The Best of Car Talk - #2504: Exercises in Futility

Episode Date: January 14, 2025

Which endeavor is more futile: Explaining to your 16 year old son that he doesn't need his own car, or attempting to convince Siri that vegetarianism is bad? 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

The indicator from Planet Money is diving into the world of batteries. Not the kind you buy at the grocery store. We're talking really big batteries. The kind that can power thousands of homes. This technology came seemingly out of nowhere. We're digging deep into the battery industry in three back-to-back episodes. Listen to The Indicator from Planet Money podcast on NPR. Hello and welcome to Car Talk from National Public Radio with us clicking clack the tap at brothers and we're broadcasting this week from the Center for Bold predictions here at Car Talk Plaza

Known internally as the foot-in-mouth division. I Well, I don't know if it's foot-in-mouth Some of our long time listeners may remember but like dad like dad Mary he may be maybe the longest time listen I mean you may remember you're you're one of the longest time listeners. I try not to listen I predicted in the early 80s. Yes. Yes, forget this show has been on since the pyramids in the early 80s I predicted that Ford Motor Company would become the car company of the 80s. Should we go farther back? We'll go back to AMC yet you know what i got a real uh...

but i had a little i was and i it was like nineteen eighty one and i said ford motor company is headed and if if you recall that was the time when they introduced the torus and the torus has become on seven depending on how you count, the highest selling volume car in the country.

So I looked good on that one. And flush with success from the 80s. My brother. Then when zooming into the 90s, predicting that the only company left, he already tried AMC, that didn't work. Ford, well, he seems to have had success with that. General Motors would be the car company of the 90s. And being that it's almost what, as John Wayne would say, close on to...

Close on to no more 90s. 98. I'd say things are looking pretty grim. Nostradamia strikes again. 1-800-332-9287. Hello, you're on Car Talk. Hello guys, my name is John. I'm from Columbia, Missouri. Hi, John. John, a nice, simple, straightforward name. Yeah, even without the H, so it's even shorter. Oh, it's without the H. Like Jonathan. Exactly. But I go by John to keep it short. John's good. Not as simple as I thought.

See, nothing is as simple as the same. Columbia, Missouri. Columbia, Missouri. Yeah. What's shaking? Well, I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. I have a 1989 Chevy S10B.

I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. I have a 1989 Chevy S10B. John's good. Not as simple as I thought. Nothing is as simple as it seems. Columbia, Missouri. Columbia, Missouri. Yeah.

What's shaking? Well, I have a 1989 Chevy S10 Blazer. Couple weeks ago I was driving to a wedding with my fiance and near the end of our drive smelled something funny which is always a worry. Whenever I smell something funny I think, oh God, I hope it's not my car. Or my fiance.

Or my fiance no black uh... and i was trying to figure out what it was good it was a familiar smell to me and uh... i was a biochemistry major in undergrad eventually i decided it kind of smelled like boiling acid so knowing that the battery is about the only place where there's good amount of acid in my car when we stopped at the

Church I got out and checked it and sure enough the battery was boiling Just good for you, man And so after I let it cool I went and skipped out on the reception for a little bit got a new battery and Took the old one out the old one was still really hot even it was kind of almost swollen a little bit Yeah, really ugly looking yeah and put in a new one and oh that's too bad yeah well no no not after I put in the new battery I noticed that it tended to run high and would have been every now and then kick over into too high yeah

giving me too high of a reading yeah that's what fried battery number one yeah uh-huh and is beginning to fry battery number two. Classic overcharging. Okay. And that results in acid boiling, expansion of the battery and it can blow up. Exactly because it makes hydrogen right? You got it. Yes, it makes hydrogen gas. All those biochem courses were worthwhile. This is all he retained from those courses. Basic batteries 101. So where are we now? Have you replaced the alternator and this thing has a...

This has a built-in voltage regulator. Built-in voltage regulator in the alternator. Okay. Which you could replace. You could replace just the regulator part of it. Okay. Which is what's wrong. Okay.

