I
recently purchased the oxygen sensors
for my 2002 Ford Ranger. Going to
the local parts stores, both sensors
were about $140. RockAuto had the
same parts for $59! And that included
the shipping fees!
No doubt about
it - I'm checking RockAuto.com before
I EVER go to the parts store again!
Dave in Ohio
Upcoming Events
If you would like your event featured here, email us with details.
Old Fashioned Downtown Saturday
Night
8/25/2012
Eaton, OR e-mail
DelMar VA
Classics Car Show
9/8/2012
Newark, DE e-mail
Colonial Regional
PD Benefit Car Show
9/9/2012
Allentown, PA e-mail
19th Annual
Windham Auto Show
9/9/2012
South Portland, ME e-mail
Brewer's Troop
15 Boy Scouts 5th Annual Brewer
Days Car Show
9/9/2012
Brewer, ME e-mail
Past Reflections
Car Club; Barron Fall Fest Car
Show
9/9/2012
Barron, WI e-mail
River City
Cruisers Car Show in the Park
9/9/2012
Hermann, MO e-mail
Fabulous Flashback
Car Show
9/14/2012
Ukiah, CA e-mail
Four Wheel
Drive Trail Ride
9/14/2012
Suffolk, VA e-mail
Corvette Nationals-UK
9/14/2012
Nottingham, UK e-mail
Dave &
Ed's Super Auto Events; Swap
Meet, Car Corral & Car Show
9/14/2012
Canfield, OH e-mail
Monroe
ProSolution Brake Pads
RockAuto
now offers the Monroe ProSolution
brake pads along with the Monroe Total
Solution brake pads!
Monroe’s ProSolution
line of brake pads has been added
to provide a premium level braking
performance at a lower price. Monroe
ProSolution brake pads come with OE-style
shim technology to substantially reduce
noise. The attention to quality friction
formulations, including ceramic, helps
reduce wear on rotors and creates
less brake dust. The pads are engineered
to help ensure a quiet ride with chamfer
and slot design features in the friction
surface. Monroe ProSolution pads are
performance verified for noise reduction,
long pad life, and superior stopping
performance.
Also available in
the RockAuto
catalog are the Monroe
Total Solution Ceramics and Dynamics
brake pads. The pads are packaged
complete with noise-elimination hardware,
wire wear sensors and sensory locking
plates as required by the application,
as well as premium assembly lube.
Ceramics pads have
the same level of ceramic material
as OE and offer cooler (up to 350
deg. F less), cleaner, quieter stops
with minimal rotor wear.
Dynamics pads use
OE Constant Pressure Molding to securely
bond the pad to the backing plate
and 50 percent less resin for a denser
friction material resulting in less
pedal fade, noise and dust. This helps
ensure superior stopping performance,
longer service life and more consistent
performance.
Whether you
have a car, truck, minivan or SUV
you can count on Monroe to provide
OE-quality or better replacement parts
at a price that fits every budget.
All brake pad options can be found
in the "Brake/Wheel Hub"
category of theRockAuto
catalog.
Raybestos
Low Frequency Caliper Dampers
Eliminate
low frequency brake moans, groans
and squeals with Raybestos caliper
dampers for problem platforms (F150,
Grand Marquis, Explorer, Taurus, Cruze,
Volt, and more). Low frequency noise
cannot be suppressed using traditional
methods like brake grease, pad shims
or Quiet Clips. Raybestos low frequency
dampers are specially tuned to the
frequency of specific vehicle applications
to help reduce noise occurring in
the rear calipers. Raybestos shows
installation takes less than 90 seconds!
Find Raybestos
Low Frequency Caliper Dampers in the
"Brake/Wheel Hub" category
of the RockAuto catalog.
Forum of the Month
Odyssey
Minivan Forums is a website dedicated
to all things Honda Odyssey. The forum
has thousands of discussion topics
to help answer any questions you may
have. Whether you need technical guidance,
have advice to give, or just want
to show off your Odyssey, Odyclub.com
is the place for you. Register for
free so you can take advantage of
all the features this forum has to
offer.
