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Comments
Jack
Jack
Jack
We have similar issue: 2003 Venture with fluctuating temp gauge, sometimes overheat indicator, intermittent cold air from heater. Vehicle is having cooling system detergent flush right now, I hope it's not a head gasket. Already replaced intake manifold gasket because of misfire in cylinder #3 (7/08) and replaced thermostat (11/08).
Can anybody say how these symptoms are finally repaired?
Has anyone pulled out the temp sensor to solve this? I did this when my head gaskets got replaced and found some gunk on the tip of the sensor. I took some fine sand paper and cleaned it really well. I have had no problems with the temp guage since.
Check the electrical connection too. My best friend lately with this van has been eletrical contact cleaner, emory board to clean the pins and electrical grease.
Stock front pads work best (Ceramic did not work well on ours, we just had warped rotors more often). I found having the rear brakes adjusted every 10,000 miles or so worked things out with. If you don't adjust the rear, your brakes won't work worth a sh_t.
You may need to repeat this procedure once or twice.
Jack
Here's more trivia related to this cooling adVenture (2003 3.4L 107K):
Mechanic does not think there are head or head gasket problems. I had engine flushed because of DexCool issues posted elsewhere on these forums. Likely also not my problem. Mechanic told me it didn't need to be flushed, and only did single flush even though I requested two flushes. I thought maybe intermittent heat could be due to "roving" clogs. Apparently not, so now I guess it's probably trapped air.
There was some temp gauge movement after third start. Not as bad as before, so Mechanic probably bled much air, but more needs to be bled. Here's the odd-ball: As the heat got cold and temp gauge started rising (5 mins into third trip) I remembered wbowl99's post #1547 about AC. So I pressed the AC button on (34F outside) and immediately the temp gauge returned to normal and heat came from the heater. Turned AC off and a few minutes later gauge rising and heat cooling again. Turned AC on again and heat and gauge returned to normal again. No third time repeat. Drove 12 miles home without incident. Question: Does turning on the AC open a valve to use additional cooling system capacity?
chases: I also accept your suggestions about electrical system. I had asked for temp sensor inspection when thermostat was replaced but never got a clear answer. Either they didn't check it or thought it was not an issue. But the vehicle also has a fuel gauge issue that sounds like the connector issue mentioned in this thread: http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.ee93a54/1499. I'll try to look at electrical this weekend also.
Thanks guys. I'll let you know.
Jack
Jack
I'VE TRIED TAKING THE FUSE OUT, DOUBLE CHECKING THAT NOTHING IS IN THE WAY
Some say the relay is buried in the dash behind radio and is labor extensive to replace??? Other speak of it being on or under the wiper motor??? Some even suggest the relay switch can be cleaned and dried and will work. Any suggestions here??? As of now I'm waiting until Jan 1 to get the bad news. Thanks.
May also be a switch problem.
Jack
I have this exact same problem, as of today. High speed only, and I can get them to return to the down position, if I time turning them off just right.
What did you figure out was the problem and solution?
Joe
I see that a towing package was available. Is there a way one can tell if the package is installed from the factory? Perhaps the actual hitch assembly? I'm used to a GMC Safari or Chevy Astro and wonder if this Olds is a good replacement.
Many Thanks!
Also, the air filter is almost impossible too. I spent 45 minutes trying to seperate the housing; there's NO room in there.
But I LOVE my Montana. I purchased a NEW 2008 Honda Odyssey and didn't like many thigns about it and the Montana beat it with conveniences hands down (and I had the high end model). There are so many features that make life better with the Montana versus the Odyssey. So I sold my Odyssey for a $3000 loss and got a 2004 Montana in MINT condition and very low miles. The Odyssey was about $30,000 and the Montana was only $10,000. I have the BETTER (and much lighter) minivan and $20,000 in my pocket to pay the dealer to change those wires every 50,000 miles and for whatever else.
I think people overpay for these more reliabile cars/vans. If you buy a cheaper American car, you get slightly less reliability but a TON of money in your pocket to cover all the upcoming repairs (with some exceptions) plus more. I'm talking used, not new. -Tony17112acst
There were three issues with this van.
