The PM.Zone is a great place to look first. If you check the Automotive area, you'll be able to select from a broad choice of Saturday Mechanic features that have appeared in the last four years. So if you remember that not long ago we ran an article on the problem you have now, check the list and pull up the fully illustrated article.
Want basic how-to information?Point your browser to http://www.autosite.com to find Owning Your Car and, under it, a choice of repairs and maintenance, or reference materials. Both have details on doing a broad range of jobs, but are very short on the illustrations that appear in a typical Saturday Mechanic.
Factory Service Bulletins
Is there a factory problem involved, and perhaps a bulletin that provides the fix? To find out, go to http://www.alldata.com/, the URL for a leading automotive service information provider for professional mechanics. The consumer information section leads you to TSBs (technical service bulletins), and if you plug in the year, make and model of your car, the Web site provides you with a list of bulletins by number and issue date, with a one-sentence description. In some cases the description isn't much, but in others it could be a good lead, such as "Intermittent pull under hard braking—vehicles with ABS" (antilock brakes). If that's your problem, it's worth finding out if the factory fix applies by checking the bulletin. There are many ways to get factory bulletins, including the Popular Mechanics CD-ROM for your car.
Less comprehensive sources of factory bulletins, but with specific detail on those bulletins covered, are at Web sites of two trade associations: the Automotive Parts Rebuilders Association (http://www.apra.org/) and the Automotive Engine Rebuilders Association (http://www.aera.org/).
Do You Want To Ask A Mechanic?
Ask a mechanic via a note or e-mail. CompuServe has a forum in its automobile area called What Ails It? Post your question and you're likely to get answers from friendly professional mechanics all over the country. The Auto Channel (http://www.theautochannel.com). has a Repair & Maintenance icon that leads you to Ask The Experts, lists of frequently asked questions (FAQs) and the opportunity to e-mail your query to Pete the Mechanic. The C.A.R. Show Site (http://www.thecarshow.com) is the site of a radio program that provides on-the-air automotive diagnosis for listeners. If you don't get the program in your area, the site has an e-mailbox (carshow@toledolink.com) that will get you an answer.
Check The Appropriate Web Sites
Go to a manufacturer's Web site to learn about its parts, tools or equipment. You may find that there's an e-mail address for technical questions, or a hotline phone number. In most cases, there's also useful tech service information right at the site. Examples:
• Cooper Automotive's many brands include Moog suspension parts, Precision universal joints and Wagner brakes. Its Web site (http://www.moogauto.com) provides Tech Tips for each brand. You'll find a lot of answers to common service problems in the area covered by the brand's parts.
• A.E. Clevite, a manufacturer of engine bearings, offers several services at its site (http://www.engineparts.com). It has an area called Motorhead Heaven, which leads you to Paging Dr. Dipstick for answers to FAQs, and an e-mail address for special problems. The Tech Stuff section has a lot of information on engine overhaul work, including profusely illustrated instructions for installing engine bearings.
• Turn to http://www.bwdautomotive.com/ for the conglomerate that includes Borg Warner transmissions and Niehoff ignition. Under Things You Should Know, in the We Can Help area, you'll find Tech Tips by make and year of car.
• The maker of SunPro diagnostic equipment for Saturday mechanics has tips on using testers (http://www.actron.com). It also has a demonstration program of a scan tester that you can download, so you can do a "virtual tryout" of the tool before you buy one.
• Doing high-performance upgrades to your car? If you're considering or using Edelbrock parts, the company's Web site (http://www.edelbrock.com). has lots of tech help, even a detailed report on setting up its Performer series of carburetors.
An excellent list of Web sites (with links) for automotive aftermarket parts, tools and equipment companies is maintained by Automotive Week, a weekly newsletter for people who work in the industry. At its Web site, http://www.auto-week.com, go to Hot Links to get the list to make up for other additions.
Do A Web Search
Even if you haven't got a clue, do a Web search. You might be pleasantly surprised. It's often worthwhile to start with the automotive section of any search engine and look for any specifics in which you may be interested. Searches by makes and specific models of cars often lead you to enthusiast clubs, handy if you're trying to restore an oldie. The more focused your search, the more likely it is to yield good information, of course. But we took a relatively broad term, "rack and pinion steering," and one search engine produced a couple of good, basic illustrated technical articles on this and other types of steering, one from AC Delco, another from a road emergency service. You never know. But there's a lot of information you can get on the Web if you learn how to click and look.
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