Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with carrepair

1983 Honda Emmisions Help

nestor_makhno — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:53:16 -0800

Failed the air system inspection for Arizona emissions. What does that mean? I have a 1983 Honda Accord, carbureted, that I just took to Arizona emissions testing. It passed all of the criteria with flying colors except next to Air System it says "Failed." Down below it says that the vehicle has passed the emissions test but failed the equipment test. I can't get it registered till it passes. The only thing I noticed before taking it in is that there was a hole in hose that, I believe, brings air from the radiator to the top of the carburetor.

Can this little engine still do it?

gladly — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 11:48:13 -0800

My 1998 Mazda Protege is making a new noise, and I'm wondering what it might be and if it's a bad idea if I keep driving her. I have a 1998 Mazda Protege (called Frances) with about 98K miles, automatic, and kept outside for the past ten years in various climates. She's been almost free of major mechanical issues and was inspected in February 2008.

I put less than 7,500 miles a year on the car, and during the last couple of times I've driven her, I've noticed a high-pitched noise when I'm pressing on the accelerator, specifically when the RPMs are around 2.5-2.75 regardless of the speed of my car at the time. When I take my foot off the accelerator, the noise stops. I haven't noticed any other problems with the performance of the car or changes in gas mileage.

The noise isn't a squeal, more like a high-pitched drone, an "extra effort" noise, but it's new. I normally drive alone, and I'm worried about it being something that might cause major damage if I keep driving Frances until I can get her checked out. I do have a mechanic I trust, but he's quite far from where I am, and I wouldn't be able to get the car in for a couple of weeks. Of course, I'd love to know if you have an idea about what this noise could be, but I'd also like to know if I'm taking an unacceptable risk in the meantime still driving her around on trips of 50 miles and less?

Help me start my jeep

ook — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 08:56:17 -0800

Help me start my car engine. Or at least understand why it won't start. So: I went to start my car last night (2001 Jeep Wrangler), but flubbed it and let go of the key too soon; the engine turned over once but didn't start. When I tried again, it just made a single quiet click and didn't even try to turn over. Leaving it to sit overnight failed to magically solve the problem, which had been my fervent hope.

I've checked the obvious stuff -- the battery seems to have adequate charge; I tried jumpstarting it anyway and that didn't help either. That exhausts the full extent of my car repair ability.

I know the answer is probably going to be "call a tow truck", but I guess I'm hoping that there's some obvious cause-and-effect going on with the flubbed start, which will have an equally obvious solution... any ideas?

Where can I donate a car to be used for auto repair training?

EatenByAGrue — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 16:55:04 -0800

I'm looking for a charity that will take a non-operational car, use it to train people in auto repair by fixing it, then sell it or give it to someone that needs a car. This is in the SF bay area. I realize that the tax law no longer treats car donations favorably, and I'm not really interested in how much of a deduction I get. Nor does it matter to me what the charity is, as long as it's for what I think is a good cause.

I'm mainly looking for two things:

(1) that the proceeds from the car's sale (or the car itself, if not sold) go as much as possible towards the charitable cause, as opposed to a middleman; and

(2) that the charity provides disadvantaged individuals with an opportunity to learn a marketable skill by teaching them for free or at a reduced cost how to fix cars, and specifically the car being donated.

I seemed to remember a radio ad from a few years back when car donations were all the rage describing a charity operating according to just this scenario, but I don't remember it and all my web searches have only turned up organizations outside of California. Thanks for the help.

What screw do I use, and where do I get it?

Zonker — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 07:42:30 -0800

While changing the lightbulb in the front turn signal on my car (a 2003 BMW 330i), I managed to lose the screw that connects the turn signal assembly to the car. What kind of screw can I get to replace it? I imagine there must be some standard size to use, but if so, I haven't been able to find it. Assuming I can just buy a garden-variety phillips-head screw, what's the specified size?

