HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
Subject: Re: Braking techniques
From: dave.williams@chaos.lrk.ar.us (Dave Williams) 
Date: 6 Jan 93 16:56:00 GMT
Reply-To: dave.williams@chaos.lrk.ar.us (Dave Williams) 
Distribution: world
Organization: The Courts of Chaos * 501-985-0059 * Public Access Usenet


-> I'd much rather wear out my brake pads which are designed to be
-> regularly rep my clutch which isn`t.  Can someone please explain to
-> me why so many people i using their transmissions as brakes?

 Back in ancient times, cars had drum brakes, and pathetic things they
were.  Some cars even had mechanically operated drums, and a few
unfortunates had brakes at only one end, usually the rear, which is not
the best place.

 Since these drum brakes usually used leather, linen, or natural
asbestos linings, the coefficient of friction wasn't really great to
start with.  Under heavy use, the linings would get hot.  Some types,
depending on how they were prepared, would glaze over.  Other types
would catch fire, which was probably thrilling when you were in a heavy
truck going down a steep mountain road.

 Vehicles that were driven hard - heavy trucks and race cars - often
used downshifting and engine braking to assist the rear wheels when
slowing.  Of course, the engine isn't much of a brake anyway - in some
cars, it will hardly make a difference - but it was a necessary skill
when you were trying to stop a wire-wheeled Alfa at the end of the
Mulsanne Straight at LeMans.  So engine braking became associated with
racing, and became stylish.

 Using the engine as a brake is VERY hard on the differential and
transmission, which are spirally or helically geared and designed to
accept load in the other direction.  I've broken one rear and two manual
transmissions by letting off hard at the end of a long straight; I
guarantee this is maximally exciting as you do a smoking 360 off onto
the side of the road with the rear wheels locked.  That's why, when I
drive nowadays, the clutch pedal goes down FIRST, THEN the brake.
Driving the engine instead of v. versa also reverses the film loads on
the crank (usually not that bad) and causes very high intake vacuum,
which can suck oil past the rings and valve guides, and past the seals
on some turbo installations.

 During the 1950s and 1960s, race car braking technology improved
tremendously.  By the 1980s most passenger cars had practically
fade-proof discs, at least in front.  There's no reason to use the
engine to slow, or to open the door and drag your foot, which is about
as effective.

 These minor technical difficulties are meaningless to those who think
their mufflerless Toyota sounds like Fangio at the Monte Carlo, and it's
probably mommy's car anyway.

=======================================================================
can you help me...help me get out of this place?...slow sedation...
ain't my style, ain't my pace...giving me a number...NINE, SEVEN, EIGHT
(Nazareth)               XJ900 TURBO at 15psi          DoD# 978  KotFAQ
=======================================================================
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
Subject: cleaning solvents
From: dave.williams@chaos.lrk.ar.us (Dave Williams) 
Date: 5 Jan 93 00:53:00 GMT
Reply-To: dave.williams@chaos.lrk.ar.us (Dave Williams) 
Distribution: world
Organization: The Courts of Chaos * 501-985-0059 * Public Access Usenet


->       I don't know if your tank is equipped for FIRE contingencys but
->       I would look into it. Once again, Safety Clean uses a Button on

 It uses a steel cable and a counterweight.  I could probably disconnect
the cable from the (1/8" plate steel) lid and add a loop of nylon rope,
but I don't intend to leave the lid up unless I'm actually putting
something in or taking it out.  In that case, if some mischance lights
it off, I can just pull the lid down with my handy broom or a piece of
aluminum bar stock.

 In all of the places I've worked, the solvent tanks had big steel lids
that LATCHED open so they wouldn't get bumped and fall shut, which could
cause Excedrin Headache #41, assuming your brains didn't just squeeze
out into the solvent.
                                                                                                             
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
From: mellum@skyler.mavd.honeywell.com
Subject: Re: Diagnostics
Organization: Honeywell Systems & Research Center
Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1993 18:53:45 GMT

In article <107200002@trsvax>, david@trsvax.tandy.com writes:
> 
> I hope this is appropriate subject for this group. I have an interest in 
> hearing from anyone whom has an opinion about the Snap-on scanner, part
> MT2591-2989 (Deluxe Scanner w/Fast-Track Troubleshooter System), $1,600.00.

