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Car noises such as squeaks and rattles are at the top of the complaint lists from consumers that purchase new automobiles. Working as a line technician at a dealership for 20 years much of my time was spent hunting down these annoying sounds.
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Car noise help button

In the 80s and 90s sub frame vehicle construction was not as solid as they are today. Squeaks and rattles are complained about less today then just a few years ago.

As a mechanic or even a vehicle owner trying to hunt down one of these annoying sounds directional hearing skills will be your most effective weapon.

This page will discuss types of sounds that your car will make and help to dissect the noises to send you in the right direction to solve the problem. I would like to start off with an example of a rattle and squeak on my own personal car that drove me crazy and was difficult to find.

Squeaks and rattles on my T/A

It's funny that I have to go back so far and talk about my 1979 Trans Am, but this was a challenging car noises to find. My Trans Am was a sub frame car that was built in the days when this technology was relatively new. The torque of the big block 6.6 L engine and the fact that the car had removable T-tops made the entire car weak.
 
 
Still snowing in your area? When it warms up you may want to know how to find auto ac freon leaks. This would be one of the most common problems causing the Ac to blow warm after a long winter of not using it.
 
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UV leak detector
A dirty sticky spot on an ac line or fitting should catch your attention. The Freon contains the oil charge necessary to lubricate the compressor.

The presence of oil around and AC fitting or line is a strong indication of freon leaking. My first step in most auto repairs including auto AC leak diagnosis is to perform a solid visual inspection of the entire system.

Although this is always my first step for diagnosing Freon leaks it is not always effective in finding the problem.

In fact, this visual inspection will only uncover large to extremely large leaks. And by far the most common car AC problem would be small leaks that allow Freon to escape over long periods of time.
 
Fixing Old Cars 01/09/2010
 
The popularity of fixing old cars rises and falls with the state of the economy. Once again people are leaning towards repairing that old car as opposed to buying a new one.

Some adventurous people have decided to try to fix it themselves.

Diy auto repair

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TPS Sensor
These bold people willing to learn a new skill, truly earn my respect and admiration.

There is no question that do-it-yourself auto repair can save money if applied properly.

The trick is to perform only the work that is needed and avoid replacing parts that are not required.

It is very tempting to start throwing parts like a throttle position sensor at the vehicle in the hopes it will solve the car problems.

This procedure usually leads to disappointment and expenditures that would have exceeded having someone else fix the car for you.

My main advice is to learn about your vehicle. Spend the money and purchase service manuals or reference materials that will support your repairs.

Since your relationship with your car is most likely a long-term affair this would be considered a good investment.
 
 
Do some research into diy auto repair manuals when it comes to repairing your own automobile at home. You may just avoid a catastrophe.

Sometimes car repairs seem straight forward until you are well into the job and then you discover special tools or equipment is required to complete what you started.

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Diy car repair
Your personal vehicles are a giant investment not to mention the life blood of most lifestyles.

When it comes to repairing your own car it can go one of two ways.

You can be successful, save money and repair it right the first time. Or you can make things worse by creating more automobile problems. The second will increase costs as well as the down time of the car being repaired.

Let me give you a real life example of this. Let’s say your engine is running rough and you have a check engine light on.

Without owning a scan tool to pull codes you decide maybe it's time to catch up on vehicle maintenance.
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engine air filter
So you replace the spark plugs, fuel filter and air filter. Still the engine runs rough and the check engine light remains on.

Now after a day's work and being $100.00 lighter you decide to get a online diy auto repair manual. You go to the section about technical service bulletins and look up publications by complaint.

Bingo you notice a bulletin about runs rough with a check engine light on. It turns out defective fuel injectors are causing poor idle and fuel economy and the factory is aware of the problem. Also the dealer is providing replacement under a special policy.
 
 
The park brake interlock is a safety system that stops you from putting the vehicle in gear unless the brake pedal is depressed. But what if you put your foot on the brake and it does not come out of park?
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Interlock Solenoid
Not only have I received a lot of questions about this common shifter problem I have also seen it on the vehicles that I work on locally. Since the mid 90's all vehicles now come equipped with a park brake interlock system.

This is a great safety feature that requires you to have your foot on the brake pedal before it will allow you to shift from the park position to your desired gear. This system operates by a switch on the brake pedal that intern operates a interlock solenoid on the shifter mechanism.

When you apply the brake the solenoid pulls the shifter lock out of the way to allow free shifter movement. Some vehicles are equipped with a cable that is activated by a solenoid mounted on the brake pedal. Either system will release the safety lock on the shifter that allows you to move it from the park position.
 
