I'm going to cry, oppo

"Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To" (murdersofa) 03/09/2016 at 07:57 • Filed to: None

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I just got to work and as soon as I pull into my spot I smell a peculiar yet annoyingly familiar sweet smell and steam starts pouring out of my hood. Pop the hood and see coolant all over the firewall and back of the engine, yet the front (where the past several coolant system failures have been) is completely dry. This is the third time since my last paycheck this car has broken and I have no money to fix it. No further sleuthing has been done since I had to get to work and didn’t have time for this crap. I owe $5k-ish on a car that can’t keep running for more than a week at a time and I have no way to get out from under it. So much for 4-liter Mustangs being reliable.

EDIT: Seriously though, this is the lowest mileage newest vehicle I’ve ever owned and it is the only car to leave me stranded, and has broken down more than anything I’ve ever had. For comparison, 280k mile ‘98 Civic, 148k mile ‘91 Miata, 230k mile ‘00 Buick LeSabre.

JeepJeremy > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:05

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I'm very sorry to hear about your troubles. Sounds like an awful situation.

Captain of the Enterprise > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:06

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That sucks man, do you have a backup car?

Captain of the Enterprise > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:08

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Its better to let it out than bottle it back up and still feel it inside later

Slant6 > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:10

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Anyway out of your loan?

Logansteno: Bought a VW? > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:11

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And to think Ford put that motor in trucks, which are supposed to be uber reliable.

Seriously though, it sucks. I guess Fix or Repair daily is actually relevant at this point.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Captain of the Enterprise 03/09/2016 at 08:11

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Nope. I bought this because the Miata has been in the shop

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Slant6 03/09/2016 at 08:12

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Not unless there’s something about liens I don’t know. I owe $5k ish on it which is probably more than I’d get for it at carmax or whatever (trade in value is $4500 according to NADA), and I have no money to “fill in” whatever gap is left between how much I owe and how much they give me for it.

jariten1781 > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:14

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I hate that smell and my heart rate still picks up every time I even get a hint of it even though it’s been more than 15 years since I last had a car that regularly puked coolant.

Cut bait or full refresh at this point I’m afraid.

fourvalleys > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:21

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So much for 4-liter Mustangs being reliable.

Read that as “4-cylinder” and got so confused about why you owed $5k on a Foxbody.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Logansteno: Bought a VW? 03/09/2016 at 08:24

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Several of my friends have 4 liter Rangers, albiet the OHV engine instead of the SOHC in the Mustang (same thing, but the SOHC is more idiotic). They’ve never given them a moment’s hesitation.

TheBloody, Oppositelock lives on in our shitposts. > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:24

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If it’s a gasket and not just a hose maybe k-seal it? Should last long enough for you to unload it to carmax or whichever place you get another DD?

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > jariten1781 03/09/2016 at 08:24

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“Cut bait or full refresh”I’m actually not familiar with this phrase.

TheRealBicycleBuck > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:25

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As reliable as that engine may be, all it takes is poor maintenance to rot out all the hoses. Given the location of the leak, it’s probably a blown heater hose which is an easy, cheap repair.

My cousin bought a used fox-body GT convertible when we were young. When he bought it, the previous owner had bypassed the heater core (warning sign #1) and told him to take it easy on hot days since it would overheat (warning sign #2). He ended up doing a full coolant system replacement, including the radiator, heater core, water pump, and all hoses. It was astounding how much sludge he found in the system.

That, and my own experiences with cooling system problems, taught me the value of flushing the system every year.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > fourvalleys 03/09/2016 at 08:25

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Or an Ecoboost :P

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > TheBloody, Oppositelock lives on in our shitposts. 03/09/2016 at 08:26

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I’m hoping it’s a burst hose or a hose popped off. Then I can just go dumpster diving here at the chevy dealership for something that will work “good enough” to get me to Carmax after work today.

TheBloody, Oppositelock lives on in our shitposts. > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:30

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Hears hoping that is all it is.

Logansteno: Bought a VW? > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:38

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So it isn’t the engine, it’s everything around the engine.

