I. Honda Civic Oxygen Sensor ReplacementRemove heat shield, spray old oxygen sensor with PB Blaster or Kroil (let it sit for a while), spray with PB Blaster or Kroil again, warm up car for several minutes, and use a 15-inch breaker bar on the end of a 22 mm oxygen sensor socket to remove sensor. Afterwards, clean threads thoroughly with brake cleaner, allow to sit for quite a while and “air out,” and install new oxygen sensor with anti-seize compound. Good cleaning technique is a must. Tighten to 33 lb-ft or 4.5 kg-m.I am not a fan of universal oxygen sensors or those made by Bosch for Civics. I recommend Denso sensors. Over time, you want the best sensor or you will pay for it in poor gas mileage and performance. Oxygen sensors are EXTREMELY sensitive to anything, particularly silicone spray, WD-40, or any oil on the pigtail connector. Don’t even use non-chlorinating brake cleaner or electrical contact cleaner on oxygen sensor connectors. NEVER use any of these products around the oxygen sensor or pigtail connector. If you do, the ECM will keep throwing a code forever, once the engine warms up and is out of “open loop” mode. Remove pigtail connector and gently dress the male and female connectors with jeweler files, if you suspect any contamination. FYI Pay close attention to the pigtail cleaning and to not use anything to clean them News source: Askme helpdesk

FYI there are no manufacturer’s currently recommending a power steering flush now I’m not saying that under certain conditions a power steering flush is not necessary but beware when the service writer is trying to sell you one A high mileage vehicle with dirty smelly fluid ( easy to confirm) Repairs performed require a flush to maintain warrantyPeace of mind if you are worried about it go ahead Remember it is easy to do your self messy but nothing complicated also if the PS needs service also check the brake fluid many times I have repalced brake fluid and cured an ABS problem I would recommend replacing the brake fluid at every brake repair

Hey, my car won’t start,now what?Hey, bear with us, allright?We’re workin’ on it. It doesn’t take much for an engine to run, air, fuel, and spark, that’s it. Sort of. First thing is to narrow down the possibilities as much as possible. Are we dealing with a starting/charging system problem, or an ignition problem. Maybe it’s a fuel problem, or a mechanical problem that is giving symptoms of one of the others… News source: My-Page Try to start it: If the starter engages and spins the engine over and sounds like the first file, then the engine is “cranking” just fine, but it just doesn’t sound like it’s even trying to start. This means that the battery, starter, and neutral safety switch or clutch safety switch are all working fine. We can now skip half of the trouble shooting process and goto “check for spark”. If it spins unusually fast, like the sound below, (listen carefully, the difference is subtle, the first one sounds like it’s getting some resistance from the engine, while the second one is just freewheeling), then take a deep breath, and go here. If it doesn’t crank at all, check the battery, if the battery isn’t dead and the connections are clean and tight, there is a problem with the starter circuit. Try again, if it still doesn’t crank, or even click, there may be a problem with the ignition switch, starter solenoid, starter, neutral safety switch, or the clutch safety switch. Check for spark- pull a spark plug wire loose from a spark plug and get an assistant to hold it while you crank the engine. If he yells and jumps back, a good spark is present. (Just kidding, this is probably not a good way to check for spark, a better way is to pull the wire off of the plug, stick a screwdriver into the end and, while holding the plastic handle, move the screwdriver so that the metal part is close to a piece of bare metal on the engine. Then get someone to crank the engine. If there is good spark you should see a spark jump from the driver to the metal. If not, try nospark. It should be able to jump a gap of almost 1/4 inch.) If it makes a good spark and you can hear a “snapping” sound, the ignition system is probably OK, replace the wire and Check for fuel TO the engine. Whatcha got? If what you’ve tried up to now hasn’t gotten you back on the road, we’re in trouble. What we look at next depends on what we are dealing with. Open the hood. Prop it open. Look around. Is your car fairly new? look for the emissions decal. It’s almost always on the underside of the hood. It is a treasure trove of information. It will tell you the engine size, the fuel type, and often something about the engine control systems. There is even a little schematic diagram of where the little vacuum hoses go, and what the acronyms are for all those little gadgets that the vacuum hoses connect. Can’t find it? Step back and take a good look at the engine. It’s usually not too tough to figure out the path that the air takes to get into the engine, there will be an air cleaner assembly somewhere in it, probably near the inlet. There needs to be a large enough diameter path for the air to flow reasonably unrestricted to the engine. After the air leaves the air filter, but before it passes into the engine proper, it will pass through one of three things; a carburetor, a flow