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and you will know us by the trail of parts
Install New Windshield Glass
We've all heard the argument of the do-it-yourselfer. Doing the job on your own can bring a sense of satisfaction and save money. When things don't go right the results may not be so warming or economical. Thirteen beers or three fried alternators into a pile of sheared bolts and bruised knuckles can result in a job costing far more than planned. Sometimes the financial outlay in tools, materials, and time, don't add up to any savings for the do-it-yourselfer. Worse still is a job done wrong can be potentially dangerous. Replacing a cracked or old front windshield glass is one of these times. More »
1:00 PM on Fri Sep 7 2007
By Mike Bumbeck
3,529 views,
21 comments
Latest by lascauxcaveman: I had a nice-as-new windshield in a parts car and the windshield guy refused to swap it over for me, saying "It's impossible to remove one intact". I took a B string off my guitar, worked the bead around the windshield more »
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Rebuild Your Carburetor
Back in the days of carbureted and plentiful used Plymouth Satellites, B-52's frontman Fred sang of the devil in his car. Beehive sporting singer Kate did Fred one better by wailing that she had the devil in her CAR-buretor! Having Beelzebub in the float bowl and demons clogging the jets is not a good thing at all. A carburetor rebuild can help exorcise evil spirits. More »
1:30 PM on Fri Aug 31 2007
By Mike Bumbeck
2,586 views,
24 comments
question of the day
How Often Do You Detail Your Car?
Today's Question comes to us via sabbophile2, and judging by the multiple layers of Las Vegas filth and desert dust covering my poor ride, this one is wholly appropriate. To wit:Car detailing: how much, how often, with what? Me: Zaino the whole car, once per year, occasional touch-free wash. Someday, with a garage, I'll do more.Sadly, I'm so rough on my cars that I never bother with detailing until I'm ready to sell. Even then, I usually don't bother. However, I do get my engine detailed every 30,000 miles. Because I care. You?
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Replace Spark Plugs
Along with swapping out the air filter and changing the oil, replacing the spark plugs is one of the few things left that require service on a modern gasoline engine. Some newer than the twenty-year old
1:00 PM on Fri Aug 10 2007
By Mike Bumbeck
5,934 views,
28 comments
Latest by eb110americana: One more time with feeling... more »
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Weekend Projects Roundup
With the weekend nearly here, it's time to pop open the hood and take a trip down the trail of parts. Those battery terminals and posts that look like a high school science experiment gone wrong need to be cleaned. As long as you're there, find the right dipstick and check the oil. If it looks as if it could be bubbling up from the La Brea Tar Pits, then bust out the ramps or jack and jack stands and change the oil and filter. If the oil was that filthy, then checking and swapping out the air filter might not be a bad idea. After all that it will certainly be time to wash those microscopic contaminants and grubby hand prints off the car so you can look good while driving to get a Coney Island.
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Replace Axle and Oil Seals
The automobile contains a number of fluids that should all stay where they're supposed to be. Oil spots, coolant leaks, mystery drips, and other tell tale signs of fluids leaving their rightful place in the automobile are a sign to take heed of maintenance. Denying the existence of the ever-growing number of oil spots on the driveway is not going to make them go away. The source of the leak needs to be fixed. More »
12:15 PM on Fri Jul 27 2007
By Mike Bumbeck
1,382 views,
6 comments
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Finding Repair and Service Manuals
In our explorations into parts and parts replacement, we often mention the service manual. While there are certainly a large part of the monkeywrenching public who would throw directions to the wind, instructions can be a good thing when it comes to things like working brakes and wheels not falling off the car. Finding the service manual can be half the battle. Read on for a few tips for locating the books for everything from a 1971 Ford Pinto Rallye to a late-model Honda That's.More »
12:30 PM on Fri Jul 13 2007
By Mike Bumbeck
2,025 views,
17 comments
Latest by n/a: Hi guys, I have a few service manuals and I am trying to find out how much they could be worth. My oldest is a opel gt 1968-1973. I also have:Holley 92/93 performance parts catalogChilton's repair and tune-up guid for more »
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Replace Brake Pads
While there is a difference between brake pads and shoes, the desired result is always the same when the foot goes down on the brake pedal. Brake pads clamp down onto a rotating disc. Brake shoes push out Flintstones-style onto a rotating drum. Inertia gets turned into heat via the miracle of friction. If all goes well things slow down. Each time the brake pads clamp themselves onto the rotor to put on the whoa, a small amount of the pad itself turns to dust. A smaller amount of the brake rotor also turns to dust. Brake pads are by design supposed to wear out, and for obvious reasons should be inspected and replaced once in a while. Read on for a brake pad bonanza. More »
12:30 PM on Fri Jul 6 2007
By Mike Bumbeck
4,997 views,
14 comments
Latest by salguod: Nice write up. I'd add that those little flat heads holding the rotors on are frequently not necessary. They are there because the brake assy comes to the factory from the brake manufacturer pre-assembled and they need something more »
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Bleed the Brakes
