Wiring Harness Replacements

For a non-mechanic, something like an engine replacement sounds like a big job. Usually those actually aren’t a bad time. What mechanics really dread are jobs that dig deep into other areas of the car.

2016_11_17_01.jpg Continue reading

Posted in In The Shop | Tagged | Leave a comment

VTEC Stickers Do Not A Racecar Make

It’s always kind of puzzling when you see a car that has stickers or emblems added on saying things like “turbo” or some other word that means it’s fast and fancy.  If they’re trying to impress people who know about cars, those are the exact people who will know that the sticker is a lie.

2016_11_14_01.jpg Continue reading

Posted in In The Shop | Tagged | 1 Comment

Leaking Sunroof

A customer came in with a wet rear seat. The immediate suspect was the sunroof. It’s not easily possible for a sunroof to be 100% watertight when it has to be able to tilt and slide, so there are drains that run from the four corners down into the wheel wells. After I couldn’t get it to leak myself, I lowered the rear part of the headliner enough to check that the rear drain tubes were connected and not clogged, and they were fine, so that meant looking deeper into things.

2016_11_10_01 Continue reading

Posted in In The Shop | Tagged | Leave a comment

Identical Mismatched Tires

Now this was a strange one. A customer came in because she had gotten her tires replaced at a tire shop and her low tire pressure warning light kept coming on. The first thing I did was make sure all the tire pressures were set correctly, and then I started recalibration and took it out for a drive.

2016_11_07_01.jpg Continue reading

Posted in In The Shop | Tagged , | Leave a comment

2001 Honda CR-V Driveshaft Noise

My brother’s 2001 Honda CR-V had developed a strange noise. When accelerating in reverse there would be a short clank noise. I couldn’t tell what it was, so I took in to work, and they had never heard the noise before.

2016_11_03_01 Continue reading

Posted in Family Cars, In The Shop | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Found Tools

One of the reasons I keep my toolbox organized is so I can easily tell if I’m missing a tool. I’ve only lost three tools, but they weren’t anything too important, and two I got for free so it was no real loss. I have found several tools left in cars, however.

2016_10_31_01 Continue reading

Posted in My Car | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

How-To: 1997 Honda Civic Noisy Idler Pulley

My car’s engine began to make a high-pitched squealing noise at times, and I tracked it down to the idler pulley for the AC compressor belt.

2016_10_27_01 Continue reading

Posted in How-To, In The Shop, My Car | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

CR-V Parking Brake

Once in a while I come across some small feature in a car that is really cleverly designed.

2016_10_24_01 Continue reading

Posted in In The Shop | Tagged | 1 Comment

How-To: 1997 Honda Civic Sun Visor Replacement

When I bought my car, the sun visors weren’t in good shape. The driver’s one had lots of holes in the fabric, and the vanity mirror cover wouldn’t stay closed, so I had to tie it up with some rope.

2016_10_20_01 Continue reading

Posted in How-To, My Car | Tagged , | Leave a comment

New Mechanical Malarkey Logo

I am pleased to announce that I now have a logo for my blog and social media.

2016_10_17_01.png

Thank you to everyone who follows this blog and my various social media streams. I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon!

As always, new blog posts every Monday and Thursday, plus pictures throughout the week on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!

-Dan

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment