Did you know? the Sprint Cup race at Daytona was the first time since Homestead in 2005, that no Chevy finished in the top 5. That is 72 races in a row. And it was the first time since Las Vegas in 2003, that only one Chevy finished in the top 10. A streak of 178 consecutive races. There also must have been 6 or more Toyotas in the top 10 in the truck race.
Subaru Super Collant
The 2008 Subaru WRX STI and all 2009 Subaru’s have a type of coolant “Subaru Super Coolant”. This coolant is blue and has a “S” in the middle with a red cape.The new Coolant must not be mixed with any other type of coolant. When the cooling system is serviced the new coolant must be used.Adding any other coolant will effect the protection capabilities of the coolant, which Subaru claims will last 10 years.This should eliminate the hazardous waste and also be a money saver and be better for the environment.It is more expensive than regular coolant and the current Subaru coolant. Also the fact is not every quick lube will have it available mainly due to the cost. 10 years of service seems like a long time for coolant and many will be faced with large repair bills when the wrong coolant is used.The GM lifetime coolant has caused numerous problems, as have some of the rice burners I have a problem leaving synthetic oil in for the recommended time I cannot imagine leaving the coolant for ten years.
Crew Chief Discusses Oil
Once again I am going to cover engine oil, as there has been a lot of discussion concerning it lately.I use Chevron 10-30 in all my vehicles. It is what most of the oil change specials in this area provide. No I don’t change my own oil just too much of a hassle at my age and really not worth it for what they charge. If I go synthetic I may change it then. I have a Bonneville with a 3.8 that had a Good Wrench engine installed recently. I may use synthetic in that. My problem with synthetics is that I just cannot leave it for the recommended interval so it does get expensive. If I do go to a synthetic it would probably be Mobil 1. I do not think the semi synthetic are worth the $ as the percentage of synthetic is very low. My Dakota and Pontiac convertible have a lot of miles and every now and then I use a high mileage, but I always assure the oil is changed hot at the next oil change, to be certain all the extra additives are removed. All the name brand oils are good in fact they are not that different except for a few of the more expensive ones. For example Gibbs racing sells a oil that is high in zinc and this is a good choice for older engines (before Lead free). There are several other specialty oils on the market. I guess I if would have to choose the best oil out there it would be Castrol. The problem is it is hard to find a shop that uses it (to expensive). I used Havoline for many years then when it became hard to find I went to Amoco then Chevron bought Amoco so I went to Chevron and as I said before many shops in this area use it. I have no complaints about the performance, it is a little stiff in the North Dakota winter but I have no where I have to be so I just wait for warmer weather. Bottom line is your car is one of your most expensive investments so use the best oil you can afford. If you can leave it alone synthetic is by far the best but if you are anal like me and cannot leave it in for the 6-9 thousand miles with one filter change then go with whatever name brand is available in your area. Stay away from the high mileage and semi they are a rip off, also avoid most additives here again they are a waste of money. I use 2 Seafoam and Lucas but only on a very rare occasion and then only if I am trying to cure a specific problem (noisy lifters is one). I also use Seafoam as a stabilizer and have excellent results from it. To most technicians oil types are like blond, brunettes and red heads it is matter of preference. A good site for oil references is chris-longhurst.com he also has a tire speedo chart among other types of info, once you start reading it is hard to stop as it does contain a ton of info.
