Dave Graham Literature

RockAuto now offers reproduction owner's manuals, in both print and CD format, wiring diagrams, factory assembly manuals and even classic sales brochures from Dave Graham Parts and Literature. Dave Graham literature can help you repair your vehicle or provide the finishing touch to a restoration.

Dave Graham manuals are licensed by Ford, General Motors and Mopar. They are all exact reproductions of the original manuals that were written by the people who designed and built the vehicles. Repair manuals are printed on bright white 20lb paper, "perfect" bound and protected with shrink wrap. Brochures are printed on glossy paper like what was on the rack in the showroom when the car was new. Find Dave Graham manuals for your specific vehicle under "Literature" in the RockAuto catalog. Prices are often even less than what the originals cost decades ago!

Forum of the Month

MirageForum.com is an international community of 6th generation Mitsubishi Mirage owners and enthusiasts (also known in some countries as Space Star and the Attrage/G4 sedan). The forum was started by a couple of gearheads who also happen to really like fuel-efficient vehicles, and thought this brand new "eco" car deserved a brand new forum.

Sign up today to meet friendly owners & members, ask questions, and track your fuel consumption in the forum's Fuel Economy Log.

If you are the administrator or member of a forum and you would like to see your website featured in an upcoming newsletter and receive a discount code to share with your members, contact marketing@rockauto.com.

Repair Mistakes & Blunders

My story goes very far back. When I was 16, I paid $25 for a 1952 Plymouth Suburban two door station wagon that had over 200,000 miles on its flathead 6 cylinder engine. The car used a quart of oil every few days. Seemingly, it all escaped out of the exhaust pipe. I found a rebuilt engine which included the head for a good price. A friend convinced me that we could remove the old engine in one weekend and install the "new" one the next weekend.

Needless to say, four weeks later we finally had it back together, but couldn't get it to start. We pushed it up and down my street attempting to "push start" it. We even pushed it with my mother's 1962 Chevy Impala, but no go. An old time mechanic living across the street was watching our ill-fated endeavor. After the amusement of watching a couple of kids pushing a car up and down the street faded for him, he asked us to push the car to his house to see what he could do to get it started. A few minutes later, he came over laughing. He informed us we had put the distributor in 180 degrees off. I drove that car for the rest of my high school career and loved it until the day I sold it. I wish I still had that Plymouth today.

Jeff in California

Plymouth Deluxe Suburban Station Wagon

Tell us about your most infamous auto repair blunder or unconventional fix. Use your woe to help others avoid similar mistakes or share off-the-wall solutions that worked (at least for a while!). Please email your story to flamur@rockauto.com. Include your mailing address and if you would like a RockAuto T-Shirt (please let us know your shirt size) or Hat if we publish your story. See the T-Shirts and Hats under Tools & Universal Parts in the catalog. The story will be credited using only your first name and your vague geographic location (state, province, country, continent, etc.) so you can remain semi-anonymous!

Automotive Trivia

The renowned "Chevy 350" V8 was first introduced on which Chevrolet model?

A. 1959 Kingswood
B. 1963 Bel Air
C. 1967 Camaro

Answer below

A Quick Dab of Paint

Car tires should be rotated, but most other parts on a vehicle should be kept as they were originally installed until it is time to replace them. Below are three parts that I often remove while doing maintenance or repairs. All three should be reinstalled exactly as they were before taken off.

Air Filters: An air filter housing is designed to compress the foam gasket around the edge of the air filter. The pressure on the gasket is not evenly distributed, especially after a plastic air filter housing gets to be ten or twenty years old. One part of the foam gasket may be compressed more than other areas, and it might stay slightly compressed even after pressure is removed. Rotating a used air filter may create gaps between the gasket and housing that will allow some dirty, unfiltered air into the engine.

Brake Rotors: If the brake pads are nicely broken in and there is no brake noise or vibrations, then do not risk disturbing that serenity by moving an old brake rotor on the hub or installing it on the other side of the vehicle. Differences in the hub and/or rotor mounting surfaces, rotor wear surfaces or brake pads could lead to a pulsating brake pedal or other annoyances that could have been avoided by simply reinstalling the brake rotor in its original spot.

Belts: We rotate tires so that the tread wears evenly. Tires roll over all sorts of road surfaces and twist with every turn of the steering wheel. Similar to tires, belts are made of flexible black material packed with fiber strands, but belts function more like gears. Once a belt has nicely meshed with all the pulleys and tensioners, it should be kept rotating in that direction. Turning a belt around so it rotates in the opposite direction will not make it wear more evenly. Instead, it could cause the belt to wear rapidly, slip or squeal.

A quick dab of paint/ink or pieces of tape is all it takes to mark filters, rotors and belts so that they can be reinstalled in their original locations.

Tom Taylor,
RockAuto.com

To read more of Tom's articles, click this link and choose from story titles on the Newsletter Archives page.

Marty's 1964 Ford F-100

Pennsylvania winters can be tough on old vehicles. Road salt takes its toll on fenders, cab corners, radiator support, cab supports, and the list goes on and on. This 1964 Ford F-100 pickup was no exception. When I purchased the old girl in July 2010, the entire front "clip" (e.g., inner and outer fenders, grille, hood, bumper, radiator support and radiator) had been piled in the bed for about 20 years. Although the parts were there, most were not of usable condition. Corrosion ate through most pieces. Working nearly every day, except Thanksgiving and Christmas, my son-in-law, his dad and I got it drivable and roadworthy in about six months. We rebuilt the 390 cid engine, and replaced many other parts, with help from RockAuto.

RockAuto saved me money, and the speedy shipping saved me time. I like to say this truck was "re-built not bought." RockAuto helped me restore this truck and helps me maintain my daily drivers.

Thank you!
Marty in Pennsylvania

© 1999-2016 RockAuto, LLC - Madison, Wisconsin USA. RockAuto name, logo and ALL THE PARTS YOUR CAR WILL EVER NEED are registered trademarks of RockAuto, LLC. Manufacturer names and logos in the RockAuto catalog are trademarks of their respective companies and are used only to identify their products. All rights reserved.