Ron Ananian The Car Doctor Sep 6, 2025

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor - September 6, 2025 - Hour 1 - Maintenance Wins: From Class Notes to Real-World Calls - (855)560-9900 24/7 Hotline

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The worst part about loving cars might just be buying them and all the parts.

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Support for the show comes from Public, the investing platform for those who take it

seriously. On Public, you can build a multi-asset portfolio of stocks,

bonds, options, crypto, and now, generated assets, which allow you to turn any idea

into an investable index with AI. It all starts with your prompt.

From renewable energy companies with high free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers

growing revenue over 20% year over year, you can literally type any prompt

and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one-of-a-kind index,

and lets you back-test it against the S&P 500. Then, you can invest in a few clicks.

Generated assets are like EFTs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable,

and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com slash podcast

and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio.

That's public.com slash podcast. Paid for by Public Investing, brokerage services

by Open to the Public Investing Inc., member FINRA SIPC, advisory services by Public

Advisors LLC, SEC Registered Advisor. Generated assets is an interactive analysis tool.

Output is for informational purposes only and is not investment recommendation or advice.

Complete disclosures available at public.com slash disclosures.

Ron brings over 40 years of hands-on experience and deep industry insight

to help you understand your vehicle. Join the conversation live every Saturday

from 2 to 4 p.m. Eastern by calling 855-560-9900. That's 855-560-9900,

your direct line to honest answers and practical advice.

Looking for more? Visit cardoctorshow.com for past episodes, repair tips, and Ron's

latest insights. And be sure to subscribe to the CarDoctor YouTube channel for exclusive videos,

real repair footage, and more. Now, start your engines. The CarDoctor is in the garage and ready

to take your call. Yeah, but I'm both, baby. So, let me out of the shop this week. We're

very busy in the shop this week. It was a three-day work week. Labor day was Monday,

Friday was First Friday. We're always closed on First Friday. So, Danny and I had three

days to get five days worth of cars done and we just rolled, baby. We came in a little early,

we stayed a little late, except that on Wednesday and Thursday to add to this, I won't say misery,

but to add to this excitement, we had class in Edison this week. Edison, New Jersey, we went

down to the Hilton and spent four hours each night with Chris Lewis and the guys from

automotive training group, ATG, and a bunch of shops from around the area, mechanics, shop owners,

et cetera. Great class on cylinder misfire, contribution, and diagnosis. Second time through

the class, I liked it so much, I took it again. I took Danny for his first time.

And sometimes when you go to class, you learn content, right? You learn what the subject

matter is. And then sometimes you learn a lot more. And I can honestly say, for me,

it was both, and it usually is. About halfway through the class, at the break, at the pause,

we took a coffee break around 8.30, 8.15. Two of the fellas came up to me,

and hey, I just wanted to shake your hand and say thank you. I appreciate all that you do.

You've helped me out in the shop a couple of times listening to the show, and they kind

of figured out who he says, I figured out who you were by your voice, because obviously,

the face is a secret. It's kind of a weird deal, right? It's been going on that way

for a long time, 30-something years here on radio. But when you get pegged out, it just,

it wasn't how he said it. It was what he said. It was that I've helped him. And that's what

this show is about. And we had a great conversation after that. The ice was broken, and then

everybody seemed to interact more, and there was a greater conversation. And one of the things

Chris brought up during the course of talking about cylinder misfire and diagnosis is the need for

maintenance, and why automotive maintenance is so important. And he knows how I am. Chris used

to work for me, full disclosure, right? Chris and I have been together 30 years off and on as

employer, employee, and so on. And his conversation to the other guys in the room, he picked out

two guys from another shop, and he said, how many timing chains do you do

in the course of a week or a month? And they said probably two or three

every week, and how many catalytic converters, and oh, probably four or five,

and so on. And all the major engine repairs, valve jobs, cylinder heads, engine replacement.

And then he turned to me, and he said, Ron, how many timing chains have you done in the

shop? And I said, lately? None. And how many catalytic converters? I think I probably did

two this year. They just don't go bad for me. And there's something about the year in

Waldoch, New Jersey, I guess. And the truth is that I tend to do maintenance. And I do. I do

maintenance. If it's wet, I think about changing it at what mileage. And if it's a consumer

driving the car a little harder, I'll recommend a more frequent service schedule. And that's

just so gosh darn important. And you have to look at what the manufacturer recommends,

and that's a guideline. And you also have to know that when you look in an owner's manual,

all right, when you look in an owner's manual, or better yet, when you look in the black binder

that they always give you when you buy a vehicle, there'll be a recommended service schedule.

