Poor Troubleshooting Tips

[Guest brh]

Just for grins what was the worst advice you got to solve a problem?

I'll start with mine. Back many years ago if a customer complained of the car "missing" my boss would grab the distributor cap while the car was running. Of course if it had an electrical problem it would promptly knock you on your rear. After his first heart attack he stopped this proceedure and a good thing too because shortly after the high energy ignitions came about. I always went for the shut the lights out and see if there is any juice jumping around approach, those blues sparks have quite a punch.

[BUICK RACER]

Bruce, good thoughts, my dad bought clear distributer caps for a while when they were available, it was almost as good as a fireworks display to show off in the dark!

[rtabish]

i know a good one. ATF in the power steering pump. DOES NOT WORK in newer rack and pinion steering units. have also heard dumping ATF down the carb to clean the valves, but never tried it.

[Smartin]

Done the ATF thing to UNstick a lifter. Unfortunately, the lifter was broken, not stuck. It sure made a whole lot of white smoke! I don't think the neighbors liked me that day.

[NTX5467]

In the old days, it was acceptable to "top off" a power steering reservoir with ATF, but if you had a hose or seal leak, you soon got a full load of ATF instead of the specified power steering fluid. If the power steering fluid was red, you needed to flush it with power steering fluid and you'll probably find most of the hose leaks will diminish too. I would NOT dare put ATF in a modern rack/pinion power steering unit unless the vehicle manufacturer allows it!

ATF also had other uses too. And ATF/water mix in a Coke bottle, administered via the carb at fast idle was a decarbon treatment. Made for some additional clatters and much white smoke. Berryman's B-12 in the fuel tank and a long freeway trip worked much better (from my experience).

ATF in the motor oil was supposed to put oil flow where things had become sludged up and help clean things up inside the engine. A lighter oil with different detergents in it could work, but didn't if things were very bad. S-W Alemite CD-2 has a detergent additive that works much better, from my experiences, but if it's really bad, disassembly will be needed.

Berryman's B-12 also had uses to clean up the insides of an automatic trans (as stated on the can). Adding a can and then driving it before a fluid change was the best way to clean things out back then. Might still work, but I don't know and don't intend to try it.

STP would allegedly stop oil burning (and reportedly would increase the viscosity of the oil by 10 numbers in the process) plus other things. One person I knew of with a '76 Trans Am did an oil change and put a can of STP in to help with an oil pressure issue. It was still low and he added another can. Then we got him a new crankshaft and bearings for it.

To me, the "transmission flush" procedures being sold these days can be flaky. One thing is that they typically do not include a filter change. All they do is put new fluid in the system (all 15 quarts or so of it). There are many variations in the machines that do that procedure too. Some are self-limiting in that when fluid is removed, equal amounts are replaced. With the less expensive machines that require manual adjustments, operator error can result in a wiped out front pump.

It might take more time and initial expense, but if a modern automatic trans is in need of a flush, doing a couple of fluid/filter changes over a short period might be better.

There are lots of automotive chemicals out there that offer quick fixes. Some work and others are used because the distributor pays spiffs to those technicians who use them.

Just some thoughts . .

NTX5467

[Guest]

If your car was knocking or "pinking" as the old timers called it you poured water into the carburetor while the motor was running,not enough to cause hydrolock but a good amount nonetheless while manually opening the throttle and racing the engine. Instant carbon removal was claimed and I have seen several guys, well known collectors all, actually do this and it certainly resulted in a large circle of carbon deposited on the ground near the tailpipe.

On the other hand a friend tried it on his '63 Galaxie and cracked 2 exhaust valve seats, one of the aforementioned prominent car collectors when queried replied, "well, you obviously didn't do it correctly, you dope".

Some of you guys must have heard of this?

[Guest brh]

I've heard of the ATF in the oil trick and actually used it. 3 Quarts oil and 2 Quarts trans fluid. Drive the car approx 100 miles and change filter and oil. It did unstick a noisy lifter. But I have never heard of water down the carb, we use to use a foam that created a lot of white smoke and lots of unhappy neighbors.