A “dead battery” means the battery doesn’t have enough power to start the car. If it happens again after a recent replacement, there’s usually something else causing the battery to go flat.
They’re trying to find what’s “stealing” power from the battery. If something keeps using electricity when the car is off, the battery will go dead early.
They’re talking about a typical “normal” battery drain amount—about 50 milliamps. If the car draws way more than that when it’s off, it usually means something is wrong.
The PCM is the car’s main computer for the engine and drivetrain. If it doesn’t get power correctly, the car can act like it has an engine problem even when the engine itself is fine.
That’s the car’s Bluetooth hands-free system. If you’re troubleshooting electrical issues, checking this area can help find what’s staying powered when it shouldn’t.
That’s a big electrical plug with many wires going into it. Unplugging the right connector lets a mechanic test whether that module is causing the problem.
Wiring diagrams are schematics that show how components connect electrically, including fuses, connectors, and wire routing. They’re critical for diagnosing electrical faults because they reveal the correct test points and circuit paths.
The pressure plate is the part that squeezes the clutch disc so the engine power can connect to the transmission. If it starts to stick or wear out, the clutch won’t work smoothly.
The clutch is what lets the engine and transmission connect and disconnect. If it’s not working right, shifting—especially between certain gears—can feel wrong or cause strange behavior.
The radiator cap helps the engine stay cool by controlling pressure in the cooling system. If it’s not working right, the coolant can boil or overflow and you can end up with air where you don’t want it.
The expansion tank is where extra coolant goes when the engine heats up. When the engine cools, it can pull coolant back in so the system doesn’t run low.
The cam position sensor is a small sensor that tells the computer where the camshaft is. The mechanic mentions it because the sensor location can help identify what timing setup the engine has.
This is a diagnostic principle: the timing chain is designed to run submerged/lubricated by engine oil. If it’s making noise, the mechanic checks whether lubrication is actually present (oil level/pressure) and whether the chain or related guides are worn.
For oiled, reusable air filters, oil is applied to the filter media so it can capture fine dust. The speaker’s process—clean, soak, wash, then oil—highlights that re-oiling is part of restoring filtration performance.
They’re talking about Root, a company that sells car insurance. They mention their website so you can read the fine print and learn how their insurance works.
Oil pressure at idle is how well the engine’s oil pump is circulating oil when the car is stopped and idling. If oil pressure is too low, the engine parts don’t get lubricated well and can make tapping noises.
General Motors sometimes publishes “service bulletins” when they find a common problem on certain engines. This one tells mechanics how to check the cause of noisy lifters and oil pressure issues.
The oil pump O-ring is a seal that helps the oil pump pull oil correctly. If it leaks or doesn’t seal, the engine may not get enough oil pressure and the lifters can start making noise.
Sludge is dirty, thick gunk that can build up inside an engine when oil isn’t changed often enough or the oil breaks down. It can block oil passages and reduce lubrication.
Oil starvation means the engine isn’t getting enough oil to lubricate everything. That can lead to noisy lifters and, if it’s severe, faster engine wear.
The AC compressor is what makes the air conditioning work by pressurizing refrigerant. If the noise is related to belt-driven accessories, the compressor can be part of the diagnosis.
A mechanical gauge is a direct tool that measures oil pressure more accurately than the dashboard. Mechanics use it to confirm whether the oil system is really working correctly.
A hood scoop is an intake opening on the hood that can feed air to the engine or add a performance look. Whether it’s functional or purely cosmetic, it’s a common modification that people may debate at car shows.
Root Insurance is a company that sells car insurance. They use an app to track how you drive and then try to offer better prices to drivers they consider safer.
Car insurance is what you buy to protect yourself financially if something bad happens to your car. This ad is talking about pricing that depends on how you actually drive, not just general assumptions.
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Welcome to the radio home of Ron and Anian, the car doctor.
Since 1991, this is where car owners the world overturned to, for their definitive opinion on automotive repair.
If your mechanic's giving you a busy signal, pick up the phone and call in.
The garage doors are open, but I am here to take your calls at 8555609900.
And now, here's Ronny.
How long can a repair actually take?
Hello and welcome, Ron and Anian, the car doctor, 8555609900.
You've welcomed, you've entered the land of the repair of the week.
