreciated.

floyd81

MY ECLIPSE IS A PIECE OF CRAP IT IT WILL NOT IDLE INSTEAD IT STALLS BUT IT ONLY STALLS WHEN IT IS WARM IT RUNS VERY ROUGH WHEN YOU CAN GET IT TO IDLE, also i was testing it and so I floored it and its rpm went up like normal and at 4k it seemed to cut out and drop to about 3250rpm then go up to 4000rpm drop and do the same over and over again.
p.s. I had the transmission replaced 8k miles ago,and the timing belt changed 3k miles ago
thank you for any information you have

93galant1

hi guys,
I have a 93 galant, afterdriving it a while and put it in park the engine revs to 1700 rpms, i also noticed the temperature started getting on the hot side. I changed the antifreeze and the thermostat and the fan is working. a machanic checked the battery, I changed it it was 5 years old.
fyi i replaced the water pump 3 months ago if this means anything. Im going back to the shop this weekend so if anyone feels lucky I'll appreciate your input.
"siesserg@gruntal.com"
Thanks

solarpwr

My first time on this conference, so I hope I'm not asking a question previously covered. Asked the question in the Solara conference with no response. I have fine scratches on one exterior mirror of my '00 Solara.....unknown cause. Anyone know of a product that will remove them?

pat455

Welcome!

There are some folks discussing scratch removal right now in Store Bought Waxes (Topic #1038).

You might also like to look through the posts in Paint and Body Care (Topic #20) and maybe even Zaino Car Care (Topic #1319).

I'm sure we've discussed scratch removal at some point in Paint and Body Care. Zaino is a specialized car care line of products. There has been discussion in that topic (and its precedents) of a particular Zaino product designed to address fine scratches.

Good luck.

Pat
Community Leader/Maintenance & Repair Conference

solarpwr

Thanx for the welcome and the references. I'll check them out, but haven't been able yet to find a product specifically for scratches on MIRRORED SURFACES as opposed to painted.

pat455

Sorry, solarpwr, I misunderstood. I saw where you asked your question in two of those topics, I hope you'll get some good suggestions.

Meanwhile, I have one more thought - if you do a "Topic Search" (left side of the page) on windshield I think you will find some archived topics on how to get scratches out of windshields. Maybe they would be helpful with mirror scratches as well?

Hope you can get it taken care of.

Pat
Community Leader/Maintenance & Repair Conference

93galant1

I have a 93 galant it was running hot ,I replaced the thermostat and antifreeze. Kool deal.
Here we go guys, my engine started flipping out after I drive for 20-30 min and put in park, the engine starts reving crazy, eg:2100rpms to 1500rpms to 2100 rpms and so on. In the morning its perfect. One machanic sayed a new idle/air control motor would solve the problem for only$450.00, sorry kids no dinner tonight. I would hate to go to the dealer we would'nt eat for a month.
Has anyone had the same expirence, or can anyone recommend something else.
I dont think its the IAC-motor cause its fine in the morning???
ANy machanics out there???

0patience

It is possible that the IAC is the problem,but was it tested?Was there any trouble codes?Here is a webpage I set up for info on retrieving Mitsubishi trouble codes.You can retrieve the codes yourself with a voltmeter.Here is the webpage.
Mitsubishi Code retrieval
Hope it helps.

93galant1

I,m going to check out this site once i write this. Sam me boss is having a baby and I cant take off from work and Saturday I taking me son to see Britney in PA about 400 miles each way. Wish me luck, I dont have any time to fix it before the trip.
Thanks Again

irene13

I know that a jewelers buffing cloth takes sratches out of windshields. You may want to ask your local jeweler about mirrors.

car_hunter

I have a Camry with almost 100K miles. I had a
complete tune up done and fuel filter changed last
year. The air filter is new too. However, of late
the car has been hesitating and sputtering (as if
it is almost going to stall) at idle, low as well
as high speeds of 45-50 mph. However, once I am at
55-65 mph, the car runs steady but is not as
smooth as it used to be. The ride is a bit rough too. I suspect that the air/fuel line is dirty. Not sure what is the exact problem. This also happens almost everytime it rains. I plan to add some additives to the fuel and clean the air system. Not sure if I have to clean/replace the filter in the tank. If anyone has any idea what the problem could be, I would appreciate a response. Thanks.

pat455

Did you happen to see our topic on Camry Problems (Topic #597)? It might be worth your time to look through all the posts there to see if your problem has been discussed.

