Couple of Problems

dansou5 · Post by **dansou5** » Wed May 09, 2007 5:37 pm

1) Car wouldn't start today, i got in and the dome light came on, but as soon as i put the key in to crank it died. The dome lights wouldnt come on again. Then when i got home this afternoon i jumped it, and it ran for a little bit. The battery light was on, and the lights were flicking. So that makes me think that the alt. is bad?? Then i took it down the drive way, and it died and lost power, and again no lights??
So if it is the alt, where is it located??? does anyone have a diagram.

2) My emergency brake is none existent. I have to completly pull it all the way to the top to get any use of it. Is there any way to adjust it so it is tighter.

3) I think the rear passenger side wheel bearing is bad. (makes a hum at just about all speeds) Has anyone done this, and if so how hard is it, and what tools will i end up needing.

Hopefully that is all i will need for the moment......

kc2005ptgt · Post by **kc2005ptgt** » Wed May 09, 2007 5:42 pm

1) Go to autozone, advanced auto, o'reilly's, pep boys, somewhere one of the big chain car parts stores will give you a battery and alternator check for free.

Your alt. is located on the passenger side near the firewall, look down underneath all the wires/tubing... But if you do not know where it is, I am assuming (please forgive me if wrong) that you do not have much mechanical ability, so go get a haynes manual!!!

2) Adjusting the park brake is simply just keep your car in neutral on a slight incline, pull the park brake back, let go of brake pedal, and begin rolling, then tap the brakes several times till it gets tight. Easy as that.

3) I dunno. Get a Haynes manual ..

ragek23 · Post by **ragek23** » Wed May 09, 2007 6:02 pm

^^^

3) Haynes tells how to check the wheel bearing if its bad but it will not tell you how to replace it because special tools are needed.

i got mine done at midas last week it cost me $200

dansou5 · Post by **dansou5** » Wed May 09, 2007 9:54 pm

^ was that for one???

No i am not much of a mechanic, but i think part of the fact i am only 17 and i have just started getting into cars. I had an idea but i looked at autozone, and the diagram was different.

ragek23 · Post by **ragek23** » Wed May 09, 2007 10:31 pm

yeah that was for one. They have to take apart alot to get to the wheel bearing and they also need to press in the bearing.

Think of it this way alteast your arn't like me and put off getting the wheel bearing fixed (1200miles) so the vibrations won't screw up a tie rod and your alignment.

Wenuden · Post by **Wenuden** » Wed May 09, 2007 10:43 pm

ragek23 wrote:Think of it this way alteast your arn't like me and put off getting the wheel bearing fixed (1200miles) so the vibrations won't screw up a tie rod and your alignment.

that's dependant on how long it's been doing it (car is new to the OP). in the inspection lane, to check whether a car has a bad wheel bearing, they jack the tire off the ground and try to move the wheel left to right. if there's a lot of play, you probably have a bad wheel bearing.

Like Rage said, a bad wheel bearing can cause bigger problems. if it does end up being the bearing, get the tie rods and alignment checked. a little money spent now can save a lot on prematurely worn tires. NTB has packages for alignments where you can get your car aligned as many times as you want in a one year period (or 2 or 3 years, depending on what package you get). It definitely pays for itself, especially if you plan on doing any kind of suspension mods, or larger/smaller wheels/tires.

Good luck.

dansou5 · Post by **dansou5** » Fri May 11, 2007 7:44 pm

Fixed the starting problem... People that i bought the car from didnt take the negative terminal cover off the new battery and it was wedged in the connectors.

Switched the tire from the rear to the front, and found that the tire is bad.

Still not sure on the e-brake.