 
Overtightening bolts can be a common error made by many Diy auto mechanics and professional technicians alike.
Every bolt has a torque spec, and some of these are very critical, and some not so much. 
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overtightening bolts
A good example of a non critical bolt torque spec would be a fender bolt. Yes it does have to be tight but slight over tightening will not affect the reliability of the vehicle.

An example of bolt torque specification that should be respected would be when you replace a water pump.

The individual retaining bolts will more than likely have at least one torque spec, but might even have multiple torque specs.

Water pumps that mount to a timing cover will have long and short bolts.

The long bolts that screw into the engine block will have much higher torque values than the short ones that just thread into the timing cover.

Over tightening the short bolts can damage the timing cover, and the gaskets or seals.
 
 
A site visitor asked me to post their auto repair story for others to learn from. The lesson to be learned is the power of the second opinion. Let’s see how Dreka saved 50% on her 94 olds cutlass car repairs.
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94 Olds Cutlass
Hello my name is Dreka. I absolutely loved reading your free auto repair book and I want you to know that it has encouraged me even more so to pay attention to my car.

I recently obtained my first car it’s a 94 cutlass supreme Oldsmobile. So of course it being 15 years old I’d imagine will call for a few repairs every now and then.

With this being said I hope to stay in close contact with you in the future if I have any questions.

I must say the things you were able to do for the other people needing your assistance was astonishing! You truly are in a league of all your own.

My auto repair story

I have a story to tell you. Two months ago I went into a chain auto service garage to find out why the brake lights didn’t work.

They hooked my car up to a machine for 75 bucks and said that it was a wiring issue and with labor and everything would cost 600 dollars.

They said they would need to get under my dashboard but really couldn’t help me understand why. I didn’t have the money so I told them I’d come back.
 
 

I give away my auto repair book for free to site visitors. This is a 68 page report I wrote a few years ago. Some visitors find it helpful and others may feel that it does not apply to their automobile situation. Here is an example of the latter.

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Hello Mark I started reading your free auto repair book because I don't know what to make of the car repairs that are being suggested to me.

I think I'm learning a lot about how the auto repair business is run in some places, but I'm not sure how to apply it to my current repair as I've already approved several.

I took my rebuilt car in to the closest auto service shop I could find because the car had an engine light on for a few months. The car then started stalling in the last two weeks.

But the first day not only did they suggest that the camshaft sensor be replaced to fix the stalling problem but they said the right outer tie rod end should be replaced for safety reasons.
 
 

My auto repair advice to a 2001 Ford Focus owner that has had major repair work done yet the car remains troublesome. See what can happen when you sink a lot of money into car repairs. The car question follows.

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2001 Ford Focus
I need automobile advice. I have a 2001 ford focus with 132k miles. The engine blew out in February. I called an auto repair shop, and was told that the engine could be rebuilt for less than $1,000. I took the car there and left it at the shop for him to look at.

The next day I came back to the shop and was told that the repair maybe $1,600 plus $200 to replace the timing belt. I told him I couldn’t afford it and wanted my 01 Ford Focus back; however he told me that the engine was disassembled and it would take time to put back together.

His auto repair advice was to set up a payment plan with him and he would guarantee the car repairs for 90 days. So I agreed to the engine repair. When I came to pick up the car, the total charge was now $2,200!
 
Diy Auto Repair 06/05/2009
 

Diy auto repair has been gaining in popularity throughout the decline of the economy. People are hanging on to their cars longer, and doing what they can to save money by performing their own maintenance and repairs.

Just like everything else the price of a new car has risen sharply over the last few years. Add to this the fact that many people have taken out loans that are now on seven-year payment schedules. All of these things add up to keeping your vehicle longer. This just makes dollars and cents.

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When I first got my drivers license, a car with 100,000 miles was on its way to the junkyard as it was conceived its usable life had passed. Now it is commonplace to see vehicles with over 200,000 miles that are still in service.

In fact, the fleet that I am currently working on has 4 1996 E350 vans with the 7.3 L power stroke diesel. All of these vehicles are close to 300,000 miles if not over. This is with the original engine.

Although the 7.3 L power stroke diesel is very impressive and continues to provide good service at over 300,000 miles they still need lots of maintenance and repair.

We have done our share of water pumps, starter motors and alternators on all of these vehicles. And we have also repaired some major oil leaks including the dreaded rear main seal.