 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
Car Forum / Chevrolet / Chevrolet Malibu / December 2004Coolant/oil problems with Malibu
My neighbor has had a 2001 Malibu 3.1 litre and bought it new it now has 34k miles, he has had lots of problems with the dexcool coolant gunking up inside of his hoses and stuff and has since switched to regular green coolant, also he has had lots of problems with the water pump gaskets and valve cover gaskets leaking and burning smells after opening the hood when he stops the car after having driven it. He is an older married guy with 2 kids and he doesn't run the car hard or anything. My question is this, will I have similar problems with my 2004 2.2 litre Malibu? My neighbor has had a 2001 Malibu 3.1 litre and bought it new it now has 34k miles, he has had lots of problems with the dexcool coolant gunking up inside of his hoses and stuff and has since switched to regular green coolant, also he has had lots of problems with the water pump gaskets and valve cover gaskets leaking and burning smells after opening the hood when he stops the car after having driven it. He is an older married guy with 2 kids and he doesn't run the car hard or anything. My question is this, will I have similar problems with my 2004 2.2 litre Malibu? ************************************************************* GM had problems with the 2.2 litre engine up to about 1996, after that it appears they fixed the problems with the head and head gaskets. The 3.1 litre engine and the 3.4 litre is another matter. These engines have a problem with the lower manifold gasket. The Gaskets is made of a plastic material and has a tendency to leak. There is a revised lower manifold gasket available for the 3.1 and 3.4 litre engines which is " supposed" to cure this problem. The new 2004 3.4 litre engine does not appear to have this problem. Your neighbour should be talking to GM, I know in Canada with "low mileage" cars they have selectively been fixing them on a shared cost basis with the customers. I thought of changing from Dexcool, but if there was something wrong with it as a coolant why would GM still continue to use it. And why would the local mechanic not recommend a switch to the green glycol. I do know that with any coolant mix, non mineral water should be used and not tap water. Chlorine plays havoc with aluminium parts. Hope this helps. In my opinion, I usually see buildup inside the coolant system after the vehicle has been run a while with a low coolant level. The hot air interacts with the coolant inside the engine causing it to crystalize. If you let coolant leaks go for too long with the Dexcool, it will form crystals. The solution is to make sure the coolant is topped off and no leaks are present on a regular basis say every oil change. If you find a coolant leak with Dexcool and get it fixed asap, you shouldn't have any problems with buildup after the fact assuming the coolant is topped off {no air in the system}. The lower intake manifold gaskets were an issue and a bad design. They leak quite often if they have the old style gaskets on them. Since they have come out with a new design gaskets that seal much better and prevents overtightening and excessive crush. I haven't seen too many valve cover seals leak on the 3.1 and 3.4s. That would be much more uncommon than the lower intake leaking. I have seen a lot of oil pump drive o-rings leaking close to that area. That o-ring should be changed also if doing a lower intake gasket job. Doing the job of replacing lower intake gaskets at the house can be tricky, the pushrods for the intake and exhaust valves are different lengths. You have a totally different design with the new 2.2 Ecotec. Its a dual overhead cam engine with dual balance shafts. Your 2.2 Ecotec is a design variant from the 2.4L Quadfour engines. The older {pre Ecotec}2.2L overhead valve engine is a totally different engine and did have a bad design on the cylinder head gasket from the factory. They have also updated the cylinder head gaskets to relsolve that problem on the older engines {around '95 to '00 as far as I know there may be more of a year range} The only issues I've seen with the Ecotec was some broken timing chain tensioners and 1 that had thrown a rod from driving though a flood and sucking up water in the intake. Overall a very solid engine. We don't see that many for repairs. Just be sure to have the oil changed regularly and it will be a reliable engine.  