Re: Gas prices forcing me to look for better MPG, questions on saturns


"navaidstech" <awiecek@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:1146541026.614976.324250@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Why did you do the valve seals? I only ask because you say next that you
do
not add oil between changes. What do you mean "refurbish" the lifters?

I replaced the seals on spec. I noticed the spark plugs were getting
gummed with burned oil causing the engine to operate intermittently at
times.
When I say "refurbish", I mean take the lifters out, dunk them in a
degreaser solution overnight, take them apart and free up the little
pistons inside them. I found 7 out of 8 lifters seized.

Good diagnosis on cause of oil consumption and plug fouling. I bet the
valve train really quieted down after cleaning the lifters (? i guess they
are called lifters even if they actually don't). It is interesting that the
lifters would gum up with synthetic oil. Your extended drain intervals may
be a contributor but this would not cause valve seal wear, and cleaning the
lifters is just good practice when the cam is removed.

Were they making noise? Did you use air or ??? to hold the valves so you
could change the seals?

I tried air but didn't have much luck with that so I opted to use a
string. I would bring the piston down, pack the cylinder with string,
then bring the piston up to push the string against the valves. Worked
like a charm.

Good technique.

So much for those who claim all Saturns burn oil after 200k km. Have you
always used this synthetic oil? and this change interval?

:) Actually, before the valve seals, I drained 2.75 quarts. After the
seal job, I drained 3.5.
I've been using synthetic since the car was 110,000 km old and always
do it every 10,000 km. I found that Costco has the best price for 5-50
Syntec.

Oil consumption of 1.25 quarts in 10k km is still very low IMHO, but the
improvement after the valve seal job shows you have a good lower end and
your rings and pistons must be very clean.

3. Clutch? Yes.... original too.

Nicely done, you must have good starting and shifting technique.

Yeah. I avoid jackrabbit starts and try to shift as smoothly as
possible. Sometimes you can't even tell when I shift, I have it down to
an art now. hi hi.
BTW, I checked the RPM gauge on the way from work today and it seems
that I shift around 2300 for the first 3 gears and then about 2100-2200
for the last two.

I hesitate to offer advice to anyone who is having as much success as you
are, but FWIW my (.02) thoughts are at
http://groups.google.ca/group/rec.autos.makers.saturn/browse_thread/thread/1aba3618e822c568/ddfe4c5d9a6c9152?lnk=st&q=group%3Arec.autos.makers.saturn+insubject%3Abest+insubject%3Atime+insubject%3Ato+insubject%3Ashift%3F&rnum=1&hl=en#ddfe4c5d9a6c9152

Catching the torn boot problem shows good inspection habits.

Well, to this day I'm not sure if it was torn or was it something I did
to it while working in the area. Oh well, it was a good exercise
nonetheless. :)

I had to do this job the day after I had it at the alignment shop and
replaced lower arms w/ ball joints. The boot was damaged by a crowbar. I
had to tear it apart again and fix the boot but the shop did stand behind it
and gave me a refund for parts and labour.

snip
I have had a hard time keeping this dam in place but have not noticed any
overheating problems operating without it. It will help control gravel

My car was overheating last couple of summers. Even in +9C weather the
needle would swing past the middle, something that has never happened
before. I kinda suspected the air dam but was convinced that my rad was
plugged. I cleaned it with a weak CLR solution (yes, I know don't say
it). Basically I circulated this solution through the rad for 30
minutes or so. Then I checked the capacity, it seemed OK (I think 1.6
litres),

Aluminum compatible glycol is high in silicates which can cause problems
with water pump seals and deposits of silica gel in the rads. My favorite
heavy diesel shops recommend using Calgon water softener as a cooling system
cleaner after draining but before flushing. I am now using a long life high
quality diesel coolant and it seems to work well. It is a glycol compatible
but I still did a thorough flush before installing. It is a five year low
silicate type fluid. I do use distilled water only for final flush and
coolant mixing, it is cheap and avoids using my local water which is very
hard.

snip
This is very similar to our operation. We have '96 SW1 and have aveaged
42
mi/impgal (6.8 lt/100km) since new, total combined city/highway all
season.
On the highway my wife gets 49 mi/impgal (5.9 lt/100km) but I never seem
to
do that well (I do have a heavier foot). I do notice that if I leave the
roof rack in place it uses about 1 lt/100km more fuel.


Yes, that all makes sense. Your wife sure does pretty good with
5.9lt/100 for sure. I'm yet to find an optimum speed where the fuel
consumption is the best.

Economy vs time is always a compromise, I think slower is always cheaper
but things start to get more expensive above 2400 rpm. My wife spends more
time in the sweet spot which I think is between 22-2400rpm. I am more often
at 24-2800+ rpm.

