"Dr. Gizmo"
By Phil Arendt
$1150 Repair Estimate
Completed For $88
Question 1
I am a senior citizen snowbird
who lives in Arizona during the winter months and Wisconsin during the
summer. My son stores my 2006 Buick La
Crosse indoors while I’m away. When I
returned this summer the air conditioner was not working.
I went to my local
dealership where I paid $34.82 for diagnostic work. The service person said the a/c was so bad
that the mechanic could see the trouble from across the shop. I received an estimate for major repairs
totaling nearly $1,200. They said I
should return in a week to have the work completed.
I went to another shop for a
second opinion. Two hours later my local
independent shop had repaired the air conditioner for $88. It’s been seven weeks since the repair and the
a/c works perfectly. My shop said that
if there are any problems to return to have the issue repaired under warranty.
I was going to speak with
the dealer owner about the encounter but I did not want to cause problems for
the other shop so I refrained from doing so.
I thought you could comment on this issue. Can you?
J.N., email
Answer 1
I certainly appreciate your
letter. Thanks for sharing your
experience. You made the right decision by
seeking a second opinion. Any time there
is a large repair estimate it’s a good idea to get a second opinion.
As a certified arbitrator
and mediator for decades, I’ve heard hundreds and hundreds of cases in which I
made decisions based upon the evidence from the parties in my hearings. With your letter there was a partial copy of
the dealer shop estimate. I did not see
a repair receipt from the second shop that did the repair so I have only a partial
picture of what needed repair and why.
Be this as it may, your
dealer representative obviously used poor judgment in saying his technician
could see the trouble from across the shop.
His technician must have x-ray vision.
For $34.82 that’s about all he used to diagnose the trouble while condemning
expensive parts such as a compressor and refrigerant line for a leak. The estimate was accurate for replacing those
parts but since your car was repaired for much less, those parts were not
needed. I wish I could pat you on the
back for making a sound decision on whom to award the repair.
Another important aspect of
this episode is that your second shop repaired the issue to your satisfaction
at a fraction of the cost of the original dealership estimate without needing
to replace previously condemned parts. His x-ray vision is even more acute and
probably backed up his diagnosis with a few tests. Consider visiting his shop for future
preventive maintenance and repairs.
Wear And Tear Taking Toll On
Transmission
Question 2
I have a 4L80E transmission
in my 2002 Chevrolet Crew Cab 4x4 HD truck.
It has a slight hesitation going into overdrive once in a while going
up a gradual incline. It doesn't do it
all the time. I think third gear is just
a little too grabby.
The truck and transmission have
135,000 miles. The trans has been
flushed twice and the filter has been changed once. I also had the shift solenoids changed, but
the trouble continues.
Do you have any ideas? A.B.,
email
Answer 2
It’s time to dump the
truck. All kidding aside, at this
mileage and age the transmission is a candidate for replacement or
overhaul. The trans in your truck is
pretty expensive so an overhaul might be less expensive. Having said this, if the hesitation is not
too much of an annoyance, and you can live with it, consider waiting until the concern
becomes worse or the transmission gives up.
If this doesn’t suit your fancy visit a transmission specialist. An adjustment might resolve the issue. Also, it is possible there is a programming
issue that is causing the problem.
However, from what you describe there likely is an issue with internal
wear.
Noise At Front Of Engine Due
To Excessive Wear
Question 3
The check engine light
turned on in my 2004 Nissan Maxima with 176,000 miles. Also, the engine idle is not smooth. I went to my local shop that has been
servicing the car for many years. One of
the technicians did a number of tests.
He said that there is excessive noise at the front of the engine which
is an indication that it needs a timing chain.
He also said that the camshaft sensor tests good but it might be bad but
he thinks the trouble might be caused by the timing chain.
The shop manager says the
timing chain repair is expensive. He
will write an estimate for that work but he won’t know until the work is
completed if the car will need sensors or other work. I’m hesitant to do any work to the vehicle
since it is 10 years old and has so many miles.
It’s in great shape and has never giving me a bit of trouble since it
was new but I don’t want to sink a lot of money into it.
Does what they told me make
sense to you? Should I keep the
car? N.D., email
Answer 3
Certainly repairing the car
although is expensive is much less expensive than purchasing a car but that
decision is up to you.
Your technician appears to
be on the right track. It’s entirely
possible that the noise from the front of the engine is caused by excessive
wear of the timing chain and related parts.