You've got to know, now some of it might be an oversell, because some of it might be the

dealer, whoever that might be, used car, new car, whatever, coming up with their own service

schedule of recommended maintenance. But the one you at least want to pay very close attention to

is the one that is in the factory printed owner's manual. And that will tell you service

intervals for maintenance and when to change fluids and when to do filters. And you should

be looking at that. You should be thinking about, if it's wet, changing it such and

such a mileage. I still stand behind my statement that I've taken heat for over the years, and oil

changes the single most critical piece of maintenance you can do to a vehicle. All right, you want to

put 10,000 mile oil in the car and change it at 10,000 miles, that's your call. I'll put 10,000

mile oil in the car and change it at six because of the additive package and the quality of that

oil is that much better. I'll put a high mileage filter on it and I'll still change it between

five and 6,000 miles. Because the other thing you have to think about, and if you notice too,

how many of today's cars are all turbocharged and those engines are working harder and harder,

but the thing you also have to think about is, is that vehicle ages,

what are the fluids are critical under the hood? Not to ignore and just think only about oil

changes. Oil changes are a great piece of maintenance. I've, I started this conversation

there, but I'm also going to point out that it's a great place to catch up on some of the other

things and to look at fluid condition and, you know, if a trained mechanic, a real mechanic,

not a goofball is working on the car, you know, they're going to look at tire condition,

they're going to wiggle the front end, they're going to take a quick peek at brakes,

they're going to look for something hanging off, broken, rusted about the brake, about the

fall off and try and do their best to keep you safe and keep that car reliable.

How many times we lift the hood of a car and we see a battery that's seven or eight years old

or we see a vehicle inspection sticker that's a year out or four months out or five months out,

but it's overdue in any respect. Maintenance is the key. You know why auto repair is so expensive

and this is really probably the one thing if you take away from my opening conversation

with you today, this is probably the one thing to remember. Auto repair is expensive

because you're not doing maintenance and it's the truth because when you average out

what it costs to maintain a vehicle against timing chains, catalytic converters, cylinder heads,

major engine work, transmission overhauls, maintenance comes out cheaper and it's easier

on you, it's easier, it's a more, you know, budget friendly, timely, it's not a chunk

every so often, it's spread out over time. Now there's ways to avoid maintenance

and I think there's cars that, you know, maybe you're going to do a minimal amount of maintenance.

We had a 2015 Dodge Charger in the shop this week, first time I saw the car, first time customer.

Darren came in, he had a check engine light on, had a P0128. I walked him through initially

because there's a check engine light on. I've got to go through my diagnostic routine,

but with a P0128 and a Chrysler product, it's about a 15 minute diagnosis

just to check a couple of things and then you're putting a thermostat in that car,

90% of the time and so far 95% of the time that fixes it. And we did that, we did an oil change

and we fixed his washer, nozzles and wiper blades, but I could tell by looking at this car,

it never had anything else done. It had, it had like a minimal amount of maintenance.

There were repairs because things had broken over the previous 10 years,

but it wasn't, it wasn't that drive line fluids were changed, transmission fluid was never

changed. Coolant was original at 10 years old, which it can be because it's 10 year, 150,000

mile coolant, but to my point, the vehicle's now 10 years old. It's had zero maintenance other

than oil changes and maybe whatever fell off it during the course of that 10 year life cycle.

Do you start to follow manufacturers recommended maintenance at this point?

I mean, you've got a freak there. You've got a vehicle that got to 85,000 miles

with minimal maintenance. Is now the moment, is now the time you're going to try and

convince yourself to start doing fluid filters and other services so that you want to get to

200,000 miles? Probably not, but not every vehicle is going to be like Darren's.

Not every vehicle is going to get to that 85,000 mile mark with minimal maintenance.

And I had a great conversation with Darren and I explained it to him and I think that's the

other problem. Nobody, it seems like nobody really gets a great explanation or a lot of

times you don't get great explanations. Maybe I think every mechanics like me,

they like to talk, they like to explain things, they like to be very direct,

but I'm guessing not. And Darren said, nobody ever talked to me about this kind of stuff before.

