Repair And Fix it

A good diagnostician is something of a Car Whisperer, one who can pick up on the tiniest of clues to intuit both the cause of a problem and the avenue to its solution. Tire cupping isnt the most common wear pattern out there, but it is one of the most serious and telling in terms of diagnosing the chassis condition.

Cupping

In terms of tire wear patterns, "cupping" ers to a series of regular dips appearing in the outer edge of a tires tread. Also called "scalloping," these dips look as though someones taken shallow scoops out of the rubber with the worlds most sinister ice cream scooper. This sort of cupping shouldnt be confused with the cupping that often occurs on large drag tires. In this context, cupping happens when the tires inflation pressure is too low and the center of the tire curves upward or "cups" at high speed.

Cupping Causes

Cupping is a sign of rapid tire bounce or side-to-side oscillation. Theres no one single cause behind such bouncing or oscillations; any component that connects the wheel to the car is suspect. Worn shock absorbers will fail to control wheel movement, allowing the tires to bounce and cup the tread. Suspension bushings and ball joints are secondary suspects, followed by wheel bearings and steering end-links. The last two, however, should exhibit noticeable symptoms -- vibration through the steering wheel and chassis -- well before cupping becomes an issue.

Argument 1 -- Driving on Cupped Tires

Some contend that cupping isnt necessarily a death sentence for tires, provided that the lowest point in the scallops dont extend past the tires lowest safe wear zone. After youve fixed whats causing the cupping, the high points in the scallops will wear far more quickly than the low points, which should smooth them out over time. Rotating the tires may help to speed the smoothing, since doing so will at least change the frequency of oscillation acting upon that tire.

Argument 2 -- Not Driving on Cupped Tires

While it is true that fixing the problem and driving on cupped tires may eventually smooth them out, the fact is that the low points in the scallops will continue to wear just like the high points. Granted, theyll wear more slowly, but even with the best-case scenario, youre looking at a tire with a serious -- if smooth -- bald strip around the edge. From this perspective, any cupping at all is the death knell for your tire and a sign that it needs replacement ASAP.

Conclusion

Provided that youve replaced the worn shocks, bushings or relevant suspension component, driving on a cupped tire will eventually smooth it out to some extent. But thats like saying that sooner or later the wind will eventually erode mountains. True, it will, but itll also erode the valleys between the mountains and create low-lying dips in the landscape. Its a game of time and specific conditions, and one youre probably going to lose. Considering the likelihood and consequences of tire failure after cupping, youre best off replacing the cupped tire sooner rather than later.

The indicators on a car or motorcycle need to be functional in order for the vehicle to be road-worthy. Making turns or changing lanes without informing other road users can be very dangerous. If one of your indicators has a burned or broken contact, it will be necessary to repair it. Removing the contact and replacing it with a new one is a far more cost effective solution than replacing the whole indicator.

Instructions

1

Turn off the ignition and remove the contact clips from the battery. Use the screwdriver to remove any mounting screws holding the indicator assembly to the body. It should lift out as one complete unit.

2

The indicator assembly consists of a front and rear half, which are usually held together by means of a sprung plastic clip bridging the two halves. Locate the clip and press it using the blade of the screwdriver. The two halves will separate, revealing the inside of the indicator.

3

Unscrew the bulb and lift it out of the assembly. With the back of the assembly removed, you should be able to see the wiring. Locate the burned or broken contact.

4

Heat up the soldering iron and hold it to the base of the contact. The metal tab of the contact is held in place by a plastic spade clip, but the soldered electrical connection at the base must be released to remove it from the plastic clip. Melt the solder, taking care not to touch the plastic ridges at the edge.

5

Grip the end of the contact with the needle-nose pliers and pull it toward you, it should slide out from the clip, allowing you to replace it with a fresh one.

Harley introduced Road King dressers with an 82 cubic inch Evolution engine in 1993. The models were sold with 88 inch Twin Cam engines beginning in 1999, and since 2006 the model has been shipped with 96 cubic inch Twin Cam power plants. The current model weighs about 815 pounds. They are designed for long distance travel so riders who do a lot of touring are often concerned with gas mileage. After performing basic stage one power upgrades, more power always equals poorer gas mileage. There are, however, a number of suggestions for improving power without seriously degrading mileage on the road.

Instructions

1

It is common to call the first necessary power improvements to any new Road King the "Harley tax." The Motor Company inhibits the respiration of new motors to better meet government clean air goals. The first power improvement you should make is to your Road Kings air intake. Replace your stock air cleaner with a high flow air cleaner.

2

If your motorcycle is carbureted, rejet your carb, remove the factory installed air-fuel mixture plug on the bottom of your stock carburetor and fatten up the mixture slightly. If your bike has Electronic Fuel Injection, replace your EFI module with an aftermarket model or at least have your stock EFI remapped by a competent technician. Research done by Harley-Davidson in 2007 showed that Road King horsepower could be increased by about 9 percent by remapping alone.

3

Install a high performance, two into one exhaust. What the engine breathes in it must also breathe out. Installation of an efficient exhaust system can also add another nine or ten percent to your engines horsepower. Two into one exhausts help maintain equal back pressure in both cylinders. Replacing your Road Kings exhaust is a basic job you should have no trouble doing yourself.

4

If you spend most of the time on your Road King touring, you should consider a replacement cam or cams. Cams control the flow of air into and exhaust out of your cylinders. They also influence the power range of your bike. If you spend most of your riding time going 80 miles an hour through the wide open spaces you want your Road King to make power most efficiently in that power band.

