lewdog

My wife is in need of new tires for her '01 Toyota RAV4 4WD. I remember from my Subaru Forester tire research that I really wanted to get the Goodyear Assurance TripleTreds-I seem to remember them being the best mix of everything in terms of performance and long life. I don't know if technology has marched past them, though, or if there's anything better. Thoughts?

I definitely will be giving them a call today.

Damn. Not since I took it to a local mechanic and not the stealership. Would have been good to know.

My engine was shut down for about an hour when I checked the dipstick and it was on the level in my garage. I followed the procedure you described exactly, except for the left side thing. Am I screwed? I'll try the brakes thing.

I just had a 30k mile service done to my 04 auto. Forester. There are two problems that I'm wondering about--are they serious? Do they mean trouble for my car? I can not afford bigtime problems... 1. Too much oil. The range between low and full on the dipstick is about 3/4 of an inch or so. The oil level is at least 3 inches above the full mark. 2. Had new shoes or pads or whatever put on my front breaks and the rotors turned. The breaks now squeal quite frequently.

Just got done removing a stump from my backyard. Maybe I could have just used it to burn the stump out. FIRE!

Can you tell me more about why you don't like Seafoam? I ask because it seems like everybody and their cousin here thinks it's the coolest thing ever and I usually kind of go with the flow on those things. Do you think it has some good uses like as a fuel additive or something?

Also, I've got two cans of SeaFoam just sitting in my garage begging to be used. Do you think it'd be helpful if I did this 500 miles (I think that's what I remember reading) before I took it to the mechanic?

Very helpful. Thanks. Weird, but I'm subscribed to this thread and I've not gotten any e-mail notifications.

So I should add in a tranny flush, then?

Basically, I'm wondering what is really needed for a 30,000 mile service for my vehicle. I am not a mechanic and will be paying someone else my *hard-earned* money to do it. The manual states: Inspect: drive belt camshaft drive belt fuel system, lines and connections transmission/diff. (front and rear) lubricants (gear oil) auto. trans. fluid disc brake pads and discs, front and rear axle boots and axle shaft joint portions brake linings and drums clutch operation steering and suspension Replace: engine oil engine oil filter fuel filter air cleaner element spark plugs brake fluid Perform: replace engine coolant and inspect cooling system, hoses, and connections inspect brake lines and check operation of parking and service brake system rotate and inspect tires Out of this list, what do I not need (if anything)? Anything not covered that I should have done? I have talked to a mechanic who, after looking up my vehicle in whatever book or database he had, said that I should not need spark plugs (despite what the owner's manual says). He thought there should be platinum plugs in there that are good to 100k. I understand replacing them bumps up the price substantially. I didn't find a thread that related directly when I searched and thought some knowledgable answers in one place on this topic would be much appreciated by more members than just me. So, basically, what should I have done?

so, if i have an 04 forester, do i have to worry about the headgasket issue?

I think you're paranoid.

Hutch85-- Who's the idiot now? Respectfully, Lewdog

Pretty much sums it up. I just bought a 2004 Forester with 17,000 miles on it. How often do you use Seafoam (or whatever engine/gas/etc. cleaners) and at what mileage would you initially use it?