If you are the
administrator or member of a forum
and you would like to see your website
featured in an upcoming newsletter
and receive a discount code to share
with your members, contact cynthia@rockauto.com.
Repair Mistakes & Blunders
I
had a 1994 Dodge Stealth Twin Turbo
that I pampered like my baby. Cleaning
it every weekend and doing most of
my own maintenance as I didn't trust
most mechanics to even change my oil.
So...as I dutifully did every other
week, I pulled her outside my garage
in the morning to beat the heat and
washed, waxed, and Armor-all'd her
inside and out. Before taking her
back into my garage to beat the afternoon
heat (was to get to 100 that day),
I hit the electric lifts for the windows.
To my utter horror, the passenger
side refused to lift. Got out of the
car and went around to the passenger
side to try the passenger's control.
NADA! So...I got out my trusty manual
and found the breakers. Checked all
that applied, to no avail. What to
do?
Pulling/replacing
the fuses and slamming/banging on
the passenger door did nothing. The
remainder of the week was to have
rain showers and I couldn't get my
"baby" out in the rain!
I was flummoxed!! Luckily I'd purchased
the maintenance manuals so out came
the "Electrical" manual.
I searched and read...but the problem
quickly became "over my pay-grade"!
Then I thought..."Hey my neighbor
is a wiz with electronics, taught
it at Westpoint and has been an engineer
for eons! He'll be able to read the
wiring!"
So...over to my friend
John's and, yes, he could read the
wiring. I only needed to supply the
cold beverages!
Well, he tried it
out to no avail. We rechecked fuses.
We retried using the passenger door
lift. We tried slamming doors. Nothing!
So, now it was time for disassembly.
Off came both door panels. All possible
switches and wiring that could have
had anything to do with the window
motor were tested. Two hours of sweat
and beer in 99 degree garage heat
and nothing! Then...John looked up
to me and said, "It looks as
if you have an open switch between
the driver's and passenger's door!
Is there a chance you've broken a
wire or thrown a switch I don't know
about?!"
All of a sudden I
got a "Blinding Glimpse of the
Obvious"! "Give me one minute,
John", I said as I walked around
to the driver's door.
"Now try it,
John". Voila...it worked! He
said, "OK.... What did you just
do?!"
I grinned at him
sheepishly and said, "The Window
lock for the passenger's door had
been depressed!" To my dismay,
the window lock only needed to be
depressed about 1/8". Something
easily done...but something I'd
NEVER used! There were no obvious
markings, lights or warnings that
it'd been depressed. Guess the auto
engineers overlooked an obvious mistake...at
least my observation...and I'm sticking
to it!!
Dominick in Virginia
Tell us about
your most infamous auto repair blunder
or unconventional fix. Use your woe
to help others avoid similar mistakes
or share off-the-wall solutions that
worked (at least for a while!). Please
email your story to flamur@rockauto.com.
Include your mailing address and if
you would like a RockAuto T-Shirt
(please let us know your shirt size)
or Hat if we publish your story. See
the T-Shirts and Hats under Tools & Universal Parts
in the catalog.
The story will be credited using only
your first name and your vague geographic
location (state, province, country,
continent, etc.) so you can remain
semi-anonymous!
Automotive Trivia
A
diagonally-split brake system couples
the right front / left rear and left
front / right rear brakes into separate
systems to help prevent total brake
loss. Which car company introduced
the diagonally-split brake system
in 1963?
I
did not simply replace the worn down
brake pads on my wife’s ’93
Ford Tempo. I made the car better
by installing a beautiful set of modern,
high tech ceramic pads. I pictured
the Tempo showing a bit more savoir
faire as it competently braked using
the same ceramic materials as those
fancy new cars.
