2001 Mustang Catalytic Converter (vehicle, auto, salvage, chip)

[teach1234]

Take it to Midas or a local undercar specialty shop, ask them to perform a back pressure test on your cat. This is an easy test, doesn't take long to do. If it is bad, there are pretty cheap universal cats. I used to work at Midas, and I won't go there except for specific exhaust work, which they do pretty well on. If it is just the cat, buy just that. If they want to sell you any other parts, take your car to an independent shop for a second opinion.

[Donn2390]

[quote=mjohnson4381;8615541]

I might be wrong about the converter being the problem, but I've already checked all my fluids, gotten new spark plugs, new spark plug wires, and a new fuel filter. QUOTE]


This is precisely the reason the DIYer not only doesn't save money doing their own repairs, but actually spend far more time and money guessing and replacing parts that don't need replacing. How much time and money have YOU already wasted with zero results..? All you have gained so far is total frustration..!
Take it to a knowledgeable technician and have it fixed correctly with no lag in time.
I can tell you stories all day long about guys guessing and hoping and replacing every part they can unbolt, and never getting close to the real problem, then end up dragging the car in to have it repaired correctly. You don't save any money guessing..!
People love to say all mechanics are crooks. Actually there are some crooks, and some incompetent ones out there, just as in every profession, but the majority are honest and hard working.
Find a good shop and stay with them until the day you die, it will pay dividends in the long run. Get a recommendation and give them a chance, you will be very happy you did..!

[AlfredB1979]

Originally Posted by Donn2390

People love to say all mechanics are crooks. Actually there are some crooks, and some incompetent ones out there, just as in every profession, but the majority are honest and hard working.
Find a good shop and stay with them until the day you die, it will pay dividends in the long run. Get a recommendation and give them a chance, you will be very happy you did..!

Word.

I love hanging around Yahoo! Answers, seeing posts that detail random parts swapping drills because the OP does not have tools, know-how, or even a Haynes manual to go from, yet thinks that tactic will save money over a shop visit once about $500 worth of sensors and other parts have been tossed out the window.

As for Autozone, don't get me started on them.

I have no earthy idea how one AZ can give me back a printout with codes P0171 and P0173, the next gives me P0171 and P0174, and my newly purchased scanner (CEL was not reset by me for a reason) gives me only P0174.

For those who don't know, that's three TOTALLY different ways to attack an issue.

Don't leave your diagnostics to guys who probably were handing your order out the drive-thru window a few days ago.

[Gimme3steps]

[quote=Donn2390;8616455]

Originally Posted by mjohnson4381

I might be wrong about the converter being the problem, but I've already checked all my fluids, gotten new spark plugs, new spark plug wires, and a new fuel filter. QUOTE]


This is precisely the reason the DIYer not only doesn't save money doing their own repairs, but actually spend far more time and money guessing and replacing parts that don't need replacing. How much time and money have YOU already wasted with zero results..? All you have gained so far is total frustration..!
Take it to a knowledgeable technician and have it fixed correctly with no lag in time.
I can tell you stories all day long about guys guessing and hoping and replacing every part they can unbolt, and never getting close to the real problem, then end up dragging the car in to have it repaired correctly. You don't save any money guessing..!
People love to say all mechanics are crooks. Actually there are some crooks, and some incompetent ones out there, just as in every profession, but the majority are honest and hard working.
Find a good shop and stay with them until the day you die, it will pay dividends in the long run. Get a recommendation and give them a chance, you will be very happy you did..!

Good post

[Omaha Rocks]

Originally Posted by Donn2390

I can tell you stories all day long about guys guessing and hoping and replacing every part they can unbolt, and never getting close to the real problem, then end up dragging the car in to have it repaired correctly. You don't save any money guessing..!
People love to say all mechanics are crooks. Actually there are some crooks, and some incompetent ones out there, just as in every profession, but the majority are honest and hard working.

That's kinda funny, because I can tell you stories all day long about people getting royally screwed by incompetent and unscrupulous hacks that have an ASE Certificate hanging on their shop wall - especially if it's a woman, or they have out-of-state license plates on their car.

But you are very right about finding a GOOD mechanic, and sticking with him.