I've been trying to find the reference to the original part, on the RealOEM site and elsewhere, but while I can find the page for the signal assembly and various pages for mounting parts, I can't seem to find the entry for the particular screw that I need.

Do I own a car that truly cannot be repaired?

starscream — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 10:23:05 -0800

Is my Audi unrepairable? I have a 2003 Audi A4 1.8T with a CVT (GGT) transmission that's messed up. When driving, the transmission 'slips' and occasionally freaks out and pushes the engine to 7k rpm's. Sometimes it drives fine, but when it freaks out... it freaks out and therefore it's unreliable and undrivable. My Audi dealership replaced the Transmission Control Module and this behavior still happens, so they say that the whole transmission needs to be replaced. I called Aamco and they also told me that it needs replacement as there are not parts made for my transmission. A call to an independent shop netted similar info.

Is my Audi's transmission truly unrepairable? Or am I getting the wrong information? Is there anyone in the greater Los Angeles area that can repair it? Do I have any other option than just waiting to pay it off before getting rid of it?

The transmission replacement price is $6500, and it seems absurd that a major car company would build and sell something that can't be repaired.

I wish I could simply sell it or scrap it, but I still owe three years payments on it...

I wanna be a mechanical vagrant!

TheNewWazoo — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 09:27:07 -0800

I love renting a house in urban Atlanta! I hate renting a house in urban Atlanta! Can anyone help me find a place to fix my car... myself? So as much as I love living ~150yds from a MARTA station, and as little as I drive my car in town, and as nifty as my urban garden is, my car occasionally needs repair. I'm quite handy and would love to do minor stuff myself, but my steeply-sloped driveway and busy street precludes home repair. Can anyone help me find a public or co-op garage east-side ITP where I can work for a day or two?

My poor old car wants to be pretty again.

lbo — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 10:39:17 -0800

Is this a car body repair job for professionals, or does it seem like I could handle it myself? My '99 Accord was hit while it was parked and I've been unable to track down the person who did it. And I also have no collision insurance on it since it's old. Before I even go through the hassle of bothering to take it in for an estimate, I'd love advice on how you would proceed if this were your car. Though it's 10 years old, it's otherwise in good condition and it's a car I plan to drive until it's dead, so I'd rather it not look ugly and rusty. I don't have tons I'm willing to spend on the repair, so if it's seems like it would be horribly expensive to make it look not as ugly, I'd like to figure out if I can at least seal it so it won't continue to rust.

Here are pictures of the damage:
First one
Second one
Third one
Fourth one

The door doesn't seem like it's a huge deal, except for the scraped paint on the edge. I'm most concerned about the wheel well.

I've searched old questions and Google, but I haven't found advice that makes sense (to me, at least) in my case.

Thank you!

Blinker stopped working on my 2000 Dodge Neon

SpacemanStix — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 09:22:26 -0800

My blinker on my 2000 Dodge Neon has been working only intermittently. Could this be a fuse issue, or would it not be working at all? The most common response is that the blinker will blink two or three times (in either direction) before giving out and needing to be reactivated. There have been times that it doesn't activate at all, and times where it keeps going fine for a short while without any breaks in service. I don't know enough about car repair to do anything requiring new parts or wiring. Could this possibly be a faulty fuse? This is probably the extent of my ability to fix it. If so, I'd like to try and see if this works before taking it in for more expensive repairs.