measuring device, or a throttle body. There may be a combination of two or more. There may be fuel injectors in the throttle body, air inlet, intake manifold, or right into the combustion chamber. You may have to remove part of the air filter to see some models. If you see a bizarre collection of strange links and levers and tiny hoses and adjusting screws all collected in the same place, chances are you have a carburetor. If the linkage is fairly simple, and the throttle plates are mounted in a housing that also contains a fuel injector or two then you are probably dealing with a TBI (throttle body injected) engine. If the engine seems to be covered with fuel injectors then you probably have some version of a Multi Point system. No spark: OK, nobody said this was going to be easy… First thing we have to do is find the distributor. It should be pretty easy to find because it will be on the other end of the spark plug wires you disconnected to check for spark. Examine the plastic cap that the wires plug into. Locate the hold down screws or clips and figure out how to remove it, it should be 2 or 3 or 4 screws or clips. Remove the cap, look at the inside, look for moisture, gray powder, and carbon tracks. Examine the center contact. Look at the rotor, wiggle it a bit, is it loose? it should be a snug fit on the shaft. Reach down and turn the engine over slightly by hand, watch the rotor, does it turn when the engine does? It better. If not, go to no rotation. The distributor rotor doesn’t turn: Uh oh, this might be serious. Actually, it IS serious. The distributor needs to be indexed to the opening and closing of the valves and the up and down motion of the pistons. This is done by driving all three parts from a single chain or belt. Either the distributor is driven by a gear cast into the camshaft or by its own driveshaft driven by the timing belt. If your car has a timing belt, (most do these days, sigh…) you need to remove part of the cover to examine the belt to verify that it is in fact broken. NOTE: It is usually fairly easy to remove the first piece of the timing belt cover, but it is always a b*tch to remove the last piece. Don’t try to cut corners, once you have the first piece off, watch the belt and sprocket while someone cranks the engine. If the sprocket doesn’t turn, you’ve got a “blown timing belt”. Gotta Carburetor, now what? If there is a single universally recognizable component of an automobile, it would have to be the carburetor. No other part approaches the complexity of the dozens of mechanical links, flaps, bellcranks and jets that all carburetors have. They look incredibly complicated. They look like they were designed by Rube Goldberg. They have all kinds of little hoses and cables going to them. There are several adjustment screws visible. DON’T TOUCH ANYTHING! Watch while someone presses the gas pedal so you can identify the throttle linkage. Watch as they push it all the way to the floor, most carbs have a link that causes the choke to be forced partially open when this is done. Look for the choke butterfly, we are gonna have to make sure it opens and closes properly, and we’re gonna have to prop it open if the engine is flooded.Your carb may not look much like this one, but you should be able to locate the throttle linkage and the choke valve on any carburetor you come across. If you can’t, either I’ve failed, or you are really du… I mean I haven’t communicated well enough. There are really only two things that go wrong with carburetors. Hard to believe, right? All those bits and pieces, all those links, cams and screws, all those jets and rods, all those valves and. . . I guess you get it, The two things that go wrong with carburetors are: 1. they deliver too much gas. or…2. They don’t deliver enough gas. The two most common reasons they deliver too much gas are; the choke sticks closed, and the needle valve sticks open. The two most common reasons they deliver too little fuel are; the choke sticks open, and the fuel level in the carb is too low. A stuck choke is pretty easy to spot, as is Fuel overflowing out the top of the carburetor, but a low level of gas in the bowl is a bit harder. Omigod, It has fuel injection! Now what? Beats me, I’ll think of something… This is a schematic of the Throttle body injection system found in many Chrysler Corporation cars. As you can see, it uses a number of input signals to determine the fuel needs of the engine and then uses the single throttle body mounted fuel injector to deliver it. It also uses some of those input signals to adjust the ignition timing and alternator charge rate. All electronic fuel injection systems work basically the same way. Once you understand which signals are used during which operating conditions you are well on the way to identifying the problem. Cold engines need a richer fuel/air mixture to run smoothly. Once the engine warms up, the mixture should get more lean. A carburetor has a choke, which closes off the air passage into the engine, which causes a rich mixture for cold operation. A FI system has a sensor that checks the engine temperature, and changes the programming of the fuel injector to richen the mixture that way. An engine with this cold engine option disabled will idle poorly, and stall at intersections, but will run fine once it warms up. Fuel