Engine Codes...

[Kajia]

For my 94 SL1

I got the codes:

26 QDM fault

27 Soft flag Quick QDM fault

Can anyone put these in english for me?

[saturnspeed_12]

god! another quad driver module. what is up with these obd1 cars right now. i have now seen at least 8 qdm's in the past month.

these is a lengthy check to find the problem.

http://www.differentracing.com/tech_...es/dtc/26.html

that is the article on the quad driver about what to check. im not sure if you would be able to do this or know someone who could. this is the reason your fan isnt working.

[Kajia]

Right...I can figure that out...but neither of these pertain to the braking or them telling me I need a new ECU right?

[Cat Fuzz]

The brakes might still be a seperate issue, but you certainly do not need a new cooling fan or computer.

I just hate stoopid mechanics. Unfortunatly, it seems like too many shops are trying to get by with people that don't know enough about modern computer controlled cars. Another thing they do is over charge because they know you know nothing about your car. Example:

A friend came to me because Alton's Automotive here in Spokane WA quoted her $800 to fix a "major" oil leak. She asked if I could fix it a little cheaper. Most definatly, I said. I looked at the car and spent 1/2 hour to find the leak and another hour to replace a gasket that only cost $1.26. AT MOST that should have only cost her about $125.00 at the shop. But she didn't know any better so they decided to take advantage. I only charged her $10.00 cause I'm a nice guy and she gave me a nice $50.00 gift card to Red Robin.

Friggin' scammers!! I hate 'em!

The same company but a different location told my dad he needed new brake rotors and new brake pads for his truck so he decided to just have me do the work and pay me instead. He went and bought all the stuff and when I tore everything down I discovered that his brake pads were only worn 1/4 of the way (he had 3/4 of the pad left) and his rotors were no where near worn down to the legal limit.

BTW, that companies name, again, is ALTON'S TIRE and AUTOMOTIVE in SPOKANE WA! So if you live here or are visiting and need car repairs, DON'T GO THERE, they will rip you off.

[Kajia]

Too bad you're all the way in Spokane. Hopefully one of my friends knows enough to help me out, if not I am just going to take it to a different shop. But thanks for the info, now I don't have to put that much on my credit card...being a poor college student sucks :-(

[Cat Fuzz]

BTW, whats the problem with your brakes? Whats it doing or not doing?

[Kajia]

When I step on them and come to a stop, the pedal eventually ends up all the way to the firewall.

[Cat Fuzz]

Originally Posted by Kajia

When I step on them and come to a stop, the pedal eventually ends up all the way to the firewall.

Ok, that does call for a new master cylinder.

[Kajia]

Dangit, can you get those refurbished or anything so they aren't so spendy?

[Cat Fuzz]

What were you quoted to replace the master cylinder?

[Kajia]

They said 400 for the parts and labor.

[Cat Fuzz]

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Shucks has a remanufactured master cylinder for under $60 and it MIGHT take an hour to replace it and bleed the system. Obviously they are quoting a NEW master cylinder and MAXIMUM labor.


Does you car have ABS and/or 4 wheel disk brakes?

[Kajia]

Yes, that was for a new master cylinder, and no i don't have abs or 4 disk brakes.

[Cat Fuzz]

Yeah, $58.99 for a reman master cylinder at Schucks.

Here's the deal about car repair shops: They will quote a job based on average published times for replacing parts. If the books says it will take 3 hours to replace a master cylinder thats what they quote, BUT, an experienced mechanic could probably do the job much faster than that, say, an hour. You pay for three hours of labor and the mechanic gets an efficiancy bonus for doing the job in less time than what you paid for. Very often, a shop will get paid for 12 or more hours of labor for a mechanic that worked 8 hours that day.

ALSO, the mark-up for parts that they install of your car is alot higher than what you would pay if you bought the parts yourself. They will charge you, say, $100 for a part that you could go down and buy at the local parts store for $75.00.

Then, add that to the fact that alot of shops are doing work that may or may not need to be done simply because you don't know any better.


If you lived closer, I'd charge you $35.00/hour ACTUAL labor and not even mark-up the parts and you would be happy and I'd be happy making money on the side.

Ask your friends and family if they know anyone like me who would do the work for you for cheaper.

[saturnspeed_12]

just because the pedal travels to the floor doesnt mean that its the master cylinder. it could be low on fluid or there could be a leak which would most likely be the wheel cylinders. wheel cylinders are chintzy little things.

but if it is the master cylinder, you can get a remanufactured one from napa for like $60 range. its a simple install but requires all brakes to be bled. still no where near $400.

and yes, that qdm does not pertain to the brakes and wont be a cause for pcm needing replaced. they probably saw quad driver module and though, oh thats apart of the pcm so it needs replaced. it is the cause for the fan not working. im trying hard to figure it out, and i think we have come down to still possibly the coolant sensor being bad, but im waiting on jeff's word and some others.

but i can say many shops are looking for untrained mechanics. i started in a shop just before i turned 18 and did plenty of mechanical work. although the shop i worked at actually did things right, and we used mitchell manuals on the net for more diagnosing. expensive stuff. i did plenty of work and i had knowledge of things before i went in, but now i can run diagnostic scan tools and figure parameters of what sensors should be reading, run a/c machines, and several other things. also working in there helped me get past being scared to tackle a job because i dont know whats going on.

a mechanic is suppose to be able to job in, not knowing the problem, find it, figure the proper solution to fix it, and get the job done properly.