Junk it or Fix it?

timsteil — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:25:12 -0800

DeadVanFilter: I know you are not my mechanic but... 97 Ford Aerostar, parked in my driveway for three Chicago years. The google-fu tells me the basics (new gas/oil etc), but I am just wondering if anyone in the hive has experience with such things. (i.e.) is this multiple hundreds I figure it's going to cost to get it running again going to turn into thousands etc. Any major structural issues I ought to be worried about after not moving for years? Only about 60K miles, no major rust/never been in a collison sort of stuff. Should I just have every damned belt etc replaced and suck it up? There are some good mechs I trust nearby, but this is the sort of thing they seem to hate taking on just for the PITA factor. Any specific Aerostar experience/blue book knowledge greatly appreciated. Thanks

I totaled my car; now what?

nel — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 19:23:18 -0800

I totaled my car. What should I do? Should I keep the car? Last Friday I rear-ended someone, driving in my 2002 Acura RSX. The car I hit was an SUV. My car, being very compact, was damaged horribly, while the other driver's car only minimally. Today, State Farm deemed my car a "total loss." My car is worth $9,250, and the repairs total $7,991. This is big loss for me. I loved my car and I feel like I lost a friend. The car will now have a branded title (i.e., "salvage") as required by state law.

My question is, what if I want to keep the car anyway? There is a lien on the car, so if I let the insurance company take the car, they will pay off the loan, and give me any money left over. But if I want to keep the car, what would they do then? With such high damage, do you think that it is even worth repairing it myself? It seems like the car will never be the same either way.

Getting rid of a dead car from far away.

NortonDC — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 19:14:12 -0800

My car died far from home. What's the best way to get rid of it? Relevant points:

I already have another car, so I definitely want to get rid of the old car.

The old car is in Waynesboro, VA.

My home is very close to Washington, D.C.

It's a long trip.

The car is a 2000 Honda Accord V6 2-door, 115,000 miles, the extra-fancy edition, with a some visible but non-obvious damage on the rear bumper area.

The engine has very low compression in two cylinders, for which the recommended repair is to replace the engine, which is projected to cost $3,500 to $4,000.

I put $750+ in new Michelins on the car a month before it died.

The mechanic made an offer to buy it as is for $500.

I want to be rid of it quickly but I also need to make sound money decisions, so what should I do?

CarRepairFilter: Can I fix a broken trunk indicator light myself or does this have to go to a mechanic?

jeffderek — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 12:21:05 -0800

CarRepairFilter: Can I fix a broken trunk indicator light myself or does this have to go to a mechanic? I drive a 2002 Saturn SL2 that until this week had given me absolutely no problems that weren't routine maintenance related. Friday morning the trunk open indicator light came on in my dash area, even though the trunk was closed. I opened the trunk and shut it again, with no noticeable result. It was firmly latched shut, but the light stayed on.

Later that afternoon it went away, but now seems intermittent. It is on significantly more often than it is not. This would be only a minor irritation, but my car won't lock the doors using the key fob unless all the doors are closed. When I hit lock, it beeps at me three times telling me the doors aren't closed (because it thinks the trunk is open), and it doesn't lock the ones that are. Furthermore, this morning while I was driving the trunk suddenly popped open about 20 feet from my house. I'd slammed the trunk shut pretty hard before leaving, so maybe it just didn't close properly, but now I'm worried about putting things in the trunk. I'm fairly certain its closing properly, but I worry.

I called the Saturn dealership, and they wanted $119 to take a look at it, and then of course I'd have to pay something exorbitant to fix it.

Is this something I can do on my own? What should I be looking for? Will the Chilton's or Haynes guide help me here? I'm willing to buy the guide if it will have information I need to fix this problem. Alternately, if this isn't something I should do myself, can a normal mechanic do it or is electrical work more of a dealership specific thing?

I'm completely ignorant of most car repair beyond changing a tire and my oil, but I have significant audiovisual and some electrical experience, and feel fairly confident in dealing with wiring, I just haven't ever worked in a car before and don't know quite what i'd be getting into.

Thanks!

Recommended auto mechanic near Arlington, MA

Mayor Curley — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 14:29:25 -0800

Do you have a mechanic to recommend near Arlington, MA? My beloved old Volvo has a bunch of little issues that need addressing. I'm in Arlington Heights, but I will go a bit out of my way if anyone has someone reliable, reasonable and fairly timely to recommend.

