The "Ask a Mechanic" Thread

[The Evil Genius]

Do fuel injectors really need to be flushed every 20,000 miles on a Mazda Protege (or insert other car).

[twa]

Do fuel injectors really need to be flushed every 20,000 miles on a Mazda Protege (or insert other car).

Not unless you are buying really bad gas;)

It will keep the system working at peak efficiency,but every 20,000 is excessive imo

[Tut77]

SS,

This is a great threadthat you started and before asking my question, I just wanted to say thanks to you and the other mechanically knowledgeable folks who've been answering questions.

I think this is a pretty basic question, but it's something I've never understood. When rev matching for a downshift, is it necessary to release the clutch pedal before blipping the throttle? If so, why? If I've got the clutch depressed, the engine and tranny aren't connected, so I'm not putting wear on anything by blipping the throttle then am I?

[Capt. Kaos]

I have a 2005 Saturn Relay.

As I drive down the road all of my lights (interior & exterior) flicker. Where should I start looking for a problem?

Thanks.

I'd look for a poor connection or corrosion around the battery cable ends. That would be my first thought. It's certainly possible that your alternator is starting to fail but it sounds to me more like a battery or a battery connection problem.

Checked connections, had alternator checked (14.66 - 154 max amps -diode good). Any other suggestions or is it time to get it to a shop?

You do know that I was tempted to ask this question with my super powers!

Edited November 29, 2008 by Capt. Kaos

[Koolblue13]

Checked connections, had alternator checked (14.66 - 154 max amps -diode good). Any other suggestions or is it time to get it to a shop?

You do know that I was tempted to ask this question with my super powers!

Did you check the other ends of the ground? Engine block or sub frame.

[Koolblue13]

in a 97 corrolla, how hard is it to change the steering fluid reservoir, or maybe the seal beneath it? Mine has a leak.

~Bang

Is it a remote reservoir? If the leak if from the actual pump, it's not hard either. I believe it's 4 15mm bolts, but am not sure. If I remember correctly, the pump is on the bottom left of the motor and that would make it hard, but you may be able to get to the bolts from the fender well.

Been a while since I've tinkered with a Toyo.

[DCsportsfan53]

I think this is a pretty basic question, but it's something I've never understood. When rev matching for a downshift, is it necessary to release the clutch pedal before blipping the throttle? If so, why? If I've got the clutch depressed, the engine and tranny aren't connected, so I'm not putting wear on anything by blipping the throttle then am I?

I'm not sure I follow this, what good what would releasing the clutch before blipping the throttle do? You're either saying to put the trans in neutral, release the clutch, blip the throttle, push the clutch in, put into the proper gear or you're saying that you release the clutch with the car in gear and then blip the throttle. Either way, it's not rev matching. Push the clutch in, select the gear, blip the throttle to the right rpm, release clutch.

in a 97 corrolla, how hard is it to change the steering fluid reservoir, or maybe the seal beneath it? Mine has a leak.

~Bang

It can't be that hard, should just be a few, easy to reach bolts holding it in place. It may even just clip into a bracket. Not sure on a Corrolla. Just make sure, before you do, that it's the bottle itself and not the hose or pump or something else. A good idea would be to buy a couple cans of brake clean and clean the area really well. Then re-check it in a few days or a week and you'll be able to pinpoint better where's it's coming from.

Be VERY CAREFUL of one thing when you do this. If you wind up draining the fluid and especially if you replace the pump, after re-filling the system and before starting the engine, turn the steering wheel lock to lock and hold a number of times with the car's wheel's OFF the ground. Try to do this until you don't see lots of bubbles in the reservoir. It's pretty easy to damage a power steering pump if there's air pockets in there and you just drive it immediately, causing the pump to run dry.

Edited November 29, 2008 by DCsportsfan53

[Capt. Kaos]

Did you check the other ends of the ground? Engine block or sub frame.

Nope, I'll have to check that in a bit.

Thanks.

[Koolblue13]

Nope, I'll have to check that in a bit.

Thanks.

Also, with the Alt, have somebody raise the throttle while you are checking the out put and hit it with a hammer as well(don't kill it) and see if something is loose in there. It really sounds like a bad alt or connection.

[Springfield]

Hey, great thread. I have a quick question for you here.

My Volvo just got its VA inspection and it needs new wiper blades and front brake pads. Not new rotors or anything like that.