system, step one: Is there gas in the tank? Are you sure? Is it getting to the engine compartment? Are you sure? Most engines these days are fuel injected, with a fuel pump either inside the fuel tank, or between the tank and the engine. The power for this pump comes through a relay, and is supplied through a fuse. If you don’t have fuel pressure in the engine compartment, check those first. Many engines have a “fuel rail” with a connection point for a fuel pressure gauge. If someone was to remove the safety cap, and press down slightly on the bicycle tube style valve pin inside, Fuel would spurt out with some considerable force if the fuel line was properly pressurized. This would of course be extremely dangerous if the Fuel was to ignite, and of course it could spray into someone’s eyes and blind them. Don’t ever encourage anyone to use this quick method for testing whether fuel is getting to the engine compartment. OK, you’ve determined that your carburetor equipped car is flooded, now what? well, you need to open the choke,( just hold it open with your fingers) then you need to hold the throttle linkage all the way open. What these two things do is to open up the air passage as completely as possible, allowing the maximum amount of air to get to the engine. You need this air to dry up the raw Fuel that is laying all over the inside of the manifold and cylinders. Now get someone to crank the engine. It should start after a few seconds and you’ll need to fart around with the throttle a bit to keep it from dying until the idle smooths out. Put the air cleaner back on and get on with your life. 90% of all flooded carburetor engines will respond to this technique. ASSUMing of course that you haven’t run the battery dead in your vain attempts to start it… Here is a diagram of a F*rd Multi-Point system, not a lot different from the simple system shown above. Still a logic unit getting a lot of input from sensors and then controlling some fuel injectors to deliver the correct amount of fuel to the engine. You probably won’t be able to read much of the printing, but some of the components are the fuel pump relay, the fuel injectors, throttle position sensor, oxygen sensor, atmospheric pressure sensor, knock sensor, EGR position sensor, etc. If your symptoms only appear in the morning when your engine is cold, you need to look at the sensors that tell the system how warm the coolant is, as well as the extra injectors some systems use for cold enrichment. If your problem seems to only happen at a certain throttle position maybe you should look at the throttle position sensor. Hey, this isn’t rocket surgery… Timing Belt? If your engine spins unusually fast when you try to start it, but it doesn’t even cough or sputter, you’ve probably blown your timing belt. This is not a thing that you wanted to discover today. The timing belt is there to drive the camshaft, which opens and closes the valves. It also has the function of keeping the camshaft and crankshaft properly aligned with each other to establish the “valve timing” (the relationship between the opening and closing of the valves with the piston’s up and down motion.) Valve timing is essential for the engine to run at all, as you have just discovered. When the camshaft stops turning, the valves freeze in whatever position they are in at the time, but the pistons keep going up and down as usual. The distributor stops turning, so the spark plugs stop firing. The geometry of the camshaft causes it to stop in one of a small number of positions, equal to the number of cylinders the engine has, resulting in at least one valve at least partially open in almost every cylinder. This causes the compression to be low for all cylinders, which is what causes the engine to spin so fast when you’re cranking it. Some engines, (called “interference” engines) are designed in such a way that when this happens, at least one valve is hit by a piston when it reaches the top of the stroke, which of course bends the valve and reduces the compression on that cylinder to zip. This means that the head must come off, the bent valves replaced, the timing belt replaced, sometimes the pistons are damaged and they must be replaced also, as you can calculate, it’s much cheaper to replace the belt before it blows on these particular engines. This is often mentioned in the owners manual, in the maintenance section, you did read the maintenance section didn’t you? Inside the distributor cap: There are two main things we look for inside the distributor cap, one is moisture on the inside surface, which allows the spark to jump directly from the center contact to ground instead of going through the rotor and out to the spark plug wire and plug. The other main thing we are looking for is carbon tracking or damage to the rotor. Carbon tracks look like lines drawn on the inside surface of the cap with a pencil, they will either go from one contact to another or from a contact down the side of the cap to the bottom. Remove the rotor, sometimes this means loosening a screw or two that holds it in place, but usually you just pull it straight up. Look at the bottom surface, look for carbon tracking or any burnt or otherwise damaged areas. If in doubt, replace them, they are just about the cheapest parts you are ever likely to buy for your car.

