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some kinda jackal posted:Stupid equipment question. I have a cheap hydraulic jack from like the 80s. While it works fine, I tend to do all my work on warm days on my asphalt driveway and with four extended wheels you can imagine the problem. One idea: look up "RV jack pads," will give you a bunch of options. There's some that are these flat, square, plastic thingies. Might be easier to deal with/store than plywood, and they're made for this, although RV leveling jacks probably don't handle as much peak load as a car jack. There are also short bottle jacks, like this:   Won't work for a low-profile situation, but if you're lifting up a truck, you can use them. You'd want to affix the bottom of the jack to a wider base, or use in conjunction with one of those RV jack pads.
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Mar 18, 2022 21:05
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Motronic posted:Any decent mechanic knows all of this and its is a very typical type of diagnosis and job for them. You shouldn't have any issues. Seriously. This is like googling your symptoms and thinking you have cancer.
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Mar 18, 2022 21:22
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spankmeister posted:Seriously. This is like googling your symptoms and thinking you have cancer. I'll let the expert figure it out, but since I can't take the car in until at least Monday, I was just curious what it might be. Sometimes specific "symptoms" are very obvious.
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Mar 18, 2022 21:48
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PBCrunch posted:As for the Fusion with a problem on the #2 cylinder: is yours a V6 model? If so, is the #2 cylinder spark plug hard to reach? Someone may have replaced the easy plugs and left that one alone. This was my first thought. AKA the three spark plug 1MZ tune up.
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Mar 19, 2022 01:18
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Leperflesh posted:One idea: look up "RV jack pads," will give you a bunch of options. There's some that are these flat, square, plastic thingies. Might be easier to deal with/store than plywood, and they're made for this, although RV leveling jacks probably don't handle as much peak load as a car jack. Good suggestion. Dica makes a good jack pad for industrial purposes, they also make rv jack pads. Perhaps a bit pricey, but I can vouch for their strength. Them shits don't gently caress around. As long as it doesn't get lost, set on fire or stolen, they'll Outlast you and your great grandkids. I bent two of mine today on soft ground trying to yank some poo poo out of the ground. Next time I'll just turn them over and put my jacks on them and they'll bend back and be fine. wesleywillis fucked around with this message at 01:32 on Mar 19, 2022 |
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Mar 19, 2022 01:28
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Dumb question about auto glass: The windshield on my car is only about 1 year old and lately I've been seeing a lot of tiny specks that are only visible in direct sun, but are very distracting during commute hours. I've tried cleaning with all the usual stuff, and even ran a clay bar over it. Still tons of tiny specks everywhere if I look at it from the right angle. I'm starting to think it might be microscopically tiny pits from road debris. Is there anything that can be done to fix or mitigate this? I do have glass coverage but getting a replacement to work with the HUD and lane assist sensors sounds like a pain and I'm reluctant to ninja rock my own windshield to get a replacement.
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Mar 19, 2022 02:37
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WhiteHowler posted:I'll let the expert figure it out, but since I can't take the car in until at least Monday, I was just curious what it might be. Sometimes specific "symptoms" are very obvious. If i had to guess, VCT solenoid. Sounds similar to issues with the 5.4. Random misfires until it's bad enough to throw a timing code. It could just be a spark plug/coilpack/injector, but it wouldn't usually be as extreme as you're describing. The 2010 fusion does have TSBs for the same issue as the 5.4 TSBs, too fine of a screen on the VCT solenoid that gets plugged quickly. Powershift fucked around with this message at 02:59 on Mar 19, 2022 |
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Mar 19, 2022 02:48
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PBCrunch posted:Back to E85. I don't know about cars with carbs, but small engines absolutely hate fuel with ethanol. Fuel with even 5-10% ethanol has an alarming tendency to pull moisture out of the air. If the vehicle you intend to run with E85 sits a lot, I would imagine the ability for ethanol to attract and gather water could be a problem. EFI systems can get around this because of their much higher fuel pressure and lack of anything like a bowl. Deteriorata posted:Ethanol reacts with zinc and magnesium, which a lot of old carburetors contain - and it will eat them to pieces. It's not just hoses and seals. Generally avoid ethanol in older cars (pre ~1980), there's too many bits of the fuel system that are sensitive to it. IOwnCalculus posted:Yeah, even E15 is definitely in the range of "new hoses and seals" for ethanol compatibility. Sounds like they have much