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RockAuto April Newsletter :: Early Edition

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Another Happy Customer!

I ordered carpet for my 1965 Cadillac from you guys and wanted to thank you for your prompt and courteous service!

I will continue to come to you for all of my automotive needs and will recommend RockAuto to my friends and family. It is not often that a company will offer great products for a great price, ship quickly and affordably and be available to answer any questions I have in a professional (and informed) manner.

Thanks Again!
Cristina in Texas

 

Upcoming Events
If you would like your event featured here, email us with details.

Red River Street Rods 37th Annual Rod Run
4/9/2010
Shreveport, LA
e-mail

Dixieland Cruisers of Savannah 22nd Annual Open Car Show
4/9-4/10/2010
Savannah, GA
website

SoCalRoc-10 Year Anniversary Celebration
4/10/2010
Riverside, CA
website

Corvette Owners Club of Houston-Charity Corvette Show
4/10/2010
Houston, TX
e-mail

Roddin' On The River
4/15/2010
Fort Mohave, AZ
e-mail

18th Annual All Mopar Swap Meet
4/17-4/18/2010
Wooster, OH
website

Extraordinary Fantasies-Car Show
4/17/2010
Manhattan, KS
e-mail

1st Annual Aggregates USA-Relay for Life Car Show
4/17/2010
Macon, GA
e-mail

3rd Annual Car Show-Benefits American Cancer Society
4/17/2010
Salisbury, MD
e-mail

Cruising for a Cure IV
4/17/2010
Lincolnton, NC
website

All Mopar Swap Meet and Car Corral
4/17-4/18/2010
Dalton, OH
website

2nd Annual Car Show & Swap Meet
4/25/2010
Heber Springs, AR
e-mail

Benicia Classic Car Show
4/25/2010
Benicia, CA
website

DMGreentech Available at RockAuto!

DMGreentech

Part Number 5238042082R

Watch for DMGreentech engine, drivetrain, and suspension mounting parts as they become available in the RockAuto.com catalog. DMGreentech is a new company founded by an automotive enthusiast and engineer to provide urethane-reinforced replacements for OEM rubber parts that were otherwise unavailable at a reasonable cost in the USA.

For example, DMGreentech makes a rear differential mount (RockAuto part number 5238042082R and replacement for OEM part number 52380-42082) for 1996-2000 Toyota RAV4, AWD. The OEM differential mount has a high failure rate in RAV4 vehicles which results in a drivetrain "thump" and premature wear on expensive drivetrain components. At RockAuto.com, the DMGreentech RAV4 differential mount costs less than 50% of the retail price for the OEM part.

Find the Differential Mount under "Drivetrain" in the RockAuto catalog.

 

 

Forum of the Month

SilveradoSierra.com

SilveradoSierra.com is a truck enthusiast site specifically geared towards 1999 to present Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups. The Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra trucks have always been essentially the same with the Silverado advertised as the version for the common pickup driver and the Sierra marketed as the truck outfitted with the options that appeal to a "professional" crowd.

Go to SilveradoSierra.com to get or give advice about your Silverado or Sierra!

 

If you are the administrator or member of a forum and you would like to see your website featured in an upcoming newsletter and receive a discount code to share with your members, contact jessa@rockauto.com.

 

 

Repair Mistakes & Blunders

Ouch!

My first “real” job was working in a gas station back in 1963. Back then we always cleaned the windshield for customers who spent two dollars or more. One evening in early March we had a freezing rain storm. The customers coming in had up to a half inch or more of ice on their windshields. It was just about impossible to scrape off, but I did find that the rubber mallet we used for installing hubcaps would easily break off the ice. If the ice was struck with the mallet, it would break off in sheets. Many a customer asked if I was scared of breaking the glass, but I assured them that it was a safe process, and I continued clearing windshields of ice throughout the evening with success.

After we closed down I went out to my car (actually my dad's car) and gave the windshield one good hit with the rubber mallet the same way I had been doing all day long. And windshield shattered! It took the next week’s pay to buy a new windshield. Another lesson in life was learned.

