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I found that info on caddyinfo.com. They have a good description on doing the shift solenoids. I am going to redo it just to make sure everything is where it is supposed to be, especially the ball bearings. I was just letting you know about that filter not sticking out. I am sure that does not have any bearing on not shifting.
I have just purchased a '95 Aurora w/72,000 mi. This car came from another Olds dealer, and was kept in flawless condition for his wife. Brought it to a local dealer and asked for an oil change. They L.O.F.'d the car, and told me that it had an excessive oil leak around the crank seals. Have to pull the engine and cost around $2400.00. (By the way, the car has been sitting in a garage in storage for 45 days, and there was not a drop of oil on the floor.) Has anyone been through anything like this before? Also, I was told the original dipsticks do not show the correct oil level..is there a new part available?
I own a '95 autobaun. I have the same oil leak. the early models (95, 96 and maybe 97) all have the same problem. GM did something to fix it in '97 or 98 and the repair should include the upgraded kit/fix. Olds does want about $2500 to fix. I found a shop that is trained on it and will do it for about $ 1500 - 1700 or so (still negotiating, we're currently at $1700).
The dipstick issue - as I understand it - was on early '95s. I believe they realized it and put in the proper ones half way through the year. Your '96 should be correct. And yes, there was a TSB in it and a replacement available.
Good luck w/ your car. They really are great if you can get past the occasional whallop on repairs. (having said that, you may want to skip my next post)
AAARRRGGGHHH!!!!!!!!!! My wallet can't handle this!
Just before thanksgiving, the fuel pump went out on the 'Rora, leaving me stranded crosswise in the middle of a busy road during rush hour. (course it wasn't a tunnel - I should have listened to Henry when he suggested replacing it as scheduled maintenance)..... $ 525
Then the steering rack went out two weeks later. New rack, PS hose and alignment............... $ 915
So far, $2000+ and counting.
Then, last week the Air pump, Front brakes and turn signals went out on my Ford Truck, all within 2 days of each other..... $ 645
Then this saturday the 'Rora let me down again. Went to Walgreens, got in the car to leave. She fired up first hit - as usual - then after about 3 seconds just quit. Hasn't fired up since. The engine turns over as it should, but won't fire. Seems more like an electrical issue than fuel. But what do I know? DAMN. Here she goes on the flat bed again...... Triple AAA is loving me.
Yes, I laughed when I saw your post about the fuel pump.
However, it seems I will become a member of "the Rack" club if I keep the car.
I really do like my car. My thing is that my 95 has 90k on it and I put on 80k of it. To get another Classic where I dont know the history is a concern of mine. We all know how tempermental these cars can be. At 50k miles and $8k for another one, am I paying $8k for somebody else's problems?
Hey Larryfl, just to give you a little perspective. My wife's 1995 Nissan sissy-mobile has been pretty trouble-free. Only minor things have gone wrong with it. The exhaust manifold got cracked somehow $750 for the part, worn tie-rods $500, new alternator (and incredibly wimpy 70 amp one at that) $550. I tried to replace the alt myself, but the $300 replacement didn't end up fitting for her model year. I didn't have time to try it again, so off to the dealer it went (I can remember buying 120 amp alts for the 'vette made by ACDelco for about $100).
At least you got some real hardware out of it, and stuff that requires a lot of work to replace like the steering rack and fuel pump. Our "reliable" car with only minor problems has cost as much or more than your power steering and fuel pump problems. And your car has twice the power and twice the lux of the Nissan... So there is some perspective.
I had to type this whole thing again when it didn't post...
CARS FIXED!!!!!! they just called, havn't picked it up yet, so i don't know what the problem was, ill post later when i find out. they did call earlier wanting to know if i had that bracket and bolt becase it was part of the update, they said this morning that should be why it didn't shift.
also had them take a look at why its making popping noises.......am i going to be a member of the rack club??? they said it is leaking fluid from the stearing gear (about $1,400) had some play. did this cause popping noises when comming out of turns? anyone know? they also said i had a bad ball joint (around $340) the ball joint i know i can fix, been there done that with a different car, hopefully its my drive axels that are causing the popping going around corners though.
Got it back, can't even feel it shift. it was that bracket. the guy said everytime you start it the filter would pop out blocking a valve....but that braket was never there for the cars first 134k miles. but it works, so its all good. he said my balljoint was bad, most likely the popping noise, and the steering rack($1400) but he wouldn't replace the rack anytime soon, just make sure i keep the fluid topped off.
total bill $327. better than expected. if anyone lives in the apple valley area of mn, Id go to Walser cadillac off galaxy and 42. they could have easily charged me more for having to take it apart 2 times, they charged me less than originally estimated. they even called me to begin with to ask if i had the originall trans gasket because my new cork one isn't re-useable, but the oem one was ($50), i didn't but it was a nice gesture. not only that, they where very nice and washed my car really good! sucks im out a total of $440, but could be worse. definatly taking my cars there from now on
dlmilkey, the "crankshaft oil seal" problem afflicts lots of first generation Auroras (not to mention Caddies) - not just the 95-97. It happened to me in March on my '98. The Olds dealer charged $1800 for the repair (third-party warranty company covered about $1300 of it). I've subsequently seen other Auroras in there getting the same treatment done. One of the reasons this is so expensive is that they have to drop the engine and tranny, and literally split the engine in two, then re-seal it.