tighter control on what E85 is where you're at, but I don't know if the difference in optimal air-fuel ratios between E70 and E85 is enough that you couldn't hit a good tune on a carb. Could also look at aftermarket fuel injection options that support flex fuel sensors so you get the best of all worlds. Ok drat, sucks that even E15 can mess stuff up. I think we still have the option of less ethanol content gas, so will be buying that instead. Are there any additives that can be used to help? Re: transmission, yeah I have to try to get the car up and see what I actually have. The transmission that's in the car is slipping according to the PO, so there is room for upgrading or rebuilding. From some reading on forabodiesonly good alternatives are the A500, 200-4R and A999. Edit: Managed to find the diff number: 2070741 which google tells me is a Mopar 8.75. MrOnBicycle fucked around with this message at 16:24 on Mar 19, 2022 |
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Mar 19, 2022 06:50
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Figured this would get more exposure here than in the small engines thread. Got a small piece of construction type equipment. With Hatz 3 cylinder diesel, if that makes a diff (probably not but figured I'd include that). I think the ignition switch is defective. When in the ON position, there is a significant amount of play in the key, it can move back and forth a fair bit. It looks like I can just buy a new key switch at Generic auto parts store, but I'm wondering about the ratings on them. I saw one earlier today that was rated for X number of amps, the the exact number eludes me atm. There was also another that was rated for 75 amps. The question, without knowing the rating of the current switch is: is there any reason to not just get the larger rated switch? Like, this isn't going to be an equivalent to using a 30 amp fuse in a circuit that should only have a 5 amp fuse, but the 5 amp fuses keep blowing, so you use the 30 amp and then set something on fire because the fuse didn't blow in time?
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Mar 19, 2022 16:31
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You're pushing a ton of current through it. Get the beefiest one you can.
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Mar 19, 2022 16:33
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Thanks, I figured it was something like that. Its been giving me some issues and today I got a text from my boss at breakfast saying that "the engine is making some funny clicking noises, the key is off and its rather warm". I feel like a heated ignition key is not a good thing. Except for the most dedicated has to be the most luxurious of everything person. Speaking of that, what would cause such a thing? A short inside the switch?
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Mar 19, 2022 16:48
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Yes, one that develops after years of it being tasked with heavy lifting beyond its rating. My 65 Econoline had one of those lovely switches and after about ten minutes of trying to get the engine to start it began emitting magic smoke. 
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Mar 19, 2022 17:04
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drat!! In this case, my broken switch is only a few months old. Machine has less than 200 hours on it, but its Saturday and the manufacturer is the dealer, and they're 3 provinces and two time zones away.. Just bought me the 75 a switch. Wish me luck! E: SUCCESS!!! wesleywillis fucked around with this message at 18:44 on Mar 19, 2022 |
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Mar 19, 2022 17:22
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Powershift posted:If i had to guess, VCT solenoid. Sounds similar to issues with the 5.4. Thanks. It's all academic, really, since I don't have the expertise to fix any of it myself. Good to know that the odds are it's something repairable and not the car's final death rattle. We're going to take it into the local "mom and pop" mechanic on Monday morning. They've never steered us wrong and are well-loved and respected by my more mechanically-inclined friends.
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Mar 19, 2022 19:38
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When do I need to replace my shocks on my car? I don't think there's any leaks, the turning isn't hard, doesn't seem too bumpy when driving, but I don't know if the shocks have been ever replaced, and I'm at around 245k miles Seems I could get four new shocks for my Hatchback for around $250, and I think I'd try to install it myself
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Mar 19, 2022 19:56
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They're likely long overdue. The problem with worn out suspension parts is the parts wear out slowly, so you don't really notice anything until you've replaced stuff.
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Mar 19, 2022 20:18
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GreenBuckanneer posted:When do I need to replace my shocks on my car? I don't think there's any leaks, the turning isn't hard, doesn't seem too bumpy when driving, but I don't know if the shocks have been ever replaced, and I'm at around 245k miles What kind of car is it? Shocks aren't usually too hard to do, but you want a decent spring compressor and torque wrench, which you can rent from the parts store though.
