Springfield

Just wanted to provide an update to my Redskins brethren, just in case they run into the same issue that I ran into.

I took my car (Ford Escape) to a local transmission shop that has been in business for years. They found that it was NOT a transmission problem, but a catalytic converter problem. This particular vehicle has 3 catalytic converters (WTF?) and one of the front converters had literally disintegrated and pieces of it lodged into the rear converter. The exhaust system was literally clogged up and the behavior exihibited was one of a transmission problem where the car was sluggish and appeared not to be able to smoothly shift into gear. To replace 2 of the 3 converters was going to cost over $2,000 parts and labor. Ouch.

But, here's the kicker: there is a federallymandated manufacturer's emissions warranty for catalytic converters (and other emissions related parts) for up to 8 years or 80,000 miles, whichever comes first. This has nothing to do with your bumper-to-bumper or drivetrain warranty. This is a warranty that covers everyone for vehicles manufactured after 1995.

My vehicle had 75,000 miles on it, which means I was covered. :jump: The local Ford dealership had to replace both bad converters free of charge. And they even covered 2 days for my car rental, which they didn't have to legally do under this warranty. So, kudos to them for that. And the way the transmission shop and the dealership explained it to me, there are SEVERE penalites (hefty fines, prison, etc.) imposed by the government if any auto shop does not disclose this warranty to a customer. The service manager at the dealership told me that they make these kinds of repairs "under duress". :rotflmao:

Side note: some of you probably know that I'm kind of a right-wing nutjob that wants to gut the Federal government. So, you must be thinking I'm a hypocrite to take "advantage" of this Federal law. Well, the way I see it, if the Federal government mandates that auto manufacturers install these emissions-related parts in their cars to abide by emission standards (which the cost of course gets passed on to consumers), then they damn well better protect the consumer from manufacturers skimping on material and installing cheap parts. I believe that's why this warranty law was passed to begin with. Anyway, that's my justification and I'm sticking to it.

I'm glad to hear about the update. I just noticed this in the thread and don't know how long ago you posted this or how I missed it.

Yes indeed. There is a federally mandated warranty period for emissions equipment which includes (and is usually limited to) the catalytic converter(s) and powertrain control module (main computer).

Most importantly, I'm glad that you got your car repaired conveniently and inexpensively (free).

Does the name John Knutson ring a bell?

Yup. Sure does.

(If you had room in your inbox your inbox you would be able to receive my PM I tried to send you just now)

I hope everyone knows that one is a fake.

SpringfieldSkins -

Can you give any tips on how to locate and identity auto mechanics who have integrity, honesty, character, and trustworthiness ???

I wish I could. The only tip I really have is to talk to your friends and coworkers about the shops they bring their cars to. Finding a good technician is all about word of mouth as far as I'm concerned. You could possibly try out different shops at each oil change and see which one seems to serve you better, which one comes off as the most honest.

I'm sure there are good shops and bad shops in every area and you can't really judge them unless you have experienced their service. Ask them questions about your car, how stuff works, their opinion on auto related things. See if they seem to know what they talk about or if they are even interested in answering your questions. I know I sure like answering questions about and educating people on different automotive subjects.

Thanks for your input. Obviously, a transmission failure is not what I wanted to hear.

I called the local Ford dealership this morning to schedule an appointment to have it looked at, but the "red" team leader was tied up with another customer. He called me back and left me a voicemail and said that it would cost between $150-200 just to diagnose the problem. I'm not sure why he gave me a range instead of a specific amount. I haven't called him back yet, but I do have a few more questions before I do:

1. That diagnostic fee seems a bit excessive. I had work done a couple of months ago on the car and they charged an $89 diagnostic fee. Anyway, if they fix the problem, will they still charge me the diagnostic fee? I don't recall if they did so last time and I can't find the receipt.
   
2. The dealership told me that they only had one transmission tech on staff, which surprised me. Do you know of any tranmssion shops in the Richmond area that you would recommend other than the dealership? Or are any of the national chains ones that you would recommend?
   

Thanks for any help you can provide.

