OT - Car Inspection Help?

[SkiFletch]

So its that time of the year again... Time for car inspection. Now I know that NYS changed the laws regarding inspections and they're a lot more rigorous now. I'm curious if any of you know what those new guidelines are since I seem to remember that some members here are auto techs. Last year I almoast ran into a big brake repair (one of my pads shifted and gouged the rotor) but since the repair shop had missed the problem on a 30k mile tuneup 4 weeks prior they gave me a great deal on the repair (new front rotors and pads installed for $140). At the time whilst I was arguing with them about the repair the techs told me that I couldn't take the car out of the shop before it was repaired since the inspection was allready expired (not too sure if there was much validity in that).

Needless to say, I'd like to not have to run into that problem again this year so I'd love to do some minor checkups myself that may save me at least from being blindsided like I was last year. So could any of you auto techs/mechanics out there give me an idea on what to look for? I know the obvious things like seat belts, brakes emergency breaks, turn signals, tail lights, tires, headlamps, and door functionality (all the old stuff) but I'm wondering if there are any mechanical things I can checkup on? Obviously I can't talk to the computer and I can't measure the smog emissions but I'd imagine those wouldn't be too much of a problem for a mere 3 year old car with only 45k on it. Are any suspension components, belts, fluids, etc part of the check now? I'd have trouble replacing a shock, strut or control arm obviously but I'd love to know if I need to have them replaced BEFORE I go into the shop . Not to mention I'd rather replace my own belts thank you very much. I'll never forget the shop that wanted $60 to replace a $14 serpentine belt on my old cavalier (RIP). Drove me nuts since the repair involved merely twisting a nut on the spring tensioner, removing the belt and putting the new one in.

But enough stories, I'll just sit back and listen to the experts. Btw, the car in question is an '03 (purchased in jan '04) Hyundai Elantra with 45k miles on it in case that makes a difference. Thanks in advance for any light you guys can shed on the subject

 

[puter]

Maybe this'll help?

http://www.nydmv.state.ny.us/vehsafe.htm

 

[fat-tony]

Re: OT - Car Inspection Help?

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9047064#post9047064 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by SkiFletch
So its that time of the year again... Time for car inspection. Now I know that NYS changed the laws regarding inspections and they're a lot more rigorous now. I'm curious if any of you know what those new guidelines are since I seem to remember that some members here are auto techs. Last year I almoast ran into a big brake repair (one of my pads shifted and gouged the rotor) but since the repair shop had missed the problem on a 30k mile tuneup 4 weeks prior they gave me a great deal on the repair (new front rotors and pads installed for $140). At the time whilst I was arguing with them about the repair the techs told me that I couldn't take the car out of the shop before it was repaired since the inspection was allready expired (not too sure if there was much validity in that).

Needless to say, I'd like to not have to run into that problem again this year so I'd love to do some minor checkups myself that may save me at least from being blindsided like I was last year. So could any of you auto techs/mechanics out there give me an idea on what to look for? I know the obvious things like seat belts, brakes emergency breaks, turn signals, tail lights, tires, headlamps, and door functionality (all the old stuff) but I'm wondering if there are any mechanical things I can checkup on? Obviously I can't talk to the computer and I can't measure the smog emissions but I'd imagine those wouldn't be too much of a problem for a mere 3 year old car with only 45k on it. Are any suspension components, belts, fluids, etc part of the check now? I'd have trouble replacing a shock, strut or control arm obviously but I'd love to know if I need to have them replaced BEFORE I go into the shop . Not to mention I'd rather replace my own belts thank you very much. I'll never forget the shop that wanted $60 to replace a $14 serpentine belt on my old cavalier (RIP). Drove me nuts since the repair involved merely twisting a nut on the spring tensioner, removing the belt and putting the new one in.

But enough stories, I'll just sit back and listen to the experts. Btw, the car in question is an '03 (purchased in jan '04) Hyundai Elantra with 45k miles on it in case that makes a difference. Thanks in advance for any light you guys can shed on the subject

THe only thing you have to worry about is emissions. Being an 03' you're probably pretty safe there.

As far as not being able to take your vehicle with an expired sticker, I think that may be a BIG bs. Last I knew they scraped the existing sticker and you were able to take it out the door to either fix it yourself or have it fixed elsewhere.

