ThrottleHolic

Why Take Your Car to the Mechanic When You Can Simpy DIY?

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OBD II Bluetooth Scanners & Readers: How Reliable?

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It's usually said that when/if something is cheap, there's a good reason for it. But, does that logic apply to OBD II Bluetooth scanners and code readers? Should the cheaper-than-usual price tags of the code readers and scanners push you away to more traditional (read: wired) options or should you g...

The 9 Most Useless Features Car Makers Charge You For

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In 2024 alone, a staggering 85.12 million brand-new vehicles were sold worldwide. The owners of these vehicles took delivery of them and were happy to get new, reliable means of transport to go about their daily business. What these buyers didn't know, however, was that the prices they paid, on ...

10 Thoughtful Valentine Gift Ideas for a Mechanic or DIYer

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Mechanics and auto DIYers are some of the hardest working fellows you can find anywhere in the world today. Unfortunately, most are underappreciated and underpaid. This is why, this Valentine season, I brought out my list of the 10 (most) thoughtful Valentine's Gift ideas for a mechanic or DIYer.&nb...

How to Test Your Alternator Easily (Without a Voltmeter)

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The easiest way to test your alternator without a multimeter (or voltmeter) is to remove one of your starter battery cables when the engine is running. If the engine stalls, you're likely dealing with a bad alternator. If on the other hand, nothing happens (and the engine continues to run just f...

Foxwell NT201 Review: A Budget Code Reader Ladies Love!

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When my little daughter pointed at the brightly colored orange OBD II code reader on Amazon as I casually browsed through, looking for the next mechanic find to make my auto DIY side career easier, I immediately knew that this Foxwell NT201 review would happen sooner, rather than later. The 'iss...

I Ditched Mobil 1 EP for Castrol EP & This IMMEDIATELY Happened

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I've never been completely satisfied with engine oils: since they're the lifeblood of every ICE, I've always been on the hunt for brands that serve better (or, promise to). And, this did not start with Mobil 1 or Castrol Edge. The first brand of engine oil I used was Mobil XHP (conventional min...

Want Luxury And Reliability? Buy & Drive This Marque

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I'll start this article with a personal confession: I wasn't always interested in a vehicle's luxury and reliability. Pure luxury? Maybe - but only up to a point. But reliability? I always made the type of face that spells: 'Now, what's that?' My father's first ride was a Peugeot 504 - and that ...

Bank 2 Sensor 2: Upstream or Downstream in an Engine?

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Fewer things are simpler than the position of bank 2 sensor 2 on an engine. Yet, as simple as this is, it also remains one of the things that can cause the greatest headaches for vehicle owners, especially those new to using OBD II code readers or those generally new to playing with an engine. ...

Bank 2 Sensor 1: Upstream or Downstream in an Engine?

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One of the very easy (but wild-sounding) things your portable code reader will ever relay to you is an issue to the effect that 'bank 2 sensor 1' needs attention.   Without an appreciation of where bank 2 of an engine is (and whether the second sensor on that bank is upstream or downstream)...

Bank 1 Sensor 2: Upstream or Downstream in an Engine?

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There's no way you won't begin sweating if your OBD II code reader indicates a challenge with one of your vehicle's sensors and simply tags it 'bank 1 sensor 2'. This is particularly true if you're a new car owner. The challenge will certainly take another dimension if you have no idea what 'ups...