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In This Article:
Couple used Internet search to troubleshoot a repair problem for their 1992 Dodge mini van. They were able to save money and cut the repair costs from $500 to $35. They share the steps they took.

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We Saved Money On Car Repair - Good Auto Resources Found On Internet

By: Taylore

Couple used Internet search to trouble shoot a repair problem for their 1992 Dodge mini van. They were able to save money and cut the repair costs from $500 to $35. They share the steps they took.

Our family has always been in love with cars. We’re almost car crazy!

We have mostly older cars because we get attached to them. Of course, finding parts to repair older cars can be a problem. We've found some really good helpful resources for older car parts on the web.

A few days ago I went to see a friend who had made a modification to the carburetor on his pickup where he is now getting double the gas mileage. He had just come back from a test run and after filling up tank, his miles-per-gallon was 33.5 and before that it averaged 12-13 MPG. He invited us to meet at a Mexican restaurant to celebrate his fuel saving adjustment.

While leaving his farm, I noticed my 1992 Dodge minivan steering wheel was hard and made noises inside the steering column. Next, the airbag light came on as if it might explode in my face. Yes, I was getting pretty worried.

I have AAA so I knew I could get home--even if the van had to be towed. I thought if I could drive home my husband, Roi, could probably fix it. I picked a driving route that didn’t have too many hard turns.

The Mexican dinner was fun. Since my husband and I are energy healers and prosperity teachers we passed on the Margaritas.

The next day it took Roi one half day to read the book and figure out how to take off the steering wheel. He needed to look inside to see if something was broken.

I said, "Be careful that you don’t explode the dang air bag. It might hit you in the face and knock you out!" (I must have an airbag phobia.)

The part we needed fixed or replaced was a small plastic box that transferred the electrical wiring from the car to the steering wheel. It had a coil of wire cable inside that allowed the wheel to make sharp 180 degree turns. It controlled the ignition, horn, airbags, cruise control, turn signals, dimmer for headlights, etc.

We searched on the Internet at car and resources to find out the correct procedure to fix or either replace the part.

One such website resource said, "Everything you want to know about your car or buying/selling a car. Fixing your automobile -- is it worth it? Find out here!"

That sounded good...

Three good Internet helpful automobile resources I found were: http://www.daysauto.com, http://www.cheapacar.com, and http://www.dercar.com. They helped us a lot. We found hundreds of pages of links to find even more repair information. I could have spend days there.

We found perfect information for our repair project.

We had three choices:

1. Take the 1992 Dodge Caravan to the service bay in town and pay nearly $500

2. Buy a new Chrysler part for $210 plus shipping and put it in ourselves

3. Or go to a junkyard and get a used part for $35, take it home, and put it on ourselves

We took the cheaper route and the total cost was $35 for a used part that worked perfectly.

When you choose to repair your car yourself be sure you have a good mechanics instructional manual for your car and the year it was manufactured.

Carefully check the replacement part. It must be the exact one you need. It pays to carefully compare the two parts to be sure the replacement is the correct one.

The junkyard man gave us valuable information on adjusting the replacement part before installation.

Thank you, God, Internet and the junkyard!

My mini van drives like a champ again!

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