KLZ 560 AM DENVER'S CONSERVATIVE HOME STATION
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Join the team at Drive Radio as they dive into some of the most perplexing automotive questions of our time. Ever wondered about the correct ignition timing for a vintage car model? Get ready for some surprising revelations. The episode unpacks the nuances of fuel contamination, offering clear advice on what you need to do if you find yourself in such a scenario. Our experts share their insights on tire performance in challenging weather conditions and how to choose the right type for your vehicle. It’s an episode packed with invaluable tips for both seasoned car lovers and everyday
SPEAKER 06 :
Being an expert on general automotive knowledge, what would the correct ignition timing be on a 1955 Bel Air Chevrolet with a 327 cubic inch engine and a four-barrel carburetor?
SPEAKER 14 :
It is a trick question. Watch this. A Chevy didn’t make a 327 in 55. The 327 didn’t come out till 62. And it wasn’t offered in the Bel Air with a four-barrel carb till 64. However, in 1964, the correct ignition timing would be four degrees before top dead center.
SPEAKER 17 :
Get ready for another hour of Drive Radio, brought to you by Colorado’s select auto care centers. Got a question for the experts? Then give them a call, 303-477-5600. Now it’s time to pop the hood and get our hands dirty. Drive Radio on KLZ 560 The Source.
SPEAKER 20 :
And we’re back. Drive Radio, KLZ 560. Myself, Pat Schneid, Alltech Automotive up in Fort Collins. Larry Unger answering phones today. Charlie Grimes, of course, our engineer. And John and Cheyenne, let’s get you handled first before we talk about what to do if you had contaminated fuel. Go ahead, John.
SPEAKER 05 :
Oh, okay, because I was hoping you would say that again.
SPEAKER 20 :
I missed the first 20 minutes of the show where you said you were going to… And we got into more of just how it might have happened, and somebody also texted me really quick and said that most of that terminal in the rack is computer-controlled, so it could have even been a programming error along those lines. So who knows exactly what happened. Bottom line is, though, there was a lot of…
SPEAKER 05 :
diesel in gas contamination and yes we we have not mentioned what you need to do if that’s you but we will okay um that uh other talk show host that you like her husband’s truck got nailed yesterday he was talking about it on her show oh perfect you know who i’m talking about yes i do uh yeah she was like yeah and they said it could cost a bunch of money depending on how bad it is so no tires so i bought those toyos the off-road ones when i got my forerunner and i’ve had the forerunner it just passed its three-year anniversary and they didn’t last i got to replace them and i found that they weren’t great on like uh an icy road. They’re great through the snow and the deep snow, but when the road’s kind of icy, you know, like when the first glaze is over, they weren’t great. So I’m looking for a recommendation, you know, 20 miles of interstate and three miles of unimproved goat path to get up to my house. You know what I’m talking about? Yeah. What else besides the Toyos?
SPEAKER 20 :
Man, I don’t know. I mean, everybody’s got their own preference. I’ve run those for years, and, of course, we use them on all of our plow trucks and so on and honestly haven’t had any real issues at all along those lines, John.
SPEAKER 04 :
John, do you run an all-terrain or more of an aggressive, like a mud terrain?
SPEAKER 05 :
All-terrain. All terrain to mud terrain, and I always run an LT because of the granite and the rocks.
SPEAKER 04 :
Right, good. Right, right. So what I’m going to say, my personal favorite, and I know John doesn’t agree with me on this, is I’m a BFG, a BF Goodrich All Terrain, Radiolite All Terrain. The KO2 or KO3 now, and I know they’ve got some issues with balancing and over the life, but as far as tread wear and longevity and quiet, smooth ride, I’m running them…
SPEAKER 05 :
right now on my jeep and just love them all right well i i’ve tried those in the past you know 20 years at 20 plus years out where i live i’ve gone through a bunch of tires like you know yeah you would um yeah and uh so oh pat my wife said to say hi and her truck’s running good
SPEAKER 04 :
Oh, fantastic. Thank you for that. I was going to ask, but I didn’t know if it was appropriate on the show.
SPEAKER 20 :
No, you’re fine. Perfect. No, no. And really quick, Pat likes BFGs. That’s great. I mean, I’m not dead set against them. My biggest issue on the BFGs is for us selling them, and it’s still this way today, the balance issue. They take more weight to balance out than other comparable tires. It doesn’t mean they’re a bad tire in general as far as tread wear, pattern, all that goes. I just hate the way they balance.
SPEAKER 05 :
Okay, one question. I’ve never used these before. We were up in Winter Park, and we ran into some ice, and that’s where I said, I’ve got to get these tires changed out this week. Toyota is the official vehicle of Winter Park, and they had a 4Runner TRD, and… On the TRD, they run Falcon tires?
SPEAKER 20 :
Falcons, yeah.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yep, yep, yep. They’re decent tires. Very well-known brand.
SPEAKER 05 :
Are they good, bad, indifferent?
SPEAKER 04 :
I have not used them.
