Welcome to the Mechanics text channel! This channel is dedicated to instructing you on how to properly maintain your car, your motorcycle, or even your lawn mower. Once a week, I will post a lengthy text, with photos, on how to check/change your oil, regulate your tire pressure, change a tire correctly, replace brake pads, and generally keep your vehicles in proper working order. More complex things such as Carburetor rebuilds and tunes will come further down the line. This text channel will start with very simple, yet handy info dumps, such as how to tell the difference between 10W-40 motor oil, and 5W-30. The vehicles that will be used as examples are both of my personal modes of transport.

This is my 2016 Yamaha YZF-R3, nicknamed the R3KT R3, or “Rizzo”. This bike is basically Fisher Price Baby’s First Sports Bike. She has a inline two cylinder, 321cc, liquid cooled engine that produces 35 foot pounds of torque, and 45 horsepower. The transmission is a six-speed sequential. This bike was designed and built for commuting as well as canyon carving and small track usage. She will be used for the majority of engine related info dumps, both because of the small size and simplicity of the engine, and most of the information can be taken and applied to cars in one way or another. She’s sitting at roughly, 6,100 miles and is due for major service at the 7,000 mile milestone. I will document all services done at post them here. Some motorcycle specific information such as chain adjustments and wheel alignment will be posted occasionally. If you own a motorcycle yourself, this should come in handy. If I am traveling from Yuma to either Phoenix or San Diego by myself and not planning on bringing anything sizable back, I will take this.

And here we have my Third Generation (2012) Ford Focus SE, also known as the shitbox, or the mommy mobile. She’s a little rough around the edges visually thanks to a couple of wooden planks sitting on Interstate 8, but functional nonetheless. I clocked over 45,000 miles this last year alone, putting it just past 100,000 miles, so the wear is far more advanced than others of the same make and model on the road. This model specifically is the five door hatchback. We’ll be using this car for some basic essentials, like tire changes. She has a 2 liter Duratec engine that produces 159 horsepower and 149 foot pounds of torque. This same engine was shared with some Mazda cars such as the Mazda 3 of the same year. It has the 5-speed manual transmission, which will be surely be used in the info dump on how to drive a manual transmission. This car is designed exclusively for commuting and travel.

I will also soon have access to a project car. This isn’t an exact photo of it, but it is the same make a model. A friend purchased a 1991 NA6 Mazda Miata a while back and they are interested in building it up as a track car. The car has been nicknamed Milo (not because of THAT Milo, but jokes and bantz are appreciated). The car comes with the 1.6 Liter engine that produces 114 horsepower and 100 foot pounds of torque. Some 1.6 engines came from the factory already drilled and tapped for the oil lines required for turbocharging, at this moment I am not sure if it has that specific 1.6L poweplant. It also has the 5-speed manual transmission. This car was purchased off a local ricer who put the car in rough shape due to mechanical negligence and overall stupidity, this car will be used if and when I discuss how to spot improperly installed items as well as some more performance related topics that will come later.

I currently work an erratic schedule, as of this week and next, my work hours are 12am-8am Mountain Standard Time Wednesday through Sunday. When my work schedule is changed, I will ping this channel and let you all know immediately. I will also post my work schedule. Info dumps are scheduled for Mondays in between 9am and noon MST. A Do Not Disturb status means that I am either at work, away from my computer, or asleep, an Online status means that I am open for questions.

I will also be taking a look at other items with that involve engines and their accessories as well, such as lawn mowers, fuel systems and carburetors.

Also, any info you personally know is also appreciated. While I am here to offer some guidance and expertise, you guys can and should assist each other as well. We all know teamwork makes the dream work and I look forward to helping Identity Evropa amass an army of well maintained shitboxes.

Footnote: If you are interested in getting a motorcycle, I am also open to questions related to such. I will be more than happy to provide someone the recommended resources to help bring them into the motorcycling world. All gear related questions as well as “Is this bike a good starter bike” questions should be DM’d to me to prevent off topic clutter. As we all know, nothing shouts Activism more than ripping a fat wheelie down a city street.