5

Consider replacing your stock cylinder heads with aftermarket cylinder heads. Head design and porting is a craft that is difficult to perfect with mass-produced products. The shape and finish of your heads greatly effects efficiency of the explosions in your engines. Bigger bangs mean more power. Most after market head makers and porters claim power increases of up to ten percent with their products.

Automobiles, like many forms of life on Earth, long ago left the oceans for drier climes; and like most others evolved to land, autos arent particularly keen on going back to the depths. Whether or not a car runs after a good dunking partly depends upon the engine in question, partly on how much water it encountered, and why it stalled in the first place.

Puddles

Splashing through deep puddles -- those no deeper than about 6 inches, or slightly above the bottom of the oil pan -- is common enough that most manufacturers build cars to account for it. If a quick dunk into a puddle or a brief splash causes your engine to stall, then odds are water got into something electrical and shorted it. Most low-hanging sensors likely to encounter water -- the oxygen sensors and crankshaft position sensors -- arent prone to damage by it, but water in the will interrupt the signal they produce. Odds are good the car will start after you unplug the electrical connectors and dry them out.

Immersion Up to the Engine Block

Lets say you live in a flood-prone area and you wake up one morning to find your car standing in about a foot of water -- right up to the engine block or the bottom of the doors, but not past them. If the car refuses to start under these conditions, then its almost certainly because water has penetrated the lowest-hanging electrical connectors. The car may not start while its in standing water, but it should be fine afterward as long as the fuse block or computer hasnt gotten wet. Even a completely submerged computer may not be beyond saving as long as you dont send any power through it while it still is wet -- but dont count on it working after you dry it out.

Immersion Up to the Valve Covers

Unless you own a Jeep or a Hummer H1, immersion up to the valve covers is well beyond what the factory had in mind when they designed your car. If your car stalled while going through water up to the door handles or the bottom of the valve covers, you may have more significant problems than those electrical in nature. If it didnt stall because of an electrical short, then odds are that it stalled because water in the pipe created enough backpressure to halt the combustion process. Once the engine stalls, all of that pressure goes away and water comes flooding up through the exhaust system. At the very least, you may expect serious thermal shock damage to the catalytic converter core, and possibly a completely flooded engine.

Total Flooding -- Car vs. Submarine

In the above scenario, where the car stalled with water above the level of the exhaust ports in the engine, then water would flood up through the manifold and into the cylinders. Try to start the car with the cylinders full of water -- assuming the starter works -- and you end up permanently damaging the engine through hydro-lock. Once that happens, your engine is effectively toast. However, say the engine didnt stall until water got up past the intake system. In that case, youre looking at gallons of water sucked into the engine and almost certain hydro-lock. At that point, nothing can save it.

Salvaging the Vehicle

The good news is that as long as your engine didnt go into hydro-lock, theres no reason it shouldnt run after a thorough drying and replacement of the oil and any damaged electrical components. In cases of prolonged immersion, youll also need to drain the fuel tank and lines. Certain components, such as the computer, ignition module and possibly the ignition coil, are almost sure to go following immersion, but theyre replaceable. The guys at BBCs "Top Gear" television program proved this while attempting to destroy a diesel Toyota Hilux pickup truck by dropping it at the bottom of the English Channel and leaving it overnight. After a bit of drying, fluid replacement and electrical work, host Jeremy Clarkson started the truck and drove it home from the beach.

The Volvo 850 was the first front-wheel drive Volvo and marked the Swedish car manufacturers shift to Lexus-like comfort rather than BMW-like sportiness. It was Volvos first serious foray into the American market as well, as they installed many luxury amenities to market the 850 as a European luxury car. The Volvo retained some of the sportiness of the rear-wheel drive Volvos with optional turbos. The turbo forces more air into the combustion chambers. Unfortunately, many of the early turbos did not use strong-enough steel and can crack over time.

Instructions

1

Put the Volvo into park, preferably in your driveway because you will need room around the front of your car to work on the engine bay. Pull the emergency brake and turn the car off. Pull the hood latch to the left of the drivers column and then exit the car. Prop the hood up with the prop stick and drape drop clothes over the side of the engine bay to protect the body panels from possible scratches.

2

Locate the turbo housing on the top of the engine. It will be a coffee can-sized metal shell on the air intake and hooked into the exhaust headers. Detach the air intake tube from the front of the turbo by unscrewing the O-ring clamp from around the tube. Unbolt the four bolts that secure the turbo onto the exhaust headers. Support the turbo while unbolting, so no undue stress is placed on the threads of the bolts. Unbolt the four bolts that secure the rear of the turbocharger to the air intake on the engine. Pull the turbo off and place it to the side.

3

Bolt the new turbocharger onto the exhaust header. First thread the bolts through so the alignment is right, then wrench the bolts down flush. Bolt the four bolts to the engines air intake port. Screw the O-clamp onto the air intake tube over the inlet hole on the turbocharger. Close the hood and take the car for a drive to make sure the turbo is working. You should feel the power increase around 3,000 rpm.

If your vehicle isnt starting when the engine is turning over, you may not be getting spark to the spark plugs through the ignition coil. You can check this by performing a simple test. This task is relatively easy but you will need an assistant so that you can simultaneously perform some of the necessary functions detailed in the procedure. Figuring out the cause of the problem that you are experiencing with your vehicle is half the battle.

Instructions

1

Park your vehicle on a flat surface.

2

Open your hood to access your engine compartment.

3

Pull the nearest spark plug wire off the top of the spark plug to expose the end of the wire

4

Connect the exposed end of the wire to the top of an extra spark plug. Set the spark plug against one of the metal surfaces on the engine.

5

Ask your assistant to start the vehicle. If you see a spark come from the spark plug, then there is spark coming from the ignition coil because the wire is attached to the ignition coil.