The alternator produces electricity. Correct. And... The regulator regulates it. Yeah, I mean, obviously it makes more electricity and which is what's wrong the alternator produces electricity correct and the regulator regulates it and i mean uh... obviously it makes more electricity them the faster it turns you know faraday's law that was one of the other courses you talk now you didn't take that you can take that course he was busy taking chemical care because so that if it got if it's turning too fast it'll make more electricity than the than you want

that's why you have a voltage regulator which prevents that electricity from getting to the battery. Okay, okay. Now a couple years ago when we were going to this other wedding, the car did the same thing and only this time it smelled, the battery smelled like rotten eggs and it looked even worse than this one that I just took out. That battery was bad. It was, yeah. That battery was sulfated. Okay.

That's why the rotten eggs smell. Oh, okay. That was a battery failure for a different reason. Oh, okay. This battery, battery number two here failed because the thing overcharged, and battery number three, which is the current battery, is about to fail if you don't fix the problem. Okay. So replace the voltage regulator and you'll be ready to go to another wedding. Probably

your own. That sounds great. I was worried that my car might be jealous of my fiance or something like that. Nah, nah, I don't think so. That doesn't happen these days. Nah. Good. Well, if it doesn't again, I'd be suspicious. Good luck, John. Well, thank you guys very much.

Alrighty. Thanks for calling. Bye-bye. 1-800-332-9287. Hello, you're on Car Talk. This is Erica in New Orleans. Erica.9287. Hello, you're on Car Talk. This is Erika in New Orleans. Erika! Erika! Yes!

New Orleans. Now New Orleans is one of the interesting cities of the world. It's one of the most unique cities in the country, yes. I mean there are a handful of cities of which there are no copies. I mean Minneapolis ain't one of them. Right? No. Yeah, and this city is full of characters. That's what makes it so unique. And the Café du Monde.

That's right, Café du Monde. The snowballs, the daiquiris, the hurricanes. Yeah, the drunks, the wine-o'-grasses, the crime, the drugs. Nice place. Great, we love it. So anyway, Erica, what's on your mind today? What's on my mind is I have a car problem and an interesting situation that adds a twist. So should I give you the problem first? Sure, just lay it on us. All right. I have an 85 Celica and it has almost 160,000 miles on it. Excellent.

It's excellent the problem is toyota are too good because of the car it would be to run fairly well i mean it's not going to look at it falling apart but it it has performed very well but i think i have a potential major problem which is that when the car is in gear and idling and i have the air conditioner on which I need to use

Whenever I'm in the car in New Orleans gear meaning it's an automatic transmission. Yes, it is Yes, so what yeah, so when it's in driver even in reverse and the air conditioning is on it makes From the bottom of the car. I don't know where this horrible metallic rattling shaking bottom of the car, I don't know where, this horrible metallic rattling, shaking... Sure, yeah. Yeah. No problem.

And so what happens is when I come to a stop sign or a stop light, what I have to do is I have to pop it into neutral, and then it goes away. It doesn't happen. But when it's in gear, and I mean I was outside of the car when my boyfriend was driving the other day, I could hear it down the street. It was truly embarrassing. Well Dougie Berman, our producer, had his hand up going, ooh, ooh, call on me, call on me, Mr. Kante, Mr. Kante.

Wait a minute, wait a minute, can I give you the situation? Yeah. Okay. No, don't tell me whether... That part of the question is simple and straightforward. Oh. But give us the complication now. Well, it's interesting. And i am an impoverished graduate

student and my parents bought the car for me when i was in college and they know that i will be an impoverished graduate student probably into the next millennium college is eighty five now they've got it for me if they buy a permit with quite a few miles i know you know i think it'll ask for ever so i get that i everything you know haven't had that many problems with it, but I get this email from them, um, a couple weeks ago, and my dad said, by the way, how is the car holding up?