[M3 Mitch]

Gents,

There was a day when each of us picked up a wrench for the first time. The OP does not have to choose between "Easter Egging" blindly as he is now doing, and turning the car over to a pro.

He can learn to do a proper diagnosis, starting with getting his hands on a good manual, read up on how to read the codes. This is not a cheap, easy, or quick road to follow, but each of you current or retired mechanics have taken it, and, without bragging on myself, I have taken it too. Just because I have a day job as an engineer rather than as a mechanic means I don't have the experience base on a lot of late model cars like a pro would have, but I do understand basic troubleshooting technique, the OP is capable of understanding it as well. I end up mostly DIY beacuse I have accumulated the tools and experience, and most of my cars are older so I probably do know them better than most pros.

And I'll add that even if you don't do your own work, you need to understand troubleshooting technique at least to the point that you can recognize a snow job when it's offered.

But, OP, you *are* going about this wrong. Look at what your car is doing, if you have a CEL get the code read, make sure the code is being read right, realize that the code is not the "law and prophets" but it's a place to start - for example there is no "Burned Valve" code, hard to say what code if any would be thrown in this case, probably varies from car to car.

But offhand opinions on what is making your car act up are just theories that you test, and you move forward with making a repair or authorizing a repair when you have some evidence as to what's wrong. That goes for the guy in the shop, your brother, and us on CD Forum. Keep in mind that we here can't see or hear the car.

An excellent place to start for the OP is "Milt the Instructor"'s book, Google him.

Final point. Don't tear into a job you can't finish. Nobody wants to deal with the "disassembled carburator in a shoe box" scenario. You stay out of this situation by using your head, reading through the manual and thinking the job through, noting if special tools are required, and not jumping in over your head.

[wheelsup]

One option is take it to a good shop to diagnose and then fix it yourself. A lot of things are labor intensive. For example my evaporator on my car. 10+ hours in labor for a $130 part.

[Donn2390]

One thing you guys are missing is, most of the people asking question in here just want their car fixed, they don't want to have to learn a new trade. Some of you enjoy doing your own work, and if it takes a long time, and some trial an error, no problem, it's you're enjoyment. If they do have an interest, go for it.
You're telling people who have no interest in ever touching a car to go buy some tools and parts and take up a new trade.. If it was that simple, there would be no mechanics, and no shops...
You can tell by the questions people ask, they are already in over their heads, and the learning cure will be very long, and very expensive.. and something they most likely have no interest in learning.
Another problem with armatures asking questions, they are so lost they don't even know how to ask a proper question, example,,, My car won't start, what could be wrong with it...?? Then you get a lot of replies like, "Oh, that happened to my aunt's car one time, it was _________, fill in the blank. Answering a question by relating something you heard one time is not helping these people.. Step by step diagnose is the only way to find a problem. Sometime it can puzzle an expert with the proper equipment at his disposable, and the car in front of him. How can an amateur be expected to get a proper diagnose from an online site..? Some easy problems, perhaps, but most, NO..! There have been times when I offered advice in here, and the OP ignores the good advice, and listens to the hacks. it's not their fault, they just go with what they want to hear, not the proper answer, so why bother...
I spent over a month and many, many long emails explaining, step by step, how to check out the ignition system on a guys classic car that wouldn't start. It wasn't a car he was depending on, he enjoyed learning and tinkering, and time was not a factor. Every weekend he would do as instructed, then report back on his progress, and I would go into some more detailed information. Had I been standing in his driveway, it would have been done in a half hour, but since he lives on the opposite coast, I wasn't interested in standing in his driveway.
He finally got it running and in the process learned a lot about a basic ignition system. Even after the car was running, he had a basic understanding of one system, and that was an old point system. I have no problem helping someone under those circumstances, but I don't think that scenario fits many people in here. Most want their car running now, for little or no cost. Today's cars are so complicated an amateur shouldn't even open the hood.
Example....Recently a guy down the street put a new battery in his truck. Can't find a job much easier than that. He hooked the battery up backwards, fried the computer and all of the injectors. Cost him over $2k to fix his mess because he wanted to save a few bucks.
When I need something repaired, i.e., a computer, or a TV, or something I know nothing about, my motto is, "You do what you do, an I'll what I do to make the money to pay you..! " Much cheaper that way..
I spent years going to school and working in an apprenticeship before I made a living working on cars. In all the years I was a professional, I never stopped going to school to learn and keep up with every changing complicated systems. How do you expect an amateur to even come close to a knowledge base like that..?
But Omaha, if you like tinkering, don't let me discourage you. Most shops get rich from vehicles that are towed in after some one has attempted to save a few bucks..
I'm happy I don't live in Omaha where all the crooks live. People think they are getting ripped off because a shop that has hundreds of thousands invested in a building and equipment and knowledgeable technicians wants to charge an honest price for that investment. I'm sure the guy across the street won't charge you as much for open heart surgery that those crooks at the hospital want to rip you off for...!
Other than that, Mr. Rocks, I love ya....

