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GM's triplets Venture, Silhouette, and Montana

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Comments

  • jeberjeber Member Posts: 91
    well, re. silo guage/cooling fan above:

    shop put in new sensor, they then discovered they had to clear out the "hard" codes from the PCM to make elec fan quit running (according to them, as long as the hard codes from bad sensor exist, the cooling fan will run as a safety thing). They cleared them and it all works so far. Gauge works and cooling fan doesn't stay on.

    What a pain. Clearly some things (more and more things) can't be done yourself at home...no way I could have cleared the hard codes myself.

    One hard code that came back was my EGR valve isn't working right--although van runs well. Mechanic said if it goes completely bad it will likely miss and get very poor mpg. He said the EGR in these 3.4's is not one you just replace and call it good--it's some sort of elaborate, three part setup or something. I will consult my Haynes manual, but anyone here with a 3.4 have any EGR experiences?

    I'm goin' to Dallas in one week. 12 hour drive each way. Will do tran fluid/filter, possibly coolant flush/fill before I leave. Will make sure there's air in the spare, lol.

    Thanks
  • indrgbindrgb Member Posts: 115
    Check your brake lights. If both brake lights are out, the CC will not work. Otherwise, the Haynes manual has a pretty good troubleshooting procedure for testing the CC module. It's easy, but you will need a voltmeter.
  • indrgbindrgb Member Posts: 115
    The bottom of the oil pan on my 2000 Silo is dripping oil. It's not the drain plug. Anyone have a good guess as to where it might be coming from? Hopfully not the oil pan gasket.

    Thanks.
  • paulie9paulie9 Member Posts: 32
    I posted the following post #1822 in April 2005 on the Venture forum. Still have not had hard shifting problems since then. Hope this info helps....

    "I have the very same problem on my 2000 OLDS Silhouette with 88K miles on it. Like you, once, twice or three times a month it would start shifting hard for the duration of a drive. I tried pulling over and shutting off and restarting the engine which did not clear the hard shifting. Letting the van sit for 30 minutes or more did clear up the problem till the next time.

    After a couple of months of observation I noticed that hard acceleration from a standing start while making a turn tends to cause the hard shifting, so now I accelerate gently while making turns and haven't had this problem for several months.

    Hope this helps. Good luck....

    BTW - My Silhouette has the towing package which includes a heavy duty transmission fluid cooler and I changed my transmission fluid and filter which did not resolve the hard shifting problem."
  • polaris_davepolaris_dave Member Posts: 5
    A few things have begun to happen to our 2002 Montana EXT. First, we cannot lock or unlock the doors from the switch on the driver's door. I'm assuming it is the switch? The key fob opens all doors fine.
    Next, the alarm goes off, usually during the night, for no apparent reason. I've cleaned the pins on the power sliding door, but that doesn't seem to help.
    Finally, our power sliding door mechanism has a problem. I could not open the door, manually or electrically. I had to pop the door panel off to find that the actuator to activate the power door was not extending fully. This was causing the lock mechanism to bind, so the door could not be unlocked.
    I'm going to try and get the complete door actuator/linkage assy from a wrecker...
    Any suggestions on my first 2 problems?
    Thanks
  • dirkdaddydirkdaddy Member Posts: 313
    I'm not sure about the first questions, sounds like you might need to trace the operation of the programs for those areas.

    My PSD also got hung up. Popping the door panel is not easy when the door won't open! Not having a tool for the inside handle, I ended up trashing it and buying a new one. My solinoid for the lock was not working right - the latch mech was getting stuck halfway where neither handle would operate. I did a lot of head scratching and testing, drove with door panel off for a few days trying different things, and finally actually took the lame route of just disconnecting and useing it manually. My wife luckily is strong enough to not complain about it!

