Working with a beater that needs work.

[thecoolnessrune]

So my gf has a car. 1997 Mercury Tracer with about 150k miles. 2.0L I4, 5 speed manual. It was given to her for free as one of her first cars and it runs fine but it needs obvious work. We took care of the oil thing. It was about 10-15k miles overdue. I know the transmission fluid needs changed but I doubt I can do it as I simply don't have the tools nor can I afford them. Her Uncle might be able to do that though. I know that the transmission fluid has to be ages old though.

Lets see, let me run through this list that a mechanic gave her:

No license plate lamps.
Drive belt has more than 5 cracks per inch.
Tensioner froze.
Both front stabilizer links are broken.
Coolant leak on left side of radiator end tank
Rear brakes at 25% (front disc, rear drum, no ABS)

Something else I saw was "Wheel cylinders Dry R&R w/ RBJ" with an arrow pointing to the 25% rear brake note. I haven't fully figured out what it means. Perhaps something about re-conditioning with the rear break job?

So the license plate bulb should be no problem if its just a blown bulb. Lord help us if its a short.

Her uncle is a certified Ford mechanic and is saying for the short distances she's going there's no point in replacing the tensioner pulley or the drive belt. I disagree but I obviously have less car knowledge. What does ATG think?

Pretty sure the stabilizer links dont even matter as long as they're not dragging on the road correct?

Coolant leak is slow so I assume just check the levels monthly and don't bother with the $80 radiator? I doubt I'd have the tools or experience to completely replace one so labor would probably be intense.

The front brakes still have 50% left so since she drives so little I'm thinking just let the breaks go a bit longer.

I don't know anything about the wheel cylinders. Anyone want to explain that?


Lastly, AC doesn't work but heat does. Any off-the-head ideas about whats up there?

Thanks guys.

 

[boomerang]

Originally posted by: thecoolnessrune
So my gf has a car. 1997 Mercury Tracer with about 150k miles. 2.0L I4, 5 speed manual. It was given to her for free as one of her first cars and it runs fine but it needs obvious work. We took care of the oil thing. It was about 10-15k miles overdue. I know the transmission fluid needs changed but I doubt I can do it as I simply don't have the tools nor can I afford them. Her Uncle might be able to do that though. I know that the transmission fluid has to be ages old though.

Lets see, let me run through this list that a mechanic gave her:

No license plate lamps.
Drive belt has more than 5 cracks per inch.
Tensioner froze.
Both front stabilizer links are broken.
Coolant leak on left side of radiator end tank
Rear brakes at 25% (front disc, rear drum, no ABS)

Something else I saw was "Wheel cylinders Dry R&R w/ RBJ" with an arrow pointing to the 25% rear brake note. I haven't fully figured out what it means. Perhaps something about re-conditioning with the rear break job?
Yes, they need to be replaced when the rear brakes are done. R&R is remove and replace.
So the license plate bulb should be no problem if its just a blown bulb. Lord help us if its a short.

Her uncle is a certified Ford mechanic and is saying for the short distances she's going there's no point in replacing the tensioner pulley or the drive belt. I disagree but I obviously have less car knowledge. What does ATG think?
I would replace them. A broken belt is the kind of thing that strands you by the side of the road. The tensioner will have to be done at the same time because it's frozen.

Pretty sure the stabilizer links dont even matter as long as they're not dragging on the road correct?
They're not expensive. The car will lean excessively in turns and with a young or new driver, I would be concerned about loss of control.
Coolant leak is slow so I assume just check the levels monthly and don't bother with the $80 radiator? I doubt I'd have the tools or experience to completely replace one so labor would probably be intense.
This is another item that can strand you. Keep a very close eye on it. You're just postponing the inevitable.
The front brakes still have 50% left so since she drives so little I'm thinking just let the breaks go a bit longer.
Sounds fine, they're not worn out.
I don't know anything about the wheel cylinders. Anyone want to explain that?
Brake fluid attracts water. The moisture in the brake fluid then attacks metal parts. The inside of the wheel cylinder will naturally get corroded. When new brake shoes are installed, the seals in the wheel cylinder will get forced over that corrosion and they will leak. Years ago it was cost effective to rebuild them, today it's more cost effective to replace them. Do not dismiss this as something to ignore. Many decades ago I learned my lesson on this. I chose to not rebuild the wheel cylinders, had no brakes as a result and went right through an intersection on a red light. I got lucky and there was no accident. Newer cars will not lose their brakes entirely, but that doesn't mean that one should roll the dice.

Lastly, AC doesn't work but heat does. Any off-the-head ideas about whats up there?
Could be many different things. This is impossible to diagnose over the internet. You'd have to find someone to give you a free inspection and estimate.
Thanks guys.

These are my opinions, others may have different ones.

 

[Arkaign]

Drive belt meaning timing belt? If that's cracking, that's a definite replace ASAP, I don't care what anyone says. That would go with a water pump at the same time of course. Stabilizer links are cheap and fairly easy to replace. I'd bet 10 to 1 that the license plate lights are just bulbs (it's a 13-year-old car after all). Coolant leak shouldn't be too big a deal so long as you keep the levels checked and it gets decent pressure. A/C could be a number of things, hopefully it's just out of freon, but the compressor might also have gone. Drum brakes are a bitch IMHO, I don't have much advice there other than perhaps get that done by a professional at the same time you get the belt+water pump. Tranny fluid is really easy, but that's another thing you can have done with the above if you don't feel comfortable.

All in all, you should be able to get all of it fixed for well under $1k, with the caveat that if the A/C system needs major component/line replacements .. that might get pricey pretty quick at a shop.

If the car runs fairly decently and is in respectable shape, you should feel comfortable spending the $ to ensure that your gf has a safe and reliable vehicle. Skimming on any of these issues other than perhaps the radiator and A/C could seriously affect the safe continued operation of the vehicle.

And a final note : you *can* get by with the leaky radiator, but only with extreme attention to the fluid levels, temps, and pressure. I mean like daily. If the leak suddenly becomes larger and someone isn't paying attention, a huge number of bad things can happen very quickly, most of which involve the motor/head failing on you. If the coolant system loses pressure/fluid/flow, the thing will overheat like nobody's business in a hurry, and the car will become a 1.5 ton paperweight pretty quick. If the extra $80 or so is too much, just keep that in mind, and get it done when you can. The labor to replace a radiator really isn't that bad. You just have to take things off in order, keep track of everything, and put it back together properly before adding the coolant.

EDIT : he probably didn't mean the timing belt, I'm tired and read that too quickly. Hopefully he means the accessory belt to which the A/C, alternator, etc are attached to. That brings the obvious question, what do you know about the timing belt service? Has it been done?

EDIT2 : of course if you don't have to mess with the timing belt / water pump, the ~$1k price estimate is far too high. Think half that at the most for everything but the mystery A/C problem, which might be a $25 freon charge or $500+ in parts.