Weekly
Column
Click & Clack Talk Cars
By
Tom and Ray MagliozziDear Tom and Ray:
I’ve got a peculiar
problem. My 1999 Mercury Sable’s heater has
been putting out less and less hot air for the
past few years. This year there was no heat. I
have flushed the cooling system; still nothing.
Then I flushed the heater core, and now I have
heat but only at highway speeds. At idle, you can
feel it cool right back down to nothing. Any
thoughts? My wife and kids refuse to ride with me
anymore... on second thought, maybe that’s
OK! - Mike
RAY: My brother got his wife
and kids to stop riding with him too. But he
didn’t have to give up his heat to do it.
Giving up his reflexes and judgement seemed to do
the trick.
TOM: I think it’s your
heater core, Mike. Flushing won’t help once
it’s really plugged up. I’m going to
guess that the water pump is OK. It’s turned
by a belt that runs the engine, so, at idle
speed, it’s supposed to pump more slowly
than at highway speed. At normal idle speed, it
just can’t overcome the gunk that’s
clogging up your heater core.
RAY: The good news is that the
heater core is easy to get to on this car. The
bad news is that it’s only easy to get to
once you remove the entire dashboard.
TOM: So, you’re looking at
$600, Mike. A big chunk of that is labur. You
have to make a decision here; Do you want to be
frozen out by your car, or be frozen out by your
family? Good luck deciding, brother.
RACING
by Greg Zyla
Sponsored by Curry Automotive
Jeff
Gordon Should Win It All This Year
It’s that
time of year when we make our "Chase for the
Cup" predictions for the 2005 NASCAR season.
Here is our predicted order of finish:
1. Jeff Gordon
— Had "old points" been utilized,
Gordon would have been the 2004 champ. But they
aren’t, so he’s back again this year in
the thick of the hunt.
2. Dale Earnhardt
Jr. — If his team can figure out some of the
smaller, mid-size tracks, he’ll again make a
run for the overall title.
3. Jimmy Johnson
— His four wins in the last 10 races nearly
made up for several poor "Chase"
outings.
4. Kasey Kahne
— No sophomore jinx for this kid. Look for a
minimum of three wins and a strong run at the
Nextel Cup.
5. Tony Stewart
— "Smoke" could come away with the
whole thing if luck goes his way and he’s
not involved in too many crashes.
6. Jamie McMurray
— New to the list this year, he’s car
owner Chip Ganassi’s best shot at a top-10
contender.
7. Matt Kenseth
— Always a force to be reckoned with and a
true "David Pearson"-style driver.
8. Kurt Busch
— We left him off the list last year and he
won the whole thing.
9. Mark Martin
— A sentimental favorite. He’s driving
his last full season of Cup racing.
10. Ryan Newman
— Prime example of the fastest car not
always winning.
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