If not, you might want to repost there. It would be a good idea to include your model year, by the way, and any other pertinent details like whether it is a 4 or 6 cylinder engine, or any other descriptive data.

Pat
Community Leader/Maintenance & Repair Conference

armtdm

You may be ingnoring the obvious. At 100,000 miles the plug wires may be going bad and/or ingnition issues. I have a 92 Camry with 120,000, just replaced the wires and one was cracked badly. Have it looked at

trex8888

I have a 92 Lesabre with 52,000 miles, while driving with the A/C on the fan was on 2 and all of a sudden the fan started blowing full blast, even when car was shut off the fan kept blowing on high. I disconected the neg. battery terminal to stop the fan. Any ideas what could be wrong?

pat455

Welcome to Town Hall!

You might want to look through the posts in this topic: airconditioning (Topic #194).

If you don't find an answer, you might even want to repost your question there.

Good luck.

Pat
Community Leader/Maintenance & Repair Conference

jackbouch

I need any and all help on this. The problem is when the car is started I can't get it out of park. In addition to this the tracs off light and the abs lights on the dash stay lit. The running daytime lights and the dash lights are out. What I have to do next is turn the car off and remove the key to start again. When I see the tracs off and Abs lights go off I know it will work this time. One day this routine is not going to work. I don't know whats causing this nor do the guys at the local garage who are Volvo certified. Can anyone help? I don't want to be stuck anywhere soon!
Thanks, Jackie

jamesbass1

...and anyone else that may be able to help. I own a 1995 Toyota 4Runner SR5, V6, 2WD. w/193,000mi. I've been careful to follow oil changes, tune-ups, timing belt replacement ever since I bought new. Recently, I brought the vehicle into the dealer service dept. for a "Maxi" maintenance pkg. or 30,000mi. tuneup. Along with this service, I was sold a "Top Engine Flush" for $129.00. Since the 4Runner has alot of miles on it and wanting to do everything possible to do preventive maintenance. Afterwards, I happen to look through the owner's book and found nothing regarding "Top Engine Flush". Is this a new preventive maintenance service, what exactly is it, and does it do any good?? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

0patience

Well,that depends on what they are calling a top engine flush,either way,I think they are a waste of money,unless you have a problem.If it what I think they are referring to,then it is basically running carb cleaner thru the system.Ask then what exactly the top engine flush is.If it is just flushing the intake,then it is a ripoff.GM's Top Engine Cleaner is Around $13 for a can,and one can does an engine.If they are talking about an oil passage flush,then that is even worse,those have a tendancy to flush everything into the pan,where it usually plugs the pickup screen.If you did not authorize the work,tell them that you didn't ask for it,so you aren't paying for it.When ever you go into a shop or dealer,tell them not to do any other work with out an authorization from you,write it on the repair order if you have to,if they won't let you do that,walk away and find another shop.YOU ARE THE BOSS,it is your vehicle and you call the shots.If they are not willing to cater to your wishes,they aren't concerned about your business.

daisy20

I had my inferno red cruiser for two months and my
engine would shut off while I was driving. The
electric would stay on but my motor would shut off.
Pretty scary! They narrowed it down to the
computer malfunctioning and replaced it. No
problems so far. I had an alarm system with auto
start and a cd player installed within a week after
having the car. The dealership said the wires on
my alarm system were just tied together not sotered
and that this could have jolted my computer. I
temporarily have my alarm and auto start
disconnected to see if the new computer acts up.
Does anyone have any input on the situation? Please
help me!

jamesbass1

Thanks for your response. I called the service dept. at the Toyota dealership inquiring more info on what exactly was their meaning of a "top engine flush". The service writer told me it was a cleaning of the Throttle Body and the Fuel Injectors by the technician. I think these guys are putting in overtime trying to figure out ingenious ways to pry open a customer's wallet. Another question regarding maintenance...I can't get anyone to give me the straight line about cleaning my V6 engine. Could you share your knowledge about this topic? Thanks.

