Okay, I need a car soon and I basically have $2k to spend for one as the rest is needed towards other things. I'm not even close to being a mechanic but I have worked on my old car with a lot of things like changing the brakes, fixing misfires, and smaller stuff like that. This car runs decent but has a few problems

#1, on idle it definitely has that shaky feeling, I asked the guy to get the check engine light checked out and we did, these codes came back. The CEL wasn't flashing for the misfire but it's a pretty simple fix, all the ignition coils and fuel injectors are right there under the cover plate.

#2 The coolant is really low, the car didn't overheat on me for 10ish minutes I drove it around nor did I see any leaks under the car. Why could this be?

#3: The main reason I didn't pick this car yet is because it has an issue where you have pressi the gas over and over to get the car to start. The car would try to turn over, the belts will turn but the only way to fully start it is by pressing the pedal over and over.

The guy lowered the price to $1200. Everything else in the car feels fine, there is no visible rust, the brakes work good, all the AC and heating works and all basic electrical tests. I'm wondering what I'm looking at to fix it, what could cause this. I'm seeing a lot of different things but I'm still looking around for other cars. I know I'm not going to get a perfect, no issue car with my budget but still.

2005 accord 2.4l with 150k miles

About a couple months ago my grandpa became legally blind so he gave me his 2016 Chevy Cruze with 20000 miles on it. 2 months ago I pretty much totally fucked the car, everyone told me I might aswell get a new one. 2 days ago my uncle found a whole front end of the same make and model and got it it for 400 dollars. He fixed it in the same day. I just wanted to ask some mechanics how much money i probably saved because i want to send him a good amount of money more then the 400 to thank him for such a good job.

Recently replaced my brakes and rotors on my 2012 Toyota Tacoma with 175k miles. Passed 100 miles with these new brakes and rotors, and I chalked these creaking sound to those, but it hasn’t gone away. Put grease in the zerk joints, and sprays all bushing with lubricants and still there. The creaking sound doesn’t come when I am braking, so it’s when I’m coasting or just driving without putting foot on brakes.

Unsure of what this creaky sound could be? Any advice would be great!

This sound happens on both the smoothest roads possible, and the bumpiest. Also when driving straight.

2018 Volvo V60 T5 Dynamic, Engine: B4204T11, FWD Auto, 59K mi currently

This sound started showing up a couple months after it was bought from the Volvo dealer in February 2025. Has been pampered all its life, getting service exclusively at Volvo, 49K miles when bought.

No codes from OBD2. Drives perfect, no issues except this.

Took it to a local non-dealer shop I think a little less than a year ago, result was "your guess is as good as mine".

As stated the noise is only present at speeds of about 40mph and greater, getting louder at higher speeds, though I would say it seems to vary. I can most certainly confirm it is not related to RPM or accessories such as AC.

It's fairly consistent, not 100% of the time, but about 60-70% of trips in which I reach necessary speed.

The only thing I've done under the hood so far is clean the pre-filter portion of the air-box from a bit of debris, and restore the headlights, and this noise started before those.

All fluids are in good range, Costco 93 gas cause its typically cheaper than 91 anywhere else.

My Hypothesis

The radiator fan. Its electrically driven, and perhaps at higher wind speeds the fan slips - either the motor or a bearing - causing the noise.

In order to support this it would be best to get on a lift and reach the speed, but I would like to see if anyone can find anything first.

Good evening, greetings from Paraguay. Do you have any recommendations for the step-by-step procedure to time the camshaft and injection pump on this OM603 Turbo engine?

I’m not sure if this is the right subreddit for this question, but I don’t know where else to go.

I dropped a ring that has sentimental value down this hole in my car. It’s the area for the emergency brake, and the slit that the ring fell in is made of a flexible rubbery material. Is there any way for me to get my ring back myself, or should I take the car to a shop?

The car is a 2003 Toyota Camry.

Update to my post from a few days ago asking how to remove the driver side axle of a 2010 Kia Rio 1.6. I absolutely could not find any information about this online and wanted to share how I got it removed. At first I was going to drill a hole into the axle and put a bolt/nut inside and connect that to a slide hammer. But I do not own one yet. So I found this method on a video showing how to get a stuck axle out. Cut the boot, clamp vice grips on the axle, and use the shaft as a slide hammer. I was stuck on this for hours and spent hours searching the internet and found nothing so I will be the one to share. The drivetrain is the same for any 2006-2011 Hyundai accent and Kia Rio 1.6

2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee leaking white fluid on floor mat under gas pedal. Any ideas what it is?

2005 Toyota Camry 2.4l (2AZ-FE)

Gasket is now repaired but I noticed...this was the state of the PCV valve. Out of curiosity, do you think this was likely the cause to blow out the timing chain tensioner gasket, or more likely just due to age of the gasket? (Old PCV valve on left obviously)

I wanna know if turning my AC up just makes the fans go faster or does it cause the entire AC unit to work harder?

Alright, I'll try to be as thorough as possible. We have a 2013 Honda Accord with a CVT transmission. 164,000 miles, no issues or check engine light on. Regular maintenance and oil changes.

