Vehicle Maintenace General

[waffle]

Front end stuff is easy so long as you can get things apart. Depending on how bad it is you may want to just price getting whole new/rebuilt assemblies and just replace everything past where the CV boots come out of the transfer case. If you've got to do the whole ball of wax on the front end anyway if my be about the same price and way less fucking around with rusted bolts.

 

[Jump]

I could easily see it happening, actually. Valvoline hires rookies and runs their shops like a fucking McDonalds, everything needs to go faster and quicker.

Anyways, I recently got a Dodge truck that's older than I am and had the tires changed over the Winter. Turns out the mechanic didn't bother aligning the wheels since my suspension is fucked royally and my wheels wiggle around, lol. They gave me a quote for the repairs and it was just about the same price I initially paid for the car. I can foresee a great deal of youtube tutorials in my future.

Is it an older pre-1994 2wd (D) or 4wd (W) RAM? If so the suspension on those is the easiest shit in the world to work on.
The hardest thing with those old trucks is finding bushings and suspension parts that arn't chinky garbage. The same problem with finding decent wheel bearings.

 

[Helarctos]

Is it an older pre-1994 2wd (D) or 4wd (W) RAM? If so the suspension on those is the easiest shit in the world to work on.
The hardest thing with those old trucks is finding bushings and suspension parts that arn't chinky garbage. The same problem with finding decent wheel bearings.

Naw, it's a second gen dakota, 4wd. I've still heard from a few people that the front suspension is an easy job though. I'm probably just going to have to replace the whole thing, tie rods, control arms & ball joints, etc.
As for chink garbage, has anyone bought parts from Rock Auto? They seem to have cheaper parts and plentiful inventory.

 

[Jump]

As for chink garbage, has anyone bought parts from Rock Auto? They seem to have cheaper parts and plentiful inventory.

I buy from RA a lot. They sell everything from chinky garbage to good stuff. I just looked up ball joints for your truck. You can spend anywhere from $2.37 to $40 for ACDelco for a ball joint on that truck.

Don't forget to google "retailmenot rockauto discount" for the 5% off code.
The current one is 297143498262795030
You paste it in the "How Did You Hear About Us?" box

 

[Hantavirus]

Yeah Rockauto has everything and usually at very good prices. It seems like the chains don't even try to compete on price, they can get away with higher prices and less selection based purely on the "my wife needs her car tonight" factor.

 

[Lord of the Large Pants]

I'm going to ask a completely insane follow up question to my previous DIY intro. Is it worth ditching 2007-2010-ish Altima for a Camry in around the same age range? Like, maintenance and longevity wise? I'm a little under 120,000 miles, which is where I hear the transmission can start to have problems. I don't drive a whole lot. Obviously, this would cost me some money, but might be worth it if the transmission is about to shit itself and do nothing and I could keep a Camry going for many years.

 

[waffle]

I'm going to ask a completely insane follow up question to my previous DIY intro. Is it worth ditching 2007-2010-ish Altima for a Camry in around the same age range? Like, maintenance and longevity wise? I'm a little under 120,000 miles, which is where I hear the transmission can start to have problems. I don't drive a whole lot. Obviously, this would cost me some money, but might be worth it if the transmission is about to shit itself and do nothing and I could keep a Camry going for many years.

Nissans are probably the worst Japanese cars that are still common, and anything with that 2.2L engine or whatever has a habit of going out of time and blowing up. Altimas are also notorious for being buy-here-pay-here cars and just generally abused to shit. The Camry is likely to last longer and be easier to get parts for/work on. If you want to get older compact/midsized cars to keep running forever I prefer Honda Civics, Accords, or Mazda 3's. They are easy to get parts for where I am (look at your local salvage lots and used parts store, also just keep your eyes open while you're driving to figure out what common older cars in your area are). For compact/midsize cars Japanese ones are by far the best for the last 30 years or so. Generally the only American stuff worth buying in that period are larger vehicles.

 

[Google.com]

I am thinking of doing something stupid. I have been annoyed that my Volvo XC70 lacks some of the many options packages that came available with it and due to the previous owner managing to damage both the left and right mirror. With the right one being cracked and allowing water to build up inside and damage the wiring for the mirror heater and right mirror blinker (yummy mold inside it) I need to replace everything electronic in the right mirror unit.

While researching how to do this I found out that someone managed to retrofit in the blind spot information system by buying all the spare parts off of ebay and splicing it into the wiring then installing the software. It would be nice to have the BLIS system installed so I am really tempted to try this.

But now I am thinking what else could be retrofitted, the tow hitch is 100% retrofit-table, park assist is a maybe, ACC is a maybe from what I can tell but based on if the wiring is present, if not its a bit of a mission.

I just hope I can convince the nearby dealership to tolerate my autism and install the software for me so I don't have to figure out the 15 hour process of decrypting the fucking computer to push updates.

I fully recognize this plan is retarded and autistic and my car will end up partially dissembled for weeks.

 

[waffle]

I finally got the exhaust pipe stud from hell cut off so I can progress with dropping the transmission on my Ranger. Hopefully changing the clutch and pressure plate actually fixes my problem. I really need my truck back on the road.

 

[Hantavirus]

One of the only good reasons to buy a new Ford is FORScan. You can buy a low trim package truck, avoid dealer markup and get only the addons you need at parts cost, change a few controller modules, then just flip the enable bits in your ECM. Did a brake controller for a friend and tweaked a few things like disabling those awful DRLs and it took me less time than an oil change.

 

[Bad as Can]

I'm going to ask a completely insane follow up question to my previous DIY intro. Is it worth ditching 2007-2010-ish Altima for a Camry in around the same age range? Like, maintenance and longevity wise? I'm a little under 120,000 miles, which is where I hear the transmission can start to have problems. I don't drive a whole lot. Obviously, this would cost me some money, but might be worth it if the transmission is about to shit itself and do nothing and I could keep a Camry going for many years.