2006 Acura MDX came into the shop at Ari Automotive in January of 2012 with a dead battery.
Battery was stone dead, we replaced it two and a half years earlier and we ended up putting a battery in it.
Couldn't find a drain, couldn't find a draw, nothing wrong with it.
Just, gee, could it be a bad new battery?
Ever since, three years since we did that battery, every once in a while, that car still showed up complaints of low cranking ability and poor power when they hit the key and just the complaints that are reminiscent of a battery that's low on charge.
One bad new battery I could buy, two bad new batteries?
I know what new means, never ever worked, but yeah, come on.
I was fortunate though this week because it ended up on my doorstep.
Matter of fact, it was the Monday right after vacation.
Remember that vacation I went on?
Now I know why.
I had to recover for this car.
And it ended up on my doorstep with a dead battery again.
And after some review of the records because, and we don't talk about that enough, you know, part of the repair process is looking at what's been done.
And it generally gives you a direction on where you have to go.
I knew from this vehicle's history that starting in 2009, it had a battery put in it.
In 2012, that replacement battery died.
And now about two and a half, three years later, it was on the verge of needing another battery.
So unless we want to believe the entire battery industry has fallen off the edge of a cliff, then regardless of what battery we put in that,
obviously I replace it with a power frame grid technology battery because we've all come to understand the quality and what a power frame grid technology battery is.
I knew that I had to find the source of the drain.
I had to find out why this battery was being pulled down.
It was lucky that when I first took up my ammeter, I was reading almost a quarter amp drain.
Now understand it's all about numbers.
It's math when it comes to auto repair, especially with electrical stuff.
In terms of a drain, 50 milliamps, .05, five hundredths of an amp is considered okay on a computer car.
It's allowed to have a certain amount of draw.
And a lot of times when engineers sit down and calculate out, well, not a lot of times, but all the time when engineers sit down and calculate out,
hey, what kind of battery do we need and the amp hour rating and all the other electrical specs?
Consideration for modules and load and off key drain are always considered as part and parcel of that.
In the case of this Acura, I had way more than five hundredths of an amp.
I had a quarter of an amp, .25.
The simplest way to find a drain, time tested, the way we've always done it, is start pulling fuses.
Well, I got lucky within the first 45 minutes and I say it like that because this particular Acura had three fuse boxes.
It had two under the hood and one under the driver's side of the dash.
And I take that back because I still never confirmed.
I think there was also one in the passenger side kick panel that I was yet to find.
In the second of the three fuse boxes.
So I sort of stopped there.
And at that point it was just a matter of frustration because I should have gone and checked all the fuses.
But my theory has always been you find one, start the game from there.
It was fuse number 10 in the sub fuse panel under the hood.
Seven and a half amp fuse that when you read the wiring diagram goes right to the engine computer PCM.
Wow, look at that. How could that be?
Gee, you know, you would think it would have a running issue or you would think it would just not be a battery issue all by itself.
I'm thinking of myself.
When I read the diagram, it said that that particular fuse, fuse number 10, seven and a half amp kept the PCM alive.
It was main battery input to the PCM.
But what if the wiring diagram?
Now, how could this happen?
Be lying to me.
What if that wasn't the only thing on that circuit?
And when you sit and look at the diagram, it says, this is it, straight shot, starts here, ends here.
But if you read the fine print in the wiring diagram, it says with a magnifying glass because you're an old mechanic,
see diagram 10-17.
So you go to diagram 10-17, diagram 10-17 says that fuse number 10, seven and a half amp under the sub fuse panel box.
Say that three times fast.
Also goes to the tire pressure monitoring receiver.
Oh, goodie.
And the Bluetooth hands-free control link or inaccurate language, the BTHCL.
And that's just what it said.
BTHCL, that took me 30 minutes to look up and find out what in good God's name is a BTHCL because everybody must know it's a Bluetooth hands control link.
I was like, yeah, okay.
One by one, you got to go through components.
Now, you say to yourself, is it the PCM?
Well, to unplug the PCM, that's a little bit of work.
You got to do some digging to get to it.
The easiest component to get to was the BTHCL.
I think I said that wrong before.
The Bluetooth hands-free control link, that's right.
To do that, I only had to take down the interior puddle lights by the sunroof, the sunroof control.
