Ask GTP About Your Car Problems/General Questions

[Crash]

AlexGTV, depending on the car, they often use several LEDs or some other sort of background light to illuminate instrument panel. Often times, one or some of those will fail, causing a sorta lit but not really/panel lights are half out deal.

 

[BrutherSuperior]

Yeah it has the 2.0T, so I was pretty skeptical about putting the regular in. I'm wondering if I should get some octane booster to keep it from knocking. I was thinking about calling a different VW dealer or going to another place too. Crowne (the dealer in Holland) doesn't fill me with very much confidence, especially after they told me they didn't know how to change my HID lights or hadn't done them before.

Also, if anybody in the Grand Rapids area has any suggestions as to which VW dealer would be best to ask in order to look further into this, that would be great.

Never use octane booster.

I'd try a new gas station, 16oz of Marvel Mystery Oil, and stick with premium fuel.

With ethanol added to gasoline, fuel can collect quite a bit of water in a short amount of time. Even worse, a 10% ethanol blend can leave the refinery and become 20% ethanol by the time it is pumped out. Factor in that many northern states have different blends for each season and some cities have special blends on top of that; and you can have a mess on your hands.

Marvel Mystery Oil is awesome stuff. It's a good fuel stabilizer, fuel system cleaner, and fuel system lubricant.

The ticking or knocking is probably a lifter tick. Castrol is **** oil, throw a quart of MMO in the oil and that will go away. If the tick/knock only happens when the engine is under load...you're running lean. Do you have a K&N or some other fancy CAI? If so, clean the MAF.

Any grind you hear is 9 times out of 10 a bearing of some sort. Since you hear it when your car is coming to a stop; it's probably a wheel bearing. If the grind is when the engine is at low RPMs; you need a long screwdriver and a thumb.

Grab the long screwdriver firm in your hand, make a 'thumbs up' with your hand, and stick your thumb in your ear. Congrats; you've just engineered a redneck stethoscope.

Stick the screwdriver on the casings of things like the belt tensioner pulley, alternator, cyl heads, block, etc. Wherever the noise is really loud and you can feel the grind in your hand & ear; that's your problem.

A CIL basically means that something emissions related is/has malfunctioned on the car. These trouble codes are not the end-all be-all when it comes to diagnosing car problems.

 

[Philly]

Looks like the regular fuel is getting into the engine now, because the car suddenly started running better than it ever did on summer premium blend in Michigan. I really don't understand it at all.

The engine usually makes some kind of a quiet ticking noise. In this case it was just a lot louder and not constant. I'm running Mobil 1 0W-40, so I know that the oil in the car is pretty good.

Also, the grind that I heard didn't happen every time, and happened the day before at a constant speed. But nothing today after the car decided to be healthy again.

 

[DKLion3s]

Don't know if it's a problem yet, more annoying. It's been going on for a long time but is really starting to bug me now that its 5°F outside.

When idling, the blower motor is pretty weak, if I got the blower on level 5, it blows like I got it set on level 2 or 3.

When I start moving and raise rpm's over 1200-1500 rpms, the blower works normally.

I got plenty of heat, and the blower motor is brand new. I'm guessing it's electrical, but not sure.

Any thoughts?

Added to the suggestions made already, you may need a replacement filter. Those things get really clogged overtime, reducing airflow and adding more load to the motor in the process. And it's the cheapest of the things to check.

 

[///M-Spec]

Two questions:

I have a 2008 BMW 525i, bought it used and it came without an owners manual. How in the hell do I get the radio to default on AUX?!? Its like when you turn the car off and turn it back on, it just picks a source!

Also I have a 2008 Suzuki Verona and it does this shutter thing. If I stop at the light, the whole car will shutter. You can see the lights kinda dim when that happens also. I thought it might have been the spark plugs but I replaces those and it still happens.

Can anyone provide some insight(on the second question more than the first, lol)?
Thanks

You can download your owner's manual at BMW's website.

Does your Suzuki throw a CEL?


M

 

[Sniffs]

AlexGTV: another suggestion or two over instument lights: if it's an older vehicle, they may still be using actual light bulbs. things get shaken loose in instument panels, sometimes. also, make sure your dimmer switch is all the way up. i've also had electrical connections for clusters simply pop off from old age. double check the fuses, too, especially if anything else has gone out.

LED's do dim over time. we use them over here in the states in Utility Vehicles for high visibility, but they still "blow out" like they were old fashioned filament bulbs (must be lowest bidder )

 

[Eric.]