He says, I would take it in, they would say, ah, we looked it over and I'm not sure what

they looked at. The left rear brake, the rotor was so bright. You know, you could tell you look

at their left rear brake rotor, it was, it had that hot iron look to it. You could see that

the rust had oxided because the brake was dragging and the right rear brake was getting

closed and the inside face of the rotors were all rust pitted and starting to rot. Front brakes

weren't much better. You could see in the course of the next 12 to 18 months between tires, brakes,

fluids, some of the other things that I saw, you were going to probably spend between five

and six grand on this car. Is now the moment, is now the moment to tell the 78 year old

man, hey, stop smoking cigarettes, you'll live longer. You know, just to get to 83.

Maintenance is key. It's something you've got to decide. It's an internal thought process. I think

what you do and who does it is just as critical, is just as critical as what kind of vehicle are

you driving. But I will tell you this and I'll leave it here before we go to the pause. You've

also got to decide, are you buying the car? If you buy the car, you maintain it. If you

lease the car, you know, if the manual says 10,000 miles, do 10. If the manual says, you know,

never do spark plugs, never do spark plugs. If you're leasing the car and you've got no

intention of owning that vehicle, you just follow owner's manual recommended maintenance,

not what the dealer says. Because what the dealer's saying might be more than what the

manufacturer requires. Unless your lease agreement says, you've got to follow this.

And that's a whole separate conversation unto itself too. Another thing that makes auto repair

expensive. 8555609900. I'm Ron Anini in the car doctor. I'll be back right after this. Don't go away.

Lately, car buying has become a pretty dull experience. But on eBay, behind every car and

part is a story waiting to be shared. Like this guy I read about who bought a 2020 Porsche

Cayman GT4 on eBay. It was well loved. I mean, there are plenty of Caymans in great condition on

eBay, but this one needed some work. That's just the start of the story. So after this guy gets

a great deal on his dream car, he rebuilds the whole thing with all these parts he found on eBay.

Performance brakes, suspension, body panels, the works guaranteed to fit. Next thing you know,

this nearly scrapped Cayman was out there on the track as a full blown race car.

You're ready to go daily driver, your next Resto mod. Hello Lotus Elon and the parts to finish it.

eBay has thousands of cars and is the largest online selection of vehicle parts and accessories.

eBay, things, people love. Support for the show comes from Public, the investing platform

for those who take it seriously. On Public, you can build a multi asset portfolio of stocks,

bonds, options, crypto and now generated assets which allow you to turn any idea into an investable

index with AI. It all starts with your prompt from renewable energy companies with high free cash

flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year. You can literally type

any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one of a kind

index and lets you back test it against the S&P 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks.

Generated assets are like EFTs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based

on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com slash podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when

you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com slash podcast paid for by public investing,

brokerage services by open to the public investing Inc. Member FANRA SIPC, advisory

services by public advisors LLC, SEC registered advisor. Generated assets is an interactive

analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not investment recommendation

or advice. Complete disclosures available at public.com slash disclosures.

Hey, let's, oh, you know what? Let's hear from Tom. Yes, sir.

Actually, I have a comment on the way you open the show. Okay.

Had to take my car in yesterday for state inspection here in New York.

And what I usually do is I usually throw them a little bone and do the oil change

whatever in the car and, you know, rather than bring it down to you. And I'm talking to the

service writer who's a different service writer than I normally take who I normally deal with.

And he starts trying to sell me on their synthetic blend and telling me, oh, you only

have 3,500 miles on the oil on this car. And I looked at him and the other service

writer I deal usually deal with is sitting there and starts snickering because he knew

it was coming. And I said, my last car went to 400,000 miles. I didn't do that

by changing the oil any greater than 5,000 miles and by putting anything but a full synthetic

into it and not the synthetic blend. I said, so could you please give me what I wanted?

Well, and, you know, Tom, it's, it's, it's gotta be a cost per mile question.

When I was, when I was talking to Darren, we'll go back to where we started, right? When I

was talking to Darren, the customer with the 15 charger, we figured it out that he had spent

about, he thinks he spent $5,000 to $6,000 in the, in the previous eight years. So I did the math,

divided that out. He spent $71 and 42 cents a month after buying the car over the previous

eight years of ownership because he bought the car used with two years on it. So as I said to him,

you know, but you're, you're at that point, you're at 85,000 miles. It's going to be

coming due for a 90K service. It's going to be coming due for spark plugs. You've got

to take the intake, blend them off. You, you know, as you approach that magic 100,000 mile mark,

if you want to see 200,000 miles out of it, you, you've got to spend some money or you're going

to be changing components or vehicle. And you know, the point of a whole opening conversation,

and I appreciate your comment, Tom, as always, I love, I love the way you break it out,

is if you're going to go the distance, you've got to start when the vehicle is new.

