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-----Original Message-----
From: Tom Hoover [mailto:tom@hisword.net
Sent: Friday, April 16, 2004 5:24 PM
To: m.debruin@verizon.net
Subject: engine overhaul
I have a 1985 F-150 2WD with a 302 engine. I've toyed on and off with the idea of buying a newer truck, but I sure like having something old enough that I can still work on it. In years past, I had the facilities and ability to overhaul an engine, but neither time nor space will allow me to do so now. The engine has 150k miles on it, and I'd like to have_my_ engine overhauled (rather than swapping it out for a "reman" with an unknown history). Do
you have any recommendations for a local mechanic who would do a good job?
I'm not looking for "cheap", but I do want to get a good overhaul for
a reasonable price. I live in Sachse (between Garland and Wylie), so
something on this end of town would be even better.
Thanks!
Hi Tom,
The first thing that comes to mind is your warranty...not
just the first 90 days or 6 to 12 months. but long term
down the road after putting some miles on the new ticker.By having
the eng. rebuild you have the parts warranty, labor warranty,
and the machine shop warranty and if something goes wrong they will all
be pointing at each other. I would go with a factory motor if you want
to keep the truck and the warranty is good at any dealer in the
country for both parts and labor.
Mario.
On Sun, Apr 18, 2004 at 10:35:54AM -0700, Mario DeBruin wrote:
I would go with a factory motor if you want to keep the truck and the warranty is good at any dealer in the
country for both parts and labor. Thanks for the advice...I would have never thought to check with the dealer (I've
always considered them too high priced, but what you say makes sense).
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Mario,
I have a 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix. Recently, during a heavy rain, my Low Traction, Tire
Pressure and ABS warning lights came on. I took the car into a dealer who replaced the right wheel speed sensor.
They test drove the car and said the lights had gone off for a bit, but then came back on. They then told me that I
would need the EBCM replaced. I balked at that and brought the car home. Oddly, it rained again yesterday, and
the lights all went OFF for a day, but today, they are back on. Strange, but it sounds more like a short or loose wiring
to me. The speed sensor was very expensive and the EBCM is also very expensive, so I was hoping for a second opinion
before letting them do more "easter egging". Any ideas?
Thanks in advance,
Randy Pace
Hey Randy,
The first
thing that came to mind when I saw your email is the alternator...because all the cars ecu's have to have a constant supply
of voltage. I also did some resurge on your year, make, and model and it seem that the alternator is a big
problem in this car some owners say the alt. goes out about every 2 to 3 years. Before you replace the alt. check to see if
the drive belt is not loose or worn out and the battery cables are clean.
I hope this helps
out.
Mario.
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My son has a 1991 toyota 4x4 Pick-up,6cyl Extra Cab,Model # VZN110L.He is working on this truck
in Trade School with his classmates and just put a nice clean low-milage Engine in it and new radiator.Now he needs a new
gas tank and sending unit.The gas tank can be purchased aftermarket for $315.00.Which I find alittle expensive; and
I found a place in PA. that refurbishes tanks for between $150.00 and $250.00.What would you advise , or do you
know of a better place to pick up a tank? My big problem is to find the sending unit which attaches to the gas tank.We are
not made of money and yetI want to buy a quality part to put on my sons truck so when he drives it out of trade school he
can have something he can be proud of....What would you suggest? Thank you for your time and trouble,
Mike Venne
Hi there,
Sorry to get back
so slow...got a lot of emails to answer. First of What is wrong with your tank that it needs to be replaced?
Most tanks can
be cleaned out by taking them to a radiator shop and have it boiled out...Check it out.
See ye,
M
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On 98 Ford Crown Vic, the last few weeks, we are having starting problem.
Turn the ignition and just a click from under the hood. At first we turned
the key about 3 times to get it started. First 2 times it would click, 3rd it would start up. Seemed to do it only when engine
cold. If warm, it would start on first turn. When the weather was colder, it might take 6 turns of the key to start (5 clicks,
6th would start). Now that it's a little warmer out, it usually starts on the 2nd turn of the key.
