AAA CAR DOCTOR JOHN PAUL 6/14/2001

June Chat Maintenance & Repair

John Paul
"The Car Doctor is in"

Woburn
I have a '94 Geo Prizm with 190,000 miles on it. I just had a leak id'ed in the evaporator core of my AC. It's too expensive to fix, given the milage on my car, but one mechanic suggested using a "stop leak"; two other places I called said they would never use that. What do you think?

John Paul
Woburn, at this point you don't have anything to lose. The stop leak works best on seal leaks, it likely won't work on the evaporator but you could give it a try

duff
I have a 1988 Crown Vic.Yesterday the radio started cutting out now today I have no sound or radio light

John Paul
duff, start with the basics, try looking at the fuse and wiring. If there is power and a good ground, you could replace the radio with one from a salvage yard--and save some money

Jeff
I have a '96 Cavalier. It uses a quart of oil every 3000 miles. The exhaust seems ok and I don't see any drips on the garage floor. Any idea?

John Paul
jeff a quart every 3000 is great. that is easily normal oil consumption. there are some new cars that consider a quart in 1000 miles as normal.

NewHampshireGuy
I own a 1999 Nissan Altima w/a 2.4 litre engine. I bought the car used about one year ago w/20000 miles on it. My problem is that occatoinally (only when the car is rolling) I hear a whinning noise like a belt slipping from the left side of the engine. This happens I have noticed ONLY when the RPM gets up to approximatlly 2200 (or the speedometer is at 25 miles per hour. It lasts for approximatlly 2 seconds, they does not happen again. Suggestions?

John Paul
NewHampshireGuy-It could be a belt slipping. Check all the belts for both how tight they are and if they are glazed. Squirting a little water on the belts will produce a squeal on a worn belt. The best thing to do would be to go for a ride with a good repair technician to determine if the noise is something else

timtim
John- After a weekend trip, my car wouldn't start. It is getting plenty of juice, the starter turns, but it just won't start. It's a 93 Mitsu Diamante (3.0 DOHC).

John Paul
timtim, for a car to run it needs fuel, spark and compression. Missing any one of these will cause the problem. Check for spark at the spark plugs and fuel pressure. A faulty fuel pump relay or ignition coil could be the problem

DC
I have a 1990 Buick LeSabre and I use it sparingly. Sometimes when I try to start the car it takes a while to "catch" and actually start while it is turning over. Is this a problem with the starter? Should I be concerned with it or just keep takin my chances on whether it starts?

John Paul
DC It may be the fuel pump isn't running when you first turn on the key. When you first turn on the key you should hear the fuel pump run for 2-3 seconds if it doesn't try replacing the fuel pump relay

Semaj
Are Honda's prone to morning noise?

John Paul
Semaj The noise you may hear in the morning may be the ABS brake going through their self test. Any other noise isn't normal

Jim
I have a 94 Jeep Grand Larado with a cracked C/V cap. How urgent is it to get fixed and how should I expect to pay. Do I need to replace both caps or only the one that is cracked.

John Paul
Jim I think you may mean a C/V boot. The longer dirt and water get into the C/V joint the more likly the joint or axle may need replacment. The cost is several hundred and up

John Paul
Jim it is only necessary to replace the dameged part, although it may be cheaper to replace the axle rather than replace the damaged joint

John L
I own a 89 Isuzu Amigo 2.6l with 119,000 on it. Lately it has been giving me problems with rough idle when cold in the morning, it runs ok sometime when warm even better when hot. Sometime it even stalls when cold, any advice for a you do iter!

John Paul
John L start wth a basic look over of the vacuum hoses. A leaking vacuum hose can be the problem. A common problem is leaking fuel injector "o" rings, additionally carbon build up on the throttle plate could be the problem

chris
john, I have a 94 Chrys Lebaron Conv. (automatic) with 50K. It upshifts gears smoothly. However, when downshifting, it give a "thunk" between 1st and 2nd. This happened for about three months regularly but now, only once a week or so. Any ideas?

