If you have a Freon leak, on the other hand, you won’t be able to see it—because at room temperature, Freon is a gas, not a liquid. As soon as Freon leaks out of your AC system, it evaporates. To detect a suspected leak, mechanics feed a special dye into the AC system.
AC SYSTEM MAINTENANCE AND REPAIRS
PART
ISSUE
FIX
TIMING
COST
Evaporator
Can leak from age and use over time, or become clogged by particles in the Freon
Replace
Could fail at any time but should last at least 60,000 miles
Replacing this part is very expensive, because just getting to the evaporator (located under the dash in most cars) is labor-intensive. Look to spend at least $750. Since the evaporator and heater core are right next to each other, PCTs recommend replacing both simultaneously.
Condenser
Can leak from age and use over time, or become clogged by particles in the Freon; may also leak as a result of damage caused by rocks and debris
Replace
Could fail at any time but should last at least 60,000 miles
At least $300
Compressor
The compressor and/or compressor clutch will fail from use over time, or due to exposure to moisture or particles in the Freon
Replace
Could fail at any time but should last at least 60,000 miles
This is an expensive part, and the job will likely cost $500 and up
Expansion Valve or Orifice Tube
When this part becomes clogged, the flow of Freon is blocked, causing warm air to blow into the car when the AC is turned on
Replace
Could fail at any time but should last at least 60,000 miles
Less than $500
AC Lines and Hoses
These parts can fail at connections, leaking refrigerant
Replace
Could fail at any time but should last at least 60,000 miles
Varies
HEATING SYSTEM
PART
ISSUE
FIX
TIMING
COST
Heater Hose
Hoses will wear, crack, and fail over time, or from being exposed to excessive heat
Replace
Could fail at any time but should last at least 60,000 miles
Hoses are inexpensive parts, but getting to them can be difficult; replace heater hoses when you replace the heater core
Heater Core
The heater core can leak coolant from age and use or become clogged by particles in the coolant
Replace. Sometimes mechanics turn off the heater control valve, allowing coolant to bypass the heater core. This sacrifices climate control but doesn’t compromise engine function
Could fail at any time but should last at least 60,000 miles
Replacing this part is very expensive because just getting to the heater core (located under the dash in most cars) is labor-intensive. Look to spend at least $750 to replace. Replace simultaneously with evaporator (see page 229) and you will pay only the additional cost of the evaporator
SHARED PARTS
PART
ISSUE
FIX
TIMING
COST
Cabin Air Filter
Becomes clogged with dust and hair
Replace
Per your owner’s manual, or at least once a year if you have kids or pets in the car
Normally less than $40
Blower Motor
Blower motors can quit on you whenever they feel like it
Replace. If the issue is limited to the blower motor resistor, which controls motor speed and airflow, only the resistor will need replacing
Could fail at any time but should last at least 60,000 miles
For motor, varies greatly, from $100 to $750, depending on how easy the part is to access. For resistor only, less than $250
Fan
The electrical fan turned on by the alternator can fail from use over time, or from physical damage caused by rocks or debris being kicked up underneath the car; signs of failure include no or intermittent heat or AC
Replace
Could fail at any time but should last at least 60,000 miles
Less than $500
Signs of an AC or Heat Issue
PROBLEM: Lukewarm air when you want AC
POSSIBLE CAUSES:
• Block in the system. Usually dirt from corrosion or rusting of metal parts, causing lines to be blocked.
• Low coolant level. Freon has leaked (evaporating into thin air) and isn’t around to do its job.
• AC compressor malfunction. Check compressor, serpentine or drive belt, and compressor pulley.
• Fan not working. May need replacing.
PROBLEM: Lukewarm or cold air when you want heat
POSSIBLE CAUSES:
• Block in the heater core. Usually dirt from corrosion or rusting of the engine and other metal parts, causing lines to be blocked.
• Low coolant level. Another reason to stay on top of your coolant.
• Thermostat valve stuck open. May need replacing.
• Fan not working. May need replacing.
PROBLEM: Water on the front passenger-side carpet
POSSIBLE CAUSE:
• Clogged evaporator water drip tube
PROBLEM: No or low airflow
POSSIBLE CAUSES:
• Blower motor or blower motor resistor needs replacing
• Cabin air filter needs replacing
PROBLEM: No change in airflow when you try to increase fan speed, or only the highest speed works
POSSIBLE CAUSE:
• Blower motor or blower motor resistor needs replacing
PROBLEM: Rattling noises when heat or AC is on
POSSIBLE CAUSE:
• Blower motor needs replacing
Gas: The Joys and Pains
There are just a few things I despise in life: traffic, 7:00 A.M. meetings, mosquitoes. Oh, and pumping gas. When you cut things down to the wire like I do, an unexpected five minutes at the gas pump can really put a wrinkle in your day.
Gas is a necessary evil in the lives of many, but fortunately, there are a few things we can all do to reduce the frequency of our trips to the gas station, save money, and help decrease pollution.
Regular, Midgrade, and Premium: What’s the Diff?
