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Chevrolet Malibu Oil Changes/Service Questions
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As for your ramps, don't get any!! The Maxx has plenty of room to crawl under to get both the oil plug and filter. I use a long plastic oil catcher that I bought at Walmart; it allow me to drain the pan and filter at the same time. Please don't waste your money on ramps or jacks.
Do the turn and back-up lamps work on the right side (just the brake lamp didn't work)? You might want to try just temporarily plugging right lamp into left connector and visa versa and see what problems move with the lamp assembly. The turn and back-up functions will be reversed but you can still check all functions.
Yes,the turn and back-up lamps work on the right side, and now the brake lamp does as well, and I don't know why that works now. I noticed that the licence plate lamp wiring runs right along with the driver-side tail lamp wiring, and the licence plate bulb does not work either. Does that provide more of a clue? Could it be something to do with where the wiring comes out the back of the fuse panel?
I will switch the assemblies this evening and see what that shows. I thought of doing that, but wasn't sure if they were interchangable like that.
Thanks for the tips.
The stop lamp on right side may have started working again because you played with the bulbs.
Thanks.
Its a lot of money compared to most filters but a clean running engine is an efficient running engine especially with modern sensors that once fouled by burning oil will lead to poor gas mileage and performance.
No I am not an Amsoil dealer nor do I intend to become one.
I run my cars till they drop, so the extra money up front is more easily justified.
I dont seem to see any, anywhere.
Brake job: if it included new rotors as well as pads, it is in the range.
Suspension job: Looks a bit high but I am not sure what exactly was done.
The oil drain on the new Malibu is at the lowest point in the back of the pan so why would it be important to drain the oil whilst the car is level? Raising the front 4-5 inches to gain access is not going to make a difference on what drains out anyway. I do run mine up on a set of homemade ramps but wouldn't have a problem with a car on jackstands. I've been wrenching on these mobiles for 35 years including complete engine teardowns and rebuilds, just to set the record.
It is much more convienent to have an oil change outfit do it for you, it is cleaner, etc but I got tired of telling the gizmos that I didn't want anything more than an oil change and lube. I quit OilCanHenrys when they quit using Valvoline. The other reason I quit going to those places? If they fergit fill your crankcase and you drive away, you are responsible for the damage to the engine. YOU are, not them. If I'm the responsible party, then I'll be the one to put oil in my engine. The aforementioned outfit underfilled my auto tranny once, the ol' pontiac was never quite the same after that.
I drain my filters and recycle them, the oil, every drop, goes to the recycling center. I know of no one these days that doesn't recycle their used oil. My pops used to pour it along the fence lines to kill the weeds and grass, I use 2-4d to do the same thing.
Again - To each their own.
--BruceMc, '04Maxx...
My Dad did the same weed control with his old oil... but became more enlightened in his latter years. As for people recycling, many people still dump it on the ground for "dust control" and many others abandon it in milk jugs in retail dumpsters... or leave it with the old refrigerators and tires along the road at clandestine dump sites... aka: dead end dirt roads.
As for the retail oil change... my place delivers the dip stick to my door and shows me the full level. If they did not, I'd ask for them to do so. I changed my own oil from 1974 to 1999. My time is too valuable to step back into changing my own oil. Its just not worth the trouble.
This is how I spotted the two oil leaks on my o5 malibu so GM could fix them before they became a large problem. It's preventive maintenance.
Thanks!
In your case, if you are getting good heat from the heater, it sounds like the temp sender is bad or the wiring/connections between it and the BCM.
I took mine to the dealer just before the warrenty expired complaining of this and a couple other issues, so they have it in writing it was an issue within the warrenty period. When it happens again, I'll run it into the dealer and make 'em fix it on their dime. If you are still within your warrenty period, then make the dealer fix it. Otherwise, I'd start with the temp sender.
Good luck; let us know what you find.
--BruceM; 04Maxx
Cars like the honda, toyota, nissan that use overhead cam engines will hold alot more oil in the mechanical parts of the heads. Twice as many valves,rockers and cams, will trap all of oil. :surprise:
At these lube shops, how long do they wait after the engine is stopped before draining the oil. Five or ten minutes? I bet you they don't, time is money for them. If they don't allow enough time(Ten minutes) for all of the oil to drain out of the engine you will have left over oil!! Problem.......yes.