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Mar 19, 2022 20:21
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Charles posted:What kind of car is it? Shocks aren't usually too hard to do, but you want a decent spring compressor and torque wrench, which you can rent from the parts store though. 2010 nissan versa Hatchback. I don't have a impact wrench (yet) or breaker bar either yet
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Mar 19, 2022 20:25
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norton I posted:Dumb question about auto glass: I don't have an answer, but I wanted to quote this because I could use the same info. My Astro windshield is like a starfield in the right light, and replacement windshields are getting rare.
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Mar 19, 2022 20:38
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I am in the same boat with my older car, windshield has a ton of pits on it exactly as you describe, I have no idea what hellworld interstate the PO drove through since he picked up an asston but it’s stayed static since I’ve owned the vehicle. I’m not aware of any method to fix besides replacement. Regarding glass replacement working with the sensors, any worthwhile insured glass shop does these all day long so they know the correct methods, I would assume. Personally I would go OEM glass every time but that’s because I care about the car and noise levels etc. but diffrent strokes.
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Mar 19, 2022 20:44
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How hard is it to replace a steering rack? Mine (2002 Ford ZX2) has a clunk in it, and a new one is like $180, and I'm guessing paying a shop to replace it will be about five times as much. I've done brake work and have replaced the exhaust system on my car myself, and I have a lot of experience working on motorcycles, but haven't done anything with car steering or suspension yet. I have the factory service manual for the car and the job looks like something I can handle, but I am wondering if there are any big things to look out for, potential complicating factors, unusually difficult steps, etc. that would make doing this myself a bad idea.
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Mar 19, 2022 20:58
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GreenBuckanneer posted:2010 nissan versa Hatchback. I don't have a impact wrench (yet) or breaker bar either yet You would want a breaker bar at the very least. I found this video that goes through the process pretty well: https://youtu.be/IFqdAkPp7no I can see the benefit of refreshing them, but there are plenty of people out there who would really only fix it if things really broke down at this stage in the car’s life. No judgment here either way you go.
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Mar 19, 2022 21:00
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A heavily pitted windshield is a safety hazard, because you'll eventually find yourself driving at dawn or sunset with the sun in your eyes as you turn some corner and suddenly you can't see at all. Because of this, some insurance policies include glass replacement even for windshields that aren't badly cracked. Many do not, or only offer repair for minor damage/chips, but that repair is typically to fill in one or two chips, it does not involve resurfacing the entire windshield. If your insurance doesn't cover it... get it done anyway, when it gets bad enough. Exactly how much wear your windshield gets has a lot to do with your local road conditions, but also the aerodynamic geometry of the vehicle... some seem to better direct the wind up and over the top without blasting hard against the glass, others don't. At least, that's my belief, because I've seen some cars get cloudy and chipped in 2 or 3 years and others seem to last a decade, on the same roads with similar mileage, and I really doubt it's down to a huge quality difference in the safety glass. e. maybe this doesn't go without saying, but wash and wipe off the rubber on your wipers regularly. They accumulate road grit and if you don't keep them clean, they'll scrub the grit across the glass every time you use them.
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Mar 19, 2022 21:05
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Leperflesh posted:
One thing that I've found that may sound pretty dumb is, when you go through a drive through car wash and the soap gets dispensed on to your car, run your wipers. It seems to not only help clean the windshield of bugs and crap, but also keeps the wiper blades themselves clean. Particularly useful in a touchless carwash. Maybe not quite so much in a soft cloth wash. It sounds dumb, but it seems to work. I can get 2-3 years from a pair of wiper blades, vs having to replace them every year on my old car.
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Mar 19, 2022 22:08
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nitsuga posted:You would want a breaker bar at the very least. I found this video that goes through the process pretty well: Where the spring compressor would come in is if you don't get the whole assembly for the front and want to reuse the old springs. You have to compress them down to safely take apart everything.
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Mar 19, 2022 22:13
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Charles posted:Where the spring compressor would come in is if you don't get the whole assembly for the front and want to reuse the old springs. You have to compress them down to safely take apart everything. Yeah I guess I could rent them but like, wouldn't it be conducive to have them in my tool kit, you know for later?
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Mar 19, 2022 23:02
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GreenBuckanneer posted:Yeah I guess I could rent them but like, wouldn't it be conducive to have them in my tool kit, you know for later? It's arguable. If you have a handful of older cars to take care of, sure, having them can be handy. On the other side though, your money is probably better spent equipping yourself with the essentials that they don't rent out.