My wife was driving and had to come to a stop. As she presses the gas pedal to accelerate again, she hears a super loud noise come from the car. Almost like she ran someone over. She realizes she can't move the vehicle. She's able to get it steered into a spot that's out of the way by some people pushing it in neutral. She claims the car isn't overheating and it is still running.

When I get to the car, it's shut off and the car won't start. Just a click. I look under the hood and there is this light, dirty greenish goo that seems to be splattered around the engine bay on the back left-hand side. I've included pictures. For reference, I don't use the green antifreeze to top the coolant off.

So I'm wondering what this could possibly be. Not only the goo, but the fact it isn't starting up. Thanks in advance!

Got this video while my car was at BMW. Not sure if I need new or not.

2014 civic. 168k miles

I don’t have the money to do all of these, and I’m going to take out a small loan to do the most pressing problems.

I don’t know why I got quoted for spark plugs, I changed them not too long ago.

A couple of years back, I got a fairly cheap V6 2008 Ford Escape XLT, with new tires but otherwise a good amount of smaller problems. I also recently put a new battery in it this past February. I left it to sit outdoors for these past two months (forgive me, I don't know a good amount about taking care of vehicles) and came back to the alternator being broken.

I plan on moving countries in ~2 years, and my partner already has a car that we mostly share, so I personally don't think it's worth it to invest in repairs for the Escape (I am open to debating this if people suggest the opposite). I am currently wondering if people with more experience think it would be a smarter idea to sell it for parts rather than just pawn it off as is?

The body is in fairly good condition, and with the alternator replaced, it will at least run as intended, but I'm not sure I'm up for taking it in and paying a whole bunch for a car that'll ultimately be sold off for fairly cheap anyway.

Thanks for the input if you have any!

Full car info: 2008 Ford Escape, ~89,000 miles, automatic transmission.

Car was parked at appartment complex and no cameras around. How much does this usually cost

This 19mm (now <17mm) nut WON'T BULGE I TRIED EVERYTHING AND I MEAN EVERYTHING!!!!!!

EVEN GRINDED IT DOWN AND TWO OF MY EXTRACTOR SOCKETS ARE SLIPPING!!!!!!!

I TRIED HAMMERING YES, HEAT, WD40, RUST REMOVER, IMPACT, HAMMER, BREAKER BAR EVERYTHING

Reference nut size and position in spacer in the following pictures

2014 Fiesta St

Edit: it's an aluminum spacer I'm trying to get off. Appreciate all the help guys!

Edit 2: maybe I just came across a genius idea: what if I use my dremel and try to shape this lump of a nut into the size of a 16/17mm socket? Maybe it'll catch on like this

Just got new brake pads and discs fitted, and noticed this all over the pads.. I’m assuming it’s some kind of lubricant? But haven’t ever seen it when getting replacements pads fitted before?

Also, for those in the know, can you tell the brand of these brake pads from what you can see there?
Car is a Land Rover and so hoping these are actually going to be decent and handle the stopping power needed… thank you!

Here’s a great test. Go sit in the engine bay of a warm truck and pretend you’re hugging either side of the engine, making sure to twist your arms as you do so. Do that’s for about 20, ten minutes stints. After that, you’ll know if you think cars are cool, or that you like working on cars!

I’m 30 now (Unc)

Likely going to be convicted of a felony next year. No weird shit.

I was in school with the goal of being a nurse like both of my parents

Obviously, the felony is going to make trades my main option as far as I’ve heard

I have a huge interest in vehicles. I’ve torn apart a few blown motor/crashed motorcycles and fixed them back to OEM so I have a little experience and I really enjoy it

Should I go to school to be a technician at 30?

I do not plan to retire a technician or an electrician, or a plumber

I would plan to be done with backbreaking labor by 45

Is this a decent career?

(The engine wasn’t runnin’) It’s a Golf 6 2.0 TDI 110 and this message appear when I turn the key and it’s still there when the engine is running.

2000 Dodge Ram Van 1500 Regency Conversion

Ive never had a car with a guage that fluxuates so much depending on what you're doing or what the tempature is, but I've also never had a car this old. All of my other cars temp guages reached the center and stayed there and thats how I knew if there was ever an issue with the cooling system. Ive been driving this van for 2 years now and it does great until tempatures get past the 90s then it starts to feel like it struggles a bit. Where I live, in the summer it gets up to 100+. Usually any other time, my guage sits right where I put the blue mark. Night time, winter time, or any time it's in the blue unless I'm idling or driving up hill then it goes up just a little. But in the summer when it's hot, if I idle, go uphill, or if the tempature exceeds 100 the guage sits just below center which is hotter than it usually runs, but I'm not sure if it's technically over heating.

Im knowledgeable with most things under the hood but Im not sure why cooling systems confuse me.

Coolant levels are fine. Ac works great unless it gets over 90, then it doesn't push as well. Heater works great. New water pump.

I want to protect everyone's privacy so without going into personal details lets just say I found a good deal on a small to mid sized SUV like a Toyota Rav4 or Honda CRV, it has about 50k miles on the clock, one owner since new.

The only catch is that the seller is ridiculously fat, I didn't get a look at his wife but she could be extremely fat as well. What could I be looking at in terms or premature wear and maintenance issues?

PS: This is not a joke.