My Jetta fails me.

santojulieta — Fri, 30 May 2008 21:30:24 -0800

Where does one take a sick and ailing 98 Jetta in Chicago? My Jetta is on its way out the door, I think. However, it needs some serious attention until we can afford a new car of some sort. I seem to have some electrical problems (ie: the check engine light is on, the horn doesn't work, the wipers don't work, sometimes the vents and air don't work, etc.)

The recommendation for brake repair I got was really good, so I'm hoping that you'll have some equally excellent ideas for electrical system repair.

Essential details:
1. I live in Lincoln Park
2. I work in the South Loop
3. It's a 98 Jetta Wolfsburg automatic

I can has 1st geer? Corolla transmission only downshifting to 2nd gear!

cowbellemoo — Tue, 20 May 2008 15:45:08 -0800

My '93 Corolla (AT) isn't shifting into 1st gear. What's the likelyhood that this is a simple or very expensive repair? It's happened a few times over the last few years, but hasn't persisted as a problem after parking and starting up or shifting into reverse/back to drive. Today, both to and from work the problem persisted. Shifting into reverse results in a thump while the car jerks a bit, but only once did 1st gear come back (it refused to go into 1st shortly after). The O/D light blinks, which I'm sure might tell me more, but I don't have an owner's manual. Shifting into "2" or "L" doesn't seem to help, but I really have no idea if that's likely to force it into 1st. Once the car is going 15-20 mph, everything is fine. So I'm only having to give extra gas when starting up from stop, a pain when turning or going up a hill.

I'm going to take it into the shop on the weekend if the problem persists, but I'd love to know in the meantime if there might be a simple fix (busted sensor, low fluids?) or how much a repair might cost if the transmission needs real work. Can anyone tell what's going on?

Car on fire: plausible?

robotot — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 19:52:03 -0800

Plausibility-filter: Recently my car engine wouldn’t stop running, and eventually caught fire. Damage was pretty minimal, but how it started is a bit of a mystery. Does this sound plausible? Backstory (long) and the mechanic's explanation below: I drive a 1991 Honda Civic hatchback. On monday I was driving to work when I noticed that every time I took my foot off the brake the engine would rev up and the car would speed up dramatically, without putting my foot on the accelorator. After a few blocks of being puzzled by this I noticed the temperature guage was over the top, so I immediately pulled over to the side of the road and turned off the engine...except the engine kept running, clunking even, and I had removed the keys from the ignition. I opened the bonnet to see if anything was obviously going awry, but I don't have much of a clue what I'm looking at. I called roadside assistance, they said they'd be there asap.

While waiting for them more and more smoke was billowing from the back of my car's engine, until eventually it caught fire. I called the fire dept, and a nice old man came out of his house with a bucket of water and doused it. It flared up again, but thankfully the fire dept. arrived quickly and put the hose on it. The engine kept running throughout the whole drama, only ceasing when one of the fire guys pulled out the plugs on the side of the engine.

Anyway, the fire guys thought it was the catalytic convertor, the tow truck guy thought it was electrical, and my mechanic was baffled. He calls me the next day to say he reckons it's the carburretor - flooding the engine with fuel, which was being burned by the engine, causing it to accelerate. Excess fuel was being spat out the exhaust, which heated up and caught fire. So now I need a new carburretor and a new handbrake cable (burnt through)

Does this scenario sound plausible? Can a carburettor fail like that and effectively set the engine on fire? Has anyone ever had this happen to them, or heard of something similar happening ever?

vroom vroom!

bitteroldman — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 20:46:37 -0800

CarMaintenanceFilter: Do I really need new spark plugs and a fuel-injector cleaning when I just got them done? April 2006, 67900 miles (10860 km), Mechanic A
I had my spark plugs replaced.