Nice brother!

Thanks, fam. 👍🏻

Also, if you are having any issues chasing some electrical gremlins around your cars wiring, we also have some in house electricians. I can help you with plugging in, unplugging, and where to route wiring, but propper ampage, voltage and insulation may be better handled by guys like @Deleted User and @Lebens

I had one of the very first Miatas, in red. 1990.

The oil filter is in an annoying location.

The oil filter on a friend's 2000 Pontiac Sunfire was worse. I still shudder when I think about it.

Footnote: Read your vehicle’s owner's manual. Do it, seriously.

Motor oil! We all know what it is, we (hopefully) all know all vehicles on the road need it. But what do those numbers on the bottle mean? What’s the difference between 10W-40 and 0W-50? Synthetic, Conventional? What’s the difference? What do you mean I should do an oil change before the winter starts? These are all pretty commonly asked questions when the topic of motor oil is discussed. All of these are going to be answered, and you will be able to impress your normie friends with your motor oil knowledge.

You should always have a few quarts of the same brand and type of motor oil currently in your car in your garage at all times, you never know if your car springs a bit of an oil leak and you need to replace the lost oil before you have the time to find and fix the leak.

To start off with, read your vehicle’s owner’s manual. No really, go read it. All of it.

There are a quite a few different kinds of motor oil. Synthetic, Synthetic blend, High-Mileage, and Conventional motor oil.

All are pretty self-explanatory, but we’ll go over them just in case. Doesn’t hurt to know the difference!

Synthetic oil is chemically engineered in a lab before being mass produced. The molecules in the motor oil are far more aligned and suited for high temperatures. If you drive a performance oriented car, synthetic motor oil is probably going to be what you’re looking for.

Synthetic Blend motor oil is a mix of both synthetic and conventional motor oils. This oil is specifically used for its anti-oxidation properties and it’s good for low temp operations. I use Blend in my lawn mower.

High Milage is pretty self explanatory. If your car has more 75,000 miles on its’ odometer, high-milage is going to be for you.

Conventional motor oil is pretty much what it says on the tin, or bottle. This is what’s typically recommended for newer cars, and for areas where there isn’t a huge difference in ambient temperatures.

So what do those fancy numbers mean on the bottle? The most commonly used motor oil in my area is 10W-40. For some background information, the climate of where I am is typically a mild winter, with an extremely hot winter. Winter’s typically don’t dip below mid 40F at night, while during the summer the highs here can reach up to 120F! Deserts are weird like that, 10W-40 can generally handle the extreme difference in outside temperatures here.

If you live in a place where it regularly gets below freezing during the winter, you have plenty of options.

The lower the first number, the better suited said motor oil is for colder temperatures, remember that.

For me, I use Pennzoil 10W-40 in both my R3 and my Focus. For my gas powered lawn mower, I just use gas station brand off the shelf blend stuff. I change the oil on the R3 every 3,000 miles, and on the Focus every 5,000. The mower gets a change every year.

So, that first number on the front there. The first number on a bottle of motor oil is always going to mean the viscosity. The lower the number, the less viscous the fluid is. While the higher the number, the more it is. To put things simply, the lower number means that the motor oil is more water like, while the higher number means the oil is far more thicker. So 20W motor oil is going to be thicker than 0W. If I ever find out anyone of you refer to higher viscous motor oil as “thicc” I will find you.

When I first started getting into mechanics, I was taught that the W after that first number stood for weight. Hey, it made sense for me at fourteen. But guess what, it doesn’t stand for weight at all. That W actually stands for winter. The first number with the W right next to it will mean that the motor oil will hold a different viscosity right after startup, or on a cold morning.