Let’s start with a fundamental choice, a decision many of us make in a split second at the pump: what kind of gas to use in our cars. The octane ratings for “regular”-grade fuel range from 85 to 87, with “midgrade” clocking in at 88 to 90 and “premium” at 91 and above. The ratings correspond to the fuel’s blend and additives, which determine the temperature at which the fuel is burned. Typically, you get a choice between 87, 89, and 93.
Contrary to popular belief, burning premium fuel doesn’t translate into extra energy in your car. Gasoline engines are designed to burn fuel at certain temperatures, so putting premium fuel in an engine designed to burn regular gas is just a waste of your money. Higher-octane premium fuels allow more advanced engine designs to pull additional power from each gallon of gasoline. These fuels are used in high-performance gasoline engines, such as those found in a Mercedes or BMW.
Using fuel with lower octane than the one your engine calls for willaffect power and performance and wear out your spark plugs faster. You may hear a pinging in the engine or see the check-engine light come on. The higher-octane gas will result in a nicer ride in luxury vehicles designed for performance and power. You may decrease engine performance and eventually create problems if you do this regularly. But you will not do significant damage to your engine by occasionally using regular if your owner’s manual calls for premium. Think of it this way: If you can’t afford premium gas, you can’t afford a luxury car.
How can you find out what kind of gas to use? Check your owner’s manual or the inside of
the car’s fuel door.
What About Diesel?
Used in certain cars and large trucks, diesel fuel is generally more expensive than gasoline—but it is also more efficient. Diesel can be used only by diesel engines, which spontaneously combust the gas (heating and compressing it to the point where it explodes on its own, without the aid of a spark).
Gas pumps are designed to make it very difficult or impossible to accidentally use the wrong gas, but do not put diesel gasoline in a gas engine. You will damage your fuel system.
Don’t Top Off Your Gas Tank!
Whether you’re trying to save a penny, avoid the gas station, or nudge the payment to an even $30.00 instead of that pesky $29.53, when you top off your gas tank, you risk causing damage to your vehicle and polluting the environment. In order to leave room for your emissions and fuel systems to operate properly, gas pumps are specifically designed to turn off when fuel reaches a certain level in your tank. Overriding that function is a very bad idea, and there are three reasons why.
1. Your gas tank contains both liquid fuel and vapors. Fuel expands, especially when it’s hot out. As it expands, vapors are forced out of the fuel tank and into your car’s emissions system, where they are collected and stored. Eventually, they are rerouted to the engine, where they are burned along with liquid fuel pumped from the tank. If you top off your tank, liquid fuel will be forced into an emissions system that is designed to admit only fuel vapors. This can damage the emissions system and set off your check-engine light. You’ll need to replace damaged parts of the emissions system, most likely the evaporative charcoal canister.
2. Additional gas you try to pump into your tank may be drawn back into the vapor line and fed back into the pump. Whoops. Now you just paid for gas that was returned to the station. It’s pennies, but still.
3. Any time you top off your tank, you increase the likelihood of spilling gas on the ground and releasing gas vapors into the air, both of which are very bad for the environment.
The moral of the story? Top off your coffee, not your gas tank.
No Living on E
I’m a last-minute girl. Planning, cleaning, cooking for a party, catching a plane, driving to work. You name it. Take my habit of waiting until my gas tank was on E . . . and then waiting a bit longer before getting gas. Hey, I ran out of gas only that one time! Little did I know, my trick for avoiding the gas station had some big ramifications.
Here’s why: When you do finally get your rear end to the gas station, that liquid gold flows into a large tank located directly beneath the backseat. A pump propels the fuel to the front of the car, so that it can be injected into the engine. That pump must be working efficiently—and the fuel itself is essential to that process, because it also acts as a lubricant and coolant for the hardworking pump. When you run your tank on empty, the pump has to work a whole lot harder and may burn out. Now no gas is getting to the engine, and your car won’t start. Your procrastinating ways could cost you a tow, along with the price of having a new fuel pump installed. Not a cheap job. To avoid getting into the danger zone, make sure you always have at least a quarter tank’s worth of gas.
Running on fumes can damage your fuel pump—stay well out of the red zone to save yourself $$$.
Your Wheels, Your $$$: Ways to Increase Fuel Economy
Want to find out how to lower your gas bill and reduce your trips to the gas station? Follow these tips for fuel economy and optimal vehicular health.
• Keep tires inflated to the proper air pressure. Low tire pressure will cause greater fuel consumption.
• Regularly attend to oil and air filter changes and tune-ups.
• Do not ignore the check-engine light, which comes on when the vehicle is not burning fuel efficiently. Take your car to your PCT to find out why the light is on.
• Remove any extra load. In other words, clean out your ride.
• Don’t drive like a New York City cabbie. Hard braking and fast acceleration eat gas.
• Just say no to speed racing. The faster you drive, the more drag on the vehicle, the more work the engine must do, the more gas you burn. Try to keep the rpm (gauge on dashboard) around 2, which stands for 2,000 revolutions per minute. Still pretty darn fast.