I never saw any oil puddles under my car, but I understand, from my dealer, that the oil tends to leak onto/collect on the plastic engine cover, then spray along the underside of the car, rather than puddle under the car when stopped.
If you are meticulous about checking your oil, you can hold off on this repair (and save up your $$$ - though it will eventually need it). The dipstick on the car really sucks - it's worse than the 1960's-era flasher can sound (another pet peeve - one of my few with the car). I know of no alternative/replacement unit, other than checking your oil 3-4 times and throwing out the reading that doesn't match the others :-)
Steering gear issues seem to be common as the years go by/the mileage goes up (I'm at about 73K). Mine is doing the same thing. I'm holding off on the repair, and just checking the p/s fluid regularly, but eventually this will have to get repaired as well (hello warranty company!).
I think I posted a list of Common Aurora Problems in the main Aurora board - I know if you search on A/C compressor, you should find my message(s)...
Hope this helps,
--Robert vacationing in Florida, and missing his Aurora terribly (this 4 cylinder Altima just doesn't cut it :-)
I put a different flasher unit in a couple years ago because I wanted a chime not that cheap tinny click. If I get a chance after x-mas I will check and see what the brand was. I do know it was a heavy duty unit in a clear case with adjustable volume. I matched up the old units prongs to the new one. This also came from one of the other boards. I got the flasher (I think) from a RV place.
I don't remember if the original unit flashes faster if a bulb burns out BUT the electronic one is a variable load flasher, not fixed. The electroinic one I'm using won't change speed when a bulb burns out.
Thanks for the encouragement. It helps....a little :-)
I know what you mean, Henry, about buying someone else's problems. At least we know what we've fixed and how we've maintained our vehicles. When I bought mine it had 50k on it. It now has 105K. Of course, it was a dream until the warranty ran out at 75K, then the repairs started to hit. Pretty much everything I've had done to mine has been since the 75K mile mark.
Robert, I hear what your saying. I owned a Maxima many years ago. Bought it new and kept it to about 120k miles. Loved the car, but it definitely wasn't the highly reliable car the Uncle Ben's lovers would have us believe. On the Max, the mark was about 60K miles. Thousands of $$ spent on it in about a 10K window.
Oh well, gonna have the 'Rora towed today. Maybe I'll get my favorite Triple A driver a Christmas gift. (It's sad when they know your neighborhood)
I knew that this would happen. It seems I have a water leak (rad. fluid). It is on the drivers side of the car coming down and dripping at the back of the plastic splash shield onto floor. It is not every day and not much when it leaks. Usually after sitting 2 days. I have not taken the shield off yet to locate leak. Isn't the water pump on the backside of the engine (drivers side)?
Also, even though I LOVE my Silverstar headlights, I am putting back in the stock ones. The 2nd one of the Silverstars gave up. That now makes both of them that have crapped out in less than a year. I will try to take it back and get an exchange like the first one that quit.
Yes, the water pump is on the driver's side of the engine (the back). It is rather high up on it, though. Is it coolanty, or really a water leak? If it is water, perhaps it's from something else. Maybe you have water pooled/clogged somewhere like the cowl or the sunroof and it is slowly running out?
The other thing I would think it could be is brake fluid (it is clear and thin, not unlike water, except it will bubble up and such when actual water gets on it). I've noticed that oftentimes brake places won't remove fluid when you get new pads. So, if you've topped the reservoir off when the pads were worn, it will be overfull when the calipers are pushed back for the new pads. Since it is sealed, it won't just run out at once but rather leak out over days and days. Just a thought.
I'll have to see how long my Silverstars make it. Though, you leave your headlamps on all the time, right?
Ive been using that Walser dealer for years. Those guys are great. Its one of the few dealers Ive been to that dont make you feel like your getting robbed.