Several inquires on battery terminals lately so to clear up a few items.I do not recommend dielectric grease or any spray gunk on the battery terminals and do not use a battery protector washer or spray and never anything between the terminal and the post the best protectant is a lite coating of clear lacquer but only on the posts not on the top of the battery it can cause transient voltage and may plug the vents on older batteries.

Spark plug wires are pretty durable. They aren’t a moving part so they don’t wear out too often. A careful inspection of your plug wires can avoid any problems.The only thing that can really go wrong with a plug wire is a break in the insulation. The insulation (the rubber on the outside of the wire) keeps the electricity where it needs to be so it sparks on the inside of your engine, not someplace else before it gets there. If the insulation is cracked, the spark will jump off the wire, or arc, onto something metal under the hood. An arcing plug wire can cause a weak spark or no spark at all in the cylinder with the bad wire. This makes your car run rough and can affect your gas mileage. It can also cause unburned fuel to pass into the exhaust system where it can harm your catalytic convertor. There have even been stories that involve both a fuel leak and an arcing plug wire, resulting in a fire! It can happen.A good time to check your wires would be while you change your spark plugs. So do a quick inspection and save yourself some headache. Here’s how:With your engine off, start at the distributor end of the plug wire and work your way toward the plug end. You’re looking for anything that is not smooth, pliable rubber. Bend the wires slightly to be sure no cracks appear. Check the boots at the distributor end of the wires to be sure they are not torn or cracked. Finally, check the wires at the spark plug end one at a time by pulling it off the plug and inspecting the end for any tears or cracks. Also look to be sure there is no burning or darkening of the end. If you find any damage, it’s time to buy a new set. They can be as little as $20 or as much as $100+ for a set depending on your application News source: Auto Repair About

I love my new 2005 Ford Mustang coupe, but stock radio’s flat, bass-less sound and distortion at high volumes left the audio enthusiast in me wanting more. Sure, I could have opted for the dealer upgrade when I bought the vehicle, but I wanted to choose my own components instead of leaving the decision up to Ford.I wanted my dashboard to look like a console from the Starship Enterprise.I wanted to be enveloped in crystal clear sound with crisp highs and full mid-tones.I wanted a rich, ground-trembling bass that shook the sidewalk as I cruised with the volume cranked.What I didn’t want was a $500 invoice from the car audio professional who’d install my sophisticated new system (and then another $500 invoice to extract my components if I sell the car). So, against the better judgment of the audio experts I consulted, I took up the challenge to install a sophisticated car audio system–complete with GPS navigation, a DVD player, an iPod connection and a Blue Tooth hands-free mobile phone kit, all controlled by a 7-inch touch screen–on my own.It looked like a daunting job, but I learned that upgrading your car stereo is not as complicated as it seems. If you follow my advice–which is based on my mistakes–you can avoid ending up like I did, frustrated, sweaty, out of speaker wire and almost out of patience. News source: MSN.com MAKE A PLANBefore you start turning the screwdriver and ripping into your dashboard, set aside time to plan out the entire installation process. It wasn’t until I was looking at a colorful fistful of stock radio wires–with no wiring diagram for reference–that I realized my confidence–er, haste–wasn’t going to get me anywhere (it turns out that the 50 feet of speaker wire I assumed would be more than enough for a tiny Mustang, is about three feet short when you finish all the splicing, meaning I had to rerun all the wiring.I’m not kidding about this. If there’s one piece of advice you have to follow it is this: Read through each component’s instructions to create a master installation plan. Know what you have, where each piece is going to go, and what extra tools it will take to connect everything. Make sure that you’re confident that once you pull apart your dashboard you’ll be able to fit it back together. Check literature about your car to make sure you don’t need extra adapters such as a custom radio faceplate, or, especially with older or imported vehicles, to make sure there are no non-standard components behind the radio (such as a separate amplifier buried deep within the console) that might greatly complicate the process. Finally, get a big piece of paper and draw a diagram that details where every wire will run. This will organize your thoughts and uncover any potential problems.In addition to all your new equipment you’re going to need wire cutters, black tape, crimpers, pliers, screwdrivers, a rubber mallet, a drill, a Dremmel, a ratchet set, flashlight, wire tubing, double sided tape and wire tires to get the job done.STEP 1: Replacing the Head UnitWhen purchasing a head unit (the in-dash radio that controls your system), make sure you chose the appropriate size for your car. Head units are sized as single-din (a 180 x 50 mm panel) or double-din (180 x 100 mm panel) and you can often purchase an adaptor plate to fit