Don't you also get these same functions from the OTC4000 with the pathfinder
s/w for a lot less $ ?

Ron
mellum@skyler.mavd.honeywell.com
From: ed.hwang@spacebbs.com (Ed Hwang) 
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
Subject: 1987 Rx-7 turbo II: Horse
Date: 11 Jan 93 23:01:00 GMT
Distribution: world
Organization: SPACE BBS - Menlo Park, CA - 10 Lines + 4gB - 415-323-4193
Reply-To: ed.hwang@spacebbs.com (Ed Hwang) 

To: smangan@src.honeywell.com

SM>Subject: 1987 Rx-7 turbo II: Horsepower?
SM>Organization: Honeywell Systems & Research Center
SM>Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1993 05:19:30 GMT


SM>Does anybody know?

SM>Thanks,

SM>Stef.


183 hp.  (From December 1986 Rotary Rocket Magazine)

-Ed     ed.hwang@spacebbs.com


 * SLMR ???? * Error:(A)bort (R)etry (S)crew it.
                                  
----
SPACE BBS - Menlo Park, CA - 10 Lines - BoardWatch Top Ten BBS
415-323-4193 (v.32bis) - 4gB (50,000 files) + Wx, UPI News, etc.
From: weimin@jhunix.hcf.jhu.edu (Weimin Liu)
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
Subject: How to remove crankshaft pulley on an automatic?
Date: 11 Jan 1993 17:19:31 -0500
Organization: The Johns Hopkins University, Boilnomore, Merryland
NNTP-Posting-Host: jhunix.hcf.jhu.edu

Hi All,

At 63Kmi, it's time to replace the timing belt on my '87 Maxima.  It
requires the removal of the crakshaft pulley.  Haynes manual says one
uses a chain wrench to hold the pulley in order to undo the bolt.  I
couldn't find such a wrench in local automotive stores.  Even if I did,
I seriously doubt it could provide >100 ft-lb torque w/o doing damage
to one thing or another.  Is an impact wrench in order?

I seem to remember this topic was discussed a while back.  Solutions
included crazy things like putting a wrench on the bolt and crank the
engine (I don't think I want to do this; breaking the gears on the 
flywheel is a much bigger problem).  It was easy on my other car which
is a 5-speed; just put the car in 4th gear and use a torque wrench ...

By the way, does anyone know what will happen to the valves if the
timing belt breaks on an 87 Maxima?  I understand on my 85 Celica the
piston will NOT hit the valves if the timing chain breaks.

Pointers are greatly appreciated.
Weimin
--
Weimin Liu (wliu@lando.hns.com)
Hughes Network Systems, 11717 Exploration Lane, Germantown MD 20876
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
From: david@ganglion.ann-arbor.mi.us (David Hwang)
Subject: Re: Diacom ECM Software Review
Organization: D.J. Services
Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1993 23:11:40 GMT


Does anyone know if they sell units for imports as well?  Do imports
even have data jacks into which one can plug in?

Thanks,
David

-- 
David W. Hwang, M.D.           //    University of Michigan Medical School
1050 Wall Street, Suite 10C   //           Telephone: 313/663-5557
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105    //    Internet: david@ganglion.ann-arbor.mi.us
From: dlb5404@tamsun.tamu.edu (Daryl Biberdorf)
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
Subject: Re: How to store a car for 6 months
Date: 6 Jan 1993 14:32:37 -0600
Organization: Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
NNTP-Posting-Host: tamsun.tamu.edu

In article <C0G172.4L0@icon.rose.hp.com> dsantos@hprnd.rose.hp.com (David Santos) writes:
>    I saw a show, I think it was MotorWeek, that discussed this topic.  The
>hosts recommendations were:
>    - Set some mouse traps in and around the car to prevent those little
>      critters from eatting you upolstery. 

