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Some SEMA pics to check out. The show was very entertaining and very busy. I have some pictures for you. I’ll get into more details.

A new report by traffic information company INRIX highlights how fuel prices influence consumer driving patterns, congestion and public transit use and how to predict such changes for the future.

The INRIX National Traffic Scorecard Special Report takes an aggregate analysis of fuel prices, traffic congestion and an open survey of consumer opinions to create a predictive model for driving patterns. These results make implications that could potentially aid specialty-equipment manufacturers in developing strategies to understand fuel prices and their impact, ultimately selling car parts more suited to the market.

The study found that traffic congestion fell significantly during the first half of 2008, but was less dramatic in dense urban cities, such as New York City, Washington D.C. and Chicago. Nearly two-thirds of consumers changed driving behaviors. Of those, 69% took fewer driving trips; 34% made shorter trips; 9% carpooled; 8% began riding bikes or motorcycles; and 7% used public transportation.

In SEMA-conducted surveys, the results were similar. The most common strategies used to cope with high fuel prices were to drive less, combine errands or reduce recreational trips. The INRIX study showed a $4.50-per-gallon tipping point for road trips and leisurely driving with general consumers claiming they would significantly reduce the frequency of trips at this level.

Fuel prices are beginning to drop to lower levels, but in the instance that they begin to rise again, this level should be watched. When enthusiasts do drive, 64% claimed to change their driving habits.

“Although we can’t predict the future price of fuel, we can predict the potential impacts to traffic congestion,” notes Bryan Mistele, INRIX founder and CEO. “As a whole, the population appears to have made lasting changes to their behavior, which we expect to persist at some level even if gas prices revert to pre-2007 levels.”

The top cities with a negative correlation between fuel prices and traffic flow include Atlanta, Miami, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Springfield (Massachusetts), Daytona Beach, Orlando, Memphis, Charlotte and Riverside (California). Commuters in these cities reacted the most significantly as fuel prices increased.

Two other noteworthy details spring from this study. Atlanta, which topped the list, had a large swell of public transportation use. In order to meet the expanded demand, the city absorbed the rush by greatly expanding the capacity of public parking lots. In cities that heavily depend on vacation or leisure travel, such as Miami and Las Vegas, the decline in traffic congestion was attributed to fewer families being able to visit these destinations.

With any dominant social shift in behavior or spending fluctuations come consequential changes in the retail markets. Studies are suggesting that consumers are beginning to transform the way they view transportation and manufacturers of custom auto parts and accessories need to stay abreast of such shifts in order to stay competitive.

I always get questions about Automotive A/C Compressor Electrical connections. What wire is ground? What wire is power? Plug changing? and so on and so on.

The first thing to know is that every manufacturer is different. Sanden ac compressor almost always has 2 wires coming out of the clutch coil. The question is always which is ground and which is power. The answer is that is doesn’t matter. Its just a loop, so you can power either one. This is true of almost all 12 volt systems. 24 volt for industrial applications will need to be looked at individually.

Many manufacturers like Visteon, Denso and Delphi use hard mounted plugs. See the picture below. This Ford AC Compressor made by Visteon has a fixed plug on it. You can see it just next to the belt. You will need to replace with the identical one. No getting around this. They do make some adapters, but you are pushing it at that point. They better have been tested to work on that application.

Most compressors come without the correct plug, this is an easy swap. Just cut the wires and swap the plug over.

What is the first thing you look at when you get to SEMA? Do you start with the Ford, GM and other car makers booths? Spend some time outside looking at all of the muscle car and specialty stuff? Perhaps going through all the electronics? Maybe checking out a pair of 22’s!

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You know the first question; How many diesel fuel injector do I need? The follow ups are pretty straight forward too. Reman or new? Can I buy high performance versions?

The answer is yes, you need 1 per cylinder and you should change them all at the same time. So a V8 engine will need eight fuel injectors. No way around this one, changing one is just not worth it. I recommend new if the price is within $40 each. If higher than that, you might try a quality rebuilt unit, but be careful, alot of junk out there.

Be sure to check the diesel injection pump and the diesel supply pump for good flow. They may be the cause of the problem. The VP44 pump on Dodge Cummins diesels is notoriously bad. These are not cheap, so make sure you know the problem before replacing.

There are options of high performance versions on many injectors. The Dodge 5.9L you can buy high flow injectors that can improve performance. I would recommend adding these with a high performance diesel turbocharger. That way you get both air and fuel increased at the same time. Thats the best way for performance.

SO her eis a question even I had to look up. Where are the glow plugs on a Dodge Cummins 5.9L diesel engine? Anyone?

The answer is that there are none. They don’t use them. The Cummins engine utilizes a grid heater which warms air coming in the intake, before it reaches the cylinder. It does not use glow plugs to aid in cold weather starting. When starting your 5.9L in cold weather, the grid heater typically cylces for 3 minutes after you turn on the engine. This improves combustion and performance and minimizes smoke.

All of the other parts of the fuel injection system are about the same. You cannot usually find the grid heaters in the diesel parts aftermarket where I typically recommend you go. You are best off trying a Dodge or Cummins dealership.

So this is prety basic but I better explain it to be safe. What does ‘post cat’ mean on an oxygen sensor.

Every car after 1996 has at least a few O2 sensors. Most have 4 of them. For most cars there are 2 located before the cat and 2 after. What does this mean?

The sensors determine the type of air going out of your exhaust and adjusts the air intake to improve performance and reduce pollution. Therefore the sensors have to be located in the exhaust. The middle of the exhaust is the catalaytic Converter that attempts to kill the last bit of pollution leaving your car. Thus the sensors are ‘Pre Catalatyic Converter’ or Before the cat and ‘post’ or After the Cat. They are usually not the same sensor.

Left and right is pretty straightforward. Just remember that these are as if you are sitting in the drivers seat. All auto parts are determined this way.

So I have officially decided that the hardest supercharger to repair is the Mazda Millenia Supercharger. In terms of complexity it is simply off the charts. It is also unlike any other supercharger, so you have to learn everything from scratch and find parts unique to this vehicle. Stike 1.

First off, a new Millenia Supercharger at the dealer is over $3000.  The car was supercharged from 1995-2002, so the car is only worth about 2-3 times that.  New parts are nice, but you have to think you could pay to install a rebuilt one three times for that cost. This is strike two against the Millenia 

Rebuilding yourself is close to impossible.   The nose cone bearing on this Mazda Supercharger is the worst i’ve ever seen. If you don’t know what you are doing when you disassemble the super, you will damage it. If you do not set the bearing exactly perfect when you put it back in, it will fail. I’ve heard too many bad things. Strike 3.

There are however a few places that build good ones. SuperchargerPros.com is one of them, they are at 1-800-779-9876. They have the redesinged nose cone setup. Not cheap, but at least it will work the first time.

What is an R4 air conditioning compressor and why is it used? Good question, but probably too much to answer here.

A rotary style compressor rotates internally at high speed to compressor the liquid refrigerant. The use of the spinning crank shaft enabled it to work fairly well and dramatically shrunk the size of compressors. It became popular in the 1980’s as a smaller, more energy efficient way to build an ac compressor.

Seen in the picture of the Chevrolet Suburban Compressor, rotary compressors were common in the mid to late 1980’s and up to the mid 1990’s. After that, the same idea of rotation was used, but in different ways. The were able to make them smaller, or use series of them to improve performance.

Today, the rotary compressor is still in use in many applications.

Thought I would do a little survey. See the poll below. Is this economy testing your car parts buying? Doing more work at home? Cuttting any corners?

Is the economy affecting your parts buying and repair?

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