I brought my car in for an oil change, and of course, as usual, they handed me a list of over $3000 worth of repairs that need to be done to the car (and there's even more stuff that's not on this list.) I don't really care for much of it, but I was wondering if anyone could tell me what these two meant:

IF STEERING RACK IS A/M TIE ROD END WILL NOT WORK.
RIGHT REAR ACCESS COVER IS LEAKING FLUID.

I'm assuming the second one is related to an oil leak on the engine (if so, they missed the other ones, lol). As for the first, it might be related to one of these, which I DO understand:

LEFT INNER TIE ROD END HAS PLAY.
POWER STEERING PUMP IS LEAKING FLUID.

Any ideas what A/M means?

Google isn't helping at all. Maybe he mistyped something and meant "if steering rack is a manual..," but that makes about as much sense as the original.

And this might help you with the access cover.

At maximum?

IIRC tie rods are to doo with keeps the wheels pointing straight and both turning at the same time. best get the tie rod end sorted. not sure how it "will not work" makes no sense to me. maybe im totaly wrong (which is more likely)

Quote from danowat :

At maximum?

That would make sense - but what does that mean? That at maximum lock, the tires wouldn't be aligned properly? I'm very curious as to what this would result in.

thats what it might be, or maybe it makes one wheel work totally independantly at full lock

It might be there's a chance of something jamming or more commonly the tire rubbing something limiting lock. Seems really poorly writen though, as to what the access cover is or what is leaking from it is anybodies guess

Alright, Subaru finally called back. A/M stands for after-market, so in other words, if they don't get a SUBARU tie-rod, it will not fit.

Nothing more demoralizing than knowing you're driving a car that could use at least $5000 worth of work... lol.

Quote from Stang70Fastback :

Alright, Subaru finally called back. A/M stands for after-market, so in other words, if they don't get a SUBARU tie-rod, it will not fit.

Nothing more demoralizing than knowing you're driving a car that could use at least $5000 worth of work... lol.

Most of it is probably unnecessary though, right? So cheer up, lol.

Quote from OneCrazyDiamond :

Most of it is probably unnecessary though, right? So cheer up, lol.

Lol, some aren't major, but some are more serious:

1. New transfer clutches
2. Right rear backing plate rusted and contacting rotor.
3. Brakes shudder very, VERY badly under braking.
4. Center clutch pack needs to be replaced (major binding while turning.)
5. Right rear access cover leaking fluid.
6. Heat shield rattles.
7. Oil pump, cam seals, valve cover gaskets leaking.
8. Inner and outer CV boots torn on right.
9. Sway bar link bushings worn out.
10. Lower control arm bushings worn excessively (suspension creaks constantly.)
11. Left front parking lamp assembly busted (and by that he meant non-existent, lol.)
12. Left side mirror taped on.
13. Power steering pump leaking.
14. Left inner tie rod end has play.
15. Transmission lurches - sometimes fairly violently - when up shifting to second gear (synchros?)

And yet, it still gets me where I need to be without any real problems. I've made multiple 400-mile 7-hour-straight drives in the past few months without issue either. This thing is built like a tank. 209,000 miles now and although it needs work, I've yet to replace any major components in the car ever.

And most of that $5000 is going to be labour. Do the job yourself, borrowing tools if needs be (and a workshop manual), and save MEGA bucks.

Quote from tristancliffe :

And most of that $5000 is going to be labour. Do the job yourself, borrowing tools if needs be (and a workshop manual), and save MEGA bucks.

I would absolutely LOVE to... knew I anything about car mechanics. I am a car buff, but not much of a grease monkey. The only "major" work I've ever done was replace the front fender a few weeks ago, but even that took me forever as I had to figure out which screws went where and how to get it off (and I ended up with two screws left over, lol.) I wish I knew enough about cars - I would do it myself if I could. I'd be more than willing to ask a friend to do it while I watched, but I don't even know that many people who know about cars who could do it without it taking them a year. Not to mention there is no place around here to even bring a car and put it up on a lift. I'm at college.

It's still at least a grand's worth of parts... which is about equally as much as I DON'T have right now, lol.

Still, most of that stuff doesn't really have to be done.

Bring it round here, and I'll do it for you for a few bob!

Seriously, cars aren't that complicated really - most of it is common sense. Plus understanding HOW it works WILL make you a better driver, either in terms of speed, mechanical sympathy, economy, or a mixture of those and more things.

For most it you don't need a lift, just a few screw drivers and a 3/8 socket set, and a workshop manual. You'll save, over a lifetime of car ownership, somewhere in the region of $10,000 to $50,000 just by doing some of the simple jobs yourself!

lol tristian it would cost more than the cars worth.

Quote from tristancliffe :

Bring it round here, and I'll do it for you for a few bob!

Seriously, cars aren't that complicated really - most of it is common sense. Plus understanding HOW it works WILL make you a better driver, either in terms of speed, mechanical sympathy, economy, or a mixture of those and more things.

For most it you don't need a lift, just a few screw drivers and a 3/8 socket set, and a workshop manual. You'll save, over a lifetime of car ownership, somewhere in the region of $10,000 to $50,000 just by doing some of the simple jobs yourself!

I believe you 110%. I would love to know how a car worked. I know enough about the basics to understand how to drive pretty well, but obviously the more you know the better. I've started doing little things on my own (like cosmetic repairs.) In fact, over Christmas break, I pulled out the whole center console to run wires for my carputer. Even ran the wires to the battery and grounded them in the console and hooked up a computer underneath the passenger seat, but 90% of that didn't have to do with the car really, and none of that is anything that a 6 year old couldn't do.