And there was one more piece of trim and garnish.
About 35 minutes later, I was there and down and I'm looking at the 22-pin green connector for the Bluetooth hands-free.
Unplug it, draw's gone.
The bottom line becomes that it's not the fantasy and the magic of, oh, goodie, I fixed one more car with an electrical draw.
The star of this repair of the week is the wiring diagrams.
Wiring diagrams are so darn critical to this business.
Whether you're doing it as a professional or whether you're doing it as a weekend warrior, and God bless you if you are.
It has come to the point, and we've passed the point really, and we passed this point easily eight to ten years ago,
that when you're dealing with electrical, looking at the one wiring diagram for the fuse, in the case of the accurate,
it was diagrammed by number 23-1, you have to go look at 10-17, you had to go look at 10-6, you had to go look at 23-2.
I had to look at four different wiring diagrams to see everything that I needed to see in that picture on a vehicle with four fuse boxes.
So the next time, the next time you pull into your repair shop and go, you know, I was using my cell phone adapter,
and the cigarette lighter no longer works, I blew a fuse, can you just pop one in for me?
The only thing we pop in is people in the pool if they're standing too close, and in that case you get all wet.
Hello and welcome, Ron and Annie in the car doctor here, 855-609-900, just another way of looking at auto repair folks,
that's what this radio show is all about, and we will be back right after this to take your calls, don't go away.
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Hey, welcome back, Ron and Annie in the car doctor rolling along this hour.
Let's kick those garage doors open, and let's go over and talk to Tony from Queens, New York.
Tony, welcome back to the car doctor, sir.
I remember your car, 69 Mustang.
How are you today, and what can we do for you?
Only when you're shifting first to second?
Tony, or in general, when you're using the clutch at all?
Let's talk about this like it was a daily driver for a minute.
We'll attack it from that angle.
If this was a daily driver, part of the conversation would be, are the mounts in good condition?
Engine mounts, trans mounts, and I realized to say that to the guy with the classic Mustang is a ridiculous comment.
But just from a general education point of view, you're always looking at mounts as the engine sitting square.
Because the relationship of how the engine sits in the chassis to the linkage itself is very critical.
If anything is out of line, if the Z bar, if the fork, if anything isn't square like it's supposed to be,
it can affect clutch release operation and clutch operation in general.
So that being said, I just want to get that off my chest.
The next thing I want to think about is I've got a vehicle in your case that sits a little bit.
You don't drive it every day.
Do we have the beginnings of a pressure plate that's starting to bind?
And that's possible.
I've seen it where the plate itself, the fingers itself, the plate's collapsing.
The plate doesn't have the proper tension on it.
It can't throw back anymore.
And that could very well be why my curiosity is why only first to second.
I still think this is a clutch issue, Tony.
But what I would ask you to try and do is from first to second, you're driving at a certain RPM, a certain load, right?
Agreed?
Right.
When you go second to third, you've got your foot into it a little bit more.
The engine's got less of a load on it.
And it just, you've changed the environment.
I would try to drive it the same first to second, or from two to three as you would first to second, if you know what I'm saying.
Right, right, okay.
And can you duplicate the condition?
Okay.
Of course, this is also, you know, maybe first to second is the only spot you're feeling it or engaging it.
It just doesn't happen at higher RPM because it doesn't want to.
Is the linkage intact?
Is the linkage worn?
Is the linkage properly lubricated?
Is, you know, this is a mechanical clutch.
There's not much else here.
It's either in the linkage under the dash, the Z bar itself, the fork, the mechanism, the throw out bearing, the way it slides on the collar of the trans.
Although that shouldn't be first and second gear only.
And then the one common denominator that's the most common is the plate itself is starting to fail.
How old is the clutch?
It's got to be about 12, 12 years.
Right, you know, and it sort of doesn't matter mileage because if you told me 5,000 miles in 12 years, then I'd start to think about rust spots on the pivot point of the plate itself.
And is that causing it to bind and fail?
Always a possibility.
Right.
So, all right, sir.
Okay.
All right, Tony, if you need me, listen, if you need me, if you get it apart, you want, you have questions, you want to send me some pictures or something wrong at cardoctorshow.com.
All right, sir.
Thanks a lot, Ron.