Part iii
COMMON ROADSIDE PROBLEMS (AND A MINI BUYER’S GUIDE)
Buy, Sell, Ditch: How to Avoid a Clunker (or Tell When Your Car Has Become One) and Buy a Car You Can Afford
Remember when you first started driving? The thrill of passing the big test, that first time you pulled out of your parents’ driveway and peeled away on your own? I’ll never love another car the way I loved my first. But I wish that instead of just grilling me on obscure traffic regulations, the driver’s test had given me some inkling of the responsibility involved not just in driving, but in actually owning a car.
Before I went to auto tech school, that responsibility wasn’t on my radar at all. When I was ready to purchase a car, I’d head to the dealership, pick a car I liked out of a lineup, test-drive it, and take it home. I didn’t think about other factors that might affect me and my wallet. Terms like horsepower meant nothing to me, and I had no idea of the difference between a V-6 and a V-8 engine. If the car looked good and felt good to drive, I took it home. Maybe in my next life I’ll be reborn as a wheeler and dealer.
In this chapter we’re going to talk about buying and selling cars, but I’m not going to give you my top ten negotiation tips or tell you how to finance your rig. Those aren’t my areas. What I am going to cover is what all #shecanics must know: understanding the true cost of owning a car. Knowing what you’ll really be paying over the car’s lifetime will help you purchase the right car, and then know when it’s time to end your love affair.
Before You Buy
Having a good relationship with your car starts with choosing the right car. Because the amount of attention and care a car requires can vary a whole lot, the decision will have serious ramifications for your wallet. I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I purchased my first brand-new car, and later ran into many repairs I couldn’t afford. Cue buyer’s remorse, three years after my purchase. I wanted to blame the mechanics, the dealerships, the manufacturer—everyone. But ultimately I hadn’t chosen the right car for me. I didn’t know how.
Understanding the Costs of Ownership
One thing I say in all my workshops is that every part on a car will fail eventually. Everything on your car that moves can break, wear, rust, malfunction, or lose efficiency. Members of the #shecanic community rallied to console a poster named Mary who tallied up an astronomical list of repairs on her Mini Cooper, but in fact nothing on her list was unusual or uncommon. Still, the $5,000 quote on her six-year-old car was heartbreaking.
Mary’s misfortune started when she purchased her car.
A Mini Cooper is a moderately priced vehicle, which many car buyers might think of as a midrange choice. But in fact, a Mini Cooper (while super cute) is also a car that is both unique and European. Its parts, including the engine, are manufactured by BMW. For this reason, the cost of repairs on Mini Coopers can be astronomical.
A car doesn’t have to be a luxury model to cost an arm and a leg to maintain and repair. Often European cars come with higher price tags for both parts and labor, and it can be difficult to find qualified technicians to fix them outside the dealerships where they are sold. Being able to afford the car’s initial sticker price doesn’t mean you’ll be able to afford maintenance a few years down the line, and Mary’s dilemma is an example of how repair costs can overwhelm you several years after the purchase.
The true cost of owning a car involves many factors besides the initial purchase price. Make sure you understand the prices associated with each when buying a car.
1. Interest on financing—how much the bank that is financing your car loan is charging in interest per year.
2. Depreciation—how much value the car loses each year.
3. Fuel—the gasoline or fue
l you need. Does the vehicle require regular or premium?
4. Insurance—auto insurance, including personal liability, collision, comprehensive, and roadside assistance. Don’t forget gap insurance, which covers the gap between your insurance plan and your car loan in the event of a total loss. Say, for example, that you obtain a loan to purchase a new car worth $30,000. After a year, you get into an accident and total the car. Your insurance company values the totaled car at $20,000. But you still owe $25,000 on the car note. Gap insurance covers the $5,000 difference. Without it, you’d have to pay out of pocket.
5. Tags and registration—state vehicle registration renewal, inspections, and emissions tags.
6. Maintenance and repairs—tires, oil changes, and all other maintenance and repairs necessary to keep your vehicle operational. Most luxury brands offer a free short-term maintenance package, normally over the first three years after purchase. But don’t assume that three years of “free” maintenance will automatically save you money. Even with their plushy maintenance plans, luxury brands can still be more expensive over the long term, when those repair costs eventually become yours to manage.
Fortunately, a very useful online tool can help you calculate these costs before you contract a case of delayed sticker shock like Mary’s. Featuring new and lightly used cars (five years or less), the online True Cost to Own calculator covers the first five years of ownership. Head over to http://www.edmunds.com/tco.html to check it out.
How’s My Driving?
In order to determine if you can afford the true cost of a car you want to purchase, you must understand your driving and spending habits. Let’s get honest here, #shecanics. What’s your current relationship with your car? Do you take good care of it? Drive it responsibly? I abused my cars and still do. I sometimes brake hard, I strain the transmission by accelerating too fast, I often waste gas by speeding. And in the past I waited until the last minute to take care of maintenance and repairs. I’m a prime candidate for a car that can take a beating, with a long warranty and low repair costs. If you know you are going to beat up the car and are not committed to changing your relationship style, that’s your best bet, too.
Girls Auto Clinic Glove Box Guide Page 17