QTDDTOT : Questions That Don't Deserve Their Own Thread

What does the panel removal tool look like?

The video I watched had something similar to this.

depends on the system but you most likely at least need the key on

what kind of vehicle? most vehicles especially older GM the dash literally comes apart like Lego, you shouldnt need a panel tool. if its something that you do need one, you can try a flathead screwdriver with a rag on the end of it but that may still leave marks

but i have taken many dashes apart and the only one i needed a removal tool for was my girlfriends 98 Civic, otherwise i only use removal tools for door panels

should be, my vehicles that burn oil i run 15w-40 in summer. my Chevy Silverado burns enough oil that before roadtrips i run 5L of 10w-30 and 1L of gear oil

never heard of that but dont worry unless it happens again

Unless your testing the battery, No.

You can probably use an assortment of Screwdrivers in place of those.

I thought you might mean Radio removal tools which look like these.

if you have a tool for installing bake tires, those work well.

In a car without AC, where does the air for the ventilation system come from? Is it the air that goes through the engine or what?

Also does it have some sort of filter, because I get large chunks of leaves blown in

It is a gm vehicle (Saturn), I'm concerned the I'll fuck something up with a screwdriver or leave marks. Worth a shot if it's all I can find

A couple pieces came with the radio that look similar to those, not sure what they're for

For a bike tire? I may have some of those around, thanks

There are usually vents just between where the dash and hood are, where the blower motor sits and sucks air in.

Most older cars have very little in the way of air filters for the blower so if you're getting leaves coming in then youll need to probably clean off the grate that covers the blower motor.

Those tools are for removing the radio they l slide into the sides to pop loose the spring loaded catches that hold the radio in.

Never posted in Veeky Forums before, but I figure this is the place to go for my question. I just bought a 1993 Honda Elite 80 scooter (pic related), but there's no muffler so I can't really ride it late at night without pissing off everyone in my general vicinity. Anyone know where I could find a muffler for one of these things? Should I ask a local scooter shop or wait until something pops up on craigslist? Is there any other way I could make it quieter?

Depends on what you need to measure voltage from.
If you need to check the battery or fuses or one of the few constantly-on circuits (like cigarette lighter on some cars or part of the ignition system) then you can leave everything off, but for pretty much everything else you have to turn the key to the run position and turn on everything except the engine.

Air comes from an intake somewhere in the back of the engine bay, usually right under the windshield where the wipers are, it comes from the same place regardless of the presence of an AC system.

Usually there is a filter right after the intake and before the fan to stop shit from getting to your face and/or clogging the fan, but old or very basic cars usually don't have one.

Check online to see if you have one, maybe for some weird reason somebody took it out and didn't replace it.

My first post on this board. Looking to buy my first car (had a license for a few years, been driving the family Twinko).
I'd like something relatively cheap to buy, reliable, w/ turbo and relatively simple to fiddle with so I could pick up the basics of car maintenance and modification.
Is first gen Impreza turbo a terrible choice? Are replacement part for it rare and expensive, because it's old?

Recommended weight is 5w-30

Are muffler bypasses illegal in California? Are there stipulations on where they're located, i.e. behind muffler, behind cat, etc.?

I live like 5 minutes from the border. What's stopping me from buying a car in Mexico and bringing it over?

>cleaning pistons
>the last out of 8 piston rings snapped

do i have to replace all of them? i do, don't i

no, it's not a terrible choice, but they need maintenance. Parts are fairly cheap, and work is not difficult, but they're not exactly corolla tier reliable. I own a '97 STi myself.

buy a s13 silvia you'd wanna hope you can learn real quick nigga

You'll have to register it, and if Its younger than 25 years you won't be able to register it.

Thicker oil is ok to run in the summer.

Mufflers are not that expensive, go to a shop and get yourself a proper muffler.
There is not much you can do except installing the missing part

Thanks for the reply. Anything I should look out for when buying one?
Unfortunately Silvias are pretty much unavailable in my country. Also, I want an Impreza for the aesthetic and nostalgia reasons.

bump

Don't buy one that's running really rich, unless you plan on fixing this right away. If you just drive it around running rich the IACV will get clogged up, your oil will dirty, and the car will just not run very well. I made this mistake and paid the price for it. It won't ruin the car, but it will cost money to fix.