SignatureJason E. ASE Master Technician with L1 Advanced engine performance GM Master Certified Technician > My neighbor has had a 2001 Malibu 3.1 litre and bought it new it now has > 34k [quoted text clipped - 32 lines] > > Hope this helps. > In my opinion, I usually see buildup inside the coolant system after the > vehicle has been run a while with a low coolant level. The hot air [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > see that many for repairs. Just be sure to have the oil changed regularly > and it will be a reliable engine. Thanks for the info, I'll let my neighbor know he should have his gaskets changed and to keep his coolant level full. As far as my oil changes, this is the first newer car I have ever owned, on the older cars I had they leaked/burned oil so I tried to change the oil every 3k miles, is this good to do with newer engines or should I change the oil less often, I think the owners manual says every 7.5k miles. I do mostly highway driving on the way to and from work but 2 days a week I do some stop and go driving on my days off. I plan on using Mobil 1 fully synthetic oil only. AMSOIL looks good but until I talk to someone who has personally used it, I'm not going to trust it. >> My neighbor has had a 2001 Malibu 3.1 litre and bought it new it now has >> 34k [quoted text clipped - 33 lines] >> >> Hope this helps. TJ The reasoning behind my recommending changing the oil every 3k miles is in the variables. I'll explain what I mean in a second. At my dealership, its often a sore point to bring up with a customer why they should change their oil every 3k miles. A salesman will sell a car to a customer explaining that it has a "change engine oil light" and that the oil does not have to be changed until it comes on. Depending how you drive the light may not come on for up to 10k miles or as little as 1,500 miles if you drive it hard. Then the customer comes to the service department, they are told that they should change their oil every 3k miles. This leaves the customer feeling very ripped off and that the service dept is trying to get over on them. There is a reason why my service department tells the customer to change it at 3k. The "change oil light" is controlled by a program in the engine computer. It monitors the way you drive your vehicle, counts engine rpms, and some may account for time the vehicle has been running and it will make a decision of how much oil life it left until the next oil change. While monitoring all those calculations the engine computer cannot actually sense oil viscosity breakdown or contaminants. It doesn't know if you drive in particularly dusty or humid conditions {which does place moisture in the oil}. In short it doesn't know the whole story to oil condition, it just calculates when the oil should be changed based on math. I view the owners manual the same way. When Chevrolet printed that owners manual, even though it should be considered the "bible" for that vehicles operation, it cannot account for all the conditions that the car will experience during its lifetime. It has to generalize and come up with a standard that people from all areas and driving conditions can conform to. To me, in my vehicle, it just makes sense to over maintain my vehicle a slight bit to insure reliable operation. The vehicle I tend to work the least on is my own. I maintain it to a "T" and it has had very little problems. There is no ploy from the service department to make more money by telling a customer that their oil changes need to be done sooner, its simply a mechanical fact. Same goes with the "100K mile trans fluid" and "100K mile coolant." Who's to say that the humidity hasn't gotten into the trans fluid causing it to turn to Pepto-Bismol if the vehicle hasn't been driven long enough to evaporate out the moisture. See what I mean? Use those numbers a guides but don't be afraid to short service your vehicle especially if you live or drive in harsh conditions. You not wasting your money, your buying insurance. Synthetic oils are open to much debate. I'm a fan of them if you can afford it. Most cases its not needed. In my opinion, the main use of synthetic oil is to hold up better against the heat or cold, no other reasons. I've talked to Pennzoil representatives that explained to me that synthetics behave just like mineral oil under normal operating conditions. Where they excel is in the extreme heat and cold conditions. Most people just throw their money away by buying expensive exotic oil and it really doesn't benefit them any more than mineral oil would because their vehicle doesn't go to the extremes that will tap into the benefits of synth oil. And don't think for a second that if you use exotic synth oils that your oil change intervals can be extended. If you pay close attention, they say that the synth fights viscosity breakdown extending oil change intervals. This may all and well be true, but synth oil gets dirty from carbon and moisture contamination just as easy as regular oil. Even if you decide to go synth, still change the oil every 3k miles. Especially, do not use synth oil until after your first 2 oil changes approx 6k miles. I have made that mistake in race engines I have built and had piston ring seating problems. Use synth only after the rings have had plenty of time to seat. You may experience lower compression and higher oil consumption if you do. However, to the credit of synth oil, I've taken apart race engines with over 60K miles for rebuilds that I know were driven very hard and it looked like the day they were built on the inside all nice and clean. The difference? Oil changes every 3k miles! Good