a single-din unit in your double-din vehicle. The opposite was true for my car: I installed a double-din 7inch touch screen head unit, the Kenwood DDX-6019 available at [url”>www.Kenwood.com. Keep in mind that depths, although largely standard, could vary, so pay attention to how much space you have.To make the installation much easier, you should also purchase a wire harness designed specifically for your vehicle’s make and model. This will save you from having to cut any wires inside your dash, and, trust me, that’s well worth the $20 you should expect to pay for a harness. Before you begin to disassemble your dash, you can splice the new wiring harness to your new radio by matching wire colors and descriptions. Also attach Kenwood’s add-on Ipod control interface (KCA-iP500) and navigation system (KNA-G510) following the product’s simple instructions. Once the harness is connected, the rest of the job is plug-and-play. You can find the correct harness and instructions at [url”>www.Crutchfield.com.Armed with your master plan, carefully remove the dashboard components surrounding your radio by removing any set screws or hex bolts securing the fairing and carefully pulling the component away from the vehicle. You should see a couple of set screws holding in the stock radio. Remove these, and slide out the old head unit.A confusing collection of colorful wires should follow the stock radio. Disconnect these by carefully prying apart the wiring harness connection that connects the stock radio to the vehicle. The harnesses can be tough to pull apart, but with some wiggling it will eventually separate. Disconnect the radio’s antenna connection and set the old head unit aside (don’t throw it out–if you want to keep your new system when you sell your car, you’ll eventually need to re-install the old radio).I decided to install a Parrot 3200 LS-COLOR hands free kit, which is best done when you’re reinstalling the radio head unit. This connects my bluetooth cell phone to the sound system. I can hear calls through the speakers and talk using the supplied microphone. It auto-mutes the music when a call comes in, and it interfaces with the head unit via another wiring harness, making installation very easy.Next, connect the antenna cable, and slide in your new head unit. But before you start screwing the radio into place, turn on the car and test your connections. If you don’t get any sound, or the radio refuses to turn on, or the sound is reversed (right speakers play the left track, or the front speakers play the rear track, etc.) the culprit is likely a faulty splice in the wiring harness. Pull out the radio and recheck your connections.If all you’re doing is swapping out you radio, follow your system’s instructions to fully secure the head unit and put your dashboard back together. You’re done. Enjoy your new system.Don’t let the mess of wires scare you. If you plan out your installation you wont have to cut a single wire in the car! It’s simple–just Plug-and-Play.When installing a new radio, use a wiring harness.Here is a close up of the after market harness (left) and the radios harness (right).To connect the aftermarket wiring harness to the new radio, match the clearly marked wires to the ones on the harness, then twist and crimp. On the right is what your connections should look like when all the wires are properly crimped.STEP 2: Powering Your SystemThe easy part is over–things are about to get tougher. This is where your install diagram is crucial. Your entire audio system is going to be powered through your amp, so make sure to choose one that has enough juice and supports as many channels as your system needs. The Mean-Machine MM 8000.5 amp is where I will be making all manual connections–no harness or plug and play quick-fixes here. Pick a spot to install the amp that you can reach with both hands easily. The amp needs to breathe, so while it can be mounted almost anywhere, the best location is the trunk–and never mount an amp upside down. To make things a little easier, purchase an amp-install kit–it’s an all inclusive package to get your amp powered up.Let’s get started. The amp’s main power lead needs to be connected directly to the battery. For safety reasons disconnect the battery’s negative wire from its post. Then using the supplied ring terminal, connect the power wire (usually blue if using an aftermarket kit) with the fuse holder directly to the battery positive post. Leave out the fuse until the install is complete and ready for testing. Run the power wire through the fire wall (look for pre-existing holes or routed wires that you can run it along). The power must be run on the opposite side of the signal (RCA) cables to prevent signal noise, which would sound like a dentist-drill in the background of the music. If there is no hole in your fire wall and you have to drill, make sure to avoid any of your car’s vital components.Next connect the amp to the head unit’s preouts (RCA inputs) located on the back. On the Kenwood’s deck there were three preouts: front, rear and sub. Connect, following standard color codes (red for left and white for right). While you’re connecting the preouts, also connect the amps turn-on lead. The turn on lead does exactly what the name implies–it’s the amps on/off switch, turning the amp on every time the receiver in use.To get the wires to the amp, bundle and tuck them under the doors sill and back seats, all the way to the trunk. Use wire ties and electrical tape