Altameroy Blog

The future finally has arrived and it could be an amazing revolution that will change our lives and the entire planet. After decades or research and testing, many car manufactures are now able to build pretty sophisticated and fully solar powered cars that can perform like regular cars, look like them, but do not pollute and do not need thousands of dollars to refuel. Due to political and cost effective reasons, such cars are very slowly entering the market, making them more of lab products than actual vehicles for mass productions. The purchasing cost is still very high and in many areas regulations are still slowing the marketability of these automobiles.

That being said, with the fast increasing of oil price and the huge demand for alternative ways of transportation and car power, solar powered cars are becoming more and more attractive, representing a very interesting alternative. In the years to come, we’ll see what the future is reserving for us, but in the mean time the best thing to do is to read and research to try to fully understanding what is happening and what to expect, This is the only way to make an educated purchase when the time will come to dump fuel powered cars.

Comments Off | Lees verder »

An oxygen sensor plays a critical part in reducing deadly emissions from your vehicle. Like any part your Honda’s oxygen sensor will age and wear out, therefore it must be replaced or your car will be found spewing noxious fumes into the atmosphere. You can take charge and replace the part, but you must be careful to find a product that meets rigorous standards and is built to last. Not just any oxygen sensor should be placed in your Honda vehicle, so let’s look at some of the requirements for a good replacement part.

Bosch oxygen sensors are considered to be amongst the finest ones in the industry, particularly since Bosch brought the first ones to market in 1976. Bosch’s product is considered to be the benchmark for Honda oxygen sensors, BMW oxygen sensors, and for others found in vehicles throughout America. Indeed, their product meets OEM [original equipment manufacturer] requirements on a wide variety of vehicles.

Oxygen sensors are made of several important parts, all critical to helping reduce emissions.

Your OEM replacement part must contain:

The quality of these internal parts is critical to your oxygen sensor working right the first time and every time. Settle for something less and you invite headaches as well as a lot of trouble.

So, what if you decide you don’t want to replace your oxygen sensor? Trouble will abound! Essentially, your gas mileage will suffer, your catalytic converter may become damaged to the point it will have to be replaced too, your car may fail its next emissions test, and overall performance will dip as you notice your Honda hesitating or surging. Not a pretty picture!

None of these things can be good for your car and, ultimately, a bad oxygen sensor can leave you with high repair bills if you fail to replace it according to manufacturer recommendations. If you haven’t checked your car’s oxygen sensor lately, please do so today.

Matt is a contributing writer to automobile sites including Car Parts Stuff.

Comments Off

Ethanol is a clean-burning, high-octane fuel that is produced from renewable sources. Because Americans grow it in America, E85 reduces our dependence on foreign oil. It’s designed to be a fuel for automobiles and trucks. E85 is 85% Ethanol and 15% gasoline and is made from corn but it can be made from rice, potatoes, wheat, sugar cane and other agricultural products. It’s currently sold in the Midwestern United States at prices equivalent to those for mid-grade unleaded gasoline.

Pure, 100% ethanol is not generally used as a motor fuel; instead, a percentage of ethanol is combined with unleaded gasoline. This is beneficial because the ethanol lessens the cost of fuel, increases the octane rating of the fuel and reduces the harmful emissions of gasoline.
Any amount of ethanol can be combined with gasoline, but the most common blends are:

E10 - 10% ethanol and 90% unleaded gasoline commonly known as Gasohol and is approved for use in any make or model of vehicle sold in the U.S. Many automakers recommend its use because of its high performance and clean-burning characteristics. In 2004, about one-third of America’s gasoline was blended with ethanol. It was used as a substitute for MBTE, which was found to be environmentally harmful.

E85 - 85% ethanol and 15% unleaded gasoline
E85 is an alternative fuel for use in flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs). There are currently more than 4 million FFVs on America’s roads today, and automakers are building more each year. In conjunction with more flexible fuel vehicles, more E85 pumps are being installed across the country. When E85 is not available, these vehicles can operate on straight gasoline.
It is important to note that it does not take a special vehicle to run on “ethanol”.

All vehicles can use 10% ethanol with no modifications to the engine. E85 is for use in a flexible fuel vehicle, so some people confuse “ethanol” with the blend of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline.