    What was your experience.?
  • polaris_davepolaris_dave Member Posts: 5
    I have exactly the same problem as you with the latch getting stuck half way. I'm still driving around with my door panel off. I'm going to a wrecker today to see if I can find a used acutator.
    I'll let you know how it turns out.
  • satphat58satphat58 Member Posts: 2
    Hello all, the wife has a 1998 Oldsmobile Silhouette, water pump is leaking , curious as to weather it is a major pain to get to it? Thanks for your help
  • n7donn7don Member Posts: 188
    1. Drain radiator. She'll have to open the drain located on the driver's side.
    2. Remove the drive belt guard (this has the belt routing diagram on it)
    3. Loosen (but do not remove) the pulley bolts
    4. Remove belt
    5. Now remove the pulley
    6. Remove bolts holding the water pump on.
    When replacing be sure to have her completely clean the old gasket material off. This is an area of potential leakage.
    My replacement came from Autozone p/n A130-1480 I think it was a new, not rebuilt
    Also would be a good time to have her change the belt.
    Ho Ho Ho!!
    Merry Christmas & Happy New Year
  • satphat58satphat58 Member Posts: 2
    Ok,,Thanks, n7don,I will have at it.
  • campmicampmi Member Posts: 1
    I have a 98 Silhouette that has been having some electrical problems. First the right power sliding door stopped working, then I am getting a fast flicker on the right rear turn light, finally the rear wiper has stopped working. All the fuses are fine this has all happened in the last 2 months. I wondering if they have a common ground. I checked the ground by the rear tail light and it seemed ok. Does anyone know where the suspect ground might be? If not has anyone disconnected the motor on a power door so it is as easy to use as a non powered door. Any insight would be helpful, thanks in advance.
  • charlesewcharlesew Member Posts: 18
    Since my son's 1998 Blazer had a restricted heater core this fall, I have been hearing lots of not to good reports about Dex-Cool. The Blazer had the Dex-Cool replaced in 2003. I have no idea if it was flushed or just a drain and refill. Most likely, it was the latter.
    Anyway, my mechanic used some type of cleaner and completely flushed the system. He asked me if I wanted to use Dex-Cool again. Since he asked that question, I felt there had to be some reason. All he would say was that they only use Dex-Cool when the owner requests it if they are completely changing coolant. I went with the green stuff.
    I did some checking around at other shops and finally one of them did say that quite few trade magazines have had articles about Dex-Cool being other than the greatest product. Some even going so far as to blame some of the manifold gasket problems on plasticizers, (whatever those are), in the Dex-Cool having a detrimental effect on the gasket material.
    Any thoughts on this?

    Charles
  • raybo2raybo2 Member Posts: 2
    Hello. My service engine light came on (at 36,200 miles)and the code message was core temperature too low. I also noticed that the top radiator hose does not get very hot. So I'm figuring the thermostat is stuck open. Does this make sense? If so, would you recommend a handy amateur attempt to replace it or is it really worth the $150 of labor to have a pro replace it. I appreciate any help you may provide. Thanks!
  • charlesewcharlesew Member Posts: 18
    That same thing happened to my 2004 Montana with 25,586 miles on it.
    It was the thermostat and it was covered by warranty on my vehicle.
    They spent close to two hours doing the job while I waited. I have no idea if that is normal, but they did mention that it was at the back of the engine.
    You can probably do it, but with front wheel drive vehicles, I don't even make the attempt to get to anything anymore. It is probably not a real easy job.

    Charles
  • raybo2raybo2 Member Posts: 2
    Thanks for the response. Before starting to change the thermostat, I added a quart of antifreeze and the "service engine light" went away. While this sounds like good news, I have to wonder if how the closed system appears to be losing antifreeze. There have been no leaks or at least no signs of leaking. Any suggestions?
  • charlesewcharlesew Member Posts: 18
    Yes! Check that you don't have either a manifold gasket leak or a head gasket leak.
    While it isn't something you want to have, it is certainly something you want to find and correct immediately.

