Hammer Time: The Consequences of Self-Delusion

by Steven Lang

Updated: May 16th, 2014 Published: May 16th, 2012

hammer time the consequences of self delusion

Like many politicians during their recreational moments, cars can make some unique and funny noises once they experience the stresses of the open road.

Some of them are quite normal such as the ‘vroom’ of the engine. The ‘roar’ of the tire, and the ‘squeaky squeaky’ of a worn suspension over a series of bumps.

But what about the ‘clunk’ of loose steering components? Or the metallic ‘clanging’ of a brake system well past it’s maintenance time?

The majority of drivers simply like to delay the inevitable.

At the auto auctions we usually see two versions of this. Either you get the all too expensive repairs that are already due such as timing belts and brake systems. Or you have the rolling time bomb of sinister vehicular neglect where it seems like nearly every fluid and metallic component has undergone excessive stress. The first you fix. The other you recycle at another auction or, if you like it enough, you make it your daily driver. With the understanding that the money you’re spending is not going back in your pocket anytime soon.

I’m sure none of you have ever delayed maintenance to the nth degree. Well, let me rephrase that. I’m sure every single one of you, including this author, have delayed maintenance of some sort. I have this nasty habit of extending oil intervals to every 10,000 miles on my 1st gen Insight. I figure the synthetic oil and top quality filters I use can take it to that level. They advertise them for that purpose after all.

But heck. I’ve also had a cracked windshield. A couple of blown fuses. Worn tires. Brakes that were squeaking like a hummingbird on a caffeine high. In my world maintenance is usually tied to the ease of maintaining the vehicle, and my free time. That’s one of the reasons why my old 1994 Camry was always in tip-top shape. While the minivans and full-sized vans I’ve had rarely get any TLC from me.

How about you? Have you ever tried to procrastinate on the here and now? Or even worse… pass the buck to the next car buying Joe? I’m sure you haven’t. But write about it anyway.

Steven Lang

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3 of 59 comments

Slow_Joe_Crow on May 16, 2012

I'm usually OK about maintenance, but sometimes I get surprised. A few years back I jacked up my 84 Jetta to replace the boot over the shift linkage and discovered the left front tire's inner shoulder had been cut to the cords by something stuck in the wheel well. Fortunately I had a good full size spare and whatever had done the damage had fallen out.

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Sadicnd on May 17, 2012

1998 Nissan Maxima, Driven 50K kms in roughly 1.5 years. I've changed oil religiously. The shocks and some bushings are tired, and there is always a metallic grungy clunk when I turn the wheel all the way to the left and try to accelerate. Haven't been able to figure that out. Anyone have any idea? Being on a student budget, the shocks would have to wait.

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- 18726543 on May 17, 2012
  
  Might be worth checking the steering stop on the knuckle. Nissan used to put a bolt on the knuckle that looks like it has a thick, plastic head. The head contacts a flat part on the control arm when the wheel is turned to full lock and without a nice hefty coat of white lithium grease (or something similar) they tend to make a metalic grinding noise when the wheels are turned and the suspension travels (as in an acceleration event). This is easy and almost free to fix so start there.
  
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