Topic: What did you do to your car today?

[rrocket]

The vehicle is 17 years old.  It will be the starter ... eventually.  Next time it happens use a piece of rebar and tap it hard against the starter body with a hammer.  What's most likely occurring is that the brushes are too worn and no longer contacting the armature sufficiently.  A wack usually takes care of the problem, but for a very short time. Freezing temps compounds the problem.  I'd bite the bullet and get it rebuilt and save the cost of a tow.

Ya, just weird that it got progressively worse over the course of two days and now it’s fine. I understand it’s old, and regardless will need to be done at some point, but it’s a of a job. Toyota calls for 6hrs. That means a full weekend for me. Or just bite the bullet and take it in. But then I’m buying a starter and paying for labour. Ah well, truck owes me nothing.

Ya, starter replacement on Toyota/Lexus V8s can be a PITA.

On the flip side, it seems no expense was spared in starter components. They seem to last forever (for a starter).

[Firm]

Escalade did similar intermittentsow starting stuff last winter, and I went through all the same stuff...clean the connections  test the battery, etc. Ended up being the starter, but being a GM truck it the part was like $300 for a brand new unit and it took an hour to replace in the driveway with handtools.

[bridgecity]

Escalade did similar intermittentsow starting stuff last winter, and I went through all the same stuff...clean the connections  test the battery, etc. Ended up being the starter, but being a GM truck it the part was like $300 for a brand new unit and it took an hour to replace in the driveway with handtools.

 

[TheHire]

I discovered nearly six months into owning my LC 500 that it has factory remote start from the fob...

There is no marked button for it on the fob so I assumed the app was the only way to do this, but no... apparently it can be done the normal way.

[Blueprint]

I discovered nearly six months into owning my LC 500 that it has factory remote start from the fob...

There is no marked button for it on the fob so I assumed the app was the only way to do this, but no... apparently it can be done the normal way.

RTFM  Always a few hidden gems in there.

[TheHire]

I discovered nearly six months into owning my LC 500 that it has factory remote start from the fob...

There is no marked button for it on the fob so I assumed the app was the only way to do this, but no... apparently it can be done the normal way.

RTFM  Always a few hidden gems in there.

Lol - I refuse to make the time to do that. Manual's been in the trunk since day one.

[rrocket]

I discovered nearly six months into owning my LC 500 that it has factory remote start from the fob...

There is no marked button for it on the fob so I assumed the app was the only way to do this, but no... apparently it can be done the normal way.

RTFM  Always a few hidden gems in there.

Lol - I refuse to make the time to do that. Manual's been in the trunk since day one.

Man, I love reading my manual when I get a new car!

And if the car has a folder of service history, even better!! I'll read that too!

Ya, I kinda like that part of new/different car ownership....even if there is a bit of tedium in some of the overly thick Lexus manuals I've had.

[Blueprint]

Daughter mentioned this week that her CX-30 was throwing low tire pressure warnings. Turns out the Mazda tpms system displays per-tire pressures both in the car and on the app. Left front was the culprit, but a test with a gauge showed it at 29 psi in the cold, so no immediate issue.

I left her urban buggy in the garage overnight to get the tires up to room temp to check overall pressures - the tires having been installed by Costco, I did not check them myself. So LF at 32, RL 33, and both rights at 35. Recommended is 36 psi all-around. Pumped everything up to 36, alarms gone.

While the car was inside, I opened up the hood to top-off the washer fluid. Surprised to see the hood was sticking to its gaskets, like a water-thight sealed container. There's rubber all-around, and it does a pretty good job. I've never seen an engine so clean after 4 months of driving!

The 2.5 litre has a pleasant, raspy exhaust note in this application.

[ktm525]

Most air comes through grille does it not?

[Blueprint]

Most air comes through grille does it not?

Yes, but the way this thing manages airflow underhood - never seen a crudless car in winter. We'll see what it looks like at the end of the season!

[ktm525]

Maybe more related to  good wheel well liners and sealing from underneath?

[sailor723]

More yesterday but I finally got around to getting the winter tires and wheels on. Kind of funny in that it was +15 and rain here the day before and there is no snow in the 14 day forecast.

[Blueprint]

More yesterday but I finally got around to getting the winter tires and wheels on. Kind of funny in that it was +15 and rain here the day before and there is no snow in the 14 day forecast.

Here it had to be done by law before December 1st. Received a solid 12" dump last week, but rain and mild now, grass coming back in view.

[Blueprint]

My turn to leave money at a Subaru dealer's service dpt. I booked the 12 mo/20,000 km service next week. The car is at 15 mo/10,500 km. Prices are clearly marked online for every service, as is the content of every service. The list is identical to Subaru's, and to what others posted here. $429 

[Dante]

My turn to leave money at a Subaru dealer's service dpt. I booked the 12 mo/20,000 km service next week. The car is at 15 mo/10,500 km. Prices are clearly marked online for every service, as is the content of every service. The list is identical to Subaru's, and to what others posted here. $429 

Make sure they don't forget to check the washer fluid level and top up as necessary. 

