19/05/2020
Make it reliable for you shove a turbo on your car!
You now own a 20-year-old car! Now what? Part 1
Finally, after months or years of saving-up, you finally got your first car. If you are one of those people who bought their 15-year-old first car used, then this might help you make your car reliable.
Let’s say you bought a 1999 Honda Civic and it looks good and stock-ish. Most first car owners would change the wheels and tires but there is nothing wrong with changing them. But you do not know the full-service history of the car. So changing the perfectly working exhaust and adding an obnoxious spoiler would be the last thing you would like to do to your car. Some adverts would say newly changed oil and new spark plugs, and there is nothing wrong with that. That is the most basic thing to do. We have seen a Honda Civic that still running the Original timing from the factory. That just goes to show that they are reliable off the factory. Here is a list of serviceable parts that will make your car reliable AF.
Cooling System / Engine Heat Exchange System:
Given that your car is 20 years old and has been passed by 10-15 owners already, you might want to make sure your engine cooling system is still up for another 2-6 years. Some car owners would just tap ordinary tap water, which is a no-no when it comes to your cooling system. If you have tried boiling water on a kettle then you'll know that ordinary tap water could clog-up your radiator with limestone minerals and other minerals impurities. Using straight pure water (h2o) could improve cool, but it could shorten the life span of your water pump. A premixed coolant could improve your cool system life span and could prevent corrosion. An expensive coolant additive would be water wetter but its hard to come by here in the Philippines plus it is much more expensive than a premixed coolant. Bear in mind that the cooling system is as essential as the lubrication system. Thermostat also has its service limit and could be stuck shut. There are lots of things that could go wrong when your cooling system is not in great condition but to make this short, here is one for them.
Overheating or bad cooling system could warp your cylinder heads and thus make your cylinder-head sealing bad or a blown head gasket.
Cooling system service list:
Inspect if the radiator is clogged.
Inspect thermostat make sure it is not stuck close.
Make sure the coolant passage does not have leaks.
Replace the water pump
Inspect if the hoses are still in good condition not squishy or not buldging.
Timing system
If a timing belt is past its service limit then it is prone to crack and could break at any time. Breaking a timing belt could be detrimental to some engines and some will be fine. If you are running a Honda motor, then All Honda engines are interference except 3.0L & 3.2 which are Non-interference. You can Google your engine and see if it is interference or not. When your timing belt snaps, your crank, and camshaft timing would be out of sync and thus make your valves interfere with your piston. Bent valves could be an expensive repair or some couldn’t even be repaired. Some engines use timing chains instead of timing belt where service limits are long and less prone to snapping.
Timing system service list:
Replace Timing belt
Replace timing belt tensioner
Could be done together with the water pump
Ignition timing synchronization
Brake system:
Not being able to stop would be that last thing you do not want to happen to you. A heat-up in your disk or drum brakes reduces the stopping power of your car. A locked up brake caliper and stock brake shoe could destroy your braking system. So change those brake pads and brake shoes to prevent this from happening. It is cheap, adds reliability and peace of mind while driving. How cheap? It would amount to Php 1600 (Depending on your vehicle).
Brake system service list:
Replace brake pads or brake shoes
The clean brake caliper and Brake drum
Clean and lubricate brake caliper release pin
Clutch System (manual transmission):
Each vehicle has its own clutch system service limit. Service limit can be shortened depending on the driver’s driving habits. If you are in gear and you release your clutch pedal and your car just rev freely without accelerating, then you probably need to have your clutch checked. Maybe it just needs adjusting or just needs to be bled or worst, the transmission needs to be pulled out for clutch servicing.
Clutch service list:
Primary or secondary hydraulic clutch cylinder inspection
Replace release bearing
Replace clutch disk
Replace pressure plate
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