The intake manifold gasket $600
The transmission $500
The power door $0
If you don't fix the intake manifold right away it'll cost a ton more. (while you're in there change the spark plugs)
If you don't fix the transmission as soon as it starts shifting hard it's gonna cost you plenty.
If you clean the contacts on the power door with a hard eraser it'll keep working fine.
So at 70k miles the trans must've been fixed as was the intake manifold gasket. I'd go with it if the mechanic says it's solid.
I've maintained our van, with 105,000 miles and it runs and drives excellent, no tears in the leather, no fade on the paint, no dents, almost no scratches at all. I don't expect the car to last forever, but I think it'll run another 20,000+ thousand miles.
I did have to bypass the ride leveling and put in regular air inputs for air shocks last year. That system failed after nine years and I didn't see the point in spending $ to fix it since the car is pretty much a $2,500 hoopty at this point.
I did go out and test drive the new Ody, it's REAL nice but I couldn't see spending $44k when the Olds still looks and drives like a near new car. The new Ody does have a factory nav that is pretty sweet! And it is quieter than the Olds at 80MPH, the brakes are better as well.
Also, any advice on belts and hose replacement? Should they be done at the same time, and any idea on a good price for that? THANK YOU!
What is the lower gasket? Oil pan? Trans Pan?
The transmission issue is the hard shifting problem identified elsewhere in this forum...about 600 last year for that plus about 500 to replace the a/c condensor that cracked. I've also had brakes replaced, and front suspension work- no wonder GM is going under. While Honda and Toyota built quality, they built crap.
Anyway, last year I had two of my pullies bearings go out. When they did they took out the belt and some wiring. Pull the belt off and manually feel all the pullies, and when I say all I do mean all. Give them a turn and wiggle them up and down to see if they have any play. The pullies are all generally easy to change.
Also.....check your bottom crank pully and your alternator. The crank pully is made up of two metal parts bound together with a rubber piece between them. The rubber gets hard over time and the two metal parts start to separate. If they look misalligned at all you will do yourself a favor by changing it. Mine luckly just ate up a belt first. I have heard of the pully coming apart and really doing some damage to the van. You will need to go through the right side wheel well to change it.
I have not changed the alternator yet. So I don't know what that entails yet.
Since my kids get car sick we don't use the Video, but I'm guessing that if the people in back plug in headphones you can run your stereo/CD/Tape through the front speakers only.
It's a plastic light bulb holder for chXXXs sake!
Most junk yards I have visited have let me cut the sockets out that I need as long as the rest of the harrnes is a pain to get to. I think I have pair $5 ea.
if you have more, I'd like to replace both front turns and both front side marker lamp sockets. But I'll take what I can get.
bkoopjr@aol.com
Thanks
Any idea's?
Thanks
The first thing was the blower motor would only work on speeds 4 & 5. The fix offered here worked. Replace the blower resistor behind the blower motor with a new part. It was around $30 or so from Rock auto. The screws that hold it in are tough to access, but it can be done.
The second thing was the fuel gage would be erratic and not maintain a steady level. As mentioned on the board, the fuel sender in the tank was bad. Since I was just fixing it to resell, I only bought the sending unit. Later it will become obvious why you should replace the fuel pump/sending unit as a unit if you are planning keeping the van as your daily driver. To drop the tank and remove the pump module unit is not real hard, but it is messy and time consuming. One note, the serrated ring that holds the pump module to the top of the tank is threaded and screws on and off like a normal nut. Finding a tool to adapt to the purpose of unscrewing that will require some clever thinking. I used a thin pry bar that had a 90-degree bend. With the 90-degree edge in one of the teeth, I tapped it w/a hammer breaking it loose. When retightening, I reversed the process and broke out a section of the plastic ring. It was tighten enough at that point.
The third thing was replacing the crankshaft position sensor. I’m not sure now, that it was the problem. The van had all the symptoms described here, so I bought a new sensor. This is a pretty big job if you do not work on cars and have access to some special tools. The harmonic balancer on the crank shaft must be removed. The bolt that holds it is high torque and the pulley is a press fit to the crankshaft. To remove the bolt, an access cover on the bottom, backside of the engine block must be removed exposing the flywheel. You will have to stick something strong and thin in the one of the teeth of the flywheel and let that react against the engine block so you can develop enough torque to break the bolt free on the harmonic balancer. Same is true to retighten when done. Finished torque is 76 ft/lbs. The bolt is a 12mm x 1.5 pitch.
