Need some help from the PROS!

[dumbusername]

Howdy All!

It's that time of year again - the dreaded smog check! I made it by the skin of my teeth last year (new 02 sensor, new cat) and pretty much know I need some work done to get her to pass. She's been running rough and I'm thinking a tune-up is in order. I've been throwing some check engine light action lately. I also think a new exhaust system may be needed too. I'm hearing that "tinny" vibration noise and smell heavy exhaust on a cold start. Unfortunately I'm not a mechanic and will have to pay someone to do the work. So, here are my questions......and forgive my ignorance and I'll pretend I don't hear you laughing out loud! :-)

---- After reading some posts on the boards I've decided to order a set of NGK plugs. Can I bring the plugs to a shop and ask them to use those instead of what they would have sold me?

---- Should I order the Platinum or Iridium?

---- For a new muffler, am I better off going to a local shop or a franchise like Midas? Would it be more cost effective to order from one of the site advertisers and bring it to a shop for installation?

---- I know there are a few members from SoCal and am hoping someone might recommend a shop with an honest mechanic. Or if you're looking for some extra cash.....

---- And just curious, but what should I expect to pay for a tune-up?

---- Oh, and her starter is going and I've been reading the threads on how to replace the starter. There seems to be some disagreement about whether to buy a rebuilt starter from AutoZone or buy a stock starter from Nissan. Any recommendations or experience with that would be appreciated. I might even try to install it myself! :-)

Thanks for allowing me to ask all these questions. I like to tinker with the car but am too afraid to try to do things that might mess her up forever!

Thanks for any and all info and advice!

Modified by dumbusername at 6:07 PM 5/30/2006

[180fan]

You can pop in the spark plugs you want to buy with a few simple tools.

Get the coppers unless you plan on keeping the plugs there for a while. don't forget the anti-sieze

you can find a local muffler shop. according to my records, the first owner of my car bought a full muffler (this is cat back) for less than 50 bucks. Then looking at the time frame of a year it fell apart as the second owner had another 50 dollar muffler (yes again cat back) put on. So it should be pretty cheap if you shop around.

tune up...depends on how far you let it go. one of my typical tune ups consists of:

air filterspark plugsignition wiresdistributor cap/rotorfuel filtertiming checkmafs cleaninginjector cleanpcv

Price depends on how good a friend your parts guy is. I'd contact Mike Jones at http://www.midwaypartsteam.com for some help on your particular setup. btw you should post what car it is with what engine.