As my grandfather said to my uncle, Steve, when he was 78, I think I'm going to stop smoking

because I want to live longer. He lived to be 82. You know, grandpa came over from the old country,

came over from Armenia. He was, he was smoking hand rolled cigarettes with no filter for the

better part of, you know, 65 years. I think probably what killed him was he stopped smoking,

but you know, it's like, when do you, you know, when do you start to make the change?

And I, you know, it's, it's maintenance is the key. Maintenance is what it's all about.

As always, let's, let's get back to what we do best. Let's go to Mark in Las Vegas.

Let's roll the dice. Ha, ha. What a pun. So what's going on, Mark?

Hi, Ron. Hey, I'm the perfect caller to have after all this talk about maintenance,

because I've got an 08 Honda CR-V that I've owned since new. And I have been meticulous

about maintenance. I used to take it to a quick loop to get a oil change, but I think after listening

to you 10 or 15 years ago, I started actually doing my own oil changes with full synthetic.

Anyway, I got 241,000 miles on this car and I've never had a check engine light come on,

never. But my question is to you, because now it's getting up in mileage,

and I'm getting a little hesitant about taking it on long trips out of town because of the mileage.

I'm kind of looking for some guidance from you because I know within the next probably

year or two, I'm probably going to get another vehicle or going to need to get another vehicle.

But the thing that I'm conflicted about is this car has been such a great car. It's got

pretty much basics in it, and that's kind of what I wanted when I bought it.

Not a lot of fancy stuff, no CVT transmission, no turbo. And it seems like everything nowadays

has got the turbo and the CVT. What is out there? And I don't really want to buy a new car

because I don't want to spend more on a new car than I spent for my first house.

And what you're driving, what you're driving, Mark, is what I affectionately call a brick.

Right? It's red, it's square, it's reliable, it's solid, it just goes.

So the first thing I'm going to tell you is the next time you're going out of town,

rent a car. Don't take that car. All right? Rent something you think you're

going to want to buy and start to play that game. And see if you like the technology,

see if you like the bells and whistles, see if anything there. And the only reason I said it

is because I've learned to, I was never a fan of backup cameras. Right? And I probably was never

a fan of backup cameras because I got that from Uncle Steve. Uncle Steve always said the most

important part of a fighter pilot was his neck because you got to learn to look around

and see what's around you. And I never forgot that. And I always did that, you know, driving,

you're always looking around. And then one day I got a backup camera and a vehicle and I went,

you know, maybe Uncle Steve would have had more fun if he had a backup camera, he could have seen

what was coming up behind them, but neither here nor there. You know, just go rent a car,

go, go rent something. Well, I don't even have to do, I probably don't really have to do

that because my wife's car is a 2024 and it's like driving a jet. Right? She's got so much

stuff in this car. And some of the features I like, you know, I like the adaptive cruise control.

I like being able to come up to a stop and take my foot off the brake. But there's so many other

things. And my car didn't even come with a backup camera. I actually had to put one in after market.

So there are some features that I would like. Right. What's that? Well, I was going to say,

yeah, there are some features that you would like. So it sort of comes back to,

you know, do you want to make the trade off? And are you ready to let it go? I'll tell you what,

Mark, sit tight. When we come back, we'll finish up and we'll talk about what you may want to go buy

or maybe you want to hang on to this. And there's ways to do that too. I'm Ron Naney

in the car doctor, 855-560-9900. I'll be back right after this. Don't go away.

Lately, car buying has become a pretty dull experience. But on eBay, behind every car

and part is a story waiting to be shared. Like this guy I read about who bought a 2020 Porsche Cayman GT4

on eBay. It was well loved. I mean, there are plenty of Caymans in great condition on eBay,

but this one needed some work. That's just the start of the story. So after this guy gets

a great deal on his dream car, he rebuilds the whole thing with all these parts he found

on eBay. Performance brakes, suspension, body panels, the works, guaranteed to fit.

Next thing you know, this nearly scrapped Cayman was out there on the track as a full-blown race car.

