My car is "in the hospital" :-(

[Nightchild]

It started a few weeks ago, at around 3000-4000 rpm the engine would make a wierd sound, kind of like knocking, or like scraping, but more like knocking. It sounded like there was a lubrication problem somewhere. The car sounded fine at idle, sounded fine at low RPM and the sound was worse the higher the gear I was in, and it was also worse when I let go of the gas after getting to the aforementioned RPMs and would go away if the car wasn't in gear. It wasn't TOO loud at first...but this morning it was VERY loud. In 4th gear I could hear it over my stereo and exhaust. It worried me and I took it to the dealer...well, to make a long story short, I need a whole new transmission (manual) and they had to order the part, so I'm stuck driving a POS GEO Metro until, at the earliest, Friday afternoon. The only bright spots are 1) It's under warranty so I won't have to pay for the work or the rental. 2)My dealership is really cool and never give me grief when I need work. 3)They had run out of cars to rent out on the lot, so they had to actually call a rental co. and they actually have to pay out for every day I have it, so there's an incentive (albeit small) for them to do the work in a timely fashion. I hate not having my car....ugh

[Nightchild]

BTW, they said the differentials were going bad was the issue...anyone who knows about cars more than I do...why might this have happened and how can I prevent it from happening again?

[ZIGGY GTS]

Originally posted by Nightchild
BTW, they said the differentials were going bad was the issue...anyone who knows about cars more than I do...why might this have happened and how can I prevent it from happening again?


okay, so ur car is in the shop for warranty work and they are makin u pay for a geo metro? i would go back to them and raise hell because they should give u a rental car that is comparable to the car that u have....and its supposed to be free! when my GT-S was in the shop, i had a number of rental cars. which included a sienna van, V6 camry, 2001 GMC silverado pickup, and get this--2001 Saab 9-3 turbo sedan...and they were all free...

[Nightchild]

I'm getting screwed on the "comparable" car thing...but they said this was all they could get as they had run out of their own loaners and had to call a rental place. I never said I was paying though, they're paying for everything.

[oldster]

Originally posted by ZIGGY GTS



okay, so ur car is in the shop for warranty work and they are makin u pay for a geo metro? i would go back to them and raise hell because they should give u a rental car that is comparable to the car that u have....and its supposed to be free! when my GT-S was in the shop, i had a number of rental cars. which included a sienna van, V6 camry, 2001 GMC silverado pickup, and get this--2001 Saab 9-3 turbo sedan...and they were all free...

Does it say somewhere in the warranty that you would get a comparable car? I'm used to seeing that with insurance but don't remember it with warranty.

[Griffin]

Originally posted by Nightchild
BTW, they said the differentials were going bad was the issue...anyone who knows about cars more than I do...why might this have happened and how can I prevent it from happening again?

Diffs usually go for one of 3 reasons:

1 - Lack of lubrication (ran it out of oil)

2 - Sudden high load impact (Like if you were to jump your car and come down with the car in gear and foot on the gas)

3 - Manufacturing defect

Given that you said this was a gradual buildup I would say number 2 is unlikelyunless you are driving the piss out of your car like nobody's business. Probably it was a manufacturing defect. Can't say I've heard of this particular problem before on a Celica though, so its probably a fluke.

Griffin

[autxr]

Wheel hop wil kill a diff as well.

[GTS LAID]

actually griffin i've been having the SAME exact problem... in another thread i posted about it... i was wondering what the hell it was... it wasnt knocking... its more like scraping... someone suggested that it could possibly be a badly lubricated valvetrain... it happens when i maintain speeds at a certain rpm in low gear... and whenever i let go of the gas around 5000 rpm .. esp. in 3rd and 4th.

[GTS LAID]

also heres what makes me almost 100% sure that its the diff... A couple of months ago i started having a problem with the wheels turning at different rates... basically one wheel wouldnt turn much while the other would go at it... i thought that the rotors heated up so much that they welded to the hub since one side of the car the rotors were attached to the hub while on the other side the rotor wasnt... I told the dealer about it when he did the tranny work and he said it was normal (i wasnt sure which one was normal since they were different from each other)...

so having a messed up diff would explain both of the problems perfectly actually... i think its time i visit another dealer... I've been very unhappy with the job this one performed on the tranny synchros... when i put the car in first gear and take my hand off from a stop then start pulling away i physically see the shifter popping into its right place... i think they did an improper install...

