Ron Ananian The Car Doctor

Copyright: 2024 iHeartMedia, Inc. © Any use of this intellectual property for text and data mining or computational analysis including as training material for artificial intelligence systems is strictly prohibited without express written consent from iHeartMedia

Latest Episodes:

The Most Expensive Number in Car Ownership Sep 26, 2026

Show notes

BEST OF THE CAR DOCTOR - Hour 2 - September 26, 2026

What’s the most expensive number in car ownership?

It’s not the sticker price.
It’s not the monthly payment.
It’s not even the repair bill.

It’s cost per mile—the number almost nobody calculates until it’s too late.

This hour, Ron explains why modern vehicles demand a different approach to ownership and how looking ahead can save you from making an expensive decision later.

A real shop conversation asks the tough question: If your vehicle has $5,000 worth of repairs coming, is it still worth fixing? Ron also digs into why car ownership can’t be purely emotional, the debate over start-stop technology and long-term engine wear, and a Subaru recall involving potential fuel leakage and fire risk.

Being a good mechanic today sometimes means being a fortune teller—helping drivers see what’s coming before it gets expensive.

Because the smartest car owners don’t just react to repairs.

They plan for them.

Car Advice, Done Right

🌐Visit: CarDoctorShow.com

📸 Follow Ron on Instagram: @ronananian

🎥 Watch repair tips and shop videos on YouTube

📻 Join the conversation LIVE Saturdays 2–4 PM

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Modern Cars Fight Back: The Weekend Wrencher Sep 26, 2026

Show notes

BEST OF THE CAR DOCTOR - Hour 1 - September 26, 2026

This Hour of Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor™ is for the Weekend Wrenchers—the driveway DIYers, toolbox in hand, trying to save money and keep their vehicles going as cars get more complicated by the minute.

Ron looks at how modern technology is changing the DIY repair game. Oil changes, filters, fluids and some brake work may still be within reach, but more repairs now require scan tools, service-mode procedures and information that can stop even an experienced DIYer in his tracks. A late-model GM brake job shows exactly where determination can turn into frustration.

Calls include advice on bringing a low-mileage 2018 Toyota RAV4 back to life after sitting for months; a Chrysler van with a fuel smell and intermittent stutter; and a 2010 Ford with a rough idle and questions about what the scan data is really saying.

It’s a practical hour about what you can still fix in the driveway, where modern cars push back—and why knowing your limits may be the smartest repair of all.

Car Advice, Done Right

🌐Visit: CarDoctorShow.com

📸 Follow Ron on Instagram: @ronananian

🎥 Watch repair tips and shop videos on YouTube

📻 Join the conversation LIVE Saturdays 2–4 PM

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Right To Repair Updates, Who Really Control The Car? Sep 19, 2026

Show notes

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor - Hour 2 - September 19, 2026

You bought the car. You made the payments. But when it needs repair, who really gets to decide who can fix it?

This week on The Car Doctor, Ron Ananian digs into the growing Right to Repair battle and explains why it goes far beyond getting a wiring diagram. Modern vehicles depend on software, secure gateways, scan tools, programming and telematics—and access to that technology may ultimately determine where your vehicle can be repaired.

Ron explains why Right to Repair is really about something much simpler: consumer choice.

Plus, a BMW M8 Competition that mysteriously needed spark plugs at only 5,000 miles, a longtime listener trying to push his Honda toward 400,000 miles, and Ron finishes the complicated cooling-system repair on a 2021 Ford Escape Hybrid—with a little help from the OPUS IVS platform.

And sometimes the hardest automotive problems have the simplest answers: a Chevy Silverado with an annoying squeak proves once again why good diagnosis still matters.

Real cars. Real problems. Real answers.

Car Advice, Done Right

🌐Visit: CarDoctorShow.com

📸 Follow Ron on Instagram: @ronananian

🎥 Watch repair tips and shop videos on YouTube

📻 Join the conversation LIVE Saturdays 2–4 PM

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Engine Oil Shortage Is Here: What Drivers Need to Know Sep 19, 2026

Show notes

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor - Hour 1 - September 19, 2026

There’s a storm brewing in the automotive world—and this time it isn’t just about the price of gasoline.

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor™, takes a firsthand look at the growing engine-oil shortage as repair shops and retailers begin facing purchasing restrictions, prices climb and certain viscosities and specifications become harder to find. Why is this happening, how long could it last, and what should you be doing now to protect your vehicle?

Ron explains why modern engines require very specific oils, why simply grabbing the right viscosity off the shelf may not be enough, and why using the wrong specification to get through a shortage could become an expensive mistake.

Then it’s back to the phones: a 2000 Chevy Silverado with mysterious transmission and transfer-case problems raises an important diagnostic question—could something as simple as a bad ground be causing all the trouble?

