Got a Quick, Technical Question?

hault

After my van is warmed up I can smell a burning odor. Usually when going thru drive thrus. I always thought it was other vehicles. It smells like burning cigarettes, or a burning exhaust like when a catalytic converter overheats. No lights coming on. Runs fine. 2000 Windstar w/40,000 miles.

Mr_Shiftright

You might check for an oil leak on a manifold or exhaust pipe.

Mr_Shiftright

Without a compression test in your hand, his (the mechanic's) opinion is just moonshine at this point.

 

Valves can get stuck and burn on any car, but this is an easily diagnosed problem. I don't see what the head-scratching is about.

alcan

Make sure you haven't collected a plastic bag on the exhaust pipe.

gemgem

I am considering buying a 1993 Q45. This vehicle is in very good condition inside and out. This car has never been in an accident and the odometer reads just under 100k miles (US car)

The transmission and radiator were replaced under warranty at 58K miles. My concern is the shocks have never been replaced. Would anyone have an opinion what negative impact this might have on the suspension components, as well as any other service issues I should be aware of on a car of this age. I have driven this car and other that very light steering feel, it runs and rides very well

Mr_Shiftright

I don't see any problem as long as you allow for the expense of replacing the shocks. 100K is a long time for shocks but they might still be within service limits. I'm sure, though, you'll notice quite an improvement once you get new ones put on.

marsha7

that old shocks just means that the car may bounce more after hitting bumps on the road...you may notice a definite improvement in the handling replacing shocks at 100K miles...heck, even if you said they were good, shocks can wear so much in 100K it would be worth replacing them anyway as a routine maintenance item...also, it would be wise at 100K to have the alignment checked, as 100K on any front end would require an alignment check also as routine maintenance...I get my alignment checked every 25K for preventive maintenance, as a few degrees off may not cause your car to veer left or right but can wreak hell on expensive tires, taking away 1000s of miles of usage, especially if the MIS-alignment is equal on both sides, the tires will wear quickly, but the car will seem to track straight...

 

Check around, some honest shops will check your alignment for free, and only charge you if they make any adjustment, even if only 1 or 2 degrees...the honest shops will play it straight, so if your alignment is good it will cost you nothing, which is the BEST preventive maintenace I can imagine...

alcan

Yep, also means a higher probability of rear tire cupping on FWD cars and more body roll in turns. Because it's a gradual deterioration, most owners aren't aware of the loss of damping, but any shock or strut has pretty much seen it's tour of duty after 100K miles.

bolivar

You should do some more checking. I don't know Lexus, but Cadillac with it's computer controlled struts cost about $750 each from the dealer to replace.

Mr_Shiftright

I like Bilsteins if they make them for that car. They are more expensive but you get what you pay for.

piverson

My 2005 KIA Sorento did not have the fog lights installed when my husband bought it and he wanted to have some installed soon. I saw on a msg board - this one or another Kia forum - where someone said he was told that they would not be able to install fog lights even though there was the "empty" holes available for that purpose. Has anyone had any experience with this or had this done??

driftracer

it's the harnesses - if the vehicle didn't come equipped with OEM foglights, the wiring harness that allow you to just mount and plug in factory lights aren't there. The front harness on the vehicle isn't equipped for them, and you'd likely have to replace the front harness (crazy money) to get that done.

 

Your best bet, since you already own the vehicle, is a good set of aftermarket lights installed by a competent shop - the cost will be 1/8-1/10 of what it would cost for factory lights that have little or no resale value...

hbgdriver

I posted this in the Windstar problems discussion, but I thought I would also try here. I own an 02 Windstar, 45,000 and change and so far no real problems until now. In Dec, the van started shuttering or idle hunting when it was cold and only on colder (below 30) days. Basically it seems that the van wants to stall or can't find the idle when its going from fast idle to normal, tach goes up and down, up and down until your put in neutral and give it a bit of throttle. Usually occurs after driving a block or so. After this, the van runs fine, no problems at all.

  

Late Dec. I had the fuel filter and IAC valve replaced, throttle body cleaned, weather got warm...no problems. End of January gets cold again, the van acts up. Back to the dealer to replace the Mass Air Flow sensor, warmer weather again, no problems.

  

Now it cold again and it's doing the same thing. The Dealer is scrathing his head since it's not lighting up the check engine light and therefore it's not showing any codes.