I put the battery on a charger, but the battery shows fully charged. When
the starter turns the engine, it doesn't struggle or seem slow to start. On a side note, the last few months, my battery idiot
light has been coming on and off. It comes on for a couple minutes then goes out again. This might happen several times on
any drive. Meanwhile, the battery guage needle stays right in the middle where it always is and it does not change at all
when the battery light goes on or off.
Any ideas?
Thanks in advance, Greg
Hi Greg,
Sorry
to get back to you so slow, but I was out of town for a Wedding...staying
with my in-laws and only had a 56k modem that I had to share with
5 other Email hunting family members.
Now about your car. Two things come to mind...Dirty
battery cables or poss. a weak or shorted cell in your battery. when the temp. goes down it takes more amps to crank the eng. dirty cables will not
let the current flow to the starter. The same is true with a weak bat. Note
most batteries only last for 3 years. Replace it when it is a good
time for you...not when it leaves you stuck on the side of the road. Now about your charging light check to see if your belt is not worn out or loose,
also a shorted cell in the bat. could cause your alt. light to come
on when you hit a bump in the road. So if your belt is good and the bat.
is close to 3 years old I would start with replacing it, and see if
the problems are fixed.
Thanks
Mario D.
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Hi There!
I was wondering what the emissions maximum levels for the HC's, CO's and
NOx's are in a smog test in Texas.
Thank you!
Megan Thole
Hi There back to you,
To answer your question I have to know what year your car
is because the standards fairy due to year model. Older cars have lower
standards then newer cars. But if your car is a mid 80's to low 90's
the standards are on the high speed test 25mph CO 0.83 HC 130 (ppm)
Nox 905 (ppm) on
the low speed test 15mph CO 0.75 HC 134 (ppm) Nox 990 (ppm)
I hope this helps and tells what you need to know. This info is printed on your VIR when you get your emission test.
Thx,
Mario
Thank you so much for your quick response! I have a '96 Chrysler Concorde
and it's having a hard time passing it's smog test. My parents live there
in Texas and are interested in owning the car, but they wanted to know
the standards for Texas to know if it would pass.
As far as I can tell, in CA, at 15 mph the max for HC's are 51. My car was
52 For the 25 mph test, the max was 35 and my car was 51 For the NO (PPO) test you are allowed 419 at 25 mph. My car tested at a 647. My car passed at 25 mph. So would
my car pass in Texas?
Thank you so much for your help!
Megan
It looks close...but it could sneak by. If not go
to my website and look at the options you have for testing here
in Texas http://marioscartips.com go to Emission testing.
Thx,
M
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-----Original Message-----
Date: Monday, February
16, 2004 8:05 AM
Subject: Question about a Mercury Sable 1992
I was wondering if you could answer this question for me. Can the waterpump
going out cause the transmission to overheat and over flow the transmission
fluid?
if you could that would be greatly appreciated, My email is
asharp421@hotmail.com thank you for your time and have a pleasant day,
April Sharp
Hi April,
To answer the question about the water pump...The water
pump it self can not make the trans. overheat
because it's job is to circulate the coolant in the
motor. Now if the motor is overheating then yes it could cause the trans. to overheat because there is a trans. cooler in the radiator of the car. So how hot is the motor getting when you drive the car?
Let me know and we will see if we can find the problem
with your car.
Thx,
Mario.
Hello Mario,
thank you for the quick reply .
The tempature gauge on the dash is the word "NORMAL" written vertically the
"L" is cool and the "N" is extremely hot. When I start out the car is
below the "L" after a few minutes it is around the bottom of the "M"
then if it iks more than a quick trip down the street it goes up to the
"O" it is about this time that the trail of transmission fluid and a
decent puddle when I stop for lights. The fan will kick on when it reaches
the bottom of the "N" but then it only cools down to about the bottom
of the "O" depending on how cool it is outside. When I get to where I
am going and park I go look under the car and the is a large puddle forming.
2 mechanics, my husband , and myself have all inspected the transmission
for cracks, leaks and breaches in the gaskets but there appear to be
none. There is also no heat being put out by the defrost or the heater,
which led me to check the water pump. Does this help you determine the
possibilities?
Thank you again for your time,
April
Date: 2004/02/15 Sun PM 03:57:02 CST
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Hey....cool website! Such a TV star, too! Mario - thanks for all your help
with my car....and I'm in SPOKANE, WASHINGTON - you really do reach your customers, no matter where they're at!!!!