I replaced the shift solenoids last wednesday because the car would not shift to 3rd. The car still would not shift. The kit had this bracket with it, but gave no info on what it was for so I didn't do anything with it. On the caddy forum, I found out the bracket is supposed to lock the new filter in place. Today, I dropped the pan again and the valve body to put on the bracket. The filter was pushed almost out of its' place but the solenoids kept it from falling out completely. I pushed the filter in and placed the bracket over it, perfect fit. Put everything back in place, test drove it and a big smile came on my face. That baby shifted into 3rd. I took it on the expressway and shifted smoothly thru its course up to a high speed. That bracket did the trick. There should have been a recall by GM to put a bracket on all 95 and 96's and some kind of instructions with the kit. Total cost of repair was $45 for kit, $10 for fluid, and about 14 hrs of work. Happy I did not have to see dealership.
id buy the kit as preventive maintance, so that when/if they do go bad, your all set to go.
now that a few of us have went through it, we can tell you the do's and don'ts. if i had to do it again on a new car, id do it now that i know what not to do! biggest thing is when you sepperate the two parts of the lower valve assembly, MAKE SURE you see where those balls go! then even though your car doesn't have it now, make sure you put that plate on.
The part no. for this kit is 24211355. It has a note inside bag that says any trans before 4-6-96 must use all parts which includes 2 solenoids, bracket, filter, and bolt. I had already bought kit, because I heard other fellow aurorians had this problem. After dropping pan 3 times, I noticed that the original filter for my 95 did not have the bracket so I did not know where the bracket went and I left it out. When it didn't shift to 3rd, I looked at it again and noticed the new filter had popped out but it could only come so far because it would hit the solenoids. After further research on caddyinfo.com, I found out that bracket was used to hold new filter in place. I dropped pan and valve body again to place that bracket and lock that filter in place. It appears that pressure pushes the new filter out of its place and this blocks the second solenoid from operating. Since I have a scanner for my 95 it would give you a 29 code that says shift 'b' solenoid problem. GM must have added that bracket in for late 96 and up cars. My recommendations is if you have the 95, and do this job make sure you keep your bolts separate, about 35 are involved, get the step by step directions from caddyinfo.com. Since I did this thing 3 times in one week, I was able to complete it in 2.5 hrs, but it probably takes close to 4 the first time if I had known the purpose of the bracket with the kit. The kit was bought from GM Parts Direct.
I think the problem w/ my aurora may be the fuel pump relay. I had the fuel pump and filter replaced a month ago and - as mentioned in my previous posts - it quit running over the weekend.
I had it towed home yesterday and the car actually fired up w/ starting fluid sprayed in the intake, so I'm sure it's a fuel problem again. The shop that installed the pump is closed this week for the holidays and I'm tired of not having the car to drive. Either the new fuel pump is bad, or the relay failed for some reason.
I found the relay under the back seat in a fuse block, but haven't been able to remove it.
Is there some trick to removing the relays other than just pulling them straight out? Lord knows I don't want to break something else. Any advice from someone who may have done this will help...
Merry Christmas everyone!! I took my Aurora to Vegas to spend her Christmas in Sin City....she loves it here! May the new year bring us all a reprive from breakdowns,and big repairs,we deserve it after caring for and loving these cars like we ALL do!...lol
To Hammen2, thanks for the input re: oil leak repair. I printed out all the GM bulletins I could find pertaining to this, and I found in '98 that the rear main crank seal was changed in it's design, and that the new design is made to service 1996 to 1999 engines built after engine unit # T10L423109. Now, unfortunately, I own a very early series '95 Aurora, and if I can't use this new seal, two questions immediately come to mind. One, what is different about my early production engine that prohibits the new seal use, and two, if I have the dealer make the repair using the original methods and p/n, one would assume the problem is just going to re-occur. Has anyone else taken repair to an engineer at GM?
Several times they've matched or come close to matching the interet price on a part. Key Cadillac/Olds in Edina has also been good for me. Wally McCarthy in Roseville WAS TERRIBLE in my experience. Other dealer ended up cleaning up their A.not being able to get the back seat back down. B. Breaking the vent tube off the battery. C. Replacing (actually giving to me for free) a couple of the black plastic clips that hold the carpet down after a W Mcarthy dealership person hid the broken clips under the rear floor mat. Key also vacuumed and SHAMPOOED the carpet because they said the service person scuffed grease from the side of his shoe onto the carpet. Wally's posse left a couple of greasy finger prints on the steering wheel and dash.
After the car sat for 3 days in the garage, it started dripping a tiny bit. It seems to be coming from the back side of the water pump (opposite side of belt)and dripping off the bottom of pump onto an grey electricial plug that plugs into the transmission. I thought about trying to tighten up the nuts myself but am going to wait until it leaks a good size puddle before taking in for repairs... until I figure out where it is exactly coming from. Over the course of leaking, I have lost 1 inch in the radiator holding tank. Also the steering is starting to grumble again. Suspect ISS. Will mention again to dealer in hopes of a swap out for new. Still have the start up-fast speed idle miss. Will mention that again to dealer. Not sure when a good time to take in.
