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Afraid repairs/maintainance will kill this car

spider4

spider4

New member
Im being sarcastic of course.But i truly believe that i am driving a zombie car.There are so many issues,most minor,some not so minor.The car still has dexcool,doesnt look like much maintainance done.I swear original struts and this car has 212,000 miles on it.Plenty of weird noises,cosmetic issues,creaks and cracks,rust(like the fuel filter and surrounding lines).Probably need new everything.Yet the car starts right up and drives decent and gets me where i need with no issues.Im afraid if i do any of these great repairs and replacement needs on my car it might finally kill it.I mean i see so many threads from you very knowledgable mechanics doing simple stuff like coolant flush,thermostat replace,throttle body clean,etc. and your car starts acting up more.What chance would my zombie car have,I know of course these repairs are supposed to make your car run better and longer....but im not so sure with my car.
 


Don't be afraid I know how you feel I kind'a felt the same way but the longer you wait the more likely a major issue will happen. But if its running decent you have a good foundation I changed my whole suspension at 280,000 miles and never looked back all 4 struts with springs and bearings, tie rod ends, Lower control arms, tie rod ends, stabilizer links, sway bar,rotors and pads. It rides better than new because I used better parts then the factory, all moog suspension, hawk pads, power slot rotors. Monroe struts ( I had KYB and was not impressed ditched them for these) I know all my parts were original because I am the original owner. Just take your time and get a manual and read up on it, also this forum is soooooo helpful. I been woriking on cars since 1972 if I can help let me know. How a bout you shoot some pics under the hood and around suspension and tell us your problems in detail lets see what we can do.
 
well....if done correctly, any work done to a car should not ruin it. if changing a tstat makes your car run worse, they probably should not work on cars. but some times people forget things like bleeding the air after the t-stat install, for example. its usually small things that people mess up on. just take your time and to the repairs right.
 
Well of course thanks guys.And i have been receiving plenty of good advice up here(and a few wise asses lol).I am not terribly mechanical,but after reading alot of post i am gaining confidence(somewhat).Many repairs are simply waiting for enough money to do them(struts and suspension).luckily i have recently talked with this guy down the street from me,hes a mechanic,more specifically he was specialized in transmissions.Better yet when i took the car by he said he worked on this particular car and year alot cause his sister had one.Right away he showed me that one thing we should do is replace the plugs and he showed me that that the middle coil was rusted(he said typical of these cars).So when i get enough money that will be taken care of.Also the bottom of car,the oil pan,transmission pan,and even the power steering looked like they may be leaking.But im gonna spray those down real good and see what they look like in a few days.I have had a friend replace the outer tierods(the rubber boots were literally disintergrating as he pulled it off).I replaced the front two tires,im glad i did cause this car was shaking whenever you took it to 70(those tires were horrible,even had a big gash and you could see metal threads).Ive replaced the air filter(it looked like dirt sod minus the grass lol).Ive replaced about 4 lights parking and interior.I had a friend help me get the radio working,works great now.Ive also had a high milage oil change done.I came up with a viable solution to our horrible cupholders.I plan on working on the door panel next.
 


and the biggest part about mechanics is TAKING YOUR TIME!!!!!!! anyone can tear something apart. just make sure you look at it, analyze, understand how it works. then you should have very little difficulty putting it back together.
 
Well i came across this car cause mine had gotten repoed(nissan xterra).A casual friend owned it for about six months and was moving out of country.I think they probably got it from auction.And i hate to say but certain things about this car leads me to believe before they owned it it was owned by someone that didnt give a dam (had a big ass speaker box in the trunk though lol)
 
spider did you get an alignment after the tie rod replacement? Otherwise you will wear your tires out quickly also when you change the flter again get a K& N they are the best you can reuse them just clean and oil them every 50,000 miles they make the engine breath better and I would replace the wires since you changed plugs just to be safe
 
well, dont give up on her. it may take some money but when she is fixed up right, these cars will last forever with minimum repairs/replacement parts........yours is just happening all at once lol.
 
You won't hurt it. Just need to understand what you are doing and what that can effect. Sometimes we do something and it'll effect another weak part next to it.

Say if the balljoints were going bad, but the bad tie rods felt worse and when you did the tie rods, now more pressure was on the balljoints. Then they wear out quick. Well, they were already on their way out.

Things like spark plugs, wires, taking a piece of steel wool and cleaning the rust off that coil post, cleaning the throttle body. All those things will help you. But skip the seafoam, trying to clean the crankcase, fuel injectors etc. Don't mess with those items unless there's a problem. If there's a buildup somewhere..let your future maintenace and oil changes etc take them out slowly, the same way they built up.
 


Logan i did get an alignment,although at that time i still had the crappy tires on the front and they said they couldnt quite align,but it is doing fine.Bill and blackgt thanks for the advice.I plan on keeping this car for awhile and hopefully slowly but surely i will get there.
 
On a side note based on what i was saying about what appears to be leaking oil and trans pan and power steering pump i went an checked the oil and transmission fluids today to see if i needed to add more.The oil dipstick was near the top full position as was the transmission dipstick.Both had clean smooth looking fluid.The trans fluid looked fresh as if it just got poured in so i guess thats good.When i do change the plugs i should replace the wires?the wires look really good,no cracks.I know that they are AC DELCO as will be the plugs im getting.
 
Wipe your trans fluid on a clean white paper towel. That may change your view of it.

On the wires, I'd suggest changing them if you don't know the age. Expecially if they have numbers down the length of them. Those would usually be original wires.
 
Ok bill i looked at the wires,they dont appear to be the original but i dont really know.they look pretty new or recent.they are AC delco,there are no numbers along it but it does say premium wires along sides. As far as the trans i see what you were saying,upon wiping on a clean white towel it doesnt look as clear as i thought.the color residue it left is actual a orangish color(hope that doesnt mean coolant or rust in it)
 


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