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Demystifying Buying a Used Diesel Engine

November 7, 2010 By 1 Comment

We at Low Mileage Engines get a lot of calls from customers who desperately need replacement diesel engines. This is natural since our company offers some of the best values in the country on used diesel engines. I think we stand heads above our closest competitors both in warranty, availability of low mileage units, and delivery time. Many of our customers know exactly what they want before they ever call us, but we also have customers who request that we walk them through different diesel options. With those customers in mind, we present this article on what you need to know about buying a diesel engine.

The first thing that must be discussed space is the different levels of completion when buying a diesel engine – new or used. The “engine” itself is just the long block – the cylinder block and the cylinder head(s). However, some people need other components which can include injectors and injector pumps.

Used diesel engines are typically sold with a warranty that has similar coverage to that of gasoline engines engines. The long walk is warranteed (in the industry it is sometimes phrased that the internal lubricated parts of the long block are warranteed). In other words this would work for you if you had a bottom end go out on your diesel engine. If you had half your injectors fail and this in turn destroyed your engine, you would have to purchase a long block and new injectors.

Phrasing that is commonly used with diesel engines for a long block is “complete through the valve train.” Beyond this, companies get very murky in their definitions. Your best bet is to demand a list of parts included in more complete assemblies. I’ve seen phrases like “complete runner”, “stage I”, etc. thrown around from different remanufacturers all with very different meanings.

The three most expensive components in a diesel engine assembly are the long block, the injector pump, and the injectors themselves. Jasper engines, for example, lists a 2007 Ford 6.0L for $6466.00 while they list a “complete runner” at over $13,000.00. The difference in those two prices is essentially made up by the fuel injectors and the injector pump.

A set of injectors from Ford can run $3200.00. You need to know that most diesel engine remanufacturers required you to install a new set of injectors to validate the warranteed on their long block. Thus, you’re buying a $6466.00 long block that requires another $3200 expense in parts. There is nothing sneaky about this: bad injectors can damage a good engine. You just need to make sure that you’re getting something that you understand.

You should also understand that you will need to perform all the technical service bulletins that have been announced for your specific vehicle when you install your replacement diesel engine. For example, if you bought a Ford 6.0L engine from our company as a used engine or a remanufactured engine we would require you to install a new style EGR cooler since the old style EGR cooler is the main cause of failure in those engines. This is well documented in Ford technical service bulletins and a failure in instance when this is not performed is simply negligence on the half of the installer.

A remanufactured diesel engine is a great option which allows you to get a lot more life out of your truck. A low mileage used engine is sometimes an option with a lot more value. We sold hundreds of diesel engines including the Duramax 6.6L, Cummins 5.9L (both 24 valve and common rail), Ford Power Stroke 7.3L, Ford 6.0L and the new Ford 6.4L.

If you find yourself wondering which diesel engine option is best for you (or if you need a replacement Diesel engine), please give our sales staff a phone call at 800-709-9233.

We also welcome comments and questions on this post.

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Buick Rendezvous Engines

November 4, 2010 By Leave a Comment

The Buick Rendezvous was originally introduced not as a replacement for a specific vehicle but as a new type of vehicle for General Motors: a crossover. This is its claim to fame. Powertrain wise, Buick Rendezvous engines are pretty straight forward with only a few variations throughout the model life.

The Rendezvous made the scene in late 2001 as a 2002 model year vehicle and was originally sold with a 3.4L engine that had two versions: a Federal emissions version and a California emissions version. Both are based on the LA1 design.  The LA1 is a bored out version of the 3100 series engines,and was first used by General Motors in 1996. The LA1 is a solid engine that is weakened by a peripheral issue that affects many General Motors engines: the leaky intake manifold gasket.

