http://groups.google.com/group/alt.autos?hl=en
Today's topics:
* Solar Chargers For Car Batteries - 1 messages, 1 author
http://groups.google.com/group/alt.autos/t/c6f9d438c8f05a2b?hl=en
* $303 to replace a starter? - 3 messages, 2 authors
http://groups.google.com/group/alt.autos/t/fd1b42de8ceb465d?hl=en
* Engines Made of Carbon Fiber - 1 messages, 1 author
http://groups.google.com/group/alt.autos/t/d7d8bbe63094af32?hl=en
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TOPIC: Solar Chargers For Car Batteries
http://groups.google.com/group/alt.autos/t/c6f9d438c8f05a2b?hl=en
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== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Wed, Nov 18 2009 4:25 pm
From: webpa
On Oct 25, 7:34 pm, "Tiziano" <nos...@example.com> wrote:
> I ran into ads for such chargers here in the USA...
> Do such chargers really work? For any kind of car? (I have a 2008 Honda
> Civic LX)
> Is there a reputable/neutral online site that shows test results and
> compares features for these chargers?
> Online searches only yield vendors of such devices...
> --
> tb
Have YOU pondered why this is? Do YOU know what an Ampere is? A
Volt? A Watt? Can you remember your attitude about "science" when you
were in Elementary School? Middle (Junior High) School? If your
answers are "no", then you cannot even imagine how astoundingly
ignorant your "questions" are. And how much you have already suffered
and will suffer from that ignorance in times to come.
Good luck to you. You will need luck.
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TOPIC: $303 to replace a starter?
http://groups.google.com/group/alt.autos/t/fd1b42de8ceb465d?hl=en
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== 1 of 3 ==
Date: Thurs, Nov 19 2009 4:56 pm
From: "benteaches@gmail.com"
> 3. Enlist in an "auto technology for doofooses" course at your local
> community college.
Wow, hope I never sounded thuis harsh in my snarky replies...
300 bones for a starter is a fair price.
Make sure to discuss their warantee policy before your done, and let
us know how it goes.
HTH,
Ben
== 2 of 3 ==
Date: Thurs, Nov 19 2009 8:31 pm
From: "DemoDisk"
"webpa" <webpa@aol.com> wrote in message
news:a98ddb60-3115-4dc6-bd49-8aa61527e9f4@j4g2000yqe.googlegroups.com...
On Nov 16, 10:01 pm, "DemoDisk" <pack...@nospam.com> wrote:
> My '93 Nissan Sentra wouldn't start so I left it with a neighborhood
> garage which called me with an estimate of $303 for a new starter.
Does
> that seem like too much?
>
> Replace starter (1-yr warranty) $169.73
> Labor 118.00
> Tax 15.28
> ======
> 303.01
>
> Now here's the story: I called AAA Saturday evening because the car
left
> me stranded. It had never failed to start before. The AAA guy said the
6
> yr old battery still had plenty of charge, but I might want a new one
> anyway. The car required a push to start, and I went to Advance
> Autoparts for a new battery.
>
> 'Clarissa' installed the new battery, and I turned the key. NOTHING!
> Just then this big guy steps up and says "I've been watching, and I
> think I can help." The hood is up, and he just reaches underneath the
> air cleaner duct a second, takes his hand out and says, "Try it now."
> The car starts beautifully! "Probably corrosion," he says.
>
> Back home, though, the car wouldn't start. I tried getting under the
air
> duct, but there's hardly room for your hand, much less actual tools!
So
> I go to the place around the corner, which wants $300+ for a new
> starter.
>
> Question (besides the $300 one) : What did the guy in the parking lot
at
> Advance Auto DO to the car that helped it start?
>
> Tnx,
> Jm
You have been screwed by your own ignorance.
1. The "guy in the parking lot" simply grabbed the cable from the
battery to the starter (solenoid) and wiggled it. It was (obviously)
probably loose & corroded. This improved the circuit enough to run
the starter.