The second number coincides with that first number. While the first number refers the viscosity upon the engine starting, the second number refers to the high temperature rating for it. If you constantly bang through your gears on your way to work, or carve up the canyons on weekends a higher secondary number is going to be better for you. If you live in an area like I do, where it gets ridiculously hot outside, that secondary number is going to be beneficial to you as well.

You should always go by what your owner’s manual says. If the owner’s manual says use a Synthetic Blend 10W-30, or 0W-20, use it. If you have an older vehicle, or live in a place with odd temp fluctuations, it’s best to do your research before you do an oil change. Just because 10W-40 works for me, doesn’t mean it’s going to be an exact fit for you.

Some additions

The W stands for winter because an engine is almost always going to be cold when it's first started up. It's equating cold with winter.

SAE stands for Society of Automotive Engineers. These guys are behind the rating system for motor oil.

I like my motor oil T H I C C

Ok I got a question. My truck makes a click noise every 20 -25 seconds. Ice timed it. Don't matter if I'm sitting there idling or driving but it happenes at those times. Sounds like it's coming from the engine compartment.

That sound like anything to you. I'm broke so I'm afraid to bring it in.

This is my life

May I ask for the make, model and what engine you've got in that truck?

Ford ranger 6 cylinder

The 3.0 Liter engine?

4

And you said it was happening during both idling when driving. Does it get worse when the engine is under load or is it a level clicking coming from the engine no matter the RPM range?

@Yuma County I have a question for you, I have a 2006 malibu. and my catalytic converter is really clogged(it's miss firing and I'm fixing that as well), it's starting to kick, like a tranny would, and it's heating up to over 200 degrees in like 5 minutes. So I'm trying to pull the damn thing out and I got the shield off and all the bolts except the one on the underside of the cat that holds that section of exhaust from shaking all over the place. It's the one that holds the cat/manifold to the block. My problem is I don't have an impact, and I can't use a breaker bar because you can't get enough ass on it to even start to get tension. Any ideas? I sprayed with cutting fluid, PB blaster, break cleaner and I can't get it to move at all.

It's a tight space between the firewall and the engine

I had the same issue working on a 1991 Toyota Pickup.

Exhausts are tricky to work on if you don't have a professional lift in your garage.

I was about to say I dont have a lift or life would be easy ahah

Lifts always make life easier.

Anywho

my old '91 had a four clinder engine and I ended up blowing a hole in the midpiple. Seperating it from the O2 sensor and the miffler was easy, but seperating it from the headers was a pain in the ass.

Usually those bolts see a lot of wear and tear.

Wait

Does your Malibus exhaust system have a mid-pipe section or is it just in two pieces?

Typically most exhaust come in threes.

Headers, mid, and muffler

oh damn, from the engine the manifold has the cat attached to it then it has a flange that I can seperate it from the muffler

just 1 cat. 4 cyclinder

Ah Chevys

yeah this thing was made during the years they cut every corner to save money to save the company

I would honestly recomend trying to hunt down an impact wrench fore sure. That doesn't mean give up on trying to get it yourself, however.

yeah that's what I was thinking too.

there's just not enough room to work

Be extremely careful if you're going to keep trying to unstick that bolt.

worn bolts can sheer, and then you're in some trouble.

for sure, I was going to drill it out and then just retap it, but I cant get enough force behind a drill to even make a dent.

My end goal is to pull out my cat and knock out the honeycomb and then reinstall it. haha

http://www.cpomilwaukee.com/factory-reconditioned-milwaukee-9070-80-7-amp-1-2-in--impact-wrench/milr9070-80,default,pd.html?ref=pla&zmam=31282435&zmas=47&zmac=731&zmap=milr9070-80&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI1-PU2Yyj1QIVSpF-Ch0J0wJaEAQYASABEgJiKPD_BwE

I found you a reconditioned impact wrench through Milwaukee. You probably wouldn't have a ton of use for a brand new one and I'm sure you don't have a spare $200-$400 laying around. I would keep this tab open just in case all other attempts fail.

