Questions and answers from the ‘Car Doctor’
Q. My sister has a new Toyota RAV4 hybrid. This is her first hybrid; however, she has driven RAV4s for several years. She drives the car every day, several times a day to many locations. She recently a had problem with the lack of sound when locking the doors She took the car to her Toyota dealer, and they discovered $350 in rodent damage to these wires. As I noted she has driven a RAV4 for a number of years and has never had such an issue. Her other car, which happens to be parked outdoors, did not have any rodent damage. Is there something about the coating on the wires in her new RAV4 hybrid that attracts the mice? If so, has a Toyota made a change. This damage was not covered by the warranty.
A. This is a common issue as the weather gets colder, rodents are looking for a warm place to call home. In many vehicles today, manufacturers are using soy-based materials that are more environmentally friendly than petroleum-based products that have been used in the past. It has also been noted by some experts that the soy-based wire insulation and foam may be tastier than the petroleum products, something I can neither confirm nor deny. I was also talking with an engineer recently that told me, that soy-based materials have no food value and shouldn’t attract rodents. In her opinion the increased number of rodent incidents are based on climate change and population increase. If you sister continues to park in the garage remove anything that could attract mice such as water, bird or pet food and block any opening to outdoors. Readers and listeners have told me about successful use of some repellants such a Rodent Sherriff or Shake-Away, oil of spearmint and even dryer sheets.
Q. My Toyota Tacoma recently had a dead battery. Once I started the Tacoma, I left the other car running in an attempt to charge the battery quicker. My mechanic said there was no problem doing it this way. After all of this, I ended up replacing the battery. After I replaced the battery, the truck developed an acceleration problem that resembled fuel deprivation in all gears. I immediately went back to my mechanic, and he found several trouble codes and mentioned the connections could have been cleaner. Here is my question the truck ran fine before the battery situation, was this a result of charging the battery or replacing it without a memory saving device? Other than the codes being cleared and the positive cable and clamp cleaned he didn’t do anything other than drive the truck, in fact he didn’t even charge me for looking at it.
A. It sounds like you have a good honest repair shop. When changing a battery without using some sort of memory saver, in some vehicles the computer will go through a re-learn until the vehicle runs normally. In many cases after a new battery is installed, the engine will start hard, then stall. Next the engine will start right up, but idle poorly, after a few minutes sometimes longer the engine will run normally. I believe the issue was the poor battery connections coupled with the computer needing to relearn the basic operations.
Q. I have a 2010 Hyundai Elantra Touring GLS with 72,300 miles on it. My Hyundai dealer says my timing belt replacement should have been done at 60.000 miles. The official Hyundai site says 90,000 miles. Which is correct?
A. Hyundai in their service manual states that under normal service conditions the timing belt should be replaced at 90,000 miles. If the vehicle is driven in severe conditions, which Hyundai characterizes as extensive idling, driving in rough, dusty and salty roads, driving in heavy traffic over 90 degrees, replace the timing belt at 60,000 miles. If this were my car and I planned on keeping it a few more years-based on the fact it is 12 years old, I would replace the timing belt for worry free driving.
Q. I have a 2016 Mazda CX-3 and the air conditioner quit working. The repair was covered under warranty some sort of extended warranty. Should I be concerned that the part failed and the replacement will also fail? Should I consider trading the car after winter? By the way what do you think of the new Mazda electric car the MX-30?
A. At this point I would just chalk up the repair as a defective part. Mazda has been making some very dependable cars lately. Unless you are seeing other issues with your vehicle, I would just drive it and enjoy it. Regarding the battery electric MX-30 it is currently only available in California although I did evaluate one and found it to be a bit of a mixed bag. It is cute, with a comfortable functional although somewhat funky interior. The ride was firm, and over poorly maintained roads bordered on uncomfortable. Acceleration from the electric motor was quite good but to me the range is the issue. Currently the MX-30 only has about 100mile range. This is fine for around town, but I couldn’t drive to work and home without a recharge.
Q. I was listening to your radio program and hear you talk about electric cars quite a bit. Recharging is always the problem, when will we able to pull into a building and do a quick battery swap? Maybe if this could be done in five or ten minutes it would help improve electric vehicle sales, especially for those of us who live in an apartment and don’t have onsite charging.
A. I have seen quick battery swaps being performed in Asia so it is certainly possible. The video that I watched was similar to going to a quick lube or a car wash. If fact the driver never got out of the car. Other developments coming are inductive charging where a charging cable is imbedded in the roadway and charges the car while driving. Even though electric cars have been around since the turn of the last century, there was no real change in the technology until about 10 years ago. The next 10 years should even be more exciting.