Do we need to think about helping you get, you know, a trade-up? So I'm thinking, you know, I'm, and I happen to be going home to visit them for my birthday in a couple weeks, and I'm thinking, can I play this out into some sort of major trauma? See, I could see immediately that when I said that that problem that you gave us was relatively simple and straightforward, I noticed a little, not a a little but I I I sense a dejection on your part you were very disappointed to hear that hoping you would say that's the end of this baby yeah the rod bearings for the car I mean we can tell you that that's what you want if you think your parents are

listening and you've sent us the direct was a twenty dollar bill i don't know if you can give you any answer you want i don't want to be wrapped with guilt though i would hate to be people who may be actually wait until there's a true emergency you know the engine black cracks or something and then i could really good to know how to do that and i don't know how to do that. Then my dad would kill me, actually, because he's really big.

I know he's putting oil in it. How much longer do you tend to milk this? Stay in graduate school. Well, it's, you know, things... A PhD, they don't just hand out. Is it a PhD in art history? Part... No, something even less marketable. Can you believe that?

But I know you're going to make fun of me. What? Yeah, we are.'m doing it a peepstain anthropology That's okay. Well, but I'm I'm it's a very narrow And you know I do I do prehistoric Maya stuff and that's really in vogue right now great I don't think it's less marketable than artists. Oh It's totally in the right now you know i don't think it's less marketable than artist on the side is totally on marketable there are six jobs in the entire at this

world and on the planet yet but they have a tour guide jobs available and i think that i have a lot of people on monday that i think that they have a lot of that place to work well for every obscure and bizarre subject that you could possibly dream up you know there's five people who study it yeah you're one of them you know i'm not here's a story with your car if you're interested i know you're not anymore you know i can tell me because i need to fix it it's embarrassing

neither the four bolts that hold the compressor to the bracket of falling out so when you engage the compressor you actually make it compress the refrigerant it's shaking and that's what that ball all the compressor is going bad All the compressor clutch is going bad one of those three things and or it simply could be in my humble But the idle is too low It would be idle is too low or not very smooth and when you stop and you're in drive The whole engine is shaking and that's causing whatever it is under there to vibrate and Dougie thinks it's the heat shield on the catalytic converter Which fell off three years ago?

Neither of these things would be terribly expensive to fix well, that's good news for my budget It's good news for your budget, and I think the car will last. I mean, first of all, how much driving do you do with the car? Not a lot. Not a lot? No.

So this will certainly get you through a PhD. Well, Erica, good luck with your car. Thank you. Dad's off the hook for a while. Well, he'll be relieved. I think. Thanks a lot. See ya.

Thanks for calling. Hey, we've got more calls coming up right after this, so don't go anywhere. Hey, is the puzzler back? Is it time for a brand new puzzler? No, not exactly. What? What do you mean? What happened?

Well, the puzzler was supposed to be back this week, but it ran into a little trouble at the border. Oh, border problems? Well, the puzzler was supposed to be back this week, but it ran into a little trouble at the border. Oh, border problems? Yeah, customs. It was that tractor trailer size shipping crate full of Cuban cigars listed as for personal use that caught the agent's attention. Anyway, we fully expect that the puzzler will return next week for the lunch. Oh, I was thinking of Bugsy.

Launch of the new fall puzzler season. I can hardly wait, I thought it was today. No, well we hope, we hope that there'll be no more, as they say, detainage at the border. Anyway, for those of you who can't wait, you can always find one of our classic archive puzzlers at Cartalk.msn.com. Anyway, if you want to call us our number is 1-800-332-9287. Hello, you're on Car Talk. This is Anne. I'm from Philadelphia. Hi, Anne.

Anne, with an E at the end or not? Yes, with an E. Thank you very much. No kidding. Yeah. There aren't many of them, you know. No, and no one ever asks, so I appreciate that. Thank you. What's shaking?

