swi66

My wife gets about 6000 miles on a set of pads...............of course she has a Right hand steer Legacy she uses to deliver mail. 600 boxes a day, so that many stops and more............. I KEEP SPARE PADS IN THE GARAGE........... SWI66

60 minutes did something on that awhile ago, or maybe it was one of the "other" newsmagazines. In any event, read the document, you are purchasing an insurance policy, not really a warranty. If it is issued by a company you never heard of, it may well be not worth the paper it is printed on. Will the dealership state in writing that if the "insurance" company goes out of business, they will still honor the warranty? Most places will not. What has happened is people have gotten warranty work done, and the dealer finds the bill will not be covered by the warranty. They can keep the car via mechanics lien until the bill is paid by you. This has happened and quite often. We purchased a warranty many years ago on a used AMC Eagle, 3 months later the transmission went. Had fits getting them to cover it, they wanted the dealer to cover it. Had several other small "covered" items go bad, and for the most part it was always 20 questions on weather the part can be rebuilt, or repaired..........instead of replaced. Then after the deductible, sometimes it only would cover a small portion of the repair. I did have a friend who bought one on a used Dodge Stealth with an automatic transmission. The warranty rebuilt the transmission 3 times. Dealer told them the transmissions in those were not worth rebuilding because they wouldn't last. Get a factory replacement for $500 more than the rebuild. They would not go for the rebuild, but paid close to 2 grand each time to rebuild the transmission. My friend dumped the car after the 3rd rebuild.........so sometimes they can work out..........read carefully! swi66

The dirty little secret about oil additives is that they are selling you 50 cents worth of actual product, and packaging for whatever they charge for it. Also another thing they don't tell you is that use of any of these additives negates any warranty the oil manufacturers may have on their product as well as any manufacturers warranty on the car. Once had my Subie dealer try and sell me a fuel system treatment, asked if there was a written warranty stipulating it would not affect the manufacturers warranty.........there was not. I work for a lubricant company which manufacturers specialty greases and oils, the addition of any additive to a product may possibly decrease the characteristics of the main oil. For instance, an additive which may decrease wear may effect resistance to temperature extremes. Oils are formulated specifically to meet manufacturers specs, generally SAE numbers, any additives changes things swi66

The sucking sound is the sound of money leaving your wallet when you go to get the noise fixed...........sorry I just couldn't resist.......... swi66 Come on, you were all thinking it!

To me that would indicate a bearing which is dry and already bad. Like the same colored powder when a U-joint is shot, it is metasl which has been turned into powder and is now rusting............. swi66

I had the opposite problem, I contracted my Sub dealer to replace my rack, with one I would supply as no one has a right hand steering rack in stock. I had my wife take the car in and the mechanic told her it wasn't the rack (steering binding) it was a bad left lower ball joint and it needed a cv as well. She unknowingly told him to go ahead while trying to reach me. When they finally got ahold of me I blew up. There was nothing wrong with the ball joint other than the boot was ripped. I know because I ripped it when I replaced the half shaft a month earlier. Of course he screwdrivered the cv boot as well. I had to pay for him to R&R the halfshaft twice to put mine back in, of course I had to eat the ball joint. My halfshaft had a NAPA lifetime warranty, they said it looked like it had been screwdrivered................. I think the mechanic just didn't want to do the rack. I had an indie shop change that, problem solved.............. swi66

I have found that a battery terminal remover works well for removing these wiper arms after removing the nut. swi66

On my 98 Legacy, I can just put my fingers through the holes and yank and it comes off. Or use a screwdriver, they are plastic and bend a bit but will come off. Make note of the round wire on the inside of the cap and where it goes. Make sure it stays in place if it comes out of place the wheelcover will fall off. swi66

Nowadays any mechanic will not earn his days pay unless he sells repairs. A lot of them unnescessary. Recently used a gift certificate for a "free" oil and filter change. This was on a 2000 Jeep, with 50,000 miles. They triede to sell me a $112 motor flush, A $99 transmission drain and flush. $49 injector cleaner treatment, $77 new battery because mine tested slightly weak, also a power steering system drain and flush, as well as drain and change transfer case fluids, and differential fluids. Now normally I do all my own stuff, but hey, a free oil change, and it was pretty cold outside. Needless to say all I got was the "free" oil change..........but this guy was trying hard and I wonder what a naive person would have done........... swi66

Where I am, I drive the extra distance to go to NAPA. NAPA employs ASE certified parts specialists, and if they warranty anything they stick by it. I have had trouble with warranty parts at Advance, it must be my fault they failed, improper installation etc....My son is banned from warrantying any parts at Advance because he had warranteed too many. (There was nothing in the warranty about abuse.) But he had several oxygen sensors which only lasted days, and 3 bad alternators in a row, noisy bearings on 2 and a wobbly pully on another. Have had worse problems with some parts from Auto Zone, have you ever seen a wheel cylinder crack when tightening the bleeder valve? How about a re-man caliper which came with a wrong size bleeder valve in it, try bleeding that one! At least in my neck of the woods the personel at NAPA are knowledgeable and know their ways through not only a computer, but can still dig out the old books for applications for classic cars. They even stock oil filters for my Corvair for me. I once went several rounds with a guy at Advance regarding a battery. I asked for a group 51R. Simple common battery. He was not satisfied he wanted to know what it was for so he could check the application. 1/2 hour later he found out the correct battery for my application was a non standard item and would have to be ordered and he wasn't even sure he could get it. I of course knew the battery I asked for would fit the battery compartment. I gave up and went to NAPA, in and out with what I wanted........... Hope I didn't offend any Advance or Zone fans with my opinion......... Your results may vary........... swi66