SPEAKER 20 :
Yeah, I’ve never used them. It’s not a bad tire. I mean, it’s a very well-known tire brand. There’s nothing wrong with that. I mean, just like Toyo, just like BFG, just like Michelin, just like Goodyear. I mean, it’s a very well-known brand, John. It’s not an off-brand by any stretch of the imagination. It’s more of a – I would call it more of a niche brand. Although they build tires for most everything that’s out there, they’re pretty well known for having a niche when it comes to performance tire end of things. And, again, nothing wrong with them at all. And most likely the reason why they’re able to do what they’re doing on that is there’s probably some sort of a marketing partnership, whatever, between Toyota and Falcon and Winter Park and whatever.
SPEAKER 04 :
But I’ve never heard anything bad about Falcon.
SPEAKER 20 :
No, nothing wrong with them. No.
SPEAKER 05 :
John, can we drop back to Jeff’s call in the first hour real quick? Yes, sure. Jeff was talking about hitting a 16 peak demand. If he calls his utility before he calls an electrician, they can give him the 15-minute time that he’s hitting that demand, and he might be able to save the money by saying, okay, what’s happening at 215 in the afternoon that’s causing me to hit this peak demand?
SPEAKER 03 :
Okay.
SPEAKER 05 :
So if he’s still listening, just have him call it. Your utility can tell you that. I know people hate him, but with the smart meters, they call in every 15 minutes. They call in 15-minute intervals, and we know when the peak demand is hit. So, yeah, I just wanted to throw that out to Jeff. Before he spends money on an electrician, call his utility and find out when he’s hitting that peak demand.
SPEAKER 20 :
Hmm.
SPEAKER 03 :
Makes sense.
SPEAKER 05 :
Anybody can do that.
SPEAKER 03 :
Absolutely. No, that makes total sense.
SPEAKER 05 :
Absolutely. And businesses, if you’re hitting a high peak demand, look at when you’re hitting it, and you can see, oh, maybe I don’t have to fire. Like we had a body shop, and we told him not to fire the paint booth up at the same time he was firing everything else in the morning, and he was able to drop his bill. Because demand went down because he turned that after everything came on, and like Joe was talking about, those motors that caused that bigger demand, Well, when they’re all on and running steady and then you turn something else on, you’re not peaking out as bad. So, just, I know it’s drive radio, but… No, no, that’s fine.
SPEAKER 20 :
No, it all dovetails in. That’s fine. Not a problem at all. That’s perfect.
SPEAKER 05 :
All right. Thanks, guys.
SPEAKER 20 :
You’re very welcome, John. Appreciate you very much. All right. Let’s do this. Before we take any more calls, lines are open, though. You can go ahead and get in queue. 303-477-5600. Pat and I will take a quick break. We’ll come back and talk about some of the things. And, again, we’re going to talk very generically when it comes to if you are affected by this contaminated fuel, you know, diesel and gas, and what you need to do next and what you might find as – You know, the repair process and what might be involved in that. And I say might because, again, like I said a moment ago, every situation is going to be, you know, different and unique to you and lots of variables. And this is where I think anybody out there making blanket statements about this is a must, this is what you’re going to have to do. It’s like any other repair that we go through in the automotive world. You don’t know until you see the vehicle. every vehicle is different. How the vehicle’s made is different. The type of fuel system that it has on it. Is it direct injection? Is it not? I mean, there’s all sorts of things that come into play in regards to what’s going to be needed to get that vehicle fully functioning again. And we’ll give you some tips and tricks on that as soon as we come back. Pat and I will both do that. So don’t go anywhere. We’ll be right back. This is Drive Radio, KLZ 560.
SPEAKER 18 :
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SPEAKER 16 :
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SPEAKER 20 :
All right, we are back. Myself, Pat Schneid, Alltech Automotive up in Fort Collins. Of course, Larry Unger answering phones. Charlie Grimes, our engineer. And we’re going to take this segment. We’ve got a car review here towards the end of it as well. But Pat and I are going to get into some overall, overarching things that if you were involved with… This particular scenario where diesel fuel was added into the gas tank at certain fuel stations, 13 of them to be exact, across the metro area. And if you are affected by that, here are some things that you will need to do. And we’ll just get into it. Now, again, as I said last segment, this is a generality. I don’t know your vehicle. I don’t know specifically what’s going on with your vehicle. I don’t know – here’s the other thing that is a factor in all of this that probably hasn’t been mentioned by anybody. I don’t know what problems your vehicle might have had prior to this actually happening. So that’s another factor that, you know, this particular person that was interviewed on air talking about it’s a $5,000 to $20,000 fix. I mean, again – Dumb statement. Shouldn’t have been said that way. Can’t make a statement that you don’t know exactly the outcome of, and that’s exactly what happened there. And again, at the end of the day, I nor no one knows what might have been wrong with your vehicle prior to this event happening. So here’s what I’ve learned over the years, though, in having certain situations like this happen. And I’ll say this straight up. If there is going to be a scenario of fuel mixed in and have less negative outcome, it’s diesel mixed with gas, not gas mixed with diesel. OK, let me just get that out of the way, because gas in diesel is. And then putting that into a diesel vehicle has much larger ramifications than diesel fuel and gas does. So let me get that right out of the gate, you know, right off the bat. A lot of misconceptions along the lines of, you know, what happens with this contamination and so on. But what I will tell you is in a diesel engine. Because the diesel fuel is a lubricant itself. And when you add gasoline, which is not a lubricant, and you then run that through the