 

[75galreef]

OK, the mechanic was 1/2 right, LEGALLY ( almost all 50 states ), if you enter a repair shop and they tell you you have a major brake problem you must have it repaired OR towed from the current location. Otherwise the shop can and will be held resposible IF you have an accident when you leave. He was not correct in regards to the inspection sticker. I was a mechanic for 10+ yrs and found I like my knuckles more and got out. Still do alot of my own maintenance. You also might not want to take it to a dealer, they will say it needs this and that just based on mileage. For inspections, I usually go to Pepboys or someplace like that.

 

[redrider911]

Check and make sure all lights are working. Wipers are not falling apart (usually at ends) Tire tread ok. Check engine light off. Parking brake holds, releases ok. Car doesn't pull when breaks applied. Gas cap on. No cracks in lights, mirrors, glass. No power steering, gas leaks. Everything elese would getting the car up in the air and inspecting stuff.

 

[Ellery]

If you get one of those Chilton Manuals for your car for $20 you can do almost everything yourself. I've done every basic thing from basics to timing belts on my 2000 Nissan Xterra/ 1998 Mitsubishi Eclipse GST / My old 1989 GrandAm. It'll save you alot money. But alot has to do with time and the right tools.

For Basic inspection I agree everything mentioned above. The emissions is the rough one that you can't really check.

At 45k it's time to change the Tranny fluid and filter and probably check the airfilter and brake fluid. Don't wait on the Tranny fluid or else the build up will cause major damage. I just spent $2k on a rebuilt Tranny since I initially forgot to change the fluid till 70k miles and it was bad.

 

[chrisguy]

This one almost burned me. On my 04 Chevy I had shorted the cigarette lighter outlet with my cell phone charger. This blew the fuse. What the manual did not tell me was that this was the same fuse used by the computer that they connect to for their emissions test. Needless to say I failed the test. Fortunately the shop was not busy and one of the guys thought it was odd that they did not get any reading from the test, so he went looking and found the blown fuse. They replaced it (for free !!) and I passed the inspection.

Other than that, I do what redrider911 stated. Check the things you can and cross your fingers on the others.

 

[bjromaine]

I agree with all the above. The big stickler is the emission test.
However, threatening to keep your car is just not right.
I believe, and I might not be current here, the law says, that if your sticker is expired and ONLY if it is expired, they scrap it off before they start the inspection. IF it fails, you obviously are breaking the law if you drive it. If the sticker is still good, they are to leave it on whether it passes or not. So the moral is, get it inspected before it runs out....then you will have sometime to get any problems fixed before it runs out.

 

[acdraindrps]

I have never had my car worked on by a mechanic unless it's something I know will be too involved for me to get into. $140 for pads and rotors on your car is a ripoff IMO because you oculd have went to autozone and paid around $50 for the same job and do it yourself.

Someone in a reply up there ^^^ said to go buy a chiltons maual and they were right. A chiltons is very similar to an ALLDATA program shops use, but not into as great of detail. I would say it has about 90% of all jobs that can be done to a certain vehicle, along with troubleshooters and parts lists. The book you are looking for miught also be made by a different company, maybe haynes, but autozone will know what you want when asking for a chiltons manual.

Also, when you go to autozone ask an attendant to run the codes on your computer of your car and see if any come up. If any codes come up, theres a good possibliity the garage will fail you, and charge out the *** to fix the problem.

 

[SkiFletch]

They can check for codes at an autozone? Never knew that. I owned a Haynes manual for my last car (cavalier) and you're right, that thing was a life saver as the car aged. Helped me change out the main wheel bearings and do a modest engine tuneup (plugs, wires, etc). One of these days I'd love to take apart an engine with my own two hands, but thats another topic.

Thanks for the tips guys. Still concerned about suspension parts, but I dont exactly have the spring tensioners around to replace those...

 

[bosborn1]

If your that concerned,.. Buy the AllData info on your car and pickup one of those cheap reader modules.

Autozone has a tool loan program and has Spring tensioners.

I am glad I own a 94 vehicle. I don't have the crazy requirements like all the OBDII cars. Not to insult the mechanics but if you have the place and the time you can do all of your own work easily. All it takes is the ability to follow directions and some air tools. You might not get it dne as quickly as the pros...But it will be a hell of a lot cheaper.

Scott

 

[SkiFletch]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9050486#post9050486 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bosborn1
Autozone has a tool loan program and has Spring tensioners.
Scott

Knew that, but it'll be a while before I trust myself with something as potentially destructive to both me and my car as a spring tensioner

 

[acdraindrps]

Unless you work in a garage you can't get ahold of ALLDATA for your vehicle. Its a program that requires a yearly subscription, and isn't cheap either. It's pretty much only practical for a garage to purchase the subscription, in the fact that its a required tool in the field, and it's making them money. On the other hand, I think you might be able to get a non-vendor membership, called alldata diy and get information there, but I dont think its the full blown program.

