Daughter's wagon died

My Daughter Nicole's 96 roadmaster quit running in New Mexico today :banghead3:. This is about two weeks after we drove it down from the Chicago area. I have spent most of the summer replacing just about anything and everything that could have broken on the car. About two days before we left the "NEW" water pump failed and I had to replace it. That unit failed as well and I had to quikly locate an AC delco unit. Once that was done water pump issues where solved. Now again another "NEW" after market part has failed !! This time it was the fuel pump. I have a good working used AC delco pump that I am sending down to her but now she needs to find a mechanic that will do the work. Anyone here live near Soccoro New Mexico and know of a good shop? The only good news this is that there is only about 4-5 gallons of gas in the tank. I really hate it when you spend your hard earned cash and time to install crap parts. It's not like this car is easy to work on either. You really have to rip things apart to get at this pump assembly. The water pump was no party either!! I tried so hard to send her down in a good car that would be reliable. My wife is telling me we should have bought her a toyota camery or a honda civic. I told her that Nicole would not have been happy with those little tin boxes she wanted a full size american car. I sure hope that this fuel pump is the last crap part failure or I am in the dog house!

 

Geez DanR what a bummer to have this happen. You worked so hard to put a nice car together for your daughter only to have this happen. Disappointing for her and even more so for you. Hopefully someone can provide a recommendation for a mechanic. One thought, have you checked online to see what is there in that town? Then check the Better Business Bureau and see if any are listed and if so what their ratings are.............just a thought.

I know what you mean about aftermarket parts. They are typically not nearly up to the same standards as the factory parts were, are often cheap immitations made offshore where quality control is no where near what the OEM's demanded, and they are generic so they fit a broad range of cars and thus often fit poorly and look like crud compared to an NOS part. I can see why so many people work so hard to use factory only pieces and look high and low for those NOS pieces at swap meets and online.

Keep us updated on how this turns out and good luck with this. Tell your daughter (and wife?) that there are a whole bunch of people out here rooting for you guys.

 

http://www.superpages.com/yellowpages/C-Auto+Repair/S-NM/T-Socorro/

 

You might also call AAA and see what recommended shops are near by. I've always had good luck with CAA recommended shops here.

 

Sorry for the problems Big Dan, I know your girl likes that Roadie. Hopefully a NM member will chime in here. The reman industry needs to improve quality in my book! Good Luck!

 

I hope she gets it back on the road soon. I do not know you or your family but already like you and your daughter. I think that it is great that she wanted the wagon for school and you made that happen. I tell people this story when talking about Roadmaster wagons.

Fuel pumps (PLUS) fail on Camrys and Civics too.

Keep us posted.

 

Bummer, at least it's parts and not a accident. Hope the repair bill itn't too high.

 

200OZ on the longroof forum told me about this thread.

I asked a friend who grew up in Socorro. She used go to the Rotary club and knew all the business owners, but she hasn't lived there in seven years. So she called her Mom, who is not a car person.

It's a small town, so if the shop behind the Napa sees a lot of business, they're probably okay.

 

Thanks Guys (for the help and the support). I forwarded this link to Nicole and hopfully she will check it out. This as much as it is a bummer will be a good life lesson. I will keep you folks posted. Take care Dan

 

Hate to knock parts and auto parts stores that I know nothing about------ But seems like an awful lot of these new replacement parts... .mostly from far away...... are failing in a very short time. Our son replaced the in tank fuel pump in his Ford Ranger at least half dozen times! Once was enough. Sure, the parts stores exchange the defective "whatzits", but don't pay for the work and the inconvieniences when broke down.
What we need are good ole USA made parts again.

Remember when a fuel pump cost $15 and we could change it under a shade tree? And it was good to go another 50,000 miles.

 

What we need are good ole USA made parts again.

Remember when a fuel pump cost $15 and we could change it under a shade tree? And it was good to go another 50,000 miles.[/QUOTE]


Yes I do. In fact I still own two cars that a fuel pump replace is under $30. The problem with electric pumps is that they are expensive (even the crap ones) and difficult to change. Now add the fact that it craps out with a full tank of gas in the middle of nowhere and you have a big problem!! My daughter was lucky her quit in the school parking lot in the parking space and only has about 1/8 tank of gas.

 

I changed the fuel pump in my Roadmaster last month. I bought the Napa house-brand pump, and it didn't fit. When I took it back, I made sure to get the Delco pump. It cost more, but the job was such a nuisance that I decided that it's worth the extra $25 not to have to do it again.

By reputation, the gas pumps on these cars overheat and have a higher failure rate if you keep letting the gas get low. Your daughter should try to keep her fuel gauge above 1/4 tank.

 

You can probably anticipate the power steering pump to go sometime too.
But once all these parts are replaced it should be pretty reliable.

 

Or you could buy her a Kia !

 

That might be a good tip for all of us? Thanks Dr Danger! And welcome to the madness btw! and