SoNic

My 2001 Sable Wagon was passed to my 17 yr daughter. The comment was that is long, but it moves faster than the 2000 Sonata that she learned to drive on. That Sonata is on the verge of being "let go" to greener pastures.

I have downloaded in the past diagrams for my vehicles from a certain site that was posted around here arrc.ebscohost.com. Well, I have a new car (2011 Toyota RAV4), but that site won't work anymore. Any alternatives?

By the time you spend get to the said alternator you will wish you got a new, lifetime warranty one. Advance Auto Parts sells those for a small premium. Use Retailmenot to get a coupon, order the alternator online, apply code and go pick it up in the store (not the shipping). PS: The Taurus/Sable came with two different engines, both 3.0 L. You will need to know which one you have when order the alternator. VIN 8th digit helps. Example: S for DOHC.

And $90 later...

I see a lot of forums going trough this. Younger people are not so much technically inclined to work on cars, they rather pay someone. Also, they are not using forums, their brains are damaged by instant gratification offered by "social media" - Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat... PS: My wagon Sable keeps on driving daily, very little maintenance needed - this year one steering pressure switch leaking, one fog light broken by a pebble... but temptation is great to get something newer. I would never buy a Honda or Toyota, but that's just me

They're like $55-130! Oh, well...

Does anyone know where I can get a cheap fog light housing for my 2001 Mercury Sable? It lost a fight with a pebble 😥

Thank you all for the responses. I have replaced the LCA's (MEVOTECH "Supreme") and ball joints (Motorcraft) and did go to shop for an alignment. Nice contrast with the rusty subframe...

The control arm bushings are shot too. So I have ordered the whole LCA's too.

Thank you all. I agree, McPherson front suspension is a cheap, light, and prone to generate issues in long term. Although I have replaced completely the front struts (three years ago), it's still not right. A true double wishbone style suspension is more robust in the long run. My Hyundai cars (Sonata and XG350) and of course the Ford Explorer have the double control arms and... they just stay aligned. Before I attempt any alignment, I have ordered the front lower ball joints (well, the are the only ball joints on front with McPherson), and I will have them replaced. I went Motorcraft this time, the last Chinese cheapies that I put in lasted only 3 years, they are clonking already.

A few year back (2-3?) I have replaced the front struts with KYB Strut Plus assemblies (spring+shock). I had new tires. The newer struts are much more stiffer than the ones that where on the car... but I can't tell if they are stiffer than a new car because I never had one. Well, now, the inner part of front tires is worn badly. The car drives straight, so I assume it is because of camber angles. This is how the top of the towers look like - to me it seems that they are already "pushed" to the max. Is there a solution?

I have replaced most of my exhaust pipe. The last muffler broke of at some point and the rest of the pipe had rust and a couple of pin holes. On the driveway is a horrendous job. Had the front up on ramps, rear bumper on jackstands, cut the old bolts and the pipe with the flex and sawsall (didn't have enough clearance to drop it down), then support the front muffler and the middle of the pipe with other jackstands (din't have another person). At the end I sprayed some spots with cold galvanizing zinc.

Well, I have a story to share. At around 180k miles I had replace the front wheel bearing hubs on my (previous) 1996 Mercury Sable and at around 170k miles on my 2001 Ford Explorer AWD. On my current 2001 Sable I have 150 miles and they still sound good. Those are nice, easy jobs, few bolts and done. And I figured out that any modern car must have factory sealed hubs like this... Well, nooo! My 2000 Hyundai Sonata doesn't, comes with bearings that need a press to be extracted. A PITA! Well, it's old, no? And it has on the rears sealed hubs at least. My friend's 2003 Toyota Camry doesn't have hubs, just plain bearings! At 140k miles, gone! But he makes fun of my Fords... Honda's? Nope, bearings too. BMW 300 series? Nope. Now my wife REALLY wanted to get a Kia Soul in place of the Sonata. Fine, got a 2011 model, 55k miles. On their forums I found out a guy with 140k miles replacing, you guess, the front bearings. Yep, no easy-peasy factory hubs, a whole PITA again! He paid $500 in SD for the job, surelly here in VA would be like $1K. And again, at least the rears are sealed hubs! I love my Sable! Drive it every day to work (1-1/2 to 2 hours)!

That's true. Except that on my Explorer 5.0L the oil filter removal process leaks oil on the sway bar and some wiring. Win some, lose some...