Computer Diagnostics
Few people realize what you can do with an automotive repair manual, a little bit of free time, some basic automotive tools, and a bit of cash to throw around. A lot of people take it for granted that you have to have all of your auto repair done by professionals, but this is not the case. It depends a lot on the model of the car and type of problem, but most auto repair is actually pretty simple to do. Sometimes, you can save hundreds of dollars on fixing your car by taking a simple shortcut. For example, I used to own up an old and clunky Voyager with a rusted out rear air-conditioning unit. All the coolant leaked out of it, and they said it would cost hundreds of dollars to fix. Instead, I used a clamp from a normal hardware store to cut off the rear air-conditioning unit. It cost me less than a dollar, took me no more than an hour to do, and completely solved the problem!I guess I learned this from my father. He is a retired aircraft Master Mechanic and can fix anything. At least until all of the computer diagnostics came into play on new cars. But for small auto repair jobs, you can feel confident that it is possible to fix things yourself.Nevertheless, for more serious problems, auto repair is definitely a must. I know some people who do automotive engine repair on their own, but I wouldn’t recommend it unless you really know what you are doing. Today’s cars are more sophisticated and complex than ever, and it takes a quality automotive technician to really diagnose and fix the problem. Don’t get me wrong, if you have someone there to help you who knows what they are doing, you can probably get enough help to work your way through. Nonetheless, if you are even the slightest bit unsure of your abilities, you should probably leave the auto repairs to the expert.One of the best compromises is to let your mechanic diagnose the problem, then go and repair it yourself. One of the biggest dangers with trying to perform your own auto repair is not knowing what the problem is. Amateur mechanics can jump to conclusions and miss out on the whole issue at hand. This can cause all kinds of problems, and will usually lose you more money than you can gain by not hiring a mechanic. If you have your mechanic figure out what is wrong, however, you can still save a lot of money on labor costs by doing the job yourself. It doesn’t make sense for everyone, but for some people it really does. News source: Car Parts Automotive
Daytona 500 quick facts
Daytona 500 Quick FactsThere are more Toyota’s than Fords this year 9 versus 7First pays about 1.4 millionTotal purse $18,689,238Last place pays a minimum $223865 but you have to make the race and 10 teams did not.In 1959 Lee Petty won $19050.00There is no Sponsor for the 50th running (I don’t know why)Coke will sponsor the July raceMichael Waltrip team will run gold wheels (who else but MW)This will be Dale Jarrett last 500Trisha Yearwood to Perform National Anthem at Daytona 500One person from a heart attack while driving the Richard Petty driving experienceThe 150 duel broadcast 157 of TV time including 51 minutes of commercials
Overheating
You’re late for work, the traffic is terrible and you’re practically in the middle of the highway when all of a sudden you see smoke rise up. You’re thinking that you’re imagining things and it’s just the heat wave playing tricks on you (or some idiot decided that revving up their engine and have smoke come out is a cool thing to do). But then it starts to increase and you know for sure that it’s no mirage. You’re engine is overheating. So being a good citizen, you slowly (and painstakingly) pull yourself to the side of the road to avoid causing more traffic to the already heavily populated highway. I’m about to say something which may actually cause you folks to react violently but let me assure you that this type of mishap is normal. At one point in our lives this has happened to us. Most of the time, the causes of this could be a busted radiator hose, one of the auto parts in your car’s cooling system. If you find yourself in this situation, the steps below will help you temporarily fix the problem giving you time to drive yourself to the nearest service station and to call your boss so you can file a leave (Trust me and take the day off. It’ll do you wonders).Open your cars hood, let out some steam (from your car not from you) and locate its source. Remember, before you touch anything, make sure your car’s engine has cooled off. The engine can give off an intense amount of heat and can cause burns if you make a mistake of touching any of its parts while it’s still hot. Check the radiator hose, look for the hole and dry it completely. Get a piece of duct tape (about 2 to 3 inches will do) and use it to cover the hole found in your radiator hose. Make sure to press it firmly at the center to keep it in place. Once done, get a longer piece of duct tape and wrap it around the hose and over the damaged portion. Start slightly above the original patchwork you initially did. Again, make sure that it’s tight and secure. Before starting your way home or to the nearest service station, make sure you have enough radiator fluid. If you feel like you don’t have enough, you can just use plain old H20 (that’s water folks). Once you have this done, make sure to have your radiator hose replaced immediately. Most auto parts and discount auto parts shops carry this. Don’t rely on the patchwork you just did. Unless you enjoy making your life a living hell. News source: Automechanics-word-press
Hints From The Crew Chief
Hints From The Crew Chief: IF you use cheap anti freeze be sure to check the strength before installing it have had numerous reports of it being diluted. If you are using a reputable brand no need to worry. That time of year to lube the locks on your vehicle if you have a remote unlock they are rarely used and it is frustrating to find them frozen when the remote dies. Take you rig to a good carwash (going to cost you a few bucks) and have it cleaned mainly the undercarriage road chemicals can do number on your vehicle. Mine always seems to run quieter and better after I do this. Check your tire pressure mine always seem to look fine but upon testing are sometimes as much as 10 lbs down on pressure. I blame this on aluminum rims as the fronts are always lower I assume from the twisting when steering. Check your furnace filter and buy a carbon dioxide tester. I know this is a car site but I think this is important enough to mention. My neighbors who live in a fairly new house recently had their lives saved by a tester.