2. You are about to trust a crooked and/or incompetent mechanic who
has so far failed (ignorantly and/or purposefully) to troubleshoot
and find your problem. If you don't understand the concept of
"troubleshoot", see item 3 below.
3. Enlist in an "auto technology for doofooses" course at your local
community college. Learning how the things you drive actually work
can save you tens of thousands of dollars over your lifetime. If
none of the course makes sense to you: Enlist in a grade-school-level
science (physics, chemistry, mechanics) course at the same
school...the re-take the automobile course.
4. All this may sound condescending...
Oh, my heavens, no!
but like any other expertise
upon which you entrust your very life and limbs, automobile
maintenance is worth what you, yourself, think yourself worth. i.e.:
When did you last check the air pressure in your tires? When did you
last open the hood and check coolant, power steering, transmission,
and engine oil? Ever? Can you imagine the consequences of...well,
enough.
You enjoy cuttin' loose on usenet, don't you?
I learned enough about the cars I own to do a variety of maintenance,
but there are time constraints. I.E., I have to have it done yesterday
and, over time, I've learned that working on cars is something I don't
enjoy and am not that good at. Getting under the car lost its interest
for me a while back.
BTW, the last 2 mechanics, AITO, are/were honest, but they don't set the
prices. The mechanic before that... too lazy to put everything back
together correctly. And don't get me started on oil-change shops.
== 3 of 3 ==
Date: Thurs, Nov 19 2009 8:47 pm
From: "DemoDisk"
<benteaches@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:7f3feeb7-a9ca-4425-a450-62026c878356@g1g2000pra.googlegroups.com...
> 3. Enlist in an "auto technology for doofooses" course at your local
> community college.
Wow, hope I never sounded thuis harsh in my snarky replies...
300 bones for a starter is a fair price.
Make sure to discuss their warantee policy before your done, and let
us know how it goes.
HTH,
Ben
Well, thank you for a very civil reply, Ben.
The final charge was $303.11. And yeah, if I had dared, I could have
done the job myself. It required removing the air cleaner ducting from
the engine and....that's all! After that it's a simple thing to remove
and replace the starter/solenoid assembly lDidn't even require a lift!
I read a few replies the night before and, full of fire, marched down to
the garage to tell em fuggeddaboutit, I changed my mind. Except the job
was already half done. Crap.....
The mechanic, a nice guy, checked the car out for a trip I'm taking in
it (16 yr old car) and said it was good. And he should know, he'd
trained as a Nissan tech, so he's seen it all. So $300 is the price of
expertise (and the owner's percentage). But it's still a lot of dough to
me.
They used an 'aftermarket' starter from Advance Auto Parts, the same
place where I got the unnecessary battery. The most expensive battery on
their website was, IIRC, $89. On the bill it says $168. Ow.
Jm
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TOPIC: Engines Made of Carbon Fiber
http://groups.google.com/group/alt.autos/t/d7d8bbe63094af32?hl=en
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== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Thurs, Nov 19 2009 11:40 pm
From: "2.7182818284590..."
I was looking into the melting/decomposing
point of carbon fiber, and it may be as high as 2500C. This is far
higher than the inside of an engine. This maybe too optimistic.
Kevlar, which is similar to carbon fiber, decomposes at 400C. But
this is still higher than the 200C or so temperatures which develop
inside an engine (that's the upper limit on my temperature dial).
If carbon fiber can withstand temperatures as high as 2500C and if it
can be made cheaply, than an engine not requiring a cooling system is
possible. A hotter engine is a more efficient engine.
Where am I pulling the number "2500C" from? Below!
Lower-quality fiber can be manufactured using pitch or rayon as the
precursor instead of PAN. The carbon can become further enhanced, as
high modulus, or high strength carbon, by heat treatment processes.
Carbon heated in the range of 1500-2000°C (carburizing) exhibits the
highest tensile strength (820,000 Psi or 5,650 N/mm²), while carbon
fiber heated from 2500-3000°C (graphitizing) exhibits a higher
modulus
of elasticity (77,000,000 Psi or 531 kN/mm²).
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