We have a decision to make. Who's we? We. My family has a decision to make, and so you're going to make the decision. Great! Right. We have a son who's about to start driving. He'll be 16 this year. God. And we have had offers from two different families within our family uh... of two different cars they are both nineteen eighty nine they both have mileage around eighty six thousand one of the map the six twenty six and the

other the range rover so we have a new driver who we hadn't planned on buying a car in the choice of two cars one we think would be inexpensive to keep on the road but now there is a nice dirty tank which is probably a good thing for a new driver probably very expensive to keep on the road, but the other is a nice dirty tank, which is probably a good thing for a new driver, but probably very expensive to keep on the road, and that's why I called you guys. Boy, this is good.

I mean, you couldn't, if I had to come up with two more dissimilar vehicles, I don't know how I would do it. Well, I'm going to let my brother answer most of this because he is on the horns of the same dilemma. I am on the horns, except no one in my family has offered to give my son. Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, Costa Alex no no he Berman is graciously offered his 79 what is that 76 76 were 76 almost this decade 76 BMW Yeah, 318 no Oh to thought they make

2002 or 1001 whatever this only runs on three cylinders and And I, of course, have offered my Dodge Cult Vista. Wow, that's true. I guess that is true. Right. That you have the same choice we have. Yeah, I mean, boy, this is difficult, isn't it? First of all, why does the kid need a car?

Why does a 16-year-old kid need a car at all? That's my first question to my son. I say to him, Alex, I didn't have a car when I was 16. Why do you need a car when you're 16? And where the heck is it gonna come from? And who's gonna fix it? Who's going to insure it? Who's gonna pay for the gas and oil? He can't afford a car. He told me you can't afford a car because you have zero income. So how can you possibly afford a car? See, when we were kids, if you wanted a car because you have zero income. So how can you possibly afford a car? See, when we were kids, if you wanted a car, you could buy a $50 junk box and you spend every weekend fixing the thing

in your driveway, spilling oil and transmission fluid in your parents' driveway. That's all right though. That's a learning experience. It's a character builder. It's all of those things. Knuckle scraper. I mean, just think about it. Owning your Colt Vista would certainly be character learning experience that's a character builder it's all of those things knuckles flying distinct about it owning your colt vista would certainly be character building it would be you make a man out of it so i mean how do we determine and that your kid needs a car

it would be handy we know that and he had been a very good boy and he earned all the money this summer he needs to pay his car insurance next year he's met his part of the bargain yes and what you describe is exactly what we had hoped was that if he was given a car under these circumstances that he would be able to tinker with it and work on it I don't think he can do that with the Range Rover because they're expensive and they have to have Range Rover parts and all that stuff. But it's such a nice big heavy car and our insurance guy tells us that beginning drivers

have a terrible rate of accidents. Well the Range Rover would be my choice. There are pros and cons of both obviously and you put your finger right on it. The 626 is a cute little car, it's manageable. Reliable. The 626 is a cute little car, it's manageable, reliable, relatively reliable, and it probably will handle better than the Range Rover. That is true. I've driven them both and that is true.

On the other hand, the Range Rover gives you a commanding view of the road. It's safer if it's struck by something or strikes something. It's less safe, however, if you speed, because it has a very high center of gravity. Since you seem to think that your son is a mature, such as it is for a 16-year-old, honest, hard-working kid, I too would vote for the Range Rover, and if he ever had an accident, I'd give him a dope slap that he would remember until he was 100. But are these horribly expensive cars to keep on the road? Yeah, but that's good too because it'll humble him.

It will allow him to learn what it is to own a car and how difficult it is to keep a car on the road and why he should never ever buy a British car again. My son keeps telling me what a wonderful person he is, and how intelligent he is, and how his brain is working all the time, and how he's mature and sensitive, and all, he tells me all these things. Right. I don't believe a word of it. His brain is working all the time, but I have never seen a kid more dedicated to getting

a car than your son Alex. Can we get him on the phone? We need to talk to Alex today, because Alex is facing this very problem every day. He and his father have the following discussion. Why? Why not? Why not? Why?