You mean the honey comb filter or the clog?

I'm assume that honeycomb is clogged. I've had a misfire for years now, and I assumed the cabon clogged the honeycomb. It's throwing a P0420 code.

I would recomend that you clean it rather than get rid of it. I know some cars are pretty stingy with their exhaust systems.

@Yuma County yeah happens between 20-25 seconds no matter what

@Mark Vandal that would rule out lifters and major engine components at least.

Really? We don't have emission checks here, so I figured I'd just bust it out. But I'll try to clean it first, and if that doesn't work I'll try busting it out. I'm pretty lucky that a new one only costs $455. So things could be worse haah

It has more to do with your cars ECU and not emissions. When I took my mid-pipe and muffler off I drove that old pick up straight piped for a week. The truck's ECU didn't know what the fuck to do and retarded the engine to compinsate there being zero back pressure.

Unless you know for sure the filter wouldn't fuck up your ECU, I would just go with cleaning it.

oh right on, I didn't think of that. But you do this stuff everyday, I appreciate you bro

Keep trying on that bolt my friend, if you have an extra $100 lying around some time I would highly recomend that impact wrench.

I do, I probably going to order it.

I saved up a grand thinking a new cat would cost around that price. so I'm doing ok ahah

They're pretty nifty tools to have. Instead of struggling for hours on a stuck bolt, you can just Shoah it right off.

And then shoah it right back on too

I usually keep one handy if something's giving me issues.

yeah I need one, now my car is 11 years old and it's starting to have age problems. But as much as I hate this car I'll give it respect, this is the first major issue with it in 11 years. I had a vent canister solenoid go out, but nothing major. So an impact would be an useful tool have around.

>you can over torque bolts to commie cars to round them out so the wheels can no longer come off

don't ask me how I know that.

yeah for sure. I had a buddy do that years ago when we first started driving. He was so worried that his wheel was going to come off he cranked them down, and the next flat he got he was screwed

kek

been there, done that

gotta learn somehow

Anyone have any experience with rotary motors?!?

You're the one with the 80s RX7, right? @Whitelash

Yes sir

Wankel 13B rotary, right?

Anything wrong with it?

12a o believe the 13b is the rx8s

And Everything , I've been thinking about a swap or just letting the thing go

Anything specific?

Apex Seals maybe?

Hey goys! I have a question about my car. For like the past 6 months I have been getting the low tire pressure light roughly every two weeks. When I check my tires, all of them are around 25-27 psi and I'll fill them back up to around 30-35 psi. It's like clockwork that every two weeks my tires lose a steady amount of pressure, where I can pretty much predict the exact day my pressure light is going to go on again. If there was low pressure in only one tire, I'd expect it to be the tire - but since it's all of them I think it's something else. I have alloy rims and figured that maybe the tires weren't installed properly. Any thoughts? I don't want to buy new tires if the issue might be something else. Any thoughts?

How old are they brother? If age is causing wear, you can expect multiple tires to slow-leak at the same rate.

Take a bottle of soapy water and squirt them down. It will bubble up where your leaks are at no matter how slow a leak is.

Also, I never buy new tires. I have a tire shop in Louisville that I go to and they keep used tires. $35 for a tire, mounted and the ruined one thrown out. It took a while to find a tire shop ran by white boys but they are still out there.

@Steve - NJ do what @Nick E.#1856 suggested. Any and all leaks will show with soapy water. It sounds like it may be a beading issue if all four of them are bleeding air like that. Did you have all of your tires replaced at a similar time by the same place?

@Deleted User they are about 3.5 years old. The tread is still in decent shape since I don't commute very far. @Yuma County I did have my tires done all at once so it is likely also a factor. If it's in all tires though I would think it's something to do with their grip on the rims or something. @Deleted User I never knew people could expect to get much out of used tires either. Thanks guys for being helpful

If your tires are that old it may be because of that as well.