    Charles
  • bweatherfordbweatherford Member Posts: 1
    I had a similar problem with my 2003. The thermostat was found to be deffective so it was replaced. I tried to do it myself but was unable to complete it so it was towed to the shop! ($110.00 total) Also, the notorious intake gasket leask was also discovered. After complaining to the dealer they are going to take care of it for me. I am out of warranty at 43,000 miles. Hats off to Boles Chevrolet in Pendleton Indiana.
  • n7donn7don Member Posts: 188
    Changing the thermostat is much easier if the upper intake manifold is removed. While this sound difficult, it's not that hard to do.
    If adding a quart of coolant caused the "service engine light" to go out possible that was just a "low coolant" warning. As suggested, coolant loss may be a sign of other problems. Sometime in 2003 there was a new lower intake manifold gasket design released.
  • ohc6sprintohc6sprint Member Posts: 23
    My experience (99 Venture LT) with low coolant and Dexcool was this: I began noticing my coolant level droping at the reservoir bottle. Filling it would be temporary. I suspected a leaking manifold gasket. When I took the oil filler cap off, there was a brown sludge that looked like applesauce on the cap and in the filler neck. I believed this to be due to the presence of water from an internal leak. I drove it to the Chevy dealer and they told me that it was normal, that water in the oil would look like white foam. I didn't believe them, although I knew about white foam. I asked if the Dexcool would account for the brown foam. They said no. I was leaving on a 500 mile trip the next day and reitterated my concern. They said don't worry. I took the trip and had to add coolant every hundred miles. When I got back, I insisted that they install a new intake gasket. I had 52,000 miles on it and had been expecting to replace the gasket since before I bought the van new in 1999. I had researched this forum in 1999 prior to buying the Venture van and was aware of the 3.4 intake gasket problem. I liked the van after renting one for a vacation, so I bought one, adding an extended warranty lasting 9 years and 100,000 miles. I guess that I would have been disappointed if nothing broke. They did a great job on the gasket, no leaks, no low coolant levels since. I now have 65,000 on the van. Oh, and the applessauce looking crap went away immediately after the gasket change. Imangine that. The problem that people are having with Dexcool is that it does not mix well with air inside the engine. It turns to sludge. When low coolant levels occur, the hose that runs from the reservoir to the radiator, draws air into the cooling system instead of coolant. Of course this happens due to manifold leaks such as is common in these engines. If the owner is dilligent and checks their coolant level every fuel fillup, this Dexcool issue would not be such a widespread problem. But, how many people change their oil anymore? Even I am getting away from that. It really is no big deal to lift your hood and look at your coolant reservoir. Whether you have Dexcool or the green stuff, low coolant levels will eventually cause a problem. Dexcool is just more sensitive. A coworker bought a used Venture van. I asked him if he checked the coolant level. He said no. We looked and found the coolant level below the pickup tube. I asked him what warranty came with the vehicke, he said 30 days. I told him to get it checked for an intake manifold leak. He did, it was leaking and he had it replaced under warranty. Sure, it was a GM design defect, but owners have to participate in the care of their vehicles. Warranty work to date on my Venture has been a front ABS sensor, two tie rod ends, one wheel cylinder, one fuel tank level sending unit, one leaking transmission gasket, the aforementioned intake manifold gasket and a blown turn signal fuse. The fuse blew because of a poor connection in a wire harness under the dash. It took a Gm mechanic 2 hours to find and fix. Seems like a poor connection draws extra current and blows fuses until corrected. The extended warranty (GM's Vehicle One) cost me $1500, and I am already ahead of the game and have 35,000 miles to go under warranty. My rear gate pull strap has not broke yet because I and my family know not to jerk on it. Just read this forum and absorb all the tips. My fuel mileage as per the data center says that I get 29 mpg on a trip. It is also off by using 1.5 more gallons of fuel per tank than my fuel used readout says. That means that I am really getting 27.3 mpg instead of the 29 indicated. On American cars, my philosophy is that if I see one that I truly like, I would be happier with it if acquired at a bargain price with an extended warranty than I would be with a much higher priced vehicle due to its better dependability and no extended warranty. So if you like one of these vehicles, get one with a factory warranty and enjoy.
  • biggs2biggs2 Member Posts: 16
    Hello,

    I have a 2001 Olds Silo. The driver's heated seat is not working. The light on the dash comes on and all fuses check out OK. Does anyone no what could be the problem? My haynes manual does not mention the heated seats at all. If it is the heating element, I noted from another post that this is a $45 part and 1.7 hours of labor. Is this a do-it-yourself job? Dealer gets $90/hour here. And you never know what you are going to get going some place else.