You're ready to go daily driver, your next resto mod, hello Lotus Elon and the parts to finish it.

eBay has thousands of cars and is the largest online selection of vehicle parts and accessories.

eBay, things, people, love. Support for the show comes from public, the investing platform for those

who take it seriously. On public, you can build a multi-asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options,

crypto and now generated assets, which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index with

AI. It all starts with your prompt from renewable energy companies with high free cash flow to

semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year. You can literally type

any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one-of-a-kind index

and lets you back test it against the S&P 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets

are like EFTs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your

thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com slash podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus

when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com slash podcast, paid for by public

investing, brokerage services by open to the public investing Inc., member FINRA SIPC, advisory

services by public advisors LLC, SEC registered advisor. Generated assets is an interactive

analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not investment recommendation

or advice. Complete disclosures available at public.com slash disclosures.

Let's go back to Mark in Las Vegas. Mark, you're still there, sir.

Yes, I am, Ron. So, you know, there's a couple of thoughts that go through my head

when I, we're talking about changing from a, what's now a 15-year-old vehicle, 17-year-old

vehicle, 17-year-old vehicle into maybe a 21 or a 22. So, let's say there's a 15-year

spread in technology, right? Right. Okay. I like the CRV, all right, to stay with what

you're driving. I like a Honda CRV. Nice car. I like the Toyota RAV4. Nice car,

right? Yeah, it's not about that. I'm going to, I'd go look at a Chevy Blazer.

They've made the Blazer smaller. It's a little more compact. It's got some zip to it. To tell you

the truth, I was looking at a Blazer SS for myself a couple of months ago because I was

having my, gee, maybe I want to drive something different for a while conversation in my head

and I looked at one of those. I like that vehicle and I still like the Ford Escape. I

still think that is a solid vehicle. I really do. And don't they have a lot of turbos though in the

Ford? All of them, but all of them have turbos today. I know. I just don't like turbos. You're

not going to. I'm kind of like you. I'm like you. I think they're trying to use a turbo to

squeeze out every little bunch of mileage. Yep. And it just seems like it's overworking these

engines. Well, it is, but the problem is, the problem is we're not, we're not going to get

away from it. Anything in the last seven years, chances are it's turbo. It's hard to find something

more turbo or CVT. What about, I guess hybrid is not out of the question then for me. Right. But

you know, now you're, now you're diving a little deeper into more technology. And that's, you

know, and I neglected to tell you this, I have done everything on my car. The only time I've

ever taken it in to a dealership is to get the airbags done. So I love working on my own

car. I absolutely love it. Now, the other side of that, but the other side of that conversation

mark is keep the CRV. Keep it. Well, I thought about that. I thought about if something happens,

just slap a new engine and tranny in it. Right. And you know, if you had to put

trans in that car and it's five grand, and if you had to put an engine in that car and

it's five grand, there's 10 grand. And then at least you know what you got.

I think right now it's 50-50. I think I'd rather do that than go out and buy something

that I can't work on that's going to cost me 30 grand. I read, I read something the other day.

And I, you know, you see things on the internet and I couldn't verify it by a news source, but

I think this came out, it said it was Fox News. And it said that the EPA is rolling back

emissions requirements or something about the EPA is not going to be mandating emissions

requirements in 19 states or something. And it sounded like under the current

administration, we're going to be, you know, lightening up on emission requirements,

something to that effect. And it made me stop and say, does that mean we're going to lighten up

on the mandates for CVTs, turbos, EVs, you know, are we going to change what's out there

as far as a vehicle? And I've got to do some further research for it. And I guess my point

is, if I'm thinking about buying a vehicle and I'm not desperate, maybe I want to wait two

years, maybe I want to see what the change in the political climate would affect that's

going to have on the automobile. I do know I have seen Chrysler, for example. Chrysler,

if you've been reading about it, is bringing back the V8 Hemi. GM just invested a pile of money

in a new V8 engine plant in upstate New York. They did that about three months ago.

So I don't know that America's love affair with the V8 is over. I don't know that everything is

going to be turbochargers going forward and mandated. I did read, it was interesting,

too, there was an article, I've got to hear somewhere that Jay Leno had proposed in California

that, you know, they wanted to do away with motor vehicle inspection on older classic cars.

California said, no, we're not enacting that law, but I understand that that battle's going

back to the drawing board again. So we're, I don't know, are we developing a different

stance on emissions and emissions requirements? And because it becomes an expense.