to fasten your bundle to any preexisting wires along the way.On to connecting the amp’s ground. The ground wire is short and the same gauge as the power. It must be connected to the bare metal of the chasses or frame. Find a near by bolt and sand or scrape away any paint. Secure the ground wire using the ring terminal supplied in your amp kit. If you have to use a screw, watch where you’re going and use a short screw–you don’t want to hit your gas tank.For safety, disconnect the negative battery terminal before connecting the amp’s power lead.Look for pre-existing holes through which you can route the amps power wire through the firewall.Clearly marked preouts on the back of the radio connect to the amp (in the trunk).Tucking your wires under the door trim hides the wires nicely.The rca cables from the radio connect to the left side of the amp.The ground wire connects to a bolt in the trunk via a nut a lock washer. Remember to sand around the hole–the ground needs to touch bare metal.STEP 3: Install Your Speakers And SubThe speakers (and subwoofer) make the system. A great set can make even a stock radio sound great yet selecting a good set requires more than just comparing specs. Get out into show rooms and find a set that matches your acoustic preferences–this is not the time to settle.After many hours of in-store testing, I selected the MB Quart line by Maxxonics. MB Quart has been developing and manufacturing speaker systems for more than 30 years and they’ve learned a thing or two about audio production in that time–they turned my car into a sound experience. Here are the specs:SPECS* Front/Back speakers model #QSD 213* Woofers with die-cast aluminum chassis* and WPC-coated polypropylene cone with neodymium magnet* 1″ tweeters with two-piece titanium dome in metal housing with neodymium magnet* Q crossover with selected high-quality* components and variable four-level tweeter output* Bi-wiring and bi-amping enabledWhen selecting speakers consider this: are you just replacing the stock system or do you want to do a custom job? I went with a 4×1 custom system because I didn’t want to rip apart my doors to replace the factory speakers. To solve this, I used Q-Logic’s Q-Forms Kick Panel speaker enclosures that discreetly and unobtrusively hold the MB Quart’s QSD 213 front 5-1/4 inch speakers at the drivers and passenger’s feet while directing their sound in the right direction. Q-Forms are available for over 500 different model cars, come in multiple colors to match your interior and are indistinguishable from the factory finish. Q-Logic also made a custom subwoofer enclosure that fits the 12 inch MB Quart’s DWG 304 perfectly. It tucks the bass-box neatly into the passenger’s side rear-well, saving cargo space, which, in a sports car, is particularly valuable.When the speakers and subwoofer are in place, route the wires back to the amp. For the front speakers, run the wires on the same side as the signal cables and turn-on lead that you ran earlier. Make sure to hide the wires for the rear speakers somewhere in the trunk as they’re the only components that are wired by themselves.For better sound, the MB Quart speakers came with crossovers. A crossover is a device that restricts and separates the range of frequencies sent to the speaker. I mounted four crossovers (one per speaker), in the trunk near the amp for easier connection. Connect each speaker’s woofer and tweeter (+/-) terminals to the corresponding OUTPUT terminals on the crossover. Now connect the amp’s output terminals to the INPUT on each of the crossovers. It might sound complicated, but if you follow the manufactures’ instructions carefully, the improvement in sound is well worth the time, labor and extra speaker wire. After the wires are routed, speakers are mounted and the subwoofer is in place, follow the diagram provided with the amp for the correct hook up.Lastly, hide all wiring as best as possible. Use electrical tape, wire ties and tubing to conceal your work. And don’t get rid of that diagram just yet–put it somewhere safe in the car. In case you have a problem later on it will be easier to pull that out than trying to remember! Now install the fuse, turn on the car and see how she sounds.The original panel was held on by clips. One tug and it was off.The speaker wires are routed under the door sill and through Q-logic kick panel. Note: there are 2 sets–one for the woofer, and the other for the tweeter.The MB QUART sitting pretty. Both sides were done in 20 minutes.Q-logics custom sub box fits in the right side of the rear wheel well of the trunk.The combination of MB Quart’s subwoofer and Q-logics sub box not only looks good, it preserves trunk space.The crossovers have 3 sets of wires: One connects to the woofer, one to the tweeter and the last connects to the amp.Clean up your wiring using electrical tape, wire tubing and zip ties.Don’t install the fuse until you’re ready to test the system.Here is the right side of the amp with the wires connected.The amp, fully connected, is installed on top of the removable floorboard/spare tire cover.STEP 4, FINAL STEP: Hit the Road, Tune in Your Favorite Station and Crank Up the VolumeAfter a few days of sweat, some minor cuts and a little aggravation, I’m finally done. Every time I ride in my Mustang, I’m reminded that the endeavor was worth it, even though I took much longer than I thought it would — if you plan your project properly, it should take about eight to ten hours to complete.

