"Do-It-Yourselfer" Father's Day

Father’s Day is rapidly approaching. Have you thought about what to get your "Do-It-Yourselfer" dad? Here are a few ideas from the RockAuto catalog!

Slowly Failing Parts that are Driving Dad Nuts: Give trunk/hood lift supports, door lock actuators or other new parts to replace the old parts on your dad's vehicle that are gradually failing and increasingly annoying your dad (lift supports and door lock actuators are found in “Body”).

Parts that Provide Dad With Peace of Mind: Give your dad a steel or OE alloy wheel so he can have a spare tire rather than just the can of tire sealant his newer car came with (found in “Wheel/Tire”). Make night driving easier by giving your dad a pair of maximum brightness headlamp bulbs (found in "Electrical-Bulb & Socket").

Parts that Roll Back the Years: Help your dad forget about the road debris that hit the front of his car years ago by giving him a new grille or headlamp assembly (found in “Body”). Make the dash in his old truck look like new again with a Coverlay Dash Board Cover (found in “Accessories”).

Not sure which parts or tools your dad needs now or down the road? A RockAuto Gift Certificate will let your car enthusiast choose the parts or tools he needs. They are available for any amount, are easy to purchase and even easier to use!

USA Standard Gear Kits & Rebate

RockAuto offers the widest selection of Axle Shafts from USA Standard Gear. USA Standard Gear employs precision manufacturing technologies to provide top quality, competition-tough axles that meet or exceed OE specifications. Each shaft is heat treated to increase strength and durability. Axle shafts are made from better SAE steel grades ranging from 1040 Steel to 4340 Chromoly Steel, which is up to 40% stronger than the steel used in OE axles.

RockAuto has convenient USA Standard Gear Axle Shaft and Universal Joint kits. These kits include a complete set of top quality axle shafts and universal joints to ensure you have all the parts necessary for a complete repair.

Through July 15, 2016, you can receive $12 off USA Standard Gear Axle Shafts, $12 off all USA Standard Gear Install kits, $20 off all USA Standard Gear Ring & Pinion sets and $30 off all Spartan Locker Differential Lockers. Find these USA Standard Gear parts under the “Drivetrain” category for vehicles ranging from a 1969 Chevrolet K10 Pickup to a 2000 Toyota Tacoma to a 2014 Jeep Wrangler. Capture additional savings on top of RockAuto’s reliably low prices today.

SolarGuard Reflective Sunshade Wholesaler Closeout

Keep your car, truck or SUV cooler this summer with a SolarGuard Reflective Sunshade Windshield Cover. Forget about the original retail price and even the original wholesale price. These premium quality sunshades are Wholesaler Closeout priced at less than $4.00!

The SolarGuard Reflective Sunshade Windshield Cover fastens to the outside of your windshield, blocking the sun's rays before they enter the vehicle. Heat does not build up next to the windshield. The interior, the dash and the electronics behind the dash stay cooler.

Leaving your vehicle at the airport, but do not have the space to haul or the time to install a full car cover? SolarGuard provides car cover level protection for your windshield. There are two available sizes, attached in seconds with an adjustable strap and rail system to ensure an optimal fit to most cars, trucks and SUVs!

As with all Wholesaler Closeouts, quantities are limited. Find your SolarGuard Reflective Sunshade Windshield Cover under the "Tools & Universal Parts" tab, in the “Window” category under "Accessories" in the RockAuto catalog or simply click here.

Forum of the Month

DieselJeeps.com is a forum dedicated to the Jeep Cherokee Diesel! Covering 2014+ Jeep Grand Cherokee Diesels, here you will find Jeep Diesel news articles, reviews, tips on purchasing and comparisons. The "Grand Cherokee Diesel Garage" section of the forum has topics on performance, electronics, wheels, tires, etc. You will also find a gallery of images posted by members.

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 marketing@rockauto.com.

Repair Mistakes & Blunders

I have always been a DIY person, always willing to try something new. I enjoy a good challenge, and I use my experiences to help teach science, from internal combustion to Newton's Laws and friction. I have had many cars, and all of the quirks that go with them. The worst mistake I ever made was on the easiest car to work on.

I was stationed in Hawaii in the early '90s. I had the perfect island car, a 1974 Super Beetle: 1776 cc motor, dual 40 mm carburetors, perfect body, completely rebuilt, loads of fun to drive. The high torque (relatively speaking) of the motor had twisted off the motor/transmission mount again, so 30 minutes later, I had the engine out to swap in new mounts. I put it all back together like I had many times before, only to have a horrible racket coming from the engine on startup. I ended up having a ruined head and piston that had me running all over O'ahu for weeks to find replacements.

Apparently, during the 30 minutes the carburetors were off, my three year old son/helper/shadow Josh decided to help daddy by dropping a magnetic torx screwdriver bit into the open intake port. It got chomped by the head and piston, leaving a perfect star imprint in the ruined piston and the soft aluminum head.