You know, I do want a car with decent mileage. I mean, I think I'm getting like 24 miles to

the gallon. I'm not a hot rodder. Right. I just want good, good basic transportation,

something that I can work on. And I'll still probably change the oil myself because I don't

trust too many of these little places. You know, Mark, changing the oil, and then I've

got to go on changing the oil is, is a critical thing that you can and should do. It kind of

keeps you in touch with the vehicle because that's the way you're built, brother. Right.

But anything newer, you, you, all right, not because of your desire, but you because of the cost

and the tooling required and the training required, you'll be able to do maintenance on

some of the newer cars, not all of them, but you're going to be limited. So it's going to

also be an issue where you need to develop a relationship with a local mechanic and,

you know, make him the go to guy, or you're going to have to move to New Jersey.

It's, it's, it's, it's, it's one of the two. All right. So it's the best answer I got for you.

Drive something newer, drive, drive a few newer vehicles. Like I said, Mark, see what you think

of those. And if they don't float your boat, maybe it's hang on to the CRV for the short-term

future and see where the world takes us. I appreciate the call as always. Let's go

over to Mike in California, 14 BMW. Mike, welcome to the car doctor. Sir, what's going on?

Yeah, thanks, Ron. Say I've got a 2014 BMW X5 that I bought from a friend of mine and it came with

run flat tires and no spare. Right. And I'm getting to the point where I need to get new tires.

And I'm wondering if I should get a compact spare and put it in there and get regular tires

or go with run flat again. No, go with run flat again. It's just going to be,

unless somebody's got it figured out that you can get a standard tire that won't affect wheel speed

because you don't want to affect critical engine functions, brake functions, things like that.

And then where would the spare go? Is there room in the car somewhere for even a compact?

Yeah, there's a space for a compact. It was an option or maybe standard when the car was new,

but somewhere along the line somebody put run flat tires or maybe it came that way new.

It probably came that way new. So the only way I would tell you that it's okay to make the switches,

what is the replacement tires rolling diameter going to be and is it equal to

a factory setting such that if it's different than the run flat, you can go and have it programmed

that I used to have this size tire on it. Now I've got this and I would just be mindful of

that because it may, you know, changing the diameter may affect, speedometer may affect,

you know, traction control, analog brakes and so forth. You know, for the record, I'm not a fan

of run flats though. I, it's, believe me, this is not, run flats have their place, but I see far

too many people stuck on the side of the road. You're driving down the interstate. If you get

a nail in the tire, great. If a block of wood goes through the sidewall, you're stuck on the

side of the road and there's nothing you're going to do about it. So it's, you know,

and the irony here is you realize where run flats came from, right?

No, the story goes that run flats were created because outside the BMW factory in Germany,

thieves used to lay down nail strips and as the new BMWs were coming out for road testing,

they would lay down nail strips. The car would get a flat, the owner would jump in the car and

get out of the car to go look at the flat and somebody would jump in the car and steal it

and drive away on flat tires. You know, so there's, and BMW said, we can't have this and

BMW is one of the co-creators or the creator of run flat tires. That's the story I always heard.

Well, that's an interesting story. It's, it's, it's, it's out there. So, but I think if diameter

is the same and you do have room for a spare and you, you can get a jack and it, it, you're

driving at distance, this is not going to be a cheap conversion though. And you've got to

consider that too, but nothing on a BMW is cheap at this point, right?

Right, right. No, I just, I've never had run flats and I didn't know if they have a

checkered past or if they're a viable way to go or for what the story is.

If, if someone is buying a new vehicle and the choice is yes or no

and they can get away without it, I always, I prefer no. I'll, I'll leave it there. How's

that for an answer? They're okay. They have their place, but like I said, you're on the highway.

If you get more than a nail through the sidewall, if that sidewall is damaged,

you're stuck on the side of the road waiting for a tow.

All right, get them. Got your opinion and that's helpful. Thank you.

You're very welcome. You be well. 855-60-9900, run on any of the car doctor. I'm back right after

this. Lately, car buying has become a pretty dull experience, but on eBay, behind every car

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Hey, let's go over and talk to Kevin in Massachusetts. Kevin, what's going on? 72 Dodge Dart.

Hey, Ron, how you doing? All right, man. What's up?

