A Deal on a JDM Car: Worth It?

As a car enthusiast living in Toronto, I'm always on the lookout for unique and collectible vehicles. Recently, I came across a 1994 Mitsubishi Minicab with a turbo diesel engine that caught my eye. The seller was asking a whopping $16,000, which seemed like a bargain considering its age (26 years old). However, I knew that in Canada, cars don't hold the same value as they do in other parts of the world.

To determine if the car was worth buying, I decided to research similar models and their market prices. Unfortunately, my findings suggested that the car would be worth more than $16,000 in my area. It's possible that all these JDM cars are being sold for a higher price in Toronto, making this deal a relatively good one.

That being said, I still wanted to get the car inspected by a mechanic before making a decision. The mechanic agreed to check it out and provide an assessment of its condition. After reviewing the car's history and inspecting it thoroughly, the mechanic determined that it was a decent vehicle worth considering.

A Common Problem: Water-Induced Short Circuits

I recently encountered a problem with my white Chevy Cobalt. After driving through flooded water, I noticed that my parking lights and backup lights were stuck on all the time. Upon further inspection, I discovered that the low wiring harness had been damaged by the water, causing short circuits.

The mechanic explained that this is a common issue with vehicles that have come into contact with water. To fix it, I needed to remove the passenger seat to access the area where the damage occurred. By pulling up the carpet and cleaning out the debris, we were able to identify the source of the problem. It turned out that the water had seeped in through a low point in the car and caused the wiring harness to short.

The mechanic recommended replacing the damaged wiring harness with new one and applying dielectric grease to prevent future issues. While it may seem like a hassle, this fix was relatively straightforward and inexpensive compared to more extensive repairs.

A Radio That Refuses to Calibrate

One of my friends recently purchased a Pontiac Sunfire with a faulty radio. The problem was that the radio would repeatedly display an error code (Cow Error) but wouldn't calibrate properly. The friend took it to several repair shops, but none could fix the issue.

In the end, the mechanic recommended replacing the radio entirely. However, before doing so, he suggested checking the fuses and other components to ensure that they were functioning correctly. After some research, I discovered that this was a common problem with older radios, often caused by internal wear and tear.

To avoid similar issues, my friend decided to purchase an aftermarket radio, which proved to be a cost-effective solution. The new radio worked perfectly and didn't have the same problems as the old one. While it's not ideal to replace a functional radio, sometimes it's better to err on the side of caution and upgrade to a newer model.

A Mystery: Why Does ABS Fail?

My friend recently purchased an older car with an anti-lock braking system (ABS). However, the ABS light came on repeatedly, indicating that there was a problem. The only reason why this wasn't causing any issues in other vehicles with similar systems is because my friend drove carefully and rarely used the brakes.

The mechanic explained that this could be due to a short circuit or worn-out wiring harness, which would cause the ABS system to malfunction. In such cases, it's essential to identify the source of the problem quickly before it causes more extensive damage to the vehicle.