I'm sure it's not what you wanted to hear, sorry about that. My job involves me telling a lot of people what they don't want to hear, sometimes to the point of them in tears (it makes me sad every time). It sucks that you didn't get to speak to the service writer when you dropped off your car. I always try to have some sort of communication with people. That kind of thing leads to people thinking that the shop is "too busy for you".

As far as your questions...

The diagnostic fee: Dealerships are always more expensive than private shops. I don't know what the shop's hourly rate is, but by the sound of it, I would imagine something like $100 per hour.

As far as the range of price for a diagnostic, I often do that myself. Sometimes you don't know how far the technician will have to go to diagnose a problem. A performance diagnostic would be a perfect example. Sometimes the technician will open up the hood and find something very obvious such as a disconnected or rotted vacuum line. Sometimes a technician will have to follow the diagnostic tree all the way to the bottom. For that reason, I tell the customer that there could be a range as far a price for the diagnostic. I would plan for that $200 diagnostic, but hope for the $150 one.

Will they take the diagnostic fee off of the final bill? I can't answer that question. Some shops do, some shops don't. My shop doesn't, I feel that it is just that they don't take diagnostic fees off of the final bill. The technicians at my shop work hard and diagnostic work is part of their repairs. If we charge 1/2 hour, the technician will spend a 1/2 hour to properly diagnose the car and insure what he thinks is wrong with the car is actually wrong with the car. To put it another way... Why would he want to diagnose a car (if he wasn't getting paid for it) when he could be making money fixing other cars?

Your second question: This one will be much easier. I can't really point you in the right direction of any good shops. I have lived in northern Virginia for all of my life. Good technicians and shops are much more of a local thing. I will add that I wouldn't naturally trust a national chain, especially one that focuses on transmissions (or exhaust, or brakes, or tires for that matter). The reason is because they don't rely on repeat business. If a transmission shop wants to stick it to you, they most certainly can, they don't have to rely on you coming back for other repairs or services ever again. I'd stick to dealers or private shops with a reputation if I were you.

Thanks - btw, Corcaigh had an interesting theory he posted in my original thread before I was referred to this one. What's your take on this ?

http://www.extremeskins.com/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=5511508

Sorry, I don't have enough time right now to read the thread (I'll try to later) but that is the basic meaning when I referred to the MAF sensor.

Food's ready here, so I'll have to elaborate more later.

I"m not sure if this is in the scope of this thread or not but...

I recently bought a 04 Wrangler that came with 31 inch tires (bigger than stock) on stock axles. I would like to move to 33 inch tires but I'm concerned that 33 inch tires on axles made for stock sized tire (not sure the size) will be much more vulnerable to breaking. How much stress does bigger tires really put on an axle?

Thanks.

Simply put, yes.

Now the long answer. It will put more stress on your axles and everything along the drive train all the way back to the engine. This includes the differential, drive shaft and transmission. It's a question of how much MORE stress it would put on all of those parts.

I'll try and relate this. Think of it like a bike (I'm sure a better similarity is out there). The smaller gears on the bike are easier to turn and the harder ones harder to turn. Any time you increase the overall rolling diameter (the distance it takes to complete one turn of the wheel) it puts more stress on the things designed to move those wheels. I would definitely agree that the axles are most likely to be damaged because of such a thing.

Now the bright side. If you are moving up from a 31 to a 33, the total circumference (rolling diameter, or whatever you want to call it) increases, but not by a number that I would consider huge. I've seen plenty of Jeep Wranglers with enormous tires on them, you know the mud slinging kind.

I don't think you'll have much to worry about as far as breaking axle and such. I've seen much more problems with vehicle that have standard (or slightly larger) tires but are making a huge amount of power compared to stock. I think you should be more concerned about ride comfort, ride noise and handling in my own opinion.

Well I took it in- turned out to be an idler pulley!

I've heard some crazy sounds from bearings before, but never one like that.

Actually, the mechanic had to guess that it was the idler- he said we'll start there b/c it was the cheapest to replace. He agreed though that it didn't sound like any kind of mechanical noise... but sure enough, that fixed it

Nice. Glad you got it fixed and it wasn't super expensive.

