The Best of Car Talk - #2453: A 50/50/50 Mixture

Episode Date: July 2, 2024

Greg from Long Island is pretty sure that his radiator is now holding a mixture of equal parts water, coolant and sealant resulting from his vain attempts to plug up his leaking heater core. Is there any hope for Greg or should he just relocate the cat's litter box to catch the drips? Find out on this episode of the Best of Car Talk.Get access to hundreds of episodes in the Car Talk archive when you sign up for Car Talk+ at plus.npr.org/cartalkLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Last year, over 20,000 people joined the Body Electric study to change their sedentary screen-filled lives. And guess what? We saw amazing effects! Now you can try NPR's Body Electric Challenge yourself. Listen to updated and new episodes wherever you get your podcasts. Hello and welcome to Card Talk on National Public Radio with us, Click and Clack the Tappet Brothers. We're broadcasting this week from the center to defiantly split infinitives here at car talk Plaza This is this is sad here. I think do do do do do do do do do do do do the news flash

Oxford University Press says it's okay to occasionally Split an infinitive like the infinitive q45. No the i-30. I mean I read this article the other day London 45 no the i-30 i mean i read this article the other day london writers london it is look at writers Feel free to split infinitives and don't worry about starting a sentence with but Because some age-old rules of english grammar are just school rule mythology a new writing guide said the plain english guide To be published by the oxford university press on august 10th They did it already has raised eyebrows in the more traditional

cradles of learning. So they now say it is okay occasionally and they give some examples and I mean it does make sense actually. Where are the examples? Give us a pre-tell. Here they are, there are some examples actually from another article. Consider these colloquial possibilities. I want to really understand you. Okay. That's a split infinitive, but you wouldn't want to say it any other way. You wouldn't want to say, I want to understand you.

No, you'd say, I really want to understand you. Yeah, but see, it's different. No, it isn't different. I want to really, I know, I really want to understand you is not the same as I want to really understand you. It's not the same Why it isn't it is not the same. How about really? Who cares anyway? What's more important is there? I was I was so busy today That I I had to get on AOL and look in the joke department

There are some good ones man, I just I printed out just a couple just just to keep you happy here Well, this one was bumper stickers. Here's one Jesus is coming look busy How many other whole thing on Wait a minute. How many men does it take to replace a roll of toilet paper? No one knows it's never been done And then they had a whole bunch of the light bulb things. I hear that from my wife Well, you know how I get out of it I never use that last sheet

She says like it's gonna like I'm gonna use one sheet Never mind. How many college football players does it take to replace a light bulb? Just one, but he gets three credits for it. How many country, western singers does it take? Two. One to change the bulb, and one to sing about how much he's gonna miss the old one. And the best one, I thought, was, why does it take four women with PMS to change a light bulb?

Answer. It just does, okay? It just does, okay. All right, that's it, man. That's it? Let's get callers. We can callers. If you have a question about your car or your grammar or your grandma, anything you want,

you can call us about 1-800-332-9287. That's the number. Hello hello you're in car talk this is violent violet and i would i haven't talked to anyone named violet for twenty five thirty years for fifty box yeah in what movie was there a character named violent i'll give you a hint i'm gonna go i want to

use the movie is i the jury no that was Velma, you meatball. What? Who's Violet? Violet was a minor character in It's a Wonderful Life with Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed. That's right. Yeah? Who was she? She was the floozy, the town floozy.

That's right, I remember that. Oh, Violet, where are you from? Springfield, Massachusetts. Are you the town floozy? No, I am a mother. A mother. What's up then? Well, we have a 1987 Delta 88 and it has a noisy brake problem and we've taken it to several mechanics and no one can get rid of the noise.

What's the noise? You ready? Yeah, we're ready. When... Wait, before you give us the noise, tell the noise you ready can't never it when we before you to get the noise tell us when it occurs so i can put myself right into the situation in the car i'm in the car it only happens when you apply the break that a slow speed

if you are on the highway it doesn't happen if you're going sixty five miles an hour to happen only when you're coming to a flow stop and, you know, you know what I mean. Applying gentle pressure to the pedal. Gentle pressure to the brakes. Gentle pressure to the pedal, right.

