car electronics!!!

cab2g · 06-05-2010, 08:03 PM

Ok, so my truck is 10 years old. I've owned it for all of those 10 years and for at least 7 of those 10 years I've had mystical 'gremlins' causing random check engine lights and idling issues. I Think I finally got the last one of them fixed 6-7 years later. No joke, just imagine how many times I took this thing into the mechanic just for them to scratch their heads and say they couldn't reproduce the issue....

Well it turns out that ALL of the performance and check engine issues I've had with my truck were due to bad sensors! So basically my truck would've been a rock if it didn't have all these sensors to whine and tell the computer to do stuff that it shouldn't need to do! That's annoying!

My biggest issue was also the one that took the longest to diagnose because it only appeared about 10% of the time when I drove. My truck would sometimes increase the engine RPMs when I engaged the clutch and went into neutral and the RPMs would not drop down to normal idle until a couple seconds of sitting at a standstill. If I kept rolling, the engine would constantly stay between 2000 and 4000 RPM. But yet, every time I took the thing into the mechanic, the darn car would not reproduce the issue. They cleaned so many intake parts and replaced so many "dirty" parts over the years. It was almost to the point of insanity. And finally today, I was able to reproduce the issue for the mechanics and they were able to reproduce the issue with the truck hooked up to their tools and it was another sensor malfunctioning! I swear these sensors are more trouble than they're worth.

5thGenOwner · 06-06-2010, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cab2g

Ok, so my truck is 10 years old. I've owned it for all of those 10 years and for at least 7 of those 10 years I've had mystical 'gremlins' causing random check engine lights and idling issues. I Think I finally got the last one of them fixed 6-7 years later. No joke, just imagine how many times I took this thing into the mechanic just for them to scratch their heads and say they couldn't reproduce the issue....

Well it turns out that ALL of the performance and check engine issues I've had with my truck were due to bad sensors! So basically my truck would've been a rock if it didn't have all these sensors to whine and tell the computer to do stuff that it shouldn't need to do! That's annoying!

My biggest issue was also the one that took the longest to diagnose because it only appeared about 10% of the time when I drove. My truck would sometimes increase the engine RPMs when I engaged the clutch and went into neutral and the RPMs would not drop down to normal idle until a couple seconds of sitting at a standstill. If I kept rolling, the engine would constantly stay between 2000 and 4000 RPM. But yet, every time I took the thing into the mechanic, the darn car would not reproduce the issue. They cleaned so many intake parts and replaced so many "dirty" parts over the years. It was almost to the point of insanity. And finally today, I was able to reproduce the issue for the mechanics and they were able to reproduce the issue with the truck hooked up to their tools and it was another sensor malfunctioning! I swear these sensors are more trouble than they're worth.

Amen!

I wouldn't have electric windows or door locks if it wasn't standard. I'm not just being frugal... sensors, or electronics as a whole, are usually just another thing to break and replace a few years down the road. Car stereos are a perfect example of this. Every car I've owned... I've had to replace the stereo within a few years of owning it (used and new).

I'm not totally against gadgets... I think the HUD could/will be the next best improvement, as it will increase the amount of time drivers are looking at the road (which is always a good thing).

But for the most part Less is More, for me. Just give me 400 horses, 4 wheels and a lot of road!

8cd03gro · 06-06-2010, 11:00 PM

Jesus, what kind of cars were you driving that you've had to replace the stereo after a few years and windows, etc? The only car I've ever had electrical problems in is a vantage we had for about 3 weeks then lemon lawed because of all the electrical problems it was having and that was crazy bad luck. I've never had any electrical problems in any of our cars otherwise. Granted we usually keep cars 6-7 years max, but still.

06-05-2010, 08:03 PM	#1
cab2g love. my. car. Drives: 2011 2SS/RS Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Chicago Posts: 3,372 View My Garage	car electronics!!! Ok, so my truck is 10 years old. I've owned it for all of those 10 years and for at least 7 of those 10 years I've had mystical 'gremlins' causing random check engine lights and idling issues. I Think I finally got the last one of them fixed 6-7 years later. No joke, just imagine how many times I took this thing into the mechanic just for them to scratch their heads and say they couldn't reproduce the issue.... Well it turns out that ALL of the performance and check engine issues I've had with my truck were due to bad sensors! So basically my truck would've been a rock if it didn't have all these sensors to whine and tell the computer to do stuff that it shouldn't need to do! That's annoying! My biggest issue was also the one that took the longest to diagnose because it only appeared about 10% of the time when I drove. My truck would sometimes increase the engine RPMs when I engaged the clutch and went into neutral and the RPMs would not drop down to normal idle until a couple seconds of sitting at a standstill. If I kept rolling, the engine would constantly stay between 2000 and 4000 RPM. But yet, every time I took the thing into the mechanic, the darn car would not reproduce the issue. They cleaned so many intake parts and replaced so many "dirty" parts over the years. It was almost to the point of insanity. And finally today, I was able to reproduce the issue for the mechanics and they were able to reproduce the issue with the truck hooked up to their tools and it was another sensor malfunctioning! I swear these sensors are more trouble than they're worth. __________________

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06-06-2010, 11:00 PM	#3
8cd03gro Drives: 2005 STi corn fed Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Colorado Posts: 2,997	Jesus, what kind of cars were you driving that you've had to replace the stereo after a few years and windows, etc? The only car I've ever had electrical problems in is a vantage we had for about 3 weeks then lemon lawed because of all the electrical problems it was having and that was crazy bad luck. I've never had any electrical problems in any of our cars otherwise. Granted we usually keep cars 6-7 years max, but still.