AAA CAR DOCTOR JOHN PAUL 8/31/2001

August Chat Shakes & Aches

John Paul
The Car Doctor Is In

jack
92 Merc Topaz. Driver side electric window will not go up. Does make cranking noise but no movement. Thank you

John Paul
Jack, You are going to have to take the door panel off to see what is going on. the motor could hace a bad gear. I looked up the cost of a window motor on AllData and they list the price at 181.55. You might try a salvage yard once you find the problem

Beemer
I have a '92 BMW 525i. What does it mean when you start the car and a yellow light on the dash says "inspection"? What needs to be done? Do you have recommendations other than dealers that work on BMW's?

John Paul
Beemer, With most cars the inspection or service light comes on at a specific time usually tied to milage. Certain repairs are generally required — like the oxygen sensor , filter etc. Special tools are required to reset the light. Check the AAASNE.com web site for a repair shop in your area

bhw
My '91 Honda Accord has a weird habit of not starting after it has been running for a little while. Example: start up with no problem after not running for 9 hours. Drive 10 minutes. Stop car. 10 minutes later car will not re-start. Will eventually start after 3-4 tries. Took it to mechanic who found no problem. Thanks!

John Paul
bhw, I check the AllData technical service data base and found a bulliten for a no start -95-049. te repair involves replacing the distributor due to a worn bearing.

Ty
I have a Mitsubishi minivan I want to sell, but online web sites list them by make. Not many know Mitsubishi made a minivan. Where is the best place to sell a vehicle for price and quality customer?

John Paul
Ty, Mitsubishi minivans were not very popular — I would try something like the autohunter and wantad magazines. Use the picture ad. A good picture may help sell your car

TireGirl
Hi Car Doctor, My SUV tires have 64,000 miles on them, and have some cracking along the sides. I know it's time to replace them, but I have no idea where to start. How much should I really pay for tires, and are all brands the same? Thanks

John Paul
Tiregirl, All tires are not the same, and you do get what you pay for. I personally like Goodyear and Michlen. If you do drive a lot buy a major brand of tire to insure you can find a replacement if you are away from home

Matt
97 Jeep grand cherokee, couple of weeks ago the all the radio stations stop coming in, the only way they work is if I am in Boston nearer the were the stations are, the antenna is fine. Any sugg.?

John Paul
Matt, It sounds if the antenna lead may have gone bad. Try plugging in a replacement antenna. If not the only other problem is the radio

Phil
hi i have a 91 nissan with 150,000 i notice when you are on the highway driving like 70mph when you slow down the car refuse to pick up speed and becomes overheated any suggestion is greatly appreciated

John Paul
Phil, It sounds like you could have many probelms. Start with a complete check of the engine and cooling system. This should help pinpoint the problem.

Nonnie
I have an annoying noise in the left front tire. It sounds like there is a small stone in the hub cap. What could it be?

John Paul
Nonnie, Jack up that wheel and slowly turn it to determine if it is a worn bearing, loose brake pad — or simply a stone in the hubcap.

Priest
My front end on my f-150 vibrates sometimes. One tire is wearing on the outside

John Paul
Priest, The vibration is from the tire wear. The tire wear could be could be caused by a alignment problem or a worn front end part

Hondagirl
My 1992 Honda Accord LX just had some preventitive work done on it. A new tining belt, fan belts, water pump- it has about 90,000 miles by the way. It vibrates, sort of purrs like a cat, when I am idle at a stop light or stop sign. Any idea if this is "normal" or what it could be?

John Paul
Hondagirl, Have the repair shop recheck their work. It sounds like a loose heat shield or timing cover may be loose.

Subarau
There is a rather large ticking/rattling noise. I think it is before the converter on the muffler. What is your advice

John Paul
Subarau, If it is a loud noise and you have many miles on your car it could be engine related. Bring the car to a good repair shop to identify the problem. If it is the exhasut leaking the front "Y" pipe is very expensive on your subaru

marks
I have a 95 F150 with dual gas tanks. I am seeing 22 mpg when operating the forward tank and 14 mpg from the rear. No aroma of fuel. any suggestions?

John Paul
Marks, there have been a few instances that one fuel tank pumps into the other. this could explain the wide variation.

janhuge
My girlfriends '93 Mazda 626 nearly stalls when the gas is touched lightly, it drops well below 500 RPM, sputters and self adjusts to keep from stalling. No light appears on the dash to indicate a sensor problem. This problem has coincided with the alternator going (which has been replaced) and the exhaust leaking or breaking. Any ideas why it would nearly stall when given little gas? Seeing how the exhaust is going (I'm not sure at exactly what point in the exhaust, somewhere in the middle of the car) could this be a catalytic converter clog up causing the problem??

John Paul
janhuge, A faulty throttle plate or very dirty throttle plate may be the problem. the other area to look at is the throttle position sensor, if it is worn it will hesitate and may stall

pam
I just bought a brand new 2001 oldsmobile aurora , when i drive over 50, the car starts shaking. i brought it to the dealership over and over agian. the balance my wheels and say everything is fine, but it still shakes. What could be wrong??

John Paul
pam, you are right new cars shouldn't shake. Ask the dealer if you can take the car to a good tire store for balance. Some tire store can do a "loaded" balance--this method requires a special and fairly expensive balancer, but cures many problems

charlie
i have a 99 acura 2.3 cl which makes a vibrating noise when it accelerates upto 45 mph.the acura dealership said it was the b pipe and a common problem among the cl for which we can do nothing. does this seem likely or is another opinion a a good idea. thanks

John Paul
Charlie, The noise is usually the exhaust pipe heat shield. sometimes adding a clamp to the pipe stops the noise

Hondowner
My sunroof squeaks sometime while driving on the road. I was told to apply some silicone paste to the rubber gasket that encircles the opening in the roof, but all I can find in the stores is silicone spray. Do you know where I can find some paste or do you have a better solution to fix the squeak.

John Paul
hondaowner, I never seen silicone paste, i would try silcone spray or rubber lube. Stay away from amorall type products. They make the gaskets look nice but try tend to causes squeaks when used on sunroofs.

Fordhater
When I apply pressure to my brakes on my Explorer there is a squeaking noise. I just had the brakes done and they say its not the brakes but the suspension. Any ideas?

John Paul
fordhater, If it only makes noise when you appl the brakes, it sounds like brakes. I have seen many times that after-market brake pads squeek and squeal. Susoension parts can make noise but usually over bumps

brokedown dan
My thermostat says my car is over heating but it seems to be fine

John Paul
brokedown dan, have someone check the actual engine temperature, you may find the gauge or gauge sending unit it faulty. If your car is infact running hot you could be doing serious damage.

Toyman
Toyota Camry, 108,000 miles. Won't shift into 4th until well over 3000 rpm. Recent work on transmission solenoids

John Paul
Toyman, You may find that the transmission has worn to the point that to actuate fourth gear the engine speed needs to be quite high A check of transmission pressure should reveal the problem

admin
I drive a '98 Volvo with 70K miles. Recently the service light has been staying on for about 1 minute after starting the car. Could this mean a tune-up is needed?

John Paul
admin, If it is the yellow maintenence reminder light --general service is needed. If it is the "check" engine light if could mean a problem with the emssions system. check your owners manual for more details on the light.

BRIMAC
My wife's 2000 Honda Oddysey had to have the transmission replced at 11,000 Miles. Have you heard of problems with this before. ALso, they had to replace it a different type of transmission. Any thoughts or what we should look for down the road.