AI Stupid Question Thread - The automotive forum is calling about your car

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Automotive Insanity > AI Stupid Question Thread - The automotive forum is calling about your car

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CAT INTERCEPTOR: Nov 9, 2004; Basically a male Margaret Thatcher

Wrar posted:

Any tips on getting dowel pins into a flywheel, or is it just an arduous pain?

Flywheel and pins in the freezer

# ? Jul 21, 2017 03:26

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# ? May 15, 2024 00:35

Wrar: Sep 9, 2002; Soiled Meat

I used the duster/canned air method. Worked great.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 04:53

Platystemon: Feb 13, 2012; BREADS

Autoexec.bat posted:

It appears to be working all the time when the AC is turned on, but it's a Prius so it's some kind of electric compressor. It seems to stop working more when the car has been sitting in the sun but that may just be coincidence.

Edit: Found the AC thread, I'll post over there.

You can hear it easily from outside the car.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 04:57

Josh Lyman: May 24, 2009

Junkyard got a 2008 Prius to match mine. Should I buy one of the aluminum wheels for $28? Not sure if I'd ever use it, but replacements are like $160 so...?

Josh Lyman fucked around with this message at 13:41 on Jul 21, 2017

# ? Jul 21, 2017 13:25

vanity slug: Jul 20, 2010

My Skoda Fabia (2016, Style Business, Admundsen) is only playing audio through the driver-side speaker. There's three other speakers in the car. Worked perfectly yesterday, this morning I started my car and it was hosed. Any idea where to check?

# ? Jul 21, 2017 13:29

Platystemon: Feb 13, 2012; BREADS

Josh Lyman posted:

Junkyard got a 2008 Prius to match mine. Should I buy one of the aluminum wheels for $28? Not sure if I'd ever use it, but replacements are like $160 so...?

By the time you need it, if you need it, there will be more junkyard matches.

I might consider snapping up the full set for winter tyres, though.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 13:40

Josh Lyman: May 24, 2009

Platystemon posted:

By the time you need it, if you need it, there will be more junkyard matches.

I might consider snapping up the full set for winter tyres, though.

Good point. Should be more Gen 2 Priuses coming in over the next few years.

As for winter tires, I live I Atlanta (for now) so I wish it got that cold. Literally 105*F heat index for weeks now.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 13:42

Wickerman: Feb 26, 2007; Boom, mothafucka!

$28 per rim? Buy that poo poo, if the rim faces look good or you don't care get at least the one for a full size spare.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 15:28

opengl: Sep 16, 2010

Final exhaust leak update. It's been nearly 100 degrees all week so I haven't been arsed to fix it. Went to the off road shop that always has muddy jeeps out front, they fixed it up for $60.

Sweet sweet silence.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 15:36

Josh Lyman: May 24, 2009

Wickerman posted:

$28 per rim? Buy that poo poo, if the rim faces look good or you don't care get at least the one for a full size spare.

Turns out it was actually $55. Deciding to hold off for now. A full size spare doesn't fit into the wheel well.

edit: Apparently a full spare will fit into the cargo bin, not the wheel well. Got my extra tire mounted and balanced for $10 total. Not so bad I guess.

Josh Lyman fucked around with this message at 19:01 on Jul 21, 2017

# ? Jul 21, 2017 16:06

GnarlyCharlie4u: Sep 23, 2007; I have an unhealthy obsession with motorcycles.

Proof

Q8ee posted:

Update for those of you interested:

Took the car to the VW dealership (2nd time now, for the same issue). Technician said he couldn't feel anything wrong with the car (as he was driving it). He was flooring it and the performance was poo poo, I even told him it doesn't pull like my old car does, and he said it feels normal. I asked him if he could have a look at the clutch anyway, for my ease of mind. He said it wouldn't be covered by the warranty if he did that, as he couldn't detect anything wrong with the car (gently caress off) and he needs to feel a fault for it to be covered. I told him it doesn't feel right, I told him I drove the exact same engine size in a 2014 Golf, and it felt twice as nippy as the one I have now, despite this one having 115BHP compared to my old 105BHP. He shrugs and says he can't discern any issues, but they're taking it in next week to run a diagnostics (they won't find anything most likely, cause they clearly wanna save as much money as possible, and it's what the other VW dealership did already and it changed nothing).