Why not? Why? And it goes back and forth. Well, I tell you, I mean, you mentioned, Ann, that it would be convenient. And that's the biggest problem for us because every place he has to go, he has to be driven. I mean, he he always oh no There's no bus that goes that way there are no buses that ever go where he's going All right. Well, thanks for the vote. Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Wait, we may we may have my son on the phone here

Hello Hello, is this Alexander? Yes. Alex were you watching Colombo? No He was probably emptying the trash. Of course I was. Mowing the lawn. Mowing the lawn and doing the trash. We have on the line Anne from Philadelphia. She has a 16 year old son. He ain't getting a car either.

He ain't getting a car either. But here's the deal. She has offers for two cars. One is an 89 Mazda 626. Yes. The other one is an 89 Range Rover. Mm-hmm. If it were you.

Yes. What would be your preference and why? A Mazda 626 or Range Rover? Yeah. Both 89s and both with eighty six thousand miles on them i would have to go with the with the range rover prop probably why because it's cool right it's cool that ronald all that's all that was put in one other one other condition okay

you have to repair the thing will pay for the repairs yourself master last night and and tell me again pay for the repairs yourself? Mazda. Mazda. Mwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahhahahahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahahhahah Well, you know why. If we don't have a car, we'll have to borrow our father's Dodge Dart, and we don't want to do that. Oh, no. But allow me to intervene here on your behalf. You know, kids Alex's age. You'll be a junior in high school this year. Is that true, Alex?

That's true. Just say yes to everything. You have some heavy duty assignments. Don't forget, this is an important year. If you don't do well in school this year, you're going to be a ditch digger as opposed to a college student. Or an automobile mechanic. Or an automobile mechanic.

So you must study. It requires frequent trips to many libraries, not just your local library. That wouldn't be good enough. You may have to go to far-flung libraries to do the research required to get the good grades to get you to one of these good schools. These are the libraries where all the girls are going. Well, maybe. Will will be girls at the library maybe not because of the libraries

the that were your father dr lawyer but bear in mind that i think alex needs to be able to get to these libraries to do the critical research necessary to improve his grades we can actually get into a college that's right right, and support my parents in their old age. Very good, Alex. All the answers that America wants to hear.

Alright, get off the phone. See ya, Al. You better have that trash out before your father gets over. You'll be in trouble. Okay, Ann, there you have it. Okay. Good So I mean I was hesitant because I didn't know I didn't think a teenager would want a Range Rover But my son informs me that it's cool. Oh Range Rovers are cool. Yes, so that's good. All right I want a Range Rover, but I can't afford one. Yeah, so if you don't take it out take the six I'll take the range over see ya and I wish you the very best in hard times. Well, I appreciate that It's nice. No, you're going through it best in these hard times. Well, I appreciate that. It's nice to know you're going through it too. Brother.

All right. Thanks a lot. Bye. Bye. I don't even remember going through this. No, because no one gave you a car when you were 16 years old. I do remember. I didn't have a bicycle until I was 15 years old.

I do remember. My father tried to give me his 60 Rambler. And you turned it down? And I ran upstairs and got a crucifix out of one of the walls and held it up in front of the car. Boy, if there was a car that was less desirable, it was a 60 Rambler classic. Talk about a babe magnet.

Oof. Yeah, but so that's how he, I guess, I guess that's why I didn't have a car he was generous he was that's good He didn't offer me anything. Yeah, I guess that's the there's the modern-day equivalent of the 87 called Vista. Yeah. Yeah Hey, I think a heap is good for a kid It's 87 I mean both of these vehicles that and son is gonna get they're way too new I mean they're almost this decade. Well, everyone's afraid to have this child drive a heave these days.

