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anyways - go to a medical supply store and get a decent size syringe with out the metal needle tip. Take a peek at the black check bolt and you will get an idea what size when you go there. its a tedious task, and yes, smells like something you may hot have ever actually been exposed to also. I think it takes two containers of the size that GM sells it in - but could double check that. Or , you can ask it at www.clubgp.com and you'll get better advice than i just offered (perhaps)
Unless I'm hallucinating, I seem to remember one of the Japanese performance cars, Supra perhaps, that used a clutch to engage/disengage the supercharger. Seemed to me at the time to be the best of both worlds, power on demand and much longer life for the supercharger.
If you are interested, go to www.eastwoodcompany.com (wish I knew how to make this an active link).
http://www.eastwoodcompany.com
Turns out that the PCM had a crack in the board and it would occasionally flex enough to loose contact, this would reset specific portions of the PCM. Primarily the Cruise Control memory and the Theft Deterrent interpretation section. The crack was around a mounting screw, it may have been tightened down to tight, not quite sure.
Found out that this problem was probably why I got the car at such a good deal. Once I got the factory troubleshooting flow chart and started following it I found that everything I looked at, short of the PCM, had been replaced.
So off to the salvage yard I went. I found a PCM from a Buick that was the same part number (except the last four letters, these determine the vehicle type I think). Turns out this PCMs serial number is only 41 off of the PCM serial number of my Bonnie. I removed the EPROM from my PCM, dropped it in the $75 used Buick PCM, and that was 2800 miles ago.....woooohooo.
Ken
It's been in the shop many-many times.
The dealer has replaced the tires and Firestone has also.This makes three set of tires.
The Hunter 9700 was used three times.
On my own i had the hubs check outed.
THE HUBS ARE THE PROBLEM.
The problem with the vibration is that
the studs are NOT centered to the axle.
This makes the tires go in a oblong rotation.
Hub problem is front and rear.
On my car the front drivers was out .012 .
The rears were out .0145 .
GM has not fix the yet.
GM knows that there is BIG problem the hubs.
If they do TSB it would cost $1,000,000 to repair
all of the cars.
Have your dealer dail-in the studs.
BTW, my car has Goodyear Eagle RS-A's, not the Firestones that most people have been complaining about.
I've had the vibration at 70 - 80 mph since the last rotation and will know soon whether or not it's the tires. There is a set of Goodyear Aquatread IIIs coming in for me this week so by next Sat I ought to be riding on new rubber. I looked and looked at review after review for all seasons and winter tires and finally decided to go with the Aquatreads. Hopefully they will do well this winter as new rubber and last 70K plus miles. I may buy a set of Blizzacks or Michellin Arctic Alpins next winter to relieve the Aquatreads once they get 20K plus on them a year from now. Stay tuned.
Bought a great set of Bridgestone Radial Long Trail T/As for the Suburban yesterday and that took care of the vibe there as well as the slow leak. I had been concerned the alum wheel might be corroding but it turned out to be a nail imbedded in the tread. Surprizing that it never went flat - just had to add air every week or 2.
Best to all
Ken
Stan
How many miles on your Bonnie now? How long has it been vibrating?
I'll be interested in your reaction and review of the Alpins over the course of the winter. I may do the same in another year. For this year my soon to be installed Aquatread IIIs are going to do winter duty.
Ken
We often get a lot of rain and some years can be relatively open whereas the last two have had plenty of white stuff. I've been thinking that if I sprung for a set of Alpins or Blizzaks and then had a dry winter, how ticked off I would be for having spent the extra money for a tire that is really inappropriate for the conditions. Oh yes, the black ice can be bad and of course one slide can cost a $500 deductible but this has been a real dilemma for me.
I'll be curious how the Alpins do on the normal conditions as well as snowy and icy. Please let us know.
Ken
When I first drove it off the lot after the rotation, I thought that the vibration was much worse, and now occurring at 45-50 mph. But then I turned onto a different street and wasn't so sure anymore. Then on a freshly resurfaced road, there was no perceptable vibration at all. So I'm thinking, it is real or perceived? After all, the roads are not perfect and the car has a firm suspension. So I'll keep driving it and see what happens. I could swear my Tahoe was also vibrating now with the new tires, and I thought of my dad who thinks that every car he has ever driven "shimmys" (except that lovely Lexus LS430 they just got). So just to calibrate my senses, I drove the Alero for awhile, and it is great. Maybe if it had a supercharged engine and HUD, I might just give up the Bonnie... (Well, maybe not :0)
BTW, I strolled the Pontiac-Buick-GMC dealer's lot, and there were no Bonnevilles -- none, nada, zip. Three LeSabres, Customs at that. In fact, the lot was looking pretty empty. Could they have sold all their stock, or are the shipments slowing down?
Oh - also had a rock hit my windshield on the way to work. Will have to keep my eye on that spot to see if it cracks and spreads. Bonnie has 40K miles now and is starting to feel it.