Plus, with the cost of replacing a vehicle continuing to climb, Ron goes back to basics with practical maintenance advice: air and cabin filters, throttle-body cleaning, fuel-system service and the little things that can help your car run better and last longer.

Because today, it seems you have two choices: car payments or repair bills. Taking care of what you already own has never mattered more.

Real cars. Real problems. Real answers.

Visit us at https://www.cardoctorshow.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Auto Repair Isn’t Picture Perfect Sep 12, 2026

Show notes

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor - Hour 2 - September 12, 2026

Auto repair doesn’t always go according to plan—and sometimes just getting to the problem is half the battle.

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor, takes you inside the service bay with a 2021 Ford Escape Hybrid suffering from a communication fault with its active grille shutter system. Multiple scan tools, OE-level diagnostics, circuit testing and a lot of disassembly eventually reveal the real culprit: a corroded power wire buried deep in the harness. It’s a perfect example of why good diagnostics have to be slow, methodical and proven—not guessed.

Then the phones light up. A listener with a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee has a “Service Shift Selector” warning and suddenly no reverse. Ron explains why the transmission itself may not be the problem and uses an old-fashioned landline telephone system to make today’s vehicle computer networks easy to understand.

Next, what do you do with a 2002 Honda with an incredible 323,000 miles and a slight transmission engagement delay? Repair it, replace the transmission—or leave well enough alone? Ron weighs the economics of keeping an older vehicle alive.

Plus: Ford 3.5L internal water-pump failures, Nissan ABS/VDC problems, wheel-speed diagnostics, and preparing a diesel for winter.

Real cars. Real problems. Real-world diagnosis.

Car Advice, Done Right

🌐Visit: CarDoctorShow.com

📸 Follow Ron on Instagram: @ronananian

🎥 Watch repair tips and shop videos on YouTube

📻 Join the conversation LIVE Saturdays 2–4 PM

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Can You Create a Great Mechanic? Sep 12, 2026

Show notes

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor - Hour 1 - September 12, 2026

Where do great mechanics come from? Are they born with “the touch,” or can it be taught?

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor, looks at the technician shortage from a different angle: maybe the automotive industry hasn’t done enough to nurture the next generation.

Ron remembers a young trade-school graduate named Gus who knew the procedures—but one flat tire at the far end of the shop parking lot revealed something his education hadn’t taught him: how to improvise when the procedure no longer fits the situation. It leads Ron back to one of his father’s lessons: follow steps one through ten—but also know when the repair demands that you think outside the box.

Then there’s Danny. Years ago, Danny walked into Ron’s shop carrying an F-150 steering knuckle and needing help pressing ball joints. Ron handed him the tools and instructions and watched. Within half an hour, Danny had figured it out himself. Ron knew immediately: “Kid, you’ve got it.”

Nature or nurture? Maybe great mechanics require some of both.

Ron also gets back to the nuts and bolts with a 1996 Ford 7.3L Power Stroke water-pump repair—a job that reminds him how much fun working on an older truck can be after spending days diagnosing and disassembling a technology-packed Ford Escape Hybrid.

Plus: hunting down an obsolete Fiat 500 trunk latch, diagnosing P0420/P0430 catalytic-converter faults, aftermarket versus OE catalytic converters, and why a trouble code should begin a diagnosis—not automatically dictate the repair.

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor — Car Advice, Done Right.

Car Advice, Done Right

🌐Visit: CarDoctorShow.com

📸 Follow Ron on Instagram: @ronananian

🎥 Watch repair tips and shop videos on YouTube

📻 Join the conversation LIVE Saturdays 2–4 PM

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Five Shops, Multiple Starters, One GMC Denali Sep 05, 2026

Show notes

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor - Hour 1 - September 5, 2026

A 2020 GMC Denali arrives at R\A Automotive on a tow truck with an intermittent no-crank—and a history that would make any mechanic stop and think. Nearly three years, five different shops, multiple starters, and the same problem keeps coming back.

Ron starts where every diagnosis should start: at the beginning. Working with GM expert Ernesto through the OPUS IVS diagnostic platform, Ron separates clues from conclusions, uses factory service information and pattern-failure knowledge, and begins proving what the problem ISN’T. The trail eventually leads to a loaded voltage-drop test, a questionable negative battery cable, and a starter-solenoid connection that has seen its share of previous repairs.

It’s a real-world lesson in why replacing parts isn’t the same as diagnosing a car—and why sometimes the most valuable question a technician can ask is: What have I proved right, and what have I proved wrong?

Also this hour: when should you get a wheel alignment, why a car can be out of alignment without pulling, an A/C system that cools until the Florida heat arrives, and why guessing at refrigerant charge can create more problems than it solves.