Right after that, I called up my local Halfords (a big car service company) and asked if they'd have a look for me and that I'm happy paying to find out what their opinion is. The minute they found out it was new and under warranty, they told me they won't help, as they don't want to get in the way of a dealership (he said if they found an issue and I took that as proof to the dealership, it would cause issues for him). Fair enough. Went to a small independent garage, that guy test drove it and basically confirmed all my suspicions. He said it's like the car is hesitant to pull away, and that he felt it lugging a little bit. He told me that the clutch feels fine, and doubt that's the cause of the problem. He told me not to worry, give it a thousand miles or so and hope that everything beds in. He said as well that year by year, engine mapping changes, so it could be that due to the whole emissions scandal, they've strangled the engine. I'm definitely going to go back to them once I break the 1000 mile marker if the issue is still there. The guy was genuine and gave me his honest advice, he straight up told me not to pay the �45 they charge to have a look at it, as he feels the problem might resolve itself once it's been broken in. I feel robbed by the dealership, to be honest. Dropping all that cash on a new car, only for it to feel like a 1L granny's car compared to my old nippy bitch.

I'm also officially past the 14-day return window so I can't throw the car back at the dealership. PSA: always test drive the loving car you're getting. Don't be a jackass like me and barely put it through it's paces cause you already test drove another model at a different dealership.

Wife had a similar problem with her brand new Rav4. She took it back to the dealership a day or so after she got it because it would rev to high heaven and go nowhere or she would floor it and only get up to like 20mph. They tried to warranty it. I said, "gently caress NO. DON'T LEAVE. WHOEVER IS HELPING YOU, DON'T LET THEM GO ANYWHERE. I'M LEAVING WORK. I'LL BE THERE IN 20 MINS."

She went home in a loaner, and picked up our new car the next day. A month or so later when we went back to get the oil changed, we noticed the car was still sitting in the same parking spot.
I asked one of the techs what was up and apparently the transmission and transfer case had no fluid in it and had basically eaten itself alive. The poor car didn't even make it 50 miles.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 16:45

Qubee: May 31, 2013

Well poo poo, that makes me feel really lovely about it now.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 19:10

GnarlyCharlie4u: Sep 23, 2007; I have an unhealthy obsession with motorcycles.

Proof

Q8ee posted:

Well poo poo, that makes me feel really lovely about it now.

Just go back to the dealership and start yelling at sales people on the showroom floor about how much of a piece of poo poo your car is.
Eventually a manager of some sort will come out and maybe he'll help?

# ? Jul 21, 2017 19:18

Fender Anarchist: May 20, 2009; Fender Anarchist

So I blew a headlight on the Crown Vic. Now, when I say "blew", I don't mean the filament burned out.

There's about a half inch of water in each headlight housing, and chunks of bulb glass in the one this came out of. I've got a new bulb ready to go in, but is water intrusion into the headlights a known issue on these cars? Is it worth trying to seal with rtv or whatever, or should I be looking at new housings?

# ? Jul 21, 2017 19:51

autism ZX spectrum: Feb 8, 2007; by Lowtax; Fun Shoe

Anecdotally, I've never seen anyone I know attempt to reseal headlights actually manage to do it successfully.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 20:11

Josh Lyman: May 24, 2009

Just spray it with Gore-Tex

# ? Jul 21, 2017 20:20

Deteriorata: Feb 6, 2005

Enourmo posted:

So I blew a headlight on the Crown Vic. Now, when I say "blew", I don't mean the filament burned out.

There's about a half inch of water in each headlight housing, and chunks of bulb glass in the one this came out of. I've got a new bulb ready to go in, but is water intrusion into the headlights a known issue on these cars? Is it worth trying to seal with rtv or whatever, or should I be looking at new housings?

It's probably due to condensation rather than direct intrusion. You may find this video useful:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNWTidkxcmQ

Actually sealing it successfully is a tough job. It may be a matter of either putting up with it or replacing the unit.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 20:23

kid sinister: Nov 16, 2002

Deteriorata posted:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNWTidkxcmQ

Step 1: cut a hole in the box

# ? Jul 21, 2017 20:31

Detective Thompson: Nov 9, 2007; Sammy Davis Jr. Jr. is also in repose.

I've got a 1985 Nissan 200SX and I just got done replacing the headlights, which was a real treat. Anyway, I think I might have put the metal covers on the lights on a little too far forward, at least it looks like it to me. How much of a gap should there be between them and the hood? Is too much of a gap bad, as in is poo poo getting in there going to be a problem? If they're too far forward, I'll adjust them, but I don't quite have time for it today after how long it took to finish up.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 20:34

GnarlyCharlie4u: Sep 23, 2007; I have an unhealthy obsession with motorcycles.

Proof

kid sinister posted:

Step 1: cut a hole in the box

Step 2: gently caress it.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 21:42

Javid: Oct 21, 2004

I had a headlight like that, wound up just drilling a hole in the top and bottom so whatever water did accumulate could just drain out. Worked fine until a deer suicided onto that headlight and I had to replace the whole assembly anyway.

# ? Jul 21, 2017 21:52

kid sinister: Nov 16, 2002

GnarlyCharlie4u posted:

Step 2: gently caress it.

yes and no...