That reminds me of a couple electrical gremlins in my MR2.

For the first 4-5 days of owning the car, the right turn signal flashed very quickly. All the turn signals were working, so that wasn't from one being burned out. Then all of a sudden one day that was gone and hasn't returned.

And the gauge cluster lights would go off at times. I think that's something with the dimmer switch since it actually doesn't do anything. I don't remember that happening on more than one night though.

 

[Philly]

A little more weirdness with the GTI. I filled up with mid grade gas for the trip to Chicago this weekend, timing went advanced again somewhere along the way and they car threw another cel. Filled up half the tank with regular, problem solved. On the way back today, the timing went advanced again and threw another cel by the time I got back to Holland. And then in the time it took to drive around campus a couple times everything went back to normal again.

I'm a little confused. Maybe it just doesn't like sitting at 3000 revs for long highway cruises?

 

[DOUQA]

Philly, The ticking you hear from the engine is probably the high pressure fuel pump, or it could be a solenoid valve clicking away such as for the tank ventilation system. I take it your car is a US model so it may have different emissions related systems than what I'm used to.

As for the grinding you heard it could very easily have been a small stone caught between the brake caliper and the disc. Its very common on Golfs. If it was a bearing it would only get worse as time goes on and would be noticable most of the time.

Do you experience any running problems at or around the time the light comes on?

 

[Philly]

The ticking sound is normal for the car. It's just louder when the timing advances. I started it up and it's been running fine all day today. Check engine light is even gone. I put in some HEET and am running a full tank of regular, so I know something is be wrong with the car if something comes up again. I've also found a worthwhile dealer so I will call them and see if they have any knowledge on the subject.

I've been noticing rough idles sometimes, but I'm guessing that has to do with the misfires that are messing with the timing.

 

[stumpydino]

So, while still in the process of respraying my car, my paint chum was telling me what lacquer to get and he said to go for a 2 pack, non-synthetic cellulose lacquer, now I always thought you could only get one or the other googling only came up with forum results of people saying they had used such things but I couldn't find a seller that listed a product with those features, at least not in the description anyway.
Anyone know a little about paints and suggest options?

 

[motortrend]

Question:
Say you have an old-ish sports car that isn't really that safe compared to modern cars. Would a racing harness coupled with racing seats make street driving safer in case there is a crash? Just curious. Also, would this be street legal?

 

[Danoff]

I know it can be advantageous to let your car idle to cool down before turning it off if you have a turbo. Is there any reason to do this if you don't have a turbo? Or do you just shut it off the instant you get it parked?

 

[Northstar]

Question:
Say you have an old-ish sports car that isn't really that safe compared to modern cars. Would a racing harness coupled with racing seats make street driving safer in case there is a crash? Just curious. Also, would this be street legal?

Only if you also have a roll-cage.

 

[J-PaP]

I know it can be advantageous to let your car idle to cool down before turning it off if you have a turbo. Is there any reason to do this if you don't have a turbo? Or do you just shut it off the instant you get it parked?

I know the reason people with turbo's do it is to let the turbo cool down and keep oil going through it as it cools therefore reducing turbo wear/damage. It isn't really necessary during normal driving. It is more so if you push the car and the turbo heats up.

Don't know of a reason to keep the engine running on an N/A car. I doubt it does any harm though.

 

[Eric.]

I know it can be advantageous to let your car idle to cool down before turning it off if you have a turbo. Is there any reason to do this if you don't have a turbo? Or do you just shut it off the instant you get it parked?

J-Pap covered this. Keeps the oil flowing to cool it.

Only if you also have a roll-cage.

And if you have a roll cage in a street car, its only safe if you're wearing a helmet.

Now, I don't know that having just a harness bar with race seats and harnesses is an issue. I don't think it is, as long as there's no way you can come into contact with the harness bar, AND the harness bar must be positioned so that the angle the harness pulls is a certain way to not have any slack AND not to push you down (i.e., spinal compression). So, leave that to a professional to take care of.

 

[Danoff]

Don't know of a reason to keep the engine running on an N/A car. I doubt it does any harm though.

Yea, I'd tend to agree that it's probably not harmful.

If I've been flogging an N/A car up and down the hills, can anyone think of a reason not to just immediately turn it off once it's parked?

 

[motortrend]

Thanks or answering! Also, after a spirited drive I think it is always good to let the car cool down, but not being stationary, just cruising at low RPMs cruising so the engine gets air. It's never very good to have a car stationary with the engine on for a long time

 

[Eric.]

