Automotive Tech Update #4

The Ultra-Mega Crank Bolt Breaker bar

We wrapped up Emissions class last week, so that included studying gas engines, diesel engines, and some hybrid and electric vehicle information. I've gotten some hands on experience with putting a new timing belt and new serpentine belt on an Acura RDX. You can't just walk up to an RDX and take these belts off, so we also got to remove a bunch of parts first. Let's see, the engine cover, the 3 belt covers, disconnected the battery, disconnected and drained the HVAC lines to move them out of the way, drained the coolant and removed the water pump, removed a tensioner and the idler pulley too. Then on the assembly side, we installed a new water pump, new idler pulley, new tensioner pulley, new coolant, pumped up the HVAC refrigerant with our instructors assistance since they are EPA certified. Other than that, just some miscellaneous stuff like taking off then reinstalling the front passenger tire to get to the engine, and the wheel well cover and underneath covers with those dang plastic pins. 

Replaced this water pump since we did the belts. It's just one of those things you do "while you're in there."

The most fun part of this and probably every job is when you think you're done, then finally get to fire up the engine to make sure it works, the belts work, the coolant gets burped, the AC works, the heater works, and everything else still works. Hearing the engine start right up and run smoothly the first time was great!

AC machine
We wanted to move an AC line out of the way of replacing the belts on an Acura, so we had to safely empty the AC system with the help of this machine. Later we refilled with the same machine. In this case the refill stopped 0.03 lbs of refrigerant short, so we just had to run it again and it filled right up. 

I think these spark plugs were off of a Ram truck that some other class members worked on. The twin plugs here either both go to the same cylinder, or it's a waster spark system that always sends a spark to 2 cylinders, with only 1 of them on the power stroke, so the other spark is wasted. 

Passenger front wheel removed for access to the Acura crank bolt. This is the bolt that our 1/2 inch air powered tool didn't budge, so we used the big breaker bar. 

NMS-South Adds "Instructor" to Resume

CERTIFIED INSTRUCTOR. X MARKS THE SPOT!

Congratulations to NMS-South for earning his Instructor certification with NASA last weekend. What's he instructing? Aeronautics? Physics? Math? English? Nah, driving on track! This NASA is the National Auto Sport Association, not those outer space guys. 

NMS Nissan 350Z, #86X with X meaning instructor

One of the many safety rules with most groups that sponsor on track driving is that as a beginner track driver you have an instructor in your car with you. This is the best way to learn how to drive safely on track, since there's only about a bazillion things to think about when you're piloting a car around a race track. Sure, you could get your neighbor Ricky Bobby to show you a few pointers, but considering you might be driving a 3,000 pound chunk of metal at 120mph around a bunch of other drivers, well, we recommend you go with a licensed professional!

We can confirm that the 350Z fits inside the trailer too! You're welcome for that bit of research!

Sort of like if you learned to drive in Driver's Education with a teacher from your high school, or a local driving school, the odds are that the instructor in the passenger seat knows what in the world they are doing. Likewise, I'm sure most professional athletes and tons of amateurs have coaches that they consult to tweak their skills, everywhere from the golf course to the football field. Shoot, I don't know for sure how professional poker players operate, but I imagine somebody out there is coaching some of them too. Oh wait a minute, I know a poker coach, the Brad Pitt character from the Ocean's 11 movie! When we first meet him he's teaching rich kids how to bet in poker.

Safety rule: If your track car has 2 seats, the passenger must have the same level of safety (seat, harness) as the driver. 

Anyway, one of the advantages of becoming a driving instructor is that in return for coaching new drivers on track, the instructors also get to drive their own cars in other sessions on track. One of the main rules of how to get faster? More track time!

NMS-South is working to get the Z car down to the minimum Spec-Z class racing weight for next year. Still planning to remove the AC system.