So.........every couple of months it seems they came undone somewhere else. a lot of worm clamps yet still loose and rattling. Last winter the main problem solved itself, (almost). came off and I dragged it for most of the day, the long one.....when I backed up it kind of rolled itself into a little ball and I yanked off the remains. Car hasn't burned up yet, and if it does, it's insured............. swi66

You got to be kidding.............. What motor are we talking here? I have a 98 Legacy and when I bought plugs I went to NAPA, got Bosch and I think they were a buck apiece...........not platinum. swi66

Have you tried putting on the spare, or switching tires around to see if the noise moves? swi66

If you come from a climate where rust is an issue, be sure to use a torch to heat up the bolt which keeps the ball joint in place. You don't want to break it and have to drill it out. swi66

Yes it did, the ball joint was very bad and vibration getting worse. Waited for the first semi-warm day to do it, meaning I put up with it all winter. I do have a fully equiped garage with lift and torches etc..........but furnace is broke.............. swi66

I just replaced my right lower ball joint due to a steering vibration, exaggerated on sweeping right turns, and between 45 and 55 mph.......... of course mine had 124,000 miles swi66

That may sound simple, but I recently had to change a bad ball joint. Living in a state where they salt the roads liberally leaves a very rusty undercarriage. I had to heat the assembley cherry red with my torch so as not to break off that balljoint bolt. swi66

Any damage done by an auto transporter should be covered by their insurance. Of course they will deny damage and give you a hard time, always ask for the next guy up the food chain...........might help. A few years ago I know of a street rod which one of the ramps slipped out of position while offloading.........bent frame! A lot of yelling later, around 5 grand in damage to make it right. swi66

I change the axel assembley, not just the CV. Get a re-man unit from NAPA. Hardest thing is separating the ball joint, I use a "pickle fork" and a BIG hammer. swi66

replacement pads I get from NAPA has them with the pads............. NAPA can also get me the spring steel pieces which are there as well .........heat ruins those..........so does salt and rust.......... swi66

Please! make me an offer! Won't pass inspection in NY come August, and I still owe about 7 grand on it, It's a 98 with 125,000 miles on it though only 20,000 on the motor. reason it won't pass is the motor change. Motor I installed came out of a stick car, hade no EGR so the check engine light has been on for the past 2 years. Never saved the parts and found out I'd have to change the left side head, intake etc to make the egr work......... Changed the inspection regulations to include the OBD11./ swi66

Gee, Im down to about a half hour for front pads, of course I had ended up changing them every 3 months like clockwork. They don't last very long do they? Of course I have a right hand drive legacy and my wife delivers the mail, something like 600 stops a day takes a toll on them.......... swi66

Years ago I woprked for a Ford Dealer. Just starting out and woefully lacking in a lot of the new tools I needed to be competitive. I very soon owed my soul to the Snap 0n man. I was not very successful as a mechanic there, because I was not very good at selling uneeded work like the rest of the techs were. I still had a conscience. The only way to get ahead at a lot of dealers is to sell more service, then you get a comission. Other wise you are trying to beat book time which can take only one tough job to ruin your week. Dealers also have a lot of overhead, so they charge a lot because they also have to train the technicians on the latest every year. Nowadays Chrysler has the 5 star program which requires technicians to travel for certain training. I know one dealer who could not sell a Viper or a Prowler until he had a technician certified in their specific repair.......costs money to make money. This weekend, my wife had been given a certificate for a "free" oil change at a local oil change chain. I normally do all of that, but figured I would use the certificate rather than do it myself in the cold garage. They tried selling me a $99 motor flush, $80 battery, a power steering fluid flush and change, a differential lube change, fuel injection service and a bunch of other stuff. If I had been gullible I could have spent $500 during my free oil change........this on my wifes 2000 Cherokee...........The only way these guys make a buck is to sell the extra service as that is where the profit is............. swi66

Had a Subie which was involved in an accident, was still blocking the street when the tow truck arrived, I let it be known loud and clear if it was towed with the wheels on the ground, the AWD would be ruined. Tow truck driver said the cops called him and didn't tell him it was an AWD. Cop said the car had to be moved, NOW! When I started talking about "responsibility" for further damage. The tow driver left! Cops called anotheer shop and requested a flatbed......... Have your car checked at a dealer. If they give it a good bill of health, get it in writing as you may be losing a chance for compensation a month or a year from now................ swi66

A few years ago my son luckily had comp on his car, and had submitted a description of his stereo system to his insurance company. Eniough damage to his Lebaron was done between the dash, side window, trunk lid and quarter panel(his amp was in the trunk, they tried opening it with a tire iron) to "total" the car. It was a $500 car, with $1800 damage. Stereo was another $500, cd's were not covered. He settled for $2000..........bought a better car. Dash was a total mess! swi66