There is still a good supply of 3.4L used engines available for the Buick Rendezvous. Buyers should focus on finding a truly low mileage unit with a good warranty. The General Motors long life coolant is an enemy of this engine. Since the long life coolant uses an organic antioxidant agent that deteriorates over time, it can literally attack the engine if not changed often enough. Mileage is a good indicator of the wear not only on the engine but on the coolant. Anyone with significant experience installing 3.4L used engines will also tell you that you should replace the intake manifold gasket on these engines 100% of the time. If this is not done you can destroy an otherwise good engine with the eventual mixing of oil and antifreeze.

In 2004 a new addition was made to the Buick rendezvous engine lineup. The 3.6L LY7 engine is known as the GM “high feature” engine. This engine was used in many high dollar vehicles including the Cadillac CTS. The 3.6 L engine has a low failure rate, and and Low Mileage Engines has a good supply of these used engines. The computer, intake, and exhaust systems are different between the Rendezvous and Cadillac CTS. There are other differences as well but suffice it to say that these lead to a small horsepower difference between the engines. The CTS gets approximately 255 hp while the senior Rendezvous gets 242 hp.

In 2005 the 3.4L LY7 was replaced with the 3.5L LX9 engine. The LX9 is based on the same family of engines that the 3.4L LY7 was based on – the 60° V6 family. The 3.5L engine obviously has a larger bore said sister 3.4L. Since the 3.4 L was “maxed out” one of many changes made to allow the 3.5L displacement was offsetting of the bore holes by 1.5 mm.

In 2007 the high feature 3.6L engine was dropped, leaving only the 3.5L engine. Of course, General Motors discontinued the Buick Rendezvous for the 2008 model year.

If you need an engine for your Buick Rendezvous Low Mileage Engines has excellent availability. We focus on the low mileage engines that it makes sense to install, and offer a standard one year unlimited mile part warranty.

Please call us today at 800-709-9233 for a fast free quote.

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Filed Under: Engine replacement tips

German JDM Engines? Hardly.

September 27, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Recently, several people have contacted us looking for JDM engines for German vehicles. This disturbs me for a few reasons that I’ll share. First, I’ll go into detail about JDM engines and why legitimate JDM engines (actual engines imported from Japan) can be of tremendous value to you, our reader. You’ll see why people hear about JDM’s and get excited about them – and are thus susceptible to shysters who lie to them and engines they claim to be JDM’s which are not actual JDM engines.

The reason people get so excited about JDM engines is that by and large they typically have much less wear on them than their US counterparts. Many years ago, Japan passed laws called “Shaken” laws, which affect vehicle warranties and inspections. After 3-5 years, it becomes prohibitively expensive to keep vehicles that would be sought after in the US due to heavy taxes and inspection fees. Japanese drivers pay private companies to dispose of their vehicles. For several years, these vehicles were recycled completely for their metal only.

So, 30+ years ago Japanese business men realized that when they crushed these vehicles, they crushed money. Japanese auto makers were expanding into international markets and selling vehicles with identical drive trains in each of these markets. Laws made it very difficult to import used vehicles into the US, but parts vehicles were another matter entirely. Even with high tariffs, the market was profitable enough for several companies to enjoy modest success exporting Japanese Domestic Market engines (JDM) into the United States for resale.

In the 1980′s, the US and Japan signed special treaties which lowered the tariff on JDM’s to a point that allowed much greater profit in the industry. The late 90′s and early 00′s were the golden age of JDM’s, with good availability and fantastic pricing. To this day, JDM’s represent the best deal available on engine replacement for many vehicle models.

There have been some setbacks in the industry that have lead to lower profit and availability.

The first setback is the increase in the number of vehicles that are exported from Japan to non-US countries as drivers. China absorbs a tremendous amount of these complete non-parts vehicles and New Zealand has been called the Island Subarus go to when they want to die in peace. Many go to South Africa. Many consumer groups oppose the import of complete vehicles as drivers claiming there both safety and environmental impacts not accounted for. They are concerned that the older vehicles are not as safe as newer vehicles and that keeping older vehicles on the road increases the amount of pollution released into the environment. Manufacturing new vehicles releases much more pollution than continuing to use older, existing vehicles!  I guess newer vehicles are just prettier.