[GTS LAID]

P.S. Nightchild could you please scan or fax your work order receipt to me after you've done the work... i'd be greatly appreciative... I'll send you a PM or email in a week to check up.

[WillyK]

I hear that scraping sound in my car as well, right around 4000 rpms if I let off the gas. I always wondered what the hell that sound was.

[Nightchild]

GTS-Laid: I'll be glad to when I get it back.

[GTS LAID]

thanks a lot...

[ZIGGY GTS]

Originally posted by oldster


Does it say somewhere in the warranty that you would get a comparable car? I'm used to seeing that with insurance but don't remember it with warranty.

naw, it doesnt say in the warranty, i'm just used to it from insurance and also other car dealerships, when my bimmer had an overnight stay at the dealership, i would usually get a bimmer as a loaner, and same thing for our volvos... I should have said "usually", instead of "should"....LOL

[2002GT_Celica]

If you're really mad about them giving you a Geo Metro to drive around, tear the thing up doing some rally racing on dirt, gravel, and sand roads in my area. That's what I would do.

[ZIGGY GTS]

Originally posted by 2002GT_Celica
If you're really mad about them giving you a Geo Metro to drive around, tear the thing up doing some rally racing on dirt, gravel, and sand roads in my area. That's what I would do.

that's a good idea!!

[Griffin]

Originally posted by autxr
Wheel hop wil kill a diff as well.

Ayup. Sudden high load impact. Enough high RPM clutch drops will eventually do it as well.

Griffin

[Griffin]

Originally posted by 2002GT_Celica
If you're really mad about them giving you a Geo Metro to drive around, tear the thing up doing some rally racing on dirt, gravel, and sand roads in my area. That's what I would do.

Rofl good call :)- back in college friend wound up driving a ford aspire while his Galant was down. We slicked the tire tread up with silicone tire lubricant, tossed a sneaky pete Nitrous cheater system in the intake and had a competition to see who could do the longest burnout :)

Griffin

[Griffin]

Originally posted by GTS LAID
also heres what makes me almost 100% sure that its the diff... A couple of months ago i started having a problem with the wheels turning at different rates... basically one wheel wouldnt turn much while the other would go at it... i thought that the rotors heated up so much that they welded to the hub since one side of the car the rotors were attached to the hub while on the other side the rotor wasnt... I told the dealer about it when he did the tranny work and he said it was normal (i wasnt sure which one was normal since they were different from each other)...

so having a messed up diff would explain both of the problems perfectly actually... i think its time i visit another dealer... I've been very unhappy with the job this one performed on the tranny synchros... when i put the car in first gear and take my hand off from a stop then start pulling away i physically see the shifter popping into its right place... i think they did an improper install...

That sounds like the diff is messed up. Your other problem could also be an oil slinger bent out of place when they last worked on your tranny. You need to ask for a new unit my friend :)

Griffin

[Nightchild]

It's nice to know that there are dealerships out there that aren't out to screw their customers. I got a phone call this morning around 11:30, they said the parts had come in and the car would be ready by one p.m. (They had quoted me Friday afternoon to Saturday morning) in case I wanted to pick it up during lunch. When I went to get it the mechanic that worked on it brought it out and said he wanted to tell me something about my exhaust (I was going "oh no, here we go" in my head) he said he had checked it out while the car was up and that one of the bolts was a bit loose, so he had tightened it for me. He told me to ask for it to be checked whenever I get my tires rotated or oil changed because since it hangs a bit different than the stock one sometimes bolts get loose. Then they told me that the left rear speaker's wierd noise that I had mentioned in passing when I brought it in was a certain part that had gone bad - they had the speakers in stock so they went ahead and swapped it out AND replaced the right rear too just in case - everything under warranty of course. They took the rental's keys, gave me mine and off I was. It was nice to have my car back...oh how I missed it.

[Brett]

Woah sweet. That is above and beyond man. Consider yourself lucky!

[Nightchild]

GTSLaid: How do you want me to send the paperwork? And what all do you need to show, cause it's a long sheet and double sided. Let me know

[GTS LAID]

if you can send me all of it that would be great... fax or scan would work... i can also give you a fedex number to use if you were to send me a copy... let me know which you'd prefer.. thanks a lot.