Yeah. Our parents, why weren't they afraid? They were trying to get rid of us. Well, I guess so. Ha ha ha ha. Don't go anywhere. Stick around for more calls coming right up. Hello, we're back. You're listening to Car Talk from National Public Radio with us Click and Clack the Tappet Brothers and we're here to discuss cars maybe car

repair maybe but certainly more sage advice. This is from Bruce Peterson from somewhere this is good I mean it we all need something in our lives to help give us show us the way. Yes here it is. Food for thought is that what it is? Yeah never criticize a man until you have walked a mile in his shoes That way when you do criticize him, you will be a mile away And you'll have a shoe See, I mean you don't realize the deeper meaning I mean you've heard that expression you have to walk a mile in his shoe I never understood why I never understood it either until just

now until just now amazing amazing you're gonna be a mile away he's not gonna be able to punch you in the nose like he would want to do and he can't chase after you because he's got his shoes now as everyone must know by now we even received letters from the Clintons. The puzzler has been on a long and well deserved summer vacation. It is our fervent hope and dream that when it returns next week to kick off the fall puzzler season. I can hardly wait. I really can hardly wait.

Yes indeed I can't wait either. It will be refreshed, renewed, reinvigorated, reinvented, and will it be any better? It'll be the same lousy puzzler it's been for 20 stinking years. It'll be back. Yeah, it will be back and I promise it'll be back. Well anyway, if you must puzzle yourself while the puzzler is still on vacation, just visit the radio section of cartalk.msat.com and try one of our archrival, archrival? Archrival. Archival puzzlers from the vault. Yeah, okay. Now if you'd like to call us with a question about your car, the number is 1-800-332-9287. Hello, you're on Car Talk.

This is Siri, Bryant. I'm from Seattle. Siri? Oh boy, this is a challenge. Let's see, from Seattle. Maybe that'll help us, no? Siri. Siri.

Yes. Okay, Siri. Now are you gonna go with a C or with an S? Oh yeah, I'm with a C. I'm with a C also. Are we all right? It's an S. It's an S, we knew that.

We're just testing you. Siri. Siri. I'm going with S-E-R-E. That's it. Simple. S-I-R-I. Of course. Yeah, I meant that. You were very close. Yeah. Does this say an Indian name? Um, yeah, actually it is. It's Hindi, I believe. Hindi. Yes. Hindi, yes. It's the name of a star. Is it? All right. Siri from Seattle great all right Oh, what's up? Well, I have a Hyundai Excel and it's 1990 and my car works fine on the drive to work But when I'm on my way home

The card when I come to a stop it won't idle properly and it starts to drop below a thousand and then starts shaking it like 800 and it just dies and I can restart the car But then it just does that again. Let me ask a question, is it the same distance from your house to work as it is from work to your house? It's the same distance but it takes longer to get home. It takes longer right so therefore it must be a greater distance. And it takes longer because of traffic? Just because there's more traffic on the way home than on the way.

Sure. And you have to stop to pick up a fried chicken and all that stuff on the way home. Well, I'm a vegetarian, but sure. Fried eggplant. Okay, fried eggplant. Yeah. Alright. Can we talk about vegetarianism for a minute?

Go ahead. Yeah, go ahead. Are you a vegan or just a vegetarian? No, I'm not a vegan. I just don't like meat. I mean, the vegans are really wacko, huh? Do you eat poultry? Nope.

Fish? Nope. Dairy products? Yep. Chicken? No. That's poultry. That's poultry.

That's poultry. Well, my sister is a vegetarian, but she eats chicken because she says chickens are stupid and they deserve to be and I guess that's her requirement but I didn't think cows are all that bright I don't like the taste of meat I hate the taste of me the texture and the taste and the smell combined yeah no eaty I didn't really I didn't eat meat until I was about 15 years old I couldn't stand the taste of it either and my parents beat it into me they said you must eat meat until I was about 15 years old. I couldn't stand the taste of it either. And my parents beat it into me. They said, you must eat meat!

Well, they were right. Meat's important. And all those foods that people are denying themselves now, wars were fought so that we could have those foods. Yeah, exactly. Right. And you are... People died. People died. And you are demeaning by not eating those foods. The importance. The value. The value and the

lives those people gave. They gave up their lives so you could eat eggs, meat, bacon. But what if I don't want to eat it? What if I don't like it? You gotta eat them! Some people don't like the taste of tea. A taste of what? A taste of tea. There was the body of tea. Nobody fought any wars for tea! What? You don't remember the great tea wars of the 18th century? Come on, don't you know your history? All right, we haven't given you a hard enough time. So your 9DXL runs lousy on the way home in the hot weather. Right.