Hey Steve, I think that 30 second fast-idle is supposed to sound like crap. I got the recall done for it and it sounds exactly the same. I suspect it is intentional to warm the catalytic convertor up faster. With the Corsa it sounds pretty cool, though pretty rough too.
Over the life of my car, I've probably had to add about a quart or two of coolant/water to the overflow tank. But spread out over 24k miles that isn't really bad. I haven't ever noticed drips, though. I assume it gets consumed.
Let us know how it goes at the dealer.
Oh, hey Steve, I tried to reply to your email, but got a bounce back saying you wouldn't accept mail from me. Check your email settings on AOL and ensure you aren't blocking internet mail.
I am having the exact same problem as sdowney9 with my car stalling while idling and temps under 40 degrees it does stall more. I am done with the dealership it has cost me $3000.00 and the problem still continues. Help ! Was there any resolution to this stalling problem ?
Did you spend $3k at one dealership, and the problem's still not resolved? Time to call the general manager, or the owner. Yikes! Just like seeing a doctor, when it gets bad like this, a second opinion is never a bad thing.
Was the dealership you went to an Olds one? Try taking the car to a Caddy dealer for a quick overview (since the Classic Aurora and the '98 and up STS are very similar) - explain how much you've laid out, and how you can't afford them "trying" things. They should work with you.
Where are you located? Perhaps someone here can recommend a good dealership.
I've been dealing with brake dragging on my '95 Aurora for a while, now.
Synopsis:
Feb '03 - Changed disks and pads on front wheels. March '03 - started getting SES light and my mechanic said it was a brake code. OK, fine, I knew the rear needed to be done, so I changed them a week or so later.
Then, I found that it is my front driver's side brake that is dragging. I had the disk reground and put new pads on. I was ok for a little while, and ended up having to get new disks and pads again a couple months ago. With the dragging the disks appear to be burning. They looked almost plack when I pulled them last time. They are also grooving pretty badly, and its always in the same place.
Now, I've still had the problem intermittently until now. The last week or so has been terrible. I get SES every time I drive, and sometimes the exhaust start to blow blueish gray smoke when the SES comes on. The engine always idles rough when the SES is on.
The only code I'm getting is still the brake code, and the only time I get the rough idle or smoking is when the SES light comes on.
Is there some sort of sensor that could be bad? Am I missing the real problem completely? This thing is making me so mad. I have put more that 40 hours into figuring out this problem, now, and I need some sort of resolution. My mechanic is stumped, but he doesn't specialize in Olds.
Has your mechanic done anything with the brake caliper? Sounds to me like the problem is a stuck piston inside the caliper or that the caliper is not free to slide side-to-side on its mounting pins.
The OBDI system in your '95 may be different in this respect, but OBDII ('96 and later) turns on the SES only for emission-related problems. Non-emission codes can be set, but will not turn on SES. What is the specific brake code (and associated text to go with it) that your mechanic reports? It is strange that there are no other codes except the brake code, given that your engine is running the way you describe. Maybe it's time to get a "second opinion" on the codes.
If my brakes were dragging, the caliper is the first thing I'd look at, followed by the master cylinder. Something is pushing/holding that pad against the rotor.
Raise the front of the car, apply and release the brake pedal, then check to see if the wheel will turn freely. If not, remove the wheel, then crack the caliper bleeder screw loose. If the rotor now turns the brake flex hose is probably deteriorated internally and requires replacement.
"With the dragging the disks appear to be burning. They looked almost plack when I pulled them last time. They are also grooving pretty badly, and its always in the same place."
Is it both front disks or just the driver side? Where are the grooves appearing? Inboard, outboard, or both? The reason I ask this is to try to isolate the problem. I'm thinking that excessive wear on both inboard and outboard (and especially if both front brakes) would indicate a problem with brake fluid pressure not dropping when the brake pedal is released; that would indict the master cylinder (rjs200240), flex hose (alcan), a sticking piston, or the ABS brake pressure modulator valve (BPMV).
On the other hand, if the grooving is on only one side of the disk, that indicts the caliper sliding mechanism. Did you inspect and lubricate the caliper pin bolts, sleeves and bushings when you replaced the pads? If not, that could be the source of your problem.
Sorry, but I sort of skimmed your post the first time. Blk97's posting of that part made me reread it. If I were you, I wouldn't drive the car around with a dragging brake. That will put tremendous heat into the brakes, the suspension, and the wheel. You could really damage other things. Not to mention that the brakes and then the tire could catch fire. Brake fluid will burn when it gets hot enough. You don't want to narrow down the problem by saying "nah, that couldn't have been it, it didn't burn to a crisp"...
