Timeline for How to prioritize repairs?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
8 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 8, 2013 at 13:24 | comment | added | Brian Knoblauch | For a 2004 vehicle, I'd say struts are overdue. OEM struts for GMs (in my experience) are only good for 5-6 years. You'd want the alignment to go along with that. Swapping suspension parts will throw off the alignment a surprising amount (even unbolting and rebolting the same exact piece back in!). Other than that, I'm not a believer in alignments every year. I offroad my cars and would take my cars in to get an alignment done every year, only to be told each time that it didn't need it and was still spot on. | |
| Jul 8, 2013 at 9:40 | comment | added | Nick C♦ | I disagree on alignment - it's easy for things to be knocked out of alignment by potholes etc. Also, if you have any work done on the suspension, such as replacing the struts, a wheel alignment will be essential afterwards. | |
| Jul 8, 2013 at 2:18 | comment | added | Bob Cross♦ | @Yamikuronue, bad struts are easy to test. See this: mechanics.stackexchange.com/questions/4031/… The effects of bad struts might not be immediately obvious in town (you learn to tolerate them). However, after they're replaced, it's startling. E.g., "gee, I can go around an entrance ramp without bouncing on the outside wheels!" | |
| Jul 7, 2013 at 3:33 | comment | added | R.. GitHub STOP HELPING ICE | ... a busted intake manifold gasket (only on vehicles where both oil and coolant pass side-by-side across this gasket; I'm not clear on how common that is -- anyway, this one is a pain to change but nowhere near as bad as the head gasket!), or a leak in the transmission fluid cooling lines to the radiator (the easiest and cheapest possible cause of the problem; this one only applies to automatic transmissions). | |
| Jul 7, 2013 at 3:31 | comment | added | R.. GitHub STOP HELPING ICE | If oil is getting into the coolant, or vice versa, this is a serious problem you need to get fixed. There are various ways this can happen though and I'm not confident the shop you took it to has done anything to determine the cause; they may just be planning to try something (the intake manifold gasket), take your money, and wait for you to come back again if the problem isn't solved. The major ways you can get oil in the cooling system are a busted head gasket (worst), ... | |
| Jul 6, 2013 at 15:01 | comment | added | Yamikuronue | Also every time I go in they say my struts are awful but I've not noticed a problem while driving so maybe that's on their list of scammy things to recommend | |
| Jul 6, 2013 at 14:59 | comment | added | Yamikuronue | They said something about finding oil in the coolant or vice versa, is why they suggested the gasket. Is this something I can verify myself? | |
| Jul 6, 2013 at 6:10 | history | answered | R.. GitHub STOP HELPING ICE | CC BY-SA 3.0 |