Blog 18: 2-Hour Meeting Answer #3

1) What is the most important factor in maintaining the efficiency of an automobile?

2) My third answer is, you have to know your vehicle.

3) It's one thing to know how your car works. It's a completely different thing to know your car.
Fact: You don't have to be a mechanic to know your car.
Ex: Know what noises your car usually makes, if any, and what noises seem unusual.

4) My mentor and certified mechanic, Jorge Ramos.

5) What I want to do next is get in the car of every customer and listen to what noises the car is making before we fix them and what noises the car makes after we fix them. I want to do this and then ask the customer about it to see if they know their car and if they don't, I want to ask how often their car breaks down. The reason for this is to justify my answer even more.

Blog 17: 4th Interview Questions

1) What is the most important factor in extending the mechanical life of an automobile?
2) What is the worst thing that can happen if you don't change your engine oil when you should?
3) How do automatic and manual transmission oils differ?
4) What is the most difficult part of an engine to take apart? Why?
5) What is the worst that can happen if you don't tighten the cylinder head bolts in the engine, in the order that they're supposed to be?
6) What is the primary function of the racket arms?
7) What effects can a gas leak have on a car?
8) What is the best way to tell if you car has a gas leak without going to the mechanic?
9) What would you say is the most important part of the exhaust emissions system?
10) What effects does a faulty catalytic converter have on a car?
11) What would you say is more important in a car, the shocks or the struts? Why?
12) Do you think that a car will have more resistance when it's shocks and struts are wet or not? Why?
13) What are some reasons that the oxygen sensor is not working properly?
14) Can a car function properly without the body idol? Why?
15) What would you say is the most important sensor in a car?
16) If the OBDII sensor in a car doesn't work, what is the first thing that you should do to figure out what the problem of the car is?
17) What are some of the main reasons a car's check engine light would go off?
18) What is the worst thing that can happen if you use a higher than required octane for your car?
19) Is it bad if a car's manifold vacuum reads higher than the recommended 18-20 in-Hg?
20) Do you prefer to have a longer mechanical life for your car or better efficiency? Why?

It's Only 11:30

So, we had a really funny experience today. The story goes like this: I get to the shop and help Carlos and Victor open up because Jorge was home sick. We have a cup of coffee and a sweet bread for a light breakfast, then get to work. Somewhere throughout the day, Carlos asks Victor if he's hungry and wants lunch. Victor looks up at the clock hanging on the wall and says, "It's only 11:30, wait for it it to be later." So we keep working. Some time goes by and Carlos tells Victor, "I'm really hungry, should we get lunch?" and Victor looks up at the clock again and responds, "It's only 11:30, can't you wait?" So we get to work again and a couple hours go by until Carlos tells Victor that we should get lunch. Victor looks up at the clock again and realizes that it's still 11:30 then Carlos checks his phone and it turns out that it was actually about to be 2:30, one hour from closing. Apparently the clock had run out of batteries and had gotten stuck on 11:30. Poor Carlos, no wonder he was hungry.

Blog 16: 2 Hour meeting Answer #2

1) What is the most important factor in maintaing the efficiency of an automobile?

2) I actually still don't know what my second answer will be because I have my interview 3 with my mechanic on 2/7/13 and plan on getting my second answer from that interview. But, if worst comes to worst, then my second answer will be, always making sure that your tires are good because a lot of people overlook the tires of a car and don't realize how important it is to have your tires - and everything involved with your tires - in good condition.

3) Three details to justify or support my second answer are:

• if your tires aren't at the required PSI, your car could be using more force than needed, which leads to using up more gas.
• if there are any lumps in your tires or your tires are really worn out, you could have a possible blow out or your car's tires may not be rotating as they should
• not only do your tires have to be good but the alignment of your tires have to good too or your car will not run as well as it should

4) Auto Repair for Dummies

5) I plan to continue the study of my answer 2 by checking the tires of all the cars that come into the shop and comparing them all with one another and seeing what difference it really makes to have good or bad tires.

Blog 15: Independent Component 2 Approval

1) I was thinking of just doing 30 more hours of internship at the mechanic shop. 
2) This will meet 30 hours of work because I will be doing 4 hours on Monday,Wednesday, and Friday and 8 on Sautday, just like I'm doing now. 
3) My independent component relates to my EQ because it's auto mechanics and there's no better way to find an answer #2 than to work hands on with what you're trying to figure out. 

Blog 14: Independent Component 1

The restoration of my car.

Literal:

A) I, Omar Rodriguez, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work.

B) Sclar, Deanna. "Auto Repair for Dummies." Auto Repair for Dummies. Foster City, CA: IDG Worldwide, 1999. Print.

C) It's the link above this.

D) My parents bought me a car on the condition that they got to choose the car and that I would do any work that had to be done to it, myself. So, they came home one day with a 1996 Honda Accord LX that didn't run at all. It didn't even have an engine. So, I took that car and got it to run. Now, I take it everywhere.

Interpretive:

My component demonstrates 30 hours of work because it was the complete restoration of the engine of a car. Not just the engine, though, but also the installation of the master cylinder, the timing belt, the hoses, the radiator, and oil filter. If anyone has ever tried to do any work on a car that requires you to work with the engine, then you know its very time consuming. My evidence is the pictures my cousin took of me working on my car.

The first thing I changed were the brakes, because they were the easiest thing to change. Here are the old brake pads. As you can see, they're really old.

These are pictures of the motor mount the engine we found in the junkyard had. 

This is the motor mount that I put in as a replacement. 

This is the really busted tensioner for the timing belt. 

Here's the replacement tensioner installed. 

This is a picture of one of the most important parts of the car - the fuel pump. This is the old fuel pump. 

This is the fuel tank without the fuel pump. 

This is me working under the car. If I remember correctly, I was changing the fuel pump pressure sensor. 

Here, I'm working on the EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) valve. 

Here is the old EGR valve that I finally managed to take out after about an hour's struggle. 

Here is the old crank sensor of my car. This little part caused me SO much trouble to take out. 

Here, I'm working on taking out the oxygen sensor that's part of the exhaust emission system. As you can see, the tip of it is really old and rusty. 

Here is the old and rusty oxygen sensor in full view. 

Here is the replaced oxygen sensor. If you look at the tip, you can tell that this one is actually in good condition. 

Here, I took out the track rod of the car. It was a pretty big achievement. I had been struggling to take it out for maybe about an hour and a half. 

This is the newly installed track rod. 

And all of the above are all the pictures I was finally able to get from my cousin's phone. 

Applied:

My topic is auto mechanics and the restoration of my car was nothing but. I don't see how I could explain it even more.