1 have 95 with north star engine. I just had turn off engine warning come on and discovered the water pump built is shredded. Does anyone have posting on how to replace the belt? I just checked it with flashlight tonight at it appears that there are only two small nuts holding a plastic cover. Do you just remove two nuts and plastic cover? How is the tension adjusted? I would appreciate any suggestions. I read on one posting something about cam belt damaged when water pump belt failed. Does the 95 have a cam belt? Thanks for the help. Don
Yes take the cover off. Wirth the cover off use a 1/4 drive to relieve the tension by rotating the tensioner arm (by sticking the square into the square opening on the tensioner)wich will allow you to slip the belt off and slip the new one on. Easy job. The Northstar uses cam chains, not belts. These chains it is said will go over 250,000 miles easy. The water pump belt will reach it's load tolerance and fail WAY before the chains or cam sprockets are endangered.
When a speaker starts making distorted sounds, usually somewhat muffled, it is usually the voice coil hanging up, or rubbing against the bore of the magnet that it rides in. This can be verified by by gently pushing on different areas of the speaker cone. This change in dimension could be due to humidity changes over time affecting the cone itself and thus misaligning the voice coil. Also stresses on the speakers metal frame can cause this. Pretty much the same process as uneven tightening of wheel nuts resulting in warped rotors. Unfortunately you can't rebore the hole the voice coil rides in. Even if you could, you'd need to have some way of aligning the mounting of the new cone with its voice coil. Now the tricks of a trade. In the old stereo console systems and anything else with a defective speaker, if a new speaker wasn't readily available, the tech might stuff tissue between one edge of the cone and the speaker frame forcing the coil back to alignment. The duration of this fix is unreliable, and especially so in an auto where vibration must be taken into account. Sometimes loosening mounting screws or stuffing something between the speaker frame and the mounting surface and retightening will do the trick. This is you are compensating for the original pressure that initiated the problem. My wife picked up a Sable this last summer that had two speakers doing this. Examining them, Ford put a bend in the frame for mounting a clip. That stress over time may have been the problem, but it didn't fix the hanging of the coil. Remember, we are working with relatively close tolerances here. Playing with the cone, I located the perceived misalignment of the bore. I laid the speaker on a flat surface. I put a block of wood on the magnet and struck it with a hammer on the edge that I was trying to force into alignment. Caution!!! the glue holding the magnet in place can break and so can the magnet itself. The objective here is to shift the frame, subsequently the bore for the voice coil. It took several licks with the mallet and checks in between. That is hooking it back up and applying pressure to the edge of the cone to see if you are accomplishing the intended. This was last June, and both speakers are still working properly to this day. If these were Bose speakers, I would have hesitated using this technique. Also when you mount the speakers back, make sure you are not applying uneven forces to the frame of the speaker. I would go so far as to find thin rubber bushings for the screws and only snug them. Maybe loctite so they don't back out. Obviously these are not cheap speakers.
I was reading the posts concerning solenoids and a filter bracket. I noticed that it constantly mentioned only one filter. When I changed the fluid, I had two plastic filters. Is that new bracket meant for one of them? Also there was a rectangular plug that pushed in from the driver side. Does anyone know what this plug is? BTW, I used AAMCO brand part synthetic fluid for the flush, approved for Mercon V as well, and all seems to be well so far with shifting. PS, I was warned that removing that lower cover could involve a rebuild. probably had something to do with dislocating those check balls. Shops use vasoline as a trick to hold some of those items in place during assembly.
One of the lots in town had a 96 that I decided to check out. It was Pearl in color, 50K and looked really clean. Two tiny paint chips on opposite sides. Someone had replaced the water pump belt with the wrong one as it was riding really high on the pulleys. New pads on the rear were evident and maybe contributory to another problem. I noticed the ABS light flicker when starting. Thinking back it may have been flashing code. During the test drive I tried to force the ABS and it didn't actuate, so there was a definite problem and it didn't appear to have the TBS where the diode is added to prevent destruction of the ABS because of spikes. Coolant showed signs of seepage too. Also I would have wanted to check the defroster on the rear window as I learned it had been tinted and removed so the wiring could have been damaged. Other that this, the car looked fantastic. This was on a Friday afternoon and he wanted $8K for it. Way too high. Monday morning I called thinking I might negotiate and certainly check the ABS closer since I'd heard that repair could run $1K. Some sucker bought it for the $8K. Edmunds would have placed it at 6 minus the repairs. But it was pretty. I also noted that it didn't seem to have as much get up as my 96. Don't know why. And of course a big negative was the 50-50 warranty.