"In" the car?   Well, assuming that a mouse could get in the car, I'm not
sure which would be worse -- having chewed-up upholstery or the stench
of a rotting mouse carcass caught in a mouse trap in the car.  Yuck.
The stench would almost certainly take a lot of work and time to get
rid of.  I think I'd find some other way to deal with mice in the car
(such as finding a way to guarantee that they don't get into the car).

Daryl
-- 
Daryl Biberdorf  N5GJM    d-biberdorf@tamu.edu or  dlb5404@tamsun.tamu.edu
From: bense@oasys.dt.navy.mil (Ron Bense)
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
Subject: Re: Oxygenated Gasoline and Low MPG (super unleaded?)
Date: 7 Jan 93 19:29:06 GMT
Reply-To: bense@oasys.dt.navy.mil (Ronald Bense)
Organization: Carderock Division, NSWC, Bethesda, MD

In rec.autos.tech, jgd@dixie.com (John De Armond) writes:

>Methyl teriary butyl ether, CH3*O*C4H9, a very high octane fuel that

Now here's a question for the chemistry majors, or perhaps a full-fledged
chemist. How does a chemical that only supplies 1 O atom, but requires
as many as 10 O atoms for a fully combusted (H2O and CO2) product yield
a lower amount of pollutants at the end? Or are we just switching the
types of pollutants around? (Forgive me if this has been answered previously,
but, like so many, I just tuned in.)

>These oxygenates have been in common use for years as a lead-free
>octane booster for premium no-lead gas.  The EPA has simply mandated
>more.

Umm, from an inside source from a major oil company, nobody likes the
new additives. It makes it hard to ship, it cannot be put out if it
catches on fire, it causes cancer in lab rats, and in general appears
to have no good qualities other than older cars get somewhat improved
emissions. (After all, how can you improve on something that reads "0"
like mine did in one category, and less than 5% of the allowables in
the others?:) Oh, another "good" quality is that the oil companies get
to charge more per gallon, and get to sell more of it.

>This stuff is really nifty for us hotrodders.  Given the engine is
>rejetted/calibrated for the extra oxygen, it will make more power.

It is? I've got a fairly well tuned computerized engine that reads the
O2 output in the exhaust and adjusts fuel to match. Ran great in the
mountains or on the plains. It lost at least 10% of its "fuel" economy
when this oxygenated crap came out. (It used to get around 20-25, now
it's more like 17-22, and it is a 2.0L 4 cylinder [turbo])


Ron
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
Subject: Re: 90/130W H4 QI headlight bulbs wanted
From: dave.williams@chaos.lrk.ar.us (Dave Williams) 
Date: 10 Jan 93 18:52:00 GMT
Reply-To: dave.williams@chaos.lrk.ar.us (Dave Williams) 
Distribution: world
Organization: The Courts of Chaos * 501-985-0059 * Public Access Usenet


-> If you had ever talked to someone who has been in a motorcycle
-> accident when a car pulled out in front of him, you would not be
-> saying this.  The frontal projection of a motorcycle that is

 I've BEEN in such crash.  From the motorcycle end.  You have NO idea
what you're talking about.


-> I watched a TV special once, and they said that in this type of

 Yeah.  Boy, that ought to be the cat's ass for accuracy.  Was it
"McGyver" or "Renegade"?


-> And although I occasionally ride a motorcycle and hence like to think
-> I am more aware of the problem, I confess to pulling out in front of
-> a Harley (with his lights on and flickering) in the above described
-> situation.  Luckily I caught sight of him and stopped after pulling
-> forward about 6 feet, and he swerved, which narrowly avoided the
-> accident.

 Perhaps you'd be better off piloting a set of Reeboks.


-> only that, but after he was thrown into the street in a crumpled ball
-> (luckily he was wearing a helmet), he noticed that the driver

 Why?  Did he land on his head?