    Also, I had the lower gasket replaced just out of warranty (that hurt). Then I noticed coolant leaking near the top of the engine in the vicinity of the water pump although I could not find the exact source of the leak. Oil has always checked out OK when changing it - no sign of any coolant in it at all. I went ahead and changed the waterpump (skipped draining the radiator step). Topped off the reservoir and bled the system. No more leaking and the reservoir has maintained a constant level for well over 1k miles now. I am keeping my fingers crossed on the intake gasket. The water pump was quite easy to change - a pleasant surprise. It was harder changing the battery!

    Any way, we have really enjoyed this van and have had relatively few problems. I am thinking about trading out because it seems like more problems are starting to happen. In addition to the heated seat not working (and the wife loves that feature), I noticed that one of the power rear vent windows is not working. Any thoughts on that one?

    Thanks
  • n7donn7don Member Posts: 188
    Heated Seats:
    This is a description of how it works:
    "Ignition voltage is supplied the heated seat switches. When a heated seat switch is turned on, voltage is supplied through the heated seat switch signal circuits to the heated seat relay module terminals B and C. Battery positive voltage is supplied the heated seat relay modules. When the heated seat switch is turned on and the resistance through the heated seat thermistor is within acceptable limits, the relay module closes the battery positive supply circuit to the seat heater element supply circuit.
    As a long-shot maybe the thermistor has failed now allowing the module to activate the heater.

    Power rear window:
    Might try pushing on it gently while someone depresses the switch. Post back if this causes it to open.
  • bigfigbigfig Member Posts: 35
    Lately, these two lights come on intermittently and goes off on my 2000 Olds Silo with 38,000 miles. I took the vehicle to the local Buick,Pontiac,GMC dealer and they said the module shows malfunctioning for the seat belt light. EGR valve and gasket and also pressure control solenoid for the check engine light needs to be replaced. To do both repairs will cost in the range of $1300 plus labor. Does this seem reasonable and has anyone experienced this problem. Would appreciate hearing from someone.
  • rathebedrivingrathebedriving Member Posts: 8
    My 98 Silhouette had fast flicker rear lights and ABS/TCM light that would come on. After replacing the rear bulbs, I figured out that it was the rear light "plates" the connection to the plates was short. It cost about $50 for each plate and $50 for each connector, total $200. Good luck.
  • venturedventured Member Posts: 1
    It seems I learned a valuable lesson when it comes to buying cars: think twice before you buy American. Better yet, think twice before you buy *anything*.

    Two days ago (1/10/06) I stopped to pick up the mail and noticed smoke coming out of the engine compartment of my 2000 Chevy Venture minivan, which has only 65,000 miles on it. Stopped driving it immediately and had it towed to the Chevy dealer. The air intake manifold gasket had failed and engine oil was all over the place. I have an extended warranty (the repair will cost the insurance company $750), but my exposure is still $525. This is EXACTLY the same failure I experienced two years ago (which cost the insurance company $900 and me $600).

    Mean time between failure (MTBF): 25 months.
    Mean miles between failure (MMBF): 18,000.

    Good thing it didn't fail when I drove it to the coast a couple weeks ago. Put 300+ miles on it on that trip.

    I researched the matter online on google and in addition to hundreds of hits on this topic also noticed a sponsored link at the top of the page that deals with this problem (my search terms: chevy venture defect air intake manifold gasket). The sponsored link directed me to a law firm that is investigating chronic air intake manifold gasket problems on certain GM engines. Including mine. It seems GM has redesigned this gasket THREE times already. The problem is also associated with DexCool (the engine coolant), which has been dubbed by almost everybody "DeathCool". Pretty funny. Sort of.

    At $1400 every two years, I figure the car costs about $2 a day to drive. Or, another way to look at is almost 13 cents a mile. Pretty expensive.
  • biggs2biggs2 Member Posts: 16
    n7don,

    thanks for the info but that might as well have been russian to me! do you think it is the heating element and,if so, how involved of a repair is that. I would hate to go buy, put it in and then find out it was some other part that was causing the problem.

    Power vent window fixed itself!!!

