December 27, 2008
How To Auto Repair, Tech/Mechanic
1 Comment
2005 Corvette AC & Heat control door resembles a vertical blind.
Corvette has some amazing engineering! Who needs real doors to control airflow in the HVAC (Heating Ventilation & Air Conditioning) system, when you can have this material that rolls on spools. This is a masterfully designed system that lasts in most cases until the car is just out of warranty. Kidding aside, if you’re experiencing a problem with your Corvette’s air conditioning, this could be the issue. Codes can be stored and attempts at resetting or calibrating will fail. The weak point is where the material attaches to the spool, on the one pictured it was ripped clean away.
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December 14, 2008
Auto Specialty Tools, Calvan Tools, Ford Problems, How To Auto Repair, Mechanics Tools
130 Comments
Calvan 11/16″ drill bit used with air ratchet and 1/2″ socket.
DenLors tools has sold hundreds of the Calvan spark plug repair kits and has had no reported failures. We’ve answered many questions about Ford spark plug thread repairs over the last couple of years and have included them in various places on our site. Now in this auto repair blog ALL of the frequently asked questions to date are posted here in one central location, if you don’t see your question answered, feel free to use the comment form and ask. Included here are questions about repairing spark plug holes after Lisle, Napa, Auto Zone, or other brands may be thicker than the Heli-Coil, but still have managed to fail and allow the spark plug to blow out AGAIN. We are not out to discredit any other spark plug insert company, we just know from our customer feedback what works and what just works for awhile. The questions below answer questions from real customers with this serious problem. We recommend the Calvan Ford spark plug insert repair kit as the best solution for Ford 1998-2004 4.6, 5.4. 6.8 SOHC (2 valve) engines, the following will help show why.
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December 6, 2008
How To Auto Repair
2 Comments
Pinpointing oil, coolant and gas leaks with powder.
OK, maybe Johnson didn’t have this use in mind for their baby powder. But, it can help to pinpoint the origin of leaks. This is particularly true if there’s a leak and the source is not obvious. Baby powder is an inexpensive readily available substance, however it will not change colors when it absorbs fluid like Met-L-Check D70, a leak detection powder that some car manufacturers recommend to help verify automotive fluid leaks. After all a correctly diagnosed leak on the first attempt, saves warranty costs for the dealers.
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November 22, 2008
Consumer, How To Auto Repair, Jeep
4 Comments
Heater door shafts can break causing problems with heat and AC
Jeep Grand Cherokees have a common problem with the dual zone temperature controls. Dual zones, control the temperature on passenger and driver’s sides independently, allowing different preferences.
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October 11, 2008
Apprentice Tech, How To Auto Repair, Power Windows, VW
51 Comments
VW New Beetle rear quarter window regulator kits are available.
In this how to auto blog, we mention the auto tools needed to complete rear quarter window regulator repair on the VW New Beetle. Fair warning though, this job may be too involved for the average DIY (Do It Yourself-er). Labor time in the Mitchell labor guide calls for 2.4 hours each side ( the first time it will probably take longer) for changing the rear quarter window assembly, no extra combination time is listed for installing the repair kit. Getting this job done at the dealer could cost from six to eight hundred dollars, or around two to three hundred for the repair kit installed. Even if you don’t do this job yourself, at least now you know your options.
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June 28, 2008
Consumer, General Interest, How To Auto Repair, jump-n-carry
5 Comments
The way the ground cable is attached in the picture above is incorrect and can cause the small ground wire to overheat from too much current passing through it.
Recently my brother had a dead battery, so I took my jump box to his house to jump start his car. It’s funny how some things are second nature when you’ve done it a thousand times. He had already tried using his new bargain booster box that he had just bought at a local parts store. The less expensive jump boxes usually only have continuity on one jaw of the cable clamp.
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