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" Cold Stalls Q: I currently drive a 1992 Chevy Pickup that has 243,000 miles on the odometer and still runs well. I bought it used and I am not sure if the motor has been overhauled. I have had the transmission rebuilt but the motor seems to be running strong. It just stalls when it is really cold after I first start it and try to drive it. Do you have any suggestions to fix the stalling problem? A: I would check the fuel pressure to be sure it&amp;#039;s high enough. Then I&amp;#039;d add some fuel injection cleaner, and clean the throttle body and idle air controller. Check the throttle position sensor, too.  Short-Lived brakesQ: My friend has a 2006 Honda Civic that she bought new last year. She was told the car required new brakes at 17,000 miles by a shop, which she allowed to replace them. Now the car has 35,000 miles on it. She took the car in for it&amp;#039;s 30,000 mile maintenance (which I think is a rip off) and the Honda dealer said she needs a brake job, again!  I would have raised a red flag at 17,000 miles for a front end brake job, as I assume under normal San Diego driving conditions, the brand new factory front brakes should last at least 40,000 miles.  Are my assumptions correct? What would you recommend this lady do? Does she have any recourse? I asked her to call the Honda shop and ask how long the front brakes should have lasted under normal conditions.  A: Brake pad composition and engineering are a bundle of compromises. Pads have to work cold and hot, wet or dry, not ever squeal and not deposit black powder on the front wheels. And they have to meet all these criteria without the benefit of asbestos, which was found to contribute to lung cancer in people who worked with asbestos regularly.  Add to that low-rolling-resistance tires, improved aerodynamics, tall gearing and overall efficiency of modern, high-fuel economy cars. Add in a few hundred extra pounds of crash resistance and a posse of airbags and a cabin that has to meet rollover standards.  What took it in the ear? Pad longevity.  My only suggestion is to change brands, and specify a harder, premium pad composition. These should last longer, at the expense of some brake noise and dirtier wheels   Knock and Roll Q: I have noticed that my 2001 Chevrolet Suburban sometimes makes a noise at the point of acceleration when I accelerate from a stop, or when I slow down significantly and then accelerate. The noise sounds like dragging chains. It doesn&amp;#039;t always make the noise, but it worries me. When it was still under warranty, I took it to the dealer and they fixed it or at least made the noise stop for a while. Is this something to worry about? A: That tinkling noise is knock, caused by one or more of these things: too much ignition timing, the wrong plugs, carboned-up combustion chambers, plugged-up injectors, too low a grade of gasoline, a malfunctioning knock sensor, an engine that&amp;#039;s running too hot \u2013 or about a dozen other weird things.  And some engines just knock. For some vehicles, there&amp;#039;s a possibility of reflashing the memory in the powertrain control module (computer) to cure this, but I just checked, and GM hasn&amp;#039;t issued a service bulletin about your vehicle.  I&amp;#039;d start by adding some fuel injection cleaner. That will clean up any plugged injectors and remove some combustion chamber deposits. Use it for at least three tankfuls before taking anything apart. And I&amp;#039;d ask the dealer what they did the last time, but I would be really skeptical about believing them. Cooling Down Brakes Q: I noted that your long-term test of the Honda Fit Sport in the June issue said that your testers &amp;quot;overheated the brakes and failed to cool them down properly.&amp;quot; Please advise the &amp;quot;proper&amp;quot; way to cool overheated brakes. I&amp;#039;m not familiar with the process and would sure like to know how I might save a set of rotors.  A: Damage occurs when the pads cook on the same spot on the rotor while they cool off from their incandescent phase. Cooling off overheated brakes is simple: Just drive around at modest speeds, (slow enough not to need the brakes) for about 5 minutes. This will keep the pads from sticking to the hot discs, and keep the discs from warping from the concentrated heat in the area covered by the pads. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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