I have a friend that goes to ohio deisel tech that can get alldata write ups on any make and model for any job that can be done to a car. The writeups are quite extensive which is nice but would also make it impractical to print up alldata for EVERY JOB on your car if you were to buy the diy membership.

and yes, autozone will run codes for you. They will say they cant clear the codes that pop up for you, but just ask them if you can press the button and they usually turn their heads

 

[SkiFletch]

Hah, another great tips about codes. Would have saved me from my stupid fuel evap leak code when I forgot to put my gas cap back on. Thank heaven the car was still under warranty when I did that.

 

[dank11]

Hey!
find an independent Shop That You can TRUST
might not be cheaper than the dealer But You won't get Told something wrong
I do almost All of my own work
I've had 3 shops for the last 20 years That I could trust
sometimes they find things U might not like
but they all knew I worked on the car so told me what needed to be fixed
I wouldn't go to any Chains either Unless U Know U can Trust someone there
Good luck

 

[Willistein]

Hey dank, what's a good garage in Spencerport/Brockport area for inspections and repairs? I do my own work too and hate getting ripped off or talked to like I'm an idiot. Something like a head gasket I'd have done, but things like brakes, etc. are way cheaper to do on your own, just takes a little time.

 

[oldimpala]

In regards to AllData; you can get a consumer grade limited subscription. It allows you access to all sections of the manual a garage has, and it's about $30-35 annually for a car. That's per car. So, you'd have access to, for this instance, the manual for an '03 Elantra for that money. Open subscriptions (Like a shop) cost several thousand, you're right.

Problematically, it does refer to some shop-specific tools, but it's still worlds better than a Haynes, or Chilton's manual. Those manuals are horrible for anything electrical, or anything beyond basic mechanical. After using AllData, there's no turning back, unless you have a factory service manual, like I do for my Maxima, and my wife's VW. But, they're pricey, too. If they make them, the bes "Consumer" grade manuals are made by Bentley. (Not the car manufacturer, the publisher), but they primarily deal in European rides, not Asian or American.

I believe the present OBD-II check only looks for unresolved codes, and codes that have occurred within the last 100 Drive-Cycles. So, if your check-engine light isn't on, and hasn't been in, say 6 Months, you're good. Obviously, depending on your driving conditions, you could hit 100 Cycles in a week, month, year or decade. We do not have catalyzed emissions checking in our region of NY-State (Using a probe in your exhaust system to determine particulate mass/discharge).

The Autozone scan tools, like most available except for some of the high-end Snap-On/Sun and Dealer tools only can read and clear the Federally Mandated codes; it's a series for I believe 25 or so basic emissions and driveability issues standardized for OBD-II. If you go beyond those basic codes, you need an expensive tool. You can fail from one of those Manufacturer Specific codes. Period. My Maxima has over 400 codes, from "Power Window Switch not Working" to emissions stuff.

So, AZ may, or may not help you. Also, be careful with what you borrow, not only are the tools sketchy in some instances, they're abused. And, be careful what parts you buy; sometimes cheap isn't good. I sold parts in college, ask me about brake shoes from AutoZone that came unbonded in about 1,000 miles, or the fuel line I had seperate, and cause an engine fire from the 'Zone, almost torching a pristine '58 MG-A I used to have....

I'm not a tech, haven't ever turned wrenches for a living, but am a certified car geek, and have done anything and everything you could imagine on cars (From upholstery to Automatic Transmissions).

And, if you're serious about tearing into an engine SkiFletch, and are in Buffalo, I usually tear into something every summer; I've got 2 lined up this year for my projects. Visitors that bring cold beer are always welcome...

Sorry for ranting; It's a topic I know a lot about, and am kinda passionate on..

-Andy/Oldimpala

 

[SkiFletch]

"Visitors that bring cold beer are always welcome... "

Well seeing as how enjoy both beer and tearing into things, I may just take you up on that offer

Thanks for all your help Andy

 

[dank11]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9060696#post9060696 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Willistein
Hey dank, what's a good garage in Spencerport/Brockport area for inspections and repairs? I do my own work too and hate getting ripped off or talked to like I'm an idiot. Something like a head gasket I'd have done, but things like brakes, etc. are way cheaper to do on your own, just takes a little time.

Hey!
I've been going to "Big time " repair right on 104 by the Ale House (between Rt19 and 260 )
The Owner seems to be A good Guy (Lee)
My Daughter's Boyfriend works There (Paul)