What You Need Auto Putty Dremel Flex-Shaft Attachment #225 Primer Paint Fine Grade Wet/Dry Sandpaper 1. Clear away rust and loose paint with a #500 aluminum oxide abrasive wheel and #428 carbon steel brush. 2. Fill the depression by smoothing on body putty in thin, even layers. 3. After drying, sand away excess putty with #407 drum sander and #408 sanding band. Feather edges to existing paint by hand with fine sandpaper.4. Apply primer, overlapping into existing surface. Let dry and lightly hand sand. Apply several coats of finish paint, lightly sanding in between.Courtesy of Dremel Tools – Back to Top – News source: Do It Yourself

Don’t be afraid to tackle repairs, but know your limitations.Let’s get something on the table. This About.com Guide Site is all about Automotive Empowerment, which means that we are here to help you repair and maintain your car to the best of your abilities. A 5-minute read can prepare you to change your own air filter, but it will take a little more experience to tackle a clutch replacement. Our motto is “You Can Do It!” Knowing exactly when you can do it is key to your success as an empowered auto owner. So how do you know when you’re ready to tackle a specific repair? Nobody knows better than you do. Ask yourself a few questions:Are you familiar with all of the necessary tools for the job? Do you have enough available time to complete the repair? If the repair requires another person, do you have somebody who will help you out?As long as you’re realistic, you can tackle any repair or maintenance job you set out to makeKnowing your limitations, however, will keep you out of trouble. There is no worse feeling than seeing the sun set on a Sunday evening while your car lies in pieces in the driveway, knowing that you have to figure out how to get to work Monday morning. As you step off the bus in front of the office, the mail clerk will be laughing as he blows by in his lowered Civic. Sure, you’re his boss, but he’s laughing extra hard on the inside News source: About Auto Repair

It snowed last night. I mean it SNOWED. Your car is buried under seven inches of snow. You open the door, start the engine and turn on the rear window defroster. It takes a little while to clear the snow off your car and by that time the engine has warmed up enough to clear the windshield and started to clear the side windows. You look at the rear window and see that there are only a couple of clear strips and the rest of the window is still clouded over and impossible to see through. Fixing small breaks in a defroster grid is fairly easy to do. You can go to NAPA, Auto Zone or any of the big auto parts store and get a rear window defroster repair kit. The alternative: climb in the back seat and scrape the rear window with your small window scraper And that is not really a good idea. News source: About Auto Repair Warning! The defroster grid is silk-screened on, literally painted on to the glass. If you ever painted window trim you know it doesn’t take much to scrape paint off glass. The defroster grid is easy to damage and the grids that are scratched will not work because continuity is broken. Any hard object such as furniture, boxes and toys can scratch the defroster grid. A simple credit card is enough to damage the grid. This can be prevented by not jamming stuff into your SUV or van and having it shift into the rear window. The only thing that should touch the window glass and defroster grid is a soft cloth and some glass cleaner. If you must scrub, do it gently and in the direction of the grid, not across it. Replacing the rear window to repair a defroster gird is the last thing you want to do. A curved style of rear window on most cars can be several hundred dollars and for a SUV or mini-van, over $1000.00. Include installation and it’s a lot more. Don’t bother to submit the bill to your insurance company either; they’ll just say, “Sorry, window glass is not covered.” Doesn’t Work At All Let’s say the rear window defroster doesn’t work at all. If you have been hanging around here any length of time you know the first thing to check is the fuse. Rear window defrosters draw a ton of current so if you have a fuse that’s too low, it won’t last long. If the fuse looks good, check it with a test light or voltmeter. You should have battery voltage on both sides. If the fuse and voltage tests are