ALLDUN5

I had bought a 77 Jeep CJ-7, that the owners could not get running after they had replaced the rusted out hood and fenders. I almost felt bad when I realized the reason it wouldnt start was that the starter solenoid was mounted to the newly installed fiberglass fender. A quick ground wire to the solenoid and she ran like a champ. I got one hell of a deal due to an electrical oversight. It turned out to be the most fun vehicle I ever owned. Now on my third Jeep, but it has a lot more creature comforts.

Brian Coles

Removed a plastic grocery bag from air box. Car wouldn't idle. Stumbled at high rpms. Thought I blew it up with the nirrous!! HaHa

riceburnerZ28

iTrader: (20)

When I installing the dreaded optispark I didn't align the splines correctly and not thinking went to start the engine and it was backfiring like crazy out of the intake. So I thought that maybe I didn't adjust the valves right...that didn't work so after a half dozen times of doing that and a couple weeks later I finally discovered my mistake and the engine fired right up.

ghettosled

took me about 6 months to find this as well. didnt notice it until i was stuck in traffic one day and way looking around the cabin area.

pheer

iTrader: (3)

lol, i just went through this!!

BOA279

iTrader: (1)

really dumb....The day after I bought my 98 camaro I was replacing a blown tranny at an auto hobby shop. I was calling it quits for the day and locked the doors before going home. I stood there waiting for the lights on the rear view mirrors to go out but after 5 minutes they were still on. I checked everything I could and finally out of frustration diked the wires. The next day I looked again and found the dim switch all the way up to "on"

battousai

iTrader: (3)

I had a CEL today, so I checked it out... I had a cylinder 3 misfire. I looked, and plugged the wire back in.

cutlass_455

iTrader: (2)

One time at the track when I was poor and raced a 86 Pontiac Acadian, I broke the throttle cable, so I had to improvise something, so I took the cable that controled the heater damper and attached it to the carb. Made it to the second round that day and had a make shift cruise control until I got it fixed.

silverbandit0996

iTrader: (2)

after i installed my 9" i kept hearing a scraping/rubbing noise when i turned and when i hit bumps it sounded like it was bottoming out. i tried everything, but couldn't find anything. then while i was getting gas a week later i saw two cast iron frying pans, that had been sliding around and hitting each other, sitting in my rear floor board from when i was moving out of my girlfriends house.

jts98z28

iTrader: (18)

hit a deer and destroyed my headlight, only had the plastic lens and the bulb...tin foil and rtv sealant kept water out and made it reflective

Joshiedoom

iTrader: (4)

Went WOT one day, instant backfire at letoff, flashing ses, said cylinder number 1 missfire. Plugwire unbent itself and burned itself in two. replaced with used stocker/heat sleeve.

omoralesZ28

i had an error code on my camaro turns out to be my idle air control valve the car was idling higher than normal so i find and buy the valve 100.00 dollars. so i installed it nothing changed! so i start looking around the throttle body and i find a small hole in the vacuum hose under the throttle body so i removed it and took it to my local auto parts store ask for the same one they dont have it but they found a rubber hose same size openings and let me have it for FREE... moral of the story do a thorough inspect before you go and buy a 100 dollar part thats not needed.

JohnD

I chased a cold idle shake for nearly three years before I finally realized that it was an aftermarket harmonic balancer than had rubber in it that was too stiff when cold.

BlackBird87

iTrader: (6)

Changed out pads on my daily but couldnt figure out why the pedal was so slow to return and why the pads were rubbing on acceleration. Turns out i rotated one of the calipers once too much and kinked the hose.........and im ase certified on brakes

spirow1555

my car smelled like something was burning but no fire or smoke. paranoid, i drove like that for two days.

after bitching at the car and checking under the hood hundreds of times, i looked under it and found out a bag was melted on to the exhaust pipe

01 ss vert

iTrader: (1)

Did they when I degreassed my engine on my old vehicle with a cone filter. covered it to clean the engine, but never took the bag off. Deformed the filter in seconds.

tuffluck

iTrader: (4)

hit a curb once and about 2 years later i heard a loud series of clunks every time i turned my wheels. it got so bad after about 6 months i thought something was going to completely break. thought it was the wheel bearing, the spindle, the shocks, the springs, etc but never really had a clue. i had all the parts ready to order when a friend on this board (mitchntx) said "hey why don't you call this shop and have them look before you start tearing **** apart on your car, since you don't really know what the problem is." so i did, and within 10 minutes they said, "your camber bolt was loose. we tightened it up for you." and i haven't had a problem since.

ska4life07

iTrader: (2)

Oh man! hahahahaha! I just picked up my car from the shop and they said the same thing to me.

mike171562

iTrader: (4)

I drove my car for two weeks with a random misfire, I couldnt figure it out. Finally I got a code. Cylinder3 misfire, sure enough, i pulled plug 3 and there was a tiny hairline crack in it.

tuffluck

iTrader: (4)

i had a story that could have gone in the books for a lot of people.

i changed my alternator and then got in the car while the car was still jacked up and cranked it. for some reason it was idling about 100rpms. wtf??? i thought i forgot to plug something back in or i tore some wire when i installed my alternator. so i thought about it for about 30 seconds and then said, "wait, i'm low on gas, i wonder if while the car was jacked up, all the gas sank to the back of the fuel tank?" so, i lowered the car from being jacked up, cranked it, and it was fine.

i could see that taking a lot of people 4 hours to figure out!!!