Almost There Automotive and Customz

2016 Honda CRV. Customer stated that the car would start, but would not move in reverse or drive. So they towed it in and I found that there was an impact on the transmission pan, cracking the pan and the fluid leaked out. Removed the bad pan, replaced the filter since I was in there, installed a new pan, and fluid and the vehicle is back to driving as it should.

2003 Toyota Avalon. I did the timing components a while back and had mentioned that it needed front end work because it was wearing the tires to the point of cords showing. Went with Moog control arms, sway bar links, tie rod ends, and sway bar bushings, and Monroe loaded struts. We also decided to replace the CV axles since both boots were torn and flinging the grease everywhere. It was definitely a dirty job, but got everything cleaned up and looking good. Next stop was an alignment and new tires.

2018 Hyundai Elantra. Came in for a load banging noise coming from the passenger side. Originally the owner wanted to replace the comtrol arms and sway bar links to see if it solved the noise, but it didn't. Further inspection revealed that the engine mount was bad and needed replaced. Got it replaced and the noise went away. They also wanted an oil change, and while I was down there, I noticed a coolant leak coming from the oil cooler. I replaced the coolant hose that was leaking and refilled the cooling system. No leaks and no noise!

2020 Dodge Charger SRT came in with a leaking cooling system. The dealer said they diagnosed it and it was possibly the water pump and the complete lower hose assembly. While the engine was hot, I didn't see any leaks, just dried coolant everywhere. I let the car sit overnight and pressure tested the system with everything cold. Sure enough, there was a lot of coolant coming out of the seams of the water pump. Being that it was an aftermarket pump, we decided to just replace it with a Mopar one, along with the thermostat. Got it all done, purged, and cleaned up the dried coolant. Car is running cooler than it was when it came in.

2015 Chevy Malibu. Customer stated that the car would go into limp mode, but if they pulled over and waited a few minutes, they could get going again. The national parts store that scans and sells parts said that they needed a new fuel pump. I scanned it and got these codes. This car has a direct injection high pressure fuel pump that is driven by the intake camshaft. Doing some research, I determined that the timing chain needed replacement so we got to work. Sure enough, the chain had stretched out over time as the vehicle has 161k miles.

This is why I mentioned earlier that preventative Maintenance is key. There was a lot of deposits of dried oil, especially in the vacuum pump. If the engine oil is neglected, it too can cause major issues. For what we're paying for vehicles these days, keep up on maintaining it!