Dear Tom and Ray: I recently had my 1994 Toyota Camry XLE in for a front exhaust leak. The main symptom was a muffled noise coming from the front.
After the repair, I still heard the noise, though not as bad. And call me crazy, but I feel lightheaded and dizzy, and I have a weird feeling in my throat. Could they have done something wrong with the repair and now carbon monoxide is leaking into my car? Is there a way to test for a carbon monoxide leak in the car? — Kelly
Tom: Kelly, if you’re still alert and conscious by the time you read this, go to a hardware store with your windows rolled down, and buy a carbon monoxide (CO) detector for your car.
Ray: For 20 bucks, you can get a battery-powered one. Put it in your car, let the car run for 10 minutes (without you in it), and then check the reading. I’m guessing you’ve got CO.
Tom: You’ve got all of the symptoms: Dizziness. Lightheadedness. Writing to me and my brother for advice!
Ray: Carbon monoxide is deadly stuff, Kelly. It’s also invisible, odorless and tasteless. So the only way to know whether it’s present is with a CO detector, or via autopsy (we’re assuming you prefer the former option).
Tom: The noise you were hearing was exhaust escaping, under pressure, from a cracked exhaust manifold under the hood. And it’s certainly possible that your mechanic botched the job. He may have been wrong about where the leak was coming from, he could have replaced your manifold with a used one that was also cracked, or he may just be a moron, like my brother.
Ray: Exactly! We’re everywhere, you know!
Tom: So get it back to him right away. Like today. Like now. And leave all the windows down when you drive it there. After he fixes it, test it for CO again — right there at his shop, before you drive it away.
Dear Tom and Ray: For no other reason than nostalgia, and the fact that it’s the only car I know how to work on (because it broke down on me so many times when I owned one), I am looking for a Plymouth Arrow Coupe for my kid’s 16th birthday. I’m willing to go anywhere in the United States for a manual-transmission coupe that is still running. Can you help me? — Mel
Ray: Can we help you? I don’t think so, Mel. I think you’re too far gone.
Tom: I suppose we could best help you by trying to talk you out of this. This thing was made in the late 1970s, and it was, to be delicate, real junk. This is not a good car for a 16-year-old, mostly because it’s unsafe.
Ray: It has no crumple zones, no air bags, no disc brakes, no anti-lock braking system, no stability control — no nothing.
Tom: So, here’s what we suggest: Buy the kid an early-1990s Volvo. That’ll help protect him for a few years, until he grows up and gets a little smarter. Plus, it’ll be old, it’ll break down frequently and it’ll be expensive to repair. That means he’ll have to learn how to fix things, or how to pay someone else to fix things. Either one is a good lesson.
Ray: Then look on eBay or in Hemmings Motor News (hemmings.com) for an Arrow, and buy it for yourself. Then YOU can tinker with it. When it runs, we know you’ll drive it sanely. And on summer nights, you can roll down the windows, reminisce and think wistfully about the days when you had hair for the wind to blow though! Good luck, Mel.
Listen to the Car Guys on 1340 AM and 1490 AM at 10 a.m. Saturdays and noon Sundays. Write to them in care of The Denver Post, 101 W. Colfax Ave., Suite 600, Denver, CO 80202.