It's a 1997 Buick LeSabre.

(Don't laugh at the car - I inherited it, when my pickup truck blew an engine out, the day after my dad died, so I took his old car)

I would have to lean my opinion more towards transmission. Mainly because if it were a fuel pump, chances are it would die out instead of just "throttling back". It could also be something like a mass air flow (MAF) sensor that is giving the on board computer input as well.

This is an awesome thread SpringfieldSkins. I didn't know this existed until yesterday.

I have a problem that I hope you or someone else can shed some light on. I bought my daughter a 2003 Ford Escape about 4 months ago. The Escape is basically a smaller version of the Ford Explorer. It has 74,000 miles on it and has been running fine until a few weeks ago. The car will not kick into overdrive when it reaches the proper speed, which is about 50 mph. It's almost like I have overdrive turned off, which I do not. There is a button on the gear shifter to turn overdrive off and I have not pressed that button. When I do press the button to test it out, there is a light on the dash that says "OD Off". But, I immediately reset it back on before driving.

Edited for clarification: one very important thing that I forgot to mention is that it sometimes will eventually switch into overdrive. It is random and does not happen all the time. The engine revs to about 4000 rpm and sometimes if I press the accelerator several times, it will kick into overdrive.

Does this sound like a transmission problem? Or is there a separate unit apart from the transmission that controls the overdrive function? Could it be that the car thinks that overdrive has been turned off? Is there some type of control switch that regulates this?

By the way, I have checked the transmission fluid and it is at the right level and appears to be clean.

Any help on this would be greatly appreciated.

This could be either in the transmission or the computer control (of the transmission). Being that you can "slam" it into overdrive, I would suspect it is in the transmission itself. Could be transmission pump pressure related (which is inside the transmission) where as if you give it a bunch of gas it will force enough pressure to kick it into overdrive.

It could possibly be the PCM not telling the transmission to shift into overdrive also. I doubt that, but it is possible that their may be a reprogram available to the vehicle's PCM.

I haven't seen this problem yet on the Escape. So I don't have much history to go on as far as what the most common problem is. It wouldn't surprise me if the transmission was beginning to fail (or at least the shift into overdrive, pump pressure, etc.). Good luck.

OK, SS, TWA, zonny my '99 olds bravada 4.3 vortec V6 with the CSFEI (central sequential electronic fuel injection) (100k miles) won't start sometimes. Engine turns over but roughly (like maybe one cylinder fires and it kicks the starter out). It's been doing for a year now off and on. When it starts, it starts right up and drives, never stalls. It's normally a cold start when it happens. It's almost like water in the gas. Major tune up and fuel filter at 80K, Just put in a new battery and starter. I use lucas fuel injector cleaner regularly (for better gas mileage). I put some dry gas (water remover) and It might be working as problem stopped for now.

The fuel pump is on when it won't start but I suspect that's it's a fuel problem. I'll try it several times, leave come back later and it starts. I left it at a service place for 2 weeks and the problem wouldn't present for them. My mechanic friend says that they have been finding that ethanol has been causing the fuel filters to fill up with trash (impurities) and rust. He also that a fuel pump may be working irregularly. It does seem to be a bit down on power (maybe 10-15%) but that too could be due to ethanol.

The Bravada is basically a Blazer donned in Oldsmobile trim. These cars have a couple of common problems when it relates to your symptom (cranks, no start). Almost all of the problems relate to a lack of fuel.

First thought is the fuel pump. Fuel pumps are very common failures on these vehicles. However, you say that you can hear the fuel pump when you turn the key on. Usually when the fuel pumps fail on these vehicles, you don't hear the fuel pump come on.

Second thought is the fuel injector assembly. We, at our shop, call it the "spider" because it has a central hub going to each of the injectors. These can clog up and are very susceptible to a marginally low fuel pressure (one that isn't out of range, but on the low end).

I would say it's a 50-50 chance on either of those two. Neither of them are very cheap to fix as well.

Injected unfortunately for me, I get the old stuff.

I'll check the injector out.