fuel system of a diesel itself, from the tank all the way up to the injectors that make things fire, yes, you have much worse ramifications putting gas into diesel fuel than the other way around. So let me get that out of the way. So those of you that have diesel vehicles, that is something you really need to pay attention to. It’s why I always recommend use high-volume stations where there’s a lot of fuel being run through. You want fresh diesel fuel and so on. But things can happen, and this was out of the control of anybody filling up, and there’s no blame to be made on the person at the pump. This came from the terminal itself is the way it sounds. All that being said, the reason why I say it’s not as detrimental to have diesel fuel in gasoline is because of the ignition process, what happens in a gasoline engine and so on, and the fact that, yes, in fact, diesel fuel is more of a lubricant than what gasoline is. When you run that through a modern gasoline engine and fuel system, and you’re going to read all sorts of things on the Internet, all sorts of bad juju, by the way, that when you do this, you need to replace the fuel pump and all the fuel filters, and you might need to put injectors in it, and, and, and. And the reality is most of that’s not true. Rarely, rarely are you going to have a situation whereby you ran diesel fuel through the system long enough that you’re going to replace all the components I just mentioned. Not going to happen that often. The reality, again, is that diesel fuel is a lubricant. It is a different consistency, of course, than what gasoline is. It doesn’t ignite the same way that gasoline does. And that’s why typically speaking, depending upon how much fuel you had in your vehicle, what the mix was that actually went into the ground, and how much contamination you actually ended up with will have a big bearing upon what you have to do as far as the repair goes. In some cases, the vehicle may have been running. Maybe it doesn’t run super well, but it is in fact still running. In some cases, it may have been such a heavy mix and you may have put a full load in. Maybe it didn’t want to run at all. Things stalled. You had to have the vehicle towed and so on. First things first, if I were the repair shop, And I think Pat’s going to agree with me here. And that vehicle came into my bay, in my shop. First things first, we’re going to drain the system. We’re going to get the tank completely emptied out as much as we possibly can. And we’re going to then add fresh new fuel. In fact, we’re going to run a full load in. We’re going to get enough cans loaded up where if it’s a 20-gallon tank, we’re going to put 20 gallons of gasoline in it. And we’re going to fill it full. I’m also going to add some BG44K at that time because I want to get some cleaning done there. at the same time now even though the diesel fuel itself is a cleaner i want to get as much of that diesel fuel back out as i possibly can and the 44k is going to aid in that now in most cases I’m going to do what I just said. If there’s an external fuel filter that I can change, I’m going to do that as well. In a lot of modern vehicles, that filter is built into the tank, so there’s not going to be much I’m going to do along those lines. So in that case, I’m going to get everything drained. I’m going to fill it full of new fuel. I’m going to add 44K, and I’m then going to see, does the vehicle run? Does it start and run at that point? And frankly, most likely it will. And if it does, and I might have a little bit of smoke that comes out the back, but by the time I get things done and cleaned up, most likely, and I’m not exaggerating in what I’m saying, and most likely, you’re good to go. This nonsense of you’ve done all sorts of engine damage and things are going to be bad, blah, blah, blah. One other thing, by the way, I should add. I’m going to do an oil change at the same time with all of this because I want to make sure that if there was any contamination that got down into the crankcase, we’re eliminating all of that as well. But really, outside of an oil change, pulling all the fuel out, putting new fuel in, adding 44K, and then seeing how do things perform after that, most likely you don’t need to do anything outside of what I just said.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yep, 100% agree.
SPEAKER 20 :
In spite of what everybody else out there on the Internet might say, that would be my mode of repair to start with.
SPEAKER 04 :
And so let’s just take that back to dollars as an example. So if you’re going to drop the tank, put in some additives, clean the tank, put in new fuel, put in new additives, do an oil change, you might be in the realm of $500 to $600 to $700 labor and parts and fuel and oil, everything.
SPEAKER 20 :
A thousand bucks under.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah. Let’s say it that way. A thousand or under. Step back and see what we got.
SPEAKER 20 :
Yeah, and the reason I say that is because, you know, here’s the thing. And, again, going against what this particular person talked about in regards to the repair of these particular vehicles, I am one where, and you guys hear me talk about this all the time, if components don’t need replaced, why? Why would you? I mean, at the end of the day, if I’m going to make that vehicle run and everything’s functioning and I can drive it and I’m going to put a long test drive, by the way, in after this is all said and done, I’m not going to do a three-minute test drive. I’m going to probably drive this thing for 15, 20 minutes, try to get it up to speed, highway, and so on. Make sure it performs. That’s right. But if everything is running properly and I don’t have any miss in the engine and everything seems to be performing well and the power is good and so on, at the end of the day, I’m going to ship the vehicle. Here’s your keys back, Mr. Customer. Have a nice day.
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, then this is a related point here. It’s not totally copacetic, but when do you fill up with fuel? Do you fill up at half a tank? Do you fill up at a quarter tank? Do you fill up when it’s absolutely empty and the light is on? I would recommend filling up at a quarter tank or above. So you leave a little bit of the good stuff in there all the time.