-
Paul Keil
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Ben:
Forgive the length - I'm typing this stream of consciousness, and fast, as I'm
so excited (and a wee too rushed to edit for brevity, so again - meaculpa)!
I just wanted to take the time
to tell you how THRILLED I am to have
discovered, courtesy of your awesome website, Mario deBruin and
Stuttgart
Auto Center. I'm the owner of a paid for and well loved, but aging 1996
SAAB convertible.
And it's out of warranty of course, so it's becoming a
"SAAB story" in many expensive and unplanned ways. With
this aging has
come the opportunity to experience the other, not-so-attractive side of
"Sewell Service" which is a dressed
up term for downright highway robbery.
I knew I needed a good competent mechanic if I was going to have any hope
in
realistically keeping this car running properly.
So far my searches have yielded nothing, until I was browsing
your site, saw
the following statement about your sponsors:
c) All of our sponsors have demonstrated a willingness to go the extra mile
for people - especially Dover listeners,
readers and viewers.
And saw the archived articles with Mario's input and advice. I emailed him,
saying "I'm a Benjamin Dover
fan/follower/groupie <g>, and I know you don't
specialize in SAAB's, but do you know ANYONE who is trustworthy,
competent, etc. that would?"
I was stunned to get a reply back in mere hours that actually he and many
of
his staff had worked on SAAB's over the years and could help me out. Amen
and pass the biscuits on that one!!
I
called Mario the next day as he suggested, and at 4:20 on a Thursday
afternoon he stayed on the phone playing a very patient
automotive Sherlock
Holmes with me for over 30 minutes. I thought I was simply going to make an
appointment, but
instead he asked me to cover what I thought was wrong, and
he'd do his best to give me a preliminary idea of what I might
be looking at
before I even got there.
I was stunned!
With Zen-like patience he
quizzed me about the laundry list of concerns and
complaints that had accumulated since my multiple muggings with Sewell's
service
department, and on EACH ISSUE not only was able to describe
BACK to me other symptoms that I had failed to mention, but to detail
out the likely causes and courses of action we'd probably be taking.
Even my convertible top motor had developed a problem a few months
back, and I was steeled by Sewell for this to be a multi-thousand dollar
repair (one which I was probably not going to even pursue).
Mario said, "not necessarily. - these tops frequently get misdiagnosed
as a motor when it's really just a micro switch.
We'll look at it first and make absolutely sure we know what we're
dealing with."
Clearly he takes
a different approach than Sewell on the necessity of
including as many parts as possible on any invoice.
I'm
taking my car in on Wednesday, and am even taking him up on his offer to
let me watch the diagnosis and repairs if I was
so inclined.
He's been patient, forthright, humorous, calming and all without even
meeting me or having me
spend a dime yet.
Thanks AGAIN for the incredible service you provide by acting as part
Quarterback, part
traffic-cop, and part therapist to consumers like me who
are intelligent enough to know we're getting screwed left and
right, but not
smart or connected enough to know what to do about it - until we get
connected with you!
All
the best!
Scott Handley
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Larry,
Thanks for the continued interest in the website. I like your suggestion and will post
your letter on my site in the comments section for all our readers to enjoy.
Good luck with your new ride.
Mario
-----Original Message-----
From: Larry [mailto:lwcq@earthlink.net]
Sent: Tuesday, July 08, 2003 1:01 AM
To: m.debruin@verizon.net
Subject: Re: marioscartips
Mario,
Thanks for all the advice and the link to your tips site. I have been
looking over it and have found alot of things I didn't know. I was looking
at your tips for buying a car.........and I would like to add a suggestion.
When I bought the car I have now I requested to keep it for a day so I could
have it checked out. There is a place in the town I bought it from that does
before you buy inspections. They do not do repair work at all and will not
recommend a reapir shop for anything they find. That way you know they are
unbiased. They charge 110.00 for the first inspection then if you don't buy
the car and take another one in They give you a small discount. I took 2
cars too them. The second car had two leaks and the dealer fixed them for
free before I bought the car and gace me a warranty on the repair. Best
money I have spent buying a car. Thought maybe you would want to suggest a
service like that on your site.
Thanks
Larry
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