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A friend of mine has a Jimmy similar to my own but he's having problems with leaking oil, steering column and his radiator. I encouraged him to use Havoline antifreeze instead of Dex-Cool and take it to the dealer for the steering and oil leaks. I agree with the others posting their views about brown coolant; if I see chunks of gunk in my radiator I'd be worried, too. So far with the Havoline coolant the ruck runs cool and the coolant hasn't changed color on me.
I take my truck on cross-country trips and I'd like to offer this bit of advice, use 87 octane! Not because it's cheap but it can stretch your mileage. I made the mistake of putting in 89 octane and found myself running the tank empty after 250 miles of mixed driving. With 87 octaine I can get nearly 350 miles average one one tank.
http://www.gmwarrantycentral.com/
For my '97 Bravada, I paid $1100 for 6 yr. 60,000 mile warranty. I've recouped all of my investment, and now am reaping the benefits, although I would rather not visit the dealership too often. Warranty items: alternator (squeaky), belt tensioner (squeaky), oil cooler lines (on my 3rd set - leaks at fittings!), rear hatch struts (weak), trans. dipstick & tube (rusted), upper/lower ball joints, pitman arm, idler arm (all worn), driver's door hinge pins/bushings (knocks over bumps), gage cluster (speedometer ticks), rear wiper motor (quit), rear washer (not connected), rear axle bearings (whine @ 50 mph), and shifter (loose button). I was surprised most by the front end work required at 46K, and the stupid, wimpy oil cooler line design that can't stay leak-free. I think my next set will be custom-fabricated by a race shop with more durable fittings. If someone was enterprising, they would create an aftermarket custom oil lines to rid the S-truck owners of this horrid design.
keith24: see my oil cooler line story above.
rich104: gee, another oil cooler line story? *lol* But seriously, as I've stated before, I run Dexcool (wait, it may be Prestone Long-Life) but I abide by a 2-3 year change interval.
Steering leaks? Where? Oh no, another trouble spot...?
I run 87 octane, and I can get 21 mpg if I keep it at 65-70 mph on a level highway, according to my last trip log.
http://www.imcool.com/articles/anitfreeze-coolant/dexcool-macs2001.htm
This link found at:
http://www.s-series.org
I have a 2000 Jimmy with 15k and am very happy so far. But I recently noticed while driving at night that the dimmer control for the dashboard lights is so hot that it nearly burns my fingers when I touch it. This surely isn't right. Anyone else notice this on your Jimmy/Blazer?
Thanks
¿spoom
Thanks,
Brian
Also, does anyone know what the service requirements for Blazer transmissions are??? Has anyone ever had their trans serviced?
Any info on this topic would be great!!!
Dipstick Tube - P/N 15735192, retail list $9.16
Dipstick (Indicator) - P/N 15033544, retail list $5.44
Seal - P/N 1259475, retail list $1.53.
Labor - 2.8 hrs., or 181.50
Including the 1 qt. of ATF, total cost $199.17 + tax.
Note: the dealership did not change (flush) the tranny after this replacement. Since I didn't want rust particles trapped in the tranny or in the filter, I promptly changed the fluid/filter adterwards.
There is a service bulletin for rusty dipstick:
Service Bulletin Number: 990730004A
Bulletin Sequence Number: 608
Date of Bulletin: 9910
NHTSA Item Number: SB6089191
Make: OLDSMOBILE TRUCK
Model: BRAVADA
Year: 1997
Component: EQUIPMENT:TRANSMISSION FLUID INDICATOR
Summary: A CONDITION WITH A RUSTY TRANSMISSION FLUID LEVEL INDICATOR /
TRANSMISSION OIL FILLER TUBE. *TT
I service my transmission every 30K with Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF. The synthetic is more tolerant of high temperatures from high-speed driving, climbing hills, pulling a boat, etc. I have also added an external tranny cooler as additional insurance.