And the noise is? Go ahead, Violet. The noise is, ready? Yeah. It's sort of like gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk. And once the car stops, you get that last gunk. Excellent. Trivial.

Gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, gunk, Oh! Excellent. Trivial. Trivial? Well, I think it is. Okay, good. I think they're looking at the wrong end of the car. Oh! The noise is coming from the back. Yes. Oh, she knew that already.

They've been looking in the back. Oh. And they should look at the front. They're looking at the wrong end. Yeah, they're looking in the back and what are they finding there? What have they done? Because I think you have a warped drum. A warped drum? Okay, well let me tell you what they've done.

Briefly, they've checked the brake pads and they have... Oh, this has pads in the back? No. Might. I thought they told me it did. It might. Anyways, I thought that they had checked the brake pads, they cleaned them off, there was some dust or something on them because they didn't it did it might anyway uh... i thought that they had checked the brake pad they clean them up there at the dot to something on the big i

they know what what they did that now let me take a quick everything that's been done had worked temporarily and then the way it comes back and i'm going to let it could be fine for a week it could be fine for three weeks but it always come back within a month had they done a brake job on the rear brakes? Um, I'm going to say no because they didn't think it needed it. Anyway, they cleaned off the brake pads, they replaced the right back strut,

they've milled down a drum, they replaced the spring kit on both sides. Good, good, All very good things. And that lasted, that was the longest and most successful thing that was done. Okay, here's what's happened. So you do have drum brakes in the back. If they've machined the drum, then you have drum brakes. Yeah. So here's what happened, and this is going to solve the problem for them.

They machined the drum, which is subsequently warped again. It's a rewarped drum. And if they were to machine that drum another time if they still can if there's enough meat on it to machine it the noise will go away. It will however return because the root cause of the problem has not been ascertained. And that you have, I believe, a sticking emergency brake. Okay, and what it's causing, what it's doing, is it's not allowing that brake to release and the drum gets overheated because the brakes are partially applied and when it gets overheated it gets warped. And that's what you're hearing

when you come to a slow stop, you're hearing the brake shoe binding up against that drum going boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom so what they need to do is make sure that the emergency brake cables are free if they're not if there's any suspicion about them replace them okay you want me to tell you something? no okay I don't think so well I don't think I need to know that no no we want to know the truth. We want to know the truth. It will set us free.

What Violet? Well, after all this, we took it to a national brake shop because our mechanic was so discouraged. Took the pad on the right side off and sanded the corners down. Then they thought the emergency brake cable appeared too tight. Good. So they loosened it. The noise was gone maybe a week. emergency break cable appeared to type good so they've moved into it yeah the noise was gone maybe a week and yeah like the next day the breaklight has permanently come on

and the noise is back in here because you have a stock emergency break somewhere trust me i i don't talking about i don't know much not often at this happens while this happens, Violin. Yeah, this is a classic. I think. One of those cables is sticking and it's eventually winding up at the right rear wheel. It could even be one of the front cables is sticking, but it's affecting the right rear wheel and maybe both wheels at this point. And what it's doing is it's warping the drum from overheating it. And the drum may need to be replaced at this point.

If it's been machined a couple of times, it's now junk. And it's more likely to warp the thinner it gets. Throw that drum out, buy a new one, put new shoes on there, new emergency brake cables. And everything will happen well. And the radio will work better. Great! Good luck, Violet. Well, thanks very much.

All right. See you. Nice talking to you. Hey, we've got more calls coming up right after this, so don't go anywhere. All that sitting and swiping. Your body is adapting to your technology. Learn how and what you can do about it. I really felt like the cloud in my brain kind of dissipated. Once I started realizing what a difference these little breaks were making. There's no turning back for me. Take NPR's body electric challenge. Listen to the series

wherever you get your podcasts. Want to maximize your summer without stretching your budget? LifeKids got you covered with guides on exploring your neighborhood for cheap. Don't let money or time be the thing that decides whether or not you will have fun. You can have fun almost in spite of those things. Make the most of every day this summer, whether you're jet setting or staying close to home. Listen to the LifeKit podcast from NPR. Have you ever thought about the political leanings of sports fans?