  

Ideas/thoughts/suggestions/HELP!

Mr_Shiftright

He's right..factory fog lights are usually junk anyway (more jewelry than utility) so I'd go for a quality aftermarket set.

driftracer

Saturn redline forum who HAD to have factory lights - the Redline didn't come with them for 2004 - they spent $180 EACH for lights from a regular Ion, plus $225 EACH for the harnesses to mate into the factory front harness....PLUS labor at a dealership...what????

 

Let's say its only a 1 hour job...another $75?

 

$885 for fog lights????!!!???

 

You can buy the baddest things on the planet, PIAA lights, for under $200 and have them installed for another $75. Or even get APC or GE lights at Wal-Mart for $30-40...the whole job for under $100 - that's what I'm doing on mine, plus they'll be cool, oval, and blue.

piverson

Thank You!

kenrik

I have a quick question. What is the quickest,safest, and easest way to drain the fuel tank on a E-250 van

Kirstie_H

Don't forget tonight's member-to-member chat - it's open mic night, so come and discuss whatever's on your mind.

 



 

http://www.edmunds.com/townhall/chat/townhallchat.html

 

6-7pm PT/9-10pm ET. Drop by for live chat with other members. Hope you can join us!

layton1

I replaced this gasket a while back, it stopped the leak for a while, now it's started leaking again. I didn't use any adhesive on the gasket. Some info says not to use anything on the gasket, other info says to use adhesive if you want. There seems to be alot of different opinions out there. Anybody got any tips for sealing a pan gasket, it's cork or cork/rubber composition? thanks

spanky2

I have a 1989 Mercury Tracer with 190,000 miles. At over 55 mph I get a loud rumbling noise from the front. Sounds like tire noise, but I have change the tires with no noise decrease. When suddenly lifting off the gas when going over 55 mph, I get a jerk in the steering wheel, almost like torque steer, but much more pronounced. When I start to accelerate, this jerking disappears. Any ideas?

 

Thanks

Mr_Shiftright

You have to be careful using a sealant near an oil supply. If you use too much, it can fall into the oil supply, get sucked up by the pump and plug an oil galley. I've seen it happen, not fun.

I prefer to use grease myself on most gaskets,--it holds the gasket nicely in place and can't harm anything-- but I do use silicone on water pumps and thermostat gaskets.

Sometimes you get leaks because you overtighten the gasket and squeeze it too much.

Mr_Shiftright

spanky, this sounds like it requires an inspection of the wheel bearing and/or the CV joint (axle joint). Also check your lug nuts for tightness and the steering arms for play in the joints. With the high mileage you have, safety issues become more important as the car fatigues and reaches the end of its normal lifespan.

jbruce

Thank you for the response. My Wife and I both have thought the same on this issue, and we still get the smell. Its just amazing that the Kia technician would immediately say, it's not the catalytic converter.

layton1

Thanks for the reply. I'm not an expert on gaskets, but, is there a difference between sealant and adhesive. To me, a sealant is like the silicone stuff, I used to put that on all my gaskets, but lately I've stopped using it on gaskets, the gaskets try to slide out as you apply torque, of course the tranny pan has so many bolts, it might not be an issue.

Adhesive glues the gasket to the surface,quickly, and usually the gasket isn't removable after the adhesive dries. I wonder if the adhesive would be better to use on the tranny pan?

You may be right, I may have over torqued the pan bolts. I don't think I've seen a torque spec on those. Maybe 1 ftlb or less? thanks

Mr_Shiftright

Well I suppose an adhesive (like permatex) might be good for pans, since you aren't removing them very often, yes. But use it sparingly. You only need a thin line of it.

Also you should put a straight edge on the pan sealing surface to make sure it isn't torqued or warped.

wesbarnes

Can anyone tell me how to replace the bulb on the heater/ac blower knob on the slk? I can't get my hand behind the dash so I was wondering if this bulb is replaceable by removing the knob and face plate.

Mr_Shiftright

You'd better ask the Mercedes parts department. These may be LED type bulbs that you can't replace...not sure. If the parts computer shows a bulb for it then you know you can replace it at least, even though Parts won't know how to do it.

wesbarnes

Nope! Not LED. There are 3 separate 12V instrument light bulbs in 2w and 1.5w. I just need to figure out how to get to them.

