c/automotive-diy

Every tutorial says bleed your brakes every 2 years but I found out my 2010 civic went 8 years without it and the fluid still looked clean

Found out brake caliper pistons can seize from just sitting - never knew that

Tbh I was replacing pads on my old Civic last weekend and one of the pistons would not budge. I had the car parked for maybe 6 months while I was working out of town. Looked it up online and found out the rubber seal can dry out and let moisture in if you dont move the car regularly. The piston was all crusty and stuck solid. I spent like 3 hours with a C clamp and some brake fluid trying to free it up before I just gave up and bought a rebuilt caliper for 40 bucks at AutoZone. Never really thought about how the brakes need to be exercised like everything else. Anyone else had a caliper lock up from sitting too long?

Paid $60 for a used oil filter cutter and man did it save me

I picked up one of those Lisle filter cutters at a swap meet a couple months ago. Needed it to check for metal in my 5.3 after a ticking noise started. Cut open two filters so far and found nothing scary, so I didn't tear down the engine for nothing. Saved me a weekend of work and probably a couple hundred in gaskets. Anyone else use one of these things or just send it on oil changes blind?

TIL I was torquing my lug nuts all wrong for 10 years

After my front wheel started wobbling on I-75 last week, I pulled over and checked the torque. They were at 140 foot-pounds on a car that specs 80. I realized I'd been using a click wrench wrong this whole time and never letting it reset to zero before storing. The noise on the highway finally tipped me off when it sounded like a bowling ball in a dryer. Anybody else find out they were cross-threading something basic way too late?

Changed the oil on my 98 Civic today and the odometer rolled over 222,222 miles exactly

I was just doing a routine oil change in my driveway, nothing special, and when I wiped off the gauge cluster I saw it hit 222,222 on the nose. For a car that's been through three transmissions and a rusted exhaust, it felt kind of wild to catch a number like that. Has anyone else had a weird milestone moment like that during a basic maintenance job?

Stop using standard jack stands on gravel driveways

I saw a guy at my buddy's place last weekend using those standard flat-base jack stands on loose gravel. The whole stand shifted sideways about 2 inches while his truck was lifted. Get yourself a set of the wide-base ones with the big feet, they're like $40 extra and actually grab the ground. Has anyone else seen close calls from people skipping this?

My 2003 F150 starter gave up at a gas station in Knoxville at 11pm

I was just trying to get gas and head home from visiting my sister when the starter made this horrible grinding noise and then nothing. Dead quiet. Had to have a buddy with a trailer come get me from the Circle K on Kingston Pike. Ended up replacing it in his driveway the next morning with a $68 reman unit from NAPA, and honestly it went in easier than I expected. Has anyone else had that specific year of truck eat starters faster than normal?

Cleaned my MAF sensor with the wrong stuff and saw immediate results (bad ones)

Used brake cleaner on my 2002 Civic's MAF sensor last week because I was out of proper electronics cleaner. The idle smoothed out for about 20 minutes, then the check engine light came on with a lean code. Any chance I fried the sensor for good or can it bounce back after a proper cleaning?

Question about my brake bleeding method I've been using for years

I spent 4 hours last Saturday bleeding the brakes on my 97 Civic, using the old pump and hold method with a buddy. Turns out I was pushing the pedal too fast and spraying air back into the lines every time. Any of you guys run into this where the old school method just doesnt work right on certain cars?

My father-in-law swore I'd never get that 1965 Mustang engine running without rebuilding the carburetor first

I spent 8 hours rebuilding the carburetor last Saturday because he was dead right about the gummed up float valve, and now it purrs like a kitten, but has anyone else had one of those old Autolite 1100s leak from the throttle shaft after a rebuild?

Just learned my truck's spark plugs were 40,000 miles overdue

Was poking around under the hood of my '05 F-150 last weekend trying to figure out why it was idling rough. Grabbed my service manual from the glove box and flipped to the maintenance schedule. Turns out the recommended interval for changing plugs is every 60k miles. Well, my odometer said 102,000 and I've had the truck for 4 years without ever touching them. Pulled one out and the electrode was practically worn flat, gap was way off. No wonder I was getting 14 mpg on the highway instead of the usual 18. Ran to AutoZone for a set of Motorcrafts and swapped all 8 in about 2 hours. Thing runs smoother now and I swear I can feel the difference in throttle response. Has anyone else ever let something slide way longer than you should have?

Threw $80 at a 'professional' brake bleed kit that couldn't even get air out of a caliper

Spent 3 hours fighting with the stupid thing on my 02 Civic, ended up just using a buddy's handheld vacuum pump from Harbor Freight for $15 and it worked on the first try, anyone else fall for those overpriced bleed kits?

My neighbor called me out on using ramps wrong for years

I was changing the oil on my old Ranger last Saturday and my neighbor came over, asks why my ramps are sitting on plywood. I said cause the asphalt is a little uneven. He just shook his head and said you know those things are designed to bite into the ground right? Found out I've been putting them on boards for like 4 years and probably could've slipped right off. Anyone else ever use ramps wrong for way too long?

That Saturday when my Jeep decided to eat its own transmission line

Was supposed to be a simple fluid swap on my '98 Cherokee. Three hours in, I'm under the thing and the hard line just snaps off the cooler fitting. Rusted clean through. Had to drop the skid plate, cut out a 4 foot section, flare new ends, and find a shop that carried metric fittings on a Saturday afternoon. Total 9 hour job turned into 3 days and $180 in parts and borrowed tools. Anyone else had a simple maintenance day turn into a full rebuild?

Can we talk about my oil filter wrench fail

I spent six months using a strap wrench backwards on my 2004 Honda Civic, cranking it the wrong way until it stripped the filter housing. My buddy came over last Saturday to help with a brake job, saw me grab the tool, and just started laughing his head off. Anyone else ever do something boneheaded like that for way too long?

Hit 50,000 miles on my project car yesterday

I've been rebuilding a 1992 Civic hatchback for like 3 years now and I finally rolled over 50k on the new swap. That number hit different because I did all the work myself - the D16Z6 motor swap, the wiring, even the alignment with a tape measure in my driveway. Anyone else track their post-build mileage like a weirdo or just me?

Anyone have experience with Ace Garage Storage lifts?

I want to get my winter tires off the ground and saw the motorized lifts from Ace Garage Storage . I'm pretty handy so I don't mind the DIY aspect. Are they worth the money?