You're very welcome.
You take good care.
By the way, everybody, for our car doctor faithful out there next weekend, let me just point out real quick Labor Day weekend.
I believe that's going to be September the 5th.
That's Saturday, next Saturday.
We are going to be at the Sheridan Crossroads in Mawa, New Jersey.
We're going to be out there with the Dead Man's Curve Car Club as they put on their big hot rod weekend for Labor Day.
We're going to be out there Saturday, 2 to 4 p.m.
Eastern time doing this radio show live out in front of the hotel.
We're going to bring the whole crew a bunch of extras.
Black's coming.
We're bringing Black 2, too.
And we're going to be out there doing a radio show, interviewing, talking to people, taking questions from the crowd, and in general, just having a great time.
So, for another car doctor road trip, if you're in the area of Mawa, New Jersey, here today, gone to Mawa.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
As I would say to my wife, little joke, and she would hold up her thumb and forefinger and go, yeah, real little.
So, time to get back to the follow-ups.
Let's go over to Line 2 and talk to John, 2000 Subaru, and some cool and dishes.
John, aren't I a funny guy, John?
Come on now, be nice to me.
Yeah, you're good.
All right, sir.
What's going on?
All right, listen, let's not get overboard here.
So, what can I do for you?
Well, I've had diagnostic and everything else done, but the A-freeze is filling up the overflow bottle on long trips.
But when you let it cool down for a day or two, it doesn't suck it back over.
Okay.
And it doesn't leak it internally or externally.
All right, so are you physically adding coolant?
Nope, I don't even have to add coolant.
I just got to take out the overflow to put it back in the radiator when it's cool so the radiator has any freeze in it,
and it just pushes it right back into the overflow.
Okay, two things that I've seen where Subaru's won't recover from the coolant bottle.
All right, one is it's either a bad radiator cap or a bad new radiator cap, and I've seen that more often than not.
So, if you've replaced the radiator cap with something out of the aftermarket that's not of great quality,
then that's a potential problem.
And, you know, the other thing is that the hose itself that goes into the overflow bottle is soft and it collapses on suction.
It kind of just pulls itself shut and it won't pull any coolant back up the tube as the vehicle cools off.
Well, the hose doesn't, you know, claps or nothing.
I went through about four or five radiator caps new.
Okay, and is the port itself clear?
Yep.
All right, then you've got something that's defying the laws of physics because regardless of what kind of car it is,
if the cooling system's clean, if the radiator cap is working properly,
and for a better description of what that cap's supposed to do, you'll find more information at stand.com.
And I'm kind of hoping, well, I'm hoping you're not going to say you put a stand on it,
but I'm hoping you go out and try a stand cap because I know a stand radiator cap is going to be something of quality equivalent to the OA
and making sure that tube is clear.
But if you're using a white box radiator cap, very common that they create this exact problem.
Yeah, because when it's hot, as it's cooling down, you can turn the cap a little bit and it'll bubble over into the overflow.
You can hear the pressure of it.
Right.
Until all the bubbles are out of the overflow, and there's no air bubbles or anything else.
In this system, it just doesn't suck back over.
Well, let me ask, I don't understand something if the vehicle is hot and you're opening the cap a little bit.
Why are we dispersing air bubbles? Where'd the air bubbles come from?
If it's a full system, it shouldn't have air in it.
I guess it's the pressure that's inside the radiator that gives the air up doing that part.
Yeah, where'd the air come from?
Other than that, when it's cooled down, it doesn't have new pressure or air bubbles like that.
Well, why?
They can just take everything out and put it back over.
Back up a second. Where'd the air come from?
Back up your theory. Explain it to me. How does a hot radiator develop air bubbles?
I don't know.
Yeah, I don't know either because I've never seen that.
I've even filled up the overflow bottle and filled up the radiator, so it wouldn't push the antifreeze over in the overflow when it got hot and on long trips.
And it didn't leak at all out.
It must have pushed it out of the overflow since it might have had too much, but it just stayed where the radiator eventually ended up having an emptiness to whenever it cooled down that you could put it back over in the radiator.
Hey, John, how clean is the coolant in this car? How clean is the cooling system?
Whistle clean.
Clean.