It’s also possible that the check engine light illuminated due to timing
issues of the camshaft relative to the crankshaft. This also causes issues with the camshaft
sensor. The sensor reports timing to the
engine control module. If the timing is
off, the light illuminates and sets a code indicating possible trouble with the
sensor.
It’s time to take into
consideration the repair estimate. Then
you can decide to fix the condition or replace the car.
No Need To Yank Out Engine
Question 4
I have a 1999 Suzuki Grand
Vitara with a 2.5 engine. It’s in great
condition although it has 140,000 miles.
There is noise from the front of the engine. My shop says the timing chain is the cause of
the noise. They said they have to take
out the engine to replace it. It’s an
expensive job.
How much is it to replace
the timing chain? Do they have to take
out the engine? G.R., email
Answer 4
I’m sorry but we don’t provide
repair estimates. It is an expensive repair
and it does take a lot of effort.
It’s not necessary to remove
the engine. A technician removes
everything from the front of the engine to gain access to the timing
chain. It’s a tight space, but once
accessories are out of the way there is enough room to replace the worn out
chain.
Restricted
Exhaust Impairs Turbo Boost
Question 5
Recently, engine power
dropped in my turbocharged 2005 Audi A4.
My shop has looked at the car a couple of times but has not come up with
a cure for the problem. He has checked
the turbocharger and associated parts and can’t find anything wrong. He has checked for trouble codes, bad
solenoids, a faulty waste gate, checked for leaks, road tested the car with
test equipment hooked up but he can’t find the problem. He is sure something has gone wrong with the
turbo and continues to find a code for low boost. He says that at this point he wants to
replace the turbo but he is not sure it will fix the trouble.
My car has a 1.8-liter
engine, an automatic transmission and 122,000 miles. It’s in like new condition and I have
followed the factory service schedule since it was new. Until recently it has run strong and now it
lacks power. I can tell the turbo is not
kicking in when I hit the gas. Other
than this, the car is perfect. Can you
help? P.D.S., email
Answer 5
Yes indeed. It’s time for a new Audi. All kidding aside sometimes, and this happens
to all of us, we become so focused we get stuck in a loop and can’t move
forward with a project. That’s when it
is time to step back, take a deep breath or even walk away and do something
else to unwind and gather thoughts.
If everything checks
perfectly except for the low boost code, there is something inhibiting its
operation. Ask your technician if he has
looked into the possibility that something in the exhaust system is restricted. Back pressure in the exhaust can impair
turbocharger operation. A pipe may be
bent. It’s possible the catalytic
converter or muffler is blocked. Tests
can determine if a problem in the exhaust system is affecting performance. A new catalytic converter might resolve the issue.
Rebuilt Module Fails To Fix
Trouble
Question 6
I have a 1997 Infinity QX4
with a 3.3 engine that is in like new condition with only 66,000 miles. It’s a great vehicle. It hasn’t given me any trouble all these
years although I have had to replace the battery, tires and brakes.
Last week the engine would
not start. When I turned the key the
engine turned but it did not start. I
had it towed to my local repair shop that has been servicing it for many
years. A mechanic did some tests and can
get the engine to start if he jumps a relay that activates the fuel
injectors. He said the engine computer
module is not completing a circuit to activate the relay. He sent the module to a place that rebuilds
them. It took a week for them to send it
back. He installed the rebuilt module
and he had the same problem. He says
the module is still the cause of the problem and is sending it back to the
rebuilder.
Does this sound right to you
or do you think something else is wrong?
W.J., email
Answer 6
Your technician is on the
right track. The engine control module
does complete the circuit to a relay that energizes the fuel injectors. It does this by completing a ground circuit for
the relay. If the module is not doing
its job he should send it back to the company that allegedly rebuilt it.
The problem is that this
issue leaves you without a vehicle causing a lot of inconvenience. I hope you have alternate
transportation. Once the repaired module
is installed, your Q should be back on the road.
Thank
you for all the great questions. Dr.
Gizmo can’t wait to answer more.
Phil Arendt is a columnist,
consultant and A.S.E.-Certified Master Technician. Readers may send questions to Dr. Gizmo at
P.O. Box 548, Cary, IL. 60013 or e-mail address drgizmo@hotmail.com. 08/04/2014 ® DR. GIZMO © 1989 - Present
