Blog Car Parts

We tend not to think about parts like an oxygen sensor until our check engine light comes on, and really why would we? If we knew a bit more about the importance of an O2 sensor when it comes to the performance of our vehicle we may feel differently. Sometimes referred to as an air fuel ratio sensor, oxygen sensors play an important role in fine-tuning an optimum air fuel ratio. At any given moment your oxygen sensors will determine whether or not your air fuel ratio is lean or rich. A faulty oxygen sensor can translate into lower than normal MPG… a side-effect any of us can ill afford. Allowing an old O2 sensor’s signal to continue to slow will result in decreased acceleration and overall performance. Vehicle emission control is another area where oxygen sensors play a crucial role.

You can find many original equipment as well as aftermarket options when searching for an O2 sensor for your vehicle. Remember that your vehicle may have several different oxygen sensors. Common names for these sensors include pre-cat, post-cat, bank1 sensor1 among others. Before speaking with your oxygen sensor vendor, be sure you’ve done your homework so you’ll know exactly which sensor you need.

New Turbochargers can be a big purchase and are not parts that should be replaced very often on your vehicle.  However, when replacing a part like the Saab Turbocharger or the Volkswagen Turbo, one should make sure that the mechanic they hire does the job right and that the replacement turbo they purchase is of great quality.

One of the biggest concerns people have when they purchase a new turbo is the shaft play on the turbo.  Let me clarify this once and for all, shaft play is normal on a brand new turbo and should be expected.  On the contrary, excessive shaft play is not acceptable and could cause turbocharger failure shortly after a purchase.  How can we distinguish the difference between normal and excessive shaft play?  This Turbo Repair video is a very brief segment which shows the difference between acceptable and unacceptable turbocharger shaft play.  I hope this helps with your diagnosis.

O-rings have many applications in the world today and they are very significant in the auto parts world as they needed to be properly replaced with replacement part installation.  Some car part installations are fairly straight forward as you can replace the car part with an entire assembly and that is the entire replacement.  This type of easy repair is usually with electronic parts like Factory Navigation Systems or an In Dash Navigation Screen.  However, with the installation and repair of a part like a Honda Accord AC Compressor, one needs to evaluate the entire equation and replace parts that can be as significant as a small o-ring.

O-Rings are seals for your vehicle that are typically made of polyurethane and are used in between fittings to effectively prevent leaks in your system.   Fluids, including oil, lubricate your system and allow your car pars to stay healthy and perform to their potential.  O-rings play a significant role for your car as they prevent fluid from leaking from your vehicle and more importantly, prevent part failure from lack of lubrication.

It is crucial to use and know which o-rings are for your vehicle.  O-rings vary in thickness and diameter.  When doing car repairs, be sure to keep track of these O-rings and their origin as misplacement of them can have you running in circles.  One of the best ways to organize O-rings is to label them as they are pulled off of the car so fitment and o-ring allocation will not be an issue in the future.

Leaking Steering Racks can be tricky as one may not be sure as to where the leak is coming from.  There was recently a situation where an installer did not know how to solve the issue with leaking hard lines on a Mercedes Steering Rack.

The hard lines on a power steering rack go from the pinion housing to the body of the steering rack.  In order for the steering rack to perform correctly, the hard lines move fluid to different parts of the rack to help with the assist.  With a power steering system, the fluid pushes the rack towards its intended direction and then pull the rack back in.  The hard lines are significant as they are on the outside of the steering rack and allow the fluid to flow outside the rack and pull the rack back to a center position.

Steering hoses differ from steering rack hard lines because steering hoses are a metal and rubber combination.  Hard lines are only metal.

When fixing the leak you should try to remove the hard lines and replace the o-ring there.  Replacing the seal may in fact stop and fix the leak.  However, if the rack is warped or damaged, you will need to replace the entire rack.  Hard lines cannot be purchase alone, so in order to fix the problem you will have to purchase an entire new rack.

When installing a new Fuel pump on your vehicle, determining the correct wiring combination during installation can be misleading.  Determining the correct combination can be tricky because the wires on both your new fuel pump assembly and your vehicle’s wiring harness may not match up perfectly.  This is perfectly normal as many makes of a fuel pump module can be compatible with a vehicle and there is no universal wiring set-up for them to follow.   The following diagram will be of use to you to figure out your wiring combination once you have removed your old fuel pump assembly.  Wiring combinations can vary and are based off of wire gauge (thick or thin wiring) and wire color and design (ie: black colored wire with a white stripe).  Once you have figured out your wiring combination, you will need to remove your old electrical connector on your wiring harness.  Then cut, splice, crimp and tape the four wires as needed for the installation of your new fuel pump to be successful. 