-> motorcycles MORE visible.  What they arrived at was a device
-> called a "Q-switch", which you may have seen on some motorcycles. It
-> repeatedly switches the headlight between low and high beam, causing
-> a flashing sensation, to make it even more visible,

 They're illegal here, but some people use them anyway.  And whether on
two wheels or four, there's that nearly irrepressible urge to put a
couple of rounds from my .357 into the light and the idiot behind it.
Pissing off people who can kill you isn't very bright.  Of course, if it
was "McGyver"....

=======================================================================
can you help me...help me get out of this place?...slow sedation...
ain't my style, ain't my pace...giving me a number...NINE, SEVEN, EIGHT
(Nazareth)               XJ900 TURBO at 15psi          DoD# 978  KotFAQ
=======================================================================
From: dloyer@zacson4.EBay.Sun.COM (Dennis Loyer)
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
Subject: Re: Leaking brake fluid.  How to find leak
Date: 8 Jan 1993 23:18:06 GMT
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Inc.
Distribution: world
Reply-To: dloyer@zacson4.EBay.Sun.COM
NNTP-Posting-Host: zacson4.ebay.sun.com

In article 1il1vjINN2qf@male.EBay.Sun.COM, dloyer@zacson4.EBay.Sun.COM (Dennis Loyer) writes:
> In article 3787@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu, sorlin@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Steven J Orlin) writes:
> > In article <ahusain.41@comm1> ahusain@comm1 (Asad Husain) writes:
> > >Hi there.
> > >
> > >I seem to have a leak in my brake system.  Every 2 weeks I have to fill up
> > >my master cylinder with brake fluid.  What can I do to find where the leak
> > >is.   I have tried to look for obvious leaks but can't find any.
> > >
> > Check the brake calipers and rear brake cylinders, any rubber line and any 
> > metal line that runs right underneath the car, by the frame or axle.
> > -- 
> > "Nobody tells a Navy man when he's had enough to drink, cause only a Navy man
> >  knows when he's had enough to drink!"
> > -Steven J Orlin   sorlin@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu  /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
> 
> 
> Worse yet is raw linseed oil, I had this done to me,  when introduced into the combustion chamber, the oil breaks down into a resin.  This resin literally glued
> the pistons to the cylinder walls in my engine, causing a lot of damage which
> forced me to replace the complete engine, not very fun or cheap.
> 


OOPS!!!! this should have been posted under RE: Sugar in gas.
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
From: kokerj@vccsouth10.its.rpi.edu (James Matthew Kokernak)
Subject: Re: Oh No!  I need the doctors advice!
Reply-To: kokerj@rpi.edu
Organization: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY.
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1993 12:45:47 GMT

In article <1993Jan11.122915.461@hsh.com>, lee@hsh.com (Lee Havemann) writes:    
|> 
|> That engine was a classic case of poor design.  Probably blew the head gasket
|> and warped the aluminum head. 
|>   Seen it happen on lots of that year Sunbirds. Did you notice your tempature 
|> gauge (if you have one) climb into the red for a short period of time?
|> 
|> If you open your radiator overflow, does it smell like the one you described 
|> previously?  Does your oil have a mayonaisse looking consistency? Oil in the 
|> radiator? Water coming out the exhaust pipe?
             ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Correct me if I'm wrong, but an ideal gasoline engines exhaust should be
comprised of water and carbon dioxide, shouldn't it? The carbon monoxide
and hydrocarbons are byproducts of incomplete combustion. My point is that
it is normal and in fact healthy to see some water coming out of the 
tail pipe. BTW, I agree with everything else though.

|> -- 
|> 
|>  Lee Havemann, Comp Ops Dir.    HSH Associates      (201) 838-3330 
|>  Internet: lee@hsh.com    Compuserve: 70410,3507    AOL: HSH Assoc
|>  "Any opinions expressed are not necessarily those of anyone else, 
|>   including myself."                     

