Father’s Day is rapidly approaching. Have you thought about what to get your "Do-It-Yourselfer" dad? From oil and filters to towing and hauling to essential garage supplies and tools, here are a few ideas from the RockAuto catalog!

Maintenance Parts: Get him the Oil and Filters he needs to change the oil in his daily driver, motorcycle or lawn mower. Throw in the Gear Oil he needs for the ATV as well. (Find the correct Engine Oil and Filter for his specific vehicle under “Engine." All Oil, Transmission Fluid, and Gear Oil can also be found listed under the “Tools & Universal Parts” tab.) Take advantage of the Mobil manufacturer rebate and save up to $30 on Mobil 1 Engine Oil at RockAuto.com through September 30, 2021.

Accessories: Does the correct ball size for the boat, trailer, camper, etc. always seem to go missing? Gift him a multi-ball mount so he has the right size every time. Add extra vision when towing or hauling with an Outside Mirror Extender.

Supplies and Tools: The constant pressure hose clamps in modern cars can be challenging. Flexible Hose Clamp Pliers will make replacement easier. Help tackle the toughest grease, grime, stains and bacteria with Multi-Purpose Cleaner/Degreaser.

Let Dad Choose: Not sure which parts or tools your dad needs now or down the road? A RockAuto Gift Certificate, available for any amount, will let your car enthusiast choose the parts or tools he needs.

LandRoverWorld.org is an extensive resource and a large community of Land Rover owners and enthusiasts. This forum is active with friendly members sharing information on all aspects of these SUVs; from a gallery of photos and videos of Rovers doing Rover things, to an entire section dedicated to thorough "how to" articles. All models of the original luxury SUV are well represented here; from vintage Series trucks, to the Discovery and newest Defender.

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.

Back in 1975, I decided to tune up my dad's awesome 1969 Oldsmobile 442. I was 17 and just learning how to work on cars. The 442 was running great, but I decided it needed new points, plugs and a condenser. Everything worked great after the tune up UNTIL I reached cruising speed around 45 mph, when the engine would start misfiring and losing power. The engine would run fine again after slowing down/reducing rpm.

It had to be starving for fuel...so I replaced the fuel pump. Same problem. I dropped the fuel tank and took a look at the sock on the pick-up tube - clean as a whistle. I got my hands on a remanufactured Quadrajet carburetor, bolted it on...same problem. I spent weeks and lots of money on this problem.

My dad was not a car guy but very practical. I still remember him asking me, "What was the first thing you did before all these problems started?" I ignored him of course because I was the mechanic! But he already knew the answer. He popped the distributor cap and said, "There's your problem." I looked very carefully, and the condenser wire was cut into and frayed, but there was nothing touching it to cut it. That is when I learned about timing advance and centrifugal weights. At a higher rpm, the weights moved outward to advance the timing and cut into the ill-placed condenser wire and shorted out the points.

All he did was push the wire down and done. No more interference. The cheapest and quickest fix ever! He was always practical.

Bill in New Jersey

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 RockAuto 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!

Why are old stepside pickups' steel fuel tanks less likely to corrode?

A. The fuel tank had to be installed before the pickup's frame went through the paint shop. The fuel tank was primed/painted along with the frame.
B. Chromium, copper, zinc and other preservatives leach from the wood pickup bed onto the fuel tank, protecting it.
C. The fuel tank is sheltered inside the truck's cab behind the seat.

Answer below

Do not avoid buying a crossover utility vehicle (CUV) because of concern about the complexity of maintaining separate front and rear windshield washer systems. As my teenage daughter happily discovered after clipping a new windshield washer pump into her 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe's windshield washer fluid reservoir, just one pump handles cleaning both the front windshield and the rear window. A CUV's rear washer "system" might not be much more than a long piece of hose ending in a nozzle. Many full-size SUVs and minivans use a single pump for both the front and rear windows as well.

These pumps have two outlet nipples; for the hoses running to the front and rear glass. Their electrical connectors are typically simple, with only two or three terminals. How does the pump know which window the driver wants washed? My daughter and I dissected her Santa Fe's old windshield washer pump to find out!

The Santa Fe's original-equipment pump failed because its electric motor had shorted out, partially melting and fusing with its plastic housing. As can be seen in the photo, the electric motor spins an impeller. The motor and impeller spin clockwise to send washer fluid to one outlet and spin counter-clockwise to direct fluid to the other outlet. A simple valve, in this case just a flexible silicone flap (blue-green in photo), is pushed to block one fluid outlet or the other depending on which direction the washer fluid is coming from. The fluid pushes the flap one way when the electric motor is polarized to spin the impeller clockwise and pushes the flap the other way when the impeller is spinning counter-clockwise.

This is an amazingly simple concept that must have taken a lot of careful design, testing and other hard work to perfect. The fluid passages have to be just the right size, the valve flap has to have the correct thickness to ensure flexibility and so on. I now have even greater respect for windshield washer pump engineers!

Look under "Wiper & Washer" in the RockAuto.com catalog to see the windshield washer pumps for specific vehicles. You will likely be pleased to discover that at RockAuto.com the dual-outlet windshield washer pump for a CUV does not cost much, if any more than a single-outlet pump for a car.

Tom Taylor,
RockAuto.com

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

My dad bought this Ford F150 new in 1979 for $6,300. I still remember the day he brought it home when I was eight. All the neighborhood kids got to jump in the back and ride around the block in it. It was given to me in 1990, and I drove it until 1997 when it was sentenced to a life of hard labor on our farm. When I rescued it from the farm, the roof was caved in where a pine tree fell on it, the bed was mangled from years of gathering firewood, it was completely rusted through, and a stick served as a stop leak plug for the radiator.

After almost five years and a frame off restoration, she is back on the road and driven weekly.

It is hard to remember all the parts I bought from RockAuto over the course of five years but they include belts, hoses, wiper motor, blower motor, electrical parts, all new brake parts, front grille insert, bushings, door parts, ignition, window regulators, and a radiator without a stick in it.

Thanks!
Chris in North Carolina (RockAuto customer for over five years)

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 the vehicle history, interesting details, your favorite images (tips for taking pictures of your car) and what parts from RockAuto you have used.

Why are old stepside pickups' steel fuel tanks less likely to corrode?

A. The fuel tank had to be installed before the pickup's frame went through the paint shop. The fuel tank was primed/painted along with the frame.
B. Chromium, copper, zinc and other preservatives leach from the wood pickup bed onto the fuel tank, protecting it.
Answer: C. The fuel tank is sheltered inside the truck's cab behind the seat.

Back up to trivia question