Alright, the clock's going to take me. The last thing I'm going to leave you with is A, where's the air coming from? Actually, two things.
A, where's the air coming from? And B, is that overflow tube that drops down into the expansion tank?
Is it too long and it's clogging itself down at the bottom of the bottle, not allowing withdrawal?
I have seen that also where the hoses stretch for some reason, or perhaps it's been replaced.
It is 15 years old, some things to go and look at. Let me know. I'm Roninini and the car doctor, back right after this.
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We built an easy-to-use app that puts you in control.
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Welcome back. Roninini and the car doctor, phone number 08555609900 here to take your calls and answer your questions.
Real quick piece of commentary.
So I had blackout last night and kind of barreled along 287 here in New Jersey and had a grand old time.
And I want to tell the guy in the Toyota Corolla, if he's listening today and I'm not really quite sure, but I figured he's a car guy,
that pulling up next to a hot rod cruising down the hot rod, cruising down the road,
and one hand on the wheel and one hand using your cell phone to videotape the car at speed is not a great idea
and does make the driver of said hot rod very, very nervous.
So next time, uh-uh, don't try and keep up with me. Please stay away.
Let's get on back to the phones. Let's go talk to Charlie and I with 2004 Mercury Monterey and some issues.
Charlie, welcome to the car doctor, sir. How can I help?
Thank you.
Welcome. What's going on?
Okay, we got an 04 Mercury Monterey van, the 4.2 liter V6 engine that has a squealing noise up in the front of the engine
and it turned out it wasn't an alternator or a water pump and we think probably it might be a timing chain.
Okay, does this engine have the cam synchronizer?
I can't really tell you on that. It's a single cam pushrod engine.
Is there, just before you go digging anything else apart, always be certain if this is the 4 generation.
If this has the half a distributor sticking in the intake manifold with a sensor on top, that is the cam position sensor
and it's possible in 2004 they still had that.
If it's a chirping noise that sounds like a bad bearing, then I would bet my money on that.
If you listen with a mechanic's stethoscope, you'll be more than likely to hear it and pick it apart.
What's your question to me?
Oh, yeah, we've been wondering if it would be the cam or the timing chain for that.
I'm looking at it here to see if I can see the distributor, but I don't see a distributor.
Well, you won't see a distributor. You'll see either in the front of the motor or the back of the motor,
more than likely in the rear of the motor, you will see something that looks like they took a distributor and cut the top off
and it's just going to have a sensor on it with three wires.
A little black round sensor with two 1130-second bolts holding it to the top or two 8mm holding it to the top
and if that's the case, that is a cam synchronizer and you will find that that is more than likely the cause.
If that's what we're chasing.
Okay, and you do think maybe the bearing might be bad on that?
Well, yeah, and that's a case of you replace that cam synchronizer
and actually thinking about it, that chirping, I bet it's from the front of the engine
and you're going to find the synchronizer buried down underneath the front,
underneath in the area of the coil pack, if I remember correctly,
because I think it's in a bad spot to get to.
Well, that sounds better than having to put a chain on.
Yeah, well, you know, and again, so let's prove your theory.
If you think the chain is bad and it's squeaky, the timing chain is bathed in oil.
If the chain is that dry that it's squeaky, you've got bigger problems than a timing chain
because we're at all the oil going, why doesn't it have oil pressure protecting it?
Oh, yeah, right.
So, you know, we're going to make this, everybody's going to have to back up their theories today here in the car, doctors.
So, we're going to make you think about it.
I would take a very hard look for a cam synchronizer.
Just imagine a distributor cut in half.
Charlie, you're looking for that.
Oh, I see it.
There it is.
I bet you if you put a long screwdriver on there, be mindful of the fan and other moving components
and listen, you know, like we did in the old days, listen through the screwdriver handle.
I bet you you'll hear that thing chirping like mad.
Okay, then we could pull that out then.
Right.
Now, and if that is the piece, all right, understand that when you pull that out, you have to be very careful
because you have to index that synchronizer back into the engine in the exact position.
All right.
And then the housing to the block then.
Correct.
Correct.
So, what I do when I do the synchronizers, there is a special four tool for this
and each engine is a little different.
I do have the tools for most of these.
When I run into one that I don't have the synchronizer locked down for,
what I will do is I will put, I will hand crank the engine and put the vein.
