Mechanic mind teasers... if you're bored.

[ShiningBuick 10+ year member]

Once in a while in my auto class the teacher gives us these little mind bogglers for fun... I figured you guys would enjoy them, too!

This first one I've been mulling over a couple days.. I can't think of a definite answer.. maybe you guys will know:

#1: A Mazda 626 that won't move comes to the shop. The automatic ***** fluid in it is black and burnt.. uh oh, smoked transmission! When the guys are pushing it into the shop they notice the brake lights don't work, either. Upon inspection all the brake light bulbs are burnt out! So, myth or fact... the smoked transmission and the burned out brake lights both have the same underlying cause and one repair will cure both??

This is a good one..

#2: A 1991 Lincoln Town care comes into the shop.. rust POS. The owner says it needs a tuneup and the shift linkage adjusted, because it's getting poor gas mileage and the shift indicator arrow is off a gear. You tell him he's obviously just got it in the wrong gear (low), but he says he can feel all 4 shifts that it should have. Upon further inspection, there is only one thing wrong with this car that needs replacing to fix all his problems... what's the one thing wrong and why's it causing the issues?

and finally..

#3: A 1993 Explorer comes to the shop. It's got a bunch of white smoke coming from the tail pipe out the rear, and it's been shifting hard. Mike, the senior tech thinks it's gonna be an easy one part fix. Is he right? Why/why not?

Enjoy //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

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[FurbiesAndBeans 10+ year member]

They would be fun if your a mechanic, but for 99% of the pupulation... no...

 

[jco1385 5,000+ posts]

Once in a while in my auto class the teacher gives us these little mind bogglers for fun... I figured you guys would enjoy them, too!
This first one I've been mulling over a couple days.. I can't think of a definite answer.. maybe you guys will know:

#1: A Mazda 626 that won't move comes to the shop. The automatic ***** fluid in it is black and burnt.. uh oh, smoked transmission! When the guys are pushing it into the shop they notice the brake lights don't work, either. Upon inspection all the brake light bulbs are burnt out! So, myth or fact... the smoked transmission and the burned out brake lights both have the same underlying cause and one repair will cure both??

no. burnt ***** fluid and burnt tail light bulbs CAN NOT be fixed by one repair. you have to repair the bulbs (aka get new ones), AND the transmission. thats 2 repairs

//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/*******.gif.a649d21efc0d1fd4890a6428166586c1.gif

 

[fasfocus00 5,000+ posts]

Once in a while in my auto class the teacher gives us these little mind bogglers for fun... I figured you guys would enjoy them, too!
This first one I've been mulling over a couple days.. I can't think of a definite answer.. maybe you guys will know:

#1: A Mazda 626 that won't move comes to the shop. The automatic ***** fluid in it is black and burnt.. uh oh, smoked transmission! When the guys are pushing it into the shop they notice the brake lights don't work, either. Upon inspection all the brake light bulbs are burnt out! So, myth or fact... the smoked transmission and the burned out brake lights both have the same underlying cause and one repair will cure both??

This is a good one..

#2: A 1991 Lincoln Town care comes into the shop.. rust POS. The owner says it needs a tuneup and the shift linkage adjusted, because it's getting poor gas mileage and the shift indicator arrow is off a gear. You tell him he's obviously just got it in the wrong gear (low), but he says he can feel all 4 shifts that it should have. Upon further inspection, there is only one thing wrong with this car that needs replacing to fix all his problems... what's the one thing wrong and why's it causing the issues?

and finally..

#3: A 1993 Explorer comes to the shop. It's got a bunch of white smoke coming from the tail pipe out the rear, and it's been shifting hard. Mike, the senior tech thinks it's gonna be an easy one part fix. Is he right? Why/why not?

Enjoy //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

my guess

#1 - one repair will not cure both problems b/c the brake lights not functioning is probably from a blown fuse and the transmission is not linked in any way to the taillights.

#2 - the driver can feel the car shift 4 times b/c the 4th time is the torque converter turning off. he's getting bad gas mileage b/c the car is running at a higher RPM and burning more fuel. the only thing that needs to get fixed is the shifter.

#3 - it might be an easy fix but my guess is that it has a blown head gasket and that there's water or some other type of fluid in the transmission. depending on the make and model it might have a bad valve body or computer.

 

[mlstrass 5,000+ posts]

#3 - just a guess - vehicle uses a vacuum shift modulator and it's pulling ****** fluid into the engine.

 

[mlstrass 5,000+ posts]

my guess#1 - one repair will not cure both problems b/c the brake lights not functioning is probably from a blown fuse and the transmission is not linked in any way to the taillights.

#2 - the driver can feel the car shift 4 times b/c the 4th time is the torque converter turning off. he's getting bad gas mileage b/c the car is running at a higher RPM and burning more fuel. the only thing that needs to get fixed is the shifter.

#3 - it might be an easy fix but my guess is that it has a blown head gasket and that there's water or some other type of fluid in the transmission. depending on the make and model it might have a bad valve body or computer.

how does a TC turn off???? Do you mean locking up?

 

[GTPAddict]

#1: A Mazda 626 that won't move comes to the shop. The automatic ***** fluid in it is black and burnt.. uh oh, smoked transmission! When the guys are pushing it into the shop they notice the brake lights don't work, either. Upon inspection all the brake light bulbs are burnt out! So, myth or fact... the smoked transmission and the burned out brake lights both have the same underlying cause and one repair will cure both??

First guess is someone has been riding the brakes, or the brake booster is holding pressure onthebrakes causing extra load on the *****. Without knowing the condition of the brakes it's hard to tell. I'll think some more about this one...

#2: A 1991 Lincoln Town care comes into the shop.. rust POS. The owner says it needs a tuneup and the shift linkage adjusted, because it's getting poor gas mileage and the shift indicator arrow is off a gear. You tell him he's obviously just got it in the wrong gear (low), but he says he can feel all 4 shifts that it should have. Upon further inspection, there is only one thing wrong with this car that needs replacing to fix all his problems... what's the one thing wrong and why's it causing the issues?

Linkage/***** is third gear? 4th shift could actually be TCC locking.

#3: A 1993 Explorer comes to the shop. It's got a bunch of white smoke coming from the tail pipe out the rear, and it's been shifting hard. Mike, the senior tech thinks it's gonna be an easy one part fix. Is he right? Why/why not?

Leaking modulator valve?

Give him this one...

1991 Chevy Van - Delay wipers and washers do not work, high and low speeds work fine. Switches test good and all related wiring is good.

Answer - open washer pump motor. The delay ckt ground through the washer pump motor

 

[ShiningBuick 10+ year member]

#3 - just a guess - vehicle uses a vacuum shift modulator and it's pulling ****** fluid into the engine.

Yep, that's it!! //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/crazy.gif.c13912c32de98515d3142759a824dae7.gif

#2.. forgot to mention, this is a Ford AOD transmission, and it doesn't have a lockup converter. It had no problems until he drove it down a very bumpy stretch of road.. hmmm.

#1.. ok ok, not one repair.. one CAUSE. Lol. The brakes ARE linked to the ***** in newer cars (like the 626).. they tell the TCC to release when applied/