While I don't have experience with ABS systems myself (since I rarely drive in conditions that require them), my friend learned a valuable lesson about the importance of addressing these issues promptly and efficiently.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enrun up your engine it looks like Ford and GM are going to rush to start making ventilators for the virus now ventilators basically they send oxygen into people's lungs and then was a tube they remove the carbon dioxide of course they can't make them on the same assembly lines they make cars cars are a lot more complex and ventilators within a couple of weeks they should be able to get it up and running using part of their assembly plans to build the ventilators they say and I'm quoting it's more or less getting an army together to get all the different parts and then you can set up a makeshift assembly line they do have all the factories they have workers they have a lot of space they did in World War two they'd certainly be able to get something like that up and running now realize automakers do have those 3d printers and a lot of technical expertise to make things quickly and they have clean rooms and some plants that can meet FDA standards when they paint cars they have to be in a perfectly sealed environment so there's no dust or humidity hey they can use all those paint rooms to make ventilators and realize that make cars have hoses all over the place even vacuum cleaner companies can make hoses and stop tons of the auto companies and then they could put the whole assembly together I mean those 3d printers really you know they got fast ones you can make a lot of stuff with them just face the valley is already already designed people have the design all I got to do is manufacture them they don't to start from scratch and design to stupid things you know streety printers I didn't copy anything and GM is forming a collaborative venture with Ventech life systems that makes ventilators so they can help on mass producing now Elon Musk said we'll make ventilators if there's a shortage but he also said that I don't think they're probably gonna need him anyway singing about musk and some of his projections for his stuff like the windows to crack when you throw a rock at him maybe people should stop listening to the guy yeah the company say they're jumping on board and get ready to make him saw hey you should be going full bar into this thing now like all the other people are I'm not just sitting back and saying well if they need it now and you know we'll think about it here gcx uh Scotty I got a 2008 gc8 WRX I barely drive turn on once a week to let it go so the oil circulates i've been doing this for about a year put a clutch in it not too long going now I can't get it in gear I push it down I can't get it in gear help alright what are you doing the wrong thing if you don't have a car that you're gonna use all the time don't have it it's a waste of money what's happening with yours is and I've seen it a zillion times odds are the clutch just rusty nine but shows you live in a humid area the flywheel what's it made out of steel what does it do Ross when it sits there clutch pressure plate it's made out of steel too that stuff will Ross then it won't release because the clutch plate itself will rust right on to the disk don't when you push on a clutch you can't get it into gear I see that all the time there is no point in buying a car if you're not gonna drive it much everything is gonna wear out you can start once a week all you want but that clutch is sitting that rust and it's bare steel sitting that rust and odds are it's rusted on I have had so many people have old cars bring them over here I'll say and then your clutch just rusted up now you know we're gonna to pull off the transmission that replace it and if it's a car they don't drive much I kind of try to push them into just getting rid of the thing get rid of it if you're not driving it get rid of it because if it just sits everything's gonna be riding away city god he says do timing belts need replacement at miles only does age Victor I got an 18 year old 4runner with 50,000 miles on 3.4 liter you want to be on a safe side replace the belt now yeah they're rubber belts don't run our belt is 18 years old of course it's gonna be somewhat worn and moisture gets to it so you might as well change it now I mean what the heck they're great vehicles it can last a really really really long time I why chance something like a rubber belt breakin I would change the rubber button I'd also change the water pump because their water pumps are driven off of it and that all the rubber seal and the water pumps gonna be going out too just for preventative measures I'd change it now because it is 18 years old our old firefighter Scotty there's a front-end alignment needed every time you change tires I've been advised by a tire retailer it's essential thank you of course they want to sell you things they want to charge your money for stock it's not essential every time only if the alignment is off if your car wasn't pulling or shaking at the highway odds are it's perfectly fine now what you do is look at your old tires before you buy new tires if they're worn evenly the alignment it's fine now if you find that the old tires have edged or they got cop where yeah you got either in alignment or a front strut problem and you'd want that taken care of before you buy the new tires but if you're all tires wore out evenly you don't necessarily have to get it realigned when you buy new tires we'd big so Scotty it's now a good time to buy a new car with a virus and everything well I'm too cheap to buy a brand new car but yes it could be a very good time because everybody in a car lot salesman he'll work on commissions they don't sell any cars they don't make any money so you could probably cut