--Jim
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
From: stankus@leland.Stanford.EDU (John J. Stankus)
Subject: Re: Oxygenated Gasoline and Low MPG (super unleaded?)
Organization: Department of Chemistry, Stanford University
Date: Thu, 7 Jan 93 01:37:29 GMT

In article <13792@limey> sheriffp@Software.Mitel.COM (Peter Sheriff) writes:
>
>   Sorry, my comments got deleted from my previous reply. What I was going to say is that I believe that MTBE stands for Methyl Tetra Butyl Ether if anyone
>is interested.
>
>                            Pete

Well not quite MTBE is Methyl tertiary-Butyl Ether.  The tertiary specifies
the butyl isomer used.  Tetra would indicate that there were four butyls in
the molecule.
                        CH3
                       /
		H3C-O-C-CH3
                       \
                        CH3


note 3's are subscripts


John J. Stankus				Department of Chemistry
stankus@leland.stanford.edu		Stanford University
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
From: dilmore@eastrg2.cray.com (Robert James Dilmore)
Subject: Re: Steering wheel angle
Organization: Cray Research, Inc.
Distribution: na
Date: 12 Jan 93 10:26:59 CST

In article <ALAVIGNE.93Jan11154948@bmerh930.bnr.ca>, alavigne@bmerh930.bnr.ca (Andrew Lavigne) writes:
|> 
|> I have a 1989 Civic Si.  I brought my car for a D.O.T inspection at Canadian
|> Tire (kinda like a K-Mart or Sears quick stop auto place) which I needed to
|> transfer my car into my name from a lease company.
|> 
|> After taking possession of my car, I soon noticed that when the car is
|> travelling in a straight line, the steering wheel is no longer 'straight'.
|> The steering wheel was *perfectly* 'straight' earlier when I had driven the
|> car to the garage parking lot for the inspection.
|> 
|> Upon talking to the service guy afterwards, he said that only an alignment
|> could have changed the steering wheel angle.  Perhaps.  Whatever the reason,
|> the steering wheel angle has definitely changed.
|> 
|> Anyone out there know if it is possible to have the steering wheel angle
|> changed without an alignment??  The car still tracks perfectly; it doesn't
|> pull off to the side.
|> 
|> Thanks,
|> Andrew
|> alavigne@bnr.ca


What you are probably running into is called "radial pull" or "radial runout".
I'll bet you 2.5 cents that if you swap tires from one side to the other the 
car will now pull in the oppposite direction. Tires are defective if this is the 
case, if they don't know what they are doing it will be hard to explain to them.
Don't allow them to just move them to the rear as this will just allow the 
warrenty to elapse before you rotate the tires, and then they say "It must be
the way you drive" or some nonsense.


Robert Dilmore
dilmore@cray.com
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
From: x1sdup@esparc19.webo.dg.com (Stephen Dupre)
Subject: 86 Camry Spark Knock
Date: Mon, 11 Jan 93 22:22:08 GMT
Reply-To: Stephen_Dupre@DGC.ceo.dg.com 
Organization: Data General Corp.

I have an '86 Camry that has spark knock.  With some info from
the Center for Auto Safety, I've found Toyota replaced pistons
and ECU for later cars to "solve" the problem.  Has anyone
replaced just the control unit to cure some of the knocking?  I don't
want to tear the engine down for a piston change (the car has
95k miles on it).  I'd like the car to last another 50k but
worry about the beating the pistons are taking.  Retarding the
timing helps some but I think the curve may be what's messing
it up the most and what the control unit change was supposed to
solve.  Be interested in any observations people have about 
the Camry.  Thanks in advance.
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech,misc.forsale
From: fagundes@iastate.edu (Alex Fagundes)
Subject: FOR SALE: 1985 Nissan 300ZX Shop Manual
Organization: Iowa State University, Ames IA
Date: Sat, 9 Jan 1993 23:35:04 GMT

FOR SALE:
1985 Nissan 300ZX Shop Manual and owners manual.
Best offer takes it!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
|  Alex Fagundes -         Proud owner of a 76 Maverick :) and another      | 
|  fagundes@iastate.edu  -          believer that AMIGA rules               | 
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: lee@hsh.com (Lee Havemann)
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
Subject: Re: Carter Quadrajet?
Date: 11 Jan 93 17:06:52 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: HSH Associates