Ken
Jazzy: You have 160,000 miles and the tranny is giving you problems? I think you are pretty lucky. Have it looked at by a transmission shop. Sounds like the overdrive and/or torque converter is shot.
I've had windshields replaced before so I'll surely watch this one and see what develops. I haven't had a chance yet to see if mine is cracked or just marked.
The Bonneville SE does not have magnasteer and I suspect it has a similar shaft to Impala. Will have to see on this as well. For now - I do notice brake and steering wheel 'clunks' while turning with brake on.
Ken
The second concern is a tcc which is sensitive to throttle position, or cycles on and off, at higher vehicle speeds. More common on higher mileage vehicles. This is usually caused by wear in the tcc regulator or apply valve bore in the valve body. Sonnax and Transgo make repair kits for this, a special reamer for the worn bore and a new sleeved regulator valve.
Before attempting diagnosis of the tcc, engine performance MUST be verified, as any condition which will lower manifold vacuum ( restricted catalytic converter, cracked vacuum hose, egr malfunction, etc, etc) will also affect tcc operation.
I've been lurking here for quite awhile and have really enjoyed seeing all the info on our beloved Bonneville. I have a silver '00 SSEI that I love. I've had only a few minor problems: driver's seat heating element went bad and one visor retaining clip broke; that's it-- >40k miles!
Now, however, I have a serious repair coming up that I'm going to attempt myself to avoid the repair charge and I know you folks can help me out. My right rear window got broke and I have a new one coming in. I have lots of experience working on all my previous cars but never replacing a window. What I'd like to ask is if anyone---- a)who has experience in this could give me some pointers, or b)if you have the factory repair manual if you'd mind telling me what it might say about this.
Thanks for your help!
Doug
Here's a quick overview of how to replace the window:
1) Fully lower the window.
2) Remove the door panel, inside and outside mouldings.
3) Fully raise the window. Tape it in place.
4) Loosen the window regulator clamps and lower the regulator assembly to the full open position.
5) Remove the window. Insert new glass and place it into the regulator clamps. Do not tighten.
6) Fully raise the window. Do this with the engine running to get full power to the motor (necessary to properly align the window).
7) Tighten the clamps to 11 N-m.
8) Reinstall mouldings and trim panel.
Good luck. It looks like the tricky part will be getting the new glass into the tracks; you have to "snap" it into place. Hope this helps.
However, I've had some people tell me that get better performance and gas mileage out of higher octane gas. I used to own a 91 Tbird that pinged slightly going up hills on the lower stuff.
Any thoughts?
Interesting that both cars have the same problem. A number of owners here have complained about the same thing, and a few have gone to great lengths to get the dealer to fix the problem, but all to no avail (and great frustration). Someone finally posted that it was due to the studs not being properly aligned with respect to the centerpoint of the hub. No one has verified this yet, but it certainly seems like a possibility and the one thing the dealers never check for. My 2000 SSEi has a vibration also, and I'm becoming more sensitive to it. I want to get the dealer to check the hubs but I know (from experience) that they don't like to listen to the customer and will resist checking the hubs at least until I have brought the car in a dozen times to let them try everything else first. I don't want the frustration. Love the car, disappointed about this (apparently) common problem.
I also decided to pay the $19.95 for a year's subscription to AllData's web site. I read through all the TSBs, including the one about the vibration problem. Very interesting. This problem affects the (discontinued) Riveria, Park Avenue, LeSabre, Seville, DeVille, Aurora (back to 1995) and Bonneville. Also, the notes say the following: "The vehicle structure is very sensitive to rotating corner assembly runout and/or imbalance and/or tire uniformity/force variation (internal tire structure characteristics) issues." Also: "This is not, and there is not, an easy fix." Furthermore, over on the Aurora board, there are a few people reporting the same vibration that the dealers cannot fix. All disappointing, but what a cool car anyway!
to be repaired.( Its a bad fuel pump. We took delivery of the car 8/4/01 and have had no problems until now. We have put 10150 miles on the car. We received a junk ford focus as a replacement car until tomorrow when they say that the car will be finished. The dealer had to overnight the fuel pump tonight. I thought they would have given us a comparable replacement. But when I got home and read my warranty information it says "up to $30 a day rental car coverage". You would think if you buy the extended warranty (as we did, 6 year 100000 mile) it would take care of you. Oh well at least its for only a day I hope. BIG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
BONNEVILLE AND focus. Just had to get this info out. Has anyone else had the same problem with their Bonneville?
Let me offer another theory. My 92 has the front rotors that are not attached to the hub. They actually sit kind of loosely on the studs, I mean not snug. The rotor can shift about 1/16" or 1/32", before I mount the tire. I think this will affect the balance of the wheel when driving, if the rotors are not exactly centered. When I buy new tires next year I am going to try to have the tires balanced on the car. Has anyone tried this with any success?
When playing with the window switch, can hear light clicks from inside the door with the sound similar to electric relays. How could it be fixed?
Thank you.
Ken