Yea, I'd tend to agree that it's probably not harmful.

If I've been flogging an N/A car up and down the hills, can anyone think of a reason not to just immediately turn it off once it's parked?

To some extent, having the car running will keep the coolant flowing as needed to cool down, but chances are your temp isn't really changing any from usual driving, because the thermostat is supposed to keep that very stable.

 

[sems4arsenal]

Ok A silly question but I had to ask ,so My mum owns a Datsun Sunny (the 06 model) which is a reasonable car really but she doesn't like it and long story short after just 2 years of owning it We could be getting something called a Nissan Livina C-Gear ,I am no car expert and after seeing it in real life It is not bad really so any thought on the car ?

Thanks in advance 👍

 

[Giancarlo]

Hey guys, I have a "guess that noise" query for you all, related to my 5-speed manual... Often times (but not every time) when I'm over 45mph whether in gear or in neutral, I get a weird loose-change, rattling sort of sound coming from under/beneath the steering wheel.

When the sound is happening and I press in the clutch, it stops. When I let off the clutch again it starts immediately. This sound doesn't happen in idle or anything else, so I figure it's related to my clutch. I had a look underneath my steering wheel but everything seems fine, nothing loose. I'm missing the pedal stopper on my clutch, but I'll be replacing that soon and I doubt that's the problem... I'm not sure how to diagnose this. I just had my tranny fluid replaced about 1k miles ago.

I appreciate any help if any of you have had similar problems. Thanks.

 

[BrutherSuperior]

Hey guys, I have a "guess that noise" query for you all, related to my 5-speed manual... Often times (but not every time) when I'm over 45mph whether in gear or in neutral, I get a weird loose-change, rattling sort of sound coming from under/beneath the steering wheel.

When the sound is happening and I press in the clutch, it stops. When I let off the clutch again it starts immediately. This sound doesn't happen in idle or anything else, so I figure it's related to my clutch. I had a look underneath my steering wheel but everything seems fine, nothing loose. I'm missing the pedal stopper on my clutch, but I'll be replacing that soon and I doubt that's the problem... I'm not sure how to diagnose this. I just had my tranny fluid replaced about 1k miles ago.

I appreciate any help if any of you have had similar problems. Thanks.

Next time it happens, drive with a little pressure on the clutch pedal and see if the noise goes away. If it does go away; it's a throwout bearing chattering.

 

[Perfect Balance]

J-Pap covered this. Keeps the oil flowing to cool it.



And if you have a roll cage in a street car, its only safe if you're wearing a helmet.

Now, I don't know that having just a harness bar with race seats and harnesses is an issue. I don't think it is, as long as there's no way you can come into contact with the harness bar, AND the harness bar must be positioned so that the angle the harness pulls is a certain way to not have any slack AND not to push you down (i.e., spinal compression). So, leave that to a professional to take care of.

They don't really work in a crash.

Sparco seats, harnesses and harness bar. Passenger ended up being ejected from the car because the belts loosened up so much when the bar bent.

Another option is to simply use the harness bar to correct the angle at which is enters the seat, but secure the harnesses to the rear seat belt mounting locations. That way, the angle is still correct (no spinal compression) and they're mounted in a reinforced area.

I recommend a roll bar that is entirely behind the front seats. That way you still get a proper place to mount the harnesses, along with the benefits of a roll bar without putting metal bars next to your head for you to smack on.

EDIT: Btw, seats are designed to not break in a crash, nor are factory 3 point belts designed to allow your body to move in the case of a rollover. This is a common misconception. If either if these things happen and you manage to hit your head on the roll bar mounted behind the seats, the roll bar isn't at fault, your seats and belts didn't do their job.

Smacking your head on a roll cage is a different story though.

Next time it happens, drive with a little pressure on the clutch pedal and see if the noise goes away. If it does go away; it's a throwout bearing chattering.

Throwout bearings make noise while the pedal is being pressed, and none when it isn't, since theres no force being applied to it.

Not to mention it wouldn't just do it at a certain speed or gear.

I'm not sure what exactly it could be, but I'm pretty sure it's not the throwout bearing.

 

[Hugo Boss]

Hey guys, I have a "guess that noise" query for you all, related to my 5-speed manual... Often times (but not every time) when I'm over 45mph whether in gear or in neutral, I get a weird loose-change, rattling sort of sound coming from under/beneath the steering wheel.