SPEAKER 20 :
Always as protection against some of the things we just encountered here. Absolutely, Pat. Yeah. Again, folks, there’s a lot of misconceptions I feel that are out there. I even had some folks asking, you know, am I going to need to put a new fuel pump in? Am I going to have to put new injectors in? So on and so forth. The answer is probably not. You know, worst case scenario, you had an entire full load. You were empty. You filled up. It was heavy in diesel and not in gas. And, you know, frankly, you maybe never even got the vehicle to fully run, which, by the way, if it never fully run, we’re pretty… probably still safe in everything I just said. I mean, again, I go through my head on what’s the worst case scenario and where could the potential damage of components be. And I’ll be honest, after reading all the stuff that I’ve even read on the internet and all of the nonsense that’s out there from people that frankly don’t fix cars, it’s just that. It’s utter nonsense and there’s just a lot of misinformation out there. as to what it takes to actually get these vehicles back on the road so it is case by case each one’s going to be a little bit different but at the end of the day it’s not honestly it’s not in my opinion as big of a repair as most of the people out there hyping it up to be so i’ll talk a little bit more about what your steps should be if in fact you do go through this you know process what you need to do insurance wise and so on there’s a lot of different things that we can help you with along those lines and we’ll do some of that when we come back all Got a nice car review we did on the Toyota Camry, which, by the way, is one of our favorite cars of all time. We’ll talk about that in a moment. Vic, Dennis, hang tight. We’ll get you as soon as we come back. This is Drive Radio, KLZ 560. And we are back. Rush to Reason, Denver’s Afternoon Rush, KLZ 560. Okay, Richard, let’s talk about a new car that you’ve driven here of late. We take this time each week to do new car reviews. We replay that on Saturdays on Drive Radio as well. So what have you driven lately?
SPEAKER 06 :
Yeah, Dad, so it drove a – actually, I think one of our favorite cars, and that doesn’t go without saying lightly, and what I’ll say is it’s a 2026 Toyota Camry. This is the nightshade edition, but, Dad, this has always and long been one of our favorite midsize sedans because it sort of checks literally every box that anyone could ever imagine, and it does so at a really affordable price. So let’s get into it, Dad. Okay. The Camry only comes in hybrid anymore, which some people are going to love. Some people aren’t. I’ll say this, that it gives you almost 45 miles to the gallon. I don’t have the exact numbers, but it’s just a fantastic vehicle in that right. I had it for a week, barely got it down to a half a tank. And that’s what driving it, you know, just as I normally would. And that’s really where this car shines. And I think Toyota smartly did. I think they saw the numbers from, you know, obviously because they introduced it a number of years ago is you can kind of buy both different options. And then they said, you know what? We’re selling a gazillion of these. We might as well just make it the one option. And they did a phenomenal job at that. What’s new for 2026? Well, the trim level that we drove, which is the nightshade edition, is new for this year. Well, some of you are going to say, well, what is the nightshade edition, Dad? Well, it’s everything that comes in the SE, which gives you 19-inch black finish wheels, a gloss black exterior trim, black door handles, and a heated exterior rearview mirrors. And then there’s an XLE and an XSE that are a step above. But, Dad, this vehicle, as it sits, or I should say not as it fits, but you can get this vehicle ranging on the low end of an LE for just over $30,000, and an XSE starts at about $37,000. The other thing about a Camry, Dad, you can get it in front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive, which, again, for a mid-sized sedan, Mid-sized sedan is not a guarantee. And in our climate, and yes, in Colorado, even though we’ve had a drier winter, it still does snow here, Dad. So it is nice to be able to have that all-wheel drive capability, which this vehicle does. The engine noise is a little funky, and you’ll read about that in some other reviews, too, where people are like, I just can’t. At the end of the day, Dad, this is a really functional sedan. I wish the front row was a little bit, I guess, roomier, a little more comfortable sort of a thing. But outside of that, that’s probably just me being picky. I was able to get two booster seats in the back for the kids. It’s got a really good-sized trunk on it, as Camrys have in the past. The infotainment, the safety features that are on it are becoming more standard on Toyotas throughout. It’s just a really great car. Whether you’re thinking of a first-car, Dad, whether you’re thinking of a car for you know a kid or a family member this just really checks all the boxes and again dad you’ve driven these yes and have they changed these vehicles over the years yeah but they’ve kind of kept the same basic uses to it and you’ve gotten used to it and you enjoy it as well
SPEAKER 20 :
I have said on the radio for years now, and when the Camry hybrids first came out, even then there was a small price difference from the standard Camry to the hybrid Camry. Even at that time, I said, spend the extra money, get the hybrid. I’m not disappointed at all that they’ve gone complete hybrid. Again, I think their numbers probably started showing that that’s what most people were asking for. And I think, you know, due in part, by the way, I think to those of us on radio that have some influence and so on, telling people what to buy, at the end of the day, great value vehicle. And I had somebody call in the other day naming off several different options for sedans. And you know what? Right off the bat, I didn’t hesitate, didn’t take me a nanosecond to give Toyota Camry as the answer in all the different options that this particular listener was asking for because it’s just – It’s just head and shoulders above the rest. And I know I sound sort of like a Toyota fanboy. And in this case, I am because there’s very few vehicles for the money that compete with the Camry hybrid.
