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Stay tuned to TheOnlineMechanic.com for useful discussion about cars, trucks, and SUVs. Whether you are the average automobile owner, or an experienced mechanic, we’re glad you came.
Sweet new blog. Keep it up.
I have a VW Jetta 2003 1.8T and every time I turn on the heat/fan it makes a weard squeeking noise but only when it on. The when i turn it of it stops. It also makes it when i have the heat or fan on and i take a turn then it makes a little louder sqeeking noise.
PLEASE HELP
David: Sounds like you might have one or two problems. A worn heater fan can make a squeeking noise if the bearings in the fan motor are going out. It also could be a fan belt squeeking due to the extra electrical load you are putting on the motor. Determine where the noise is coming from. If it is the fan it will be coming from under the dash on the passenger side. If the noise is from the fan belt, raise the hood and lestin for belt noise. Personal experience on bad heater fans. My dad’s heater fan locked up and didn’t blow the fuse. The electrical wiring over heated and caught his truck on fire and it burnt to the ground. Good luck.
i let my 96 blazer run out of gas and now i cant get it started back any ideas
Michael: Make sure that you have 4 or 5 gallons of gas in the tank. Raise the hood and find the fuel check valve on the fuel rail. It looks like an oversized tire valve. Have someone try and start the vehicle while you press in on the valve. Keep your face out of the line of fire in case gas sprays out. If no gas comes out then try banging on the fuel tank with a heavy object. If you use a hammer, hit the tank with the flat side of it to keep from denting the tank. You might have to hit it several times. What you are trying to do is wake up the fuel pump. Try it and see what happens. Get back to me if that doesn’t work. Good luck.
Sarah: This sounds a little complicated but lets give it a try. My son said it isn’t necessarly an ABS actuator. This is what I suggest you do. Have some one scan your vehicle for any codes that are on. You don’t have to go to a dealer if you can find a shop that has a scan tool that can read all codes including ABS. Have them turn all the codes off and drive it for awhile to see if any lights come back on. I have seen situations where warning lights come on but once you turn them off they stay off and everything is OK. Make sure that you get a detailed list of the codes so we can refer to them if needed. Let me know how it turns out. Good luck.
i have a 98 dodge ram 1500 4×4 with a 318 my question is my truck has lost a lot of power slow take off and no pick up while trying to pass now my harmonic balancer has a slight wobble to it but not sure if that could do it or not and my engine has a rattle like a peice of metal vibrating
The other shops couldn’t read these codes, so I called the shop that advised replacement of the ABS actuator and they told me they found codes 11 and 27. The problem seems to be intermitent, but the lights are on more than they are off. Sometimes when I break the ABS kicks in (if the light is not currently on) for no apparent reason. Looks like I’ll have to shell out the bucks to fix it, but this is an odd problem – especially w/ the airbag light coming on now.
Andrew: The loss of power could be you need a tune up. If there is something wrong with the electrical part of your ignition the check engine light would come on. The rattle could be the harmonic balancer making the noise but I can’t say for sure unless I heard it.