Fairtax4me

Tried the dimmer switch? Little wheel type switch on the turn signal stalk.

Probably brake pads. You would be surprised what can pass a safety inspection. You'd think your buddy would have told you what wouldn't pass or what was close to not passing though, even though he passed it.

The pump might as well not be serviceable on these. You have split the trans case to get at it. If that is the case you just get a new (to you) transmission from a junkyard and drop it in. You did check the fluid level on the drivers side transmission dipstick correct? Engine and trans warm, running in park, after shifting through all gears? The passenger side dipstick is gear oil for the front differential. You could possibly try a fluid change, but whether that will fix the problem or not is hard to say. These pumps work similarly to a power steering pump (same damn thing really, just a little bigger). If air gets in them they will whine so fluid level is essential, as is using the proper fluid, as well as fluid condition. Old fluid may cavitate or foam up easier than new fluid simply because it's degraded past it's service life. (which is part of the reason there is a service life to any fluid)

What was the mileage before the trouble that caused it to drop? It's hard to determine what is "bad" without having a baseline to compare to.

Whining from an automatic near the bell housing... makes me think the transmission fluid pump is shot. They can make some awful racket when they go bad. Generally the transmission will be slow to engage or will slip when the pump goes bad. Eventually it will just quit working altogether.

Couldn't have been any other color could it? Are the fog light housings chrome? Am I seeing at least that much right?

Well if you can smell it you have a leak. Sometimes leaks are very small and don't show up because of all the oil and grease on the engine. Common places are the thermostat gasket, water pump gasket, and head gaskets. Look for spots on the engine where the grease looks chocolaty/milky rather than just straight up black.

Whats with the 3 pipes on one side? Something I'm missing here. But it's so shiny!!! Shiny = good.

I don't see it.

x3 on the low refridgerant. You can get one of those recharge kits they sell at advance for like $20 and fill it up, but it will probably keep leaking.

The new ones come pre-greased and they generally aren't serviceable so you don't have to worry about it. But get some Silicone spray lube. It helps a ton when installing the boots. The jam/lock washers will shear when you turn the joint with a wrench so don't worry about trying to un-punch them. Just be sure to punch the new ones in place.

I replaced both inner tie rod ends on my car within a few weeks of each other. The one I didn't replace seemed fine at the time I replaced the first one, but about 3 weeks later it started clunking too. Lucky for me I work at a shop and have access to an alignment lift. Go buy a set of cheap jack stands from autozone or something. You should never trust ANY jack to stay up when you're under the car. Always put it on stands. Can you hear the squeaking when the car is sitting still or is it only when moving?

Yes they are quite different. Brake cleaner dries clean and fast , leaves no residue, so that the brakes have a nice clean surface so they work properly. Carb cleaner is generally heavily petroleum based and will leave oils/residue behind that will prevent the brakes from working until the residue is burned off. Use brake cleaner for brakes, carb cleaner for carbs.

Lots of things can be wrong there. The noise could either be the tires or a bad bearing as already said. The "loose" feeling can be bearing related, worn struts / springs , bad tie rod ends/ball joints, worn steering rack boots. It doesn't even have to be in the front end the rear suspension can get out of whack and cause some funny handling as well. Worn springs can throw the toe angle off which will make the car pull to one side or the other as the COG shifts from the left to the right or vice versa. Get the front end up in the air on jack stands. Check the inner and outer tie rod ends for play by "wiggling" the wheels. Grab each one at about 3 and 9 o'clock and try to push/pull each side back and forth in a quick rocking motion. If you see any movement or hear/feel a clunk sensation then get a friend to wiggle the wheel while you look to see where the movement might be coming from. If you know it needs tires, you might save yourself the trouble and have the shop that puts the tires on check the alignment for you. They will check over the whole front end and if anything is loose that will prevent a proper alignment from being done they'll tell you what it is (and want you to let them fix it). If you got the money, it's up to you whether you let them fix it for you. If you're on a budget find out exactly what needs to be replaced and post back here or search around the boards for info on what to do.

Check for play in the rack perpendicular to the shaft. grab the end with your hand and try to wiggle it up and down to check for wear on the bushings. If you can't see or feel any movement replace the inner ends (best to do both of them) and put new boots on it. The shimmy may be caused by a warped brake rotor, but is probably being made to feel much worse because of the slop in the tie rod. Don't be surprised if the shimmy isn't 100% gone after the tie rods are replaced.

The prop shaft is the driveshaft. Only one of those and yes it is expensive as hell for a new one. Junkyards are your best bet. For a reference of which cars have the shaft you need. http://opposedforces.com/parts/ Open the parts catalog and pick which car you have. The prop shaft is listed under the "train" section, click that and scroll down til you find the number for the prop shaft in the picture. Click that link and it will have another link that says Usage information. That will show you all the cars and what years that have that part so you know what to look for. You can also go to Car-part.com and search for local junkyards that might have the part you need. It can send them an email for you and if any have it they'll send you one back with info.

P0420 is catalyst efficiency code. If the car smog tested fine then the front O2 sensor may be bad. When the codes are reset the computer resets the fuel trim and ignition timing curves that it learns as it is being driven. It takes a few drive cycles for the ECU to "relearn" the settings that work best. This can take 2 hours or a week depending on how far you drive. You can do a search of the board here for P0420. There are literally hundreds of threads concerning that particular code. You should find some good info about what causes it and what to address to fix the problem that is causing it.

The best fix for these is to cut the cables and set the belt all the way back in it's rest position, then put a couple rivets or a bolt through it so it doesn't move anymore. Kind of a paint to hook/unhook the stupid thing every time you get in or out of the car, but anything you get from the junkyard is going to need replacement at some point as well. Might as well fix it for good and not have to worry about it getting stuck again.

Agreed. We need to see the actual code or codes that was/are being set. This "bucking" can be caused by any number of things, most commonly it's attributed to misfires caused by old spark plugs or wires.

It doesn't matter. Just make sure the surface is clean before you install it or you'll have to put a new one on in another 6 months.

Depending on if the engine is making noise (lifters ticking) I'd check the wiring for the sender first. It is common for the back plates on the oil pumps to come loose and bleed the pressure off. But the only way to find out is to take it off.

What in the... I'm as confused as you guys are trust me.

Kick him/her in the rear. Glad you got it fixed. Now grab a handful of crank sensors out of the junkyard for when the new new one quits in three weeks. JK. But really spare parts like that are cheap to get and can be handy for testing with if you ever come across this situation again.

That means the PCV valve is working. The PCV hose is not a good source for vacuum readings because the PCV valve is in the way. It has a check ball in it that rattles around during normal operation. It's there to keep liquid oil out of the intake manifold if it ever backs up into the pcv hose. Protects the engine from hydrolocking in the bizarre case the cylinders suck in a gulp of oil instead of air. This would only happen if you had other major problems, but it would mean an end to an otherwise repairable engine. The problem with the "marks" that the cam sprockets have to line up with is that they are in a peice of molded plastic, so they aren't very exact IMO. The "right spot" could be either side of the mark by a tooth or more. This is one reason I always make my own marks when doing timing belts. Good news is you got a good result and that is a higher vacuum reading. Did you try adjusting the position of the belt on the opposite cam as well or did you do just one and leave it at that?

I'd bet on a heat shield. They can make an awful racket when they get loose. Check the ones on the catalytic converters too.