Ok, so you cannot afford a new car, most people can't so they visit the local dealer to buy a second hand car. It can be exciting and being caught up in the sale can cost you money, and in most cases will cost you a lot more than the advertised price. The unseen extras that they sell you are totally unessessary and in my opinion one of the biggest rip offs out there. I'm not just talking about paint and fabric protection or overpriced window tinting. I'm talking about used car warranties that cost between $800 and $2200. There are more clauses than you can poke a stick at in these used car warranties, they always state that if they have a warranty concern that you must service and take the vehicle back to them, when 99% of the time it's just a gimmick to get you car into the dealership workshop, deny you warranty, then charge and overcharge to repair the vehicle. Q.V.W.N or Queensland Vehicle Warranty Network were one of the biggest rips, they have now changed their name to National Warranty, but still the same clauses and conditions and added clauses so if you do have a claim, it won't be honoured. I've had customers with these warranties and i tell them plainly, they are not worth the paper they are printed on. I've been in the industry for 36 years and i know all the tricks, i have tried to get a claim from these companies and only once did they pay in all my years with dealing with them, the one time they did pay was for a piston in an engine that failed, but get this..... they would not pay anything else but the piston and when i recieved the piston it was a cheap chinese piston that i didn't want to use. Don't be sucked in when you go buy a second hand car, don't fall for fabric protection, they don't clean the fabric, they spray tinned scotchguard over the dirty fabric, and use liquid wax or silicone over the paint and call it paint protection, all for considerable prices, and window tint? If you shop around you can get the same tint they use at a fraction of the price. If you are after a good warranty always insist on a manufacturer's warranty, some 2nd hand cars still qualify for a factory warranty or manufacturer's warranty, depending on the brand of the vehicle, if they decline to give you a warranty or even an extended warranty, then listen to the reasons they give you and weigh up the cost's, maybe you should buy a newer car that quaifies for a warranty other than a dealership or used car warranty. Don't be caught up in the hype of buying a used car and get an independent mechanical report on the vehicle before you commit to buy it.

Coming from Cairns, i see a lot of people doing the Cape trip, it's an amazing experience and i encourage everyone to do the trip and stand on the tip. It's a 'Must do' For most Aussies.

But don't be breaking down up there, a simple bog or change of brake pads can be very expensive getting these mechanics to come rescue you, and you are best to do the trip in winter, when it's cooler and a lot less rain.

I provide a Cape check up, this includes all fluid checks, brakes, wheel bearings and a grease of drive train, full 80 point saftey check, i also check your breakdown equipment and go through a basic check list for example, tow ropes, shackles, if you have a winch fitted i test the operation of that, too many people do this trip with very little recovery equipment, it makes sense to have your 4wd checked over and repaired or serviced before you head off.

The biggest problems are elcectrical, alternator and starter motors, lights etc, wheel brearings with lack of grease or water contamination, water entry into diffs and gearboxes, broken axels and cv joints, all will cost you 3 times as much to have it repaired up there, and if you need a tow it can run into excess of $1000 or more, depending where you are. 

My charge for this Cape Check is $136.00 and i can check your trailer as well, peice of mind when attempting this trip.

This is in reference to a business in Cairns "Jap Motor and Carby Center" on Brown street Bungalow.

My customer purchased a Jap engine from this business, i was employed to fit the engine, the job was not yet finished and found a blown headgasket. Peter, the owner of the above business denied liability in the first 2 minutes of the phone call, i removed the radiator and had a condition report done on the rafdiator he claims to be the fault, and the raditaor is in excellent condition, again i must stress that the job was not yet finished, the car still in his carport and not run anymore than 5 mins, not enough to blow the headgasket, the water pump and thermostat was changed as per warranty requirements.