There is a singular vein, all right, or an index inside that synchronizer.
I will put it in an exact spot.
I will take a magic marker.
I will mark the synchronizer to the housing, the housing to the block
so it can only go back in.
It has got to be there.
All right.
All right.
And at that point, I haven't lost my reference because if you follow procedure,
Ford is going to tell you to bring the engine around to top dead center.
And if I am not mistaken, you probably can't see top dead center on that engine.
It is so buried in that vehicle.
They don't have timing marks anymore.
Right.
And by now in 2004, if there were marks there, they are rusted over and they are gone.
So we are going to make our own marks.
Oh, by the way, it does have around $160,000 on it.
Okay.
Yeah.
So, yeah.
I would be willing to bet that is it.
All right, sir.
Will you give us a call back?
Let us know.
If not, we will keep you going.
We will tell you what else it could be.
Okay.
Thank you very much.
You are very welcome, Charlie.
You take good care.
By the way, I just want to do a quick shout out to Bob.
Bob stopped by the shop yesterday.
He is a regular listener to the car doctor.
And he has been a customer for many years.
We have seen him and enjoyed having conversation.
And it was with great thrill and pride, as he said to me.
Hey, Ron, you got time to clean my K&N air filter.
I haven't had time to.
He was in for state inspection and took it apart.
And it is amazing how much debris a K&N air filter can hold and still let the engine run.
It was like we just took the Sequoia National Forest out of Bob's air box and shook it out,
cleaned it out, washed it with the K&N filter cleaner, let it soak, then took it over to
the sink, a little bit of warm water and gently washed it nowhere.
Bob asked me, he says, hey, would you do this with air now?
You don't want to disturb the filter element of the filter, washed it, let it soak in some
water, cleaned it, oiled it.
Within a half hour, everything was put back together, nice and shiny, new, freshly oiled,
and down the road.
So, yeah, you know, there is one abused air filter.
And I say that with love.
Bob's just been a busy guy the past couple of years.
And imagine forgetting about your air filter for a couple of years.
And you can clean it up and put it together and, you know, away you go.
So, just a tip of the hat to K&N and the folks, if you want to see what they're all about,
get out to kinfilters.com.
855-560-9900.
I'm Ron Anany and the car doctor.
I'll be back right after this.
We're Root Insurance and collectively 72,000 drivers gave us a 4.7 star rating.
Drivers think our new way of doing car insurance is nearly perfect.
We built an easy to use app that puts you in control.
The Root app measures how you drive so that we can reward better drivers with better prices.
We're a new kind of car insurance and we're working hard to turn 4.7 stars into 5.
Root.
Almost perfect and proud of it.
Terms and conditions apply.
Subject to underwriting review.
See root.com for details.
Who's going to drive you home tonight?
Welcome back.
If you want to know more information about this radio show at cardoctorshow.com,
let's get over to Russell, St. Augustine, Florida.
Some kind of a lifter tap, 2002 Chevy Anvilinch.
Russell, welcome to the car doctor, sir.
How can I help?
Yeah, it doesn't show its noise until you get around 1,700 to 2,000 RPM.
Then you can hear that.
I was wondering why it kicks up at that RPM.
Okay, let me ask you this.
Any morning lights on on the dashboard?
Not at all.
First like a kid.
Okay.
Full power.
Oil pressure?
Yeah, beautiful.
Oil pressure at idle?
Yeah, I'm pulling 45 pounds according to the gauge.
All right.
Two things.
There is a bulletin from General Motors.
Have you seen this 020601038?
No.
That talks about engine lifter noise at various RPMs for aerated oil.
You probably want to get your hands on this.
Okay.
This talks about problems with the O-ring seal between the oil pump screen and the oil pump itself.
And one of the tests, the bulletin kind of walks you through it.
One of the tests is they want you to go through and check oil pressure at a couple of different RPM ranges.
And the concern is that if oil pressure is low and if it doesn't show correctly on a mechanical gauge, not the gauge on the dashboard,
then there's a reasonable chance that you have a problem with that oil pump O-ring.
Now, we have also seen some cases with engine sludge and sludge clogging the oil pump or restricting, and it's also about volume.
And this just could be a plain old fashioned oil starvation, lifter tap issue,
and how clean is the inside of the engine.