    Thanks again. we are really wondering whether to trade this van in. Up to now we had planned to keep it till 100k miles but I am a little worried after reading all the posts. Other than the lower intake gasket (which I already paid to have fixed) are there those out there that have had vans into the higher mileage range with relatively few problems?
  • charlesewcharlesew Member Posts: 18
    High miles, yes. 153,000 on a 1998.
    Relatively few problems depends on your definition of relatively few.
    The intake manifold gasket was replaced at about 125,000.
    Head gaskets were replaced at about 150,000. Head gasket replacement is not all that common, but the manifold gasket has been.
    About $1500 total in repairs which didn't upset me a great deal. I sold the van at 153,000, but I would have had no qualms about running it another 50,000 miles.
    FWIW, I'm just dumb enough I bought another one. They look good, drive good, handle good, ride good, hold lots. We liked the 1998 enough to buy a used 22,000 mile 2004. The manifold gasket is rumored to have been upgraded some time in 2003. I hope that rumor is correct.

    Charles
  • n7donn7don Member Posts: 188
    I don't have heated seats so can't advise you on buying a heating element. In fact I'd advise not until the problem is found. The "thermistor" mentioned in the write-up is just a resistor who's resistance varies with temperature. Probably it's a safety element so the seats won't overheat. The same type device is in your electric coffee pot and often is the reason many throw away their coffee pot when it quits. To know what failed would require your measuring some voltages in the circuit. I thought the write-up may give some clues where to start.
  • alphonsoalphonso Member Posts: 3
    I found a cheap alternative to replace the cabin air filter of my 2000 silhouette. The Cabin air filter is 60$ca. up here in Montreal Quebec area.

    Just take a home air changer filter ( i use a 16"x20" 3M Filtrete from Canadian Tire store for 17$ca) you will have enough material to replace both filter 2 times.

    http://www.alphonso.ca/alain/3m.jpg

    Just replace the filter element inside the plastic housing of the old filter and sealed it in place with bath silicone on both side, it work very well! See the result:

    http://www.alphonso.ca/alain/filter.jpg
  • mick1mick1 Member Posts: 84
    2003 silo both front heated seats stopped working 1 year ago. the extended warranty would not cover it. dealer wanted $600 to replace both heating elements. I found out they send it out to an interior place because they said the heating element is part of the seat cover and the seat cover gets replaced? Well anyway if i took it there myself I could probably knock off $200 off the price. But i haven't had it done yet.Its my wife's van and I haven't heard any complaints lately. The buttons light up but the seats don't get warm.
  • just4fun2just4fun2 Member Posts: 461
    If you are still under the manufactures warranty the heated seats would still be covered. What type of extended warranty do you have? The GMPP Major Guard covers the heated seats. The seat covers are not replaced, only the heating elements are. If this is what the dealer is telling you, they are wrong and go someplace else.
  • mitzijmitzij Member Posts: 613
    I think the seats (or at least the covers) get removed to replace the heating elements. Some dealers don't do any work relating to the seat covers, choosing to have upholstery shops do the work.
  • huneyhuney Member Posts: 6
    My 2000 Venture 62K miles and no manifold gasket problems yet and after reading umpteen cases of manifold leaks I see where a lot of owners point fingers at DexCool being the culprit causing electrolosis making the gasket rot. OK, I know a trick. I'm draining and flushing my cooling system real good then refill using the universal anti freeze that mixes with DexCool or Prestone green. Or what the heck, I might just use pure Prestopne 50/50 and be done with it.

    Just for kicks, I'm taking a piece of Zinc and boring a hole in it and dropping in the coolant reserve tank and see if decays and if it does then I will know there is electrolosis in the coolant.
  • charlesewcharlesew Member Posts: 18
    All three of our GM vehicles have had the DexCool dumped and replaced with conventional antifreeze.
    One previous GM still had the DexCool when sold.
    Our experiences with the vehicles with DexCool.
    1. Manifold gasket leak, 1998 Pontiac TranSport
    2. Head gasket leak, 1998 Pontiac TranSport
    3. Heater core restricted, 1998 Chevrolet Blazer
    4. Manifold gasket leak, 1998 Chevrolet Blazer
    2000 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP, no problems, DexCool dumped
    2004 Pontiac Montana, no problems, DexCool dumped
    I don't know if DexCool is bad, but I don't care to do anymore experimenting.
    FWIW, My mechanic told me that not all vehicles with DexCool have cooling problems, but most all vehicles he works on with cooling problems have DexCool. :confuse:
  • alphonsoalphonso Member Posts: 3
    I Dont know if the new universal coolant will cause the same problems.
  • charlesewcharlesew Member Posts: 18
    I didn't either. That's why I went with the conventional antifreeze.

