Carley’s Corner: New Stuff from the AAPEX & SEMA Shows
Having just wrapped up a week in Las Vegas at the AAPEX (Automotive Aftermarket Parts Expo) and SEMA (Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association) shows, I have some interesting news to report. A company called Green Earth Technologies introduced a new high-quality synthetic motor oil made from dead cows. The oil is made from animal fat (beef
Honda Performance Upgrades
Service & Diagnostics Call it what you want — the compact performance market, sport compact market, import scene or the tuner market — but there’s no denying the import car performance segment has grown by leaps and bounds over the past decade. According to SEMA’s 2006 Compact Performance Market Report, retail sales for this niche
Servicing Solutions: GM’s Durable Duramax Diesel
General Motors launched the Duramax Diesel 6.6L V8 engine in the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 2500HD and 3500 Series trucks with Allison automatic transmissions in 2001. The application expanded to the Chevrolet Kodiak and GMC Topkick medium-duty trucks for 2003, with 16,000-, 18,000- and 19,500-lb. gross vehicle weight ratings (GVWR). According to its engineers,
Down the Road: Advances in Engine Technology
Two engine technologies that have been around for years are generating plenty of interest these days as the automakers look to create better fuel efficiency, without sacrificing power — direct injection for gasoline engines and turbocharging. Direct injection for gasoline engines is where fuel is injected right into the combustion chamber of each cylinder, as
Diagnostic Dilemmas: The Pressures of Intake Manifold Vacuum Tests
Several years ago, a retired school teacher brought in a 1994 Chevrolet S-10 Blazer that had developed an intermittent rough idle condition. Although a rebuilt engine had been installed a year before, and all of the wiring and vacuum hoses looked as if they were in factory condition, I took nothing for granted. An ignition
Improving Diesel Technology
There is a “shade tree” law from the 1970s that states that computing capacity doubles every few years. In fact, computing capacity for the size of the computer or device has outstripped that by several orders of magnitude in the last five years. As evidence of that, we now see cell phones that were only
Muscling in on Restoration & Performance Work: Part 1
As automotive technology continues to become more complex with each new model year, you may be longing for the “good ol’ days” when engines had carburetors and distributors but no sensors, fuel injectors or computers. Most driveability problems were fairly simple to diagnose and only required a trained ear and a few basic tools. Alas,