If the wire color and design on your wiring harness does not match any of the displayed combinations you can use the following chart as a reference to properly wire your new fuel pump.

Suppliers beyond a dealership will typically offer more than one version of car parts in regards to where or how it was manufactured.   Most parts, from a Power Steering Rack to a Fuel Pump, have an aftermarket version available.  However, consumers can feel pressure from the car dealership to purchase “their part” or the OEM, because it is the original part for your car.  While most other suppliers tend to carry OEM car parts, they also do offer the same part not from the original manufacturer.  These parts are referred to as “aftermarket” car parts.  “Aftermarket” parts are car parts that are made available to the public after a car is officially available and being sold through car dealerships.  These parts are typically an exact replica of the OEM part.  In fact, it can be hard to differentiate aftermarket and OEM parts side by side as they fit and operate on a vehicle the same.  They are usually less expensive to purchase and can be a better option than the OEM with their quality as well.  

It is important to understand that aftermarket parts can be a really great option for your vehicle beyond what others may tell you.  In many situations, aftermarket parts are even of better quality than OEM parts and will carry the same warranty as OEM parts, ultimately benefiting the customer.

When replacing car parts on your automobile, you typically have the choice to either purchase auto parts directly from a dealership or from an outside supplier.  Whether you may need new Mercedes Benz parts or any other part tailored to your vehicle, OEM parts are a decent option to when looking for new parts.  In example, the Honda dealership will sell a Honda Civic Wheel Hub Assembly with their name on it.  Honda is offering a replacement part that is the same original brand and part that came with the vehicle from the dealership, known as the OEM, or “original part manufacturer” part.  Original manufacturer parts are the parts that originally come with a vehicle when it is bought new at a car dealership.  However, in most cases, these parts are not manufactured by the actual auto company.  Instead, they are manufactured from a manufacturer that may specialize in that part. The auto company then re-packages that part so it can be sold at dealerships and associated with the car brand as its official part.  Car dealerships will normally sell these OEM at very high prices.  But, these same OEM parts for all auto companies can also be purchased from retail and wholesalers at a discounted rate. 

Check back next week for a thought on “aftermarket” car parts…

A/C Expansion Devices: The Difference between an auto air conditioning Orifice Tube  and an auto air conditioning Expansion Valve

The expansion device is a small but important part of all auto ac compressor kits. The purpose of an Expansion Device for a vehicle’s Air Conditioning System is to control the difference in high pressure and low pressure in the system and ultimately to prevent moisture from freezing on the evaporator. This is important because moisture freezing on your Evaporator can likely lead to A/C Compressor failure or malfunction. The common two types of Expansion Devices used with A/C Systems are Orifice Tubes and Thermostatic Expansion Valves. Both of these act as a control device between the high and low pressure of the system, but are definitely different in execution.

An auto air conditioning Orifice Tube is a commonly used Expansion Device that uses its tube diameter to transfer refrigerant to the evaporator. However, the Orifice Tube, itself, does not actually manipulate the amount of refrigerant entering the Evaporator. Instead, when using an Orifice Tube, refrigerant flow is fixed at all times and the compressor will take the refrigerant flow into its control. The compressor will engage and disengage to control refrigerant flow in the system based on the demand for cool air in the vehicle.

A Thermostatic Expansion Valve is another common Expansion Device which sometimes has a “Block” look rather than a tube appearance. Unlike the Orifice Tube, an auto air conditioning Expansion Valve, itself, actually adjusts the flow of refrigerant to the Evaporator based on the demand for cool air in the vehicle. The Thermostatic Expansion Valve is very accurate in refrigerant control for your system as it uses a metered system to ensure exact refrigerant flow based off of the demand for A/C.

Honda has grown into one of the largest auto companies worldwide for the great value that it offers its customers.  However, one of Honda’s biggest downfalls has been the quality of the Honda CRV A/C Compressor and the entire system.  The  Honda CRV A/C system has been noted as one of the worst A/C systems in a car because of the poor quality of the parts included in the system.