luck! SignatureJason E. ASE Master Technician with L1 Advanced engine performance GM Master Certified Technician > TJ SNIP > Synthetic oils are open to much debate. I'm a fan of them if you can > afford it. Most cases its not needed. In my opinion, the main use of [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > looked like the day they were built on the inside all nice and clean. The > difference? Oil changes every 3k miles! Good luck! I was told that the AMSOIL gave you a much longer change interval, (25k miles I think) because their filter is that much better than conventional, I know that the oil doesn't make much of a diff. I will change the oil every 3k miles though just to be safe, I had bought the car used with 26k miles on it already, it was a rental car companys car before I got it so I think its safe to assume the maintanance was kept up on it. When I took it in to get the rotors turned the dealership tried to sell me a 30k mile service deal for around 400 dollars, I told them I didnt want it because it seemed very pricey to me and most of it was checking fluid levels and making sure hoses were in good shape and I figured I can do that on my own for much cheaper by going to autozone for the air and oil filters, should I have this service package done? Is there any brands I should stay away from when changing the oil, or does it not matter? Usually in the past I have either bought Fram or STP filters, I think I might finally try one of those K & N air filters. My buddy just got one and has noticed a 5-7 MPG boost because of it. The other day when driving on an exit ramp of the freeway that curved pretty bad and later the same day going up a steep hill, my coolant light came on, but went off again about 1 second after coming on, is this just because the coolant all went to one side of the radiator or is it actually low? I hafta call BS on the 5-7 MPG increase b/c of the K&N air filter. Sorry. Ain't happenin... not unless his old air filter was just unbelievably filthy. Gotta be careful w/ the oil on the K&N air filters too... gets on sensors & can cause problems. As for the coolant issue.. check the coolant level lol. Answer your own question, bud. You have the car.. not us! And yes, you made the right decision if you're mechanically inclined at all to avoid the 30k mile service deal... it's a load of crap, IMO. Avoid cheaper brand filters too... make the car last. -Mike -- A happy kid behind the wheel of a 98 Mustang GT Cold air intake FRPP 3.73 gears Steeda Tri-Ax Shifter Full Boar turbo mufflers Hi-speed fan switch 255/60R-15 rear tires Subframe connectors > > TJ > [quoted text clipped - 49 lines] > but went off again about 1 second after coming on, is this just because the > coolant all went to one side of the radiator or is it actually low? In Europe the oil change frequency for vehicles recommended by manufacturers is a lot long than in North America try 10,000 to 20,000 miles or once a year. There is a lot of controversy whether to change the oil every 3000 miles, 7000 miles, every 3 months, twice a year and it goes on. Back in the 50's and the 60's oil was changed every 3000 miles generally because many of those older cars did not have an oil filter, as well the oil technology compared to today's was ancient.. The 1960 Pontiac had an option of an oil filter. It was not until the mid 60's when an oil filter was standard on most American cars. It appears this mind set "must change the oil every 3000 miles or 3 months" is still in effect today. Considering the advancements in oil and filter technology (oil companies are developing higher standards every year for their oil) as well as engine engineering, it really is wasteful to change the oil and filter in your vehicle every 3000 miles. The oil companies love you guy's- money in their pocket, but there are NO facts to support that driving your car under "every day" ( every day - back and forwards to work, taking kids to school) conditions and by only changing the engine oil in a vehicle once a year will harm your engine. Manufacturers now say to only change the oil when the oil service light comes on. They would not recommend this if extended oil changes could damage the engine - they carry the warranty for 3 - 5 years. I have been told that the bonus system works in some of the car repair facilities, the more the tech can find that's not quite right with your vehicle the more they sell you, they make a commission. One hears of these stories about and engine being run on synthetic oil and when taken apart for rebuilding the engine had little wear. If the synthetic oil was doing such a great job how com they are rebuilding the engine? Oh by the way race engines are normally rebuilt after "every" race unless you are in the Mickey mouse circuit. I hafta call BS on the 5-7 MPG increase b/c of the K&N air filter. Sorry. Ain't happenin... not unless his old air filter was just unbelievably filthy. Gotta be careful w/ the oil on the K&N air filters too... gets on sensors & can cause problems. As for the coolant issue.. check