The guy just quoted me 180 for the inspection, blades, and pads- it sounds a little on the high side to me but I'm not sure. Any thoughts?

Man, I didn't see this thread made it back up until just now. Sorry all...

So as far as your Volvo. It sounds like a rather good price being in NoVA and all. I would be almost certain that my shop would charge more. Just a bit of advice, I would recommend Volvo brand brake pads if at all possible. Unless it's an older model and you don't mind squeaking, the Volvo break pads are the best in my opinion.

[skinfan2k]

I need someone that can do work on my car!! Hook me up!

[Springfield]

in a 97 corrolla, how hard is it to change the steering fluid reservoir, or maybe the seal beneath it? Mine has a leak.

~Bang

They aren't too difficult to replace as I recall. I think that it is located up top and have a hose connected to the bottom of it. It's probably the hose connection (which I believe is just a clamp) that is leaking. Hope that helps.

[Springfield]

Do fuel injectors really need to be flushed every 20,000 miles on a Mazda Protege (or insert other car).

Every 20K is a bit excessive, at least if you are flushing it right. On most cars, it will be at least 30-45K before a injector flush (or fuel induction service, as I like to call it) would really do much benefit. The fuel induction service is a very beneficial service, however it would be overkill if done too often.

By my experience I'd say anywhere between 30K and 45K is enough time to make a difference.

[Springfield]

SS,

This is a great threadthat you started and before asking my question, I just wanted to say thanks to you and the other mechanically knowledgeable folks who've been answering questions.

I think this is a pretty basic question, but it's something I've never understood. When rev matching for a downshift, is it necessary to release the clutch pedal before blipping the throttle? If so, why? If I've got the clutch depressed, the engine and tranny aren't connected, so I'm not putting wear on anything by blipping the throttle then am I?

Rev matching is really something that racers do. It isn't necessary to rev match when down shifting. If you do it right, and well, you don't need to used the clutch at all when rev matching. The gears in the transmission and engine will be moving at approximately the same speed so the transmission will shift gears effortlessly. You can do this both up shifting and down shifting.

I don't rev match though. You could seriously damage something if it's done wrong. Not worth the risk to me.

[Springfield]

Checked connections, had alternator checked (14.66 - 154 max amps -diode good). Any other suggestions or is it time to get it to a shop?

You do know that I was tempted to ask this question with my super powers!

I would agree with Kool Blue. It could also be a bad ground. I'd start with the negative terminal and find the main ground off of that. Make sure both the battery and ground have good contacts. If that doesn't work, you may need to look for smaller ground wires next.

[Mickalino]

Does Cruise Control save gas ?

[twa]

Does Cruise Control save gas ?

If you drive erratically(change speeds),really depends on the driver and terrain.(in the hills ,definitely do not use it)

Edited November 29, 2008 by twa

[Mickalino]

I drive erratic

[twa]

I drive erratic

I figured:D, plus being in Florida hills are not a issue

Use it

http://www.edmunds.com/advice/fueleconomy/articles/106842/article.html#test3

Test #3 Use Cruise Control

Using cruise control is a bit of gas-saving advice frequently on tips lists. We have always agreed with this tip in theory but we hadn't expected such significant results. First, it smoothes out the driver's accelerator input by preventing nervous "surging." Second, it makes the driver take the long view of the road rather than reacting to every change in the traffic around them.

Method: We did this test twice with four different cars each time driving the 55-mile loop. The first time we set cruise control to 70 mph. The second time, with the cruise control off, we varied our speed between 65 mph and 75 mph. We tried to mimic the driving style of a person who is in moderate freeway traffic.

One thing that's important to note: if you are in a mountainous area you should turn off cruise. It will try to keep you up to the speed you've set and will use a lot of extra gas downshifting to lower gears to accomplish this.

[Mickalino]

I figured:D, plus being in Florida hills are not a issue

Use it

http://www.edmunds.com/advice/fueleconomy/articles/106842/article.html#test3

Test #3 Use Cruise Control

Using cruise control is a bit of gas-saving advice frequently on tips lists. We have always agreed with this tip in theory but we hadn't expected such significant results. First, it smoothes out the driver's accelerator input by preventing nervous "surging." Second, it makes the driver take the long view of the road rather than reacting to every change in the traffic around them.

