Monday, 15 July 1996 Volume 02 : Number 141
In this issue:
Re: Ka-Jing! Ka-jing! From the front suspension
Electrical links to the Craig radio\cassette
Re: Ka-Jing! (front suspension problems)
Front end noises
Re: A/C Tension Pulley Bearing Replacement
Belts and Pulleys
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Scott Tester, testersd@appstate.campus.mci.net
Date: Sun, 14 Jul 1996 14:15:39 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Re: Ka-Jing! Ka-jing! From the front suspension
At 09:30 PM 7/12/96 -0400, you wrote:
>I think I have a potentially serious front end problem. VIN #3876, Sept 1981
>
>Let me list the symptoms:
>
[SNIP]
>
>I am *very* concerned about the condition of the front end right now. It
doesn't
>drive or steer poorly by any means but I suspect the rattling noice and
vibrations
>are getting worse and I'd like to catch them before they become too
>dangerous or expensive.
>
>Thanks,
>
>-C2
>#3876
>
It looks like your tie-rods are loose or damaged. I might be wrong
but that is the same thing that is happening to my 1982 Datsun 200sx.
Scott Tester testersd@appstate.mci.net
------------------------------
From: Blarness@aol.com
Date: Mon, 15 Jul 1996 01:25:26 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Electrical links to the Craig radio\cassette
The original Craig AM/FM cassette in my 81 DMC does not work in
any capacity. It does not seem to be getting power.
I removed the unit and checked the dealer service manual to trace
the power supply. The manual says there are two fusable links
inline with the radio.
I cannot seem to locate these fusable links. The only "links" or
fuses I can find are those in the fuse block. The shrink wrapped
wires inline with the radio was some kind of circuit board I was not
familiar with and the schematic did not seem to show it.
This radio and associated wiring is factory original. There has
been no tampering in the past.
Where should I start looking for the fusable links and is there
something else I should be looking for as well?
- -Chris Coplen
#3876
------------------------------
From: Knut S Grimsrud, Knut_S_Grimsrud@ccm.jf.intel.com
Date: Mon, 15 Jul 1996 01:40:35 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Re: Ka-Jing! (front suspension problems)
Blarness@aol.com seemed pretty concerned about his front suspension. I
often
encounter bouts of paranoia and discover strange new things about my car
that
have nothing to do with my problems. Although I am not an expert, let me
attempt
to ease some of the concern. He writes:
> 1. EVERY time I hit a bump of any significance I hear, Ka-jing! Ka-jing!
> It's like something has come loose and goes "Ka-jing!" every time I
> hit a bump.
One of the most common sources of suspension "noise" is from shock
absorbers
that are kaput. I am not familiar with the "Ka-jing" sound, but you might
check
your shocks while you are at it.
> 2. About a centimeters worth of "slop" or "play" in the steering.
My wheel has about the same amount of "backlash" and I thought it was
common. On
my car it becomes more noticeable in the summer for some reason as the
steering
rack seems to bind more then. My guess is that in my case it has
something to do
with lubrication. I will be doing a complete front suspension rebuild
next week
and hope to resolve this then. The "slop" will be more noticeable if the
wheel
binds a bit and you may find that if you go through and lube all the
u-joints in
your steering columns that the wheel feels much better.
> 3. A pulsing vibration as you drive that gradually subsides when the
> car is COLD.
This can be as simple as unbalanced wheels or old tires that go out of
round
after your car has been parked for a long time. When I lived in Idaho, it
was
not unusual to have a farm vehicle drive around on "square" tires after
having
sat for a long time.
> 4. A really bad pulsating vibration when you drive in the rain.
I've never come across anything like that.
> 5. I think I the front wheels feel "loose" when you raise the front
> end up and wiggle the tires.
I was surprised the other day when I had the front end of my car in the
air how
easy the wheels move on the steering rack. If you leave the key out of
the
ignition, the wheels only move a little bit as the wheel is "locked" by
the
steering column lock and may give a sensation of their being "play" or
the
wheels being loose.
I hope I have not insulted anyone's intelligence with such simple
scenarios
potentially explaining the problems and please be aware that in all
likelihood
they are totally bogus. MY POINT is that it is easy to panick when you
discover
a new noise or vibration, but in many cases they are nothing to panick
over and
you only drive youself more crazy by discovering new "strange" things
when
attempting to debug the problem. I have done this on occasion myself and
have
ended up repairing things that were not broken in the first place. My
guess is
that there are other lurkers out there who are also guily of repairing
items
that were perfectly fine just because they didn't know they weren't
broken. Do
we have anyone that wants to tell us about their most stupid/humerous
repair or
problem?
Knut Grimsrud
DOA Chapter 41
------------------------------
From: MAGRIESE@VNET.IBM.COM
Date: Mon, 15 Jul 1996 10:22:35 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Front end noises
Sounds like you need ball joints. If you live in snow country and
drive the car in the winter, you might want to check for heavy rust
on the frame near the shock towers.
Mike Griese
------------------------------
From: Curtis C.Ballard, curtisb@gr.hp.com
Date: Mon, 15 Jul 1996 11:09:40 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Re: A/C Tension Pulley Bearing Replacement
These bearings should be available from just about any bearing supply
house. Even stores like Napa may have them, I got a couple there. Don't
know why they go out unless maybe the belt doesn't pull quite straight.
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Curtis C. Ballard (970)
350-4014
Hewlett Packard
curtisb@gr.hp.com
Storage Systems Operation R&D Lab Greeley,
CO
------------------------------
From: Chase Clark, stormrider@socketis.net
Date: Mon, 15 Jul 1996 13:13:21 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Belts and Pulleys
Well, I'd like to thank Chris for his posting about the A/C belt and idler
pulling locking up. I finally got around to taking a good luck at my
belts.
The A/C belt was a Goodyear belt (original?) and had been shredding the
bottom layer off it in several places. I picked up a faint smell of
burning
rubber and decided it was most likely the belt so I cut it off the car.
My pulley bearings seemed to spin freely, but I guess I'll go ahead and
replace them with the belts just to be safe. And replacing belts does
sound
like a good article for a Common Maintenance FAQ (a possible offshoot of
the Common Faults FAQ), so if anyone has any tips or warnings about the
procedure to replace the alternator and A/C belts, please feel free to
voice them now. It looks pretty straight forward to me, but maybe someone
thiks otherwise.
~ Chase
------------------------------
End of dmcnews-digest V2 #141
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