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I'm enjoying the rental Grand Caravan, perhaps too much!
NHTSA # 01v06700 was the first and
NHTSA # 01v26400 was a recall of the recall, if I recall.
Never had a problem with the power door on the 98 Montana. On occasion it will forget it's a power door and must be opened/closed manually. The next engine start it works. There's actually a procedure in the owners' manual on resetting the door but I've never had to resort to using it.
Changed the lower gasket on a 98 Montana w/97K miles about 2 months ago. The leak was small but visable. The project was more tedious than difficult. The engine has to be rocked forward to give more room to get to the rear area. Push rods have to come out. Every assy and connector has to be removed. You'll need a couple torque wrenches and an assortment of metric/English sockets/wrenches and extensions.
I'd recommend using the latest release GM gasket and coated bolts. I used Felpros. They looked like the OE gasket. The new release does look different.
While you have the upper manifold off, the alternator will come out by removing the wiper arm. The thermostat can be replaced. You can check the rear plugs.... you can get to the upstream O2 sensor.
Fortunately I had access to a service manual that gave me the "courage" to tackle the job.
If you decide to DIY, email me off-list and I can send a photo of the chain I made to hold the engine rocked forward plus any other tips.
A comment on the cold start tick. Not sure why but after changing the gasket, the intensity of the tick was lower. Also mine seems to get worse near the end of the 4000 mile oil change cycle.
The 00' Silo 37K miles loud tapping noises last longer, up to 60 secs, when startup cold in the morning. Took to the dealer, let it sat overnight, they can hear the noises.
The dealer tried replaced the lifters but the noise didn't do away. They disassembled the engine and determined excessive clearance in the piston areas, that the engine required rebuild or replaced with a factory rebuilt. GM Tech came out inspected the engine and approved for a engine replacement.
The rebuilt seems to doing fine so far. It cames with a three years and 50K miles warrantee.
I do have GM Major Guard extened warrantee, this has helped a bit, I think.
What I thought was a bad water pump turned out to be the transmission pump disintegrating to the tune of $1800 for a rebuild...
Mechanic said he had seen several like mine.
Mikey
I have a problem with my wipers. They want to shut off in the full upright position. I'm hoping tommorrow they reset themselves. I have 96000 miles on my 98 Venture, seems to be doing ok.
I have never been a fan of ext warr, but I got a screamin deal on it when I bought the van and this is the second time I've used it. First one was replace the A/c condenser to the tune of $800. So far I have saved about $500 by having the warranty. Guess I got lucky, if you want to look at it that way.
Thanks in advance
Tomek
I didn't really research it before I bought the van because I wasn't planning on getting one.
I got it for 2 reasons: First it only cost me $800, (I am a lifelong friend with the GM of the dealer so he sold it to me at the dealers cost.) Second, the warranty has a clause that stated I would get 90% of my premium back at the end of the warranty if I did not use it. I figured I couldn't really lose with those terms.
Tomek
Could this be the alternator, voltage regulator or battery - still orignal.
Any ideas would help, before I go to the shop
It appears from a brief google search that these things can go for upwards of $500 + (too much for me) but there is a "Thule Sidekick" for about $200 with shipping...I know Thule makes decent ski/bicycle carriers.
I don't need a huge one, but do want one of the aerodynamic wedge-shaped rather than a big square-ish box. thanks in advance!
It's still in good shape.
No additional wind noise. I did make my own mounting cross bars so it doesn't sit as high off the roof as the commercial cross bar units.
when the kids put their feet under the seat.
I ended up with a soft case bag type. We packed it full and drove 2400 miles. The rain never entered the bag even at 75+ mph.I placed a mat between the bag and the roof, so as not to scratch it, and off we went.
Did not notice it at all during the drive. Plus when we got to our destination it was easy to take off, so you don't look like a tourist.
Friends have borrowed it too and they love the fact it did not leak and was easier to use and load than the clamshells.
One piece of advise on the soft bags is don't go cheap. You know what the saying says. But ours was under $80 and is easy to store when not in use.
Just my 2 cents.
Good luck
I'm also a doityourselfer.
While my Van of 98k miles is not leaking badly, I only smell coolant occassionally and refil quarterly, I can see the day I'll need to do this repair.
One concern I had was using the proper gasket and technique to avoid having it happen again. If the factory stuff leaked, I guess the new gaskets are designed better? What type did you use?
I'd like to get some pictures of the project. Doesn't seem hard but there sure are a lot of parts that have to come off. I also need to replace my spark plugs, so tipping the motor would seem like a good thing to know about doing.
Thanks,
DW
I used a Felpro gasket that looked like the one that came out of it. At this stage I'm not going to worry about it. The Tech also said GM had released a new coated lower manifold bolt, along with the new gasket. One of the theories was the bolts would back out with thermo cycling.
If you want to email me off forum, I'll look up the p/n's of the new gasket, which I belatedly found!! Plus can outline the steps I took.
