Q: I have a 2007 Ford Taurus with a 3.0 V-6 motor. My son has a friend who is a Ford guy who said that the 2007 Taurus had motors with defective oil pumps that can fail without warning. His friend recommends replacing the oil pump to prevent the motor from failing. Have you heard of this problem? Should I have the oil pump replaced?

A: I find no information in my Alldata automotive database regarding potential oil pump failures in the 3-liter V-6 engine. This engine has been a very durable workhorse for Ford for several decades.

The only way an oil pump could “fail without warning” would be if the drive shaft or impeller suddenly broke or if the oil pump pickup tube fell out and dropped into the oil pan. In addition, I didn’t find an updated oil pump from Ford for this engine, so unless you installed an aftermarket pump you’d be installing the same pump you’re worried about.

From a cost point of view, replacing the oil pump would be roughly $500 in parts and labor, more than I’d be willing to spend in terms of preventive maintenance.

Q: I have a 2002 Buick Century. The light that illuminates both the odometer and gear indicator on the dash became dimmer and dimmer and finally this summer went completely out. Do you have any inexpensive suggestions?

A: My suggestions are always inexpensive — free, in fact! The individual “peanut” lamps in the instrument cluster are replaceable. The cluster is removable by taking out the trim piece and four mounting screws, then rotating the top of the cluster forward to disengage the locating pins.