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Re: [Phys-L] Car repair



I look on this thread, specially Jim's contribution, with great interest.
I have mended radars when that was cool and fixing computers when their unit cost
was reckoned in the millions and fixing pretend (even some real) aircraft system software
for some considerable time, but yes, I can find the modern car daunting.

I know that current designs are a masterpiece of continual trimming of speeds and
combustible mixtures and ignition timing and I am willing to concede that a big reason
for the much improved engine longevity can be laid to this account, not to mention
the greatly improved road accident statistics, which are still a matter of gut-wrenching
carnage on the road, day and night unfortunately.

I conclude that it takes an occasional pep-talk of this kind to get people like me
beyond the sensor replacements (which are often misguided) and pointed at the plugs,
connectors, ground connections that are so often responsible for problems these days.

Talking about plugs, it is just as well that ignition plugs last so long these days, because
just accessing them can be taxing.

Brian Whatcott Altus OK

On 4/11/2013 12:40 PM, Jim Deane wrote:
Come on! The average guy cannot fix his car in his garage any longer!
You simply can't diagnose a problem and repair the computer yourself.

I provided references to the contrary. The same kind of average guys who
worked on cars in the 1960's are working on cars in the 2010's. Check out
any car forum (e.g. www.neons.org/forums)--there are people helping each
other learn how to diagnose and repair (and soup up) their own modern
cars. Some out of necessity, some out of hobby interest.

You tell me I can't diagnose and repair the computer myself, and I tell you
that the vast majority of the time I can do exactly that. Virtually all
failures come down to sensor or wiring problems. Tracking them down
requires the same skills needed to track down an intermittent spark or
headlamp, with a large dose of patience.

For less than $30 you can buy a bluetooth interface for your car that will
let you datalog the sensor data from your car while driving. Reading and
interpreting that data is analogous to reading and interpreting spark plugs
to determine if you need to change carb jets.

I do however know a lot of people who believe the claim that no one can
work on cars these days. In the face of countless people doing exactly
that, I'm not really sure how to respond.
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