Speaking of more track time, Brian also unveiled the NMS-South Nissan 350Z on track this weekend! After a lot of work and preparation like getting a full cage installed, NMS plans to race this car full time in 2025 in the NASA Spec Z class. Look for a lot more info on the mighty Z CAR in the next year!

Looking for an Expensive Car?

Royce.   Rolls Royce.   Rolls Royce Cullinan SUV. 

I'm not going to bore you with how much these babies cost, so let's just say that in 2024, with the cost of the AVERAGE new car sold in the USA creeping up to $47,000, these cars cost a LOT more. 

McLaren is a British sports car, but this is NOT British Racing Green color!

McLaren Charlotte. If you're not familiar with Koenigsegg, just look them up. They're under "ridiculously fast and expensive cars made in Sweden!"

If you're looking for an expensive car, here's a place you can go. Check out McLaren in Charlotte NC. Not only do they have high end McLaren sports cars, they also deal in other exotics, and they're a dealer in Rolls Royce cars too! 

Bentley

Oh, and don't worry if you think it might be odd that I would go out of my way to shoot some car photos on a car lot, because there was at least one other guy there doing the same thing too. 

McLaren

The cars on the lot in these phtoos were all very nice. Worth noting, however, was that the website list some other cool cars for sale, and I'll guess they are indoors. Just in case you're in the market for a used Ferrari F40, a McLaren Senna, or a Ford GT. If you're just curious about the prices, I'll quote the website here and say "Call for price."

Here's the website:             CHARLOTTE MCLAREN PREOWNED

I'd call this about 13 Rolls Royces. Do you have any Grey Poupon?

Yes, Mercedes makes some nice cars. This is a Mercedes Maybach. I guess you could say it's the luxury sub-brand of Mercedes. 

McLaren 720S, see next picture. 

On the day I visited, the F1 race in Miami ended with McLaren driver Lando Norris taking his first victory in Formula 1. Congrats Lando!

Rolls Royce

Aston Martin, more British automotive goodness. 

If you can't make up your mind on the red or yellow Aston Martin,  just buy both. 

Not one, but TWO Lamborghini Urus SUVs. 

Automotive Tech Update #3

Our instructor Bobby Griffin demonstrates the smoke machine for finding leaks. 

Let's say goodbye to April, which included my favorite day of the year, April Fool's Day! The month of March wrapped up my Ignition and Fuel Systems class, and April started a four-week Emissions class that covers gas and diesel engines, as well as hybrids and electrics. I'm also enrolled in an English class and a college orientation class, but take my word for it, the automotive stuff is way more interesting. Sure, you just might have to cite something using the MLA edition 9 style book, but using a torque wrench is more rewarding. 

Exhaust gas analyzer

Out in the auto-shop, a partner and I wrapped up the head gasket job on a 2002 Chrysler mini-van, so that's given me some experience with taking off and then replacing every part above those gaskets. We were careful to follow all the torque specs on the heads, exhaust, intakes, and etc., so that will be an improvement over what we found when we took it apart and found loose bolts here and there. Another detail of this job was cleaning up and grinding the valves seats and valve stems. It was very rewarding to get this done, and have the engine start up first time with no leaks!

Compared to the head gaskets on the V6 mini van, this was a fairly quick job. We had to replace a fuel pump, so here's the gas tank on the ground. Yes, the fuel pump was in the gas tank. Yes, the tank was nearly full of gas. We also replaced the canister vent line. 

Our resource at school for each vehicle is ProDemand, which is one of the online services that garages can use that probably have all the info for lots of makes of cars. I looked up how much a subscription would be, and it's something like $184 a month. That's a bit high to use at home, but for a business that works on more than one brand of cars, it's a pretty good idea to have access to all the technical info you need to get the job done right. Like most things in life, however, if I win the big lottery, I'll be sure to get a subscription. 

The valve on the right has been ground, so it's nice and shiny, even though you can tell how dirty they are from 22 years of use. 

The shop has this old Sioux Tools valve grinder that we used. 

Check out that clean angle on the valve tip.