The most democratic leaning sports fan base was the WNBA, like by a comfortable distance. But that could change if the WNBA continues with its explosive growth, because as new fans show up, some of them are bringing old culture war battles. Listen to It's Been A Minute from NPR. social and environmental problems. More information is at waltonfamilyfoundation.org.

Well, anyway, as we sit here and continue to sweat over a hot microphone, our puzzler continues to live it up like Don King on summer vacation. I can see it now, sitting on a lounge chair by the pool, sipping cold lemonade, snapping its fingers, yelling, cowboy! Anyway, while the puzzler is on vacation, we are respectfully begging for your puzzler ideas for the fall, so if you have a puzzler that you think we can use, please send it to us.

The address of course is Puzzler Tower, Car Talk Plaza, Box 3500, Harvard Square, Cambridge. Our fair city. Massachusetts 02238. And if we use your puzzler and your catches We'll send you the new car talk diet mug New ceramic car talk mug with our pictures on it you sit down with a big piece of chocolate cake You take one look at this mug in front of you and you say hmm. Maybe I won't have anything to eat Maybe running to the bathroom

maybe i want to be the teachers but i think it would be very good for the bathroom anyway if you want to call ask us a question the numbers one eight hundred three three two nine two eight seven whole you're on car talk my name is jeff and i'm from a bloomington indiana jeff with a j that's what a j and i j yeah that's the only way to spell it yeah that's a good way to be pretentious to go with the Joffrey thing, you know? Like, mutt and.

Yeah, come on. Yeah, you're a down-to-earth guy. So what's up, Jeff? I got a 1989 Chevy Celebrity. It has a 2.8 in V6. Now, the problem with what I have is on the brakes. It seems like when it rains outside or whenever it's wet, the rear brakes, they just want to lock up. I was on my way down to Ben Franklin down here in Bloomington,

was pouring down rain, and I wanted to come to a stop, and the back brakes, they just want to lock up. And I just put my foot just even gently on the brake pedal, and it just froze up. at and after a while it clears itself up is that correct yeah okay you know i mean this is not uncommon because drum brakes which is car has in the rear want to lock up when they get slightly moist and if you as we all know drum brakes if they get really wet like if you drive

to a big puddle, then you lose the brakes because you've got so much water on the shoes that there's no longer any contact with the drums. Right, nowadays drivers don't know about this idea of riding the brakes to dry them off. We used to do that all the time. Remember that, Jeff? What did he do still? Yeah.

Well, Tommy still does because his car doesn't have disc brakes. So when he goes through a puddle, he has to ride the brakes, throw out the anchor, drag his feet. Well see when they made my car the circle had not yet been invented so none of the pieces are round, most of them are sort of triangular or some such thing. But you have to do that and the trouble is that you're having this problem because the the the shoes are Somewhat wet even though it's pouring out all that rain is not getting into the brakes So this is not an unusual thing to happen Hmm cuz I know it's a I know it's kind of not kind of dangerous

You know because I remember coming to the stop the stop sign one time and I was doing about 10 miles an hour. Oh yeah, you just touched that pedal and bang they locked up. Are these the original brakes that are on this car? Yes they are. I would suggest that you replace the shoes and machine the drums and that's going to alleviate the problem because you'll then reproduce the original conditions. Right.

Because the car didn't do it for the first six years that you owned it. It's only now that the brakes are all worn out that it's happening. Okay. I know that we checked the brakes and you know they they seem fine you know by visual inspection. Yeah. Yeah don't rely on that. Okay. We never rely on visuals. We always go for metaphysical. No you have to change them. Okay. I don't know why exactly and also use new shoes as opposed to rebuilt shoes. Okay, new shoes. Okay.

Brand new shoes and have the drums machined and this thing will be perfect. For six more years. All right. And by that time you'll have gotten rid of it. You guys really have a wonderful show and I really appreciate getting on your show. I never thought I'd get on your show. Well we never thought you would either, Jeff. You won't let it happen again. We to happen again without power to keep you off

jack thanks for calling thank you by one eight hundred three three two nine two eight seven whole year in car talk hi who's this sydney sydney how are you aware you from corallis new mexico corallis it's just north of albuquerque

yeah albuquerque yeah so what's up sydney uh... my question is i don't know if it's a common one but i have a ninety four ford explorer and it has a low second drive overdrive and i i i bought the car in colorado i couldn't find what i wanted in new mexico yeah and And I bought the car in Colorado because I couldn't find what I wanted in New Mexico. And the guy who sold me the car said to drive it in overdrive.

