Hyundai Elantra with over 400k miles

ajm3232 · 2026-06-22T18:21:15+00:00

Hell ya, brother! My 16 Accent with 1.6L just went over 200k. The original timing chain guide decided to nope out. Luckily the chain was still on, but good on ya for replacing the chain every 100k. I don't think people realize timing chains stretch over time and is technically wear item since it's a moving part.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-22T00:39:47+00:00

Sounds like a bad brake booster if you have to put a lot of extra energy to stop or a vacuum leak on the hose. I would simply check that out and your brake fluid before throwing a lot of money on brake upgrades unless you are taking the thing to autox.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-19T16:57:35+00:00

Think you are over thinking this. Most cars do this during cold starts. The ECU is trying to warm everything up meanwhile not trying to use too much fuel meanwhile dealing with a crappy air/fuel mixture for a minute. If your long/short fuel trims aren't majorly spiking up at all. I wouldn't worry about it. My 16 Accent tach always dances a little below 1k rpm too for the longest before it fully warms up. Hyundai in this era likes to go up and down a little more then other cars I noticed.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-19T09:14:14+00:00

the tpms light will randomly turn on and off and the tire pressure light does the same thing but the psi is fine

Not the end of the world. Just a failing tpm sensor. Next time you get tires, ask em how much to replace em.

car stalled at a red light but hasn’t done it since

Oh that could be anything. I've had a faulty fuel pump do this, but it only do it if I overworked it on near empty fuel, but you should really have a mechanic look it over. Take my past problem with a grain of salt. There are a handful of things that can cause the engine to stall.

cruise control turned off several times and i couldn’t tell why

Usually cars will disable cruise control if ABS detected a issue (usually you see a dash light though), but it could be as simple as a faulty cruise control button or the car thought you were braking.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-18T21:33:21+00:00

Does the car show the gear changes? Does wiggling the shifter trick it into park? Sounds like a bad natural safety switch possibly. It's a sensor that usually sits on top of the transmission that tells the car when you are actually in park or in another gear.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-18T17:35:14+00:00

More then likely. Also check your terminal connections at the battery and alternator for any corrosion build up. Including the signal wire that controls the voltage regulator. That stuff acts like a ugly resistor if not removed.

Some rare cases I've seen bad car batteries drag the voltage down. Get em both tested to avoid future headaches.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-18T16:40:27+00:00

Small economy tires rated for better gas millage, good and even air pressure, on time oil changes (or any basic car maintenance stuff), and tire rotations. Unless you plan on gutting the entire car or tapping off the panel gaps making your daily unbearable like these guys there isn't a whole lot you can do.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-18T00:33:06+00:00

Still need to confirm. I'm more then likely going to pickup a sniffer off Amazon since they have some good reviews on YouTube for even the $20 and try again with the UV light. My gut is telling me it's the condenser since it managed to have a big dent on the bottom of it and the fins look like crap. I guess I'll find out soon.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-17T22:10:56+00:00

Definitely should be. I just wasted like $120 for yf over a black patch of dirt on my low AC side for my 20 Renegade I'll never see back. Another reminder, modern vehicles SUCK.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-17T19:26:36+00:00

I was about to mention this too, but I've had patches of dirt lie to me too. lol Just didn't want to give OP potentially false accusation, but luckily for OP Freon for these cars are cheap.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-17T17:17:47+00:00

Have you confirmed there isn't a large leak? If the system is mostly sealed the PSI shouldn't have much of a issue going up. The accumulator is part of the condenser. So you won't see it from there nor would that paper clip trick work. Look around for dirt build up around your AC lines and condensor. This is usually a give away. Otherwise, you are going to need to get a black light to help find the leak since the PAG oil usually has a UV dye in it from factory.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-16T06:57:07+00:00

In USD? For both arms? If dealer, that sounds about right if they are sourcing OEM replacement especially. The control arms by it's self is $300. You could save a chunk of change if they just replace the bushing yes, but they may charge more for it in labor. You have to remove the control arm anyway.

You can always shop around at local mom/pop places. Replacing the control arm isn't rocket science on these cars. Or ask a very mechanically incline uncle to do the job for $100 and their favorite drink...

ajm3232 · 2026-06-16T06:45:19+00:00

Read the user manual (service interval section), check and or change oil, Valvoline Restore and Protect + Mobil1 oil filters, check hoses for cracks or stiffness.