June 2007, 78000 miles (124900 km), Mechanic B
I had my fuel injectors cleaned (with the cleaning compound, using the injector cleaning machine)

Dec 2007, 78200 miles (125133 km), Mechanic C
Regular maintenance, but they tell me that my injectors need cleaning and sparks need to be replaced. When they tell me this, they don't know that I had the work done.

Mechanic A - seems to be reputable and very knowledgeable
Mechanic B - no real proof, but I am giving them the benefit of the doubt that they are honest and skilled as well
Mechanic C - this is the car dealership. Does this make them more honest or reputable? I don't know.

FWIW, I live in a relatively cold climate (winters of -10 Celsius, about 5 F), and have driven rarely in the past year (about 2700 miles, 4300 km). Most of the time, the car sits in the driveway.

So my question is: Did either Mechanic A or B do a shoddy job, is Mechanic C trying to rip me off, or is it "just the way it is", even though I was under the impression that the above-mentioned work would last a whole lot longer than 1.5 years (or 11000 miles) - I am told that sparks should last 25000 miles (40000 km) and injector cleaning should be good for 12000 miles (or 20000 km).

What's wrong with my car's clutch?

killdevil — Sun, 02 Dec 2007 21:23:05 -0800

Standard-transmission-filter: the point of engagement of the clutch (in my mid-90s Acura Integra, if it matters) has suddenly moved, and I now have to push the clutch pedal almost to the floor in order to get the transmission to disengage. What's going on, and how much is it likely to cost to repair? Coupled with a shift in the pedal's point of engagement has been a drastic loss of "springiness" in the clutch pedal until it reaches the point at which the transmission engages.

Any ideas what might be causing this?

What's up with this Volvo 940 Turbo?

The Deej — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 16:49:18 -0800

I'm trying to decide whether to buy a 1991 Volvo 940 Turbo. But I need to know, what's the likely cause of play front end "play"? I'm looking at a 1991 Volvo 940 Turbo sedan to purchase. It runs great, looks great, and seems to be well-kept. I like everything about it, and the price is right. But...it definitely needs a front end alignment, which the dealer says he will do for me before I buy it. It pulls pretty strongly to the right. But my concern is, it might need more than just a front end alignment.

There seems to be some play, which is noticeable when going over bumps; it just feels a tiny bit sloppy. Also, on braking it seems like there is some front-to-back play when the brakes grab. At "crawling" speed when the brakes grab, it seems like the car lurches forward for an instant; like something in the front end is loose. (Or maybe some play in the brakes themselves?) There is no clunking, clanging, or other noise.

So, is this simply related to poor alignment? Or is the poor alignment due to something more serious?

Pardon my poor description. I'll answer any questions you have. I'm hoping someone with more mechanical brains and experience than I will know what's up. I'm looking to buy this car to get through a year or two, and I don't expect an old car to be like new; I just don't want a safety issue or an immediately expensive and non-optional repair. (It's a Volvo... I guess any repair is expensive!) Thanks all!

Worry about my car tail lights or not?

mygothlaundry — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 10:23:03 -0800

Should I worry about my car tail lights or not? I have a 98 Saturn station wagon (150K+ miles, I've owned it all this time) and today when I took it in for inspection, they told me the brake lights - in fact, all the tail lights - weren't working. Then, 30 seconds later, they worked fine. A couple people have told me, over the past year or so, that I had a tail light out. When I went in today, I told the guys to go ahead and replace the tail light. Well, they brought the car into the shop and then came out and told me, "Hey, you have no brake lights! No lights at all back here!" This, obviously, scared me and then, 30 seconds later, they tried again and the brake lights - and all the tail lights - worked fine. So they passed it but now I'm worried.

The car has pretty much always had some weird fuse/electrical issues: the brights light on the dashboard flashes on and off randomly, as does the alternator light and the dome light hardly ever works then suddenly, it will work for a day or two before going away again. This is the first time that these issues have migrated to the outside of the car, though.