But then I took the car in for one of its 3,000 mile services because it's so dry and dusty out here. And he said that the engine lasts longer if I drive it in drive for everyday in town stop and go driving. If you're driving at speeds 25 miles an hour or below and changing speeds a lot. 25 or below you have to be you have to be stopped. Yes. If you're driving at speeds if you're in stop and go traffic where your speed seldom exceeds 25 miles an hour but more importantly

goes from 0 to 5 to 20 to 25 to 10 to 5 to 3 to that and moves around a lot. The transmission will do a lot less shifting if you put it in drive. Well it actually won't go into overdrive until you're up to about 45 miles an hour. No, no that's not true. Surely. No. 42.

I'm not. Granted that you wouldn't let me drive the Explorer but most Fords will go into overdrive at 42 miles whatever whatever so 35 miles an hour then is the number Yeah, okay. I'll change my mind She changes my car seems a little sluggish at lower speeds when I do drive in overdrive. No it doesn't that's just in my mind That's no it isn't because it's shifting in overdrive at 35 miles an hour that's just in my mind that you know is it because it's shifting in overdrive at thirty five miles an hour yeah but but once you come back down below the speed

you said it seems like it's low g at lower speeds that that's not true it's in your mind well as what you come down below those that they the speed where it shifts it shifts down again i'll be quick with me as is the the the essential question before you got this advice from this other person, were you happy with the way the thing works? Well, it seemed a little sluggish, but it's a four-wheel drive vehicle. Well, yeah, it's a heavy thing with a little engine.

Yes. But you were satisfied, basically you were satisfied. Yeah, I was satisfied, but the service manager said for the longevity of the engine, whatever that means... Well, it has nothing to do with the engine. I think he's crazy. No, for the longevity of the engine, you want it to turn the fewest numbers of revolutions per numbers of miles.

Yeah, and that means driving in overdrive. Well... What the hell is that? If you want to preserve the transmission, or you don't want to be annoyed by constant upshifting and downshifting and i trust you were annoyed by it because you didn't notice right yet then you should ignore his advice now i didn't know that in fact when i tried driving and drive all of a sudden i'm on the highway and i had forgotten to ship it up into all that's exactly

the point i was going to make that most people that take that advice end of driving from corallis new mexico to san diego california and they forgot to put it in overdrive cd two six miles to the gallon and you burn up your engine and really really like engine light came on and this is the car that only had twelve thousand miles but yeah well sure that shouldn't have happened i would be less in unless you felt some important need to keep the thing from shifting a lot, and there shouldn't be, I would just put the thing in overdrive.

If it's got four speeds, let it figure it out. That's what it's for. They've got all this electronic control, computerized control. Let it figure out what the hell to do. It's not your job. The only time you should be in drive is if you're right at the edge of it trying to shift into fourth, but not really knowing that it's there.

And you know how you'd know that? It would be annoying to you. It would upshift, downshift, upshift, downshift, upshift, downshift. And you would notice that. And you didn't notice it. So forget what he said, he's a nut. Right, he's a moron. You know, the manual says, the firstsentence under overdrive that went to use

overdrive that that the normal driving position is that's correct me now that's what you should put it in but then i called ford motor company and i talked to somebody i don't know if you have any mechanical background and she said the service manager was right you should drive it and drive for normal everyday stop-and-go in town driving. No, no let the trick. She said it cools down the engine quicker. No. Yeah, that's good. Well it may I suppose. Uh-huh. Here's the rule. If it, if it, should put it into overdrive all the time unless you're descending a very steep

hill in which case you would shift down in the gears to allow the engine to work as a brake. Well that's another issue. Put into overdrive, if you're driving at such a speed that you are annoyed by the constant upshifting and downshifting, then shift down into drive. Otherwise completely ignore everyone else's advice including ours. Okay, I will. You guys are better than Ben and Jerry, better than Sissel and Ebert. I'm waiting for you two to be on Letterman.

Oh right. We'll call them. We'll call them. Well my on Letterman. Oh, right. We'll call them. We'll call them. Well, my kids are crying. Okay. Okay. Bye-bye.