And you want to know why. Yeah. The reason why is that you have vapor locking. I thought about that, but it won't restart if it has vapor lock one. Oh no, it'll restart. It will? It could.

This car is fuel injected, and fuel injected cars tend to vapor lock with a lot greater difficulty than carbureted cars used to. But they still do, to some extent, and the ones with better designs tend to vapor lock less. Some cars, for example, that have electric fuel pumps have two fuel pumps to prevent vapor locking. They didn't start off necessarily with two, but they realized at some point, we need another fuel pump because I think vapor locks

in hot weather. So they have an external pump and then they threw another one in the tank, Volkswagens for example. Hyundai wasn't in the budget. They said, look, once in a while they're gonna run lousy, but what do you want for 10 grand? Exactly. So on those hot days it vapor lock, and the solution is to leave work an hour early. Okay. You could leave an hour late, but then you'd be working too much, and it's summertime. I'd leave an hour early, skip the traffic, you'll get home in no time.

Okay. As long as you're moving, it's okay, isn't it? Yeah, but as soon as I come to a stop, it's, you know. Yeah, right. It's all or nothing. Because it gets hotter when you come to a stop, it's all or nothing. Because it gets hotter when you come to a stop. I mean, it could be that the fuel pump is weak, too. We actually changed the fuel filter and we got some new sparks in there because we didn't

know what was wrong with it at first. That's good. Well, have your person, whoever that is, check the fuel pump pressure. Because if the pump is weak, it'll have a tendency to vapor lock even more so. Okay. So that may more so. Okay. So that may be it. Great. Well, thank you for...

Have a cheeseburger. A cheeseburger with a slice of onion. I mean, it may sound vomittitious to you right now, but believe me, there'll be a day when you'll say, boy, I can't believe I went my whole life with a damn cheeseburger. Good luck, Siri. Thanks for calling. See you, Siri. All right.

Thank you. Bye. Bye. I. See you, Siri. All right. Thank you. Bye. Bye. Bye. I just don't see it. I try to tell my sister that it is the simpler life forms that have the simplest diets. Simpler life forms have the simplest diets.

By extrapolation, you will lose brain power if you don't eat a variety of foods. If you limit yourself to just like carrots and eggplant, pretty soon you'll have the IQ of a rabbit. Oh, a rabbit. A rabbit. Yeah. I think. This is an interesting theory. I think. Have you considered a PhD dissertation on this? I'm working on it. Well, it's happened again you've passed away another hour Scary like that our esteemed producer is Doug the subway fugitive not a slave to fashion Berman our Associate producer and Dean of the College of Auto musicology is Ken babyface Rogers

Our assistant producer is Katherine cathodeRay. We don't make enough fun. Somebody said to me the other day, you guys don't poke enough fun at Catherine. We don't. No, well, we'll have to work on that. Get right on that. I'll get right on that. Catherine, get right on that. Okay.

Our engineer is Karen I've Already Given, and our technical, spiritual, and menu advisor is John Bugsy, free lunch grandpa. Yes. Lawler. Public opinion pollster is Paul Murky of Murky Research assisted by statistician Margin O'Vara. Our director of new product repairs, Warranty My Foot. Our staff butler from the Car Talk Mumbai Division is Mahatma Kot. Our document security expert from the island of Jamaica is R rip it these up men and our Italian governance is donna

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Thanks so much for listening. We're Click and Clack the Tappet Brothers. Remember whatever you do in life, don't drive like my brother. Don't drive like my brother. We'll be back next week. Bye bye. And now, with an important announcement, here is Car Talk Plaza's chief mechanic, Mr. Vinnie Gumbatz. Alright, now listen up.

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