Locate an Auto Repair Shop in Little Creek, Delaware

Little Creek, DE Car Consumer Discussions

Re: 09s vs 10s [ruperttenma]

by kshankar on Tue Nov 24 12:22:37 PST 2009

Did you speak to the person at Infiniti of Lisle? Also some folks here are getting 10K off 2010s so I would try that first. Remember it pays to travel for the right car. For example, I was looking at the inventory of Infiniti of Coconut Creek in Florida, and they have AWD Black with wheat interior, premium pkg, and deluxe touring pkg FX35 in stock. Since I do not want nav, that is nicely equipped. Also they state, if you can give them a written offer of a deal or an email you received, they will beat the payments by $50 or you get $5000. It could be a gimmick, but I am testing them with quotes I have received. I will travel for the right car at the right price.

Re: . [fintail]

by andre1969 on Mon Nov 23 10:38:47 PST 2009

I've never seen any really bad school bus drivers. Come on out to my neck of the woods, and you'll see plenty of them. Heck, I even remember my freshman year in highschool, 1984-85, our bus driver would regularly blast up the shoulder to get around all the stopped traffic. At that point, our turn was coming up anyway, but it was a good quarter mile away, and if anyone decided to make that right turn where you're supposed to, there's a good chance our bus would have nailed them. There's also a metro bus stop along there, where people would just wait on the shoulder. More than a few times, she would scatter them as she blasted through. It's probably a miracle that nobody called the cops on her. I also remember, as a kid, this one bus used to regularly pull into our yard, so it could turn around and save a few minutes rather than go to the end of the road or find a safe place to do it. I put a big branch in the yard at that spot so it wouldn't do it anymore, and the driver tried to turn around in the neighboring driveway, which was a really tight squeeze, and almost ended up in the creek along the road. She did end up bending one of the reflectors that lined the road. Well, my stepdad got on me for putting that tree branch there, and made me move it. And sure enough, the next day, that bus turned around again in that spot. I got the number of the bus, and saw it at my own school (we were on a later schedule) and told the driver to knock it off. She wasn't the least bit apologetic, and seemed more annoyed that it messed with her schedule. Sorry, but those bus schedules aren't supposed to be based on the driver's turning around in people's yards! Plus, the ground is soft down there, so it's a good thing she didn't do it after a good rain! In more recent times, I've had school buses tailgate me, when I do the speed limit through a residential neighborhood. And one time, I had a driver get mouthy with me. I think I was bringing in the trash cans or something like that, when this bus comes flying up over the hill. I motioned the driver to slow down. She didn't. Well, a few days later, I happened to be out there again, when she came flying through. Motioned her to slow down. She actually stopped. opened her door, and wanted to know what MY problem was! And when I told her to slow it down, no apology or anything. She just told me that I need to stop every bus that goes through there and tell them all the same thing. I just told her that no, I saw HER going too fast through there, she needs to cut it out, and I spend too damn much in property taxes to be disrespected by a county employee hotrodding in a bus that MY tax dollars are paying for. Needless to say, the next day she did it again. I ended up figuring out her route, and a few days later, got in front of her and went a little extra slow, probably for about two miles. Did it a few more times, and eventually she got the message and started going another route. Turns out she was just using our road for a shortcut, and didn't actually drop any kids off on it. Now that I think about it, there was one that rolled through a little extra fast, around 7:15 this morning. I might have to do something about that.

Re: Transmission Problem Symptom [kumaranm]

by zaken1 on Mon Nov 23 10:27:04 PST 2009

What you describe is a typical symptom of an excessively lean fuel mixture. At the mileage on your car; I would suspect the fuel filter has become clogged. So have the fuel filter changed, and see what effect this has on the problem.

Need some input. AC, Heat and front defroster

by msnettie2u on Sat Nov 21 22:54:16 PST 2009

I have a 03 Honda Accord EX V6 coupe. Suddenly, the A/C, Heater and defroster stopped working. Since I am having GREAT difficulties getting Steven creek Honda in San Jose to address the issue (dealerships are crooks). They stated it was a relay, but won't tell me which one. I am lucky I love working on cars and will just fix it myself.. My question: Is it a relay under the hood or the blower motor relay???? Both are easy to change. I need to get it working before Wed.... leaving for Thanksgiving and not really looking to the trip without defrosters and heat. Thanks.... eager to know more.