    Charles
  • ekarasikekarasik Member Posts: 5
    I tried following these instructions on programming a remote for my 98 silo, it seems I'm doing something wrong, but I can't figure out what.
    I remove the plug (yes, the bcm prgrm one), get in the car (all doors including liftgate are shut), I turn to ACC, off and back on again (within a sec.), open a door (chime) close it (chime - seems because there's a key in the ingnition), hold lock/unlock for 30 secs, nothing. Somebody help! what am I doing wrong?
  • billwbillw Member Posts: 11
    It looks like my water pump is leaking. Hard to tell for sure because it's not making any noises. It it does appear to be leaking out of the bottom side. How many bolts hold this water pump on? Without taking all things apart, I only see 2 bolts and those are behind the pulley. Its a 1999 Silhouette Olds with a 3.4.
    On another note, If I change coolant over to the good old fashion green. Since I heard something about a law suit on this would it void me out to get a claim? Also since there is a law suit on this coolant, should I get the dealer to fix the water pump for records or is my receipt buying a new water pump good enough?
  • n7donn7don Member Posts: 188
    See message #1296. Bolts are behind the pulley. Don't recall how many.
    Can't advise you on the other question(s). It may be years before anything happens on a law suit. A new Autozone pump is around $20. Is it worth waiting until a law suit is settled?
    Suggest taking a look at the water pump when removed. See how clean or corroded it is and then determine if you want to change coolant. Mine looked very clean HOWEVER I haven't gone 5 yrs between coolant changes.. Leak may not be related to Dexcool.
  • neveragain1neveragain1 Member Posts: 11
    My venture I purchased 2 1/2 years ago for $10K - since then, put nearly $8K in repairs! Struts, three wheel bearings, egr, intake gasket thankfully covered under private extended warranty I bought, fan system not changing direction and not blowing on 1,2 to name just a few of the challenges I've had. Oh ya, gas gauge not working - for the 4th time. GM may come good for this since it failed for the first time at 3 months of age!
    New problem - chugging and stalling when making sharp corners. Replaced fuel filter to see if that would work - nope. Back to the dealership - they can't find it. No codes, no engine light - nothing. Intermittant problem too so it behaved for them but then 15 minutes down the road it starts chugging so bad, I thought I wouldn't make it home. Sharp turns, stalls - again intermittantly. Going to another mechanic tomorrow who thinks it could be electrical problem. He also thinks that something is trying to find a ground and has been shorting out my wheel bearings -this is the first time I have heard that it could be an electrical problem doing them in. Also, my stereo is burning hot if you touch it and has always been that way. Occasionally smell a burning smell but can't find anything. Suggestions? Oh ya, I'm on the hunt for an 02 Mazda MPV - no more GM but need this one fixed to get my through until the Mazda can be found. Idea's?
  • psloanpsloan Member Posts: 3
    Just changed my water pump on 2/4/06. The hardest part was getting the battery out and the electrical out of the way.You either need to drain the radiator first or put a large pan underneath to catch the coolant when the pump comes off (depending on whether or not you are going to change the coolant).I used an AC Delco replacement.I got it wholesale for $31.If the belt needs changing, now's the time since you're taking it off anyway.Here's how I did it, hope this helps.
    1. remove battery(must remove black brace bar first)
    2. Insert 3/8" ratchet into idler pulley to release the tension on the serpentine belt. Remove belt.
    3. Remove 4 bolts on pulley and remove.
    4. Scribe a mark on the pump and the housing it bolts to. There is actually a small arrow mark on the water pump that was oriented to the top on mine. I'm assuming that it needs to be oriented that way because doing so caused the 2 weep holes in the pump to line up as they were on the original.
    5. remove the 5 bolts holding on the water pump and remove.
    6. Clean the old gasket off of the housing very good.
    7. Install the new pump, tightening the bolts in a cross pattern. Then put everything back in the reverse order.
  • psloanpsloan Member Posts: 3
    2000 silhouette. Fuel gauge is all over the place. I heard something about a problem w/ the sending unit in the tank.Anyone changed this yet or know another cause?
  • psloanpsloan Member Posts: 3
    2000 Silhouette. Temp gauge just started staying low. It acts like the thermostat is stuck open. It seems to be running too cool. The heat gets real warm but never hot hot.Any one had any experience with this problem or changing the t-stat?
  • charlesewcharlesew Member Posts: 18
    My 2004 Montana had the same problem and it was the thermostat stuck open. It is evidently a fairly common problem on this engine.
    It was changed in warranty and was about a 1.5 to 2 hour job at the dealers.

