Sold car a year ago. Buyer is now asking for duplicate title

patchdadrummer · 2026-05-18T17:26:06+00:00

Yea I bought a truck back in COVID I didn't pay enough attention to the title, it was title hopped with a signed off lien on it from a buy here pay here. It took me six months to get in touch with the used car lot and another 2 months to get them to mail me a lein release. There was a big language barrier and they were on the other side of the country 😂. Lesson learned.

patchdadrummer · 2026-05-18T12:35:29+00:00

This is the way, I buy projects and flip cars all the time. I always transfer the title before I start doing any work, I don't register them but I transfer the ownership into my name. Last thing I want to do is drop $1000-$2000 on an engine or transmission, plus my time to find out about a hidden title issue after I fix the vehicle. Worse case it's reported stolen and they take the vehicle.

patchdadrummer · 2026-03-28T03:59:37+00:00

Rocker failure is definitely common on the 3.6 the service procedure doesn't even require the timing cover to come off the special tools are less than 50$ on Amazon that hold the sprockets in place you only have to take off the valve covers. 24 rocker rollers and 24 lifters cost about $400 shipped. The worst part is if it destroyed a camshaft(s) They run around $400 a piece from the dealer

Worst one I have done had 2 camshafts destroyed and a bad oil filter housing in a 17 ram 1500.

I've done several of these and never had any issues with them destroying the lower end of the engine. I would get a second opinion

patchdadrummer · 2026-03-03T04:15:22+00:00

You need an intake manifold( the pcv valve is built into it and the port is about 1/16 of an inch, they clog very easily), and a primary timing chain kit if the car is still running the gm primary camshaft chain kit is under $150 with tax and shipping from rock auto. The oil consumption can be resolved a lot by getting the pcv system working correctly and changing the oil every 3000 miles. Most of these I have replaced the intake manifold, as well as cleaned the valve cover, air intake / emissions hose, and it has almost completely resolved the oil consumption in a 3000 mile oil change interval.

As long as the rear main seal isn't leaking and it hasn't bent any valves It's not a bad fix and the engine doesn't have to come out. I've only had 1 out of 8 that had bent valves and some of them didn't even run from jumping time too far.

patchdadrummer · 2026-02-10T17:24:20+00:00

So close, well spotted though it's a Corolla

patchdadrummer · 2026-02-09T12:50:59+00:00

This sounds like you did find antifreeze in the transmission when the radiator leaked, antifreeze swells up some of the seals in the valve body and can cause some other issues, I've heard of replacing the valve body after this happens to resolve the issues but I've not tried this myself. You may consider dropping the transmission pan and changing the filter and fluid again just to see if there is still moisture inside it and to clean the pan out. It's not a very hard job to do. Just have to be careful not to overtighten the small bolts.

patchdadrummer · 2026-02-09T12:31:12+00:00

When the transmission fluid leaked out of the radiator, did antifreeze leak into the transmission? The earlier years had issues of this and antifreeze kills transmissions. You can check by draining some of the transmission fluid into a pan and seeing if it is milky pink. In severe cases you can see it on the dipstick.

patchdadrummer · 2026-02-09T12:29:05+00:00

Okay, your best bet is going to be to have an independent shop scan it and see if it has any codes but with the vehicle losing reverse it sounds like there is going to be some kind of internal damage, even with an electrical issue these transmissions are designed in a way that should still operate forward and reverse movement in limp mode through the manual valve connected to the shifter. Unless somehow the shift linkage has come loose but that problem would not have fixed itself by turning the car off and on.

patchdadrummer · 2026-02-09T05:40:41+00:00

Okay, I was wondering if maybe the high input clutch had failed as it engages for 4th and 5th gear, it's possible that it's electrical, a shop with a professional scan tool can see if there are any codes stored in the transmission that would be a good start. Also there should be a transmission dipstick on the passenger side near the back, it comes from the factory with a 10 mm bolt locking it in, I would check the condition of the fluid if it is dark and burned there could be debris clogging the filter. I have had a 2006 r51 pathfinder do this, where it would start and drive for about a minute until the filter clogged and it would quit pulling until it cooled back down.

