aircraft engineer

The unlock on my alarm button (python) works fine, the alarm sets but the doors won't lock. also when the key is truned on, the doors don't autolock. The KEY locks all the doors (just like it should)

Is your stumble at speed and then just a simple miss or is it pronounced - longer duration and then just disappears? Have you cleaned the MAF? My stumbling was pronounced - even an occasional on the cruise control at about 60 - on the cruise you really notice a M IS S. Then it got nasty so I cleaned the MAF and it quit - only to recur on a 30 mile drive home from Seattle (2 days later - almost all freeway). I was lucky - my sister has the same car so I borrowed a different MAF (all 2.2 use the same unit - mine is a 97 2.2 Imp) and it disappeared just like it had never happened. A trip to the salvage parts facility for another and the problem is gone. It sounds just like my problem - you might be able to get by with the CRC cleaner. If not, then there's replacing the MAF - worked for me. It's nice to be able to trouble shoot with a known good PART.

So the problem came back again - I went and borrowed the MAF of my sister's Imp (also 97) and the problem went away. So it was off to my local junkyard for another. Got 2 - 1 off a 99 Forester and another off 96 Imp 2.2. The ID plate numbers are slightly different - but I installed the 99 anyway. Seems to work fine. Will know soon enough when it comes to fueling - I hope to see an improvement in the 25 around town. with the dieing MAF it averaged 23.5.

Just did a 10 mile run - seems to be "fixed" - the dirty MAF was the problem. I added a bottle of gas line cleaner/ water pick-up "just in case". anyway - an airplane story - Or as one of my former bosses related (true story - he was driving the Cessna) "Cessna 54charlie, Boeing tower- Runway 27 right, wind 250 at 6 knots,cleared for takeoff" "54 Charlie" 30 seconds later at about 500' (still over the 2.2 mile long runway) "Boeing tower, 54 charlie - I seem to have lost #1 engine" {2 or 3 second pause) "54 charlie, you're a Cessna 172...you only HAVE 1 engine" "I KNOW" "54 charlie cleared to land any direction..." (by the way - the rest of the story - Boeing Flying Club aircraft, just out of maintenance. The mechanic came out with fire in his eyes asking "what didja do to MY AIRCRAFT?" Turns out he hadn't tightened the cable clamp on the throttle linkage so the cable slipped out - the engine would only IDLE) Anyway Ivan - usual tower response to that situation would be "OK - we'll send out the equipment for you"

cleaning the MAF seemed to help quite a bit but it isn't all gone. Will go get a "different" MAF and maybe replace some of the VAC hose as well. Might as well put my old coil pack back on, too. will go find my fuel pressure gage and see what it tells me, too

I'm thinking that it's the MAF - easy enough to check and see - easy to clean, too. Would fit the "started acting up after the hi flow rate from stomping on it". How does the coolant sensor affect the spark? and where is it (or "are they") Thanks for the help.

NO CEL codes set. It's a ghost for sure. Next it's off the handy dandy wrecking yard and get the crank and cam sensors and try swapping them out one at a time - also try to do a circuit trace in the wiring drawing and see if there is something "obvious". It's not a code item and seems to manifest itself when the engine starts to heat up. I need to check the fuel pump but it sure doesn't seem like fuel starvation. What are the symptoms of a timing belt slip?

swapped the coil pack - started fine then started rough running in 2 miles or so stalled a couple of times on the way back. If I keep the RPM "up" it runs in neutral but will not idle (most of the time - but not always)

so this AM on my way to my language class, it ran fine UNTIL I STOMPED ON IT - then it went back to the missing - made it into the parking lot and it died - had to push it 20 feet or so. Let it sit for 3 hours (the class time) - went out and it started up but missed off and on until a couple of miles down the road - then it seemed fine again. Anybody know fuel pressure output at the pump? I have a fuel pressure tester I got from Harbor Freight - might as well USE it. (new in the box)

