http://www.democraticunderground.com/1018854200A funny thread with some stupid advice in it:
Sun Apr 3, 2016, 04:50 AM
Ex Lurker (2,592 posts)
I have an automotive question. Actually a problem. A big, big problem
1992 Chevy S10. It's practically an antique. It's also my daily driver. No heater, window is stuck in the down position, paint is coming off in places, but the running gear has been ultra-reliable until now. It has nearly 100K miles on it, which isn't much for its age. I rarely drive it more than a couple of miles a day, and never out of town.
I always keep the oil level topped up, but I've been noticing low oil pressure at idle for a while now, and last week it got noticeably worse. Oil pressure when cold was fine, but as the engine warmed up, it would drop nearly to zero. At stops, I'd throw it into neutral and rev the engine to keep the pressure up. Last Thursday was the culmination. As I pulled into my driveway, I heard/felt a....stuttering sensation, I guess. For no more than 5 seconds, then I got to my parking spot and shut it off. Went out and cranked it again a few hours later. Oil pressure came up, but it was very noisy. At that point I called the garage and had them tow it in.
The noise when I cranked it up the second time was not something I could describe accurately-I'm no mechanic, and my state of mind at the time was not one to listen calmly and objectively. But my vehicle is usually very quiet on startup, and this was very loud. In among the other noise was what sounded like a knock, and from my googling, I've learned this would be very bad news.
Best case scenario: Oil pump going out. Expensive, but fixable. Worst case, bad rod bearings, indicated by the knock, if that's what it was. That would mean a rebuild or new engine, which would cost more than the vehicle is worth. The smart move would be to write this one off and get something else, but I can't afford anything new or even recently used-Anything I could afford would be either super-high mileage or have other problems, and I'd not be significantly better off than before. My best option may still be to fix this one, although most people would view that as a foolish choice.
I haven't heard from the garage since they towed it in. I am hoping that is a positive sign, that they've found something they could fix without contacting me to see if I really want to do this. OTOH I may just mean they haven't gotten to it yet since it was an unscheduled job and the weekend was approaching.
If anyone has been through this or is automotively minded, I'd love to hear your thoughts, But mainly I guess I'm just venting. I've been torturing myself with youtubes of engine noises, and most of them are bad news I hope this will get some feedback. I think this forum doesn't get as much traffic as the main one.
I think we all know how this one will end.
Sun Apr 3, 2016, 09:52 AM
Star Member Wounded Bear (8,065 posts)
5. Last sentence of first paragraph is telling...
Last edited Sun Apr 3, 2016, 02:04 PM - Edit history (1)
Short hop driving is the worst thing you can do to your vehicle. You need to get it out on the open road several times a month at highway speeds for at least a half hour or so. Not so true for the modern computerized ones, but on older cars, it ain't good to just drive it a couple of miles a day.
Best of luck on the repair. I know a lot of people will say don't bother on an older vehicle, but IMHO it's not just a financial decision.
It is if you're a broke Dummie angling for a future beg-a-thon.
Sun Apr 3, 2016, 09:56 AM
Kokonoe (2,386 posts)
6. I once went to an oil change store, and they had me start my engine with no oil added.
It shook and rattled, they said turn it off. They put oil in it, and it was fine.
I think when oil is restored it may be OK.
Ok which on of you guys works at a quick lube joint?
NJCher offers up some food for thought that is almost as lousy as her puke stew:
Sun Apr 3, 2016, 01:46 PM
Star Member NJCher (19,516 posts)
15. food for thought
Once you get past this experience, think about this. It is a story about a couple math professors I used to work with.
They would constantly be shopping for used cars. It was an ongoing thing--almost like a hobby. When I asked why, they responded in typical math professor logic: when you drive an older car, you have to leverage your odds. Odds are that an older car, once it gets a certain # of miles, is going to do something like what has happened to you.
Subsequently, you never let it get to that point.
Now, it is difficult to find a used car with 38k miles, but it can be done. That is why you have to always be searching. So when you find those cars, you dump the car you've been driving and go on to the next car with lower miles. That is how you keep this kind of stuff from not happening to you. That's not to say it's a perfect theory, but it worked pretty well for them.
There was one flaw their theory: they were such diligent shoppers they turned up a fair number of good used cars at low mileage. They couldn't "not" buy them. Therefore they always had around 4-5 cars on their property, which in the upscale neighborhood they lived in, did not endear them to the neighbors.
But as far as getting around at low cost, they were able to pull that economic coup.
Sun Apr 3, 2016, 02:11 PM
Star Member Wounded Bear (8,065 posts)
16. Had a boss once, sr engineer...
who never bought a new car. He demanded something like 50k miles, at least, before he'd even consider the vehicle. He called them "road tested." I shit you not.
I remember one car he had that threw a tie rod. He got under the car and basically disconnected the piston from the crankshaft. He called it his 7-cylinder after that. Drove it a couple more years like that IIRC. Emission standards were a little looser back then. Of course, by buying old, most of his cars were grandfathered in to the local smog ordinances.
I don't think you know what the heck you are talking about.