both good, the problem is in the wiring or in the defroster grid itself. Look at the sides of the grid. There is a terminal on each side and sometimes they fall or get knocked off. If one or both have come of and are just hanging there are two ways to repair them. You can glue them back on or you can solder them back on. If you know how to solder and have a 200-watt soldering gun or iron, you can solder the terminals back on to the defroster grid. A third hand is very handy in doing this so get the spouse to come out and help you for a while. Most times there is a metal backing strip below the silk screening and attached to the glass. Clean the area well, alcohol works best, and use 60-40 rosin core solder. DO NOT USE ACID CORE SOLDER!! It will eat away all the metal parts over time and leave you with nothing. Make sure your soldering gun or iron is hot before you solder the terminals. Work as quickly as you can to keep the glass from getting too hot and possibly cracking. If you don’t think you have the soldering skills necessary or are just afraid of cracking a very expensive window, there is an alternative. Some dealers and larger auto parts stores sell a special electrically conductive epoxy to glue the defroster terminals back on. If it’s cold out, you’ll need to work in a garage that is heated and the whole car warmed up to above 65° F. To do this with the epoxy you need to clean the area, again, alcohol works best. Using tape, mask off the area so you don’t get epoxy where you don’t want it. Read the package directions and mix up a small amount of the hardener and epoxy. You don’t need a lot for this. Now put a little epoxy on the defroster grid and a little on the bottom of the terminal. Place it in position and use a toothpick to hold it in place until the epoxy sets up. This usually takes about 10 or 15 minutes or so. You can dampen the end of your finger with water and move the epoxy around to make it look better if you want. If you do this you have to do it in the first minute or two or forget it

Preventative maintenance is important in that you repair a problem before it becomes a problem. Why wait until you are on the side of the road in rainy weather at 10:00 at night to replace, say, a bad radiator hose. Do it on a nice Saturday afternoon in your garage or driveway. It’ll be more comfortable and you will have one less thing to worry about as your out driving. News source: AutoRepair About 1) DIY: Replacing Your Fuel FilterFuel filters are often neglected until they start to clog up. When they do, your vehicle will lose power and hesitate.2) DIY: How To Replace Your Heater HosesOne one the most common sources of coolant loss are the heater hoses. Over time these hoses will get hard and brittle and can crack or break at the worst possible times. They are easy to replace and a lot cheaper to do so at a time and place of your choosing.3.In even the worst weather you need to have good windshield wipers. Unfortunately wiper blades are like a leaking roof, you only think about them when it rains. I recommend replacing wiper blades every year, preferably just before winter hits.4) DIY: Replace Your Timing Belt The purpose of a timing belt is to provide a quiet, flexible connection between the camshaft and crankshaft to keep the valves opening and closing in phase with the movement of the pistons. If they break at a time of their own cgoosing, severe engine damage could result. It is much cheaper and easier to replace it at the recommended intervals.5) DIY: How to Change Your Spark PlugsSpark plugs are one of the most important parts of your vehicle. They are what ignites the air/fuel mixture that gives you the power you need when you need it. As they get old they wear out and can start to misfire, causing power loss or engine stalling. 6) DIY: Repairing Paint ChipsNow maybe this doesn’t sound important, but it could save you hundreds, maybe even thousands of dollars in repairs. A paint chip exposes the bare metal under the paint. Once this happens water, road salt and acids can start rotting out the metal and left unrepaired, leave big holes in the sheet metal.7) DIY: Winterizing Your CarThis is an important PM job in that it assures you your vehicle is ready for the coldest winter. I recommend replacing the coolant every two years and checking the heater and radiator hoses at the same time.