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, absolutely, Dad. And you said it best. And there are some competitors out there. And the competitors that have done a really great job due to the Camry success.
SPEAKER 03 :
That’s right. Competition.
SPEAKER 06 :
That’s right. Exactly. Competition, breeding, excellence. I will say this, Dad. It’s just one of our favorite vehicles, and you wouldn’t think it drives – because, honestly, you look at it and you say, oh, that’s just a Camry. Folks, I encourage you to get out and test drive it, especially if you haven’t done it in a while, Dad. I think people would really be surprised at the improvements that Toyota’s made. Because, Dad, you can get a Camry hybrid, very similar fuel economy that’s larger – Similarly priced to a Prius. You no longer have to go to a Prius for that 45, 50 miles per gallon. You have the ability to do that right with this. Real quick, in terms of the front-wheel drive, 225 horsepower, all-wheel drive, 232, so you do get a little bit of extra boost with that. Outside of that, we really could go on and on, and I just can’t say it enough, folks. If you’re interested in it, you’re in the market. Again, a midsize sedan, 2026 Toyota Camry. This was the nightshade edition. Head to your local Toyota dealer, test drive it. When you do that, let them know that John and Richard Rush from Drive Radio and Rush Treason sent you.
SPEAKER 20 :
Well said, Richard. And again, those of you listening, we always say this and I mean this. This is a car, by the way, that’s easy to rent. There’s a lot of these in the rental car fleet. So if that’s a car that you’re really interested in trying out, you want to check out the trunk. I got a text message a moment ago saying, well, you know, Americans don’t want cars anymore. They want SUVs. you know, honestly, I think that’s because in a lot of cases, Richard, they haven’t really felt the comfortability of a sedan. And until you actually get out and drive one, you really forget how well they actually work and how comfortable they actually are. Nothing against the SUVs and all of that, but there’s nothing wrong with that Camry hybrid. Great car. If that’s a car you’re looking forward to commute back and forth to work in, as you know, Richard, you really can’t go wrong. It’s a I say all the time, please, and Richard says it a lot too, go out, test drive these, spend more than just 10 minutes in the car, put your family in it, make sure everything works correctly for what you need when it’s all said and done. And if you have the ability to rent a car for a few days on the front side, do so before you actually make that call and pull the trigger. And all these reviews that we have done now for a number of years, even if you’re looking to buy a used car, we’ve probably got a review on that particular car as well. But Richard, I’ll let you go. I appreciate it. Thank you.
SPEAKER 06 :
Yeah, absolutely. The only thing I’ll say real quick is for the price tag, the Camry, yeah, Americans like SUVs, and SUVs are more expensive. Yes. And for the Camry, for the money, it’s really hard to beat a midsize sedan with everything we just talked about in there. So, yeah, absolutely. Second to everything you say.
SPEAKER 02 :
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SPEAKER 20 :
All right. Drive Radio, KLZ 560. Thanks for listening today. We appreciate it greatly. Vic is next. Vic, go ahead.
SPEAKER 09 :
Hi, John. I need to get your opinion on an estimate for a timing bill. Okay. I’ve got a 2013 Acura MDX, 111,000 miles on it, and an estimate I got at a dealership was 2,200 miles. Is that pretty high or about right?
SPEAKER 20 :
This is more Pat’s arena than mine. It sounds a little high. I missed the car. 2013 MDX Honda.
SPEAKER 04 :
Sorry, Acura MDX. MDX for a timing belt replacement. And is that going to be a complete timing belt kit? What I mean is also a timing belt driven water pump. So we’re going to do the water pump and the timing belt at the same time?
SPEAKER 09 :
I’m not too sure. It was just kind of off the top of the estimator’s head. I didn’t get any details on it. If it were all that stuff, would $2,200 be pretty good?
SPEAKER 04 :
Um, well, certainly if you’re doing the full kit with the water pump, because a lot of engines, and I’m just not familiar with MDX, we don’t work on enough of them that it’s fresh in my mind. So if it is that, uh, it’s more palatable, right? Uh, $2,200 is not inexpensive. So to me, it goes back to, um, and are you doing this, um, at like a time and mileage and this, you know, maybe you’re close to a hundred or between a hundred and 120,000 miles and it’s time to do it for the health of the car.
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, it’s $111,000 right now.
SPEAKER 04 :
So it’s just due. Perfect, it’s due. So first of all, I commend you for being aware of that and wanting to do that step because that is basic maintenance for the vehicle that a lot of people don’t perform. So that’s the best step. The second question I have is where you’re at. Do you trust the shop? Do you trust the advisor? Did you get a good feeling with the conversation? Or do you feel like they were looking at you like, hey, maybe I can make a few bucks, you know?
SPEAKER 09 :
Well, kind of. Kind of in the middle of that, frankly.
SPEAKER 04 :
In the middle, okay. And have you used them before for service and repair?
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah.
SPEAKER 04 :
Okay. Do you have anybody else in your suite? Because honestly, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to get a second opinion just to kind of… kind of calm your nerves or test your concern a little bit. But that’s a little bit of inconvenience as far as time and it may be a purchase too.
SPEAKER 20 :
I just got a message in from Josh up at Legacy. Are they doing the water pump at the same time with this, Vic? Because that would add to the price. They should be. I guess the question is on your estimate. Is that including a water pump in that price?