They must still listen to a little of the show. That's why. Hey, we'll be right back with more calls right after this. How does the brain process memories? Why is AI a solution and a problem for our climate? What is leadership in 2025 and beyond? The TED Radio Hour explores the biggest questions and the most complicated ideas of our time with the world's greatest thinkers.

Listen now to the TED Radio Hour from NPR. For a while now, you've probably been hearing about book bands, how they're gaining momentum everywhere in Texas, in Missouri, Florida, and Pennsylvania. On the Code Switch Podcast, we're taking a look at why. Why are so many books suddenly considered so dangerous to kids? Listen to our new series on the code switch podcast from NPR You can't bring every book you own with you to the beach So how the heck are you gonna choose what to read this summer?

NPR's book of the day podcast has got you covered with author interviews from across the NPR network You can find the right book for your next summer read. Listen to NPR's Book of the Day podcast wherever you get your podcasts. On this week's episode of Wild Card, actor Ted Danson says it's possible to embrace your regrets. I wish I hadn't become a liar, you know, early in life, but even your wounds, you kind of have fondness for if you've lived through it and made amends and all of that stuff.

I'm Rachel Martin. Join us for NPR's Wild Card Podcast, the game where cards control the conversation. Hi, we're back. You're listening to Car Talk on National Public Radio with us, Lick and Clack the Tabard Brothers, and we're here to discuss cars, car repair, and apropos of nothing. Because it is really apropos of nothing, but it just... It says everything, huh? It struck me, you know? I'll just read it to you and you'll see what it does to you.

I'm sure I will. It's from Dennis Kimball from Columbus, Ohio. Dear Clinton Clark, I have a... Are we gonna rate this on the scale? On the Andy scale. On the Andy scale? I have a couple of notes about the Andy scale. We have to discuss that too.

I have a quasi-automotive question for you. About two years ago, my wife and I had to return home from your fair city with little time to spare. We decided to drive all night. As I was the first driver on the trip I began looking for caffeine laden beverages to help me stay awake. For the first time ever I tried one of those brand-name bottled teas. Within a very few minutes of gulping the last swig from the bottle, I developed the urgent need for, as you say, a haircut. And it was not just a gradual development. Inside of approximately ten minutes, I went from perfect contentment I need a haircut! Hahaha! Hahaha!

Hahaha! Hahaha! Fortunately I found relief at a fully appointed roadside rest area. Hahaha! Hahaha! Is it need a haircut or need two haircuts? Hahaha! It's a, it's a,

being a little slow in making a causal connection between the tea and this condition, I consumed yet another bottle of the beverage at a later point of the trip. Sure enough, within minutes. Sure enough, within minutes, I was once again doing the sit-down rumba. I was doing the sit-down rumba, and the search was on for an all night barbershop. We had an open chair. My question is whether this is a normal reaction to bottle teas or should I have my cosmetological metabolism examined by a professional?

Perplexed Dennis Kimball Clemson. It did it to you too, right? That's a great letter. I give that a 6 on the Andy scale. Oh, I was going to go 6-5. Actually, do I have another minute? Sure. Because we have to discuss this, otherwise we're going to be screwed up for the rest

of our lives if we don't get this straight. I'm writing a response to your suggested Car Talk letter rating system based on a scale of Andy units. I mean, those of you who've never heard of us before, we have a letter which we thought was the epitome of letters written by andy reichman from malboro vermont and shall i read the one sentence that i that that that that that that that that well obviously have this is an entire page of uh... and he discusses

whether or not two people don't know what this was the thesis thesis that two people can all less and one person right to two people whom who don't know what they're talking about no more or less than one person who doesn't know what they're talking about know more or less than one person who doesn't know what he's talking about. Somewhere in this missive there's a sentence, with two people, the intricacies, the gives and takes, the wherefores and whynots, can become a veritable pas de deux of breathtaking speculation,

interwoven in such a way that apologies or gestures of doubt are rendered unnecessary. I mean, and I will read Andy's entire letter one of these days again. But however, Casey Rice from Woodby Island, Washington says, I'm troubled by your placement of it at 8 on the proposed scale. Basing at 8 is counterintuitive and by extension it suggests that Andy's groundbreaking, gauntlet-laying, hysteria-inspiring achievement is somehow less than itself. In the future, the question will surely come up. If Andy's an 8, then what is the 10?