# ? Jul 21, 2017 23:26

Crab Dad: Dec 28, 2002; behold i have tempered and refined thee, but not as silver; as CRAB

Javid posted:

I had a headlight like that, wound up just drilling a hole in the top and bottom so whatever water did accumulate could just drain out. Worked fine until a deer suicided onto that headlight and I had to replace the whole assembly anyway.

So simple. Thanks.

# ? Jul 22, 2017 01:42

Elmnt80: Dec 30, 2012

GnarlyCharlie4u posted:

Just go back to the dealership and start yelling at sales people on the showroom floor about how much of a piece of poo poo your car is.
Eventually a manager of some sort will come out and maybe he'll help?

Success is not assured with this method, sometimes you get trespassed by the dealership. (Or nearly in my case) :v:

Elmnt80 fucked around with this message at 08:07 on Jul 22, 2017

# ? Jul 22, 2017 07:48

DeesGrandpa: Oct 21, 2009

Welp sold the fusion and bought the Jetta. My mechanic also has a 2000 maxima with 96k on it coming in at a price I can't ignore, so looks like I'll have two cars for a bit till I can decide which one makes more sense for me. Thanks question thread for all the help on it

# ? Jul 22, 2017 14:46

Qubee: May 31, 2013

1) Is excessive fuel consumption indicative of an underlying problem? Same engine size as my old car but it seems to guzzle fuel.
2) Is engine juddering when turning (especially around roundabouts) indicative of an underlying problem? Keep in mind it's not due to being in too high a gear. It'll happen at 10mph in 2nd gear going round the roundabout. Happens more frequently around smaller, tighter roundabouts.
3) How similar is the DPF "burn smell" to the smell of a burnt clutch? And how strong is this smell in new cars that have yet to pass the 1000 mile marker?
4) Due to conflicting advice regarding "break in" periods, for the first 300 miles I was over-revving the engine and hard accelerating (though when I say 300 miles, I did a 200 mile roundtrip in one sitting with decent driving). Will that cause trouble down the road?

Qubee fucked around with this message at 18:38 on Jul 22, 2017

# ? Jul 22, 2017 18:30

Leperflesh: May 17, 2007

Q8ee posted:

1) Is excessive fuel consumption indicative of an underlying problem? Same engine size as my old car but it seems to guzzle fuel.
2) Is engine juddering when turning (especially around roundabouts) indicative of an underlying problem? Keep in mind it's not due to being in too high a gear. It'll happen at 10mph in 2nd gear going round the roundabout. Happens more frequently around smaller, tighter roundabouts.
3) How similar is the DPF "burn smell" to the smell of a burnt clutch? And how strong is this smell in new cars that have yet to pass the 1000 mile marker?

1) Yes, quite possibly.
2) I would think so
3) We already know for a fact your clutch is slipping. Of course you're smelling the thing burning.
https://chiptuning.com.au/diesel-particulate-filter-dpf-fact-sheet/
Your DPF is just a filter. I don't think you should be smelling anything from it after just 1000 miles, and especially if you've been driving in cycles that would cause the regeneration cycle to work. I think you're smelling the ongoing destruction of your faulty clutch, which the VW dealerships have refused to properly diagnose.

# ? Jul 22, 2017 18:39

lol internet.: Sep 4, 2007; the internet makes you stupid

For the car cigarettes lighter power source, is there different standards for the plug?

I bought a pump which doesn't seem to fit in it. It's super tight, I tried it on two cars and doesn't seem to fit inside it.

The instruction manual says 12v DC power plug. I assume the car cigarette port normally supplies this?

# ? Jul 22, 2017 21:18

Deteriorata: Feb 6, 2005

lol internet. posted:

For the car cigarettes lighter power source, is there different standards for the plug?

I bought a pump which doesn't seem to fit in it. It's super tight, I tried it on two cars and doesn't seem to fit inside it.

The instruction manual says 12v DC power plug. I assume the car cigarette port normally supplies this?

Yeah, that's been standardized for decades. Either you're not inserting it properly or it's defective.

# ? Jul 22, 2017 21:32

lol internet.: Sep 4, 2007; the internet makes you stupid

OK sounds defective. I mean when pulling it out I essentially had to use a pair of plyers and it ripped out my center console in the process.

# ? Jul 22, 2017 21:45

InitialDave: Jun 14, 2007; I Want To Believe.

Was it a particularly cheap one? Some of them are really rubbish.

# ? Jul 22, 2017 22:02

spog: Aug 7, 2004; It's your own bloody fault.

