Reader Question My girlfriend drove me home the other night in my 1996 Cadillac Deville. While driving, she adjusted the mirror and the piece or bar holding the mirror to the windshield, broke clean.

Let me tell you that I am a college student with little money. I do not need a new mirror. I need a new bracket to connect to the windshield. I checked online and I have not seen any bracket to buy just really expensive mirrors.

Do you know if the mirror and bracket is one-piece or two-piece? Could you let me know what I should do in order to fix this mirror/bracket problem?

Morris

Hey Morris,

If the mirror came unglued from the windshield (meaning there is nothing on the windshield anymore), you can have your mechanic re-glue it for you. Do not waste your time with those store bought mirror glue kits, as they do not work.

If there is a metal piece still attached to the windshield, the setscrew that holds the mirror to the metal foot might have come loose or fallen out.

If a part of the mirror actually broke off and the metal foot is still in place on the windshield…then you might visit your local junk yard for a cheap replacement.

Blessings,
Austin Davis

Reader Question:

Austin, I need a water pump for my BMW 325 I, and a new one is expensive for me, but a used one seems very cheap and within my budget. What is your opinion on used parts?
Thanks in advance,
Chuck

Dear Chuck,

Welcome to the world of expensive European car repair. You do ask a good question though, and this is something most people really don’t give much consideration to. The salvage yard, or junk yard as they once were called, can be a great place to pick up a deal on a slightly-used replacement part.

In the body business, the term for a “used salvage yard part” is called Quality Replacement Part (QRP), or Like Kind Quality (LKQ). Both terms refer to a used part out of a junk yard, but to the insurance company, QRP sounds a heck of a lot more professional than “used junk yard part.”

The salvage yard business has come a long way in the last few years. Many of them use computer databases to inventory available parts. The vehicles are brought in, and most of them are pre-stripped and the parts stored in like lots (i.e., fenders). Digging through heaps of rusty old cars is a thing of the past. Finding a part in a modern salvage yard is like shopping in any other retail store. In most cases, the fast-moving, popular parts like radiators, alternators, and seats are ready-to-go on display shelves.

The salvage yards are now linked together by a telephone system called the Hot Line. When you need a part, contact a salvage yard near you to check their inventory. If they don’t have the part, ask them to “run it on the Hot Line.” They can literally get you information about available parts at other salvage yards within seconds. The Hot Line can save you hours of frustration calling around yourself. When a salvage dealer finds a part for me on the Hot Line, I always ask him what he would have charged me for the part if he had it in stock. That way I know what ballpark amount I should expect to pay from another dealer.

You will probably pay about half the price of a new part. Everything is negotiable to an extent, so you are welcome to try to barter…but always expect to pay cash. If it is an item like a seat that is only in “fair” condition, you may be able to talk down the price even more. Word of warning: if at all possible, take the old part with you to the salvage yard to make sure they match. Sometimes parts don’t get tagged properly, and what they think will fit your car doesn’t fit your car. Returns are almost always exchange only-no refunds. The standard poster you will see in the salvage yard says, “If the part you bought from us doesn’t fix the problem…you now have a spare.”

All that said…now it’s time to rain on your parade. I would NOT buy a used water pump from a salvage yard. To install the pump is very time consuming (labor intensive), and with any used part, there is too much of a chance that there may be a defect in the part or that it doesn’t work up to par. The gaskets and seals on a water pump can tear when they take it off the car for salvage, and the likelihood for future failure is pretty high.

I also wouldn’t recommend buying second-hand brake system parts for safety reasons. Any labor intensive jobs or repairs dealing with safety issues are not good candidates for QRP. I would however recommend using QRP for “hard parts” such as fenders, hoods, grills, and other non-mechanical parts that don’t move much and are likely to be in good condition. You can also more easily assess the condition of these parts without really knowing a lot about cars, saving yourself the possibility of failure after installation. Another good candidate for QRP is expensive electronic equipment that is not labor-intensive to replace, like radios, computers, and sensors.

Reader Question: 
I have a 1999 Mazda Miata with a blown engine. It is a leased vehicle with a year left on the lease period. My wife was driving when she noticed engine noise. She pulled in to a Jiffy Lube where they added oil and said she could drive home but should have it checked. Two blocks down the road the engine froze up on her. I had it towed to the Mazda dealership and, upon inspection, they notified me that an engine replacement would be necessary (cost $5800). Since I had just checked the oil a week ago, I asked how this happened. They said that they could not determine the cause without tearing down the engine, at considerable additional cost to me.

My only strategy is to contact other resources for a less expensive rebuilt engine, but I wonder if I am missing some other option. I asked them if they had checked for any open recalls related to this problem, and they said that there were none. Not a good situation, and I guess I’m at the grasping at straws stage. Any advice? Thank You, Bob Wilson

Dear Bob,

There is no such law “requiring” engine replacement at a certain mileage. That is a urban myth propagated by importers and car owners who simply don’t know or understand the situation in Japan. The high taxes (annually assessed), insurance premiums, gas costs, and especially the safety inspection/registration (occurs biennial) combine to keep turnover of vehicles high.

For example, the Safety inspection for your typical car (say Camry/Accord type) can typically cost $2,000….each time! New vehicles have a 3 year grace period before they are required to submit for the Safety Inspection. In other words, for a 10 year old car, you will have already paid over $8,000, in just Safety Inspection fees! Don’t forget, gas over in Japan is also typically four times the cost of here in the U.S. Mileage is kept low on the vehicles as EVERYONE (unless your fabulously rich and patient) uses alternative transportation to get around. Most folks use the trains for local and medium distance traveling/commuting.

Far distances are taken by airplane and local transportation done by either bicycle or bus. In that society, your car tends to be a status symbol more than anything else. I hope this sheds a little more light for you!

Visit the Soko America Website for for great deals on Japanese motors and transmissions. Soshinusa.com

Hopefully you might find the time to visit and inspect the motor and the condition of the car it came out of before you purchase. You might even be able to start and at least listen to the engine to make sure it doesn’t make noise or have any obvious smoke bellowing from the tail pipe while you are at the salvage yard. It will be well worth a 10 percent markup to hold the repair shop liable for the entire job by their warranty policy. The last motor job I did like this was on a Toyota 4Runner.

A fast lube place forgot to put oil in the engine after they drained the old oil out, and my customer was in the same boat you’re floating in now. She paid the lube center to change her oil, so they paid for her new engine, but I am afraid they are not liable in your case. Call around and see what you find…remember junk yards LOVE cash…and CASH talks, so feel free to negotiate.

• Check the under-hood fluids regularly
• Try to park in the same spot to help identify any fluid leaks
• Change the oil and filter every 3,000 miles
• Stop the engine immediately when noise or overheating is occurring
• When possible, leave your vehicle at a regular repair shop for oil changes so they have time to look over the car for potential problems on a regular basis.