I just wanted to introduce myself as the new Solara Forum Moderator.
I was pretty active in the TS forums back when I still had my Tundra, but since I had to say goodbye to my faithful friend after 5 years of service, I have a new love in my '06 (Gen 2) Solara Convertible SLE.
Since I got my new ride this last January, I've done a TON or research online and through dealers and parts folks to find out just what's available for our cars - and sadly, what's not.
So - ask me any questions you might have - PM me or share your experiences and tech finds.
*Please note: I'm not a mechanic, nor do I have access to a parts database, shop manuals or complete TSB list for each production year. You can find most of that info through the subscriber forums that's associated with your year/model from the home page after you've registered.
Hello, I am a new member and by my name, I bought a new black Solara convertible only to have birds do their nasty thing (hood, then truck at different times. I have used the recommendations of the dealer (after soap and water cleaning, McQuires scratch X, Deep Crystal Paint cleaner then Gold Class polish but that was not sucessful to remove the ghost image of the spot. They say the next step is to wet sand. I disagree and and am open to proven suggestions to avoid wet sanding and repainting
How long did the carnage remain on your hood/trunk? The longer it sits (notice I said "SITS") on your paint, the more likely it is that it will eat into it - depending on the foul perp's diet.
I'd try Meguiar's Clay Bar over the affected area first, then use their cleaner/polish and follow up with some elbow grease and a good wax. If that doesn't do the trick, then the acidity in the poopage might have eaten down into the clear coat and you will have to have a professional at a trusted body shop take a look at it.
Wet sanding and polishing doesn't mean repainting. All new (quality) paint jobs are wet sanded and polished after the final clear coat is applied. However, if the car is new, I would think there would be some kind of protection on the factory paint...??? I can't imagine it being quite that temperamental.
Soapy water and a soft brush. I personally have been using the "do-it-yourself" coin-op wash since I bought my car last Jan. I pre-soak it with the soapy water if there's any bird "surprises" on it while I scrub my wheels/tires, then attack it with the soapy brush. along with the rest of the car. I give it a good steady dousing with the Clear Coat Protectant as well - trying to keep it evenly applied and rinse with the Spot-Free rinse and it looks like new.
There is a product which I haven't yet tried but I've hear a lot of BMW owners swear by it, called "Ragg Topp" which is a spray-on treatment (like Scotch Guard I assume) and will try to get some one of these days and report back.
As I rarely put the top up these days, I hardly ever see it, but it also has dirty creases from being folded up too long, so I need to wash the car about once a month and that keeps them at bay - plus the heat from the sun warming up the wet top seems to stretch it back to showroom condition when I'm done.
My AC recently quit, so I took it to the dealership. They informed me that my AC compressor had gone out. I was quoted ~$1250 for this to be fixed. I live near DC, so I expected higher costs, but is $1250 reasonable? How much should I be paying for a new compressor and labor costs?
My car is currently at another full service repair shop where they are fixing some other misc items, but I am waiting on a quote for the compressor.
I hope you get a reasonable quote from this other mechanic... dealers will rob you! Only go to the dealer for warranty work if you can (I assume yours is out of warranty now) - but find a reputable repair shop and you'll not only save some $$ but get better work done as well. Make sure they'll guarantee their work/parts too!
My AC recently quit, so I took it to the dealership. They informed me that my AC compressor had gone out. I was quoted ~$1250 for this to be fixed. I live near DC, so I expected higher costs, but is $1250 reasonable? How much should I be paying for a new compressor and labor costs?
My car is currently at another full service repair shop where they are fixing some other misc items, but I am waiting on a quote for the compressor.
Ashley
Was $1250 the entire cost or just the parts. If it is the entire cost then that's not to bad. We were a price around $1000 to replace the AC compressor on our '96 maxima, from our local independent shop. We have been going to him for quite a few years, so I dont' think he would steer us wrong.
I hope you get a reasonable quote from this other mechanic... dealers will rob you! Only go to the dealer for warranty work if you can (I assume yours is out of warranty now) - but find a reputable repair shop and you'll not only save some $$ but get better work done as well. Make sure they'll guarantee their work/parts too!
Good luck!
Quote:
Originally Posted by userw5
Was $1250 the entire cost or just the parts. If it is the entire cost then that's not to bad. We were a price around $1000 to replace the AC compressor on our '96 maxima, from our local independent shop. We have been going to him for quite a few years, so I dont' think he would steer us wrong.
Thanks for the quick responses, Painter & W5! My car is getting a new AC compressor TODAY for $770 (parts & labor). The dealership quote was for parts and labor as well, but I thought $1250 was a too high. My car is out of warranty (107,000 mi), but the repair shop warranty is 12 mo or 12,000 mi.
I will definitely use this forum in the future for car questions!
Thanks again.
Okay Jeff.... what's THIS? "DocJohn's Vacuum Mod (disconnected battery to reboot ECM)"
I found it on your links... are you simply crediting the physician "John" with the generic act of battery disconnection to reboot as an important step when modding these cars? (Or is there something deeper, a more sinister and performance enhancing trick to the Doc's vacuum mod that I need to perform! )
...if so, how do I do it?
(I wonder if it is a mute mod with a CP-e?.... unless the mod is, indeed, just the battery disconnect/reset operation....)
Thanks!
- crisp
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Last edited by crisp; 09-17-2006 at 11:42 AM.
Reason: post-posting-review-precipitated-addendum....
"Doc John" (not to be confused with the musician Doctor John) is the guy who came up with this...
It's a way to mod the OEM airbox to keep the first butterfly valve open all the time and eliminate some of the hesitation on acceleration. Here's the DIY he posted online:
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