He told me this engine was tested for Co2 when that would be impossible has all the cut off hoses from when they cut the engine from the vehicle in Japan was still on the engine, how could he have run the engine when even the wire harness was still attached to this engine. So i asked him for proof of compression test and proof that, as he claims this engine was tested. He then told me he was dealing with the customer and not me, yet, even with my 36 years experience, he blamed me straight up, in the first 3 minutes of my call and would not co-operate with me in any way nor has he returned a call to my customer who has the question that he needs proof the engine was tested as claimed by Peter.

So i'm replacing the head gasket at my labour cost to look after my cusomer, but would like to let everyone know that if you purchase a Jap engine from "Jap Motor and Carby Center" and you find a problem with the engine, Peter will most likely do the same to you.

22/02/2017 update on this job: When i asked Peter, the owner of  Jap Motor and Carby Center to show some kind of proof the engine was tested, he refused to speak with me, or contact me in any way, he said he will sort it out with my Customer, to date he has neither contacted myself or my customer. The car started and runs much better with a new head gasket, like new, my customer is satisfied but i'm not going to let old Peter get away with dodging his responsibility which is why i'm posting this on my site. The radiator was flushed, the report excellent and the whole job done 100% and hasn't overheated in the slighest, but poor old pete still says it overheated as the radiator was not flushed out professionally, and if it was he would just past the buck onto the radiator place as probably not flushed properly, anything to get out of any responsibility, from word go he denied even getting off his fat ass and coming to see the engine for himself, so now that ive fixed his stuff up, done at no cost to my customer, exept parts all done by me in my own time but i have a huge advantage over Peter, Peter got the sale, I GOT THE CUSTOMER! So be warned about dealing with this man, shonky, unprofessional, a lier and a complete knob. This message is marked without prejudice. If this cost's Peter just one customer, it's worth it. Also my customer will spread the word, so if your on facebook, be prepared.

I see a lot of wheel bearings worn before the due date, and in most cases the hub, where the bearing sits is full of grease, so tightly packed between the outer and inner bearing, how can the bearing have any hope of cooling?

Grease is actually an absorbent of heat, so when you re-pack the wheel bearing, put a smear of grease in the hub, it's an old custom to pack a hub full of grease as we tend to believe that the grease, as it's heated will circulate around the bearing, this is unfounded and simply not true, if you expect  this from a grease then perhaps your thinking of an oil as grease is used as a once only lubrication of the bearing, it should stick to the bearing and the casing or cone even the smear of grease that you apply to the hub will not have any effect on the life of the bearing, the volume between the outer and the inner bearing is used to cool the bearing, this is why when i do a re-pack i can almost count on the bearings being stuffed because it can't cool down due to over grease.

How do you tell a bearing is unservicable and should be replaced? Do a visual inspection after you have removed the bearing and cleaned it , look for grooves on the rollers, look for tarnish of the chrome, some bearings are chrome plated so if the shine is gone, then it should be replaced, also rattle the bearing, if the bearings rattle inside the casings then take that they are worn and should be replaced. Use a good quality bearing such as timkin or skf, these bearings have been proven to withstand harsh Aussie climates, don't always go for the cheapest, i don't do the upsell with my customers, but i won't fit a cheap mass produced part either, i fit the same parts to your car as i would my own.

Whens a good time to look at bearing re-pack? Before or after the wet season in north queensland is a good time, other than that it's going off when the maker of the car recommends to re-pack, a typical 4WD Toyota, Nissan etc every 40k, but it's better to replace regardless if the bearings you are trying to service have already done 40k, depends on the quality of the bearing as well, a timkin or SKF bearing will last a lot longer to a cheap asian bearing, whn i service i always check the 'freeplay in the wheels to determine the wear, if any movement i always recommend a replace. Be carefull as when you have a sealed bearing that requires pressing to install, these bearings do not need grease as they are pre-packed, don't go packig them if no lube is required, this will void your warranty on the bearing!

Always replace the hub seals, always use a good quality grease, Penrite HTB grease is the best i have used, a bit more expensive but you need ultimate protection. The bast way to pack a bearing is by hand as illistrated. Gook luck....... Happy packing!