Vehicles using E85 fuel are available from Ford, Chrysler, Gm and many foreign carmakers. Called flexible fuel vehicles or FFVs, they can run on any mixture of ethanol/gasoline. They cost the same as gasoline only vehicles.

Here stations sell gasohol, which is a mixture of 10% ethanol and 90% gasoline. Standard automobiles may be modified to run on E85. The major modification is to the main computer system. No changes to the actual engine are required.

E85 is nontoxic. In the event of a traffic accident during the transport of the fuel from the refinery to the gas station, no elaborate cleanup is needed. Since the fuel is grown here in the continental United States, the transportation requirements are drastically reduced. There would be no need to use oil tankers. Boats would be eliminated entirely from the delivery system.

Auto manufacturers have been ethanol-burning vehicles for a long time. In the 1880s, Henry Ford built a vehicle called the quadricycle, which ran on ethanol. Model Ts had a carburetor adjustment to switch between Gasoline and Ethanol.
Environmentalists are generally in favor of ethanol fuels because air pollution would be reduced. Emissions of hydrocarbons and benzene are less than gasoline. Carbon dioxide is released to the atmosphere but is reabsorbed by the plants that grow the fuel.

Midwest farmers favor it because of its use in farm machinery. The machines that are used to make the fuel use the fuel. A byproduct of ethanol fuel manufacturing is a distiller’s grain, which is used for livestock feed.

The country of Brazil has more than 4 million ethanol vehicles on the road. The Brazilians make their fuel from sugar cane. The government has put a lot of effort into converting their cars because they could not afford the outflow of money required to buy oil.

The US Military has been studying the use of alternate fuel vehicles and has concluded that the main problem is lack of availability of the fuel. The Vehicles themselves are available from the GSA at no extra cost, but there are very few stations that pump E85 near military bases. The performance in military vehicles is good. No extra training is needed to use the fuel. Storage and cleanup costs are less than for gasoline. Our Poastal service has been using eternal fueled vehicles for several years.

Not everyone feels that E85 is a viable solution to our fuel problems but it is said that of all the alternative energy sources, biomass the most attractive. Biomass is a term that refers to all energy sources that come from growing plants. Burning wood in a fireplace, biodiesel fuel from hemp, methanol from wasted sawdust and fermenting grain are all examples of biomass.

Currently, there are no “after-market” kits that can be used to “convert” a regular gasoline vehicle to run on alcohol fuels, but I’m sure once E85 becomes readily available this will be remedied. If the automakers don’t provide it I’m positive the aftermarket manufacturers will.

FFVs have a number of advantages over hybrid vehicles. First they are much less expensive to manufacture as they are based on hundred year old technology. They are far less complex, consequently should be less costly to maintain and repair.

US companies are leading in this technology and should take advantage of the situation and build cars that Americans want. We can increase manufacturing jobs in this country, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and reduce pollution. This is a WIN -WIN opportunity let’s not miss it.

America has another advantage over Japan and Europe, we have plenty of agricultural land and we are the world’s leader in agriculture.
For more articles on this subject visit: www.caveatemptorus.com

GOD BLESS AMERICA.

Written by: George W. Cannata author and publisher of; http://www.caveatemptorus.com A Shopping Guide/ Fraud Alert web site.

Comments Off

GM offers a technician training program. It is methodically utilized as a way to aid dealers in creating technicians. A three-leveled approach is utilized as GM Mechanic Training Strategy, and allows dealers to build technicians at the high school level, the college level, and continues on.

Students naturally apt to mechanical careers in the serving and maintaining of GM vehicles are privileged to take part in the GM ASEP program. In fact, GM works alongside the GM dealers and colleges in both the U.S as well as in Canada, which enables them to offer this outstanding program. Students taking advantage of the program get to work with the most modern of the GM products and are enabled to work at a GM dealership and attend college for two years. Awarded to those that complete the program is the Associate’s Degree in Automotive Technology, or a certificate that is very similar in its teachings.

Included in the curricula are mathematics, reading and electronics. Also, in the content are skills that are both technical and analytical. First hand experience provides the most excellent learning while students are building a strong educational background. GM continues their promise that began in 1979, which they have fulfilled for more than 15,000 service technicians.