How do I tell which one needs replacing?

I believe that there is only 1 injector, i think it's throttle body injected (TBI). Which is much closer to carburated than typical fuel injection. Don't quote me on that though.

Honestly I'd go after the fuel pump first. Chryslers don't have great luck with fuel pumps.

Maybe it's the alternator? :whoknows:

That's another one I forgot to think about. Also, does the trailblazer have and electric fan or a fan clutch? Possible that the fan clutch is slipping if it has one.

You could use the ol' technicians stethoscope (a very long flat head screwdriver) to listen for the noise as well. There is always some non moving part of every pulley that you can listen through the screwdriver to.

SS, my girlfriends 86' Cherokee 4.0L, 5 spd will not start after a short trip when turned off.

It has spark and fuel whenever I get to look at it after it happens like it knows I'm coming.

My first thought is fuel filter, but maybe just rust in the tank.

It happens more frequently when the gas tank is low.

I ask this because it's an '86, but is it carburated or fuel injected (TBI)?

If it's carburated, I'm sorry but I probably wouldn't be most suited to help you. I know a lot about the new school, very little old school.

If it's TBI, I'd agree with zoony about the fuel injector. That or the fuel pump. If it's fuel injected, there's probably a service port where you can check fuel pressure. If the fuel pressure is low (don't know the exact spec, but I'd guess at least 30-40 psi), than the fuel pump is the culprit. If the fuel pressure is normal, I'd go after the injector.

okay, my pos Trailblazer (2006, only 60k miles, falling apart, complete piece of ****, don't buy GM) is making a high pitched whine. It's getting worse and worse. It goes up and down with the rpm of the engine. Doesn't sound like a belt. It's really loud, you can hear it from inside. Really freaking obnoxious too

I turn the car in in 5k but I'm thinking about taking it in anyways, it might be serious. Any thoughts?

Seriously, this car is a piece of ****. I would be sick if I paid money for this automobile. Center console is broken, steering wheel is coming unwrapped, engine knocks like crazy, upholstrey is ****, etc.

....

I actually like the Trailblazer to be honest with you, but different experiences leave different impressions on people.

I have a couple of opinions and a couple of questions...

First thought. AC compressor locking up and whining. Does it make the noise with the AC on only? If it does, this is the likely answer. If it makes the noise when the AC and heat off, it's probably not the compressor.

Second thought. Power steering fluid low and whining. If the power steering fluid is low (likely because of a leak), the power steering will whine but usually it changes pitch when you turn the steering wheel (not only when you rev the engine).

Third thought. Transmission bearing whine. Does it whine when you are sitting still in park and rev the engine? If it does, I'd rule out the transmission. If it doesn't, transmission would be one of the possibilities.

Fourth though. Idler pulley (for serpentine belt) bearing going bad and whining. This would make noise when stopped or driving and could sometimes make noise with the AC on only (or AC off only depending on the load on the engine).

A little more description about when it makes the noise would be helpful but those are the few possibilities that come to mind at first thought (and second and third and fourth).

how long can i drive my car with a hole in the exhaust before i need to do something about it

:doh:

Well, seeing that you live in FL and knowing that they don't have any inspections there (or so I think), you can probably drive it until the thing starts dragging on the ground.

After the catalytic converter, the only point of the exhaust is to make it quiet. You can certainly lose power from a hole in the exhaust (a very marginal amount) and it certainly is annoying as hell, but you probably won't have any other performance or safety concerns.

I don't advocate driving around with a noisy exhaust because it's annoying and easily fixable (all things considered). I would honestly get it fixed when your pocketbook can handle it. A hole in the exhaust usually is loud and annoying long before it becomes a safety hazard (i.e.: dragging on the ground).

Have this problem that only occurs at specific times - after driving over an hour, high-speed on the freeway.

Whenever I drive about 70mph or higher constantly for about an hour, all of sudden I feel a downshift in the engine speed. I can't tell if it's the transmission or the engine failing, but as soon as I feel that shift, the car starts to slow down and lose power. I start to give it gas, but instead of accelerating, it gradually slows down. It feels like it is eventually going to stall completely, but it doesn't. Once it gets down to about 55 or 60, it stops slowing down - however I can't speed up at that point, either. It's stuck at that speed until I stop the car and let it sit for a while.

