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If he was saying that he couldn't bring the car into spec, then there's a problem in the front end. If something is bent, you pay. If it's a failed bushing, maybe they'll pay, depending on what the damage is (ripped, probably you'll pay--cracked, probably they will pay).
Anyway, if in fact the alignment guy couldn't align your car no matter how he tried, either a) he doesn't know what he is doing or b) you have something unusual going on under there.
I hit the wipers this morning and the fuse blew. I think its time i take it to the dealer and get them to look at it. The sad part is its about 700miles out of the bumper to bumper warranty Do you think they would consider making a warranty claim this close the miles allowed? I dont think its reasonable that a wiper motor or system should fail in 3 yrs/60k but i guess when you buy a cheap car theres a reason its cheap
Thank you again.
Well if the fuse blew something is binding up or the motor is drawing too much current.
So, my question is......would a plugged cat cause low oil pressure? I know it seems like a silly question, but the truck has suddenly dropped its oil pressure from its normal 80 psi to approx 20-40 psi, its also very slow to come up on starting the truck.
I'm just concerned that there is damage done to the engine from the plugged cat. The other cat is fine. We are 4 months out of the 5yr/50k emissions warranty too.
RE: Cherokee -- I can't see any harm unless they send some maniac teenager out with the car and it pegs the tachometer into redline all the way, gets busted for going 125 and is sent to a chain gang. If it were a Porsche, one might worry but in this case I don't think I'd put that one high on my worry list. Given modern traffic conditions, it is almost guaranteed that the driver will have to vary his speed on the highway, which is what you want for the first 1,000 miles anyway.
Your oil pressure loss should be looked at immediately. Are you certain that it isn't the gauge? Install a known good mechanical gauge and check the oil pressure. Or have it done by a shop.
Once you confirm that the oil pressure is good or bad, then you will know the course of action to take. As Mr Shiftright said, it is unlikely that the cat is the cause of the low oil pressure problem, but it is possible. The back pressure that a plugged cat can cause on an engine would be enough to push considerable amount of pressure out openings in the engine and would create pressure on the engine, which could cause the oil pressure to drop.
Possible, yes. Likely, NO.
Because.........
Usually when the pressure gets to that point, the engine will barely run or not even start.
alligator4480,
I agree with Mr. Shiftright.
By the time you get a vehicle, understand that the engine has already run a fair amount of time.
From testing at the factory, to loading and unloading the vehicle at the dacks or warehouses and test drives and such.
Now, about breaking in a new engine..........
I cannot stress this enough, the engine should be operated as it will be normally driven, with many varying rpms in the drive.
Long term constant stable rpms should be avoided.
Varying speed and rpms is the best break in for the engine.
My advice, don't worrry about it. Drive it like you stole it. Oops, wait, that is drive it like you own it. LOL!
Problem: 55/67 mph, INTERMITTENT medium freq. vib. in wheel,console and the seat of your pants. When it is doing this you hear a rumble from the back of the van, also if you hit the brakes when it is vibration the whole van shakes.
Took it to the Dealer before the 6y/100k warrant expired. two techs looked it over and drove. They couldn't duplicate problem.
Could it be the rear shocks ?
RE: Vibration: usually, vibrations that occur within a set and narrow speed range are tire related or wheel related. Given that you also get vibration when braking, I'd look for something LOOSE. Also check u-joints--if they are frozen they will give you a harmonic vibration that runs through the body of the car.
So in this order:
Tire balance or tire out of round even if balanced
(test on machine and/or run-out gauge)
Bent wheel or loose wheel (check visually)
bad u-joints (check visually and pry for loosenss)
bad motor mount (rev engine with brakes on forward and reverse and see if engine moves appreciably).
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/consumer/warr95fs.pdf
The more intermittent-er it is (new word I made up there), the harder it is going to be to track down.
By all means check all your rubber mounts. If your van has hydraulic engine mounts, those things are notorious for trouble on some vehicles.
Another idea if you give up in frustration is to check the mounts on your a/c compressor or other engine-driven accessories.
He cut open the old cat and it was all broke up inside and seemed like it was jamming up against the screen and restricting the flow.
Next mission is a whole new exhaust system from front to back on that truck, dual all the way instead of dual back to dual cats into a single muffler. Its about due anyway, just can't afford it for a few more months. Sounds like the other cat is starting to come apart too, hopefully it will hold on for a while.
Since it was not a "standard" type of repair, the service advisor suggested I find a "creative" mechanic who has time to do the job, since I probably wouldn't want to pay them $90 an hour to remove the front seats, carpeting, and console, do the repair (which is basically a body repair, not a mechanical repair), and then put everything back together.
Opinions, anyone?
The AC blows cold air, but causes the engine to vibrate at idle. Occasionally there is a noise too. Like holding a credit card against a fan. When AC is off, engine runs smooth, you can stand a nickel on edge on top of the engine. During hwy cruising, there is no noise and little to no vibration. The vibration reminds me of an unbalanced component.