SPEAKER 09 :
Well, I’m not too sure. The estimator just I did it off the top of her head and I didn’t get any details.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, we need details. Yeah, so I think you’re going to trust your gut there. If you’ve had good service with them before, ask them for a very detailed estimate, parts and labor. And if you don’t feel good about that conversation, then I would get a qualified second opinion.
SPEAKER 20 :
Which we’ve got accountable. That’s not far from you up in the Broomfield area, Vic. You could run that over to Mark at Accountable, get a second opinion, have him take a peek at it. And I would guess that his price is going to be less than what you’re getting at the dealership. Again, I can’t guarantee that Mark could tell you specifically once he sees the vehicle, but he could tell you specifically once he sees it.
SPEAKER 09 :
His name is Mark?
SPEAKER 20 :
Mark at Accountable Automotive. They’re up in Broomfield. They’re on the website. You bet.
SPEAKER 09 :
Okay. Another thing, I just wanted to get you guys’ opinion of the Christian Brothers operation?
SPEAKER 20 :
Each one of those is independently owned and operated. Christian Brothers is a franchise setup whereby an investor, in a lot of cases they’re not even previous shop owners, they’re typically an investor that wants to own a business, they get involved with Christian Brothers, they help them with the entire setup process, building the facility, help them initially even with getting some technicians hired and so on, and it’s up to that franchise operator to then manage and handle that business. So while they’re all branded similarly, they are not created equal and they are not the same. They are under a quote unquote corporate structure, Vic, in that manner, but they are not all equal. So where somebody might have a really good experience at one location, you could go to the next town over and have a completely different experience because of what I just said. And again, nothing against them, but that’s the basis of how they’re owned and operated.
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, just one other thing. If that timing belt breaks, will it ruin the engine?
SPEAKER 04 :
Yes. It can. It could cause damage, actual metal-to-metal contact between the valves and the pistons and that. So the timing belt keeps all of that in harmonic balance or in symphony, right? So you definitely do want to perform that maintenance.
SPEAKER 10 :
Okay.
SPEAKER 20 :
And I did look it up specifically as I topped my head. I thought that was an interference engine. It is, meaning interference engines, when the timing belt goes bad, valves will hit the pistons and so on. And, yeah, it can be very catastrophic, Vic, depending upon when that happens. So, yes, that needs to be taken care of.
SPEAKER 04 :
If that does happen, you’re at least looking at an engine rebuild, a top end. Correct. Maybe a complete engine replacement. Correct.
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah. Okay. I better get that done.
SPEAKER 20 :
Yeah, you need to get that done. Yes.
SPEAKER 09 :
All right. Thanks, guys.
SPEAKER 20 :
You’re very welcome, Vic. And again, call Mark over at Accountable. He’d be happy to take care of you and help you out on that. Conrad, what’s going on, sir?
SPEAKER 07 :
Hey, timely conversation we got here going on about this fuel thing. My wife just mentioned it to me this morning. She saw it on the Internet, but I don’t have any problems with the stations I went to didn’t have that contamination. But, you know, you remember I used to farm, John. Yes. About 10 or 15 years ago, we bought our fuel in bulk. And our supplier got diesel fuel mixed in with our gasoline. And my F-150, you’ve seen it. You have pictures of it. It started running really bad, and I took it over to Herzog’s, and we smelled the gas. It just got diesel in it. So they did exactly what you said they did. They drained it completely, put all fresh fuel in. We changed the oil, and they changed all the spark plugs. And that’s got the 5.4 liter Triton engine in it. Put it all back together, and it was fine after that.
SPEAKER 20 :
Yep. And you’re basically just reiterating what I said earlier, Conrad. Again, lots of hype in this that really, at the end of the day, is just that, just hype.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah, my other quick question is, you know, we’re finally moving ahead on that 521 engine I’m building for the Torino. and I was talking with a friend of mine this morning. You know, we’re putting those Molnar H-beam connecting rods in it, and he was concerned that they might fail, and I’ve been told they’re real good rods. I wanted to see what you thought.
SPEAKER 20 :
Yeah, I’ve… How should I say this? Never used that particular brand, even in all the years of racing and so on, but I’ve never heard anything bad about them, Conrad.
SPEAKER 07 :
Right. Okay. Well, they’re supposed to be real heavy duty. You know, that engine we’re building, it has to have that certain length Well, I had to get that displacement, and he said that they’ve had cracking problems and stuff, but my builder says that they should be bulletproof, so I just wanted to see what you thought.
SPEAKER 20 :
Yeah, I have no issues with those at all.
SPEAKER 07 :
Okay, that’s all I got. All right, you’re the man, Conrad. Appreciate you very much.
SPEAKER 20 :
Let’s get Carl in here next. Carl, go ahead, sir.
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, thanks for taking the call. You’re welcome. I have an old squeeze bulb type freeze point tester for antifreeze coolant, and it’s branded Prestone, and it worked on green coolant, but that stuff is pretty obsolete now. It doesn’t work anymore? No. No. Is it, will it test the freeze point of the Toyota coolant?