The answer will be, of course, that Andy's first letter should be 10. It is the benchmark of car-talk written correspondence in the modern era, and so should be given a more respectful, sensible, and stand-blah-blah-blah-blah-blah-blah-blah-blah. Remember, Roger Maris and Henry Aaron have their places, but we never forget the babe So I think Casey's right. I think Andy. It's got to be a ten Do you agree? Well? No, I don't I don't agree frankly, but you know I'll bow to the pressure I guess I mean you're saying this is so good, but you think it could be better. Oh, yeah Well, we'll have to leave it to our listeners. Let's compromise. It's a nine

Now I just wanted to make a little announcement about the puzzler Yeah, but you've been doing this for about a month and a half now Well before I make the night well as you know that the puzzler our beloved puzzler We do has a summer off for us to tears with the personally I thought it's been a little off But in any case the puzzler is on summer vacation while it's away we're asking you to send us puzzlers now if you have one you think we can use this fall or next spring or the spring after that or anytime

we'd be delighted if you would send it to us at puzzler tower car talk plaza post office box thirty five hundred harvard square cambridge our fair city massachusetts zero two two three eight now i thought Post Office Box 3500 Harvard Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02238. Now I thought I would be, even though the puzzler is on vacation, I thought I would give our listener a little puzzler preview. Oh, yes.

You know, something that, this is a... Just a little warm up. Just a little warm up and it's just give you some notion of the... Certainly not a benchmark though. Well, I'll let the listener decide because this may give you some idea of the level of intensity of puzzlers to come without your help. Good. Go ahead. You ready? A cowboy rides into town at noon on Friday.

He leaves three, count them, one, two, three, days later at noon on Friday no how does he do it whoa ha pretty good huh just a little just a little warm-up yeah what about that I mean you're expecting people to give us an answer like on the phone well if people if anyone's at work and they and they want to you know steal a piece of stationery it's a letter they're liberty to do that but out later on in the show I'll give the answer if I remember if not today next we are sure right but not every day so if you have a puzzler that's as good as that or better we want it anyway if we do if we do use your puzzler and you catch us what will send you a token of

our appreciation yeah small token yeah like a car talk baseball how we're trying to get rid of we have a lot of those. They're nice. They're very nice. Anyway, if you'd like to call us, the number is 1-800-332-9287. Hello, you're on Car Talk. Hi, this is Greg from Long Island. Greg from Long Island! You don't know our nephew Matthew, do you?

Yeah, sure. No, do you really? No. Of course not. He told us he knew everyone in Long Island. Oh, well, I just got here. well no he knows he knew everyone on how i like it uh... i'd drive nineteen eighty seven mercury grand marquis

well who and i have a symptom or set of symptoms and that proposed diagnosis and cool you wanna run it by a small to run it by you have done you know i've changed my oil i flushed my break here i want to run it by a similar run it by you have uh... you know i've changed my oil i flushed my radio want to keep it something i can handle myself and sort of move up to the next step of home car maintenance

yeah like rebuilding and yeah sure why not okay symptom is i've been losing coolant and it's been puddling inside the right front fire and my diagnosis what you know me inside the right front tire and my diagnosis what you know the inside the tire itself there you know next to under the car next to it but you know not on the outside behind the tire behind behind yeah little here

sort of under the glove compartment what's that and my diagnosis from chatting various people is that there's a leak in the heater core. Yes. Now right now in my radiator I'm running a mix of 50% water, 50% antifreeze, and 50% sealant. Yes. I have that in my Dodge Dart as well.

The famous Dart. The radiator cap is bulging like a party balloon. The famous 50-50-50 mixture. The radiator sort of can take up that extra amount. There's this brown, sludgy stuff every time I open the radiator cap. And the weird thing is I only get this puddle outside the tire underneath the car when I have the heat on.