The second setback has been loss in profitability in the last decade. Exchange rates and regulatory environments have changed, and many of my sources in the JDM world claim they prefer to export to South Africa, Israel, New Zealand, and Australia over the US and Canada. This has served to raise the price of JDM’s in the US and lower the overall availability.

The third setback has been the manufacturers themselves. Japanese auto makers are well aware of JDM imports into the US, and have actually taken steps to limit this as a repair option by by selling different displacement engines and using different fuel delivery systems on otherwise identical engines. A prime example of this is the 2AZF engine manufactured by Toyota. When it came out in the US and Japan, the US version used fuel injection, while the Japanese versions used direct injection. Only in the last several years have the US versions begun to use direct injection. Thus, there is a year range of Camry engines with no JDM available. There is a similar situation with Nissan Altima 2.5L QR25DE engines. Interestingly enough, these engines are also among the pricier engines from wrecked US market vehicles vehicles.

I wrote this blog because of “German JDM’s” and now that I’ve done a broad overview of JDM’s, I’m ready to come back to that. German JDM’s are rare. It is possible to get them, but highly unlikely. Where a Toyota or Nissan are a throwaway car in Japan, imported cars are not. When I look at JDM options in Japan, the German engines we see are much higher mile than their Japanese counterparts and thus don’t test out as well. German vehicles retain their value in Japan unlike Japanese vehicles, and are thus driven longer. JDM suppliers simply don’t represent a good, consistent source of German engines.

If you find yourself in need of any type of recent model German or Japanese engine, please contact us at 800-709-9233, or fill out our request form so we can contact you back.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shyster

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Filed Under: Engine replacement tips, General Engine Information

Problems with the Ford 6.0L Power Stroke Engine

September 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Navistar International has manufactured the Power Stroke diesel engine series for Ford since 1994. The one exception to this is the 6.7L Power Stroke diesel engine, which Ford will manufacture in-house using Ford software beginning in 2011. The long relationship between Ford and Navistar, which dates back much farther than 1994, has been fruitful. The Power stroke diesel engine series, in particular, has earned a strong reputation for both power and durability.

This dependability has made the Navistar-Ford engine series an extremely popular choice both as a new and as a used engine in a wide variety of trucks and other types of vehicles. Nevertheless, there has been an exception to the rule, the 6.0L engine introduced in 2003 as a replacement for the 7.3L. Not only was this diesel engine unable to live up to those lofty Power Stroke standards, it earned one of the worst reputations of all time among all engines in the diesel industry.

Much of that reputation was underserved. Nevertheless, it was so prevalent that just two years after Ford had introduced the 6.0L, they were already preparing to replace it with the all-new 6.4L Power Stroke. By the 2007 model year, that transition was nearly complete. Ford did, however, continue to use the ’07 engine in the full-size vans of the E-series through the 2009 calendar year. When the last E-series van sold, Ford officially retired the 6.0L diesel engine, but of course, they will continue to support it for years to come.

The debacle with this engine has created some opportunity for the consumer who would buy the 6.0L as a used engine. There are many aggressive deals available, and the engine is not nearly as bad as the reputation suggests it is. In fact, the 6.0L met all emission standards and it survived stringent testing during both the research and development stages. In other words, the engine should not be problematic in its stock form, which means that most issues arise in application and modification.

The statistics support this. According to the experts at Diesel Tech, this engine rarely experiences major failure when operating at stock power levels. Therefore, there’s tremendous value here for the consumer who is aware of the common issues and the steps needed to counter them. Let’s examine the most frequent issues, which should help you decide if this used engine makes sense for your situation.

The most common problems that this engine series succumbs to, and the ones you’re most likely to experience from a used engine, occur with the EGR. In one common case, the EGR cooler simply fails because of blockage that occurs due to its restrictive rectangular design, which is inappropriate for the application. In the other common case, the EGR valve sticks due to carbon buildup, which occurs during engine idle because of low combustion efficiency at those speeds.