Typically, when repairing an A/C System in an automobile, one needs to completely flush the A/C system before installation and then replace both the Honda A/C Compressor and Accumulator/Drier.  The Accumulator/Drier is necessary to be replaced with the Compressor as it acts as a clean filter and it prevents the new compressor from being contaminated with debris that was in the old A/C system.  However, the Honda CRV system has  been notorious for getting clogged in all parts of the A/C System with what has been referred to as “Black Death.”  More importantly, when replacing a compressor on a CRV, one needs to prepare themselves for the proper repair of the system beyond the installation of a simple Accumulator/Drier.

The best solution to preventing “Black Death” from entering your Honda CRV’s A/C System is through a proper flush and installation of the following new A/C components:

1. Compressor

2. Condenser (with Drier attached)

3. Expansion Device

4. Evaporator

5. System Seal Kit

6. System Oil

7. Both low side and high side AC Hoses.

Honda continues to struggle to hold the CRV’s A/C System credibility.  Ultimately, there is no simple answer to the Honda CRV A/C System problem.  However, consumer awareness to the problem and proper repair to your CRV’s A/C system is the most logical solution to the “Black Death.”

The ‘Conspiracy’ title might be premature considering the verdict is still out as federal and Toyota’s own investigations are in process.  Great time to hypothesize.  Let’s identify the players – Toyota – more specifically, Toyota parts and the US federal government – more specifically, GMC.  By GMC, I am not referring to the General Motors of yesteryear but Government Motors of today.

Let’s dissect the context of both parties.  GMC is formerly the largest auto maker (by volume) in the world.  No longer the case following the bankruptcy.  The result? US government owns a good chunk of GMC and oversees ops.  Result #2 – guess who overtook GMC as the largest auto maker in the world? Toyota.

Examining the pre bankruptcy era is interesting.  There are many reasons why GMC went under.  Maybe it was the 13 some odd number of GMC owned brands of cars (Suburban/Tahoe/Yukon/Escalade).  Maybe it was the union contracts.  Maybe it was GMC’s strong dislike for building fuel efficient ‘green vehicles.’  Regardless, GMC was sloppy.

Contrast with Toyota – Has 3 car brands (Scion, Toyota, Lexus), not 13.  Cadillac has been around since prohibition came and went yet it never became a prominent luxury marquee.  Lexus, within its first two decades, surpassed both BMW and Mercedes and became the largest luxury car maker in the US by volume (rest of the world is a little skeptical of the ‘luxury car’ concept).  The real break through was the investment into the hybrid drivetrain which GM could have easily done.  In fact, even after watching Prius sales soar, after Honda, Nissan, and Ford’s adoption of hybrid technology, GMC sat there rebadging the same vehicle a dozen times over.

To add insult over injury, Scion by Toyota is the same business model GMC attempted (and failed) twice.  Once with the namesake Geo and again with Saturn.  Small cars for young people with small budgets.  Sound familiar?

Fast forward to 2010, the year when people forgot the neutral gear.  GMC is owned by the Fed and Toyota is (and has been) killing GMC sales.  Usually, this would be capitalism meets Darwinism at its best.  However, corporations don’t have FBI, CIA, and SWAT teams on tap.  GMC does.  Could there be a more perfect storm for GMC right now?

Toyota makes a possible mistake and issues a recall.  Big whoop, recalls happen all the time.  Nissan, Honda, Acura, Chevrolet, Ford, and others have issued recalls affecting tens of millions of car owners in the past 5 years alone.  Ford issued a recall on their best selling vehicle, the F15o.  Why? Because it lit itself on fire and burned homes to the ground.  Toyota gets a lame gas pedal, the response – CONGRESSIONAL HEARING.  Some 60+ year old can’t put his Prius in neutral in San Diego, the response – FEDERAL AGENTS SENT TO INVESTIGATE.

Lesser known fact – Denso is a Toyota owned parts supplier, similar to what Delphi is to GMC.  Last week, their California offices were raided by FBI, assisted by full SWAT teams.  The reason? Denso’s oxygen sensor design might have questionable patents.  Steve Jobs WISHES Apple was owned by the Fed so he could send the FBI and SWAT charging into Google, HTC, and Adobe.

Worst case scenario, we find out Toyota used subpar gas pedals.  Ironically enough, this is the FIRST TIME Toyota has used a North American parts supplier.  However, it is naive to think the Federal government is not using this to their advantage.  Guess that is what happens when the Federal Government picks up the leftovers of a sloppy situation.

Either that, or Tiger Woods orchestrated the whole Prius fiasco to get the press off him.  It’s working.