And of course, we have record snowfall here in long island this winter yeah that water that acute that coolant is escaping through the event for the air conditioner evaporator because i'm the same it's in the same box the vent for the air conditioner if you were to run your air conditioner yeah that still works you would find water dripping in exactly that seems fine the puddle of the car

didn't move in the exact same spot i think because the air conditioner sucks moisture out of the air in the moisture it's gonna go someplace that goes through this little drain onto the ground which is where your antifreeze is going to be just filling up the little case that holds the heater core yeah that's that's all stained on the bottom of the equipment inside

shock so my question is now is this something I can replace myself? Geez, you know, I'm trying to remember... Do you get dizzy if you stand on your head for a long time? Not too much. You can do it. Some Fords, and I honestly don't remember, I could tell in a heartbeat by looking at it, are trivial to do. Because the heater core, it gets extracted from under the hood Okay, and if you have one of those it's certainly within your grasp

I've ever my brother used to work at the garage we used to save all these jobs for him Yeah, no because I I would puke if I had to lie down on my back on this with the seat my legs up on the Ceiling couldn't do it. Well, I don't have don't have a lift in fact the way for it to get warm all of this is a little help no lift is unnecessary for this job whether it's an interior or exterior if it if it is accessible from at the firewall from the the court it's a stand-up job it's a trivial job i think i have to take out the glove compartment near fit does so you need any of the book

i had the book is a pretty hard to interpret i guess i'm just worried that you know gonna need the book. Yeah, I had the book. It was pretty hard to interpret. I guess I'm just worried that, you know... You have the book with you? Not in front of me, no. It's in the car, all wrapped in plastic next to the heater core. And you've read the section on heater core replacement? Yeah, it's about one page long, and I guess I'm trying to make sure that I won't screw up the air conditioning system or completely immobilize my car. No, it's not that hard. You have the other set up, obviously, and it does require taking out a bunch of screws and, yes, taking out the glove box, which you'll never get back in. But I think, Greg, that this is a nice Saturday afternoon project. And Sunday morning and Sunday afternoon and pilot Tuesday.

The best part of this is, well the worst part is you'll be stuck, your head will be stuck in there for a while, but the best part is if you screw it up, you can always take the two hoses that connect to the heater core and shunt them together. So that you don't have. Yeah, and a hunk of pipe.

Make sure you get a hunk of pipe before you start. That fits inside each of these hoses. Right. In fact, the parts store may even sell an adapter. No, they do. They do. They do sell things which aren't... Yeah, it's called the heater core screw up adapter. The heater core shunt.

Yeah. So you may want to get one of those. If the heater hoses are both the same size, they're probably three quarters, or maybe three quarters, or one five eighth and one five-eighths. Buy one of these bypasses so that when you screw it up, you're going to at least drive to work and you won't have to call in sick. Yeah, and spring soon will be here, and you won't need the heater all summer. So you have three or four months to think about how to do this.

So this won't affect the air conditioning system? Oh no, not at all. As a matter of fact, you may decide now that the warmer weather is here to just bypass the heater altogether and maybe by next fall you won't own this car anymore. Yeah, maybe the car will fall apart by then if you're lucky. In fact, I would put this off into the last possible minute. You should reserve this for like Thanksgiving weekend. That is the last possible. That's it. That's right. It gives you the whole weekend when the stores are all closed. Yeah, so you can't buy any emergency parts. We'll have snow on the ground by then. You'll have snow on the last. That's it. That's right. It gives you the whole weekend when the stores are all closed. Yeah. So you can't buy any emergency parts. We'll have snow on the ground by the

end of the day. You'll have snow on the ground. There'll be a certain urgency to this project and you'll have to do it. You'll be under the gun. Doing it now, you're not going to feel the pressure. You're not going to get the rush from this. Okay. You need that rush. If you want that rush, you've got to wait till the cold weather is setting in. So basically, as long as I don't use the heater, I don't have to worry about this. Well, you can bypass the thing. But you have to bypass it because right now, water and coolant is flowing through the heater core and it's going to keep leaking.

Uh-huh. Yeah, so bypass the thing and then you can fix it in the fall. Well thanks a lot. I'll give it a shot. Okay, Greg. Bye-bye. Thanks for calling. You're welcome, bye. Well you've passed away. I have? Oh my God. Listening to Car Talk. All hate mail regarding this show should be sent directly to the man in charge, our esteemed producer, Doug Berman. Any fan mail can be sent directly to us. Our associate producer and dean of

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