The 2007-2010 Camrys had really bad oil consumption issues on the 4 cylinder engine. I believe the V6 is good though.

In your Altima, you have the early CVT transmission which were better than the horrible 2012-2018 Jatco CVTs. Nissan engines are generally pretty reliable so it might be worth just changing the transmission fluid and driving it until the wheels fall off.

 

[Applied Autism]

One of the only good reasons to buy a new Ford is FORScan. You can buy a low trim package truck, avoid dealer markup and get only the addons you need at parts cost, change a few controller modules, then just flip the enable bits in your ECM. Did a brake controller for a friend and tweaked a few things like disabling those awful DRLs and it took me less time than an oil change.

I added the subwoofer and speakers to my 22 Mustang and used FORScan and it worked great

 

[God's drunkest driver]

How do you not notice your gloves are bright red and the oil isn't carboned, just slightly metallic? I get making the mistake but you gotta be a lot of retard to not notice pretty quickly some time during the process.

Nothing new, lube shop employees are frequently incompetent. This is why you do your own oil changes or find a trusted mechanic to do it, not a chain lube shop.

I am thinking of doing something stupid. I have been annoyed that my Volvo XC70 lacks some of the many options packages that came available with it and due to the previous owner managing to damage both the left and right mirror. With the right one being cracked and allowing water to build up inside and damage the wiring for the mirror heater and right mirror blinker (yummy mold inside it) I need to replace everything electronic in the right mirror unit.

While researching how to do this I found out that someone managed to retrofit in the blind spot information system by buying all the spare parts off of ebay and splicing it into the wiring then installing the software. It would be nice to have the BLIS system installed so I am really tempted to try this.

But now I am thinking what else could be retrofitted, the tow hitch is 100% retrofit-table, park assist is a maybe, ACC is a maybe from what I can tell but based on if the wiring is present, if not its a bit of a mission.

I just hope I can convince the nearby dealership to tolerate my autism and install the software for me so I don't have to figure out the 15 hour process of decrypting the fucking computer to push updates.

I fully recognize this plan is retarded and autistic and my car will end up partially dissembled for weeks.

You don't mention how old it is, but those parts may be available in the junkyard more cheaply than on ebay. Modern volvos hit the junkyard quicker than the old ones.

 

[Google.com]

You don't mention how old it is, but those parts may be available in the junkyard more cheaply than on ebay. Modern volvos hit the junkyard quicker than the old ones.

Ya I've been looking around junkyards and Facebook marketplace as well but no luck. It's a 2014 I need models from 2012-2016 since that's when they added the infotainment system and redisgned a bunch of other shit. Most the ones im seeing in junkyards are pre 2010 I've been finding cheaper prices on eBay so far. It's not the cheapest but it's still like 75 percent cheaper than the insane dealership parts store pricing.

 

[KateHikes14]

Preaching to the choir. I rock a fumuto the second I buy a new (beater) like a rite of passage to make oil changes EZ and mess free.
Highly encouraged, shit is the best $30 you'll spend if you plan to do more than 15k miles or two years on a vic

 

[God's strongest milkman]

I was hoping someone here would have a good idea for me.

I have a 2000 Ford focus with a ZTECH engine and it won't start at all. I replaced the alternator less than a month ago and I know the battery isn't dead because the lights turn on and I charged it.

I replaced the ignition switch because I thought from what I looked up that could be it but it still won't start, Ive tried hitting the starter with a hammer, I've tried starting it in neutral. It doesn't make a single noise when I try and start it, at most it might hum slightly but it is mostly dead. Only some of my dashboard lights come on when I try and start it.

I'm at my wits end and it's my only working vehicle, I Iive in the middle of nowhere and need a car or I am totally fucked.

I'm not the most mechanically inclined so I've done everything I can think of and I was hoping one of you would know better.

 

[Bad as Can]

I was hoping someone here would have a good idea for me.

I have a 2000 Ford focus with a ZTECH engine and it won't start at all. I replaced the alternator less than a month ago and I know the battery isn't dead because the lights turn on and I charged it.

I replaced the ignition switch because I thought from what I looked up that could be it but it still won't start, Ive tried hitting the starter with a hammer, I've tried starting it in neutral. It doesn't make a single noise when I try and start it, at most it might hum slightly but it is mostly dead. Only some of my dashboard lights come on when I try and start it.

I'm at my wits end and it's my only working vehicle, I Iive in the middle of nowhere and need a car or I am totally fucked.

I'm not the most mechanically inclined so I've done everything I can think of and I was hoping one of you would know better.

Is it a manual transmission by chance?

 

[God's strongest milkman]

Is it a manual transmission by chance?

Nah it's an automatic.

 

[Bad as Can]

Nah it's an automatic.

Shoot, I was hoping it was because the issue would've probably been the clutch switch (easy fix). Anyways, you should still try a jump start because batteries can do crazy things, like there can be enough power for lights but as soon as you turn the key, the voltage drops and it won't turn the starter.

Next thing is to go to the interior fuse box. The starter relay (R1) has the same part number as the defroster relay (R9) so you can swap them to see if the starter relay went bad.



Next theory is that I believe the keys in these old Ford actually have a transponder chip in them. Do you have a 2nd key that you can try in case the chip in your primary key somehow went bad?

Lastly that brings us to the option that the starter might've gone bad. Do you have a multi-meter or test light by chance? We can walk you through how to test if the starter is getting power.

 

[Hantavirus]

Bad battery, starter relay, or starter motor. I suppose it could be the immobilizer key but I don't know if I've ever seen one of those go bad.