SPEAKER 20 :
No. You cannot use it anymore. Most technicians don’t even have those in their toolboxes, unless it’s just old green coolant like you’d have in an older car, tractor, something along those lines. They’re actually pretty much worthless. Well, I bought some test strips.
SPEAKER 08 :
That’s the way to do that. Yep. These are AccuStrip brand, and… There’s a lot more information available by using them than I would have ever dreamed. That’s right. Do you think Accustrip is a viable one to use? Yeah, I do. I would have no issues with those at all, Carl. Okay. All right. Well, thank you very much. We just bought a Toyota hybrid. This is a Corolla hybrid, and – Oh, boy, is that thing fast.
SPEAKER 03 :
Oh, yeah, they work great.
SPEAKER 08 :
Absolutely.
SPEAKER 03 :
Absolutely.
SPEAKER 08 :
We’re just pretty impressed when the light turns green. Yep, they work very well. Well, that’s the kind of car you want to buy, the one that makes you smile. Yeah. Well, the thing about it that doesn’t make me smile, though, is my wife wanted it, and we got it, but it doesn’t have a spare tire. Nope. And now they’re pushing, you know, well, you don’t need a spare tire because we’re giving you this inflation kit. And… that’s going to be shooting some kind of a pucky end of the tire to seal the leak. That’s correct, yep. And is that tire going to be reusable after that? Depends.
SPEAKER 04 :
It depends on how far you drive, if it damages the sidewall condition of the tire, that sort of stuff. But I mean, if there’s a little bit of that fluid inside the tire, it can be reusable, yes. It’s messy, but…
SPEAKER 08 :
Okay, so a place like where I usually buy my tires at discount, they might be able to take a nail out of the tread and reconstitute that and use it?
SPEAKER 04 :
Yes. Yep, as long as the tire itself is not damaged. And they might complain, and they might get their hands a little messy, and it’s not fun stuff to work with, but it’s okay. You can clean it up.
SPEAKER 08 :
Okay, well, good. One other question about this car, and this took us both by surprise. It’s got the, I think they’re called low-profile tires, 225-40R18. And we’ve got a curb on our driveway, and it’s exactly the right height that when we get too close, the little projection on the rim, right where the tire meets the wheel, gets scraped off. and all I can think about are those old-timey curb feelers. I was just thinking about that as you were talking. Well, I went on the Internet to see what was out there, and there are several people selling them, but they’re designed to go on a metal fender. They have kind of a crude-looking clamp. Do you think it would be worthwhile trying to adapt them to be attached to the plastic? No. No.
SPEAKER 04 :
No, I think you might potentially do more damage to the plastic. That’s right. I agree with that. And honestly, it’s going to look a little bit goofy too. Yeah. I completely resonate with what you’re saying because you’re aware of it. Your wife is probably not, and it’s probably just going to go that way. You’re going to have a little bit of cosmetic blemish on this wheel. Hopefully, it doesn’t actually damage the wheel and cause a… air leak at the bead seat or anything. I don’t think that’s likely. You’re just going to say it looks great from 10 feet instead of from one foot close.
SPEAKER 08 :
I did a lot of searching online looking for some kind of electronic sensor stuff, but what the artificial intelligence tells me is none of those things have worked out and They’re not available anymore. Right.
SPEAKER 04 :
No, I think you’re right. And, man, this runs in my family, too. And when I ask my wife where the scratches come, I get the weirdest stare, like she doesn’t even understand what I’m asking.
SPEAKER 10 :
Yeah.
SPEAKER 1 :
Okay.
SPEAKER 20 :
Well, thank you very much for all your help. You’re very welcome, Carl. Appreciate it. I’ve got more comments, by the way, that are coming in on the news station’s choice of quote-unquote experts from a lot of you. So I’ll talk about that as soon as we come back. Don’t go anywhere. Drive Radio KLZ 560.
SPEAKER 11 :
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SPEAKER 20 :
All right, we are back. Drive Radio, KLZ 56. And myself again, Pat Schneid, Alltech Automotive from Fort Collins. And if you need anything up in the north end of town, even you guys that are up in the Cheyenne area and so on, drive on down, see Pat. Two shops located in Fort Collins to take care of you. He is more than willing to do that. And a lot of you already do, as you’ve heard today from the people that are actually calling in and giving you kudos, Pat. So thanks for all you do. We appreciate that very much. You bet, John. Thank you. Very happy to do it. I love this industry. OK, speaking of the industry, a lot of you and I’m not saying this is just one or two, about six of you texted in and said, well, here’s why they don’t go and ask. You know, the TV stations don’t go and ask John Rush for opinions on this whole, you know, contaminated fuel and so on and so forth. Because I won’t sensationalize it. And you’re right. And by the way, thank you, by the way, for what you’re really saying is I look at things in a realistic manner. I’m going to give realistic answers. I’m not going to sensationalize something just because it’s on TV. I’m going to help people out the way they need to be helped, period. And because of that, yes, they’re not going to come see me because I’m not helping them gain clicks and views and so on. And all of you that sent that in, thank you. You know me. You know how that is. And I appreciate that.
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, John, I just want to say in front of the radio and everybody, thank you for being that guy. I appreciate it. That’s why we’re here.