Valve Body: The GM replacement valve body is P/N 24217868, retail list is $476.30. You will receive a $50.00 credit as a core charge return for the old one. Labor was 1.8 hrs, or $129.60. With 11 qts. of ATF and a GM filter ($37.38!!!), the total outlay is $620.01 + tax.
In addition, the slamming upshift caused the SES light to go on, which stored a P1870 code.
Thank You for the info!!!
Typically, to service the transmission you'd drop the pan to drain the fluid and replace the filter. To remove the pan, the gear change cable must be unbolted from the shift arm on the tranny, and then the cable must be disengaged (unclipped) from its bracket, and pulled back towards the rear of the vehicle to get access to the two 10 mm. socket head bolts holding the bracket and the pan. Remove the reminder of the pan bolts. The filter is accessible once the pan is removed. I clean the pan, including the square magnet (which is there to hold and trap small metal particles until it can be cleaned), and use gasket remover to get rid of any of the old pan gasket. Reverse the procedure for installation. Note: I find it a good idea to re-check the installation torque of the pan bolts after a week or two of driving; on the occasion I have a found a few had loosened up, but I re-torqued them and they were good to go.
You'll remove 5-6 qts. of the total 11 qt. capacity, as the torque converter cannot be drained unless the tranny is flushed. A 30K maint. interval I believe is sufficient to renew the fluid properties, and is cheap insurance compared to replacing the transmission. Haven't had a tranny failure following this schedule on any of my past and present vehicles.
GM states a fluid change every 100K miles for "normal" service.
I think we all should complain to NHTSA,
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/problems/ivoq/default.htm
This is a safety problem. If the hose breaks and engine locks up in a intersection someone could get killed. This may force a recall.
Thanks,
Brian
I lot of engine heat leaks up through the defroster vents. Its probably from the heater core. If its above 70F and the sun is out, I either have to open the windows or turn the AC on.
Also when you park the car, the heat continues to leak up through the defroster vents. The car's interior actually heats up after I park the car inside my garage.
A friend with a slightly older Blazer says the same thing. But it sounds like you have a more severe case. I would get into the ventilation system to make sure the flapper door to the heater core is closing.
Good luck
Dealer says this is normal. Yea right! Someone who wrote the software was cold I guess. Both auto and manual control has body computer intervention. FYI, my 2k Silverado does not do this, so I guess they can program it right if they want.
GM refuses to split the cost in spite of their admission that "much more use is expected from our 4.3L engine"....I'm still trying to bargain with their semi-literate customer relations department.
Anyone with similiar experiences??
Well, off to look at toyota products.
Thanks.
better as far as reliability. I own a 97 Blazer and have had numerous problems with it.
Fortunately I bought an extended warranty for it for about 1200 bucks. The warranty
was definitely worth the money.
Thanks for your help
Hope this helps
The pads were only worn halfway from their original thickness, which leads me to believe GM used a hard compound pad (come to think of it, my wheels never accumulated much brake dust).
I used NAPA pads and rotors as replacements. The pads generate brake dust, but I'd rather wear the pads than go through $82 (frt.) to $110 (rr.) rotors every 40K miles.
Oil lines - I'm on my 3rd set. Supposedly, GM has re-engineered the lines recently, we'll see...
The popping noise under the hood could be one of three things. 1) faulty hood hinge. I've heard they can be shimmed to prevent the pop. 2) if the popping noise comes from the footwell, it could be the driver's door hinge pins and bushings need replacement; 3) ball joints - upper, lower, or both.
I told them not to fix it. I brought the truck home and after 5 hours of sanding they look just OK. I brought truck back to dealer for the parking brake not holding. When dealer found out that he was not getting my money for new rotors he replaced them under warranty.
FYI. I would not let GM dealers fix your truck if they do not cover it under warranty. This will force dealer to go after GM if they want the business. Lets face it anyway, we do not want GM junk parts twice!
Also winter salt season didnt help
Ryan