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Mar 19, 2022 23:09
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Windshield wipers are hugely gross items, wiping them down at the gas station usually takes 3-5 paper towels each, but the wipers work so, so much better afterwards. Wouldn't surprise me if this also extends their life to some degree. If you live in a cold + wet enough environment (washington state, coastal oregon etc) they'll also grow their own special blend of algae which further decreases their effectiveness
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Mar 19, 2022 23:13
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Leperflesh posted:At least, that's my belief, because I've seen some cars get cloudy and chipped in 2 or 3 years and others seem to last a decade, on the same roads with similar mileage, and I really doubt it's down to a huge quality difference in the safety glass. Yeah, it looks like I’ll have to wait until getting a new windshield installed is less annoying than the pits. At least this gives me plenty of time to find a decent glass shop and wait until the supply situation gets better. I have a hatch with a perfectly normal ride height, and there’s been highway construction. At least it isn’t a Mini, the steep angle on the windshield has to suck for rock chips.
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Mar 20, 2022 02:10
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Try taking it a glass shop and getting an opinion on whether or not most of the pitting can be polished out using compound. Probably not much cheaper than a new piece of glass, but asking's free. My '66 Bonneville has the original windshield and has the same issue (shocking after 56 years, I know); it's not as critical an issue because 1) it's not my DD and 2) the windshield stands nearly vertical. PainterofCrap fucked around with this message at 02:45 on Mar 20, 2022 |
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Mar 20, 2022 02:42
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Hello thread. I recently moved to a place in the mountains with a several mile dirt road that sees a considerable amount of snow. It gets plowed, but as to be expected, there can be a day or two delayed before it happens. I'm fairly up to speed on winter tires, what AWD does and does not do for you, etc., but I am having a hard time dialing in how important ground clearance is for snow. I've done a bit of reading and it seems like some people think it's super important and some think that it's not very important. I'm sure it's one of those things that we'll figure out over time, but I figured I'd ask my goon friends. How important is ground clearance for snowy mountain roads?
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Mar 20, 2022 16:54
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Internet Explorer posted:Hello thread. I recently moved to a place in the mountains with a several mile dirt road that sees a considerable amount of snow. It gets plowed, but as to be expected, there can be a day or two delayed before it happens. It doesn't affect control, but if there are drifts or snow piles, you can damage the lower bumper cover in a car with low ground clearance. so getting into and out of driveways for example, after the road has been plowed can be difficult to impossible in a car. when the melt starts, if there is hard packed snow on the road, tracks can be worn into the snow pack effectively reducing the ground clearance of all cars, meaning you could damage a low car. - The inch or so that most CUVs add over their car countepart isn't really meaningful in this scenario. Powershift fucked around with this message at 17:07 on Mar 20, 2022 |
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Mar 20, 2022 17:03
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Makes sense and seems obvious. Thanks for the answer. On your CUV comment, our current car that we are going to keep around is a 2014 WRX with like 5 inches of clearance. If we're making a decision based off of clearance, should we be looking at 8-10 inches of clearance if it's something we end up needing to care about? And if we're not aiming for 8-10 then it doesn't really matter too much? Obviously, devil is in the details and all that. How much snow is average, how long it sits, etc., but just as general guidance.
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Mar 20, 2022 17:18
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I have a '00 XK8 that's been parked up for the winter (so, since November) - I'm getting ready to pull it out in the next week or so. Usually I pull it out and change the oil when I get it home, but this year I was thinking of changing the oil before starting the engine. My theory: the car's been sat for ~4 months, so if there's any sediment in the engine, it'll all have settled at the bottom - if I start the engine I'm just mixing it all back up again. Obviously the oil will be substantially harder to drain out without being hot - but I figure I can just leave the drain plug out overnight and let it all run out over a period of, IDK, 24 hours. And when I do finally start the car, it'll start with a fresh load of oil. What do y'all think? Good idea/bad idea/anything I missed? edit: Jaguar AJ-V8 (4.0L NA), Eneos 5W-30 Synthetic sarcastx fucked around with this message at 18:06 on Mar 20, 2022 |
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Mar 20, 2022 18:01
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Internet Explorer posted:Makes sense and seems obvious. Thanks for the answer. On your CUV comment, our current car that we are going to keep around is a 2014 WRX with like 5 inches of clearance. If we're making a decision based off of clearance, should we be looking at 8-10 inches of clearance if it's something we end up needing to care about? And if we're not aiming for 8-10 then it doesn't really matter too much? I really can't speak for your area, but there have been some years here where a WRX would get beached on my street. my old 540 had a torn up bumper from the ruts in the snow. You can probably gauge based on what other people there are driving. Also, there are lift kits for WRXes 
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Mar 20, 2022 18:49
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Powershift posted:I really can't speak for your area, but there have been some years here where a WRX would get beached on my street. my old 540 had a torn up bumper from the ruts in the snow. You can probably gauge based on what other people there are driving. Thanks for all the info. And please, let's pretend I didn't see "lift kits for WRXes."