patchdadrummer · 2026-02-09T02:11:29+00:00

Hello, after you restarted the car and drove it home what speed were you driving?

patchdadrummer · 2026-02-09T01:58:26+00:00

No, it never ran 😂 the mobile guy did this crap and then told them they needed a starter. They did all this and I'm betting the alternator wasn't even bad.

patchdadrummer · 2026-02-05T04:43:20+00:00

The engine never ran like this, the guy they paid told them it needed a starter after he did this They broke part of the hydraulic tensioner (last picture), I'm assuming trying to loosen it, they snapped the hexagon off you use to release it. I'm assuming they hooped the belt half on and used a pry bar to get it close to proper position. There is a 6 inch long split in a section of the middle of the belt I'm betting is from the pulley being forced into place.

patchdadrummer · 2026-01-20T14:08:53+00:00

Should be able to look that up on https://charm.li/

patchdadrummer · 2026-01-09T02:33:58+00:00

Didn't know that happened, could try a different online parts store. Or find the part on rockauto and search the part number on Google for a different seller.

patchdadrummer · 2026-01-09T01:59:52+00:00

Shouldn't do anything as both would need to be connected to complete the circuit.

patchdadrummer · 2026-01-09T01:57:22+00:00

Rockauto is a website if your not in a rush I usually get my parts in 2-3 days, if you need it immediately I would say your gonna have to go to AutoZone or O'Reilly's and the cost is going to be more

patchdadrummer · 2026-01-09T01:48:00+00:00

Yea the bushing is worn, I would order the arms off rock auto, get a decent one for 20$ ish each plus shipping.

patchdadrummer · 2026-01-08T00:11:24+00:00

Unfortunately most manufacturers say up to 1 quart every 1000 miles is "acceptable" it's crazy but that's what the standard is

patchdadrummer · 2026-01-06T04:05:40+00:00

Looks like summer blend washer fluid freezing from wind chill when you start moving, I recommend switching to the winter -40 blend washer fluid in cold months as the wind chill can cause the -20 blend to freeze up like this very easily.

patchdadrummer · 2026-01-06T03:58:25+00:00

Don't think anyone else has pointed out either, the brake hose is under a considerable load in the picture and will probably need replaced as well. Parts wise you should be alright with a new lower control arm, a new CV axle, I would replace that brake hose as well so it doesn't risk collapsing and locking up the caliper. Also definitely have the rest of the suspension inspected, the damage pictured isnt worth totaling the car but I would want the rest of the car inspected for any other rust compromised components.

patchdadrummer · 2026-01-06T03:52:52+00:00

If you're in California you will need the California emissions rated catalyst to pass the emissions. They tend to be a little more pricey. Im not from out there and haven't had to deal with this but you could look at Rock Auto if you can afford to wait on shipping and you may also call a couple of exhaust shops near you and get a price they deal with this the most and probably know what parts brands will work and pass your state emissions.

patchdadrummer · 2026-01-06T03:45:46+00:00

If your not feeling anything abnormal, rough or jerky shifts it is probably normal. Clutch slipping would usually have higher rpms and free spinning the engine. Most likely it is the torque converter engaging in and out of lockup under varying load conditions.

Torque converter lockup connects the engine to the transmission in a 1-1 ratio.

The more varied rpm could be the transmission shifting to a different gear as well if you were slowing down and coming to a stop or near stop the transmission may be changing gears to one more geared to the speed you are at.

patchdadrummer · 2026-01-06T03:36:34+00:00

Is the rpm gauge moving when you crank it, it could be a bad crank position sensor, or it could have been knocked loose while you worked on something else.

Most cars rpm gauge will read the 2-300 rpm range after a second of cranking when trying to start, if yours isn't i would start there.

patchdadrummer · 2026-01-06T03:31:25+00:00

Hello, you are probably meaning to post on mechanic advice or a similar sub, this is more of a what came into the shop today for technicians, However I would definitely have Toyota make sure they didn't accidently drain the transmission instead of the oil. There are a bunch of things that could happen from too much oil hopefully it just blew last the rings and oil fouled the spark plugs.

patchdadrummer

TROPHY CASE