2008 Difficult Year For Big 3
Auto dealers will gather in San Francisco this weekend, surviving 2008 will be the main topic. The discussion will be about a shaky economy, dropping stock market and the credit crunch, 2008 could be the worst sales year in more than a decade.Chrysler may thin its dealership ranks by as much as a third and the other two U.S.-based automakers are making similar plans.Fewer dealers may mean a better deal for the consumer but many dealers who are not profitable will not be able to compete. If they are money making dealership they are able to make the sale and loose the margin but a business that is in trouble may not be able to offer discounts. Again this year we may see zero percent loans through their finance groups. 2008 is not going to be an easy year for dealers who sell cars and trucks made by the big three, they all saw sales declines last year and are in the process of making corporate changesThe used car business should be fairly strong, but to keep the pipeline full of used vehicles there has to be strong new vehicle sales.Chrysler LLC said that it might align Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge under one roof. And General Motors Corp. also is planning to combine Pontiac, Buick and GMC dealerships into one channel. Ford Motor Co. also has to many dealers competing for too few customers, but as of yet they have made no moves to consolidate.GM is going to start selling their Certified Used Vehicles on Ebay at no cost. That will put more pressure on sales to keep up with the demand. But used prices have dropped recently even for the smaller higher gas mileage vehicles and this will affect trade in values.
3000 Mile Oil Changes Fact Or Fiction
For decades mechanics have been telling us to change our oil every 3,000 miles. Interestingly, no automotive manufacturer agrees with this maintenance schedule — not in the last 20 years any way. So why are we being told to change our oil every 3,000 miles if it’s unnecessary?First, let’s look at the auto industry’s argument. It makes 5 primary points.1) Oil breaks down after 3000 miles2) Oil changes are great preventative maintenance3) 3,000 miles is an easy number for the car repair customer to remember4) The 3,000 mile interval is traditionally viewed as best by mechanics5) It’s necessary due to the elements, driving patterns, and weather conditions.It’s important to note that those telling us to change our oil every 3,000 miles (the automotive industry) are the same folks who will profit most. This is not to say that oil changes aren’t important — they are. They’re just not as frequently needed as we’re made to believe.Here are the 5 truths about the 3,000 mile oil change1) Quality motor oil recommended by your vehicle’s manufacturer does not break down after 3,000 miles2) Yes, changing your oil is great preventative maintenance, but it needs to be done in accordance with manufacturer service intervals3) The easy-to-remember 3,000-mile interval actually creates more confusion as to the real maintenance needs of your vehicle. Thus, it is easier to follow factory guidelines, more economical, and more appropriate.4) The traditional view that 3,000 miles is best for your car is old school, wasteful, and fails to appreciate today’s mechanical and oil technologies5) Unless you’re in a constant high-speed police change in the dead of winter — your oil will be just fineHow often do you really need to change your oil? While it depends on the year, make, and model of your vehicle, it’s clear that for today’s vehicles it’s not every 3,000 miles. 20 years ago this was true of many vehicles. However, this is virtually obsolete as most vehicle have 5,000, 7500, 10,000, and even 15,000 mile oil service intervals.So just what is motivating the auto industry to push 3,000 mile oil changes? Let’s look at it in real life. If you change your oil every 3,000 miles, and like most, you average 15,000 miles per year, then you’ll be in the repair shop 5 times in only 12 months. Do you really need to perform maintenance on your car 5 times per year? Seems excessive doesn’t it?The average oil change price is $30.00. $30.00 X 5 = $150.00. If you changed your oil every 5,000 miles, you’d only need 3 oil changes per year = $90. That’s a $60 savings.For the most part oil changes are cheap, as it’s a very competitive market. They’re also not very profitable for repair shops (see the article “Why an Oil Change is Never Just an Oil Change @ RepairTrust.com). However, the more times your vehicle is in the shop, the more chances saidshop has the opportunity to sell you something else — an alignment, tires, wiper blades, brakes, shocks, fuel cleaning services, transmission services…etc — these are money-makers. This is not to say that