Now that the bolt is off, you have to pull the harmonic balancer off the crankshaft. A special puller is required. I’m not going to explain the puller, just go order one, or rent one from a auto parts store. Note: this tip will save a lot of heartache. When pulling off the harmonic balancer with the puller, take the bolt already removed and remove the big heavy washer that came with it and set it aside. Now take that unwashered bolt and screw it back into the crankshaft until it stops, finger tight. Now place the puller to the pulley and secure the (3) 3/8” holding bolts to the harmonic balancer. The drive screw should center in the head of the bolt you just installed. That bolt provides a perfect surface to screw into. With the flywheel still locked, you can drive the screw on the puller until the pulley comes off. This will take awhile since it not a tapered shaft, so the whole distance is resistance.
I my case, I did not install the bolt into the crankshaft and drove the puller screw into the threads of the crankshaft and buggered them up good. I then bought a tap, (that’s how I know what size the bolt is) to chase the treads so I could then screw the bolt back into the crank and start the process over again.
Now remove the sensor and replace. Getting at the connector and freeing it from the bracket it’s clipped to is another opportunity for the profanity center of the brain to be well stimulated.
Another lesson was when putting the harmonic balancer back on, the original bolt is not long enough to engage the crankshaft. I bought several different length bolts, 12mm x 1.5, x 65mm and shorter, that would get screwed in many turns before making contact with pulley. It is a lot of force to push that pulley back on the crank, so you need adequate thread engagement so as not to strip them. The flywheel still needs to be secured. As the pulley is pulled on, a shorter bolt must be used until you can use the original one. Of course, each time you do this, the big heavy washer is used on the bolt.
My rinky dink flywheel holder would come free each time I reversed the screwing direction. Once the bolt/washer is installed, a final torque of 76 ft/lbs (103NM) should be applied.
Now put everything else back together.
After all that work, the van really did not start any better when warm. At higher revolutions, it would misfire some and it turned on the check engine light. I disconnected the battery trying to turn off the light, twice, but it remained on. Now comes the expensive part of the story. I have to punt and take it to a shop that could plug into the computers and diagnose what is turning on the light. $400 later, I have an answer.
Here is the outcome and explanation that made sense to me. The issue was high of back pressure in the exhaust system. The catalytic converter was partially plugged up and creating to much back pressure. The Oxygen sensors, there are 2 here that come into play, were also not performing and that was sending bad info to the engine control computer. He explanation of why the catalytic converter failed makes sense, as that is not a part that should not fail. When these vans have their predetermined intake/head gasket problem, coolant gets into the exhaust system. The severity of the leak, how long you ignore the problem all matter as to how much damage is done to the catalytic converter as this coolant sticks to the catalysist beads in the converter and plugs them up. It also messes up the O2 sensors and that is why they fail. So there was no getting around the problem, it had to be fixed.
While at the shop, $100 gets diagnostic readings on several systems. The fuel pump, though still running and not sending a trouble code, is on its way out. The next owner will have to deal with that, but that is why I mentioned above to fix it and the sending unit whenever the first one fails as unit. The fuel pump leaks down internally, and that is why the van is little hard starting when warm.
I hope others will benefit from that data.
David King
Driver's side power switch will lower the passenger side window...
but will not raise it. Passenger side switch will raise the window.
Before I start replacing switches and possibly screwing up what does work...
Is the problem likely the switch or a window motor issue?
I ask because the driver;s side window works fine from the left switch.
Right now I can get the pass window back up with pass switch...
although it could be a bit slower than before???
Are switches a simple wedge out and replace or does trim have to come off?
Should I buy new (Switch Doctor) or do the Junkyard dance???
Thanks !
These cars are "Snap Together" cars. Just pull up the small plate the switch rides in (pry it up with your fingernails), unplug it, put in the new one and snap it back together.
The switches are very inexpensive on ebay, I think it was about $30 with shipping included. Might not be worth messing with the junk yard.
Do I have to also remove the trim plate that seems to set around the switches?
My wife has the car right now so I can not go out and look...
I think I remember a oval trim plate ???
I will ebay search fro the switches. Thanks.