It is important to note that these common problems with the EGR system play a strong role in the head gasket failure for which this engine is so infamous. Therefore, it is vital when purchasing this used engine to ensure that it already has an upgraded EGR cooler installed, or that you factor in the additional expense of one, and include this upgrade during the installation of the engine or even install it yourself after the fact. EGR upgrade kits are not difficult to install, but the process is time-consuming and requires a professional set of tools.

Another factor that plays a role in head gasket failure on all 2003-07 engines are the head bolts that Ford used. These are not generally an issue with the engine in stock form, but many owners will simply have them upgraded if they ever need to replace the head gasket. However, upgrading the head studs is much more of a necessity for a modified engine because the factory bolts displace load unevenly, and problems will manifest quickly at anything above stock power output. Therefore, this is an important consideration due to the expense of the upgrade if you’re dealing with a modified engine or plan to modify it yourself.

Turbo failure is another common problem, and in the 2003-05 models, this occurs because of the restrictive oil drain tube that Ford used. The good news here is that this is a relatively inexpensive upgrade. Ford attempted to rectify this problem for the 2006 model, but they actually worsened it because the new system lacked an internal turbo groove. Ford corrected this problem properly for the 2007 model, and the 2007 version is the most reliable turbo system ever made for this engine. When buying a 2006 engine, it is best to seek one that already has the 2007 turbo unit in place because that upgrade is inevitable.

In addition, when Ford launched this engine, it included an improperly calibrated ICP sensor. All engines from 2004 on have the correct ICP sensor. For owners of a 2003 model, it’s important to recognize the issue because many inexperienced owners will spot oil beneath the truck and assume the worst. However, if the oil is leaking beneath the turbo, a bad ICP sensor is generally the culprit, and replacing it will correct the issue. This is an inexpensive part, and a simple installation, and you should expect this part upgraded as part of the installation process, if not already installed.

The bottom line is that this engine, despite its dreadful reputation, can be quite durable and a fantastic value. When buying used, there are a couple of keys to a successful purchase. First, buy through a respectable dealer. You should have free, thorough access to the engine history as well as a minimum one-year warranty with the option to upgrade to two. Second, choose your mechanic carefully. Especially with an engine like this one, it is vital that the mechanic adheres to and makes the adjustments according to all of the technical service bulletins during the install.

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Filed Under: General Engine Information

The Honda Insight

August 27, 2010 By 1 Comment

The Honda Insight has been seen driving around the United States for about a decade now. Although the Insight was out of production for a few years, it is back on the market now. This article will speak on several subjects such as the transformation of the Insight over the past decade and give some “insight” into the Honda Insight’s gasoline-electric power.

The first generation of the Honda Insight was introduced to the market in 1999 (model year 2000). Edmunds’ opinion of the 2000 Insight is, “Some cars make you feel like a champion. This one makes you feel like a hero.” Consumers even gave the 2000 Insight a rating of 9.1. The Insight was the first gasoline-electric hybrid sold in the United States, even North America as a whole. The first generation Insight is only a two-seater and available in three different models: one with a manual transmission and no air conditioning, one with a manual transmission and includes air conditioning, and finally one with a CVT (continuously variable transmission) and includes air conditioning.

The Insight has a key feature known as Integrated Motor Assist under its hood. Integrated Motor Assist is special because it is composed of both a gasoline engine and an electric motor. The ECA series, gasoline engine in the first generation Insight is a one liter, three-cylinder engine with about 70 horsepower. The electrical motor assist gives the Insight a little extra power, adding an additional 13 horsepower. Another positive of the Integrated Motor Assist is that when the car is not moving, the engine can shut off and the car can still operate with the electric motor acting as a generator.