0patience

To properly clean the injection system,the injectors have to come out and be hooked up to a unit that flushes them and I doubt they did that.Besides,for the cost of doing that,any injector that is bleeding by can be replaced and should be replaced.
By cleaning your engine,how are you referring?
Cleaning it externally?Or these ripoff flushes,that supposedly flush the oiling systems?

jamesbass1

Yeah, I agree...all I really wanted was some preventative maintenance so my 190,000+miles 4Runner would keep on ticking like a Timex! Well,you live and learn...and ask alot of questions! About the engine cleaning, I've never once cleaned the engine since I purchased the vehicle new in 1995. When I pop the hood, the engine and compartment looks quite dirty. So, yes, I'm referring to cleaning the engine externally but am getting conflicting or no info from the service dept. about how to properly go about it. I'd appreciate any help you could give me, and can I do it myself or should it be professionally cleaned? Thanks.

0patience

You have to be real careful of all of the electronic components,such as the distributer or ignition system,throttle body,alternator and if there is an ABS component by the master cylinder.All these things must be covered with something to keep the water away from them.The engine must be cold and you will need a biodegradable degreaser(had to say that for the enviromentalists out there).Then carefully spray the greasy areas with the degreaser,let set for a while and then hose off the engine.DO NOT USE ANY PRESSURE ON THE HOSE.That being said,personally,I would take it to a detail shop and see what they would charge for it,that way,if they screw it up,then it is on them.Like I said,you have to be extremely careful with water around the electrical systems

toomanymiles

Any idea where ON THE WEB I can find the maintenance schedule for a 1997 Jeep Wrangler? I found the maintenance schedule for my Explorer on the Ford site, but no such luck on the Jeep site. I'm trying to buy one (the Jeep) and I would like to be able to ask intelligent questions about past and upcoming maintenance. (I'd also like to know if I'm going to buy it with $1000 worth of maintenance due.)

Thanks.

judas

I've got an 85 Toyota 4x4, fuel injected, gas, no turbo or anything (I think it's the 22-RE), and I've got a dead cylinder. Compression is fine. It's definitely getting spark. I pulled the valve cover and the valve action looked okay (No intake stuck closed or anything, as far as I could see) and last week I replaced the fuel injector on that cylinder, which I thought would do it, but it didn't. The cylinder is completely dead as far as I can tell, although on two occasions when I was driving it the cylinder fired up and worked completely normally for about 10 minutes, then went dead again. The only thing I can think of is the wiring to the injector must be bad, I'm going to check it with a volt meter this weekend. I checked the fuel rail and it's not plugged up anywhere or anything. Anyone else have any other ideas? If this doesnt work I have no idea what it could be. The engine definitely has some oil blow by, there was some oil in the intake manifold, but it was distributed evenly between all the cylinders and the others are running fine. Thanks for any help.

0patience

Have you replaced the sparkplugs?Pull the cap and rotor and look at the under side of the rotor,if there is a tiny black mark on the underside of it,replace the rotor.Look for spark streaks inside the cap.Just some quick thoughts.

judas

Should have mentioned, first thing I did was replace the spark plugs. Like I said in the post, it's got compression and spark, so the only thing it's missing is fuel, right? The only things I can think of are bad injector (Already replaced, bad injector wiring (Thats next, although I'm going to have to cobble something together because there's no way i'm paying toyota 400 bones for a new harness), or the intake valve being stuck closed (Looked fine when I pulled the valve cover). Only other thing I can think of, and I don't know enough about it to say its a possibility, is if even though it's getting spark its not getting it at the right time due to some problem with the rotor. But I think thats pretty unlikely.