Join the GM Automotive Service Educational Program! Learn what you need to do to get started and you’ll be on your way to becoming a certified GM technician.

Comments Off | Lees verder »

All cars have their own unique type of car speaker installation issues although installing speakers is a relatively simple process. Most speaker installations can be finished in about an hour or less. The intricacy of the installation will vary depending on the vehicle. And again, depending on the vehicle, speakers may be installed in the dash, doors, or rear deck.

Most importantly, remember that safety should be considered when installing speakers. Damage can be caused by not installing speakers properly - this can impose added cost and even possible injury. Protection for hearing/vision should be used as necessary.

Here are fundamental steps to consider for installing speakers. Remember, some vehicles may require extra steps. Although the location of the speakers in your vehicle may vary from the mounting locations noted here, the method should be comparable.

For installation of dash and door speakers, you will need to ascertain if the vehicle has speaker grilles that are removable. If they can be removed, take the grilles off utilizing the appropriate tools, remove the screws holding the speaker in, disconnect the speaker harness that was attached to the speaker, connect the speaker harness to the new speaker, plug the speaker harness which is connected to the new speaker to the harness in the car, set the speaker in the opening and reinstall it using the screws for mounting, replace the grille and repeat with the other speaker. If installing speakers in the door, make certain the depth of the speaker will not interfere with the window operation after installation.

If the grilles cannot be removed, the dash pads or possibly the door panel will have to be removed. Be sure to keep an eye on any screws/clips removed should this be the case. Next follow the same steps shown above except you will need to reinstall the dash pads/door panel. If removing the door panel, be aware that screws can be mounted in the armrest or inside the door latch space and may be behind the trim panels. After all the screws are removed from the panel, raise it up so you can disconnect any wiring harnesses.

If installing rear deck speakers, you must determine if the speakers are top-mounted or bottom-mounted as this will determine your steps. If top-mounted, remove the grilles, remove the screws holding the speaker in, disconnect the speaker harness, connect the harness to the new speaker, plug in the harness connected to the speaker to the vehicle side of the harness, place the new speaker in the opening and mount with the screws, replace the grille and repeat with the other speaker.

If the speakers are bottom-mounted, reach in the trunk and remove the screws mounting the speaker. Then follow the same basic steps as above.

Eventually, you’d have to turn on the radio and check the operation of the new speakers.

Car sound systems and anything related to car audio are dealt with on www.car-sound-systems.com

Comments Off

Located smack dab on your car’s intake manifold, an EGR [Exhaust Gas Recirculation] valve functions by sending exhaust gas back into the combustion chamber as “exhausted air” is much hotter than intake air. By bringing warmer gas into the combustion chamber, your engine operates much more cleanly and efficiently.

Like any part, your Ford EGR valve or Toyota EGR valve is subject to getting clogged with dirt or crud. A clogged unit may cause your car to stall, hesitate, or idle roughly. Sometimes, simply cleaning the EGR valve with a product like STP carburetor cleaner will resolve the problem. Still, if you take your car in for its MV inspection and the diagnostic tests shows that your EGR valve is not working, you will fail inspection and be forced to swap out the device before bringing your car back in for a follow up inspection. What a hassle, but something you just don’t want to forget about.

Prices on replacement EGR valves are all over the place: some parts are reasonably priced while others will cost you a mint. Your Ford or Toyota dealer will charge you a mint if you purchase one through their parts department, as buying through any dealer can quickly turn into a financial nightmare. Instead of going through all that aggravation, you can save big money by shopping online through a quality wholesaler such as All EGR Valves. As is common with all high quality auto parts wholesalers, you can purchase an EGR valve at a huge discount and save a bundle over dealer mark up prices. Leading wholesalers deal directly with manufacturers, buy in gigantic quantities, negotiate the lowest prices, and pass big savings on to you.

Replacing an EGR valve is a simple process and can be accomplished with standard automobile tools. With your handy Chilton repair manual at your side, you will quickly remove and replace the device and have a strong sense of accomplishment on a job “well done.” Best yet, you will have saved yourself plenty of money which you can use for other parts, like the K&B cold air intake that you always wanted!

Copyright 2006 - Matt Keegan is a freelance writer covering important automotive topics and products for All EGR Valves including: Ford EGR valves and Toyota EGR valves.

Comments Off