It doesn't happen in city driving or short-term driving, but only in the scenario I mentioned, and it happens every time in that scenario.

It's scaring me because I have to make about a 2 hour drive, about twice a week to go see a specialist doctor, and I'm wondering if it will eventually fail completely.

Anybody got a clue what it could be ?

What kind of car is it? That could dramatically change how my opinion is formed. Year, make and model please.

My first two thoughts are transmission and fuel pump. When you get back to me, I'll offer up a little more explanation. Sorry for falling asleep, watching football all day wears me out.

I drive a stick shift ford explorer. About 3 years ago, I had the master cylinder and the slave cylinder replaced for the clutch. Over the last few weeks, it's been more difficult to put the thing into 1st gear from neutral. Does this mean that I may have to get a new clutch pretty soon?

I missed this one. I don't know how long ago this question was posted, sorry if this response is very, very late.

First I'll explain explain the clutch setup as it pertains to you're question and how it works. The clutch is the interface between the engine (which makes the power) and the transmission (which transmits, along with other parts, the power to the wheels). When you press the clutch pedal the clutch releases it's engagement, in essence disengaging the transmission from the engine.

There are two different types of set ups when it comes to clutch control. There is a hydraulic operated clutch and a cable operated clutch. One uses hydraulic fluid (actually brake fluid) to release the clutch when you press the pedal. The cable setup uses a cable to release the clutch, which your truck doesn't have.

As it pertains to your situation, there are a few possibilities. The synchronizer for first gear may be going bad. The shifter or shifter bushings may be failing. The clutch may be going bad. The hydraulic clutch lines may be leaking.

My first thought is synchronizer. It is probably the most likely failure given your description and probably the most expensive. Repairing the synchronizers requires removal of the transmission and disassembly. It may serve you better to try changing the fluid in the transmission. If it doesn't work, there's not much money wasted comparatively. If the synchronizer is failed, I would really recommend replacing the whole transmission with a remanufactured unit.

Second thought is the shifter and/or bushings. I'm honestly not too sure if there are any bushings to wear out because there just aren't many manual transmission Explorers on the road. It certainly could be a bushing that's worn or a shifter, going into the transmission, that has too much play. That would be a less expensive repair.

Third, clutch may be failing. I doubt this though, because it would usually be hard to shift in all gears. When the clutch fails in this manner though, it is because it doesn't release all the way making it harder to shift into gear. That's also why I say it isn't likely, because it isn't happening in all gears.

Lastly, the master cylinder or slave cylinder you had replaced some years ago could be leaking. You should be able to check your master cylinder to see if the level is full. This would also usually be accompanied by a softer clutch pedal feel. This one is also not very likely, but certainly possible.

In summary... You need to take it to a respectable shop that can inspect an properly diagnose all of the above. There are a few things you can do in the time being if you have a little know how and a desire to get your hands dirty (or not have a broken vehicle). It sounds to me that the likely cause is the synchronizer for first gear.

Once again, sorry for taking so long to reply.

My two cents on the tech pay. Our labor rate is $99.00 ph and of the 10 techs we have here they earn from 50k on the low end to 130k plus on the top end. All depends on how hard of a worker they are. If you can consistently turn 50 hrs a week you are going to earn a dam fine living.

Agreed. It all depends on how hard of a worker you are. If you want to actually work all day long, then you will do just fine. If you want to slack all day and only turn about 3 or 4 hours a day, your paycheck will be a little on the light side.

The SRS light came on im my 02 Acura Tl-s. I was wondering if there was a way to fix or find out what the problem is without taking it to the dealer?

An SRS light is something I would definitely leave to the pros, or at least fixing it. Any shop that has the appropriate scan tool can see what code is stored that caused your SRS light. With that code, they can trace out what caused your car's problem.