We've got to have that conversation.
But if I was going to look someplace first, I would start this diagnosis with an oil pressure test.
And if need be, get your hands on this bulletin and take a look and follow it and start talking about that oil pump O-ring.
Not an easy job.
It's a good couple of, it's a Saturday afternoon and better to do.
Been there, done that, but it's not uncommon.
The flour sludge, I highly doubt that because I've owned it since 36 on the clock.
Right.
And I've changed oil every three to five on it.
Okay.
Then, yeah, that's good.
And you're using a good brand, a consistent weight of oil on a regular basis?
Sure am.
Yeah.
Using what GM recommends, 5W-20.
Okay.
Then I would think hard and take a look at that bulletin because I'm going to think it's more than likely.
If it's a lifter issue, if it's a lifter starvation, the oil's foaming.
You know, does it go away above 2,000 RPM, Russell?
You're doing going down the highway at 70.
She's turning about 1,700 to 2,000 and I do have a dual exhaust on it with a full master on it.
So it sort of drowns it out somewhat, but I could still hear it.
Right.
You know, what makes you think, and I'm going to just be devil's advocate here for a second,
what makes you think it's engine?
Because if I sit there, if I sit it in neutral park and rev up the motor, I can hear the motor.
Okay.
I can hear that noise.
Okay.
No warning lights of any kind.
I know I asked you this.
I just want to be sure.
No check engine light.
Nothing.
Engine runs dead smooth.
No other issues.
It's bone stock except for a K&M.
All right.
Then the only other comment I would want to make, because obviously we're just thinking about rotating mass,
is if you were to take the belts off, start it up, and obviously not run it long, but just run it long enough.
You're going to bring it up to 1,700 to 2,000, wherever you hear that noise now.
Do you still hear that noise?
If you do hear that noise, then yell, okay, it's not alternator.
It's not water pump.
It's not AC compressor and so forth.
Start thinking about oil pressure and doing an oil pressure test and possibly that oil pump over in.
Obviously, I'm going by the factory gauge.
I have not hooked up my mechanical gauge to it.
Did you get that bulletin number that I gave you?
Yes, I did.
Okay.
Get a look at that.
If you need any more information, Ron at cardoctorshow.com, shoot me an email.
All right.
Thanks a lot.
You're very welcome.
Good luck to you.
Very important.
It's always back to the basics.
I also had another conversation I wanted to bring up here, but let me just tell this quick story.
I went to a cruise night last night.
I have to tell this because this is really starting.
Where is it written that, and I could understand this, I took the hot rod over to Bhutan up here in North Jersey.
We were over there at the Walmart Park a lot.
I couldn't get over the fact that people are fascinated with the fact that the car has an inspection sticker on it.
It just boggled my mind.
I had three, four, maybe five questions.
Why do you have an inspection sticker on it?
Well, because it's registered in New Jersey and it needs an inspection.
Why don't you put QQs on it?
I don't want to put QQs on it.
Why not?
I don't know.
It's my car.
It's America.
I thought this is the way I would do it.
I'd rather have a vehicle that's inspected.
To me, that's just the way I wanted to do it.
What difference does it make?
What is it with people that it really bothers them that you drive and build your car your way and not to what they want?
I don't understand that.
To the guy that came up to me and said, it's a nice car, but if it were mine, I wouldn't put the hood scoop on it.
I wouldn't put the roll bar in it and I'd change the wheels and tires.
I'm going to repeat what I said to you.
Well then, I'm glad it's not yours because this is the way I did mine.
Let me know when yours comes out.
I want to see how good that looks.
8-5-5-5-6-0-9-9-0-0.
I'm Ron Anani and the car doctor.
I'll be back right after this.
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Welcome back.
Ron Anani and the car doctor.
8-5-5-5-6-0-9-9-0-0.
By the way, that's the car doctor's 24-7 number.
If you call 8-5-5-5-6-0-9-9-0-0.
Anytime, day or night, this radio show is broadcast 2-4 PM Eastern time over our network to the affiliates.
And if they're on a delayed broadcast, if you're in a part of the country that, you know, can't listen to the show live and you're getting it on delay, you're listening to it on podcast.