kdavidson1

My wifes car is a 1991 Dynasty with the 3.3 liter engine. Here's the problem (and it's an odd one!): After a short burst of high RPM, such as passing, there is a loss of power assist for the steering. This loss can last a few minutes or all day. It never occurs during normal highway or city driving, only after passing gear or "blowing out the carbon". I'm a first time poster and I'm sure hoping someone here will recognize this one. Thanks, Ken

jyo

My 91 accord had some problems recently..
First the car started stalling and engine check
sign lit up. The car started stalling and low oil
pressure sign came up. I checked under the hood and saw coolant all over with very little oil.
My mechanic says that there was a oil leak at the
distributor o ring area and the fact that I lost
so much oil ( i did not see any puddles in my
driveway) says that the car was burning lot of oil
and the reason may be due to clogged up air
filter. Can a clogged up air filter make the car
use lot of oil???? I would appreciate your input
into if the mechanic is right. ALso do you think
using synthetic oil is better???
Thx,
Jyo

pat455

Welcome to Town Hall.

There are a few topics in this conference that may interest you. Here are links to the ones that come to mind:

Honda Accord Problems Part 2 (Topic #1398)

Synthetic motor oil (Topic #543)

Engine Oil - A Slippery Substance Part 2 (Topic #851)

Take a look at the posts in the Accord topic - it could be you will find something helpful already discussed. We are fortunate to have an experienced Honda technician hanging out in the Accord topic, so if you don't find anything helpful in the previous postings, I encourage you to post your question there to get his input.

The other two topics both contain a lot of discussion about the merits of synthetic vs. dino (regular) oil.

Two of those links have "Part 2" in the topic title. This indicates that there is a previous discussion in our archives - the previous discussion will be linked in post 0 of the current topic. So there is lots of information for you to read up on.

Good luck, and again welcome!

Pat
Community Leader/Maintenance & Repair Conference

jjv55

I'm very interested in getting into auto maintenance. Are there public classes offered (I'm in Chicago)? Any suggestions where to look?
Thanks!

dawnallison

My car just starting jerking lately and the check engine light came on. It's a 95 Mazda Protege with only 77,000 miles on it. It has no other symptoms and my father said the engine looks like normal to him. But the car vibrates/shakes all the time i read in my owners'manual it is engine electrical. Any ideas as to what it could be?

bnormann

Dawn,

Have a look in this topic:

MAZDA PROTEGE PROBLEMS

and you may want to repost your question there.

Your host, Bruce

headache

I have a mystery that I could use help with. My oil keeps disappearing. It's not leaking, and not blowing it out the back. I've put 3 quarts of oil in it before my 3000 mile oil change. She still runs great. Only 66,000 miles on it. Should I be looking for a new vehicle?

0patience

The catalytic converter will mask alot of the oil smoke,so it is extremely hard to tell anymore if the vehicle is burning oil or not.But,if it isn't leaking and the trans fluid level(assuming automatic) isn't rising,then you are burning it.And if let to go long enough,not only will you be repairing the oil burning problem,but also replacing a clogged catalytic converter.But,you first need to confirm that thereisn't a leak,if there isn't,more than likely the valve seals are leaking.

schaffs2

Does anyone have any idea what the spark plug gap is on a 1995 Mistubishi Mirage 1.8L? there isn't a repair book out for this car yet and I need to put in plugs. .044 is what I've read. Thanks in advance.

eddybruce

I have a '97 protege DX, 5-speed. when engine gets hot, idles rough and stalls at lights or cruising slowly through wal-mart parking lot. only happens when a/c on (this is central texas in july). same problem last year, same time of year, shop changed plugs, ran ok. mechanic suggested plug wires, and check for white or grey powder inside cap, didn't see any, had to use magnifying glass and flashlight (strange design)didn't see any (eyes not that great) was going to order wires, and was told that problem may be coolant temperature sensor. anyone else experience same symptoms? other than that, great car, have over 78k on it (about 40 mile interstate round-trip at least once a day).