Despite these positive features, the Insight had problems with sales. In the 2005, Honda sold less than 2,000 Insights. The sales in 2006 were worse, as Honda sold fewer than 1,000 Insights through September of 2006, and at that point, Honda decided to pull the plug on the Insight. In 2008, Honda revealed that it would be selling the Insight again. Since the beginning of this year (market year 2010) the Insight has been back on the market and is available in two options: LX and EX. This marks the second generation of the Insight, and the first noticeable improvement in this generation of the Insight is that it is larger. It now is a four door vehicle that is considered a mid-sized vehicle based on its interior and now appears to seat up to five people. Under the hood of the current Insight there is now a 1.3 liter engine with four cylinders. The current engine now has about 98 horsepower and the electric motor still adds an additional 13 horsepower.

Honda is hoping that the improvements that it has made to the Insight will spark huge sales. In the United States, Honda is expecting sales of around 100,000 vehicles. Despite these sales forecasts, the current Insight has not received all positive reviews. Consumer Reports has the Insight ranked 21st out of 22 tested comparable cars. Edmunds, which as stated earlier, said the initial Insight would make a consumer feel like a “hero” in 2000, but now, it is stated that the 2010 vehicle did not perform well in Edmunds’ opinion, although Edmunds is still performing tests in an attempt to develop a better opinion.

Overall the Insight has shown to be an innovative vehicle. As the first gasoline-electric hybrid in the United States the Insight burst onto the scene with blazing reviews. After about six years on the market though, the Insight’s lack of sales caused Honda to stop producing it. Almost three years later, the Insight is back on the market with a larger, more up-to-date look and a little more power. With these improvements, Honda expects big sales but the experts are not quite sold on the Insight. It looks as if only time will tell whether this version of the Insight will succeed or fail

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A Guide to Maintaining Your Cooling System

August 11, 2010 By Leave a Comment

There is one thing I recommend to each customer who purchases a used engine from us: that they thoroughly inspect the cooling system on their vehicle and replace anything in that system that isn’t functioning perfectly. An engine in a vehicle with a failed or failing cooling system has about as much chance of surviving as a fish dropped in the sand in the middle of a desert. Don’t believe me? More than 50% of engine failures are caused because of a malfunctioning cooling system. Not high miles, not no oil – just getting too hot.

Your engine puts out a tremendous amount of heat by design. Part of this is so it can burn up pollutants and meet the requirements the EPA has put on the automakers, ans so you can pass your vehicle inspection, and part of this is because of the thermal dynamics of power transfer: most of the energy an engine produces is lost to heat.

Most people nod their heads when I preach on this, but if you’re not a gear head or a mechanic, you may not know what to you need to do. That’s what this specific blog is about. Read on, learn, and do.

The most neglected fluid in a vehicle is the coolant. It is nasty stuff – corrosive and poisonous. I once forgot to clean off a screwdriver that had come in contact with coolant, and a few hours later, it was pitted and rusty. Brand new coolant contains an “organic corrosion inhibitor” that is supposed to keep it from eating the insides of your radiator, hoses, and engine cooling channels for up to five years or 150,000 miles (if you have “long life coolant). I don’t think they know what five years means, because the corrosion inhibitors don’t seem to do their job well for that long. When the inhibitor goes past the point of doing its job, it starts to eat everything it comes in contact with. GM and Chevy owners have been plagued with gaskets getting eaten through. 3.1L, 3.4L, 3.8L, 4.3L, 5.3L and 5.7L engines are well known by mechanics for leaky intake manifolds which allow coolant and oil to mix, destroying the engine. This is not the fault of the engine or gasket. This is a maintenance issue – the fault of the owner! I do a complete machine flush of my coolant every two years, and my engines and cooling system love me for it. You should do the same thing every 12-24 months as well. In my experience, this will eliminate over half of all cooling system problems. Not only will it keep your coolant from terrorizing your car, it will clean sediment out of your radiator and keep it doing its job more efficiently.

The second most common cause of cooling system failure is low fluid. This is easy to deal with – check your fluid once a week. It is easy. On most vehicles, you just pop the hood and glance at the coolant reservoir to make sure there is liquid between to hash marks on a bottle.

