Scooty replaced SuDoy's battery (which was original, meaning almost ten years old) because my dad said he wanted the battery replaced no matter what. But the main problem was, as I predicted months ago, the starter. Scooty said when they replaced the battery they tried starting the car and it barely cranked. So: new starter, to the tune of two ( Read more... )

Apparently I accidentally set up jIqel with PhonePost settings that are the same as this journal's, so when I posted twice this afternoon they ended up over there. And I can't get them back here. So here:
SuDoy's Woes, Part the First
SuDoy's Woes, Part the Second: Help From Kentucky

I'm reminded that I neglected to update y'all on SuDoy's condition after his inspection last week. He got a refurbished distributor, an oil change, and his inspection, and for the unusual sum of $666, he now has no hesitation problems and seems very happy. It took the mechanics about an hour and a half (as promised) to get the distro in because ( Read more... )

I got a flat tire in Quakertown today. I think the valve stem cracked, because the air was leaking very quickly out of it. I heard a hissing sound when I got out of the car at the grocery store, but thought, "If it's serious, I'll check it when I get back." I spent ten minutes in the store, came back, and it was still hissing. And about half ( Read more... )

This is a bad week for cars in my family. My dad just took his Crown Victoria to the dealership because the air suspension is going wonky. I didn't do it! I swear! He said if the air suspension should fail while I'm driving it, it would be very bad. The body of the car will sink about five inches (!) if the suspension fails. Can you imagine ( Read more... )

Scooty took a quick look at my boy today and said the spark plug looked fine, so maybe it's a problem with the spark plug wire. So he's scheduled for a checkup on Thursday. I drove my dad's Crown Vic to my appointment today, and I'll be doing the same tomorrow, seeing as how driving a car with a misfiring cylinder for extended periods of time can ( Read more... )

I had the code checked at AutoZone and it's a cylinder 2 misfire. According to the Haynes Repair Manual I have, cylinder 2 is at the front of the engine, so the entire manifold will not have to be removed in order for the mechanic to get to the cylinder (thank you Upstairs!).

Scooty said to bring the car by tomorrow morning and he'll do a quick ( Read more... )

My car, SuDoy, is having some issues again. His check engine light is on again, and he's been doing similar power loss things (meaning the engine doesn't give me the power I want when I press the accelerator) and 'missing' things to when I had the check engine light come on last year. I read what I'd written about the issue then and, well, I ( Read more... )

Last night I did something unexpected: I bought a car. A dark green 1998 Dodge Stratus ES, to be precise. It has nearly 100,000 miles, but it's in very nice shape. The previous owner took good care of it. From the moment I got into this car, I knew it was the right one. It even has a six disc CD changer, cassette tape, and autostick, which ( Read more... )