the coolant level lol. Answer your own question, bud. You have the car.. not us! And yes, you made the right decision if you're mechanically inclined at all to avoid the 30k mile service deal... it's a load of crap, IMO. Avoid cheaper brand filters too... make the car last. -Mike -- A happy kid behind the wheel of a 98 Mustang GT Cold air intake FRPP 3.73 gears Steeda Tri-Ax Shifter Full Boar turbo mufflers Hi-speed fan switch 255/60R-15 rear tires Subframe connectors > > TJ > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > synthetic oil is to hold up better against the heat or cold, no other > > reasons. I've talked to Pennzoil representatives that explained to me that > > synthetics behave just like mineral oil under normal operating conditions. > > Where they excel is in the extreme heat and cold conditions. Most people > > just throw their money away by buying expensive exotic oil and it really > > doesn't benefit them any more than mineral oil would because their vehicle > > doesn't go to the extremes that will tap into the benefits of synth oil. > > And don't think for a second that if you use exotic synth oils that your > > oil change intervals can be extended. If you pay close attention, they say > > that the synth fights viscosity breakdown extending oil change intervals. > > This may all and well be true, but synth oil gets dirty from carbon and > > moisture contamination just as easy as regular oil. Even if you decide to > > go synth, still change the oil every 3k miles. Especially, do not use > > synth oil until after your first 2 oil changes approx 6k miles. I have > > made that mistake in race engines I have built and had piston ring seating > > problems. Use synth only after the rings have had plenty of time to seat. > > You may experience lower compression and higher oil consumption if you do. > > However, to the credit of synth oil, I've taken apart race engines with > > over 60K miles for rebuilds that I know were driven very hard and it > > looked like the day they were built on the inside all nice and clean. The > > difference? Oil changes every 3k miles! Good luck! > > [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > miles I think) because their filter is that much better than conventional,I > know that the oil doesn't make much of a diff. I will change the oil every > 3k miles though just to be safe, I had bought the car used with 26k miles on > it already, it was a rental car companys car before I got it so I think its > safe to assume the maintanance was kept up on it. When I took it in to get > the rotors turned the dealership tried to sell me a 30k mile service deal > for around 400 dollars, I told them I didnt want it because it seemed very > pricey to me and most of it was checking fluid levels and making sure hoses > were in good shape and I figured I can do that on my own for much cheaper by > going to autozone for the air and oil filters, should I have this service > package done? Is there any brands I should stay away from when changing the > oil, or does it not matter? Usually in the past I have either bought Fram > or STP filters, I think I might finally try one of those K & N air filters. > My buddy just got one and has noticed a 5-7 MPG boost because of it. > > The other day when driving on an exit ramp of the freeway that curved pretty > bad and later the same day going up a steep hill, my coolant light came on, > but went off again about 1 second after coming on, is this just because the > coolant all went to one side of the radiator or is it actually low? I have no idea what spawned the whole oil/filter interval changes spasm you just had.. but there is more to it than that. Things like how humid it is.. how dusty the environment is.. stuff like that also affects the condition of the oil. The computers in cars that tell you when to change oil don't factor things in like the environment... just *mathematical* figures that it DOES know about (revving high RPMs alot? stop&go driving? etc) and can get a very ROUGH guess on the condition of the oil. The oil change intervals will differ based on the environment you drive in & how you drive the vehicle. With my car... I am revving to 6,000RPM a lot of the time & driving it very hard. I change the oil & filter every 3,000 miles. My mother drives her minivan very civilly and never goes past 3,000RPM... she changes her oil every 10,000 miles. It has shown ZERO problems. Again, it all depends on the driving style of the person & the environment. As for synthetic... I believe that synthetic motor oils DO protect better under *extreme* conditions--conditions which MOST of our cars never see.. so it's a waste of $$ sometimes if you ask me. -Mike -- A happy kid behind the wheel of a 98 Mustang GT Cold air intake FRPP 3.73 gears Steeda Tri-Ax Shifter Full Boar turbo mufflers Hi-speed fan switch 255/60R-15 rear tires Subframe connectors > In Europe the oil change frequency for vehicles recommended by manufacturers > is a lot long than in North America try 10,000 to 20,000 miles or once a [quoted text