Is it possible that I have some kind of weird electrical thing going on whereby my tail lights work sometimes and sometimes don't? Should I be worried about this possibility? Should I take the car somewhere (where?) to check this out? Should I check it out at home with a friend? How? I really, really don't have any extra money right now so I'd very much prefer to avoid spending any but, OTOH, no brake lights is pretty serious - IF it's happening.

Timing belt in 2003 Hyundai Accent

advil — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 13:25:29 -0800

car question: timing belt replacement on Hyundai 2003 Accent at 60k? From googling, it seems that most people recommend replacing the timing belt on at least some versions of the Accent (this one is a 1.6L interference engine, I understand) at this mileage.

What I would like more information on is the following, from the 60k service information the mechanic printed for me (out of ALLDATA): "In California, replacement [of the timing belt] is recommended at this mileage, but not required." What does this mean? Are there other states where it is required? Is CA overly or underly strict? Is it just that it's really hard to predict the lifespan of a rubber timing belt and this is the safest answer? (I do already understand that if the belt does go in an interference-type engine before being replaced it can cause major damage.) Thanks!

What's wrong with my car?

doorsfan — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 13:07:10 -0800

2004 Chevy Blazer 4x4 4dr - Sometimes, not always, for the last couple of months when I accelerate my RPMs go up (the engine gets pretty loud but I do not redline) but my car seems to not accelerate very much – Which really sucks on a right on red. It eventually will get up to speed. Also sometimes I might be trying to accelerate and a second or two later I’ll feel the car jerk like my pressing down didn’t “catch” until then. What’s wrong with my car and is it expensive?

A lemon with leather seats and all-wheel drive...

ambrosia — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 16:19:47 -0800

What is the best way to unload a lemon-ized car? We have a 1998 Subaru Forester that has had mysterious transmission problems. In July we spent $5700 to replace the transmission after it failed. Three weeks and 200 miles later, the car downshifted quite suddenly while on the freeway, and then started to make horrible grating sounds at lower speeds. We took it back to the dealership that installed the transmission, who replaced it for free, as it was well within the 1 year warranty. And that's the pattern; transmission is replaced, a few weeks later the car downshifts suddenly on the freeway, and the transmission is shredded. The dealer has consulted with the Forester experts at Subaru but have not identified the problem. We are now on the fifth transmission failure, and have decided that we've given the dealership more than enough opportunity to get it right.

We want to ditch this car. We could cheerfully continue to bring the car back to the dealership every 6-8 weeks, but we are tired of this and just want a car that works. We don't think it is fixable, and we don't want the karma of trading it in and passing the problem on to someone innocent third party. At the same time, we put a fair amount of money into fixing it, and we'd like to get some of that back somehow.

What's the best way to get rid of this car?

Diagnose My Ride

hippugeek — Wed, 08 Nov 2006 09:13:20 -0800

Why is my Mazda losing power? I have a 2000 Mazda Protege (1.8 L, automatic, 43K mi, a lot of that in the past 18 months). I had a lot of work done on it in May including brakes, new radiator, and transmission flush. Jiffy-Lube check-up in late August. Oil's fine, fluid levels are good.

A couple months ago it started having trouble with acceleration. I press the gas and the engine revs, but not all of that power is getting to the wheels. Once it gets up to speed, it will stay there, but the process is slower than it ought be. The engine sounds healthy--no knocks, no rattles, no skips--it's just working too hard.

I haven't been able to afford to take it to the shop, and the problem has been worsening slowly. There's a slight delay in response, and the RPM are high even when I'm not accelerating--if I cruise at 70 on flat ground the engine will rev at 3000. The car is eating gas, of course, and I worry that I'll damage the engine further by running it high so constantly.

I'm all but broke, and don't want to spend a penny more than I have to on diagnostics and labor. At worst, I'd like some scenarios to present to the mechanic. At best, I have DIY-car-repair friends I can work with. So tell me, (1) what are some likely problems, and (2) could a team of very intrepid laymen repair them?