I have been having the hard start problem, where it has warmed to close loop, sits for awhile and then acts like it isn't getting fuel. So I had it scanned an these were the codes. If correct, the first indicates one of the O2 sensors, and the second may be related, something about Catalyst being low? The third maybe input turbine sensor. What is that and where? I suspect that none of them may be related to the actual problem. I noted another post where someone had spent big money and having start, stall problems. My daughter had a stalling problem on a Taurus. No codes, probably because all of the sensors were within parameters. Yet it would suddenly stall at idle. Poking around, I located the problem. A brittle and cracked vacuum hose. Most of the time it was only leaking, but under some situations it would allow that extra gulp of air causing the stall at idle. Help with codes or start problem appreciated.
From posts I've seen here, there seems to be indication of some sort of shield or pan that goes to the bottom side of the engine compartment. Details please? I know that it appears something might be missing because of the exposed approximately 1" square foam that runs from side to side under the front area.
Would someone post more details on the oil leak problem and where to look specifically. I definitely have a leak problem and would like to know more before I start diggin into it. I hate cold weather. I also have a coolant leak of some sort. Reservoir has dropped an inch in a few thousand miles. Definitely smell it too and that is a disgusting smell. I've narrowed it to the right rear of engine, maybe under brake booster area, by smell. So maybe its a hose, and appears there is some metal tubing in this area as well. Hopefully, not the heater core.
The grooving is on both sides of the disk. One groove is about 1/2" from the outside, and the other is about 1" from the center. The grooving has only occured on the driver's side.
How do I check the caliper pistons? Aren't they located inside of the caliper?
I'll have to pull out my service manuals tonight and take a better look. Thanks for the help so far. I've parked the Aurora in the meantime, so I have to drive around the beater '92 Crown Vic.
Comments
did you hear somewhere this would make the car not shift?
i plan on going early monday to cadillac, so hopefully you can respond in time
This car came from another Olds dealer, and was kept in flawless condition for his wife. Brought it to a local dealer and asked for an oil change. They L.O.F.'d the car, and told me that it had an excessive oil leak around the crank seals. Have to pull the engine and cost around $2400.00. (By the way, the car has been sitting in a garage in storage for 45 days, and there was not a drop of oil on the floor.) Has anyone been through anything like this before? Also, I was told the original dipsticks do not show the correct oil level..is there a new part available?
The dipstick issue - as I understand it - was on early '95s. I believe they realized it and put in the proper ones half way through the year. Your '96 should be correct. And yes, there was a TSB in it and a replacement available.
Good luck w/ your car. They really are great if you can get past the occasional whallop on repairs. (having said that, you may want to skip my next post)
My wallet can't handle this!
Just before thanksgiving, the fuel pump went out on the 'Rora, leaving me stranded crosswise in the middle of a busy road during rush hour. (course it wasn't a tunnel - I should have listened to Henry when he suggested replacing it as scheduled maintenance)..... $ 525
Then the steering rack went out two weeks later. New rack, PS hose and alignment............... $ 915
So far, $2000+ and counting.
Then, last week the Air pump, Front brakes and turn signals went out on my Ford Truck, all within 2 days of each other..... $ 645
Then this saturday the 'Rora let me down again. Went to Walgreens, got in the car to leave. She fired up first hit - as usual - then after about 3 seconds just quit. Hasn't fired up since. The engine turns over as it should, but won't fire. Seems more like an electrical issue than fuel. But what do I know? DAMN. Here she goes on the flat bed again...... Triple AAA is loving me.
However, it seems I will become a member of "the Rack" club if I keep the car.
I really do like my car. My thing is that my 95 has 90k on it and I put on 80k of it. To get another Classic where I dont know the history is a concern of mine. We all know how tempermental these cars can be. At 50k miles and $8k for another one, am I paying $8k for somebody else's problems?
At least you got some real hardware out of it, and stuff that requires a lot of work to replace like the steering rack and fuel pump. Our "reliable" car with only minor problems has cost as much or more than your power steering and fuel pump problems. And your car has twice the power and twice the lux of the Nissan... So there is some perspective.
I had to type this whole thing again when it didn't post...
also had them take a look at why its making popping noises.......am i going to be a member of the rack club??? they said it is leaking fluid from the stearing gear (about $1,400) had some play. did this cause popping noises when comming out of turns? anyone know? they also said i had a bad ball joint (around $340) the ball joint i know i can fix, been there done that with a different car, hopefully its my drive axels that are causing the popping going around corners though.
total bill $327. better than expected. if anyone lives in the apple valley area of mn, Id go to Walser cadillac off galaxy and 42. they could have easily charged me more for having to take it apart 2 times, they charged me less than originally estimated. they even called me to begin with to ask if i had the originall trans gasket because my new cork one isn't re-useable, but the oem one was ($50), i didn't but it was a nice gesture. not only that, they where very nice and washed my car really good! sucks im out a total of $440, but could be worse. definatly taking my cars there from now on
I never saw any oil puddles under my car, but I understand, from my dealer, that the oil tends to leak onto/collect on the plastic engine cover, then spray along the underside of the car, rather than puddle under the car when stopped.