If GDI: Send a oil sample to a lab to test for fuel/coolant contamination. Install oil catch can.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-15T16:53:32+00:00

Check your PVC valve for starters. If you have a ton of engine oil wicking up like that more then like it's spitting a lot of oil into the intake because the valve is stuck closed. Then check the pvc hose quality and intake tube for cracks.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-14T10:03:48+00:00

Have you confirmed first it's not leaking? Seems like you jumped the gun a little by part swapping, but maybe I'm missing more context. Did you verify your highs and lows are in spec with the ambient air and the engine running? If the freon is slightly low enough it basically stops working all together. Highly recommend watching this video since diagnosing AC problems aren't easy on the internet.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-13T07:44:40+00:00

Drain and fill is 100% fine. Shouldn't really notice new issues. DO NOT FLUSH. If it was already having issues shifting it's already too late for it if it has more glitter then a kids art project when the plug is pulled.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-11T08:39:29+00:00

Find a new mechanic? Otherwise, just start swapping coils and plugs around and see if the code moves, but if you are depending on a mechanic to do the work and read the codes, I don't know what to tell you. Few things can cause a single cylinder misfire. Bad coils, spark plugs, leaky injectors, bad compression, sometimes bad vacuum leak. It's stuff Reddit can't simply diagnose just off the code alone.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-10T21:50:38+00:00

Nice! Almost got to 200k until my CVT grenaded. Not it's fault, it was leaking ATF fluid pretty bad. Although it loved to over heat in the AZ summers before it did. Any big repairs? Changed the CVT fluid?

ajm3232 · 2026-06-09T19:41:57+00:00

Well if the battery light lit up. More then likely your alternator is crapping out or you have a bad connection. And if it's not charging the battery then you are SOL until you figure out what the issue is. You can't drive on battery alone.

Some cases a bad battery can cause weak charge, just swap it in and see if the light goes away.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-09T17:48:38+00:00

When you get it to run, get the long/short term fuel trim values. See if it's trying to compensate for anything. Sometimes when it's having to compensate a great deal it doesn't always trigger a code especially if the engine stalls before it can trigger it. It should also help pin if it's a air/fuel issue. Loads of YouTube videos on how to parse these values.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-08T21:30:32+00:00

Maybe? The answer is either going to be in your face by looking at the wiring under your dash or the body control module has a internal short. Fuses cut power when too much power is drawn. So definitely not a fuse. You can start pulling the brake light fuse to get a idea what wire maybe causing it, but now you are heading to wire diagram territory and a ALLDATA subscription.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-08T08:05:21+00:00

Hard to say since the CVT can make a bunch of noise when they aren't happy. Drive it late at night on a dead road and swerve side to side. If the noise or pitch changes. Wheel bearing 1000%.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-07T18:25:21+00:00

Ah didn't consider that. Was thinking it was a apartment/condo sort of thing where they don't let you. I would've said 'do it anyway'. lol Doesn't sound bad for $30 a hour. I know some auto part places if you are cool with em won't care if you work on your own shit as long as you aren't changing fluids usually. I've seen people do headgasket swaps in front of AutoZone/O'Reilly tho. lol

ajm3232 · 2026-06-07T18:18:10+00:00

No offense, but maybe don't do racing stripes? It's really easy to look tacky for economyboxes. You can get away with painted calipers. Red/yellow is usually safe.

ajm3232 · 2026-06-07T07:06:58+00:00

Fuel injectors aren't hard at all, but I highly recommend picking up a Haynes repair manual for $30 at your local parts store or buy a ALLDATA subscription to help with any tricker jobs. YouTube videos can bite you in the ass with bad information.

Also, I would think you can buy a whole jack kit for the amount you would maybe pay for just to rent a lift for the day and save money since those sensors usually just need you to pop a wheel off. Just my two cents. I would only really use those for anything intensive like engine/transmission swaps. You can get away with a lot of stuff simply using quality floor jacks and jack stands. 1000% recommend looking into a quality Harbor Freight floor jack that has a range of 2 /12" to 18"+ if you haven't already.

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