The Mechanical Advice Thread

[thumper]

i'm a dinosaur when it comes to bikes. the last bike i owned was a 2000 R1, which was my first fuel injected bike, but it was stolen before i had to deal with what you have now

gummed up carbs are bad, but fouled fuel injectors are worse.

i was hoping you might have a petcock so that you can disconnect the fuel line and drain the tank right there. before i used to fill the tank with sta-bil, run the engine for a bit and then shut off the petcock and let the engine stall, in hopes that the injectors would be okay when i start it next season. but that didn't happen here.

have you called a ducati shop yet? maybe ducati message boards? bcsportbikes.com? maybe that would be best, since anything on a ducati is expensive to fix so better safe than sorry.

[fliptuner]

Yeah, I'd drain the tank and fill it with good, fresh fuel. Not sure if there's an injector cleaner you can throw in with the new gas.

Aside from that, I'd say at least change the oil and lube the chain.

[G-spec]

Originally Posted by thumper

i'm a dinosaur when it comes to bikes. the last bike i owned was a 2000 R1, which was my first fuel injected bike, but it was stolen before i had to deal with what you have now

gummed up carbs are bad, but fouled fuel injectors are worse.

i was hoping you might have a petcock so that you can disconnect the fuel line and drain the tank right there. before i used to fill the tank with sta-bil, run the engine for a bit and then shut off the petcock and let the engine stall, in hopes that the injectors would be okay when i start it next season. but that didn't happen here.

have you called a ducati shop yet? maybe ducati message boards? bcsportbikes.com? maybe that would be best, since anything on a ducati is expensive to fix so better safe than sorry.

Yea that's a good idea, calling Ducati.... And I just talked to bro again and he said he looked inside the tank and the fuel doesnt look like fuel no more, it's "milky" looking.... so definitely calls for a complete fuel flush

so to be safe yea I just told him call up Ducati dealer talk to mechanic, we'll go by exactly what the mechanic says, thanks Thumper appreciate the time

[fliptuner]

In that case, drain, half fill, shake, drain, fill. The injectors will be the main issue.

give this a read:
http://www.ducati.ms/forums/56-super...injectors.html

Personally, I'd flush the tank and take it for a ride, then change the oil, check the plugs and go from there.

[thumper]

milky? ugh... does it smell like varnish too? whatever you do, don't run the bike on that mess

also going with what fliptuner said... it needs a proper pre-season servicing. since that has to be done might as well get the mechanic to deal with the fuel as well.

i only remember imperial motorcycles and john valk (now vancouver ducati bmw?) from back in the day. hopefully your brother knows where to go.

[Akinari]

Having some camber issues in the rear. Been on several different alignment systems at different shops but the right rear always visually shows more camber than the left rear even though the results show they are 100% even. Not sure what's going on or perhaps the body is sticking out farther on one side LOL.

[CCA-Dave]

Have you been to Dale's? Not sure how the whole rear suspension bolts up on your car, but if it's got a subframe it's possible the subframe is shifted slightly to one side. You need an alignment shop that can check more than just the four wheels, but one that can do an entire alignment of the subframes, frame and wheels.

[Akinari]

Originally Posted by CCA-Dave

Have you been to Dale's? Not sure how the whole rear suspension bolts up on your car, but if it's got a subframe it's possible the subframe is shifted slightly to one side. You need an alignment shop that can check more than just the four wheels, but one that can do an entire alignment of the subframes, frame and wheels.

Could be the subframe, but I'm thinking more worn bushings, however I'm not sure it would be severe enough to cause the imbalance which is clearly visible.

[Vulgate]

What's a good place that can sell batteries for a BMW locally?

[IMASA]

Costco, if hey carry your model. The Kirkland batteries are made by Johnson Auto Controls and they are pretty good.

[CCA-Dave]

Originally Posted by Akinari

Could be the subframe, but I'm thinking more worn bushings, however I'm not sure it would be severe enough to cause the imbalance which is clearly visible.

Didn't you *just* redo the entire suspension on that car? A proper alignment shop will make you aware of any worn bushings before they do an alignment...seems to me you need a better shop.

Give Jason over at Dale's alignment a call, tell him Dave with the rally bug suggested you consult with him on your issue. He'll take good care of you.

-Dave

[SpeedStars]

Hey guys, so my CEL just came on again after I reset it through the fuse box. Seems like it comes on when the cat portion of the exhaust is wet (reset'd yesterday, did not come on. Then sprayed the cat portion with a hose and it came back on). Any of you have an idea what might be triggering it? I will be pulling the code once it comes back on! PS. Car drives completely fine. Don't notice any difference in fuel economy or knocking/misfiring of any sort.

[Akinari]

Was WOTing in 1st and hit redline, CEL came on. Drove it home to reset the ECU, CEL was gone but came back after 30-40 seconds of idling (although I did not leave the battery unplugged for 2 hours). Took it out with the CEL on, car was not in limp mode because the revs could go over 3000rpm, but there was a noticeable loss of power throughout the rpm range. Drove it home and have unplugged the battery and waiting for 2hrs to go by to plug the battery back on and see if the CEL is cleared.

I do not own a code reader therefore I do not know what the code is but I'm guessing it's probably a misfire related to plugs or coils, since there is a loss of power throughout the rpm range.

Anyone have any ideas?

EDIT: would like to mention that misfire CEL usually means a blinking CEL light, however my light was and is still solid and never blinked. I am also catless and I'm now thinking maybe it's something related to the O2 sensor?