There are several possible problems... a clockspring (the wiring harness in the steering wheel), the impact sensors, and any one of the air bags your vehicle is equipped with. I would say though, with out a doubt and knowing any codes, that the most likely failure is in the SRS module (the controlling computer of the SRS system). I see more failures of SRS modules on Honda and Acura models than other components. That's my two cents.

Also, something of note. The air bags will not deploy on you out of the middle of nowhere because there is a fault with the SRS. I figured you might want that information. When the SRS light comes on, the SRS is disabled to prevent such an incident. It also will not work if you are in an accident and the air bags are supposed to deploy. The system is set up that way to prevent accidental deployment and injury due to that. In short, there would be serious lawsuits if air bags were exploding in people's faces without notice.

In summary... take it to someone who is qualified, this may be a dealer or a private shop. My bet is on a faulty SRS module. Don't worry about the air bags deploying unexpectedly, they wont.

****UPDATE*****

I read on a DIY thread on changing the differential fluid on the s2000 a 23mm box end wrench is needed to remove the "fill plug." I went to 4 different places: Autozone, Advanced Auto Parts, Harbor Freight, and Home Depot.....only Autozone had the required size socket...unfortunately you can't fit the socket w/ wrench in the space to remove the fill plug :hammer:

I found the tool I needed online through sears...so I'm gonna try to get by there this weekend and get the job done.

I asked a friend who has a S2000 that had a similar problem to yours about it last weekend. He said that he had his rear suspension lubricated and that took care of the problem. I'm not sure if the rear of the S2000 has lube fittings, I highly doubt it, and he wasn't specific about what part was actually lubricated.

You may also get a can of WD-40 (or another brand of penetrating lubricant) and spray down the bushings on the rear suspension while your changing the fluid. It may or may not solve your problem, but it would be a piece of cake to do while you're under there.

Sorry I'm not specific about my friends similar problem, but he wasn't specific about it either. Couldn't hurt though.

I'm still having a hard time buying that one. Gas stations and independent shops charge less per hour and pay techs less per hour than dealerships. I think somewhere around $30 per hour is where dealers usually max out, MAYBE 35 and that's for a damn good, damn experienced tech. I'm having a really hard time understanding how they're making 35-50 per flat rate hour. There's a misunderstanding here somewhere, that doesn't happen.

I did a little investigation while I was at work today. Technicians make as little as $27 per labor hour. Most of them make no more than $34 per labor hour. 1 Technician, who has worked for us for 20+ years, makes 44% no matter how many hours turned. 44% of $89.32 is $37 and some change.

So I was wrong about my $50, sorry about that. I still think they are well piad based on the work they do. Just thought I'd throw that out there since I had made an error and I wanted to correct myself.

Semi sarcastic question, why is it that all Service Writers seem to think they're mechanics while simultaneously thinking that all repairs are quick and easy (at least when they're talking to the technician, not bsing the customer?

That's why I prefaced my OP with this little tidbit.

OK, so first off, I'm not a mechanic. I am a Service Advisor, and I've been doing this for the last 7 years. If I titled this thread "Ask a Service Advisor", people might not actually pick up what I was referring to...

But seriously though. Everything isn't a "piece of cake". I'm straight up with the customer, if it's a piece of cake, I'll do it myself right while the customer is there. Wipers, light bulbs... piece of cake. Brakes, axles... NOT a piece of cake.

If I wanted a job where I had to bust my ass physically every day. Go home with the worst back aches ever from bending over a hood all day and risk permanent back injury. Have hands that would be permanently dirty, unless I was on vacation. I would have became a mechanic/automotive technician for all of that. The money is nice, but I want to be able to stand when I'm 35 years old.

I have a lot of respect for every last one of my mechanics. I realize that they have a super hard job, every day. Not to say that my job isn't easy, but theirs is clearly a hugely physically demanding one.

And to answer you, eventhough you are joking. I don't consider it my job to BS the customer or tech. We joke around and have fun at work, that's for sure though.

Seriously though, my service writer has been ****ing killing me lately, what a douchebag.

Sorry about your luck. I think it's a bad thing honestly if an advistor has TOO much power in the working relationship. It should be a give/give, win/win relationship.