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RockAuto May Newsletter
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Another Happy Customer!
Another Happy Customer!

I have been using RockAuto for almost 20 years. Hard to find parts are available if you have an older vehicle. Also, the options of price and brand are very important to me. Quick service, and very good tracking reports.

Bob in New Jersey


Upcoming Events
Upcoming Events

Need goody bag items and a gift certificate for your show? RockAuto can help! Email marketing@rockauto.com for more information.

24 Raptors vs The Dragon
Fontana Dam, NC Email
May
24 Spud City Rama-Lama Autorama
Stevens Point, WI Email
May
25 Route 66 Patriotfest Car Show
Tulsa, OK Email
May
26 Boone Garage Art Car Show
Boone, IA Email
May
26 25th Annual Azalea Festival Car Show
Brookings Oregon, OR Email
May
26 Memorial Day Car Show
Severn, MD Email
May
27 38th Annual Memorial Day Car Show 2019
Palestine, IL Email
May
30 Throggs Neck Classic Car Cruise
Bronx, NY Email
May
30 Celebrate Waupun Car Show
Waupun, WI Email
May
31 Hops & Hot Rods
Fayetteville, NC Email
May
31 VOCM Bar Harbour Tour 2019
Bar Harbor, ME Email
May
1 EuroBrit Auto & Bike Expo
Madison, AL Email
June
1 Covington Car Show in the Park
Covington, TN Email
June
1 Huntington Beach Concours d'Elegance
Huntington Beach, CA Email
June
2 British V8 2019
Wytheville, VA Email
June
2 The British Return to Fort Meigs
Perrysburg, OH Email
June
5 Cary Cruise Nights
Cary, IL Email
June
7 67th Annual Rallye Glenwood Springs
Glenwwod Springs, CO Email
June
7 Millgate Cruise Nights
Burlington, WI Email
June
8 Tri-County Cruisers Cruis-In
Oakley, KS Email
June
9 38th Annual Super Street Sunday
Maumee, OH Email
June
9 2019 Annual TCTC Car Show
Jefferson Hills, PA Email
June
9 San Marino Motor Classic
San Marino, CA Email
June
13 31st Annual Rocky Mountain Mustang Roundup
Steamboat Springs, CO Email
June
13 12 Annual Heartland Nova Reunion
Rock Island, IL Email
June
14 29th Annual Heartland Cruise Car Show
Weatherford, OK Email
June
SKP Replacement Parts
See what we have from SKP

SKP offers a huge variety of quality replacement auto parts for a fraction of the price of other brands. Their precision manufacturing systems, rigorous testing standards and ISO 9001 certification ensure each SKP part matches or is better than OE specifications. Testing of metal alloy parts includes tensile strength, brittleness, 3D structural integrity and salt spray resistance, to guarantee the SKP parts will deliver the ultimate in safety and long term durability.

You will find SKP parts throughout the RockAuto.com catalog. Need a Mass Air Flow Sensor for your 2003 Buick Lesabre? Is the wiring harness Trailer Connector on your 2019 Ford F-150 damaged? Is it time to refresh the steering on your 1984 Buick Skylark with new Tie Rod Ends? Does your leaky 2004 Dodge Grand Caravan need a new Oil Pan? Need new Motor Mounts to keep the engine under the hood of your 1969 Chevrolet Camaro? Do you want a completely new Carburetor with beautiful chrome intakes for your 1955 Volkswagen Beetle?

Find SKP parts for your specific cars and trucks in a wide range of categories, from "Belt Drive" to "Cooling System" to "Engine" to “Suspension” and more, all at the reliably low prices you expect from RockAuto.com.

SKP
Forum of the Month

ClassicOldsmobile.com is a large and friendly online community and resource for Oldsmobile owners and enthusiasts. Get together to discuss anything related to Oldsmobiles. Cutlass, 442, Aurora, vintage models, Toronado, Firenza, Omega...all Oldsmobile models are well represented in this comprehensive and informative website.

If you are the administrator or member of a forum and you would like to see your website featured in an upcoming newsletter and receive a discount code to share with your members, contact marketing@rockauto.com.

Repair Mistakes & Blunders
Repair Mistakes & Blunders

In 1978, I decided I would teach myself auto maintenance and repair by buying an old sports car. After a quick search, I found a guy selling two 1966 Sunbeam Alpines. One was a "driver" and the other was a solid parts car. I bought the pair for $600, rented an engine lift and carefully began following the steps in the workshop manual to remove the engine and transmission out of one car to install into the other. I did the work over a weekend, added fresh fluids and it fired right up! I was very proud of myself.

The next day I ran into a mechanic I knew and proudly told him about my weekend.

“What kind of oil did you put in the transmission?” the mechanic asked.

“Gear oil.” I replied.

“No good. That is too thick. Your transmission needs motor oil.”

So, I drained out the two quarts of fresh gear oil, replaced it with motor oil and reported back to my friend.

“What grade oil did you use?”

“10w-40.”

“No good. You need to use 30wt.”

So, out went the fresh 10w-40; in went 30wt. I checked back in.

“Did you use non-detergent oil?”

“What kind of oil? Ahhhhhhh!!!"

After following the engine/transmission removal and replacement instructions so carefully, I could have avoided all of that by reading just a little more of the manual. But, on the positive front, I am still driving that same car 41 years later.

Jim in New York

Tell us about your most infamous auto repair blunder or unconventional fix. Use your woe to help others avoid similar mistakes or share off-the-wall solutions that worked (at least for a while!). Please email your story to flamur@rockauto.com. Include your mailing address and if you would like a RockAuto T-Shirt (please let us know your shirt size) or Hat if we publish your story. See the T-Shirts and Hats under Tools & Universal Parts in the catalog. The story will be credited using only your first name and your vague geographic location (state, province, country, continent, etc.) so you can remain semi-anonymous!