I just picked up a car. It's a neat little car and a couple of questions. It has a Holly

Sniper fuel injector on it. Okay. I don't have the control pad that comes with it. Do I need

it or and can I replace it? Do you know that? The control pad? Are you talking about the

module that runs the injection? When you're setting it up, I guess it has a handheld thing.

Right. The tuner. Right.

Well, yeah. How are you going to tune it in the future?

Well, that's what I'm saying. Can I just buy the control pad or do I have to...?

That's a Holly question, brother. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

And you know what? I'm going to say it like this. In all my experience in dealing with the

performance aftermarket, the quality of the program or the part or the component of whatever

you're talking to someone about is really restricted to or enhanced by how intelligent

or nice that person is that you're talking to. I've spoken to a few people at different

performance applications over the years and some of them treat me like I'm a complete idiot

and some of them are very nice and accommodating and I'm not saying I'm expecting special

treatment. I'm just saying I go in, I ask some very general generic questions, sometimes specific

and you know, I don't always get the answer. I'm looking for it. It kind of makes you

a sour on talking to these people. So I guess manage your expectations when you get in there, Kevin.

I have a quick second question about assault converters and trans coolers.

Okay. I'm going to put a trans, it doesn't have a trans cooler on it now. I'm going to put

one on it. If I don't use the radiator and just use the trans cooler to cool it,

do I leave the radiator empty when I disconnect the lines off it?

So tell me what we're building here because obviously this is not, this is not mom's grocery

getter. All right. No, it's a, it's a 408 stoker in it. Okay. And we go and race,

are we driving it on the street? Well, I'm hoping to be driving it on the street.

Okay. And how high of a stall speed converter are you going to put in it?

Well, it's already all together. I just picked it up. It's got a 3,500 in it.

All right. It's reasonable. I'm pretty sure. Yeah. And it's kind of a big cabinet.

Right. Right now it's running hot. So I want to get the trans cooler taking it because that,

that stall converter is going to produce a lot of heat.

Sure is. Now, so I want to separate it out of the system again.

Has the engine been dynoed?

Yes.

So you know where the power band comes in?

I don't have the results. I just know what it made for power.

Okay. So, and, you know, and where that power band comes in,

in terms of where it starts to make power is just as important as how much power it makes, right?

Well, that's the, the guy that put the, I thought that bottom from said that's why it had the 3,500

in it because that's where it was, you know, with the dyno, that's where it needed to be or

something. And I get it. Listen, I drove a 4,800 stall speed converter on the street and a

power glide with black one and it was crazy. Yeah. And for the record,

I can never get that car to run cool. It was, it was marginal at best on good days.

So, you know, you may get tired of that. And that's why I say that 3,500 stall speed converter,

you may put something a little less with a lower stall speed in it, so that you've got better hook

up because you may find the extra two tents that you're going to pick up on the streets,

not worth the temperature band that you're going to run in.

I think I'm going to be fighting the cam at that point too.

Well, right. So, and that's why, that's why I ask, where's the power band?

You know, I'll, I'll leave it here because I'm going to run out of time, but, and I like what

you're doing. Do the separate trans cooler and play with it. You'll find playing with spark plug,

heat range has an effect, quality of fuel has an effect, obviously.

Should I leave that radiator empty though? The bottom when I take the lines out of it?

What do you mean, what do you mean the trans cooler where the trans fluid would be?

Yeah. Yeah, I mean, just put, just put some pipe plugs in there just to clean up the look,

right? It's not, it's not going to hurt anything. But I didn't know if I should

leave the trans fluid in there or just leave it empty.

You could take it out. It's not going to matter. There's, there's going to be nothing there,

right? It's just going to be an empty, it's just going to be an empty tubing. So,

but, you know, leave it, leave it here. You may want to put an electric cooling fan on it.

You know, I'll leave you with the immortal words of my first port, first boss, Lily.

Well, it's got two cooling fans on it now, two electrics on it now.

Right. As long as you have a hot override in there. All right. Just so you can flip

it on when you want. But remember this, on the street, mild goes wild. So,

if you're having problems, detune it a little bit and you may find you solve your problem without

realizing it. So, good luck to you. Give us an update report in six months, Kevin, and I hope

it works out for you. 855-560-9900, Ron and Amy and the car doctor coming back right after this.