John Paul
chris this could be an indication of some serious problems to come. There is aleast a dozen technical bullitens about this transmission. The symptom could be a software change or a rebuild. Perform a trans service and look for fiction material in the oil pan

Jo
Hi Johm, I have a 1999 Subaru Forrester with about 18,000 miles on it. I haven't had any problems so far with the car except lately when I step on the brake to slow down I hear a noise that sounds like a fan or something is loose. Any idea what this is?

John Paul
Jo, the noise could be a loose shield on the exhaust, a dust shield almost touching the brake rotor or it could be a brake problem. Go back to the dealer and have them check the brake lining condition.

jhjr
1988 merc sable with 60,000 miles has a steady transmission leak out front of tranny cooling lines ok pan ok whats cause

John Paul
jhjr, the leak may not be from the lines--have someone add a dye to the fluid to pinpoint the leak, it could be the transmission servo cover gasket.

cher
Why would a 1994 Ford Taurus with only 90,000 miles on it need to have its transmission replaced? I have also had to replace the head gasket on this car. I really like the Taurus, but this car is really costing me.

John Paul
cher, the head gasket failure has been a common problem with the 3.8 liter engine and most were under warranty. The transmission is another story. If the fuild was allowed to run low due to a leak that could have caused the problem.

GoScots
My car recently started to idle roughly. There's also a noise that sounds like a muffler going bad when I press the gas pedal. Your thoughts?

John Paul
GoScots the noise and rough idle could be a result of a leaking exhaust manifold, emissions plumbing or even a loose spark plug. Stop into a repair shop and have them take a listen

KC
I have a 99 Altima that has been making a rattling/thumping noise in the rear. (sitting in the back seat you can hear it more defined) I took it to the dealer twice when it was under warranty and they tightenend the back brakes. It still made the noise. I took it back again and they claimed they could not hear the noise and therefore could not fix it. I changed dealerships and the noise is occuring more often. The second dealership took a look at it and tightened the emergency brake. It still made the noise and the car is out of warranty. The dealership stated I would need to leave the car so they could spend more time on it. The cost is $78 per hour. Other than the noise I have had no problems with the car. Should I suck it up and pay whatever it costs to fix the noise or should I just bear with the noise?

John Paul
KC Your Altima may have a worn rear strut. Take it to another shop and have them look at it --you will need to pay someone to evaluate it. If it is a strut or something related to the rear suspension go back to the dealer and ask them to fix it under warranty based on the fact they did see it while it was under warranty---faulty struts are not all that uncommon on that model

Julie
Hi John, I have a 1995 Saturn that has been eating brakes. I replaced the brakes (discs and rotors) about a year ago at about 45,000 miles. About 6 months after that, I had to get warped rotors replaced. Then about 6 months after that, warped rotors again. Due to circumstances, I wasn't able to bring the car back to the same mechanic any of those times... Any ideas about what could be causing this? Thanks!

John Paul
Julie, brakes wear for two reasons, faulty parts or the driver. If you are the only driver that would rule out you as the problem since you got 45,000 out of the first set of brakes. A faulty master cylinder or brake booster could be the problem.

MIKE Z.
Hi John, I own a 1994 Ford Explorer, and I just got all of my brakes replaced about 2 months ago, but within the last month, my truck vibrates a lot when I press on the brakes. The only time it does this is when I am traveling at a speed of say 55, and between 45 and 35-slowing down-it vibrates? Any idea why? Thanks.

John Paul
Mike Z sounds like a bad brake rotor. Bring the vehicle back to the repair shop and have them check the rotors for wear.

Rick
Are windshield supposed to be so sensitive to temperature changes that they can crack just by hosing them off?

John Paul
Rick a hot car or windshield and cold water can easily crack a windshield. It happened to my car on a cold day and left the heater on defrost and washed the car and suddenly the windshield cracked unfortunatly its just science

gman
1999 taurus 50k front end shakes upon braking at 30 mph or less (like front end is out of line

John Paul
gman, look at the brakes. alignment or wheel balance won't change when braking.

John
My '96 Subaru is developing a water leak around the driver's side roof near the windshield. What do you recommend I use to seal this? Thanks!

John Paul
John, don't try to fix you windshield yourself. Go to a glass shop and have them look at it. You may need the windshield removed and resealed, trying to silcone it yourself generally never works