Mr_Shiftright

WEll that's a pretty esoteric bit of knowledge. You'd best ask the dealer or his wrenches.

kimron

I am going to have to replace the amp on my 2001 EB Expy. I have the factory Mach 1 system. Can you tell me the spacifics of the amp so I can get a comparable one? Thank you.

benderofbows

I change my own oil, but there was a misunderstanding and the dealer did an oil change the last time they had the car. I went to change it again this weekend and discovered they had put an extra quart in (6 quarts versus 5).

How bad is this on a motor (what components could be affected)? Four months/4,000 miles ago, Ford 4.0 V6, 15k miles.

Mr_Shiftright

1 quart over should be okay but I'd drain it out. Mostly what happens is that the oil can be forced out of seals and gaskets, or blown out the filler cap, and if there is REALLY a lot of it in there you can get cavitation (aeration) and then real trouble. Also excessive amounts of oil can screw up your catalytic converter.

But one quart over I don't think should be a problem.

suvshopper4

DIY-ers: When you flush your engine's coolant, how do you collect all of it (without just spilling it on the ground), then how do you dispose of it?

Thanks in advance.

-ss4

driftracer

flat round containers that have a "drain in" hole in the middle, and a spout with a lid on one edge. One is for oil, the other is for other stuff. I drain old oil or coolant into the newly empty oil or coolant containers, or milk jugs, or laundry soap bottles - then, I take them to Pep Boys or Autozone where they take them for free.

suvshopper4

Thanks for the speedy reply, drifty.
Some good info.

But if you are flushing the system, a lot of water has to run thru, yes?
How can you capture it all in one container?
Or do you just use a bunch of them?

-ss4

driftracer

if I'm doing something like that, and yes, it takes quite a bit of water to do it right.

imidazol97

You can catch the original drain of antifreeze and put it down the house drain to the sewage plant where it's decomposed by the bacteria rather than letting it run down the storm drain by the street.

Our city has a recycle tank for motor oil but not for antifreeze. The animal folks encourage not letting it get where dogs/cats can drink it. I don't worry, cause the neighbor dog deserves it since they let him out with no lease to wander the neighborhood. But antifreeze is toxic and apparently is sweet-tasting.

Then subsequent drains have less antifreeze so I let it run into the ground and storm drain. I refill twice with hose water; run the car; drain; cool. Then refill.

After the last drain I put in antifreeze and distilled water.

herbeapuce

Hi
I believe the interior left front wheel bearing has to be changed on my Acura integra 96 .. (I can shift the wheel with my hands and also the road noise charges when I play left right with the stirring.)the tierods and all seem to be all good.

I'm no mechanic... so here are my questions:

-Does it makes sense to change the 4 bearings for the 2 front wheels, or simply the one defective on that wheel?
- Does it make sense to buy the bearings from an Acura dealer, or any after market's will be as good?
-Is this the kind of work any mechanic can do, or I would be better off going to a wheel aliment specialist?

thanks for your help

stef. Montreal.

driftracer

especially if you're paying for it - the reason being is that it's not a lot more per wheel to do both bearings, and if one's gone, the other can't be far behind, so why pay twice to go into the same area?

Any decent independent shop can do this, and there's no real advantage to using Acura parts, unless good aftermarket parts aren't available.

alcan

96 Integra has 1 sealed bearing assembly for each front wheel, not 2 separate bearings. Bearing replacement is a labour intensive job as it involves removing the steering knuckle from the car, then pressing out the old bearing/hub and pressing in the new one. If one is loose or noisy, replace one. There's almost no labour saving in doing both at the same time. Aftermarket bearings work fine. Here in Ontario I use CTC and Parts Source bearings.

driftracer

two on one side - didn't know there was only one. I'm big on preventive maintenance and have had a bearing fail and a wheel fall off (when I was younger) - I'd do both sides, just for peace of mind.

herbeapuce

thank to all for their help

regards
stef.

mn_pat

My Quest is have issues at startup. It is getting progressively worse. The crank time is getting longer and when it starts the driver must tap the accelerator to get it running smoothly. Also, on the occasions that it starts extra hard there is an odor of gas. Gas mileage is also down, the last tank was 14.83 mpg. This isn't that much lower than the 17-19 mpq winter avg, but WOW that is bad.