When started after replacing the plugs, there was some smoke and then it ran OK for a few seconds. After a while I started it and drove 5 miles to Auto Zone. Checked for engine codes - NONE. BUT...AFTER I turned it off it wouldn't start for 10 minutes. The A-Z guy said he saw puffs of black smoke coming out the rear and thought it had been flooded. FINALLY got it started and drove it home. (no miss, beats me - running just like "normal") Maybe a temperature related electrical issue? BTW - All I replaced was the plugs If I weren't losing my hair I'd pull out what's left. Anyway - Took it home, checked the fuel - clean. NOW it's running FINE (I did disconnect and replug the coil module while I was pumping some fuel out the fuel filter outlet port - reduce ignition chance with the raw gas) The A-Z guy thought it might be a corroded cam sensor pickup. OK - but WHY is it running FINE NOW? BTW - I HATE doing a timing belt - it's not "difficult" just "time consuming" (Series I is "non-interference")

Changed fuel filter - not fuel problem can smell the gas and see soot in exhaust pipe outlet. EJ-22 series I Runs sometimes "well" but spits and misses others. new plugs today - no net effect. Haven't been able to get to Auto Zone for a scan. (yet - will chance it later - 5 miles) Limped home Thu noon and haven't had the time to do anything except change plugs and fuel filter Ideas? Unknown when last timing belt was done but I've put 55k on the car since I got it. now has 205. BELT WAS DONE ONCE FOR SURE I'm suspecting a sensor but no idea which one

The way I found to hold the belt to the cams was to use a piece of paint stirrer stick and a C clamp. Put the stick on the belt and the clamp on the cam. Not too much pressure and it holds it to the mark just fine. just make sure you line up with the timing marks first. The "lower" idlers don't matter much but it is a bit difficult to get that lowest BOLT back in and hold the pulley at the same time - it might take a few tries

Well - you've asked a question about like "does an orange have a core?". I'll explain - Copper plugs have a copper center electrode which conducts heat away from the electrode area "better" - heats up the ceramic insulator and conducts the heat out "better" into the air. It's only sort of related to "hot" plug or "cold" plug That has to do with how fast the electrode area retained heat is dissipated to reduce deposits. Platinum plugs either have a small platinum alloy electrode end or one or 2 thin platinum wire electrodes attached to the outer shell. Mostly for automotive plugs, it's the platinum center electrode stub and the typical steel alloy spark gap adjustment. (Piston aircraft typically platinum plugs were the fine wire with a large center electrode. The intention is to minimize the "wear" from the arc across the gap) Like I said - slightly different intent - "cooler" plug or reduced arc "wear" (actually it's electric arc erosion - we just call it "wear") Somebody probably does both in 1 plug

The manufacturer is REQUIRED to state the CONTENT (not the AMOUNT, the content - the "materials" in the solution). We even HAVE MSDS sheets for "aluminum blocks" (and the only "hazard" is dropping it on your FOOT ) Woe unto any manufacturer who doesn't supply the hazardous contents (and just about EVERYTHING is considered "hazardous" by the EPA - there is even an MSDS for "distilled water")

OK - the designated brother drove it up a 1/2 mile 6% grade from a standing start. Temp show mid range right where MINE is (same car, just with the phase 1 engine) There's a dead spot in 3rd gear where the engine lugs unless downshifted by either tromping down a bit to force the downshift or manual downshift into 2nd. After the slope slightly flattened and got back into 3rd it accelerated easily without a lot of lugging. Checked physical output from the gas line downstream of the filter, key off to key on - nice squirt of gas out the filter so filter doesn't appear plugged. I didn't do the acid test of "take it all the way out" (only disconnected the output line - c-c-cold hoses don't slip off easily) and blow thru the metal tube to VERIFY free flow", though. She INSISTED on new plug wires, I kept the old ones - there's nothing wrong with THEM either, but not MY problem. No indication of engine codes - no lights on at all. Still have no idea of why the fuel economy went down to 22 or so - on my Tempo it was an oxy sensor (without an engine code. New sensor and the mileage went back up) I'm thrashing about here, folks...

The green machine just kept going like the energizer bunny during the Seattle area snow.