I had a power adaptor that didn't quite fit because the shoulder of the plug was quite square-faced, not a gentle curve (think AA battery, instead of tampon) and so it wouldn't go all the way in and make a good connection

# ? Jul 22, 2017 22:35

Jack B Nimble: Dec 25, 2007; Soiled Meat

How do I get this hood release cable through the firewall of my 1995 ford F-150? The wider piece at the tip seems to almost fit, but not quite. I don't see that it comes apart on either end. The previous cable had been cut off on the tip so it just pulled out.

# ? Jul 22, 2017 23:41

Deteriorata: Feb 6, 2005

Jack B Nimble posted:

How do I get this hood release cable through the firewall of my 1995 ford F-150? The wider piece at the tip seems to almost fit, but not quite. I don't see that it comes apart on either end. The previous cable had been cut off on the tip so it just pulled out.

Run a string through the hole, tie it to the loop, then pull it back through. The loop will flatten out under tension.

# ? Jul 23, 2017 00:06

Jack B Nimble: Dec 25, 2007; Soiled Meat

I can get the loop through, the part that catches is that plastic .... double flange? If the answer is just to pull it through I can through what was plan 1 before I got scared, push the loop through and pull the rest through with needle nose pliers.

Also! In newer and perhaps more pressing news, I took the truck around the block to charge the battery (I never, ever drive it and had to put in a new battery). Well, of course, since I'm working on replacing this hood cable...the latching mechanism wasn't on the hood. No big deal, I thought, I'll just go slow enough that the hood doesn't fly up.

But the hood did fly up. And wouldn't come back down - I bent the hood trying. I ended up going in reverse back around the block and put it back in the garage.

I think I need to take the hood off and either bend it back correctly or get another from the junk yard. I'll get some more pictures later and maybe someone can tell me how to get the hood to come down, it seems like it hyper extended and latched into some safety locks I can see around the springs, but it seems like it's under a lot of tension so I couldn't coax it back down.

# ? Jul 23, 2017 00:29

Wickerman: Feb 26, 2007; Boom, mothafucka!

Lube the part that gets stuck and just work it through? also drat about that hood.

# ? Jul 23, 2017 01:32

Josh Lyman: May 24, 2009

While removing the radiator cover in my Prius, one of the plastic clips flew into the back of the engine bay and it hasn't fallen through. Should I be concerned it might cause a problem? I guess worst case is it gets melted by the engine?

# ? Jul 23, 2017 22:13

Jaded Burnout: Jul 10, 2004

Here's something I've never quite understood. My understanding of the way braking works is the (rolling) traction between your tyres and the ground forms a cohesive energy system whereby applying brakes will slow the car provided that traction is held and the wheels don't lock up, at which point you'll still slow due to regular friction but with a marked lack of control due to a loss of rolling resistance. My understanding is therefore that the type and condition of your tyres and the road surface is irrelevant to braking beyond that required to maintain traction.

Am I correct or is there some other mechanism at work here? When roads are coated in an extra rough surface near junctions is that purely to prevent tyres breaking traction with the road or do they in some way improve braking even for normally rolling wheels? And vice versa for rain.

# ? Jul 23, 2017 23:13

Platystemon: Feb 13, 2012; BREADS

When you�re gently breaking to a stop for a yellow light, you don�t need a particularly large amount of traction.

The point if grooved pavement and tread patterns is to increase maximum traction for more demanding scenarios, things like wet pavement, braking hard, and/or swerving.

Platystemon fucked around with this message at 23:26 on Jul 23, 2017

# ? Jul 23, 2017 23:22

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# ? May 15, 2024 00:35

Deteriorata: Feb 6, 2005

Jaded Burnout posted:

Here's something I've never quite understood. My understanding of the way braking works is the (rolling) traction between your tyres and the ground forms a cohesive energy system whereby applying brakes will slow the car provided that traction is held and the wheels don't lock up, at which point you'll still slow due to regular friction but with a marked lack of control due to a loss of rolling resistance. My understanding is therefore that the type and condition of your tyres and the road surface is irrelevant to braking beyond that required to maintain traction.

Am I correct or is there some other mechanism at work here? When roads are coated in an extra rough surface near junctions is that purely to prevent tyres breaking traction with the road or do they in some way improve braking even for normally rolling wheels? And vice versa for rain.

Keeping the wheels turning while braking is important to maintaining control. High-traction road surfaces allow for higher braking forces without losing the grip on the road. "Grip" is defined by the coefficient of ~~sliding~~ static friction between the tire and the road.

So it's an indirect effect. High-grip road surfaces don't make your brakes work better, it just allows you to push on the pedal harder without skidding.

Deteriorata fucked around with this message at 23:29 on Jul 23, 2017

# ? Jul 23, 2017 23:27

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Automotive Insanity > AI Stupid Question Thread - The automotive forum is calling about your car

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