And for those of you in New York, by the way, I should point out, I should point out that we are back on in New York live on AM 1700 WRCR.
So you can tune us in live there Saturdays 2-4 PM.
But my point is that 8-5-5-5-6-0-9-9-0-0 is a 24-7 service.
You can call that number, leave a message in Fast Harrier, our executive producer will call you back.
Going back to the crews, I just want to get this off my chest.
So what I want everybody to do is, next week, here's the deal, next week, I want everybody to show up and you be the judge.
Should the hot rod have an inspection sticker, yes or no?
Should I put QQs on it or should I leave it the way it is right now with a legal New Jersey inspection sticker and a regular set of license plates?
Let's get, oh, explain a QQ.
A QQ plate in New Jersey means it's an antique.
Anything, I think it's 25 years or older, they feel like it's not an everyday driver, so you don't need to go through inspection.
And my way of thinking is, since the hot rod would pass inspection, I mean, how else can I say this?
If you're driving down the road in a Black 55 Chevy with a hood scoop, big tires and loud exhaust, you know, you kind of get everybody's attention
and sometimes you get the attention of the boys in blue and some of them aren't so understanding
and if that vehicle has an inspection sticker on it, it kind of makes everybody happy.
So I'm just out there trying to keep the peace and stay out of the limelight if that's possible.
I guess that's kind of a, that's probably not really correct driving a Black 55 with loud exhaust and a hood scoop
and something looks like American graffiti, but beside the point.
So come on out to the Sheridan and Mawa next weekend at the Deadman's Curve Wild Hot Rod Party
and you guys be the judge that will be parked right next to me.
Under the watchful eye of Daniel Son, he'll be with me to he's playing security on the car next week,
but should be a great and a good time for one and all.
Hey, there's another hour of car doctor coming up next for those of you that are lucky enough to get it,
but I can see by the hands of the grape for vlog this one has come and gone.
Till the next time, I'm Ron Anani and the car doctor reminding you the mechanics aren't expensive, they're priceless.
See ya.
We're rude and collectively 72,000 drivers said that our car insurance is almost perfect.
They gave us 4.7 stars, not a perfect five, but pretty darn close.
You know what else has a 4.7 star rating? The great pyramids of Giza, the Roman Coliseum and the Taj Mahal.
As far as we're concerned, our customers loving their car insurance that much should be the eighth wonder of the world.
We built an easy to use app that puts you in control.
The root app measures how you drive so that we can reward better drivers with better prices.
Good drivers are saving up to $1,200 a year on their car insurance with Root.
Maybe that's why customers think we deserve the same rating as the Statue of Liberty.
Our 4.7 star rating puts us in some pretty monumental company, but we're still working hard to fill in that last star.
Download the Root Insurance app today or visit root.com to learn more.
That's R-O-O-T dot com.
Root.
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About this episode
Ron Ananian tackles three real-world repair calls with a heavy focus on diagnostics. An Acura MDX keeps dying from a battery drain; Ron tracks it down by measuring parasitic draw and cross-referencing multiple wiring diagrams until unplugging the Bluetooth hands-free control link stops the drain. A 2000 Subaru overflows coolant on long trips, leading to debates about radiator caps, overflow hose behavior, and where air is coming from. Other calls cover a 2004 Mercury van’s chirping cam synchronizer vs. timing chain, and a 2002 Chevy with lifter-tap noise tied to a GM oil pump O-ring bulletin. The show also includes classic-car clutch advice and a lively discussion about NJ inspection stickers at hot rod events.
Take a ride back to August 29, 2015, and hear what was happening in the bays—and on the phones—11 years ago on Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor Radio Show.
Ron opens the hour with a simple but loaded question: how long should it really take to repair an Acura? It’s a conversation that still rings true today—about labor time, expectations, and the realities of modern auto repair.
From there, it’s a full lineup of real-world problems:
A classic 1969 Mustang with a clutch pedal that intermittently sticks to the floor
A 2000 Subaru Forester showing signs of a possible coolant leak
A 2004 Mercury Monterey with a squealing noise at idle
And a 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche with a lifter tap that only shows up at 2000 RPM
It’s a snapshot of the cars, concerns, and diagnostic thinking from over a decade ago—and a reminder that while vehicles change, the fundamentals of good diagnosis never do.