In article <1993Jan10.170740.5731@nosc.mil>, koziarz@halibut.nosc.mil (Walter A. Koziarz) writes:
> In article <1993Jan09.033725.5851@eng.umd.edu> floyd@eng.umd.edu (Greg Butler) writes:
>  
>>Is that a typo?  Everyone knows Quadrajets are (were) made by
>>Rochester, right?  That's what I thought until I picked one up
>>the other day that had written on the side:
>  
>>     "MFD BY
>>      CARTER
>>      CARBURETOR
> 
> yep, I've seen 'em, I know someone that's got on on a '72 Pontiac Bonneville
> with 455cid... yep, you *are* gonna have fun convincing parts-store counter-hlp
> that you're not halucinating... but don't give up, the correct parts are
> available, you just gotta look for 'em.
> 
> 
> Walt K.

Also installed on the 65 (-66?) Pontiac 396 engines... (had one on my '65 Bonny
Ragtop).

-- 

 Lee Havemann, Comp Ops Dir.    HSH Associates      (201) 838-3330 
 Internet: lee@hsh.com    Compuserve: 70410,3507    AOL: HSH Assoc
 "Any opinions expressed are not necessarily those of anyone else, 
  including myself."
From: SYSDMCKE@VM.UWP.EDU
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
Subject: 88 Spectrum Turbo, CHECK ENGINE light occasionally ? How to.
Date: 12 Jan 93 13:39:33 GMT
Organization: UW-Parkside

Howdy All,
I have ann 88 CHEVROLET ;-) Spectrum Turbo that occasionally turns on his check
engine light.  Usually when it is cold and first started.  Oil, electric and
all that are fine each and every time.  Oil volume to the turbo was measured
and is always correct.  How do I check the codes on this type of car ?
Also,
  The oil pressure appears to be double when the car is cold and once it warms
up, it drops and varies according to the RPM.  The oil pressure when warm is
NOT below recommended levels.
Any Hints or ideas ?
Thanks,
Doug McKeown
sysdmcke@vm.uwp.edu
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech
From: sorlin@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Steven J Orlin)
Subject: Re: Brake repair question
Organization: The Ohio State University
Distribution: usa
Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1993 23:11:41 GMT

In article <1993Jan7.211352.9612@hplabsz.hpl.hp.com> thapar@hplabsz.hpl.hp.com
(Manu Thapar) writes:
>
>
>A friend has an old big car. The brakes are not working effectively.
>The mechanic said that the rotor needs to be replaced and the cost
>would be around $200.
>
>Someone told me today that rotor replacement is a sham and replacing
>the brake shoes/pads would do the job. That would cost around $50.
>
>Any views/suggestions about what should be done?
>
>Thanks.
>
>Manu
>
>thapar@hplabs.hp.com


     I used to work in an Auto Parts store in Akron Ohio.  $200 is way
ripping you off.  Unless it was for a brand new import, or a Dodge Vipor,
or Ferrari, then, expect to pay that much.
     However, if it is an old big American car, expect to pay, oh....between
$20-$40 for one rotor.
     Unless you've had a lot of experience turning rotors or replacing them,
you can't really be expected to know what a bad one looks like, but I can
tell you one thing; if it is a 'finned' rotor, and it most likely is,  and
one side is considerably thinner than the other or if either sides have
deep groves, then buy a new one.

     On the other hand, depending on the quality you buy, brakes all 'round
will cost you about $25-$40.

     My suggestion, put the car up on jackstands, take off all rotors and
drums, and take them to a known place to get turned, then replace the
pads and shoes yourself; its not that hard.

steve
-- 
"Nobody tells a Navy man when he's had enough to drink, cause only a Navy man
 knows when he's had enough to drink!"
-Steven J Orlin   sorlin@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu  /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
Newsgroups: rec.autos.tech