[Blueprint]

My turn to leave money at a Subaru dealer's service dpt. I booked the 12 mo/20,000 km service next week. The car is at 15 mo/10,500 km. Prices are clearly marked online for every service, as is the content of every service. The list is identical to Subaru's, and to what others posted here. $429 

Make sure they don't forget to check the washer fluid level and top up as necessary. 

If they charge for it, I'll have them drink it with a straw.

[ktm525]

That's not bad. OE filter, drum oil and someone will grease the brake pad ears.

[warp]

So age is catching up with the Yukon, did the rear brakes a couple of weeks ago, normal wear item so no biggie, but then the radiator developed a leak last week. This will be the second radiator change ~$1.5K, the original went kaput sometime in 2018 after it was out of warranty and now the replacement has also gone bust. But the biggie is that there is a very very initial tick which lasts for a few minutes on A cold start up first thing in the morning and then goes away, it's the AFM lifters. According to the tech they may stay as they are for many tens of thousands of kilometers or could deteriorate, ~$6K plus tax to change all 16 on both banks of cylinders. Ouch!! I don't want to take that risk.

So I went and booked a plain jane non hybrid Grand Highlander which should come in sometime in January. Hybrids are unobtanium and I am not a fan of the cvt, and the top of the line hybrid max is over the top besides is also not readily available. The XLE comes with the 2.4 liter turbo 4 mated to an 8 speed Aisin auto.

I debated whether to go in for another GM SUV but the new generation have their own issues and nobody is certain whether the AFM lifter issue has been resolved....it tends to show up anytime after 60K-80K kilometers

[marcus_go]

So age is catching up with the Yukon, did the rear brakes a couple of weeks ago, normal wear item so no biggie, but then the radiator developed a leak last week. This will be the second radiator change ~$1.5K, the original went kaput sometime in 2018 after it was out of warranty and now the replacement has also gone bust. But the biggie is that there is a very very initial tick which lasts for a few minutes on A cold start up first thing in the morning and then goes away, it's the AFM lifters. According to the tech they may stay as they are for many tens of thousands of kilometers or could deteriorate, ~$6K plus tax to change all 16 on both banks of cylinders. Ouch!! I don't want to take that risk.

So I went and booked a plain jane non hybrid Grand Highlander which should come in sometime in January. Hybrids are unobtanium and I am not a fan of the cvt, and the top of the line hybrid max is over the top besides is also not readily available. The XLE comes with the 2.4 liter turbo 4 mated to an 8 speed Aisin auto.

I debated whether to go in for another GM SUV but the new generation have their own issues and nobody is certain whether the AFM lifter issue has been resolved....it tends to show up anytime after 60K-80K kilometers

That sucks. If I was going to own one of these long term I would find a way to bypass the AFM.

[warp]

So age is catching up with the Yukon, did the rear brakes a couple of weeks ago, normal wear item so no biggie, but then the radiator developed a leak last week. This will be the second radiator change ~$1.5K, the original went kaput sometime in 2018 after it was out of warranty and now the replacement has also gone bust. But the biggie is that there is a very very initial tick which lasts for a few minutes on A cold start up first thing in the morning and then goes away, it's the AFM lifters. According to the tech they may stay as they are for many tens of thousands of kilometers or could deteriorate, ~$6K plus tax to change all 16 on both banks of cylinders. Ouch!! I don't want to take that risk.

So I went and booked a plain jane non hybrid Grand Highlander which should come in sometime in January. Hybrids are unobtanium and I am not a fan of the cvt, and the top of the line hybrid max is over the top besides is also not readily available. The XLE comes with the 2.4 liter turbo 4 mated to an 8 speed Aisin auto.

I debated whether to go in for another GM SUV but the new generation have their own issues and nobody is certain whether the AFM lifter issue has been resolved....it tends to show up anytime after 60K-80K kilometers

That sucks. If I was going to own one of these long term I would find a way to bypass the AFM.

In hindsight, the smart thing to do would have been to buy one of the AFM delete kits, they are about ~$2K-2.5K for a good kit, at about the 60K kilometers mark. However the AFM lifter problem really became an issue only with the 2015 gen when GM went in for a more aggressive ECU tune to try and wring the best fuel economy. The prior gen from 2007 had a less aggressive tune and the lifter issue was isolated to very few cases. AFAIK and I could be wrong, there is a class action lawsuit in the US on this. Buyers of the current gen are the real beneficiaries of this lesson. They can opt for the AFM delete kit as soon as the vehicle is out of warranty.

Also, it will good for a change to have a low issue, low maintenance Toyota after years of diligently keeping the Yukon in top shape.