O2 Sensors carry a wealth of information, i've been doing a lot of services lately and part of the service is a scan, i'm taking notes on the fuel burn readings i'm getting, and they are not good.

There's nothing wrong with the vehicles i service, a lot of mechanics would replace the O2 sensor, but getting readings of O2 sensor code may not be a faulty sensor, in most cases it's the un-burnt fuel that saturates the sensor that throws the check engine light, when the fuel evaporates the sensor gets proper readings and the light goes off.

Changing your fuel filter will not solve the problem, it will improve it, and you should replace fuel filters with every fuel problem and when it's time. So how do you solve this issue? add some octane boost to the tank, fill the tank with premium fuel and that's it.

To avoid it from happening again, don't use that bowser for a good two weeks, servos have to change filters regularly, it's the law, however it's not the filters that are at fault, it's the bottom of the barrel quality of crude that we import, 7% of it according to my readings do not burn, that may seem a little but it's a huge difference to an engines performance, economy and most of all life.

If you look at the cost of fuel, we all look to the cheaper fuel, but premium fuel is the standard fuel or gas as the USA, our standard drops to 91% burn, and even premium fuel does not burn completely. The smart thing to do is use premium fuel at the same bowser every time you fill up, just a few % more burn will give you better performance, better economy and better milage and your engine will last longer.

when the combustion occurs in the engine, not all that fuel is burnt, most goes out the exhaust, but some blows by the rings and down the sump, this carbon affects the oil, shortening the life of the oil, that unburnt fuel goes throughout your engine and dries it out, more friction, more fuel is needed to keep up with the drivers demand, resulting in poor performance more services, more money in the long run.

I recommend in Australia to pay a few more cents for the premium, it works out roughly the same in comparison to 91 or 95.

I hope this helps if your car is running poor

This car was serviced 12 months ago, as you can see the oil is sludge, in this case it's not just change the oil and filter. A seperate flush was needed.

1. Drain all sludge from sump, in this case it took 1/2 hour.

2. Buy some cheap oil, gulf western is good for this type of change and the only case that i would use gulf western oil.

3. do not use the good oil for the flush

4. Add a good engine flush, nulon flush is excellent for this.

5. change the oil filter

6. fill the sump with cheap oil

7. start the car and let idle for a good 1/2 hour

8. when you have idled for 28 mins, rev the engine to 3000RPM for the remainder two minutes.

9. shut off engine

10 drain sump for a good hour with oil filter removed, take the cap off and remove the dipstick, if you can leave it overnight to drain would be better, but drain it while hot.

Note: Be careful as the Oil will be very hot, use a protective glove to protect your hands.

After all the oil and flush is drained, secure new drain washer to the plug and new oil filter, fill the sump to spec's

Note also, if you have a ford ranger, you cannot use engine flush as oil must be present at all times in the oil pump, if you flush these engines the oil pump will have air and won't prime. Some other engines are the same, refer to manufactors specs before attempting this procedure.

Finally, if the sludge is still present after this flush, do not flush it again as the flush chemical can harder oil seals etc in your engine, wait 5000 km and then repeat this procedure, then all of the sludge should be gone, between the first flush and 5000km make sure you check your oil level regularly note the condition of the oil and check for any leaks. In severe cases a flush may not work at all and you could be up for a new engine.

Conclusion: Change your oil every 6 months or 10 000km , vehicles that have high km change every 5000 or 3 months, prevention is better than cure!

What's this? you may ask, I'm committed to customer service and buy all the necessary tools to do the job right the first time, if you call a mobile mechanic and he shows up with a toolbox, get another mechanic, mobile mechanic's in my view need to have the right tool for the job. This little tool is a cylinder head diagnosis tool, the way it works is you add this dye and pump it in your cooling system, if the dye changes color to a yellow, this means you have emissions in the cooling system and diagnoses would be a blown head gasket, it's very accurate, expensive but my customers deserve the best.

That's good oil - Great Service! call John 0498 483 681 or www.everythingmechanical.com.au