If you are meticulous about checking your oil, you can hold off on this repair (and save up your $$$ - though it will eventually need it). The dipstick on the car really sucks - it's worse than the 1960's-era flasher can sound (another pet peeve - one of my few with the car). I know of no alternative/replacement unit, other than checking your oil 3-4 times and throwing out the reading that doesn't match the others :-)
Steering gear issues seem to be common as the years go by/the mileage goes up (I'm at about 73K). Mine is doing the same thing. I'm holding off on the repair, and just checking the p/s fluid regularly, but eventually this will have to get repaired as well (hello warranty company!).
I think I posted a list of Common Aurora Problems in the main Aurora board - I know if you search on A/C compressor, you should find my message(s)...
Hope this helps,
--Robert
vacationing in Florida, and missing his Aurora terribly (this 4 cylinder Altima just doesn't cut it :-)
I know what you mean, Henry, about buying someone else's problems. At least we know what we've fixed and how we've maintained our vehicles. When I bought mine it had 50k on it. It now has 105K. Of course, it was a dream until the warranty ran out at 75K, then the repairs started to hit. Pretty much everything I've had done to mine has been since the 75K mile mark.
Robert, I hear what your saying. I owned a Maxima many years ago. Bought it new and kept it to about 120k miles. Loved the car, but it definitely wasn't the highly reliable car the Uncle Ben's lovers would have us believe. On the Max, the mark was about 60K miles. Thousands of $$ spent on it in about a 10K window.
Oh well, gonna have the 'Rora towed today. Maybe I'll get my favorite Triple A driver a Christmas gift. (It's sad when they know your neighborhood)
Merry Christmas everyone!
Larry
Also, even though I LOVE my Silverstar headlights, I am putting back in the stock ones. The 2nd one of the Silverstars gave up. That now makes both of them that have crapped out in less than a year. I will try to take it back and get an exchange like the first one that quit.
Rots of Ruck,
Steve
The other thing I would think it could be is brake fluid (it is clear and thin, not unlike water, except it will bubble up and such when actual water gets on it). I've noticed that oftentimes brake places won't remove fluid when you get new pads. So, if you've topped the reservoir off when the pads were worn, it will be overfull when the calipers are pushed back for the new pads. Since it is sealed, it won't just run out at once but rather leak out over days and days. Just a thought.
I'll have to see how long my Silverstars make it. Though, you leave your headlamps on all the time, right?
Happy I did not have to see dealership.
Greg
Congratulations on your success!
Did the misplaced filter keep the solenoids and/or valves from operating properly? Or was there another reason for your success?
My '97 was built in September 1996. Do you happen to know if the bracket was in production then?
Les
If so, could you post some more info on the kit and tips to install to for other
now that a few of us have went through it, we can tell you the do's and don'ts. if i had to do it again on a new car, id do it now that i know what not to do! biggest thing is when you sepperate the two parts of the lower valve assembly, MAKE SURE you see where those balls go! then even though your car doesn't have it now, make sure you put that plate on.
Greg
Thanks for the suggestion.
I have not added any brake fluid. It is down 1/2 inch from new car purchase.
Thanks for the suggestion.
Yes, I do run my headlights at all times. I may try another brand of headlights.
Just hit 28K.
Thanks for your help.
Seasons Greetings to all,
Steve
I had it towed home yesterday and the car actually fired up w/ starting fluid sprayed in the intake, so I'm sure it's a fuel problem again. The shop that installed the pump is closed this week for the holidays and I'm tired of not having the car to drive. Either the new fuel pump is bad, or the relay failed for some reason.
I found the relay under the back seat in a fuse block, but haven't been able to remove it.
Is there some trick to removing the relays other than just pulling them straight out? Lord knows I don't want to break something else. Any advice from someone who may have done this will help...
May the new year bring us all a reprive from breakdowns,and big repairs,we deserve it after caring for and loving these cars like we ALL do!
Could not have put it any better.
Peace.
Also the steering is starting to grumble again. Suspect ISS. Will mention again to dealer in hopes of a swap out for new.
Still have the start up-fast speed idle miss. Will mention that again to dealer. Not sure when a good time to take in.
Thanks,
Steve
Over the life of my car, I've probably had to add about a quart or two of coolant/water to the overflow tank. But spread out over 24k miles that isn't really bad. I haven't ever noticed drips, though. I assume it gets consumed.
Let us know how it goes at the dealer.
Oh, hey Steve, I tried to reply to your email, but got a bounce back saying you wouldn't accept mail from me. Check your email settings on AOL and ensure you aren't blocking internet mail.
Was the dealership you went to an Olds one? Try taking the car to a Caddy dealer for a quick overview (since the Classic Aurora and the '98 and up STS are very similar) - explain how much you've laid out, and how you can't afford them "trying" things. They should work with you.