Josh remembers the "bug-car" in Hawaii but doesn't remember the incident. Ironically, he is currently spending his summer in South Carolina in Basic Training to become a light-wheel vehicle mechanic for the Army.

Thanks,
Ted 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 a while!). Please email your story to flamur@rockauto.com. Include your mailing address and if you would like a RockAuto T-Shirt (please let us know your shirt size) or Hat if we publish your story. See the T-Shirts and Hats under Tools & Universal Parts 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

What is this?

A. It is the radiator fan for the 1987-1990 Yugo GVX.
B. It is a mechanical hour meter for 1960s era Kenworth and Peterbilt trucks.
C. It is a fin comb for straightening the thin metal fins on condensers, evaporators and radiators.

Answer below

Vapor Lock Risk on Fuel Injected Engines

I took the decorative plastic covers off my Dodge Challenger's engine and put them on a shelf in the garage. Strips of insulation were sandwiched between the plastic covers and the fuel rails. Was the insulation there to keep the fuel rails cooler? Did removing the insulation increase the risk of vapor lock? Can modern engines even get vapor lock?

Vapor lock happens when gasoline gets too hot and changes from liquid to vapor in a fuel line or somewhere else in the fuel system plumbing. An old carbureted engine is most susceptible to vapor lock because it typically uses a relatively low pressure mechanical fuel pump mounted on the side of the engine. When the engine gets too hot, the fuel pump also gets too hot and the gasoline inside it vaporizes. The fuel pump is designed to pump liquids, not gases. No fuel can reach the carburetor and the engine stalls.

I have been driving carbureted engines nearly every week for 30+ years, and only once in the '80s did I experience what might have been vapor lock. Vapor lock is even less likely to occur on the typical fuel injected engine, because the fuel pump is electric and submerged in the relatively cool gasoline in the fuel tank. Electric fuel pumps also pump at higher pressures. It is harder for vapor bubbles to form in fuel lines as pressure increases.

Fuel injected engines that stall as if they are suffering from vapor lock likely have a failing fuel pump that is not generating enough pressure, a clogged fuel filter or a failing sensor or computer that is unable to properly control the fuel pump. Older fuel injection systems pumped fuel at a constant pressure and returned unused gasoline to the fuel tank. Many newer fuel injection systems do not need return fuel lines. Fuel pressure sensors provide pressure and sometimes temperature data to a computer. The computer tells the fuel pump to rapidly turn on and off (duty cycle) to always maintain the proper fuel pressure and volume. If part of that control system fails, then the symptoms may be similar but are really unrelated to the vapor lock that afflicts carbureted engines.

Some engine designs may need insulation on the fuel rail or fuel injectors because they are situated close to something extremely hot like an exhaust manifold. My Dodge's fuel rails are safely up by the intake manifold. I put my insulation strips on the garage shelf. I am guessing they are intended to suppress noise from the fuel injectors and/or the vibrating plastic covers rather than intended to control heat. The fuel rails might even stay cooler now that they are not sandwiched between insulation and the hot engine.

The vapor-lock-like stalling I experienced in the '80s happened after I stopped at a small airport and filled my '68 Plymouth with some concoction of avgas. Someday, I may also regret this plastic cover/insulation modification on my Challenger. I am not recommending that you modify your vehicle in any way without first getting the approval of the vehicle manufacturer, your mechanic, local and federal agencies, your spouse and other authorities.

Tom Taylor,
RockAuto.com

To read more of Tom's articles, click this link and choose from story titles on the Newsletter Archives page.

Eric's 2001 Range Rover

This is my 2001 Range Rover. I found the Rover at a dealership in 2010 with 63,000 miles. It now has 110,000 and is still going strong with parts from RockAuto. I use this as a daily driver/rock crawler/camper pulling vehicle. My seven year old son and I work at keeping this fine piece of British engineering on the road with parts from RockAuto, including: brakes, serpentine belt and pulleys, spark plugs and wires, universal joints, tie rod ends, etc.

This picture was taken in July 2012 near the Two Hearted River, north of Newberry, Michigan, shortly after a fire destroyed 21,000 acres and damaged 136 structures.

Eric in Michigan

Automotive Trivia Answer

What is this? A. It is the radiator fan for the 1987-1990 Yugo GVX. B. It is a mechanical hour meter for 1960s era Kenworth and Peterbilt trucks. Answer: C. It is a fin comb for straightening the thin metal fins on condensers, evaporators and radiators. (This is one of the many unusual tools found under the "Tools & Universal Parts" tab. Fin Combs may sell out because we mentioned them in the newsletter. Click on the "Notify Me When Available" button when a part or tool is listed as "Out of Stock.") Back up to trivia question

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