Should I sell my '91 2.6 300e to someone on Veeky Forums?

Going to attempt valve adjustment on the k20. I was thinking I would just leave the hood open for 3-4 hours to let it cool, but I heard somewhere that you have to let the engine sit for 24+ hours before doing a valve adjustment. I like to work efficiently and I have a 10 hour window of time with which I want to do the valves and a few other things, and I don't want to put it off for another week.

wat do?

thanks for an informative thread Veeky Forums

Retrofitting an old refridgerant system with new r134a ona 92 sable. Anyone experienced with this? Car only has 45k miles on it, but the old lady burned up the clutch with coolant leaks apparently.

Would you consider a Craigslist ad that mainly just says COLD AC a red flag? Can there person really not elaborate on anything else? I mean fuck I just want to know what's wrong and I'll try and fix it myself.

How shitty is driving with an exhaust leak?

When I'm deleting something from the car what should I do with the connectors?
For instance the a/c compressor switch I just cut the wire and wrapped electrical tape around it is there a normal procedure for this because I have alot of connectors dangling at this point.

Take a pyrometer and check the temperature when it hits ambient temperature (outside temp) you're fine.
Yes CL 101, you could go check it out and ask but it'll be a pos more often than not with an ad like that.
From experience, YES

Cut the connector, insulate the wires and pull the fuse if it doesn't protect other circuits

my brakes are lumpy

how much will this cost to repair?

Front wheel hub came apart in the knuckle. The rubber seal remains on the knuckle. The hub rolls smoothly in both directions and the grease that was visible looks clean and smells fine.

Can I reuse this? I'd rather not have to replace it at this time financially, but could if I had to.

Should I leave the seal on the knuckle and sandwich it back on or peel it off and then press it back into the hub? I'm afraid of stretching or tearing it with the ladder, but I'd like to clean the knuckle up with the wheel and some fresh paint.

Tl;Dr
>Wheel hub rubber seal stuck to the knuckle
>Wheel hub rotates freely and smells fine
>Grease appears to be good
>Should I remove the seal and then push it back into the hub or leave it and clean up around it?

$40 to $200. Do it yourself you'll save $200.

Would you pay $5900 for this?
Gonna ask about the timing belts and headgaskets when I test drive it. Has a clean carfax if that means shit
Also not looking forward to having to mod the stereo myself since there's no AUX
I'm sold on a turbo outback but I'm trying to find the right one and I have about $6000 from an insurance settlement
cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/667897538/overview/

I can get a new Jeep Patriot 4x4 manual transmission for 15.5k OTD
I live in the snow so the 4x4 would be nice

Also thinking paying 5k more and getting a fiesta st for the fun and the memes

Cant decide senpai help

So I accidentally twisted this damping adjustment knob in the front wheels now both sides don't match. Reading the manual it has 30 levels (level 0 is hard) and factory level is 8. I want to do some readjustment.

The car is not very low (10cm clearance, about 4") but sometimes it scratches the speed bump. After some researching it appears that softer suspension can climb and fall across the speed bump smoother.

I want to adjust the suspension softer. Thinking the extremities, question is what happens if I go all the way to level 30 (the softest level)?

wat do?

i've only ever done drums before and i'm worried it's the rotors

You might be able to save the rotors by having them resurfaced. Depends on how bad they are.

I have been looking at and test driving cars for 2 years now. I can't convince myself to buy anything, everything in my budget feels like it has too many compromises or mechanical problems. Are all vehicles under ~$5k shit or am I just a retard who makes bad picks?

all cars under 5k are shit.

Pls respond

>all cars under 5k are shit.
this guy is right. Take it from me who's been burned several times in the past buying cars below $5k. Vehicle age and miles WILL fuck up ANY car, even "quality" ones.

so I just replaced my mostly clogged cat with a test pipe because the cat was causing a nasty sounding exhaust leak and now the car is loud as tits. how easily will cops here in cali be able to tell that I'm running a test pipe?