I found the ng posting:
"There is a visible difference. Here's a photo of the two gaskets, new one
is on the left, old style on the right.
http://members.shaw.ca/ianrmac/Images/DSC00958.JPG
The difference can mainly be seen in the addition of two metal pellets
embedded in the gasket around the outer bolt holes. This is so that you
can put more torque on these four outer bolts. The rubber embedded
gasket has changed color, whether this actually means anything is
beyond me. When GM makes changes, they very rarely go into the
technical data of what exactly they have changed, so you rely on what
you see visually. Torque on the new gasket is still 15 ft/lbs for the
inner four bolts, 18 ft/lbs for the outer four bolts. There are now
new bolts available too, these come with the loctite already on the
threads from the factory....you just install them and follow the torquing
procedure."
Also, wasn't aware some require drilling - that's something I would rather not do
I believe it was around $69. My first thought on it was "yea right, get where you're going and dry everything out."
I guess maybe they may be better than that, if people who actually use them report good results.
for "dirkwork" the gasket p/n is 89017279
Need to remove protective covering over wiper motor. Unscrew the support rod and one screw holding down fuse box on support rod. Rod slides out.
Disconnect terminals, worth a special spanner, but not too much room. The battery is anchored at the back and that needs to be removed. Move the fuse box and wiring to the right - May need some one to hold out of the way. There is one connection worth disconnecting to relieve stress on wiring.
Lift battery up from right side and stand on left side to lift out. New one should be lowered in vertically back and lowered into place. Reverse the above procedure. About an hour at most and $30 better off than Sears or Firestone
I also have a soft box that I store in the van when not using the hard shell when on weekend get-a-ways, that's because my Wife and Daughters usually do a shopping spree on me and they take up a heck of a lot of room for the ride home.
I hope that person didn't drill holes in his roof. The clamps go under the cross bars and bolt inside the carrier.
Unfortunately for me, mine died at about the most inoportune possible moment. We were leaving for our anual road trip to Disneyland. I prefer to drive at night while the kids sleep if possible. Well in this case we were going to leave at 2am. Venture wouldn't turn over, wouldn't even take a jump. So I pulled the battery at 2 am, thanked the Lord that Walmart is opened 24 hours, and ran got a new battery. We were on the road by 3:30 am.
We'll see how it does.
I removed the radiator overflow and put it to one side over the engine. Attached to the support bar is a "device" with pipes. I removed the bar - two screws at the front and one at the very back. Move this over to the left. The cruise control unit is bolted to the body and does not have to be moved. The bar slides out underneath.
This gives a clear view of the air filter box. Despite the hand book saying you can bend back, I think Chevrolet were dreaming.
Unclip the airfilter box cover. I found it easier to loosen the large hose which attaches to the air filter cover and lift off. This allows you to clean out any debris.
I used a Fram Filter CA 7597. The orange rubber surround is quite thick and needs to be seated firmly for the cover to slot back in at the bottom - four tabs.
I found that it was easier - actually essential to undo the clip that holds the large intake hose to the engine and pull off to the side.
Once the filter box cover is back on - reconnect the air hose to the cover. This will need some jiggling to get it back on correctly.
Similary at the engine end reconnect the large hose. Once done resecure the rods and radiator overflow.
it's for minivan owners and it's more of a localized spot in the internet for tutorials and howto's for people who work on their own van or for people who might like to try working on their own van...
so i guess i'm looking for things that you've done, that i could add to the site...
i've put in the brake job i did on my van the other week so it's stuff like that i'd like to add. so no matter what the skill level, i could use the info. i plan on doing a a write up on replacing the side mirror
so if you have something i really could use it...
thanks
jon
minivanmadness.com
the cartop carrier was great...it did seem to reduce mpg a little - it was about 25, and it seems highway mpg is normally 26 - 28 +. But we really had that thing loaded up & it had to create a good deal of drag. went through fairly major rainstorm in OK, no moisture got through - so I'd give the thing a "thumbs up" all-in-all.
van was wonderful, problem-free. nearing 60000 miles now, no sign of the dreaded gasket leak yet (or any other problems).
no factory entertainment system in the van, but we just took laptop to play dvd movies, games. That was a lifesaver for the kids (and us).
time for a new set of tires - the crappy ones I have finally need replaced. will get michelin, dunlop, or the like which should be a nice improvement.
Does this seem right?
If you or a previous owner set a code, you would need some sort of factory reset, and given the $/hour rates, $35 is probably reasonable.
If you do set a code, write it down in the owners manual ( I doubt that gets stolen with the radio) so you or next owner can find it.
DD
Thanks.
In taking it in last week I mentioned the coolant had been low a couple of times but there was no fluid on the garage floor. I told the service advisor I was concerned about the gasket. Sure enough it needs to be replaced. At the same time we started experiencing periodic hard shifts in the transmission. Looks like we also need a transmission pressure sensor - or something like that.
Electrical gremlins seem to be fixed, except for the winter time when it's cold. Then you can't be sure what will happen with the door locks or power windows.
One final question, though, we have a chirping (sounds like crickets) when turning to the right. The tech says it's the brake pads. I doubt this because it happens when we're not braking - say the road has a little slope and the steering wheel is slightly to the right to compensate. Any clues as to what this might be? Power steering pump?