Also, I lost some coolant lately too. No puddles, no leaks, just missing. Could these issues be connected?
What can you suggest? Thanks!
Hot in MO
If you mean that it is hard to find a gear, and that the shifter is very sloppy, then there are some plastic bushings that can be replaced in the linkage to repair this problem.
If you mean that when you let off the gas, the gear shift slams out of gear, then you probably have a more serious transmission problem OR a busted transmission mount/engine mount.
If you are in the San Francisco Bay Area you can e-mail me and I will recommend a competent Audi independent to fix your car for you.
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Two different dealers have told me the clutch is integral to the compressor. The assembly is ~$800. I'm not sure I believe them since I see clutches available online for ~$35. Two question now.
1. Can the clutch be replaced separately?
2. If not, can I continue to run until failure or will that be "bad" (compressor metal shavings throughout the AC system)?
Thanks!
You might check with ACkits.com, they generally carry quite a bit of A/C parts, but you will have to call them to see if they have your clutch assembly.
Thanks. Upon additional research today. I'm looking at a compressor replacement. Clutches fail for reason, the compressor is usually messed up. For a '99 328i it's $800 for the compressor/parts. With labor and it the compressor let loose metal in the system I'll be looking at $1500. That's over $2k in one year. BMW NA say sorry, we can't help. The honeymoon is over. Now I'm thinking Acura...
Think I ought to let the local AC specialist take a crack. I'm thinking they could do it for under $900 with a better warranty.
Cheers
If you could find a good used unit + a few hours labor + recharge, well you are more likely in the $600 range than the $1,500 range.
thanks
Gb
"My 1996 Chevrolet Cavalier (2.2L) engine (30,000 miles) has a mildly rough idle (like little surges), that comes and goes from hour to hour of operation.
My dealer changed the fuel filter and then told me that my problem was a leaking valve cover gasket that had allowed oil to foul the plugs, ruin the plug wiring, and ruin the serpentine belt. He proposed to replace the valve cover gasket, replace the plugs, replace the plug wiring, replace the serpentine belt, clean the jets, all to the total of about $600 (I said no thanks).
I had already replaced the air filter and PCV valve. Only a minute amount of oil seems to have leaked out onto the block (at one corner only). The plugs are nearly new and look normal (no oiling or white deposit, and the gap is okay). There is no oil on the wiring and the serpentine belt appears clean to me. Please give me your best guess of what my problem might actually be".
When I found more time to spend on my Cavalier, I thoroughly cleaned the outside of the plugs, applied dielectric lube at top of plugs, and at least for now, my Cav is idling smoothly again (dealer had wanted to charge me $675 for his shotgun measures!)
Some automakers, such as GM, advise against using anti-seize on aluminum heads, not because they are afraid of stuff getting inside the engine, but because they are afraid you'll get false torque readings or you'll crank down too hard on the plugs and damage the head. I tend to agree with them on this unless you are extremely careful and know what you are doing.
Most DIY-ers use way too much torque for spark plugs.
Unfortunately, the 96 Cavalier plug wires are not easy to replace because the ignition module sits behind the engine in a very awkward place. However, I have heard of people changing the wires from underneath the car.
I agree with Mr. Shiftright about the torque and anti-seize. With anti-seize, tighten the plugs to no more than 11-15 ft.lbs. This is for tapered seat plugs as used on the aluminum head of the Cavalier. I use a small deflection beam torque wrench for the job.
Double platinum plugs should not be left in for 100,000 miles in an aluminum head as advocated by the user manual. After that period of time they tend to freeze in the head and the head can be damaged when trying to remove them. I remove them every 20,000 miles or so, check them, smear a very small amount of anti-seize on the threads and, carefully thread them in by hand and, finally, torque them up to the settings given above.
Nowhere though can I find a reasonably priced torque wrench with a mid-point somewhere close to the 11-15 ft-lbs torque now required by my cars.
I will definitely look at replacing the plug wiring if my rough idle returns.
To alternator - I found a suitable torque wrench at Sears about 5 years ago. Sometimes they have all sorts of gadgets in their tool section for autos.
Actually 2.
There are the car enthuisasts and then there are the hard core DIYers.
There are many enthusiasts who pay someone else to build their engines and vehicles, then there are the DIYers who do everything on the vehicles.
The steering feels weird - 'it has too much play', and is 'not smooth'. It is not recovering after a turn - one has to turn the steering wheel back to straight after a turn with much more deliberateness than normal. I also found the steering wheel to be difficult to turn.
Tie rods? Power steering?
Checked the power steering fluid - no problem.
I am not sure what's EGR system and its accompanying sensors you mentioned. Could you give me some hints how to get relative informations? I appreciate it.
Best,
Lei
Am considering 1999 cabrio with 109K on the clock. One owner though did go through auto auction recently.
Normally the EGR valve stays closed when the engine is cold. If yours is stuck open (they get clogged and gritty) or getting a wrong signal from a sensor, your car will run badly when cold.
As you can see you MUST try and get some error codes to see what's going on here.
Shiftright