SPEAKER 20 :
Yeah, and Charlie just said in my ear, I’m not a fear monger. And no, folks, I’m not. Because when we as an industry do those things, in my opinion, it gives our industry a black eye. And the last thing I want to do, I’ve worked in this industry literally my entire life. You know, I had a paper out when I was nine. I worked that until I was about 11 or 12. And then I started in my family’s dealership at that point. And I literally started, you know, sweeping floors and cleaning out urinals and cigarette butts. That’s why I’ve never smoked, by the way. I mean, I cleaned up enough after enough people that smoked cigarettes when I was a kid that I’d never had a desire to smoke since. So I guess that was a good thing. Yeah. I mean, I literally started from the, and I know this sounds goofy, but from the ground up and have been in the industry literally, you know, my entire life. I owned auto repair shops of my own for 30 years. I’m still involved in the industry with my own fleet shop and what we do with my business there, plus what I do here, you know, every single day, plus the weekends. The reality is I’m still very much involved in the industry that I love. And I feel very blessed because of it. I owe it a lot. But here’s my point. I, for years, and still to this day, do my best to try to change the image of the industry. I want it to be stunning. I want it to be an industry where everybody looks at it and realizes that, yep, these guys know what they’re talking about. They’re there to take care of me, help me, and so on. And we still have a long way to go when it comes to our industry. There are still a lot of, as Charlie said a moment ago, fear mongers. That’s what you saw on some of the news stations regarding fear. You know, repairs with this particular problem with, you know, contaminated fuel and so on. And I just refuse to participate in that because I want our industry to be the best it can be, not the worst it can be, Pat. Yep. And I totally agree with that as well. Everybody that we’re involved with, from Pat to Josh to Steve Aginos to Ken Rackley and others, I mean, all of these guys, they are involved on that same level that Pat is, and they are looking out for the best of the industry, not the worst of the industry.
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, and I think that’s an important point. I mean, not everybody has the time or the ability to contribute to the industry, but if you do and you’re not doing it, you’ve got to ask yourself why. And what I tell my friends, customers, my family, everybody, There’s a line. There are a lot of good shops in the region. There are some less than good shops in the region. There’s a line, and the people that play above that line, we’re happy. We collaborate. We are colleagues, and we build that industry up. And the ones that tear this industry down, I have no problem not supporting their business.
SPEAKER 20 :
Okay, and everything Pat just said, solid. And again, I, folks, I want our industry to be the best that it can be, and it’s why I will not participate in a lot of the sensationalism that’s out there. In fact, I even saw a video from… a particular person that I will not follow purposely because this particular individual gives out so much false information, and he is supposed to be one of the top engine rebuilders in the country, and yet he sensationalizes so many things, and he’s one of those that I actually went and saw a little video on. diesel in a gasoline engine. Here’s what happens. And I’ll just be straight up honest. The majority of the information that he gave out is just flat out wrong. I refuse to participate in that. I’m not going to go down that path. A lot of these guys will make things out. They’ll take the worst case scenario and that’s everybody’s car now. And the reality is that’s not the case. It’s actually the opposite. You’ll find the majority of people not having much of a problem at all. And there’ll be that one-off that, yes, there is, in fact, some damage and some things that were done because of it. And by the way, again, I go back to what was the condition of that engine prior to this contamination? What else did the vehicle need prior to the contamination? Were there other problems going on with that particular vehicle prior? and and and and by the way this is where for some of you that might have some contamination it might have some real problems as you go through this repair process those are things that by the way insurance companies and others are going to look at to determine how well was this vehicle maintained what excuse me, what damage was actually caused by this fuel contamination and so on. In other words, it’s not as cut and dried as what a lot of folks out there might think it is. And in a lot of cases, you’re going to be with your own insurance company getting this resolved, and you may be able to go back to, in this case, King Soopers or whoever, to try to get some additional dollars when it’s all said and done. But what I will tell you is, good luck. Good luck. Now, I read today that there’s like over 200 claims that are going to be filed along those lines. And all I’m going to say with all of that is good luck. Typically, you’re using an attorney to help you with all of that. That attorney is going to take a sizable chunk out of whatever the settlement is that you end up getting. And at the end of the day, I would advise you just go to your own insurance company, try to figure out exactly what they could help you with along these lines. They typically will. Yes, you’re going to have a deductible to pay. Can you get some reimbursement on the deductible from those gas stations themselves? You might be able to. And time will tell more and more as to where this all ends up, because again, and somebody else texted a moment ago that that number of stations went from, I think, 13 to possibly now 19 stations. So, yeah, there’s a lot of stations affected across the metro area whereby there’s a lot of people that will be affected by that. But again, I’m going to go back to what I talked about earlier as we opened up this 11 o’clock hour. But it’s not nearly as bad as what a lot of folks out there might want you to think it is. So, guys, with that, Pat, hang tight. We’re going to come right back. It’s noon. We’ve got one more full hour coming your way. Pat and myself will be right back. Don’t go anywhere. Drive Radio, KLZ 560.
SPEAKER 13 :
Still haven’t had enough? Go to drive-radio.com, email your questions and comments, download previous programs, and find lots of useful information, including your nearest Colorado Select Auto Care Center. That’s drive-radio.com. Thanks for listening to Drive Radio, sponsored by the member shops of Colorado Select Auto Care Centers. On KLZ 560.