You do not mention any exhaust work, if you are still on the original
exhaust it is a good example of the better materials used in current
factory
auto exhaust. We have had failures of the muffler mounting strap due to
corrosion on both of our cars. The rest of the system seems to be quite
corrosion resistant.


Sorry about that. I'm on my fourth muffler now. The original one lasted
6 or 7 years. Susequent mufflers failed as you have suggested, right
where the straps are.
The last muffler I put on this car is a cheapo one. I coated it with a
few coats of heat resistant paint from Canadian Tire to extend its life
- so far so good. Fingers crossed.
But you are right, the rest of the system is original. I even went to
get it replaced but the mechanic told me to save my bucks and don't
bother.
I should also mention the cat is original as well and it passes the
emission tests every two years.

We are still on our original mufflers but they are tied in place with heavy
wire. I do have a new clamp but the wire seems to last longer than the
clamps.

You have had very good service from your car, I hope we can do as well.
I
am guessing you also get good service life from your brakes and tires.

Hmmm... I'm probably on my fourth or fifth set of pads, third set of
rotors and fourth set of tires, second set of shoes (replaced last
year) but the drums are still original and STILL within spec on
diameter.

My pads seem to outlast the rotors. The original rotors were the worst and
suffered severe corrosion and pitting on the inner faces. We are getting
good service now using top quality pads and cheap offshore rotors. I do not
believe in turning rotors as the machining cost is only a little cheaper
than new offshore rotors which will always be much thicker than used refaced
and do not warp as easily.

We purchased a second set of rims so we can save our newest tires for winter
and wear out our poorest in the summer. It is really handy to have lots of
mounted tires.

These cars are now getting old enough that they will be showing up in the
discount 'pick your part' auto wreckers so we may be able to keep them

Oh yes! I visit my local junkyard on a regular basis! :)

economically serviceable for some time. I am also a believer in buying
new
and using carefully until full service life is over. These cars are now
showing up in the very cheap used market and will soon be such good value
(cheap) that it will be worth buying a good one just to use for parts.
We
have SW bodies which are very usable but use the most of the same parts
as
the sedans. My observation has always been that nothing you have a spare
part for ever breaks!


You are absolutely correct. I never have any trouble finding parts for
this car, either aftermarket or at a junk yard. I keep a few parts that
I collect during my junkyard trips at hand just in case....you never
know. :)
I agree with you on buying one just for spares. My Dad actually picked
up a 95 SL1 from a junkyard for $700. It would have been a perfect
spares car for me, but he fixed it up and now he drives it. Not sure
how much longer though, it burns oil like there is no tomorrow (yes, we
changed oil seals on the valves).
If he decides to get rid of it, I already have a list of things to take
off it for my car. :)

It seems like there comes a time using an older car when you need new tires
and battery and can buy a fair running car with good tires and battery for
about what new ones cost and you get the rest of the car for free. Having a
second running car as a spare eases the pain when your primary driver needs
repair and you can just change over the plates and insurance and take your
time to do a good cheap repair with no time pressure.

Yes, I'm a navaids tech working for Nav Canada at the Hamilton Airport.
That's my daily commute Mississauga-Hamilton-MIssissauga = 125 clicks!
:)

Whereabouts are you located? I don't even know your name.... :(

CYBW

Good luck, YMMV


.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Gas prices forcing me to look for better MPG, questions on saturns
    ... not add oil between changes. ... I replaced the seals on spec. ... This has been happening since the car was new. ... may allow pan corrosion which others here have reported. ...
    (rec.autos.makers.saturn)
  • Re: Advice on 94 Honda Accord LX
    ... Are you seeing oil drips beneath the car when it sits awhile? ... diagnostic about maybe having a bad valve or valve seal. ... forcing oil past various seals, like the oil pan seal, distributor shaft ...
    (rec.autos.makers.honda)
  • Re: blue smoke at startup and synthetic oil
    ... The seal conditioners do swell the seals. ... dino oil will work instead of the "high mileage" oils. ... Castrol GTX High Mileage formula and after a couple thousand miles the ... would be a pretty good cloud behind the car on startup. ...
    (alt.autos.toyota)
  • Re: 1999 Integra: erratic idle problem
    ... Also, about the timing belt, if you just want to replace the belt, $252. ... but do I really need to do the cam and crank seals? ... If you intend to hold on to the car, you may want to consider it. ... with cheap motorcraft oil, the oil leaked from the main seal so bad, clouds of blue smoke were constantly rising where it dripped onto the exhaust. ...
    (rec.autos.makers.honda)
  • Re: OT - Laughing at Ourselves
    ... was having some car troubles. ... The oil light stayed on even though I'd ... There was a *very* bright flickering red-white light ... it could be nothing else *but* aliens. ...
    (rec.pets.cats.anecdotes)