My bubble burst when
my wife asked why the Tempo’s
brakes had periodically started screeching
during the first few stops. The sound
echoed in her office’s parking
garage and generated comments from
coworkers such as, “You need
new brakes. I thought your husband
was a car guy?” My assurances
that the screeching was the harmless
sound of high performance brake pad
break-in were met with a spouse’s
skeptical ear.
Thankfully, the brakes
no longer (or at least rarely) squeal
when cold. The squealing was probably
due to new brake pad material hitting
old brake rotors. Breaking in new
brake pads is as much about the rotors
as it is about the pads.
When brake pads rub
against the rotors there is abrasion.
Bits of pad and rotor wear away. Imagine
stopping a spinning bicycle tire by
holding a piece of sandpaper against
it. Especially at higher temperatures,
there is also adherent friction where
a layer of pad material transfers
to the face of the rotor disc. The
brake pad and the pad material stuck
on the disc rub together and transfer
back and forth between the two surfaces.
Imagine stopping a spinning bike tire
coated in glue with a piece of sandpaper
coated in glue.
My new high tech
ceramic pads were rubbing against
a thin layer of dissimilar friction
material left over from the old brake
pads. The rotors were also slightly
pitted in places by rust. I like to
think of a brake rotor with rust pits
as being the poor man’s version
of a drilled and slotted rotor. More
likely the rust pits create a slightly
uneven surface with hot and cold spots
and uneven dispersion of pad friction
material. My beautiful new ceramic
pads were pushing against a layer
of old pad gunk and rusty cast iron!
It is not surprising
there was some squealing until the
new brake pads bedded in. The old
pad material gradually wore off the
discs and a layer of new pad material
was put down. To prevent the squealing
during break-in, maybe I could have
turned the rotors to grind off the
old friction material and rust. The
cast iron on Tempo rotors is relatively
thin so replacement might have been
the best choice.
But even freshly
turned or new rotors require break
in along with the new pads. An even
layer of brake pad material must be
laid down on the disc to prevent high
spots, hot spots and that dreaded
squealing. Follow the brake pad and
brake rotor manufacturers’ break-in
instructions. The break-in driving/stopping
instructions do vary but are usually
intended to get the brake pads hot
enough to uniformly transfer pad material
to the brake discs but not so hot
that uneven globs of brake material
are transferred. Choosing brake pads
made of similar material (ceramic,
semi-metallic, etc.) as the car’s
original pads can also help prevent
unwanted noise.
Tom Taylor,
RockAuto.com
Brad's
1979 Ford F-250
This
is my 1979 Ford F-250 Camper Special
I bought in 1999. It has a completely
stock drive train consisting of the
Ford M400 engine with a C6 automatic
and Dana rear axle. This truck has
the original paint and is my daily
driver; it has power steering and
brakes, and is a pleasure to drive.
I am often complimented about the
truck's age to appearance ratio and
on the way my baby runs!
I have purchased
many parts for her from RockAuto which
have served us well. Parts such as
a distributor cap and rotor, thermostat
housing, thermostat and gasket, plug
wires, ignition coil, ballast resistor,
ignition switch, spark plugs, ignition
control module(s), wiper blades, vacuum
switches, just to name some of the
parts from RockAuto. I have always
been pleased with your great service,
low prices, and part quality.
Thank you!
Brad in Texas
Share Your
Hard Work
Do
you purchase parts from RockAuto?
If so, RockAuto would like to
feature you & your car or
truck in our monthly newsletter.
New, old, import, domestic,
daily driver, trailer queen,
classic, antique, we want to
see them all! Please e-mail
flamur@rockauto.com
with your vehicle's history,
interesting details, your favorite
images, and what parts from
RockAuto you have used.
Let
RockAuto Help
Are
you organizing a car show or
other auto related event? From
goody bag stuffers to gift certificates...we
can help. We can even publicize
your event in our newsletter.
Just
send us an email
with information about your
show.
Automotive
Trivia Answer
A
diagonally-split brake system
couples the right front / left
rear and left front / right
rear brakes into separate systems
to help prevent total brake
loss. Which car company introduced
the diagonally-split brake system
in 1963?