EL_ULY > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:51

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*bulkhead. Also, it could be as easy as a hose or something. Don’t panic, your a car person!

jariten1781 > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 08:52

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Heh, not really a phrase in total ^^;

Cut bait is a phrase; if you’re fishing and struggling to land one sometimes it’s better to cut your line rather than waste time and resources trying to land something that’s not worth the effort. Person A: We’ve got to pour another 7 grand in, we’ve already invested 10 grand and it’ll be worth 40 when we’re done; Person B: Sorry, it’s time to cut bait, you originally planned on only investing 5 grand and there’s no guaranty that another 7 will fix it.

There’s an older version of the phrase ‘Fish or cut bait’ which pretty much meant you can either do something or waste time preparing. It referenced 'cutting bait' as the preparation activity prior to fishing. You don’t see that often anymore, but 19th century novels will use it. Person A: We’re almost ready to go, I think one more committee meeting should be good and then we’ll kick off; Person B: Jesus, we’ve had 6 meetings already, let’s just go...do you want to fish or cut bait?

In this case I meant the first...aka sell the car and take the loss.

Full refresh I was just saying stop trying to fix as they break and take the time and money to go through everything and replace all parts of the coolant system and anything else.

Basically just saying sell the thing or invest in it but was too clever for my own good to get the point across...oops

And there’s a random etymology seminar you probably don’t care about haha.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > EL_ULY 03/09/2016 at 09:05

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Yeah, it’s probably a heater hose but I don’t have $4 for a heater hose because I have no money because of the last several times this has broken in the past two weeks since my last paycheck.

Needmoargarage > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 09:11

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That’s bizarre that it gives you so much trouble. Sounds like all your issues are due to aging rubber/plastic of the cooling system; most cars require a pretty thorough refresh of hoses around 100k miles/10 years. Has yours been done previously?

My little sister literally had the same car sans convertible from 4k miles until somewhat recently. We never had to touch a thing other than regular maintenance. That and lowering springs...man that wheel gap was huge!

Needmoargarage > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 09:14

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On a side note, you better replace the heater hoses on your Miata as well when you can. I can guarantee those will leave you stranded when your cam seal starts leaking a tiny bit of oil on them. (Cam seal O-ring can be bought from any auto parts store for a dollar.) Stranded me 2 hours from home :(

fourvalleys > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 09:32

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I figured you’d still have a warranty! Or at least that CarMax would give you more than $4500 for it.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > fourvalleys 03/09/2016 at 09:45

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Nah, I didn’t buy a warranty with it. My bank offered one for $1700, but it wouldn’t cover any of this stuff. Assuming I can get it fixed during lunch break I’m going to get a quote from CarMax after work.

Sweet Trav > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 11:01

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Ooof bro. it looks like ford used some plastic elbows that connect into the HVAC unit on the forward bulkhead. the good news is theoretically, you could disconnect the heater from the car and use a piece of heater hose to bypass the car HVAC unit, i had to do this on a trip when my heatercore blew out and was belching steam and coolant into my car.

Chuckles > Needmoargarage 03/09/2016 at 11:08

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I had this exact problem with my Miata last year. I was fortunate enough to be less than a mile from my home though. When the smoke starting coming up around the gear shifter I was getting pretty nervous and all I could think was that it was going to cost big bucks to fix. Turned out to just be the hose.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Sweet Trav 03/09/2016 at 11:28

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If that is the case I’m going to light the car on fire. A bonfire is probably the most useful it has ever been.

fourvalleys > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 11:32

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Nah, I figured an Ecoboost would probably have had a warranty and be worth >$4500, so I figured it wasn’t one.

Needmoargarage > Chuckles 03/09/2016 at 11:34

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Haha yup. I’ve seen it ruin so many people’s track days. As soon as they step out of their smoking car I tell them to check their heater hose and what size O-ring to buy for the cam pos sensor. They think I’m a Miata wizard or something :)

Sweet Trav > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 11:37

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My point is you might not be as fucked as you think you are, by bypassing the heater you might be able to drive no problem.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Sweet Trav 03/09/2016 at 11:39

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That’s still a shitty situation. It’s fucking cold here in the mornings and convertibles don’t exactly trap heat in. I’m hoping a heater hose just popped off or something.

Sweet Trav > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 03/09/2016 at 11:49

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Well of course it's shitty, but it allows you to drive it while you save to get it fixed.

yitznewton > Sweet Trav 03/09/2016 at 11:57

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I had a plastic joint blow on my Mk4 Jetta also.