The third most common cause of cooling system failure is a non-functional water pump. This can be caused by the pump locking up, the belt that drives the pump failing, or degradation of the gasket sealing the pump against the engine. Fix this problem by following the replacement guidelines of your vehicle manufacturer for these parts. You’ll lessen the chance that you’ll need to call me for a used engine.

Fifth is a faulty thermostat. Go ahead and replace these every two years. The part is $15-30. An engine is $1200-$5000, depending on what you have.

The last common cause of cooling system failure is electrolysis. Electrolysis is caused by a an electrical current being added into the cooling system. This only happens when your vehicle has a fault in the electrical system. You’ll know when it happens because the radiator it destroys looks like someone dumped acid all over it. You should have your mechanic check the current in your electrical system when he does your annual vehicle inspection. It only takes about ten minutes, and it can alert you to many other problems.

Your radiator, even when properly maintained, will eventually lose its ability to cool because mineral deposits will coat it inside, reducing its ability to release heat – the mineral deposits act like an insulator. If you want to be sure your radiator is working, you should check for two things.

  1. Flow. Your mechanic should check to make sure enough coolant can flow through the radiator.
  2. Temperature. Your mechanic should use an infrared thermometer to check the top hose and bottom hose. The top hose should be around 20 degrees hotter than the bottom hose.

If you have enough flow, but not enough temperature reduction, you’ll blow up your engine. If you have enough temperature reduction, but not enough flow, you’ll blow up your engine.

I hope this article will be of great help to you as you strive to maintain your cooling system. A small expense on the front end can have big payoff for you down the road – the continued low cost operation of your existing vehicle.

If you need an engine, please call us at 901-266-9996. We’d love to be of help to you.

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Filed Under: Engine maintenance, General Engine Information

Buick Enclave Engines

July 30, 2010 By 1 Comment

The Buick Enclave was introduced for the 2008 model year with the 3.6L LY7 engine. This engine had been introduced originally for the 2004 Cadillac CTS. While there have been upgrades made, the design proved reliable and has been a mainstay of the mid size market. In 2009, enclave upgraded to the 3.6L LLT engine also used in the Acadia, CTS, Outlook, and Cadillac STS.

2008 Enclaves are beginning to get to the age where some engine replacements are necessary that are not covered under warranty. These are typically vehicles that have used up their drive train warranty of 5 years or 100,000 miles. Most Enclaves will currently have few miles than this! 33,000 miles per year would be a heavy driver indeed. Another source of engine failure that General Motors won’t warranty is failures due to lack of coolant resulting in overheating or failures from a lack of oil to lubricate the engine.

Many families finding themselves in need of a replacement engine for their Buick Enclave spend too much during the process. There is currently a tremendous availability of good low mile Enclave engines, meaning that there is really no reason to buy a “new” engine from the dealership. We’re proud to offer great deals on Buick Enclave engines every day. All of our motors come with a 1 year, unlimited mile part warranty and a free vehicle history report to verify the mileage on the vehicle the engine was removed from.

Our staff will be happy to walk you through the replacement process. In addition to selling you a great engine, we can guide you in finding a mechanic. While we won’t tell you who to go to, we can share general principles that have helped thousands of our customers have great experiences finding a mechanic and getting their engine installed.

We’d love to add you to our list of satisfied customers – if you need an engine, please call us at 800-709-9233. We’ll do our best to get you back on the road quickly.

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Does a Catalytic Converter Come With a Used Engine?

June 7, 2010 By Leave a Comment

We are frequently asked whether or not a catalytic converter should come with a used engine. The simple answer is “no.” There are two reasons for this, and I’ll go into those below.

A faulty catalytic converter can destroy an engine due to the critical function they serve in handling exhaust on modern vehicles. The 2002 and 2003 Nissan Altima have been reported by many to have catalytic converter problems, as have a lot of Suzuki vehicles. This can destroy the engine.