FJ Cruiser or Jeep for beginner

by flifshr on Tue Nov 17 10:29:37 PST 2009

I have read the posts and need some help from the experts. I am not and experience off-roader who want to climb vertical cliffs. I am however a fly-fisherman who want to get back to the native creeks and up and down the mountain trails that my old legs will not allow me to hike. It will also be a transportation vehicle -- not just for the fun. I have looked at and driven the FJ Cruiser and Jeep Wrangler/Rubicon 4dr. I also tend to get obsessive about things once I get started. I am in a dilema on which way to go -- need expert input. I looked at the Rubicon model because it seems to be the Jeep product that has reliability and integrity. The brand new sport wrangler would not back up over the dealers embankment for a test drive -- they tried not me. The FJ appeared well made and got some decent off road reports out of consumers report but dinged on the mileage and safety. Which car would you recommend for me? Is a 4 Runner set up for trails or something else a better option to get as a started????

Re: 1990 Geo Metro Convertable Engine Will Not Start. [cj7jeeper]

by zaken1 on Sat Nov 14 00:36:06 PST 2009

Before you start testing for spark anywhere; it is essential to understand that you cannot jumper across the ignition switch on a Metro to make the engine run. There is an anti theft circuit built into this electrical system which shuts down the spark if you jumper across the ignition switch (even when the key is turned on). So you must have all the wiring connected in the stock routing. A> The next thing to check is to remove the distributor cap and have someone watch the rotor while the engine is being cranked. If the rotor does not turn steadily as the engine is cranked; then the timing belt has broken or slipped out of position. If the rotor does turn; then turn the crankshaft until the timing marks line up at the 6 degrees BTDC position. At that position; the tip of the rotor should either be pointing STRAIGHT UP, OR STRAIGHT DOWN. If it points anywhere else; the timing belt has jumped out of position. You say you have no spark; but you didn't specify the location where you found there was no spark. This can be critically important; because the spark can be blocked by something as basic as a defective ignition switch. If that were the case; and you hadn't first checked to see if there was battery supply voltage at the coil positive terminal, you could spend a fortune replacing every part in the entire ignition system, and never see any improvement. So, to do ignition diagnosis properly, and avoid needless waste of money; you need to start at the source, and then work step by step along the entire path from the battery to the spark plug.. B> Make sure you're getting full battery power to the coil; and confirm a voltmeter reading with a large bulb (24 watt stoplight or equivalent) to be sure that the voltage is maintained when an appreciable current is being drawn from the power source. A bad test reading could come from high internal resistance in the ignition switch, or a poor connection between the battery ground cable and the engine; or between the battery ground cable and the inner fender. There MUST be a solid conection between the battery and BOTH of those points. C> If you get a confirmed voltage and power supply at the coil; check the igniter by connecting a good, old fasioned point dwell meter between ground and the coil negative lead. Crank the starter; and you should see a dwell reading of somewhere between 25% and 75% of the maximum number of degrees on the scale. So, if you had the dwell scale set to 8 cylinders, where 45 degrees is the maximum possible reading; you should get a reading somewhere between 11 degrees (which is about 25% of 45) and 33 degrees (which is about 75% of 45). If you use the 6 cylinder dwell scale, where 60 degrees is the maximum possible reading; your reading should be between 15 degrees and 45 degrees. It really doesn't matter which number of cylinders scale you use; it is only the PERCENTAGE of the full scale reading that we care about, and that will be the same regardless of which dwell scale is used. D> If the dwell meter test comes out good; then test for spark directly between the coil high voltage terminal and ground. First check the resistance of the coil to distributor cap high voltage wire with an ohmmeter. The resistance should be less than 1,000 ohms per inch of wire length (so a 12" long wire should have less than 12,000 ohms resistance, etc. If the resistance is greater than that; replace the entire set of plug wires.) Just hold the end of the coil to distributor cap wire about 1/4" to 1/2" from a metal part on the engine (with your hand at least 6 inches back from the end), and crank the motor. If there is no spark in that test and all of the previous tests were good; then either the coil is defective (or the wrong model part for this car) or the distributor pick up coil is defective (even though you said it tested good). E> If you have a spark at the coil, but not at the plugs; then with the distributor cap off and the rotor in place, hold the end of the coil wire next to the metal blade on the rotor while the engine is cranked. There should NOT be a spark to the rotor in this test. If there is a spark; the rotor is grounded and must be replaced. F> If the rotor tests good, and there is no spark to the plugs; then either the distributor cap or the plug wires are bad. G> Whenever there has been a lot of driving with an ignition problem; the spark plugs can build up conductive deposits which will then make the engine run badly; even after the problem is fixed. So it is always good insurance to replace the plugs. Please note that Metro engines are highly sensitive to both plug brand and gap setting. I strongly recommend avoiding NGK plugs in this motor (although I use them on other vehicles where they are an appropriate choice) and suggest using only Autolite # 63, ACDelco # R42CXLS, Champion Truck Plug # 4430, or Bosch # 4306 platinum +2, or Bosch Fusion # 4506. I hope this helps!!!