them to the chase to go as low as they'll possibly ever go now because better to make $500 selling your car and then to make Nothing selling nobody a car at all and sales are way way down and when it happens you can usually get a better deal maybe you can get a bunch of options thrown on free me up to cheap and I've got used car so if I did now would probably be a good time to try some wheeling and dealing Chris to phi2 so Scotty I got know to Nissan 3.5 Altima doesn't start turn the key it doesn't turn over I had a mechanic look at it told me it was a chip in the key and so I called a locksmith and he told me it was my computer I need help what should I do find somebody who really knows what they're talking about thing about the locksmiths and those Nissan's and those chip keys a lot of times they aren't good working on Nissan's and they can't figure it out so this outs the computer you need a computer and we don't do that I would find a mechanic that does work on those see what he says most of the time see there's a key chip or it's the receiving unit in the steering column there's something weird in the computer so that you turn the key on and the car won't start cuz the start won't run you can always have it bypassed by a good mechanic you could put a star - where John so you turn the key to get the idiot lights on and then you push your button to start the car and then it bypasses all that stuff there's lots of ways to fix things tons to me like you deal what people aren't very competent at what they do find another mechanic start their punishment four five six uh Scotty I live in Toronto I'm into weird JDM cars I like your thoughts on the 94 minutes and B she does like a turbo diesel with one hundred and thirty eight thousand kilometers so that's like what eighty thousand miles for sixteen thousand this is a good deal it's a really old car that's what 26 years old but you know it's a JDM car there's so much collectible now I know cars go more for Toronto I live a billion years ago and everything was expensive then I suppose it's even more expensive now sixteen thousand dollars on there's so many saying Canadian when that's not worth as much as it used to be so it's not like sixteen thousand us basically see what a car like that goes for in your area I mean maybe they all go for that and if they do go ahead if you like it now I just realize that thing's old as the hills so when that kind of page you got to pay a mechanic to check it out the guy says okay it's a decent vehicle and you see that they kind of go for that price in your area go ahead cuz then if you're tired of it you know he's selling out of somebody else but here in the United States that thing would be worth nothing nobody runs those Mitsubishi it would go for about five thousand dollars or maybe four you never know but check the area price and see if there are people that buy him and collect them and if you like it mechanic says it's okay go ahead but never ever ever buy a turbo diesel engine vehicle without a mechanic jacking it out journey J ninety six says I got a white Chevy Cobalt went there little flood water now my batter is draining out and my parking lights and backup lights are on all the time parking lights and backup lights are on all the time you went through water you got something that's shorting out from that under the passenger seat of the car there's a low wiring harness part there and that has a tendency water gets in it and then it shorts the power and it keeps those backup lights on all the time it's a lot easier just take the four bolts of the passenger seat I'll get the seed out of the way and then look under there you can pull the rug up and you'll probably see where the low point is the water was puddled up in there and shorted the stuff out you can take it apart clean it real good dry it I'll put some dielectric grease on us the water doesn't it ruin and snap it back together dumb reason when it does it under their passenger seat and makes the backup lights go I didn't design them but I fix them noni Jean is nine says I got all five Pontiac Sunfire my radio says cow error and there's no codes and the radio works but it sounds like crap no you know you want to check your fuses and everything but you say it says Kelly air so it's getting power and stuff every single time I've seen one of those it has the calibration error on it the radio itself was just breaking down internally it's saying that's not calibrating right with the you know they got those anti-theft radios I don't that's just how those things break down just take it throw it away and put in an aftermarket one and if you want something fancy get an Android I've seen these androids for two or three hundred bucks on Amazon and on eBay and they work perfectly fine they're pretty easy to put in on a GM vehicle it's really not that big of a deal but whenever they say Cal there it means there's an internal problem in a radio just throw it away put another one in Robert 3079 so Scott I got oh seven to : 116 thousand miles of code co2 seven eight says the ABS really is open or shorted how can I find it go under the hood you know you got fuse boxes under the hood it should be under the hood fuse box when you take off the plastic top look at the back side the inside and it says what the realize our ABS rely should be in there without a dealer buy one put it in a maybe it's just that now if it's worse it could be the ABS modules wiring shorted out could be a real problem well you know if you're a good driver when abs system doesn't work it reverts to normal non ABS and the only car I have in a drive where it has abs is my wife so - Lexus came that way still works perfectly fine but my other cars it's a wall they don't have ABS I have no problem driving so if you never want to miss another one of my new car repair videos remember to ring that Bell\n"