Where are you located? Perhaps someone here can recommend a good dealership.
--Robert
Synopsis:
Feb '03 - Changed disks and pads on front wheels. March '03 - started getting SES light and my mechanic said it was a brake code. OK, fine, I knew the rear needed to be done, so I changed them a week or so later.
Then, I found that it is my front driver's side brake that is dragging. I had the disk reground and put new pads on. I was ok for a little while, and ended up having to get new disks and pads again a couple months ago. With the dragging the disks appear to be burning. They looked almost plack when I pulled them last time. They are also grooving pretty badly, and its always in the same place.
Now, I've still had the problem intermittently until now. The last week or so has been terrible. I get SES every time I drive, and sometimes the exhaust start to blow blueish gray smoke when the SES comes on. The engine always idles rough when the SES is on.
The only code I'm getting is still the brake code, and the only time I get the rough idle or smoking is when the SES light comes on.
Is there some sort of sensor that could be bad? Am I missing the real problem completely? This thing is making me so mad. I have put more that 40 hours into figuring out this problem, now, and I need some sort of resolution. My mechanic is stumped, but he doesn't specialize in Olds.
Has your mechanic done anything with the brake caliper? Sounds to me like the problem is a stuck piston inside the caliper or that the caliper is not free to slide side-to-side on its mounting pins.
The OBDI system in your '95 may be different in this respect, but OBDII ('96 and later) turns on the SES only for emission-related problems. Non-emission codes can be set, but will not turn on SES. What is the specific brake code (and associated text to go with it) that your mechanic reports? It is strange that there are no other codes except the brake code, given that your engine is running the way you describe. Maybe it's time to get a "second opinion" on the codes.
How could I check for a caliper piston that is stuck?
In #1473 you wrote:
"With the dragging the disks appear to be burning. They looked almost plack when I pulled them last time. They are also grooving pretty badly, and its always in the same place."
Is it both front disks or just the driver side? Where are the grooves appearing? Inboard, outboard, or both? The reason I ask this is to try to isolate the problem. I'm thinking that excessive wear on both inboard and outboard (and especially if both front brakes) would indicate a problem with brake fluid pressure not dropping when the brake pedal is released; that would indict the master cylinder (rjs200240), flex hose (alcan), a sticking piston, or the ABS brake pressure modulator valve (BPMV).
On the other hand, if the grooving is on only one side of the disk, that indicts the caliper sliding mechanism. Did you inspect and lubricate the caliper pin bolts, sleeves and bushings when you replaced the pads? If not, that could be the source of your problem.
Do you just remove two nuts and plastic cover?
How is the tension adjusted?
I would appreciate any suggestions.
I read on one posting something about cam belt damaged when water pump belt failed.
Does the 95 have a cam belt?
Thanks for the help.
Don
The Northstar uses cam chains, not belts. These chains it is said will go over 250,000 miles easy. The water pump belt will reach it's load tolerance and fail WAY before the chains or cam sprockets are endangered.
Now the tricks of a trade. In the old stereo console systems and anything else with a defective speaker, if a new speaker wasn't readily available, the tech might stuff tissue between one edge of the cone and the speaker frame forcing the coil back to alignment. The duration of this fix is unreliable, and especially so in an auto where vibration must be taken into account. Sometimes loosening mounting screws or stuffing something between the speaker frame and the mounting surface and retightening will do the trick. This is you are compensating for the original pressure that initiated the problem.
My wife picked up a Sable this last summer that had two speakers doing this. Examining them, Ford put a bend in the frame for mounting a clip. That stress over time may have been the problem, but it didn't fix the hanging of the coil. Remember, we are working with relatively close tolerances here. Playing with the cone, I located the perceived misalignment of the bore. I laid the speaker on a flat surface. I put a block of wood on the magnet and struck it with a hammer on the edge that I was trying to force into alignment. Caution!!! the glue holding the magnet in place can break and so can the magnet itself. The objective here is to shift the frame, subsequently the bore for the voice coil. It took several licks with the mallet and checks in between. That is hooking it back up and applying pressure to the edge of the cone to see if you are accomplishing the intended. This was last June, and both speakers are still working properly to this day. If these were Bose speakers, I would have hesitated using this technique. Also when you mount the speakers back, make sure you are not applying uneven forces to the frame of the speaker. I would go so far as to find thin rubber bushings for the screws and only snug them. Maybe loctite so they don't back out. Obviously these are not cheap speakers.
How do I check the caliper pistons? Aren't they located inside of the caliper?
I'll have to pull out my service manuals tonight and take a better look. Thanks for the help so far. I've parked the Aurora in the meantime, so I have to drive around the beater '92 Crown Vic.