    Charles
  • neveragain1neveragain1 Member Posts: 11
    Just an update since the last one - GM did not come good for the fuel sending unit but since I took it to a new garage, it cost only $500. Re-routed wires, sprayed water on coil, coil wire, spark plug wires, etc and nothing acted strange.Hoped problem was solved. Nope. Yesterday it nearly stalled going up a hill near our house.Luckily got it home before it quit - turned off the motor and a sulphur smell came into the van. I've smelled this once before. Today, again, drives good and then going up a hill, it starts bucking and nearly stalling. Put it into a lower gear and nothing improved. Now back at the garage again.

    Has anyone else had this problem? I really could use your help on it - we are heading south with it or renting if we have to, by the end of the week! HELP!!
  • juliesalinejuliesaline Member Posts: 3
    Ours too is messed up in our 1999. It's accurate down to about a half a tank, then reads full, then back down to below half. Very unreliable. We track our range on the odometer so we don't run out of gas.
  • n7donn7don Member Posts: 188
    The belt is misaligned on the 98 Montana. It looks like the crankshaft pulley needs to be moved closer to the engine block to improve alignment. It's about 1/2inch. Would appreciate if some of the board members could take a measurement to verify what the clearance should be. It's somewhat of a job to move the pulley closurer. This is a photo of what I'm talking about. You can see how the belt is riding out on the idler pulley
    thanks

    imageimage">
  • n7donn7don Member Posts: 188
    I may have answered my own question.... I couldn't figure out how to move the pulley in further. Looks like the hub is in as far as it will go. After doing some checking it dawned on me this is a harmonic balancer thus the outer pulley is attached to the inner hub with rubber. I think the rubber is starting to let the outer pulley move out. There's about 1/4" difference between the outer face of the pulley and the hub... about the amount of the mis-alignment.
  • mschefflermscheffler Member Posts: 5
    I have a 99 Olds Silhouette that I just love, but all of a sudden the power sliding door is starting to act up. Periodically, when you tell it to close it opens and make take upward of 5 times to actually shut. It doesn't happen all the time, but always seems to happen when the weather is at it's worst! Any suggestions? Thanks so much!
  • nkairnsnkairns Member Posts: 27
    I have the same problem with my 99 Silo. I was told to clean the door pins which strike the pillar as the door closes. I cleaned both the pin panel as well as the pins. I also made sure each pin moved freely without binding. It corrected the problem for a while but every now and then the door will spring back open just as it's about to latch shut. I have the same issue, this only seems to happen in bad weather or when it's extremely cold out.
  • sbarbosasbarbosa Member Posts: 1
    Just purchased a 2002 Silhouette AWD Premier and it seems to have every option except for the fold flat rear bench. it has the 50/50 flip and fold 3rd row seat instead which is nice but I am wondering if it is possible to purchase a used fold flat bench to fit in this vehicle. It looks like it should just fit into same slots in the floor. Also, what about the rear "convenience centre"? How does it "attach" to vehicles that have it? It looks like it has a little rotary knob that screws into place somewhere but when I look under the carpet in the back of my van it doesn't seem like it has a hole to screw into to.
    Finally will a 2001 rear bench and convenience centre fit in my 2002?

    TIA
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