UPDATE: took it out for a drive once more after resetting the ECU again, started engine, CEL came back on after 24 seconds, drove it for about 15 minutes, slowly, quickly, WOT, highway speeds, all sorts of driving and it seemed to drive 100% normal, however the exhaust for whatever reason was less raspy than it was before the CEL and significantly less pop/crackle/backfiring off-throttle, presumably from different A/F due to something funky going on with probably the primary O2 sensor. Even this morning before the CEL happened in the evening, off-throttle would ensue pop crackle bang backfiring even when not driving with a heavy right foot.

UPDATE: turned out to be code P1157, A/F ratio sensor 1 range/performance problem, so either open circuit in the harness, poor connection in the harness, or a shorted out O2 sensor, the latter of which probably occured since the CEL came on while the car was bouncing off the limiter did a quick inspection of all the wiring, nothing seems visibly damaged so it's probably a busted O2 sensor, have one on order already.

Originally Posted by SpeedStars

Hey guys, so my CEL just came on again after I reset it through the fuse box. Seems like it comes on when the cat portion of the exhaust is wet (reset'd yesterday, did not come on. Then sprayed the cat portion with a hose and it came back on). Any of you have an idea what might be triggering it? I will be pulling the code once it comes back on! PS. Car drives completely fine. Don't notice any difference in fuel economy or knocking/misfiring of any sort.

Probably your O2 sensor.

[LicensedMonkey]

Originally Posted by Akinari

Having some camber issues in the rear. Been on several different alignment systems at different shops but the right rear always visually shows more camber than the left rear even though the results show they are 100% even. Not sure what's going on or perhaps the body is sticking out farther on one side LOL.

Any accidents on this vehicle ? Suspension can be slightly bent and or rear subframe. Bushings could also be worn.

[LicensedMonkey]

Originally Posted by fliptuner

'93 Civic (250k) w/ PS

My inner tie rod ends and bellows need replacing. I just bought inners, outers and the bellows for $150 or so.

Before I crack open the packaging and install them, do you think it's better to spend the extra time and money to just replace the rack (inners pre-assembled) and get some new outers and mount bushings? With new fluid, it'd probably end up costing about $300.

I just figure it would cost less in the long run, unless these steering racks rarely fail/leak, in which case, I'll just replace what's worn.

I'd replace the whole unit. There is wear on the inside only visible when taken apart and measured. You're penny pinching now, not worth the headache. Get a good quality reputable new rack.

[i-vtecyo]

Starting to regret buying this beater.. I had to swap the transmission out twice because the first one was blown and 2nd one had first gear issues.. Anyways...

I have a bad leak from the head connecting to the thermostat housing. I bought a new housing with new o ring gasket however it still leaks due to the pits/rot on the cylinder head. Is there any solution to fixing this damn leak?

[jack_dangerous]

Originally Posted by i-vtecyo

Starting to regret buying this beater.. I had to swap the transmission out twice because the first one was blown and 2nd one had first gear issues.. Anyways...

I have a bad leak from the head connecting to the thermostat housing. I bought a new housing with new o ring gasket however it still leaks due to the pits/rot on the cylinder head. Is there any solution to fixing this damn leak?

Spoiler!

[Akinari]

For the past couple of months, my car has been having minor electrical issues, I'm thinking the alternator is on its way out.

When I rev my engine in P or N by giving the accelerator a good hard jab, instead of a light progressive step, my interior lights dim and when the revs go down, they go down VERY quickly and actually drops the rpms below idle, causing my lights to go dim again and making the car nearly stall. It has happened ONCE when I was shifting from R to D, the rpms dropped below idle and the car stalled. Otherwise the car drives perfectly fine, and the dimming of the lights only happens when I'm revving the car when it's stationary or shifting from R to D and vice versa.

[inv4zn]

^That is more likely a grounding issue.

Check the grounding cables from your engine/chassis, tranny/chassis, and battery/chassis.

Some of the stock wires are left exposed, and may have become corroded, frayed, etc.

[Akinari]

There's only one grounding cable in my engine bay that I'm aware of, that's properly grounded and always has been. Unless it's something else? No idea, I hate electric gremlins like this, is this can even be classified as an electrical gremlin

[inv4zn]

^It's very unlikely there's only one grounding cable. My Accord has 3 or something from the Engine/Tranny.

I'm obviously no expert, but guys with big sound systems that draw a lot of current, all the lights would flicker with the subwoofer firing, and this was largely due to faulty grounding.

I'd look at Element specific forums, and find out what the locations are.

But then again it could be something entirely different.

Spoiler!

Like you lowering your Element

[underscore]

If you haven't taken the ground off and inspected/cleaned it recently it might look fine but be junk, easy test is to clamp on a jumper cable as a temp ground and see if it helps.

[inv4zn]

Some strange noise problems
2007 Accord V6.

There is a groaning/creaking sound whenever I turn the steering wheel, moving slow, or at rest. Also happens with the car completely off, which rules out power steering.

It's only for the first moment of turning the steering wheel, then goes away. ie. if I'm in a parking lot, stationary, and turn the steering wheel while letting off the brakes, it'll groan, and go away as the car starts turning/moving.

Also, not sure if related, but there are random "clicks", also from suspension, mostly during braking, or letting off the brake - but i suspect this is just a brake pad shim.

Any ideas?

[fliptuner]

Check your front end bushings, including the ones for the rack.

[inv4zn]

Check visually, for wears/cracks?