Brakes are acting WEIRD + Oil leak?

[Burn N' Up]

Its that or both, if you've been stopping hard the rotors could have hard spots in them and that will make the car feel like it kinda brakes hard and not so hard, hard not so hard in very fast action. Never hurts to turn the rotors and change the pads. You will be sorry with those autozone pads...

[Rommy]

Originally Posted by Burn N' Up

You will be sorry with those autozone pads...

Are they that bad? $15 a pair is a really nice deal. Can I pay $50 or less for a good pair? If so, where?

Also, would turning the rotors be cheaper than buying a whole new set of rotors? ($80+15 shipping on ebay, both front and rear)

Here's another interesting one. When I turn the wheel, earlier today, it would screech like a banshee at the slightest turn of the wheel. Then it stopped, after the car seemingly warmed up. Needs power steering pump?

I mean damn. This car is freaking me out, I'm starting to think it was a bad buy. It peels out in reverse, but won't peel out in drive. Lol.

[stumpjumper]

Autozone pads are complete garbage.

They sound like shit, stop like shit and wear out quik.
Best bet is ceramic pads. They are expensive but quiet and last a good while.
But ya, screw autozone.

[kewlcoconut]

Originally Posted by Rommy

Here's another interesting one. When I turn the wheel, earlier today, it would screech like a banshee at the slightest turn of the wheel. Then it stopped, after the car seemingly warmed up. Needs power steering pump?

Flush your power steering fluid, and rinse out the Power steering resevoir nice and good. I had the exact same problem. Crazy screeching, but went away when warmed up. The resevoir was dirty and clogged. I bet it hasnt been flushed at all, I dont think mine ever was. 20yr old dirt and grime = bad.

worked great though, doesnt make a sound at all. just needs a good fluid change and cleaning.

[Rommy]

Originally Posted by kewlcoconut

Flush your power steering fluid, and rinse out the Power steering resevoir nice and good. I had the exact same problem. Crazy screeching, but went away when warmed up. The resevoir was dirty and clogged. I bet it hasnt been flushed at all, I dont think mine ever was. 20yr old dirt and grime = bad.

worked great though, doesnt make a sound at all. just needs a good fluid change and cleaning.

I don't know if mine has been flushed, but when I looked inside, it was super clear. Might have just been refilled.

How do I rinse out the resirvoir? Thanks very much for the help! I really appreciate it.

[mrnickleye]

Just remove the P/S resevoir by getting the hoses off and lifting it out. Spray clean it with brake cleaner and a small cheap paint brush. Replace it and then top up to full line with DexIII tranny fluid (thats the factory fill stuff). Run the car a day, then suck out the fluid with a turkey baister with a 6' piece of fuel line stuck on the tip. refill againe with DexIII. Do this again in a week. Now you'll have flushed the entire system.

Is you car a turbo ?? A stock N/A automatic will NOT burn rubber in the forward gears. These cars were designed as a road race type car, so the tires grab the road and the suspension works to give you traction, not tire spin.

Brake rotors....it costs about $10-15 to turn each. Since you are having problems that seem to be rotor related, I would opt for new ones. You can't "turn" out the hot-spots in the rotor.

Bummer to spend the $, then have to buy rotors to get them right. And many places that turn rotors don't know, or care, if they don't work out for you.

Fronts take all the abuse. My back ones are still on the same "good" pads for 4 years now, about 40k miles, and still have 50% pads.

I've done the fronts, pads and rotors, 2x in 4 years. About 60% pads left, now. I get mine from Carquest. Bendix Pads. Next time I'm gonna use ceramics, because they are quieter, and don't leave as much dust on my rims. Same $$ as good semi-metalics.

Read this,too.....

http://www.zeckhausen.com/bedding_in_brakes.htm

[Rommy]

Apparently my friend's N/A automatic burns rubber if done properly. :P

I'm having trouble telling if my car is losing power... I give it gas, and it goes... but at a certain point, it stops going any faster, and that's barely 1/3rd of the way down. My friend's N/A automatic is running better, as far as I know. I did something that might've helped, though. The valve cover screws were apparently SUPER loose. I could nearly take them out with my fingers. I still would like to have a mechanic change the valve cover gaskets. I got a quote from my friend's mechanic, $120 including parts. Sounds good, seeing as it looks like a lot of work, if I were to do it.

I need to have a really good look at the rotors tomorrow... I looked at them through the wheels today, and the front looked terrible. The rear didn't look too bad, however.

On another note, I paid $1,500 for the car. Would it be worth it to fix it up, or should I just sell it for what I paid for it, and buy a turbo stickshift Supra in good condition for $3k+? Lol.

Hell, might as well ask another question, I'm full of them.

The spark plug wells are half full of oil. That's obviously not good, but will it affect the performance of the car significantly?

Sorry for being obnoxious, but another question. The P/S fluid well is perfectly clean as it is, but it's really low. Should I just add fluid and call it a day? Or consider getting a new pump put in?

I really don't want to put more than $500 into this car to get it running decently again.

[Isphius]

The pumps last a long time, so Id just say fill it up and try it out. Supras aslo have a problem where the rack seals go bad and they leak oil. I have that. But if not, the most obvious place to look for squealing is the belts. And if your car doesnt spin wheels if you put it in drive and floor it, I would say dont try any other way, cause odds are, its probably bad for your transmission.