Real calls. Real cars. Real diagnostics. Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor.

Car Advice, Done Right

🌐Visit: CarDoctorShow.com

📸 Follow Ron on Instagram: @ronananian

🎥 Watch repair tips and shop videos on YouTube

📻 Join the conversation LIVE Saturdays 2–4 PM

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The $3,200 Wire Harness That Didn’t Need To Be Sep 05, 2026

Show notes

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor - September 5, 2026 - Hour 1

A 2015 Dodge Durango arrives on a flatbed over the weekend with a crank-no-start. The tow-truck diagnosis? Fuel pump.

Maybe?!

By Monday morning, the Durango starts perfectly—and that’s where the real diagnosis begins. Rather than throw a fuel pump at it, Ron goes back to basics: codes, fuel pressure, fuel volume, current draw and finally a thermal imager. That’s when one electrical connector starts telling the story, climbing past 160 degrees.

The fuel pump wasn’t the problem. A failing connection in the fuel-pump circuit was.

Then comes problem number two: Chrysler’s apparent solution involves a wiring harness costing roughly $3,200. Ron keeps digging through service information, part numbers and cross-references until he finds the connector needed to make the repair for under $200.

Same vehicle. Same failure. Completely different repair.

Also this hour: a listener with a 2020 Honda Odyssey that intermittently loses electrical power, why a battery can test “good” and still deserve a closer look, the importance of loaded voltage-drop testing, and a 2004 Cadillac SRX presenting a different challenge—what do you do when the parts you need simply aren't available?

The lesson? A symptom is a clue, not a conclusion. Test the basics, prove what's good, find what's bad—and sometimes, think outside the box.

Car Advice, Done Right

🌐Visit: CarDoctorShow.com

📸 Follow Ron on Instagram: @ronananian

🎥 Watch repair tips and shop videos on YouTube

📻 Join the conversation LIVE Saturdays 2–4 PM

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Four Scan Tools Aren’t Enough Aug 29, 2026

Show notes

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor - August 29, 2026

How many scan tools does it take to fix one car? Sometimes more than you think.

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor, takes you into the service bay with a 2022 Honda HR-V that came in for routine maintenance and turned into a lesson about just how complicated modern auto repair has become. After service and resets, the TPMS and traction-control warnings wouldn’t cooperate. Multiple aftermarket scan tools couldn’t complete the necessary calibration—but access to the Honda factory-level tool finally got the job done.

Ron explains why today’s independent repair shop needs more than one scan tool, why factory-level access is becoming increasingly important, and why scan-tool manufacturers need to do a better job of telling technicians the exact conditions required before a calibration or reset can succeed.

Also this hour: Tom tries Ford’s new mobile oil-change service and asks whether convenience can really replace putting a vehicle on a lift in a properly equipped shop. A caller battles a terrible interior odor after an ozone-machine treatment, Ron explains permanent diagnostic trouble codes, and there’s an update on the 1972 Monte Carlo.

Finally, Ron looks at a 95,000-mile used Hyundai for a customer and raises an increasingly important question: With the price and complexity of today’s used cars, is an extended warranty becoming part of the cost of buying one?

Modern cars are complicated. Having the right tool—and knowing how to use it—can make all the difference.

Car Advice, Done Right

🌐Visit: CarDoctorShow.com

📸 Follow Ron on Instagram: @ronananian

🎥 Watch repair tips and shop videos on YouTube

📻 Join the conversation LIVE Saturdays 2–4 PM

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Best Repair Is Sometimes The One You Don’t Take Aug 29, 2026

Show notes

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor - August 29, 2026

Sometimes fixing cars starts with knowing which cars—and which customers—not to take on.

Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor, opens this hour with the story of a first-time customer looking for the cheapest possible brake job on her Lincoln. She already had another shop’s diagnosis, didn’t want to pay for an initial vehicle inspection, and questioned why Ron needed to look at anything beyond the front brakes. Ron explains why policies, procedures and managing expectations aren’t obstacles to good auto repair—they’re part of doing the job right.

Then it’s into the phones and mailbag: an intermittent ABS light on a 2010 Toyota Corolla, the high cost of modern vehicle repairs, a 2009 RAV4 with 202,000 miles and a failing transmission, CVT judder questions, a missing Lexus wheel-lock key, and one of the most difficult brake jobs around—the Ford Transit.

Plus, Ron shares a lesson from his first boss that has stayed with him for 50 years: cars will always need good brakes, good tires, a reliable battery and good wiper blades. Safety first.

🌐Visit: CarDoctorShow.com

📸 Follow Ron on Instagram: @ronananian

🎥 Watch repair tips and shop videos on YouTube

📻 Join the conversation LIVE Saturdays 2–4 PM

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.