my first non-trivial car repair

[JasonE4]

I was driving home yesterday afternoon and my car started to overheat and also started revving. I immediately pulled over, turned off the engine, and opened the hood. There was coolant all over and near the bottom of the radiator. I figured the problem was probably the radiator since there wasn't any coolant on or near the hoses or anywhere else. I picked up a radiator and jack stands at autozone.

When I got home, I took out my Haynes manual and looked over the instructions to replace the radiator. It didn't look too hard, so I jacked up the car and got to it. I've only really done spark plugs, oil changes, and air filters before, so I'm pretty much a DIY noob. It actually wasn't too bad and I saved about $100. Not only that but I didn't have to bother a friend to borrow his car or spend the money to rent a car to get to work today. I know a lot of you are capable of much more difficult repairs, but I want to encourage people who aren't so inclined that they are definitely capable of at least doing some auto repair themselves.

Here are some pics:
text

 

[DougK62]

Nice job. It's a great feeling to do work like that yourself.

 

[shocksyde]

I'm about to replace my front brake pads and rotors as well as do a complete tune-up (flush various fluids, replace spark plugs, wires, distributer cap/rotor, air filter, etc).

I owe my newfound automotive determination to the jacktard mechanic that wanted $250 to replace my front brake pads and turn the rotors. I'm going to replace the pads myself and have NEW rotors for $150. JACKPOT.

Congrats on your de-newbness. I shall join you soon.

 

[exdeath]

Did you fully bleed and the cooling system when you were finished? Thats a commonly overlooked step. Hopefully the manual covered that, hot air pockets can ruin an engine.

So did that solve the problem? Grats on the DIY demystifying.

 

[JasonE4]

Originally posted by: exdeath
Did you fully bleed and the cooling system when you were finished? Thats a commonly overlooked step. Hopefully the manual covered that, hot air pockets can ruin an engine.

So did that solve the problem? Grats on the DIY demystifying.

I did bleed the cooling system, and the manual did step me through that process.

And yes, after driving to and from work today with no leaks or overheating, I'm pretty confident that the new radiator completely solved the problem. It's very satisfying.

 

[JasonE4]

Originally posted by: shocksyde
I'm about to replace my front brake pads and rotors as well as do a complete tune-up (flush various fluids, replace spark plugs, wires, distributer cap/rotor, air filter, etc).

I owe my newfound automotive determination to the jacktard mechanic that wanted $250 to replace my front brake pads and turn the rotors. I'm going to replace the pads myself and have NEW rotors for $150. JACKPOT.

Congrats on your de-newbness. I shall join you soon.

Thanks and good luck with all that. I'm sure you'll be able to handle it.

 

[RiverDog]

People can do so much more than they realize if they just try. I've only taken a car to the garage three times in my life and I've been driving since '67. Reat the book, learn, save!

:thumbsup:

 

[exdeath]

Originally posted by: RiverDog
People can do so much more than they realize if they just try. I've only taken a car to the garage three times in my life and I've been driving since '67. Reat the book, learn, save!

:thumbsup:

Not to mention we will have more people out there who understand a little bit about how engines work and won't be so eager to jump on the "tighten emissions and mandate 100 MPG by law" bandwagon.