Last week I heard a guy tell some lady complaining that she couldnt get her car started in cold weather that she should check her choke. Not bad if her car was made, twenty years earlier..
I can't tell you how many watercooler discussions I have overheard where the office jocks tell ladies straight-faced what is wrong with their cars, though you can tell that their knowledge is minimal. I know they mean well, and when I was young I did the same stupid thing among many other stupid things I still do even though I consider myself mature now.. I mean I am ignorant about finance and real estate and i catch myself giving stupid advice to others sometimes thats probably equally comical..
Diagnosing a problem is often difficult even after one or two hours under the hood in today's cars. ECU problems can masquerade as vacuum leaks or low fuel pressure ..Temperature sensor Check engine codes may actually be telling you you have ATF in your Radiator..
Whem my Volvo 91 Turbo suffered a plugged Cat in Manhattan, I went up there at 2 am jacked it up and undid the bolts at the exhaust/cat junction and drove it home..where it promptly died in my Driveway and wouldnt run for two months--even after changing the fried/deadAMASS, and the 14 year old O2 sensor and the fuel pump, guess what the real cause was? Dirty, bad gas--a clogged fuel filter...