Diagnosing Car Problems

The Oldsmobile Alero was a mid-sized sedan introduced by the Oldsmobile division of General Motors in 1998. The car was produced until 2004. During this time, several common problems with the...

The harmonic balancer in your vehicle is a pulley that sits on the end of your crankshaft. It is typically on the driver's side of the engine. The pulley drives your timing belt in most cases, and...

The anti-lock braking system (ABS) in a big truck is very similar to those in most vehicles. A sensor at each wheel monitors wheel speed. During hard braking, the wheel sensor controls the braking...

The rear axle on a Jeep Grand Cherokee allows the rear wheels to move. It also transfers power from the rear differential to the rear wheels. When the axle fails, you have to replace it. However,...

CV joints on a vehicle allow flexibility in the drive shaft. The joint itself is like a ball and socket. It's packed with grease, called axle grease, to help with lubrication. The joint is covered...

Anti-lock brakes systems use a series of sensors, valves and solenoids to alter individual wheel brake pressure. Modulating individual pressure allows the vehicle to stop wheel slippage under...

The steering gear on a GM vehicle is the gear inside the steering rack that controls steering. When this system fails, a critical failure of the rack occurs. This will leave you without the...

The Chevrolet pickup truck has had several braking system upgrades since it's inception, mostly to the design of the friction surfaces at the wheels. The hydraulic master cylinder design has...

The ball joints--one on each side--are key components in the suspension of the front end on most vehicles. Whether you drive a car, truck, SUV or minivan, it probably has ball joints. These...

The ABS system in a Ford truck senses the wheel speed and prevents the wheels from locking up. This system is very advanced and can apply brake pressure intermittently--also called "pumping the...

Vibration is a rather noticeable problem of the brake system that you can feel on the brake pedal or steering wheel every time you apply the brakes. Most of the time, the pulsation comes from an...

A Ford F250 can present a host of handling issues. Bad or worn wheel bearings, ball joints and tie rod ends can all cause problems with steering and handling. While these are common causes, worn...

Steering wheel oscillation, or shimmy as it is more commonly called, is defined as the rapid side -to-side movement of the steering wheel while driving. There are several factors that can cause...

The Chevy Silverado is a full-sized pickup truck. It uses an ABS system to monitor the brake pedal pressure and pump the brakes automatically for drivers if the wheels lock up. This is designed to...

The Honda Civic uses a steering rack and tie rod to help control the steering. When the steering fails or seems diminished, you may need to replace these components. Before doing this,...

The ABS on the Chevrolet Corvette works like most anti-lock braking systems on other vehicles. As you press on the brake pedal, the Corvette's ABS sensors check for wheel lock up. If it is...

If your car is out of alignment, you can be robbed of fuel mileage. Your tires will also wear faster then normal. Today, we are going to test a vehicle to see if it’s out of alignment. So let’s...

The rear wheel bearings on your car carry the load off of the rear axles. The bearings are like any ball bearings in that they provide a smooth, frictionless surface for the wheel to rotate on....

Everyone who drives an automobile needs to be transported from place to place comfortably and reliably, but how many people really know how their vehicles work? Modern cars comprise a multitude of...

The Focus is an automobile manufactured by Ford Motor Company. Originally designed and sold in North America in 1999, the Focus is a compact car. The Focus is now in its second generation as of...

The Durango is made by Dodge and is a full-sized sport utility vehicle. The SUV uses Dodge's famous Hemi engine on some late-model Durangos. While the new SUV market has seen a decline since 2007,...

The Ranger is a pickup truck manufactured by Ford Motor Company. Although it is a rugged pickup, it is not immune to problems. Fortunately, you don't have to be a genius when it comes to vehicles...

A CV (constant velocity) joint is a drive shaft that is attached to the transmission on one end and to the wheel on the other end. The transmission turns the CV joint when engaged, which turns the...

A lot of car and truck wheel wobbles can be stopped without the aid of a mechanic. Certain sounds and vibrations may tell you where to look for the problem. Getting tires rebalanced and paying a...

Having trouble turning your car's steering wheel? The good news is, you haven't lost all your strength. But the bad news is that something in your car's power steering system is out of whack. Most...

Driving an automobile daily causes wear to the parts. Your automobile will have problems during ownership, but diagnosing automobile problems is an easy task. Most often, diagnosing automobile...

Knowing a wheel bearing is bad in your vehicle may not be as difficult to diagnose as determining which wheel bearing is bad. Most often, bearings will give off a tell-tale grinding noise in...

YOU WILL LEARN THE EASIEST WAY TO FIND WHICH SIDE OF YOUR VEHICLE MAY HAVE A BAD WHEEL BEARING.BAD WHEEL BEARINGS ARE DANGEROUS AND CAN BE HARD TO LOCATE. IF YOU HAVE A HUMMING NOISE IN THE FRONT...

Wheel bearings are vital parts of a vehicle's suspension system. These bearings support the vehicle's weight, and ensure that the wheels rotate with a minimal amount of friction. Worn-out wheel...

Front wheel drive cars use a strut-type suspension that is composed of a strut, a hub assembly and a lower control arm affixed to the bottom of the strut. They all invariably use a rack and pinion...

When diagnosing vibrations it is imperative to notice when and where the vibrations occur. Test-drive the vehicle with this in mind. You need to determine whether the vibrations are a tire issue,...

The ABS wheel sensor measures the speed of a vehicle's wheels. It consists of a gear-shaped sensor rotor and a sensor element. The wheel-speed sensors are used by ABS to monitor wheel speeds.

If you’re not exactly mechanically inclined, the only sure-fire way to find out why your car is making a horrible noise is to take it to a mechanic for a diagnostic. But if you’re...

Simple steps to make sure your vehicle is safe.

Our cars are special to us, they are like best friends. Sometimes our cars are crying out to us, trying to tell us something. If we take the time to listen to the signals, we can save ourselves...

If there are some vibration in your ride, you're going to want to find out what's going on. One possible diagnosis is an out of round tire rim. Here we will walk you through the process of finding...

Vibration can be a symptom of many things when it comes to your car. Tires are the first line of defense against vibration and the diagnosis can be a long time coming before getting to the actual...

Noises in your car can be scary and annoying, but they can also give you an idea of what the problem is. To diagnose automobile noises, listen carefully to figure out when they occur and what they...

Though you cannot align your own wheels, there are several ways to determine if your car needs an alignment. Driving a car that's out of alignment will cause excessive and premature tire wear.