Andrew in Illinois

 

Tell us about your most infamous auto repair blunder or unconventional fix. Use your woe to help others avoid similar mistakes or share off-the-wall solutions that worked (at least for awhile!). Please email your story to flamur@rockauto.com. Include your mailing address and shirt size (large or extra large) and we will mail you a RockAuto "Do it yourself?" t-shirt if we publish your story (see the t-shirts under Extras in the catalog). The story will be credited using only your first name and your vague geographic location (state, province, country, continent, etc.) so you can remain semi-anonymous!

 

 

Automotive Trivia

In 2009, Cardone Industries remanufactured 60,198 tons (54,610,707 kg) of discarded or non-usable auto parts. That is enough remanufactured power window motors, steering gears, brake calipers, etc. to equal the weight of 39,578 Toyota Prius cars. How did this environmentally "green" business get the name Cardone?

A. The Cardone family started the company in a row house on the north side of Philadelphia in 1970.
B. Cardone is a thistle-like, nitrogen-fixing plant that is able to grow on non-soil mediums including mine tailings.
C. Cardone was derived from "car done".

Answer: A (source: cardone.com)

 

 

They Worked Great When It Rained

RockAuto

Corinthian leather and windshield wipers hidden under the edge of the hood are just a couple of the luxurious features on my 1979 Chrysler 300. Unfortunately, the windshield wipers have been intermittently acting up for a few years. They worked great when it rained, but turn them off and sometimes they correctly retracted down below the edge of the hood and sometimes they stopped wherever they wanted to. It is hard to feel luxurious and classy when you are driving around town peering around wiper arms stuck smack dab in the middle of the windshield.

When the windshield wipers are turned off, a park switch in the windshield wiper motor is supposed to reverse the motor and pull the wiper crank so the wiper blades retract below the edge of the hood. When that does not happen, as it should, it is easy to suspect there is something wrong with the wiper switch in the dash or on the steering column.

I checked voltages at the wiper motor electrical connections as specified in the Chrysler service manual and that ruled out the wiper switch on the dash as the cause of the problem. I installed a remanufactured A1 Cardone wiper motor and the problem was fixed. Turn off the wipers and now they park out of sight every time.

It does not seem right to replace a wiper motor that handles rain, but just does not know how to park the blades. Like it or not, this is a common failure mode and replacing the wiper motor is the solution. The wiper motor is easy to get at and replace on most cars. However, on some vehicles the connection between the wiper motor and wiper transmission can be buried behind the dash. Look under the hood and at the repair manual (found under Literature at RockAuto.com) to find out how easy or hard your wiper motor is to replace.

Tom Taylor,
RockAuto.com

 

 

Reggie's 1929 Ford Model A Roadster
Reggie's 1929 Ford Model A Roadster

Hi,

One of the most diverse automobiles produced on an assembly line is the Shay reproduction of a 1929 Ford Model A Roadster. They were built between 1979 and 1982 and then subsequently built by Camelot from 1983 through 1986. Though sometimes thought to be a "kit car" they were not home built, but factory produced.

The Shays and Camelots came with a generic Ford 2.3 liter engine used across various Ford models but we usually tell folks that it's "Pinto Powered" (referring to the beloved Ford Pinto of exploding gas tank fame).

As the power plant is a 1979 or 1980 "Pinto", and the front end is the generic Ford Mustang II, RockAuto has many parts available that have gone into the upkeep of my particular 1980 Shay. Fuel filters, oil filters, gaskets galore. I even installed a pair of front coil springs purchased from RockAuto. Thankfully, RockAuto carries many of the parts we owners need to keep our vintage automobiles in running order, and the website is so easy to navigate starting with that BIG RED BUTTON.

In the photo is my Shay at a local car show and a character you might be familiar with.

Regards,
Reggie in Florida

 

Share Your Hard Work
Do you purchase parts from RockAuto? If so, RockAuto would like to feature you and your car or truck in our monthly newsletter. Please email flamur@rockauto.com with details.

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