College Student in need of Advice

[Anthony Dao]

Hey Guys,



I just wanted to say that I've been on these forums for awhile and find everything you guys say to be extremely useful and helpful. I was just wondering if anyone had some advice for a college student with not too much money and only light automotive knowledge (I can change the oil and a spare tire, that's about it) on what maintenance I should be doing at this point. I have these specific problems that unfortunately showed up just when my warranty expired =(. Here they are:



1. The air condition will not blow cold anymore even on Max Ac setting.

2. My car has trouble turning every now and then. It seems like it's over heading.

3. The rubber lining on the backdoors keeps loosening.



The dealer suggested I do the following:



1. Transmission Flush

2. Decarb of the engine (What is this?)



I wish I had purchased an extended warranty...Any advice you guys can give on these problems would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[walter clark]

If the Ac failed all at once then unfortunately it could be an expensive repair unless it my be a blown fuse. But even if it is a fuse it may just blow again if there is an underlying problem an this is just a symptom. AC work other than a recharge tends to get expensive real fast. A tube of good glue may be just the ticket to fix the door gasket. As for the turning problem this one concerns me the most as it sounds like a front end issue and could have posable safety issues. Take the trac to an alighnment and suspension shop (but not one of the chain stores) and they should be able to fix you up for a fair price that should be less than what the dealership would charge. As for the advice the dealer gave.... F them. These two ideas I cant see will do anything to solve any of your issues. As for the trany flush you can do this one if you can change oil and dont mind getting dirty (no realy its a nasty job without a lift but thats what soap was made for). The project posted here for the pan drop filter and fluid change is very good and if you follow it there is no way to mess it up. The only differnce is I suggest replacing the gasket insted of reuseing the old one. Final advice.... study hard so that one day you can make plenty of $$$ so you can pay someone else to worry abot stuff like this for you .