I allow Fifteen minutes for as much oil as possible to empty from all of my vehicles.
my wife has a 2002 malibu ls with 28,000 miles on it which we purchased brand new. she basically drives it to work and back and to go shopping. she changes the oil every 3k miles, always checks tire pressure, she changed her brakes in the front for the 1st time 2 months ago.
since the owners manual doesn't really specify this we are a bit confused. how often should she flush the radiator? we have not done it once since she owned it in 4 years.
also, what other recommended maintenance chould she be doing? did i miss anything?
These recommendations are what I do with my vehicles, they go trouble free on the big stuff, engine, transmission.
Here's my current problem:
I just recently had my radiator flushed. To be honest, I went over the 5 year limit by two years. My local Chevy dealer did the flush. Now 4 weeks later, the car is consistantly running hot (the temp needle crosses the half way mark - which is has never done before) and I have had to add coolant several times - once the light indicator for adding coolant came on. Thoughts on possible problems or other indicators I need to look at????
I had the much noted intake manifold gasket work done several years ago and there is no evidence of antifreeze in the oil but am not sure if this is the only indicator of this problem.
Thank you in advance for any advice!!
Magnus
also put your heater on full blast set to high, see if it smells of coolant, that would be a bad heater core. Keep your
eye closely on the dip stick and check the radatior for any
signs of contaimination. How many miles on the engine?? Most
water pumps fail around the 90-125K range. Hope this helps..
Magnus
Thanks, Magnus
sure it's tight. It's located on the bottom of the radaitor.
What is the milage of this car???
Reported coolant leak in thread above. Took into my dealership this week and said they conducted a pressure test and discovered a leaking intake manifold!! I had this *same* repair done at 36K miles over 2 years ago at a local garage in my town!! My dealership quoted me $750 to fix it.
I declined the service at my dealership and have made my appointment with the local garage who did the work two years ago for them to take a look at it this Tuesday. A quick Google search tells me this problem can be reoccuring in the Malibu. If anyone has any thoughts or questions I should ask my garage let me know.
Also, I am a bit paranoid given the age of my car and mileage if one should be "proactive" and get the water pump replaced now. Any thoughts on this are welcome.
Thank you in advance, Magnus
a newer designs gasket has been developed by Fel-pro that
solves the problem. As for the water pump I've never seen
one last past 125K. In most FWD OHC engines a lot of people
would have it changed with the timeing belt since the water
pump ran off the timeing belt and you allready had access
to it. I haven't worked on the 3.1 V6 (mine is a '05 3.5)
so I can't say if it's the same situation or not, the 3.1 and
the 3.5 are pushrod engines and dont have a timeing belt.
Maybe someone who has worked on one could be of more advise
here...
Magnus
i bought my 2002 malibu brand new and it has 30,000 miles on it. last week i went out of my driveway in reverse into about 7-10 inches of snow at the end of my driveway. since then i am noticing a different sound coming from either my exhaust system and my converter. i looked underneath and the catalytic converter is rusted. no smoke is coming out from anywhere but my car has a unusually lower rumble sound than normal.
any idea if i am right on this and how much does it cost to change a catalytic converter.
Oil Change # 1 @ 3840 Miles
Oil Change # 2 @ 28,099 miles
Oil Change # 3 @ 46,938 miles
Oil Change # 4 @ 59,661 Miles
this is not my first car to have extended drains. I also have a Ford Diesel with over 200K with 2 oil changes but it has a BY PASS oil filter system. With the an oil designed for extended drains no problems
Ken
Visiting Host
The old saying " This is not my first rodeo" Have been doing extended drains since 1982 when I started to go 7500 miles.
Perhaps will periodic oil analysis I'd be more comfortable doing what you are doing. But for the average bear, they might not be as conscientious as you are.
1. I still have the original spark plugs in the car! I never have had a tune-up. I am curious if postponing this has done any damage or costing me gas mileage? Of course, when I bought the car they said 100,000 before first tune-up but it has been almost 8 years.
2. I have never done a transmission service. What is the normal timeframe for conducting these?
3. Given the age of the car and mileage what major repairs should I be prepared for? I have already done the intake manifold gasket repair several years ago and the well-documented A/C problem repaired.
Any feedback or thoughts are welcome!!!
Magnus