Is my repair strategy is good?

ANSWER : Hello. Thank you for writing in. There are several reasons your vehicle may only start when jump starting. The first and most common is a build up of resistance that is causing you to need a boost of voltage to get the engine started. This may be due to poor battery cables, a bad ground connection, a poor starter solenoid, and a couple of other issues. The first thing you want to do is perform a visual inspection of the starting system. Make sure there is no corrosion build up in the battery cables. You can also check the resistance across these wires and make sure you have a solid connection between components. You then want to make sure the starter solenoid is doing its job. It is responsible for taking the small amount of electricity sent by the ignition and turning it into a huge electrical charge that is strong enough to push over the engine with the help of some gear ratios in its favor. Do some more testing, and stick to the basics before assuming its something seriously complicated.

ANSWER : Hello there. In general, when the battery is good and you have a solid power supply to accessories, more often than not the issue exists within the ignition cylinder, ignition relay or the starter / starter relay. The only way to determine this is to trace the power from each access point. If you have power upon turning the ignition switch to the starter, then the starter itself is the problem. Trace this backwards within the supply line if there is no power until you find the last point where power is supplied. If you have issues with this, you can always set up a car is hard to start inspection from one of our mobile mechanics, and they can pinpoint the source and recommend or complete the right repairs for you.

ANSWER : Prior to performing diagnostics be sure you have a fully charged battery that passes an actual load test. Then, confirm that the engine immobilizer system (security system) is not activated thus preventing the car from starting. If the immobilizer system is on, you may see a security warning light. To temporarily override the immobilizer system, please see these instructions. With a fully charged battery that has been load tested, and the immobilizer system off, if the starter motor does not operate at that point, there are only two possibilities: 1) either there is no power to the starter motor, or an excessive voltage drop, hence the starter circuit would have to be diagnosed; or 2) there is power but the starter itself is bad and that includes the possibility of an intermittent fault and/or a failed bendix drive which are not detectable in conventional starter bench testing because the starter is not tested under load. If you desire that a specialist from YourMechanic resolve this, please request a no start diagnostic. If you have further questions or concerns, do not hesitate to re-contact YourMechanic as we are always here to help you.

ANSWER : Some customers have obtained a diagnostic of their vehicle’s problem already and thus will just request a specific repair directly. Of course, no vehicle can be repaired without performing a diagnostic, a service that sometimes involves relatively complex test equipment and highly specialized training. All mechanics, whether mobile or shop based, distinguish between the cost of diagnosing a fault and the actual time or labor cost to repair the fault once it is identified. To illustrate, imagine a circumstance where it takes a Mechanic 2 hours to pinpoint an electrical fault in a car’s complex wiring system that is ultimately found as a simple short circuit due to a 3 inch section of frayed wire. Once found, that repair takes literally 15 minutes due to the inherent ease of just replacing a short segment of wire but, keep in mind, it took 2 hours to find it. Would it make sense to bill this as a 15 minute "repair" job, keeping in mind it took 2 hours to perform all the painstaking, tedious circuit traces, that is the diagnostic, to just get to the fault? Whatever diagnostic you request, you can be sure that the responding certified mechanic will get your issue taken care of for you promptly and professionally and answer, in person, any additional concerns that you might have. In the meantime, if you have further questions or concerns, do not hesitate at all to re-contact YourMechanic as we are always here to help you.

ANSWER : All issues that appear to be common throughout a particular model would be something of concern. I would recommend having any vehicle that you are considering purchasing thoroughly inspected by a professional. If you’d like, a certified YourMechanic technician can come to your location to perform a standard 75 point safety inspection on the vehicle in question and give their recommendation.

Another very important thing to consider would be to get a long warranty on the vehicle – preferably bumper-to-bumper. A bumper-to-bumper warranty for a long period of time will ensure that anything that happens to the vehicle will be covered under warranty.

ANSWER : Hi there, thanks for writing in. I’d be happy to offer my insight.

The codes for lost communication may have a lot to do with your no crank problem. The lost communication may be due to a loose connection or broken wire somewhere. Check the battery terminal connections to make sure they are clean and tight. A few more things should be checked, I recommend having a mechanic do it.

If you would like help, consider having an expert automotive technician from YourMechanic come to your home or office to inspect and diagnose this issue for you, and make any repairs as needed.

ANSWER : The steering torque sensor is Ford part number CL8Z-3F818-A and it was used from model year 2008 to 2012. The best strategy is to buy a brand new sensor from Ford and install it in your existing column. Ford’s recommendation is to keep everything else as is and just install a new sensor. The Factory Service Manual (FSM) will be very helpful and there appear to be some updates on the installation so be sure to download the relevant TSB(s) on sensor installation. As you know, there is an air bag at the top of the column. The air must be disabled, per FSM instructions, before you work on or near the assembly. If the air bag happens to deploy while you are fixing this, it’s like a bomb going off and can kill you. Again in the circumstance you are describing you do not need a column and you will save nothing by buying a used column with a used sensor when what you really need is a brand new sensor. If you desire that this part be procured by YourMechanic and professionally installed under warranty simply request torque sensor replacement and a certified professional will get it done promptly.

ANSWER : Yes, repair work is guaranteed. The complete terms of YourMechanic’s warranty are within this Warranty Document. Broadly, all labor on repairs and the replacement parts themselves are covered by a 12-month/12,000-mile (whichever comes first) warranty. Subject to certain conditions, if any defects in workmanship arise within this period, YourMechanic will work with you to resolve the issue at no additional cost. Please note that if you ordered a repair service, but YourMechanic did not first perform the diagnostic that substantiates the repair that you ordered, the warranty only covers defects in the replacement parts that you purchased. To illustrate, let’s say you ordered a new battery because your car would not start, but you did not have the "no start" condition actually diagnosed by YourMechanic, if after the new battery is installed by YourMechanic the car still does not start, the warranty does not cover the "car not starting event". The new battery is covered though, of course. If after a mechanic performs a service, you have reason to believe the services caused other problems, the warranty will be voided if you hire another mechanic (outside of YourMechanic) to inspect or work on your car. If we send a mechanic to inspect the car and the inspection demonstrates that the problem was indeed caused by the previous service, then the mechanic will fix your car at no cost to you. If the problem was caused by other reasons, the mechanic will bill you for the inspection or any further repair services provided by him or her. The warranty document at the aforementioned link provides additional details but the bottom line is yes, subject to reasonable exceptions, any repairs performed by Mechanics dispatched by YourMechanic are covered for 12 months or 12,000 miles.