Salvage yards and engine sellers are restricted by the EPA in sending Catalytic Converters. Regulations say that you have to be specially certified to “re-certify” a catalytic converter. It is in violation of EPA regulations to send a catalytic converter if your company doesn’t have these qualifications. I am not aware of a single salvage yard in the US that advertises this certification, because it is insanely expensive to get! This is the main reason that used engines don’t come with Catalytic converters.

The second reason is that a catalytic converter isn’t part of the long block. Our company, and many others, only sell the long block, and not the bolt on parts like the starter, alternator, etc. In many vehicles, the catalytic converter is part of the exhaust manifold. If this is the case, no exhaust manifold should be shipped with an engine.

If you have any questions about buying a used engine to help get you back on the road, that’s what we’re here for. Give us a call at 901-266-9996 and one of our salespeople will be happy to help get you what you need!

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Mitsubishi Montero Engines

May 11, 2010 By 2 Comments

This is just a snip because I’ve been talking to so many people recently that need Mitsubishi Montero engines. The Mitsubishi Montero is one of those vehicles that hits you the first time you see it. It has a suave look that seems to combine the aesthetics of a Toyota Land Cruiser and a Land Rover Ranger Rover. We get a of calls from people looking for 3.0L 6G72 used engines for their Monteros as well as the 3.5L 6G74. Lately, the 3.8L 6G75 has also been generating some calls as well.

While not all Monteros have high dollar engines – we simply cannot buy these engines cheap. We do have some of the best deals available on 3.0L Montero Sport engines (call Daniel at 901-384-5622 direct to speak with him about these), but the 3.5′s are simply hard to come by. 3.8′s are recent enough that we have excellent pricing and availability on them.

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Filed Under: General Engine Information

If a Diagnostic Machine Says You Need An Oxygen Sensor, You Might Not OR Why You Still Need a Mechanic

May 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

On board computers and diagnostic computers have made diagnosis and repair of vehicles more efficient and less costly. If you don’t believe me, consider the fact in recent years many shops that used to charge a higher rate for diagnostics than actual repair labor have ceased that practice. Plugging a diagnostic computer into a car is a lot like running an MRI or an X-Ray on a person: you get a quick and exact picture of the symptoms of your patient.

For many repairs, this computer is more than what you need. For some repairs, a diagnostic computer in the hands of of someone who doesn’t understand what they’re working with can be a nightmare. Let’s look at a common sensor issue that causes a check engine light to come on: an oxygen sensor. If your oxygen sensor fails, you definitely need to replace it. But there are other issues that can cause a false positive on an oxygen, or O2 sensor. The main false positive happens if you aren’t getting enough fuel pressure to the engine. If this is the cause, you could either need a new fuel line (if you do, I recommend Gates Submersible Fuel Line Hos or Gates Barricade hoses) or a new fuel pump/fuel sending unit. Not getting enough fuel pressure can cause the O2 sensor to read “lean” and out of acceptable range. So, if this happens, and you go to an auto parts store, get a free diagnosis, and you still get the error after you reset the code, what happens? You’re out the money for the sensor, since you can’t return installed electronics (“we don’t sell parts for diagnosis” – even though they diagnosed you!) and you still have to figure out exactly what’s going on.

If you’re competent at repair diagnosis yourself, you might not need a mechanic. But if you’re not sure, you should definitely pay someone else to work on your vehicle. You don’t always need to take it to the dealership – though they do fine work. You don’t only have to utilize the mechanic just down the road – though he might be the best in town. In that case, use him.

Rather than finding a convenient mechanic, find the best in your area. An experienced mechanic that is good at diagnosing can save you hundreds on each repair and help you keep your vehicle on the road for a long, long time.

If you’ve had your vehicle competently diagnosed and you need an engine gas or diesel for a car or light truck, please, give our sales staff at call at 901-266-9996.

Popularity: 7% [?]

Filed Under: Engine maintenance Tagged With: , ,
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