To be honest, I wouldn't be that afraid to take the car apart by following a manual. What would scare me would be trusting the brake system after I'd just put it together. However, even more important (and the single, biggest reason I haven't done anything like that myself) is that I don't have the money to pay someone to fix something I do wrong, or to put it back together if I get in too deep. I'd be shot by my dad too for doing something that I couldn't undo myself... to my car.

Oh yeah - and what Luke S. says also plays a role lol. As I said a while back in another thread on this forum, I'm trying to avoid putting any more money into this car than is absolutely necessary until I can maybe afford an "upgrade," though I don't see that happening anytime soon either.

It's Tristan.

But a) I was joking and b) it doesn't cost that much for a crate on a ship between the US and here - we do that quite regularly for customers cars, and they can be unloaded at Lotus, where they have a ramp for such things!

Edit: Stang replied in between!

I know the plight. I was wary of getting involved in brakes until I was quite experienced! Doesn't matter if a car doesn't go, but rather serious if it won't stop!

I would suggest getting a really scrap car [but one that still works in most ways], and taking it to bits. Then put it back together, without replacing anything you don't HAVE to, including on the braking system. DO NOT DRIVE THE CAR AFTERWARDS EXCEPT IN YOUR OWN DRIVEWAY!!!!! This way you'll learn a lot, at virtually no cost, without risking anything. Make sure you scrap the car afterwards, or sell it for breaking/scrapping/spares ONLY of course.

But I appreciate some can't do that, due to lack of time/money/space etc. If they could, I'd be out of a job!!!

lol tristian no wonder your so rich. all these people importing cars just for you to fix them lol

i know how you feel about thinking you wont be able to do it. but everything apart from the clutches and the leaks/seals can be done with pretty much no knowledge. i thought brakes would be complicated, but like everything on a car its just bolts and screws. sometimes its quite worrying to look at whats holding together what you once thought was a very strong or indestructable part

Or, pay for a cheap airline ticket and have him come out HERE!

EDIT: That was exactly my plan one day. Buy a cheap car (or by that point, use this one) and just take it apart and learn. That is VERY high on my list of things to do. I'd feel much more confident taking a Subaru off-road, or through flooded roads (as I do now, lol) if I had past experience replacing a broken sway bar, or draining the diff oil. For someone who is EXTREMELY into cars, and has been since... forever... I know surprisingly little about the mechanics involved.

Absolutely right. If you messed about with Meccano as a lad then a car is just the same. Fixing a car is just mostly removing the broken part and replacing it. Most stuff goes on the way it came off.

You also have the advantage of having a list so at least you know needs to be fixed. Fault finding can be a bugger.

So, for example, this is something I should look into, for starters?

Quote from Luke.S :

lol tristian no wonder your so rich. all these people importing cars just for you to fix them lol

Trust me, we're not rich. You should see the credit card bills - red five figure numbers

Quote from Storm_Cloud :

Absolutely right. If you messed about with Meccano as a lad then a car is just the same. Fixing a car is just mostly removing the broken part and replacing it. Most stuff goes on the way it came off.

You also have the advantage of having a list so at least you know needs to be fixed. Fault finding can be a bugger.

But it gets complicated when you CANNOT replace anything because there are no replacements. That is what makes finding staff so difficult - many many mechanics can swap new for old, and do a service. Not many can take a brake servo, starter motor or dynamo they've never seen before, diagnose the internal fault(s), but them right in the PROPER way that the original manufacturer would be envious of, make sure it'll last another 30/40/50/60/100 years, and put it back together in sufficiently quick time so that the customer thinks it's worth it. We do not bodge. End of.

Edit: Yes, Haynes manuals are great. Although their refitting/rebuilding instructions tend to me "reversal of removal", which isn't always entirely helpful

Quote from tristancliffe :

It's Tristan.

But a) I was joking and b) it doesn't cost that much for a crate on a ship between the US and here - we do that quite regularly for customers cars, and they can be unloaded at Lotus, where they have a ramp for such things!

If you do RORO it cost me $900 to ship from the New York to Southampton. There were other costs like shipment to NY and safety conversion, but the transport itself was really cheap. At least it was for me, thinking about it, it's been a year ago this week that I drove my car off the dock =)

A container shipment IIRC is about $2000, that was the cheapest I had seen IIRC.

Quote from Christopher Raemisch :

If you do RORO it cost me $900 to ship from the New York to Southampton. There were other costs like shipment to NY and safety conversion, but the transport itself was really cheap. At least it was for me, thinking about it, it's been a year ago this week that I drove my car off the dock =)

A container shipment IIRC is about $2000, that was the cheapest I had seen IIRC.

Completely off topic now but still related. Say, for instance, that I was looking to buy a new car RIGHT NOW, and was very, VERY interested in the new Diesel Subaru Outback sold in the UK. How complicated would it be to bring a car like that stateside. Are safety requirements and such vastly different, or would it take very little to get a car like that certified to drive in the US? Or is any of that even necessary? I've always been curious what the complications would be of buying a European car for use in the USA.

Quote from Stang70Fastback :

Completely off topic now but still related. Say, for instance, that I was looking to buy a new car RIGHT NOW, and was very, VERY interested in the new Diesel Subaru Outback sold in the UK. How complicated would it be to bring a car like that stateside. Are safety requirements and such vastly different, or would it take very little to get a car like that certified to drive in the US? Or is any of that even necessary? I've always been curious what the complications would be of buying a European car for use in the USA.

If you want to drive it yes it will have to have the lights converted and few other things to have it road legal. If your bringing it over for parts no you don't have to. You will have to pay an import duty though. It depends on the make of the vehicle and I wouldn't be able to give specifics, sorry. A conversion company probably could help.