I've been looking for a site like this for so long! <3
How a car works (2012)
81–90 of 120 posts
Re: How a car works (2012)
#82Earlier quoted context omitted.
The single best thing you can do is buy the Bentley Repair Manual ( http://www.bentleypublishers.com/ ) for your car. They're expensive, but will show you how to take your model apart and put it back together again. If you want to learn how a car works, the best thing you can do is take one apart and then try to get it running again. When you're working on a car, dead tree repair guides + a beater laptop are your bes…
Haynes ( http://www.haynes.com/print ) is also a great resource.. might not be quite as in depth as the Bentley guide, but they're a lot cheaper and more than enough info for a novice.
Neither of those have my 2012 Forester :(
Re: How a car works (2012)
#83Seems to be very dated. Plenty on adjusting carburetors, in fact adjusting all sorts of no-longer-needing-adjusting parts.
Modern cars are very locked-in with computer systems. So fixing many aspects of modern cars is no longer possible for most car owners like it used to be. This seems like a neat site for people with older cars. Although, if you are owning a vintage car, then surely one should know a bit about maintaining that car without having to resort to such a site, but personally, it's nice to know it is there. I mean, its articl…
Modern cars are very locked-in with computer systems. So fixing many aspects of modern cars is no longer possible for most car owners like it used to be.
So true. And so frustrating. I grew up in a household where my dad built and raced stock cars, and was always building hot rods for street racing (sssshhhh, don't tell) and so I grew up working on cars, and for a big chunk of my life I did my own repair work. But as you say, newer cars are so much more challenging. It's not just the computerized bits either, it's the tighter clearances / less space in the engine compartment, the way you often have to disassemble half the car to even get access to the think you need to touch, the specialized tools you need for some jobs, etc.
Coincidentally my truck (a 2000 Ford Expedition) died Wed. morning. I am thinking about just going on Craigslist, finding an old 1974 Chevy C10 pickup, or something of that ilk, and buying that. I can do everything on a truck like that myself, all the way down to pulling and rebuilding the engine if need be.
because I definitely intend to own more older cars (they tend to be more interesting than modern cars).
They certainly can be, in their own way. I mean, I like both, but old cars definitely have a certain special appeal to them.
Re: How a car works (2012)
#84Neat site. My father was a mechanic and thus I should know all of this stuff, but I wasted away my life behind the keyboard instead :D I often find videos do a much better job at explaining some concepts. For example, the section on differentials: http://www.howacarworks.com/basics/how-the-transmission-work... After reading this I feel none the wiser. Whereas after watching this ancient Chevrolet training video from…
I'll embed that video shortly.
Previous HN discussion on the diff video if you're curious:
Re: How a car works (2012)
#85This is my site! This was a pleasant surprise to find my own site on HN this morning! I wondered why it was getting a few more FB likes than usual today. I'm happy to answer any questions. I finished this redesign last week so any feedback is welcome. The main task was to recreate labels and annotations on the illustrations in SVG format, and to reformat the articles in a way that flows nicely and is responsive, but…
This all begs the question, "What kind of car do you drive?" :)
Re: How a car works (2012)
#86I always feel so uncomfortable about my car considering how old it is, and I know nothing about it or how it works. Everyone around me just cracks open their hoods and fixes their car, swaps tires, etc. I can't just move stuff around without actually understanding what anything is. I honestly have been wanting to learn more about cars. It also helps keep up with mechanics when they tell me things I don't fully unders…
The Road and Track Illustrated Automotive Dictionary is also a good resource. Unlike the Bently guides, it will not be specific to your car. But it does have excellent illustrations and concise explanations.
Re: How a car works (2012)
#87Earlier quoted context omitted.
GM stopped putting carburetors in vehicles in 1985 for the US market, which is 30 years ago. When can we let go of old tech?
People will always use "old tech". "Old tech" often just works. Flawlessly. I have a dumper truck I borrow from next door. Crank handle, diesel. It just works. Starts every time. No battery, no crap to go wrong. "new tech" is often designed to last 5 or 10 years maximum. After that is anyones guess as to whether it'll work.
No battery, no crap to go wrong.
Incidentally, mechanical diesels are also immune to EMP. All they need is fuel and air. Not true of newer electronically controlled ones, which is done mainly to reduce emissions.
The compression-ignition characteristic also means diesels have this rather spectacular failure mode: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diesel_engine_runaway
Re: How a car works (2012)
#88Earlier quoted context omitted.
Good for you! I will never understand the mostly American tradition of buying a new car every few years? Cars that are so complicated; the owner is forced to bring it to the shop for every hiccup. A lot of cars/and trucks from the late 80's to around 2008, are pretty easy to work on, and with the proper maintence can last 300,000 miles. And if your not afraid of getting your hands dirty--you will never have to pay a…
mostly American tradition of buying a new car every few years The average car on US roads is 11.4 years old: http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-hy-ihs-automotiv... The average car on EU roads is 8.6 years old. In fact, in the EU only Estonia and Finland keep their cars longer than the US on average. http://www.acea.be/statistics/tag/category/average-vehicle-a...
And 6.6 years in Japan, in 2011: http://blogs.wsj.com/drivers-seat/2011/12/02/are-cars-losing... Americans do a lot of silly things but selling cars too quickly isn't one of them (relatively speaking, at least).
Re: How a car works (2012)
#89Seems to be very dated. Plenty on adjusting carburetors, in fact adjusting all sorts of no-longer-needing-adjusting parts.
Modern cars are very locked-in with computer systems. So fixing many aspects of modern cars is no longer possible for most car owners like it used to be. This seems like a neat site for people with older cars. Although, if you are owning a vintage car, then surely one should know a bit about maintaining that car without having to resort to such a site, but personally, it's nice to know it is there. I mean, its articl…
I'm not sure how true this is anymore. An OBD scanner makes the computer work for you. Modifications are certainly more difficult, but repair is easier IMHO. It is vastly easier to go replace the one bad fuel injector on a 2005 than rebuild a carb on a 1983.
Re: How a car works (2012)
#90This is my site! This was a pleasant surprise to find my own site on HN this morning! I wondered why it was getting a few more FB likes than usual today. I'm happy to answer any questions. I finished this redesign last week so any feedback is welcome. The main task was to recreate labels and annotations on the illustrations in SVG format, and to reformat the articles in a way that flows nicely and is responsive, but…
That's some nice Adsense income! My site gets about 13k visitors daily and I can't even average $5 from Adsense :(