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Mar 20, 2022 19:35
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nitsuga posted:You would want a breaker bar at the very least. I found this video that goes through the process pretty well: Sometimes going over potholes it's kind of rough, to be honest, or even over some bumps, I was spending some time this weekend trying to pay more attention to it. I went back through my records, and my ex-wife got the car before me in around 2014 or earlier and has records on the car going back that far, and I can't find a single instance where the shocks were replaced and there is paperwork for it. There is someone suggesting to replace the spring? a few years ago in 2019 before I got the car but she declined it. In fact, I found paperwork saying the spark plugs were replaced in 2017, and in 2021 they acted as if the spark plugs had never been replaced. In 2014 I see the milage was logged at around 92k on a 2010 nissan versa, and I know she got it used at the time. It's almost 245k now. I also noticed that the "Sway Link Bar" seems like it has gotten replaced often and my last assessment by a mechanic was that one of the sway links was "ruined" so I should probably replace that too. Seems like a $50 part, but I think someone quoted her something exorbitant. I don't really understand why the sway link bar would need to be replaced so frequently. I also noticed that the brake rotors were replaced in 2017 so those hopefully should be good, but I'm going to replace the pads next month when the budget allows. edit: I also don't know why the "serpentine belt" needs to be replaced every few years either edit2: I'm also interested in replacing the CD player with like some sort of GPS/Bluetooth thingy of a standard size but I'm not sure which one of these random ones to get, the quality all seems questionable GreenBuckanneer fucked around with this message at 03:11 on Mar 21, 2022 |
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Mar 21, 2022 03:01
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I've fallen into a couple social media groups about "overlanding" and have seen a bunch of, uh "high aspect" tires where the sidewall is 50% higher than normal. I'm not sure what these are called but seems like the first upgrade to do, then yeah sounds like lift kit + start saving up for replacement CV joints Full disclaimer: the last time I saw more than 1/2 inch of snow was in like 2016 so my advice is complete horseshit Can you plow the road with an ATV + snow plow attachment? I recently saw a cyclekart ice racing event where they plowed a race course on a frozen lake using an ATV. Not sure how tedious plowing 3 miles of road is twice a week
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Mar 21, 2022 03:23
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how bad is occasionally shifting into the wrong gear on a manual (2015 FiST, if it matters)? not like into 1st when I meant 5th or anything like that, but occasionally I’ll be coming off a yield after a highway offramp and/or into a rotary and misjudge my revs/speed for a second, or I’ll mistime the occasional rev match—usually I’ll put the car into second when it wants to be in third and I’ll feel a bit of lurch and the revs will spike a bit. Basically imagine like a quick engine brake. I assume that this can’t be great for the transmission or motor. Am I going to blow up my transmission having done this occasionally?
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Mar 21, 2022 03:26
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Hadlock posted:I've fallen into a couple social media groups about "overlanding" and have seen a bunch of, uh "high aspect" tires where the sidewall is 50% higher than normal. I'm not sure what these are called but seems like the first upgrade to do, then yeah sounds like lift kit + start saving up for replacement CV joints overlanding lifts are like 90% for show and they ruin 90% of the overlanding experience—which is just driving long distance. identify a rough/rock trail you want to hit with your vehicle and build for that if you must, but turning your GX460 into a brodozer for the lulz and the gram is just turning a good car camping platform into a lovely and uncomfortable one
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Mar 21, 2022 03:30
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