these services aren’t needed, but they should be performed according to manufacturer guidelines only.A detailed manufacturer’s maintenance schedule (this is separate from your manual) is the best and most accurate guide. You may stumble across one in all the unnecessary paperwork you find in your glove box, but ask your repair shop or dealer for a detailed print out of your entire maintenance schedule. If the service center can’t produce one quickly — you’re in the wrong place for your car’s needs.Finally, have a little fun: the next time your local mechanic tells you to change your oil every 3,000 miles, ask him what the manufacturer recommends. It’s fun to watch him stumble through the answer or tell you, straight-faced, the wrong answer. News source: ISNARE
Just Stop Whining and Fix Your Car
Okay, it happened again. A buddy of mine is a contractor and spends his spare time buying houses and flipping them for a profit. He’ll do all of the wiring, plumbing, heating and air-conditioning work on a house. He’ll even tackle the framing, drywall and finish work, too. He’s got some nice old stuff in the garage, and he has no problem ripping into the engine of his 30-year-old muscle car or his vintage Norton motorcycle. He’s good with tools and a very competent mechanic. But he won’t work on the modern car he drives everyday–or his new truck or his wife’s car. “Too hard,” he says. “The computer controls everything, and I can’t figure it out.” I get that line all the time. They say modern cars are way too technical to be repaired by ordinary folks. And I hear that from average PM readers all the way up to the professional restoration mechanics who work in the aftermarket auto repair side of the business. You know what? It’s a bunch of baloney. First of all, 90 percent of the stuff on a new car today hasn’t changed since the ’50s. For example, look at disc brakes. Yes, they have ABS added on, but there’s still a caliper full of hydraulic fluid that squeezes a pair of friction pads onto a cast-iron disc. Driveshafts still have U-joints that need to be greased, and half-axles still have CV joints with rubber boots that crack and split open. Oil filters still dribble oil down to your elbow if you’re not careful. Fuses might be blade-style instead of glass cartridges, but you still hold them up to the light to see if they’re blown. Tires still wear out and go flat. Exhaust systems are made of much better steel than they used to be, but they still rot out their hangers and leak after you run over a stump. Fenders and doors are sometimes made of plastic instead of metal, but they’re still painted with a spray gun, not a molecular bonder. Common people, replacing a light bulb might be a little different in detail, but it hasn’t turned into rocket science. “Aahhh,” they say, “What about the computer?” What about it? Okay, twenty or more years ago, if the throttle linkage had a problem, you opened the hood and wiggled the rod that moved the throttle blades. If it didn’t move at all, it was stuck. If it moved poorly, it was just sticky. If one end moved and the other end didn’t, something was broken. Pretty cybernetic. Most cars today are throttle-by-wire. The computer sends electrical signals to an actuator and that device moves the throttle blades. Your foot moves a pedal with a variable resistor attached to it to send data to the computer. It’s a layer of complexity removed from a mechanical linkage, sure. But the systems analysis to figure out what’s wrong is the same, and systems analysis runs on the same basic principles for mechanical, electrical, and hydraulic systems. You don’t need to be a poindexter to figure this stuff out. Hundreds of thousands of high school and vocational ed students learn how to repair cars every day. Being good at math helps, but mostly you need to know how to read a shop manual and use a computer, in addition to the usual mechanical skills. You might need some new diagnostic devices, starting with a scan tool. They’re only a couple hundred dollars, and not significantly more expensive than a good tach-dwell meter and a timing light would have cost back in the day, neither of which you need on any modern car. For that matter, a lot of chain auto parts stores will loan you one for as long as it takes to download trouble codes and run a couple of simple diagnostics. That’ll be in addition to a good multimeter, which mechanics have always needed. Service data is available online from dozens of places, so you might not even need to buy the shop manual. I do realize that some of you dinosaurs out there will have to buy some metric sockets and wrenches, though. Deal with it. Most of your toolbox is still adequate to fix just about anything on a new car. News source: Popular Mechanics