Method: We did this test twice with four different cars each time driving the 55-mile loop. The first time we set cruise control to 70 mph. The second time, with the cruise control off, we varied our speed between 65 mph and 75 mph. We tried to mimic the driving style of a person who is in moderate freeway traffic.

One thing that's important to note: if you are in a mountainous area you should turn off cruise. It will try to keep you up to the speed you've set and will use a lot of extra gas downshifting to lower gears to accomplish this.

Very helpful, as I'm about to take a VERY long trip on Monday, when I move.

Thanks

[Springfield]

Does Cruise Control save gas ?

I drive erratic

Yes it saves gas, but it takes all the fun out of driving. That is if your car is fun to drive and you like driving.

[CrypticVillain]

Bump

SS, my 94 Grand Marquis cuts off when I sit at a light for a long time or if I leave it in drive for about 3 minutes with out moving. I don't no whats wrong, but I do know that if I don't want it to cut off at the light I tap the gas or throw it in park.

Also, when there is somebody sitting on the front passenger side of my car it makes a grinding noise when I turn right. Any help would be gladly appreciated.

[twa]

Bump

SS, my 94 Grand Marquis cuts off when I sit at a light for a long time or if I leave it in drive for about 3 minutes with out moving. I don't no whats wrong, but I do know that if I don't want it to cut off at the light I tap the gas or throw it in park.

Also, when there is somebody sitting on the front passenger side of my car it makes a grinding noise when I turn right. Any help would be gladly appreciated.

On the grinding,check the plastic liner under the fender and see it it is dragging/rubbing...should be a visible mark

Could be brake shoes or bearing/bushing ,but not likely to be only with a passenger.

I'll leave the other to a real mechanic,but is likely a sensor

[TrumanB]

SpringfieldSkins,

I have a 2003 Ford Escape that I bought with 70,000 miles on it. It currently has 80,000 miles on it. There were no service records that came with the car, so I have no idea what kind of scheduled maintenance was done on the car prior.

Anyway, I've changed the oil and oil filter at the recommended 5,000 mile intervals. Ford's maintenance schedule recommends that the automatic transmision fluid be changed (flushed?) at 150,000 miles. This seems like a lot of miles before this is done. Now, the maintenance schedule that I have is for "normal" driving conditions. Not sure what the definition of that is or what kind of condition the previous owners (two of them) drove in.

My question: should I have a transmission flush done before the recommened 150,000 miles? Am I just wasting my money by doing it now?

Thanks.

[Springfield]

Bump

SS, my 94 Grand Marquis cuts off when I sit at a light for a long time or if I leave it in drive for about 3 minutes with out moving. I don't no whats wrong, but I do know that if I don't want it to cut off at the light I tap the gas or throw it in park.

Also, when there is somebody sitting on the front passenger side of my car it makes a grinding noise when I turn right. Any help would be gladly appreciated.

Man, I really need to check this thread more often. It dies and then I don't check it for a few weeks. Sorry about the delay.

As far as your cutting off problem, I have a couple of opinions. It's best left to a technician to diagnose of course, but here I go:

First thought would be the ignition module. This is a very common problem for these vehicles whenever stalling occurs. The ignition module is inside of the distributor (if I'm not mistaken) and is what supplies (more or less) the spark so that the distributor will fire the spark plugs. If the ignition module overheats, it may short out and cut off spark causing the vehicle to die.

Second thought would be the MAF (mass air flow) sensor. This is the sensor that detects the amount of air flowing through the intake so that the computer can determine the correct air/fuel mixture. If the sensor suddenly drops out (loses voltage) than you will not have any pulse to the injectors (read fuel supply). This could also cause a stalling condition.

Third thought is the crank sensor. The crank (or crankshaft) sensor is what gives the computer reference as far as where the engine is as far as position. It tells the computer where each piston is so that it knows if it should supply fuel or spark (in essence). This problem is much more prevalent in Chrysler vehicles, so I wouldn't particularly suspect it. Crank sensors do cause random shut off problems though.

As far as your grinding noise. That should be fairly easy to diagnose. My first thought is a tie rod end which is making noise. Tie rod ends are very common failures in these vehicles. If it is a tie rod end failure, the noise isn't usually a safety issue rather than a noise/lubrication issue.

A fender liner could be the cause as twa stated and that is very easy to check. You could, of course, just avoid having people ride on your passenger side though.