[Gimme3steps]

Originally Posted by Donn2390

One thing you guys are missing is, most of the people asking question in here just want their car fixed, they don't want to have to learn a new trade. Some of you enjoy doing your own work, and if it takes a long time, and some trial an error, no problem, it's you're enjoyment. If they do have an interest, go for it.
You're telling people who have no interest in ever touching a car to go buy some tools and parts and take up a new trade.. If it was that simple, there would be no mechanics, and no shops...
You can tell by the questions people ask, they are already in over their heads, and the learning cure will be very long, and very expensive.. and something they most likely have no interest in learning.
Another problem with armatures asking questions, they are so lost they don't even know how to ask a proper question, example,,, My car won't start, what could be wrong with it...?? Then you get a lot of replies like, "Oh, that happened to my aunt's car one time, it was _________, fill in the blank. Answering a question by relating something you heard one time is not helping these people.. Step by step diagnose is the only way to find a problem. Sometime it can puzzle an expert with the proper equipment at his disposable, and the car in front of him. How can an amateur be expected to get a proper diagnose from an online site..? Some easy problems, perhaps, but most, NO..! There have been times when I offered advice in here, and the OP ignores the good advice, and listens to the hacks. it's not their fault, they just go with what they want to hear, not the proper answer, so why bother...
I spent over a month and many, many long emails explaining, step by step, how to check out the ignition system on a guys classic car that wouldn't start. It wasn't a car he was depending on, he enjoyed learning and tinkering, and time was not a factor. Every weekend he would do as instructed, then report back on his progress, and I would go into some more detailed information. Had I been standing in his driveway, it would have been done in a half hour, but since he lives on the opposite coast, I wasn't interested in standing in his driveway.
He finally got it running and in the process learned a lot about a basic ignition system. Even after the car was running, he had a basic understanding of one system, and that was an old point system. I have no problem helping someone under those circumstances, but I don't think that scenario fits many people in here. Most want their car running now, for little or no cost. Today's cars are so complicated an amateur shouldn't even open the hood.
Example....Recently a guy down the street put a new battery in his truck. Can't find a job much easier than that. He hooked the battery up backwards, fried the computer and all of the injectors. Cost him over $2k to fix his mess because he wanted to save a few bucks.
When I need something repaired, i.e., a computer, or a TV, or something I know nothing about, my motto is, "You do what you do, an I'll what I do to make the money to pay you..! " Much cheaper that way..
I spent years going to school and working in an apprenticeship before I made a living working on cars. In all the years I was a professional, I never stopped going to school to learn and keep up with every changing complicated systems. How do you expect an amateur to even come close to a knowledge base like that..?
But Omaha, if you like tinkering, don't let me discourage you. Most shops get rich from vehicles that are towed in after some one has attempted to save a few bucks..
I'm happy I don't live in Omaha where all the crooks live. People think they are getting ripped off because a shop that has hundreds of thousands invested in a building and equipment and knowledgeable technicians wants to charge an honest price for that investment. I'm sure the guy across the street won't charge you as much for open heart surgery that those crooks at the hospital want to rip you off for...!
Other than that, Mr. Rocks, I love ya....

Great post.

[M3 Mitch]

All the above is true. At least in this case I think the OP is rather young, and assuming it's not really Sergey Brill in disguise, probably does not have any more money than (car) experience.

When I was 14, I knew zip about cars, my Dad, fine fellow that he is and was then, is just not a car guy. So I set about the self-teaching process.

Give a guy a fish, he eats today. Teach him how to fish, he eats from now on.

But I take your point, Donn - not everybody has mechanical aptitude.