The fluid that exists as brake fluid is in reality hydraulic fluid. The helpful property of brake fluid is that it cannot be compressed. This comes in handy when the brake pedal is pushed down. Brake fluid links the parts of the brake system together as one. Brake pedal goes down. Friction is achieved! A hydraulic clutch also uses this same principle, and brake fluid to make shifting happen. An unfortunate property of brake fluid is that it is hygroscopic. Over time brake fluid draws moisture into itself all by itself. Bleeding the brake lines of air is an important step after brake work, and is also helpful to purge contaminated brake fluid from the brake lines. More »
1:00 PM on Fri Jun 29 2007
By Mike Bumbeck
5,144 views,
15 comments
Latest by Khufu01: I have also heard that it's a good idea to not pump the brake pedal past it's normal range of travel because the seal in the master cylinder could hit deposits it normally doesn't get to on the cylinder wall more »
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Compression Pressure Test
Mechanical know how in our case has come largely from two sources. There have been those kind enough to show the way, and there has been the hard way. A long and proud lineup of 500-dollar cars has steered us mostly down the latter route. The way we learned about how and why to run a compression check on an engine came only after bolting on every conceivable replacement part to a 318 V-8 in a 500-dollar '67 Plymouth Barracuda in an effort to make the thing run better. A compression check revealed that the engine was closer to a V-5 and-a-half than a V-8. More »
12:30 PM on Fri Jun 15 2007
By Mike Bumbeck
4,640 views,
6 comments
Latest by n/a: I have 95 Ford Ranger and dropped the drive shaft last week on the way home from work. I dont have time to fix myself so I paid to have it done. The vehicle failed it's emissions test back in more »
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Wash and Wax Bonanza
For a long number of years even the idea of washing and waxing our car was unnecessary. Cleanup meant maybe a hosing off, and adding another layer of rattle can primer to key spots. The first paint job worthy of a wash and wax was a defining moment. Washing and waxing the new paint on the old car was suddenly an exciting novelty! For somewhat newer cars, a regular wash and wax keeps the paint from decaying to the clean it with scrub pad and can of spray paint stage. Sure the local car wash is great, but nothing beats the satisfaction washing and waxing your own ride. More »
12:30 PM on Fri Jun 8 2007
By Mike Bumbeck
6,693 views,
31 comments
Latest by Sketch242: Is this the Jalopnik reality garage? A 240SX, a Starion, nn MR2 MkII, and is that the roof of an FC? BTW, try Zymol Auto wash. It's all natural and you will never be able to use a chemical more »
rust and roll
Rolling Time into a 50-Dollar Paint Job
Back when we used to paint houses, movie sets, and the occasional old Plymouth instead of making it big in automotive journalism, a great deal of time was spent sanding, scraping, and sanding again. Preparation is the larger part of a paint job. Armed with a a roller, a can of rustoleum, and a pile of sandpaper, the aforementioned maxim can slowly be turned into a shining white Corvair on the cheap. Mr. Rickwrench himself claims the Yenko striping is good for 5-7 wheel horsepower from established butt dyno tests. More »
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Wheel Cleaning Tips in Detail
Whichever crackpot invented the wheel had no idea what it would lead to. Land speed records. Plus one measures of gravity on a skidpad. Four-second quarter miles. 30-inch spinners! Multiple volumes of unmentionable bad craziness. And dirt crusted wheels. While filthy wheels may not be of great concern for ox-drawn carts or the old roto-tiller, shabby looking hoops can ruin automotive outward appearances. Rolling in a car with filthy wheels is akin to showing up to a job interview with scuffed-up shoes with holes in the soles. More »
12:00 PM on Fri Jun 1 2007
By Mike Bumbeck
9,169 views,
21 comments
Latest by aarrgghh: sounds silly but i just take a towel and wipe down after car is dry from its bath. The alloy wheels clean right up with no soap or water. Just a clean cloth rag! I have a more »
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Memorial Day Wrench Spinning
Some of us may already be hurtling down the roads of America in an Ultra Van or Hoonabago in celebration of Memorial Day. More still may have decided to avoid the crowds and stay put. If you haven't left yet, then check the tire pressure before loading up the Town & Country wagon with 500 pounds of cargo. Make sure there's some air in the spare tire to save any roadside swearing. Popping the hood and checking the oil is always a good idea. If the oil has had it and you're sticking around for the weekend, put the car up on some ramps or jack stands and change out that old oil and filter for some some of the good stuff. And even though we gripe about the high price of gasoline, taking a moment to remember what Memorial Day is really about costs nothing and means a great deal. More »
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Gas Saving Tips for Flummoxed Drivers
With gasoline prices obviously not trending downward, cash-strapped drivers are finding themselves flummoxed as to how get the best bang for their increasingly thin buck. Read on to take the first step onto the path of improved fuel efficiency.
More »
1:30 PM on Fri May 18 2007
By Mike Bumbeck
12,215 views,
32 comments
and you will know us by the trail of parts
Replace Wheel Bearings
Automobile wheels spin round thanks to the miracle of wheel bearings. The bearings themselves contain rollers that spin around inside a cage. Wheel bearings are often tapered against the coned races in which they spin in order to handle the lateral forces placed against the wheels when the vehicle turns. Given the right grease and care, most wheel bearings should roll without complaint for 100,000 miles or more. Neglected bearings will tell another tale. More »
1:15 PM on Fri May 11 2007
By Mike Bumbeck
8,767 views,
9 comments
And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Parts: Replace Struts - Part 2
Last week we got down with the strut in MacPherson and said hello to the spring compressor. This week we'll finish things off and put it all back together.
Last week we got down with the strut in MacPherson and said hello to the spring compressor. This week we'll finish things off and put it all back together.