Automotive Trivia
Automotive Trivia

Trico Group makes Trico Wiper Blades. What other famous brand parts are now part of Trico Group?

A. Airtex and Carter Fuel Pumps
B. Autolite Spark Plugs and Anco Wiper Blades
C. Strongarm Lift Supports and Fram Filters
D. All the above

Answer below

Fuel Pump Drive Modules
Tom's Story

Most late-model fuel injection systems do not have a return line to send excess fuel back to the fuel tank. Computers regulate voltage to the fuel pump so only the fuel that is needed is sent up to the engine. Many vehicles have a dedicated box of electronics called a Fuel Pump Drive Module or Fuel Injector Drive Module to perform this task. When the module starts to fail, the symptoms are similar to a failing fuel pump: no start, stalling and fuel injection related trouble codes.

Typical Fuel Pump Drive Module
Typical OE Fuel Pump Drive Module

When replacing the fuel pump drive module, the first challenge is often finding its location (helpful Repair Manuals are under "Literature" in the RockAuto.com catalog). The module's location may also have contributed to its demise. The fuel pump drive module on my daughter's 2005 Ford Mustang is safely nestled in the spare tire well in the trunk. The module is next to the spare tire on the Ford F-150 pickup, but this time the spare tire and module are hanging underneath the truck's bed, exposed to water, road salt, dirt, marauding rodents and other hazards.

OE fuel pump drive modules mounted on top of the fuel tank or underneath the vehicle are especially failure prone. Bolt a module's aluminum housing tight against a vehicle's steel frame and then periodically douse everything with salty water and corrosion damage will occur. Even pinhole leaks in the housing can let in enough water and debris to destroy the module.

Drive Module Relocation Kit
Drive Module Relocation Kit

The replacement fuel pump drive modules RockAuto.com carries often include innovations that make the modules last longer. Manufacturers may add bushings or brackets to separate dissimilar metals like aluminum and steel. They may use new composites, coatings and sealers to make a more weatherproof module housing. Better gaskets and fasteners may help keep moisture out of electrical connectors.

Sometimes it is possible to find a completely new mounting location. RockAuto has a Fuel Pump Drive Module Relocation Kit for GM's 6.5L diesel. The fuel pump drive module on the 6.5L is mounted in an extremely hot and inaccessible spot under the intake manifold. Unplug the old module and leave it to rest in peace under the manifold. Plug in the relocation kit's new wiring harness and choose a more convenient place under the hood to mount the new fuel pump drive module. Less heat will help the new module last much longer.

Find Fuel Pump Drive Modules/Fuel Injector Drive Modules for specific vehicles under "Fuel & Air" in the RockAuto.com catalog.

Tom Taylor,
RockAuto.com

To read more of Toms articles, click this link and choose from story titles on the Newsletter Archives page.

Gregory's 1998 Lexus LS400
Gregory's 1998 Lexus LS400

I recently purchased this 1998 Lexus LS400 for a very reasonable price. The car had 157,000 miles on it and definitely had its share of issues. The seller admitted that maintenance had been neglected over the years, and he was willing to part with it since he did not want to invest the time or money required to keep the vehicle going.

The biggest item that needed to be addressed was the timing belt. Timing belt replacement is suggested at 90k miles or 10 years, whichever comes first. This Lexus was 67k miles overdue and double the age limit for replacement! At this point, every mile driven was edging closer and closer to disaster since this particular vehicle has an interference engine.

After I purchased the car, I drove it home and crossed my fingers that the timing belt would be OK for at least a little longer. I parked the car and took the time to make a list of everything I would need to do the job right. In the end, I ordered the parts from RockAuto.com to fix this luxury barge and bring it back to its former glory.

Some of the parts include: timing belt and water pump kit, camshaft and crankshaft seals, valve cover gaskets and grommets, belts, tensioner and idler pulleys, radiator and hoses, spark plugs, axle seal, power steering pump, alternator (power steering pump leak caused the alternator failure) and more.

When I took the engine apart, I was shocked. I have serviced many timing belts over the years, and this belt was in the worst condition I had ever seen. It had deep cracks on the back side of the belt across every belt cog. Some of the cracks permeated all the way down to the fiber webbing inside of the belt. To say it was on borrowed time is an understatement.

These LS400s are well known to go 400,000 miles as long as basic maintenance is done, and I believe I saved this one from the junkyard. If the vehicle would have continued to run without service, the timing belt would have eventually snapped and ruined the engine. The cost of a replacement engine would likely have exceeded the vehicle's value and it would have been doomed to the junkyard.

After fixing all the issues, replacing necessary parts, and giving it a full detail, it has been my reliable daily driver, and I see no end in sight. Thank you RockAuto for keeping this old Lexus going for years to come.

Gregory in Iowa

Share Your Hard Work
Do you purchase parts from RockAuto? If so, RockAuto would like to give you the opportunity to have your car or truck possibly featured in one (or occasionally more) of our publications such as the monthly newsletter, collector magnets, RockAuto social media or other commercial use. New, old, import, domestic, daily driver, trailer queen, classic, antique, we want to see them all! Please email flamur@RockAuto.com with your vehicles history, interesting details, your favorite images (tips for taking pictures of your car) and what parts from RockAuto you have used.

Automotive Trivia Answer
Automotive Trivia

Trico Group makes Trico Wiper Blades. What other famous brand parts are now part of Trico Group?

A. Airtex and Carter Fuel Pumps
B. Autolite Spark Plugs and Anco Wiper Blades
C. Strongarm Lift Supports and Fram Filters
Answer: D. All the above

Back up to trivia question