[smeej]

I think I would happily pay money for an archive of high-quality recordings of what various problems sound like, in a variety of cars.

It would really be nice not to have to go in and try to imitate the sound to my mechanic, and it would help give me an idea what the repair ought to cost.

I've spent thousands of dollars on misdiagnosed (or misrepresented) "repairs," and it would be great to get a diagnosis from the mechanic, look it up, and say, "No, it doesn't sound a thing like that."

[graphe]

https://youtu.be/RKT-sKtR970 Check out this engine sound simulator. Perhaps a preconfiguration of this?

[smeej]

That would be a great help!...whenever it's an engine issue. Or when it's a failure of one of the parts of the engine.

Recent sounds I've tried to imitate have included "I got a bad tank of gas that was 20% water, and it's January in New England, and ice is pinging around," "I think my muffler has a leak," and "Maybe one of my wheel bearings is going bad?"

I drive a 17-year-old car with 225k miles on it because I don't want to drive anything made after the advent of smartphones, so I get to make lots of funny noises. The muffler one and the wheel bearing seem like they should have been findable!

[water-your-self]

I have fond memories of car talk on NPR.