clipped - 125 lines] > the > > coolant all went to one side of the radiator or is it actually low? >I have no idea what spawned the whole oil/filter interval changes spasm you > just had.. but there is more to it than that. Things like how humid it > is.. > how dusty the environment is.. stuff like that also affects the condition > of > the oil. I live in central Ohio and IMO it is a bit dustier here than in some other places I have lived. Also, I do a quite a bit of stop and go driving. > The computers in cars that tell you when to change oil don't factor things > in like the environment... just *mathematical* figures that it DOES know > about (revving high RPMs alot? stop&go driving? etc) and can get a very > ROUGH guess on the condition of the oil. I don't know why they can't just put a sensor in the oil line somewhere that senses how broken down the oil has become, seems to me that would be a smart way of know when to change the oil. > The oil change intervals will > differ based on the environment you drive in & how you drive the vehicle. [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > the > driving style of the person & the environment. I generally keep my car under 3000 RPMs while the engine is cold and only pass 4000 RPMs when passing on the freeway. > As for synthetic... I believe that synthetic motor oils DO protect better > under *extreme* conditions--conditions which MOST of our cars never see.. > so > it's a waste of $$ sometimes if you ask me. It was my understanding that synthetics break down more slowly and lubricate just a little bit better. > -Mike > [quoted text clipped - 170 lines] >> the >> > coolant all went to one side of the radiator or is it actually low? See below -- A happy kid behind the wheel of a 98 Mustang GT Cold air intake FRPP 3.73 gears Steeda Tri-Ax Shifter Full Boar turbo mufflers Hi-speed fan switch 255/60R-15 rear tires Subframe connectors > >I have no idea what spawned the whole oil/filter interval changes spasm you > > just had.. but there is more to it than that. Things like how humid it [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > I live in central Ohio and IMO it is a bit dustier here than in some other > places I have lived. Also, I do a quite a bit of stop and go driving. Then I'd change oil every 4k miles. Assuming of course you don't race the piss out of your car like I do mine at the track. > > The computers in cars that tell you when to change oil don't factor things > > in like the environment... just *mathematical* figures that it DOES know [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > senses how broken down the oil has become, seems to me that would be a smart > way of know when to change the oil. B/c that would be one EXPENSIVE a.s sensor. Ever sent oil off for it to be tested? Expensive. > > The oil change intervals will > > differ based on the environment you drive in & how you drive the vehicle. [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > I generally keep my car under 3000 RPMs while the engine is cold and only > pass 4000 RPMs when passing on the freeway. Again, 4k oil change is what I'd do then. > > As for synthetic... I believe that synthetic motor oils DO protect better > > under *extreme* conditions--conditions which MOST of our cars never see.. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > It was my understanding that synthetics break down more slowly and lubricate > just a little bit better. It breaks down slower than a dino oil under those extreme conditions that your car never sees. Hence you really aren't able to REALLY reap the benefits of synthetic oil, IMO. I've seen cars running synthetic look great after 200k miles.. but I've seen the same with dino oils. -Mike > > -Mike > > [quoted text clipped - 170 lines] > >> the > >> > coolant all went to one side of the radiator or is it actually low? > In Europe the oil change frequency for vehicles recommended by manufacturers > is a lot long than in North America try 10,000 to 20,000 miles or once a > year. > SNIP A new engine is going to be tight, and will not dirty the oil as fast as a used one. Carburetors let too much fuel in, unburned fuel dirties oil. Fuel injected cars can go longer between oil changes. As for synthetic oil, it's main feature is cleanliness, up to seven times the detergent found in conventional oil, combine that with its high temperature tolerance and you don't get the crusty sludge produced by conventional oil burn off. I've used synthetic for years, I change the oil filter every other month, every month in winter, and have had no buildup to speak of. Pull a valve cover, nice and clean inside. If you have a high mileage car, change oil often, as worn rings allow unburned fuel into engine. Many people put off oil changes on high mileage cars, that is foolish, so is not changing oil on seldom driven cars, which make lots of sludge, due to not throughly heating up, and burning off condensation. |
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2008 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.