I'm also pretty low, so it would be hard to look under to see it and eventually I'm going to hollow out the cat so it'll be a test pipe in disguise

where did you get that photo?

Chrisfix on YouTube has a video on rock chips,

If you get a Jeep, you're a retard. If you're worried about the snow but also want to have fun, just get a WRX.

I'm really not trying to spend more than $50 on a new muffler (I am broke right now); could I really get a muffler for that cheap? I was considering making a homemade muffler like this: scooter.wikia.com/wiki/Building_a_can_in_can_muffler

There is another problem that I just noticed though. Since the old muffler broke off where it meets the header pipe (apparently a common problem with the Elite 80), I'm not sure where I would mount the muffler. Could I drill though the header pipes and screw the muffler in though the drilled holes? Obviously sounds like a bad idea, but would it at least work for now until I can buy real parts? Also, sorry if I sound like an idiot; I'm not very knowledgeable about this kind of stuff.

its old dude

its a Halloween thing

Cant afford wrx
lurk enough to know chrysler a shit but whats wrong with jeep?
Everyone i know has been trying to talk me into it
(Please talk me out of it)

Soft means the movement of the car will not be damped as much and the suspension will possibly travel further than before.
While this my translate in a way more comfy ride, it could cause problems in situations where there is a sudden weight transfer (like when braking hard or doing quick left-right turns) causing excessive suspension travel which may result in even more scraping.

Keep in mind dampers don't influence your static weight (that is done by changing springs or regulating ride height with the bezel of coilovers), they only change how fast and how much weight is transfered, thus influencing how fast and how far your suspensions move.

I don't think your dampers may be too soft even in the softest setting, but another risk is the car bouncing excessively after a bump if that's the case, you will notice immediately anyway.

Anyway, trying a few settings won't hurt you if you are not an idiot, so go ahead and see for yourself what gives you the best compromise between comfort, suspension travel and scraping.

I mean if you are completely broke then go with the DIY muffler, but it will look nigger rigged as fuck.

Aren't mufflers mandatory where you live? Because that makeshift muffler still doesn't count as a proper muffler and will be illegal just as if you go without it.

Just give a shop a call or look online to see how much new ones cost

Why are cylinder configurations commonly used in an even number form?

>Like V6, V8. V10, etc and not V3, V5?

Meant to say "static height", not weight

how would you balance an actual V5

VW made a V5 engine. Just like a V6, they are inherently imbalanced. Usually balance shafts are used to smooth them out.

Thanks, any key info i need to know about mixed stiffness? (eg. soft at front wheels, stiff at rear wheels) The car is an FR

I drive a 98 Mazda 626 with the 5 speed manual v6 and I have noticed off and on recently that it will get like a raspy clicking any idea?doesn't seem like it's the engine itself causing it, doesn't happen when I'm at a stop just when I'll be at about 3 to 4k rpm in 2/3/4

fuck no
boxer engine
turbo
old
4wd
raped to death by teenagers

maybe get a gt starlet?

Soft rear and stiff front will make your back squat faster under accelerstion, thus giving you a little bit more traction, but without raising the nose too fast and losing grip at the front. On the other hand, breaking hard will make your rear lift quickly and your front dive not as much, giving you marginally less grip at the front (compared to a softer front) and less grip at the rear.
Overall it's a slightly understeering setup when accelerating (with the traction bonus) and a slightly oversteering setup when braking.

Stiff rear and soft front will make your nose lift faster under acceleration and your rear squat slower. Again an understeering setup which may or may not give you more traction than before, depending on the weight distribution of your car among other things.
The same setup will make your car more stable when braking tough, the fast front dive will give the front wheels all the load they need, while the back won't raise as quickly, giving you more time before you start getting into oversteer territory.

Notice I said the car rises/dives "faster", not "more".
Damping only affects the speed at which the movements happen, not the distance traveled by the suspension, give it enough time and the total suspension travel will be the same, it only happens slower or faster depending on the softness of the dampers.
The softer the damper, the faster the weight moves to/from that part of the car. You can use this to give you more load in certain situations (like at the front when braking) or to slow down the degrade of performance on one side of the car (like at the front when accelerating).