My mechanic said it sounds like a fuel pressure regulator. Does that sound reasonable? Have other quest owners seen this type of issue. The mechanic said the fuel pressure regulator is a 4.2 hour job, or in other words $386. DANG!!!!

qbrozen

well, i really know so little about modern fuel injection systems, so i might be zero help. But, does the fuel pressure regulator have anything to do with the cold start valve? Heck, does a 2000 quest have a cold start valve??

Anyway, I would suspect a sticking cold start valve. So, this is what I'm thinking, the valve is sticking so that you are running too rich while driving (hence the lowered gas mileage) and so that its not closing all the way when its cold (hence the hard starting). This may be a stretch and, like I said, I don't even know if the valve exists on your car, but in case you don't get another answer, I thought I'd throw it out there.

And, if such a valve doesn't exist, then how about the MAF sensor? Basically, either of these parts would act in the way I am describing in terms of making you run to rich while driving and not choking it enough when starting cold.

I guess I would ask the mechanic to please explain what he thinks the fuel pressure regulator would be doing to cause this. I would assume he must suspect it is not delivering enough fuel when starting but then too much while driving? Seems strange to me that this could happen.

alcan

If your mechanic doesn't have a fuel pressure gauge, find one who does. No guesswork.

Mr_Shiftright

Yeah, could be the fuel pressure, but as alcan says, this is easily measurable. No guessing allowed with modern cars.

Everything you say though does point toward excessive fuel enrichment.

bolivar

The fuel pressure regulator on a Cadillac is the first thing on the fuel rail. Replacement would be 1 hour or less, very simple.

Failure causes hard starts, but not because of overpressuring. It leaks back into the vacumn hose that is connected. This causes overrich mixture.

The fuel injectors should be closed when the car isn't running. But a bad injector could leak a lot of gas into a cylinder, causing hard starting.

Checking the fuel pressure does nothing to find either of these conditions. Oh, wait a minute. Putting a guage on the system and shutting down the car - watch the pressure. It should maintain pressure (what pressure? How long? I don't know). If it falls quickly, this might indicate an injector failed open..

alcan

The fuel pressure regulator on a Cadillac is the first thing on the fuel rail.

It's the last thing. It controls pressure by providing a restriction on the return side of the fuel rail, downstream from the injectors. Just like virtually every other fuel pressure regulator on FI engines.

Replacement would be 1 hour or less, very simple.

.4 hours

Checking the fuel pressure does nothing to find either of these conditions.

It does.

It should maintain pressure (what pressure? How long? I don't know).

Fuel Pressure Test
With the ignition switch ON and the fuel pump running, the fuel pressure indicated by the fuel pressure gauge should be 333-376 kPa (48-55 psi). This pressure is controlled by the amount of pressure the spring inside the fuel pressure regulator can provide.

A fuel system that drops more than 5 psi in 10 minutes has a leak in one or more of the following areas:

The fuel pump check valve.
The fuel pump flex pipe.
The valve or valve seat within the fuel pressure regulator.
The fuel injector(s).

Fuel Injector Balance Test
The Fuel Injector Balance Test compares the performance of each of the cylinder by using the PCM to shut off fuel injection. The J 39021 Fuel Injector Tester is being used to energize the fuel injector for a precise time period. This measures the performance of each cylinder by the amount of RPM drop caused by that cylinder not producing a power stroke. If proper fuel delivery has been determined, then a cylinder that does not show good performance (RPM drop) indicates either an ignition or mechanical problem.

Diagnostic Aids
Any fuel injector that drops significantly (more than 10 kPa) requires service

The engine coolant temperature affects the ability of the fuel injector tester to detect a faulty fuel injector. If the engine coolant temperature is NOT between 10°C and 35°C (50°F and 95°F), go to Fuel Injector Coil Test - Engine Coolant Temperature (ECT) Outside 10-35 Degrees C (50-95 Degrees F)

alcan

But, does the fuel pressure regulator have anything to do with the cold start valve? Heck, does a 2000 quest have a cold start valve??

No, and no. Fuel delivery is controlled by the powertrain control module, which pulses the injectors. Fuel enrichment for cold starts is provided by input from the engine coolant temperature sensor to the PCM.

suvshopper4

Thanks for the reply, imidazol.
Some very good ideas.

I just want to double-check:
Does anyone else know if sewer-treatment plants can handle antifreeze without any problems?
I don't want to pollute.

I remember years ago, anti-freeze was recommended for adding to toilet bowls that were in unheated areas in winter. Don't know if that has changed with more eco-consciousness.

Thanks in advance.

-ss4