Depending - if you have the older ball bearings, the likely cause was distortion in the housing during installation. it's why they went to "roller bearings" on the newer models. the bearing itself is about $60 or so, seals about $25 or so and it does take a bit of time - if drum brakes. You might be able to find a good used unit and install it, but most anything good will be DISC so you would need to press out the hub, swap the backing plates and reassemble with new seals. it's not exactly difficult, just time consuming - and pulling the disc units will need to have the disc themselves pulled as well to get off the E-brake cables

oil pumps USUALLY won't wear out (too well lubed.) What you sort of need to do is to pull it off when you do the belt and measure the clearances. "Got your clearance, Clarence?" Then it's good to go. Remember to loctite the screws when you put it back together (good idea to loctite the screws anyway - so take them out and loctitie them and they won't loosen - use red if you have it but blue should hold well enough)

WV - VW - iceberg Goldberg... what's the difference?

That's the "fixed" side right? All that you need is a piece of plastic square about the right length and then find a screw that fits. It doesn't rotate and just hold the end "there". The end with the spring is the "window shade" I think. drill it to fit the screw and counterbore it if you need to if the piece is too long for the screw you just need something to hold it in place so it can't pull out

actually, it's not the lead that's the problem - it's the phosphorous contained in the lead scavengers. Trouble is that you won't get one without the other. TEL lead will cause a combustion chamber build up by itself - the PHOSPHOROUS just combines with it and flushes it thru the chamber (and poisons catalysts). The lead atmospheric emissions reduction was a "side benefit" With the stellited hardened valve seats, there isn't a need for the lubrication that the lead provided between the valve faces and the seats. As to running 115/145 (super hi octane aromatic av-gas) - one problem is that it runs so hot (combustion temperature) it tends to burn the valves. Another is that 115/145 is VERY unfriendly to most of the gasketry in the fuel system (but since I've been away from it for years now, it might have changed)

you might try looking at a junkyard - those rears are pretty much interchangeable in that time frame. It's a LOT easier, of course, IF you find drum brakes since almost all ot them seem to be DISCS. You will STILL need to disassemble the entire rears and take out the unit hopefully with the entire strut to save aggravation later on. actually pressing out the hub and changing the backing plate from disc to drum is pretty easy - particularly if you work on planes. the hardest parts are the axle nut (32mm) and that &^^%^%#! LINK at the bottom the HOUSING (19mm and an absolute BEEATCH to get loose because of the close clearance) piece of cake otherwise (remember to buy new grease seals and IF you disassemble the hub to pull the tone ring put more grease in the bearing. ALL of the factory units were BALL BEARINGS - the rollers are "aftermarket fix" - like was said easy insertion/removal. If you use "pre-owned" parts) it may or may not be a roller bearing. The roller bearings supposedly hold up better. I have to do at least 1 on my IMP and I'm not necessarily looking forward to the job (it IS kind of messy) BTW - get a mechanics stethoscope and determine which side is "bad". From a practical standpoint, while it takes longer, you might save future aggravation by doing "both". The replacement ball bearing is $70 US or so. The JY unit was $40 US each, so it might be a better deal IF you want to go strip a donor car rears remove and insert from the OUTSIDE (the snap ring is on the OUTSIDE - under the HUB) there are articles about it online GO HERE: http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=787070 with pictures too It's for FRONTS, but it's pretty much the same as rears except that the bearing go in from the OUTSIDE inward

sure am glad i didn't have the beer until AFTER I read that

If the knock sensor starts "talking" it will turn on the P0325 CEL. It would take pretty much a "tuned click" to do it (it's apparently "frequency tuned" to the "ping sound") IF the knock sensor doesn't have a good ground, it will turn on the light (a complete circuit with about 50k ohms is require for a "go signal" otherwise the ECU reads "open circuit". A "short" is just as bad - that feeds to the ECU as well. I tried both conditions on my car, but didn't try the "ultimate deception" - a 50k-ohm resistor to ground. that would eliminated the knock sensor but also eliminate and "engine protection" arising from the knock as well) A rod knock would probably do it, though

Rear ROLLER bearings are supposedly greased at the manufacturer. I'll re-grease everything anyway so I don't care (that way I KNOW there's enough hi-temp grease in there). Easy enuf to tell - just pull an inner race out of one side. Obvious at that point (and the rollers just slide out - the ball races have to be gently pried out with a screwdriver) Time to do 2 rears (typical rear bearing howl but seems to be coming from both sides - might be different when I have it torn down and can try turning them by hand) and a new front driver's axle on the green Imp. Maybe I can find a couple in the JY or change to discs