It's quite hard to explain in one post, but I suggest you google how racing dampers work to understand this kind of dynamics.
Anyway don't be afraid to test a lot, go with the extremes first to get a feel of how a car feels like when it's full soft and full hard, then start experimenting with mixes.

Because even numbered cylinders are typically easier to balance, the calculations and manufacturing processes needed to balance odd numbered cylinders correctly and cheaply hasn't been done until recently, because of computers

does a better exhaust system and cold air intake actually do something if we're talking about some regular shitbox and not a sports car? no bully please

Hey Veeky Forums I was looking at buying my 5th car, just totaled the last one and will be getting an insurance cheque for around $3500, so I don't have much to work with. Was looking at getting this
charleston.craigslist.org/cto/5652739080.html
It's the 95 GT, so it has the mazda v6, vinned it and it seems like it was decently taken care of by it's previous owners (idk about the guy selling it though) and I know they have problems but do you think this would be an unrealistic DD? I only work like 5 miles away, but I have to go on a major highway and bridge and I don't think mopeds are even allowed on it (a moped was my plan for a backup in case I can't find a car)

Plz help

He also said the water pump was leaking, and he has the timing belt and water pump but doesn't know how to do it, he also has a new compressor for the ac. I'm guessing he has $0 to have it done and doesn't know how to do it?

Should I use the lowering springs that are sitting in my garage to lower my car even though the suspension is completely stock? The roads around me are fairly nice, and I don't think I'll damage them. Just want your opinions.

Yeah. More airflow = more performance. You may not get a lot out of it like you might in an actual performance car, but it might be slightly noticeable along with the car sounding better. What do you drive?

i'm thinking about getting pic related.
would there be any legal problems if i were to attach a front and rear bullbar?

i live in the south and people just drive so fucking aggressive, they think it's fun to get close as possible to tailgating you. i drive a decent car unlike them and don't want it screwed up. half them are driving lifted f-150 trucks absolutely covered in bullbars. there should be nothing stopping me right? it might look funny on a early bmw but i really need a rear one at least.

Go ahead if you know you won't be scraping.
I assume the springs are also stiffer so prepare for a quite noticeable degrade in ride comfort

>I'd like something relatively cheap to buy, reliable, w/ turbo and relatively simple to fiddle with so I could pick up the basics of car maintenance and modification.
get something like a starlet

79kw Clio 2

it's just my friend has this Clio Sport intake lying around and the whole exhaust system needs a lot of work, so I was wondering if a couple of extra bucks for sporty parts would make any difference

yes it will, also a good stainless exhaust should come with a lifetime guarantee

alright thanks a lot man

...

Good tire brands in general?
If possible, specifically for Miatas.

I have 350K with me. I've been thinking of investing it in real estate but I think that's not a sufficient amount for that. I have never tried this but is investing on cars a good idea? If you think that's a good idea, what kind of cars are the best to invest on? For under 300k what cars would you suggest?
All inputs welcome.
Thanks.

The Ford GT is a nice investment.

You can find them from 250K-290K with 4K-9K miles on them.

Porsche Cayman GT4?
Shelby GT350(R)?
Acura NSX?

What car is the Lightning McQueen based on?

bump no bully

So fucking hot

If you put grease on your car will it be more aerodynamic?

Ok, what about bugeye WRX station wagon? They go for about the same dosh as 1st gen turbo sedans and I would guess being less ancient and less probability of being abused by a tosser due to body type would make them a slightly more sensible choice?

Want more aerodynamics? Put duct tape on all panel gaps.

What's a bobweight?

"We then figure your exact bobweight and balance the crankshaft to that exact bobweight"

Tried googling that shit and finding out myself and found nothing, but maybe I just suck at searching for stuff.

Is this too good to be true?

Says two previous owners and clean carfax report but this car seems pretty cheap..

What precautions should I take before buying?

everyone and their mom has one of those

Its probably over priced actually.

My black 07 GT was 16k when I bought it like 4 years ago for around the same mileage, take that how you will.