I’ve been a gear head for quite some time now and have taught myself how to do most repairs that I will need to do during the ownership of a car. Because of my passion for cars, I now own three....
The History For those of you who do not know, BMW E30, E36, and E46 models are notorious for having the rear shock mounts fail (RSM for short). For one, they're not very heavy duty from the factory. The mount base is a stamped/molded piece of aluminum which has a rubber bushing pressed into it....
Typically, the under the hood temperature in our old V8 Chevys may have reached little more than the ambient temperature outside. There was almost enough room for me to climb in to those old engine bays and change the plugs. However, under hood temperatures have soared over the past decade in our...
Gasoline is a mixture of hydrocarbons refined from crude petroleum as a result of complicated distillation and a cracking process. Gasoline vapors are highly flammable and it's octane rating is the number given to classify it's resistance to detonation. There are several different factors that...
The Octane Myth So, you're at the gas station. 87, 89, and 93 are staring you in the face. You glance over at your Mercedes and think, "Only the best for my baby." Do you question the decision you're about to make? 93 is better than 87, right? Well, not always. In layman's terms, 93 octane...
Being a car guy has it's pluses and minuses. One of the major pluses is that you are willing to learn a lot about cars and love looking, as well as working on as many as you can get your hands on. One of the minuses, at least when it comes to me, is that I get bored with cars quickly and want...
Originally published on scottdrozd.com Humble Beginnings FCP was established in 1986, by Harry and Kathy Bauer, as a brick and mortar store, in Groton, CT. They set out and served the local European and Asian Import auto parts market for years, making first-rate customer relationships and...
Sometimes auto repair involves more than just replacing the part that failed. We tend to replace larger assemblies rather than individual parts because it's usually easier, even if it's less cost effective and more wasteful. If you think your alternator might have failed, step back and consider...
By Jerry Spradlin, Contributing Editor to Import Auto Parts and Accessories Magazine Originally written for IAPA Magazine The World Series Team of Auto Parts Professionals has a new state-of-the art Stadium. I have spent the last year traveling and writing about the Future of the Automotive...
One of my good friends and fellow BMW junky, John, gave me a call a few summers ago telling me he'd bought a car from his work. I'd been to his shop a few times before and knew that they specialized in older BMW’s and Porsches, so I figured he maybe bought a 2002 or an E30. He told me that he was...
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