When the sound is happening and I press in the clutch, it stops. When I let off the clutch again it starts immediately. This sound doesn't happen in idle or anything else, so I figure it's related to my clutch. I had a look underneath my steering wheel but everything seems fine, nothing loose. I'm missing the pedal stopper on my clutch, but I'll be replacing that soon and I doubt that's the problem... I'm not sure how to diagnose this. I just had my tranny fluid replaced about 1k miles ago.

I appreciate any help if any of you have had similar problems. Thanks.

Are your lug nuts tightened properly?

Once experienced similar problems in a friends car that was serviced recently. Turned out the mechanic didn't tighten the lug nuts properly...

 

[Duke]

Hey guys, I have a "guess that noise" query for you all, related to my 5-speed manual... Often times (but not every time) when I'm over 45mph whether in gear or in neutral, I get a weird loose-change, rattling sort of sound coming from under/beneath the steering wheel.

What kind of car? Sounds to me like the clutch pushrod needs a bushing.

 

[cenk]

Hey guys, I have a "guess that noise" query for you all, related to my 5-speed manual... Often times (but not every time) when I'm over 45mph whether in gear or in neutral, I get a weird loose-change, rattling sort of sound coming from under/beneath the steering wheel.

When the sound is happening and I press in the clutch, it stops. When I let off the clutch again it starts immediately. This sound doesn't happen in idle or anything else, so I figure it's related to my clutch. I had a look underneath my steering wheel but everything seems fine, nothing loose. I'm missing the pedal stopper on my clutch, but I'll be replacing that soon and I doubt that's the problem... I'm not sure how to diagnose this. I just had my tranny fluid replaced about 1k miles ago.

I appreciate any help if any of you have had similar problems. Thanks.

I would check tranny fluid level asap..

2nd options is: wrong fluid

 

[overheating]

The battery in my truck died yesterday. Luckily I made it to work on time, getting home was a pain though. So I picked up a new battery and put it in. However, when putting the positive side post on I stripped the threads. I thought it was seated correctly, was tough to tell though since I could barely get my hand in there. I got it to hold, but it is a little loose, you can shake it with your hand. It started fine this morning, I am just nervous about it popping out. Have any of you fixed something like this before. I dont want to tell my wife that I need to buy another battery.

 

[Keef]

Yea, I'd tend to agree that it's probably not harmful.

If I've been flogging an N/A car up and down the hills, can anyone think of a reason not to just immediately turn it off once it's parked?

Yes, actually. It's called "heat soak" The term can refer to a few automotive-related circumstances, from overheating of intake air or engine oil while flogging, to the raising of coolant and oil temperatures when a flogged engine is turned off suddenly, as is covered in that article. It can result in anything from reduced performance in the first case (early GT500s had considerable heat soak problems on road courses due to their iron block and supercharger conducting to much heat through the oil and intake air), to coolant leaks and fires. Turbocharged cars experience it in the engine oil in particular, and it can result in siezed components.

Say you have an old-ish sports car that isn't really that safe compared to modern cars. Would a racing harness coupled with racing seats make street driving safer in case there is a crash? Just curious. Also, would this be street legal?

I can't comment on legality, but I can on the issue of racing seats versus safety because I've actually been in a crash with a racing seat. Though I was wearing the stock seatbelt, I'm very glad I had that racing bucket because it kept me totally stationary while spinning about and bouncing off a wall. The stock seats were flat as park benches and couldn't even hold me upright while turning a corner on the way to the grocery, much less holding up my thin frame during the violent impacts of a crash. Because of the direction of forces during that crash I probably would have been perfectly fine without a seat belt at all, despite careening into a concrete wall at 100 mph. From a safety point of view, custom-fitted seats like that should be standard equipment. They're totally impractical for getting things out of the glovebox or reaching out the window, but they make driving safer and more comfortable in all situations.

 

[Eric.]

I just got some cheap KYB struts (GR2/Excel-G's) for my MR2. When compressing one of them, I noticed it doesn't have much resistance for the first 2" or so of travel, then after that it stiffens up as much as the other three are at every point in their travel. Is this strut faulty?

 

[Crash]

My roommate drives a 2004 Audi A4. When you turn on the right indicator signal, the front right indicator light will not blink, only the side and rear right indicators will. He has changed the bulb on it, and when he turns on the parking lamps, it lights up, so we know the bulb itself isn't broken. It just won't blink though. Does anyone know what is causing this?