Lately, car buying has become a pretty dull experience. But on eBay, behind every car and

part is a story waiting to be shared. Like this guy I read about who bought a 2020 Porsche

Cayman GT4 on eBay. It was well loved. I mean, there are plenty of Caymans in great condition on

eBay, but this one needed some work. That's just the start of the story. So, after this guy gets

a great deal on his dream car, he rebuilds the whole thing with all these parts he found on eBay.

Performance brakes, suspension, body panels, the works, guaranteed to fit. Next thing you know,

this nearly scrapped Cayman was out there on the track as a full-blown race car.

You're ready to go daily driver, your next resto mod. Hello Lotus Elon and the parts to finish it.

eBay has thousands of cars and has the largest online selection of vehicle parts and

accessories. eBay, things, people, love. Hi, it's Eva and I think it's about time you

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This comes to us from Katie in Wannacu, New Jersey. Dear car doctor, listen to the show all the time.

I consider myself a younger person. I'm in my late 30s. I'm happy to have you board, Kate.

And I find it fascinating the way you talk about cars and you're getting me excited

about being part of a car-caring community. Hmm. Look at that. I appeal to the younger

audience and I thought I was old. My question today is about washer fluid. I recently ran out of

blue washer fluid at my house and my husband had purchased some orange washer fluid from my Lexus

and I'm not quite sure what the differences are. And I'm wondering if it was okay that I mixed it

and I'm hoping I did the right thing. Katie and for everybody else out there,

you know what? It's a great question. Orange, blue, the two washer fluids,

one has a different freeze point protection than the other. As long as the bottle of liquid that

you're changing from one to the other or mixing one to the other doesn't say anything that,

you know, bad about mixing a fluid, I say it's okay. Engine oil would matter. I wouldn't do that.

Trans fluid, obviously important. Coolant, it would matter. So some things you can,

some things you can't read the bottle. Katie, for your question today,

we'll be sending you out a car doctor t-shirt. We appreciate it. I'm Ronanani

until the next time. Good mechanics aren't expensive. They're priceless. See ya.

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About this episode

Ron Ananian shares insights from a recent automotive training class on the importance of maintenance, emphasizing how it can prevent costly repairs. He discusses real-world examples, including a listener's experience with a 2015 Dodge Charger and the significance of following manufacturer-recommended service schedules. The episode also features discussions on oil changes, the impact of maintenance on vehicle longevity, and advice for listeners considering new vehicles. Ron's engaging anecdotes and practical advice make this episode a valuable resource for car owners looking to enhance their vehicle care.

BMW X5 Chevrolet Blazer Chrysler New Yorker Dodge Charger Ford Escape Honda CR-V Porsche Cayman Toyota RAV4

Original notes

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor

Three-day shop sprint, ATG misfire class takeaways, and a through-line: maintenance beats repairs. Then calls on when to keep/swap cars, run-flats vs spares, and streetable performance cooling—plus a quick washer-fluid myth-buster.

Chapter Markers

00:00 – Open / Monologue
3-day week grind; ATG class (Edison). Recognition from listeners. Big takeaway: factory schedule as baseline, oil at 5–6k, fluids-by-condition, turbos work harder—maintenance > repair.
07:25 – Case Study – ’15 Dodge Charger (P0128)
Fast diag → thermostat; car shows “minimal maintenance” pitfalls. Cost-per-mile vs deferred work.
11:11 – Tom’s Inspection Story
Full synthetic, 5k intervals; cost-per-month math on real ownership.
13:49 – Mark (Las Vegas) – ’08 Honda CR-V, 241k
Loves simple tech; wary of CVT/turbos. Advice: rent/try newer tech, or keep CR-V and invest (engine/trans if needed) vs $30k+ replacement.
17:25 – Mark (cont.) – What to Buy / Wait?
Shortlist: CR-V, RAV4, Blazer, Escape. Turbos are ubiquitous; hybrids add complexity. Consider waiting as regulations/offerings shift.
23:19 – Mike (CA) – ’14 BMW X5 Tires
Run-flats vs spare. If converting, match rolling diameter & systems; run-flats have pros/cons, roadside realities.
27:00 – Kevin (MA) – ’72 Dart, Holley Sniper & Trans Cooler
Handheld/tuner Q → check Holley; stall-converter heat, separate cooler, plug rad ports; “mild goes wild” on the street—detune for temps.
32:16 – Mailbag – Washer Fluid Colors
Orange vs blue = freeze-point/formulation. Mixing generally OK if bottle allows; unlike oil/coolant/trans fluids.

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