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I'm curious... front end work? Ball joints, pitman arm, idler arm, ring a bell? Thankfully, extended warranty covered that repair.
The mechanic claimed some are bad right out of the factory. I need
to get the ball joints replaced again.
Car runs OK but he says as the leak gets worse starting and running will eventually deteriorate to not starting. Because the leak is internal there is supposedly no risk of fire. Anyone else had this problem in same or different model years? What was replacement cost?
Thanks,
Steve
Thanks,
Brandon
Glenn W
One point I should add is to NEVER mix Dexcool with the green stuff; I'm told you'll clog your system for sure.
middcollkid: I am not certain, but if the Blazer is like other GM cars I have worked on, the intermittent wipe is controlled by a circuit board (timer), and is located in the wiper motor housing. I replaced a defective board after my wiper would "mist" three times instead of once, and also was inconsistent with the "delay" time.
conmom: Maybe the leak occurs during cold weather, so I would have it leak-checked on a cold day. I suspect an o-ring has taken a "set" over 7 years, and it cannot expand (not as pliable) at lower temperatures, so it allows the Freon to escape. I'd first suspect the o-rings that seal the high and low pressure fittings at the back of the compressor, but that's just a guess.
Oh, and I'd convert to R-134a, so that this sneaky leak doesn't cause as a big a leak in your wallet from the R-12 re-charge.
For the record, the oil cooler line, power steering pump, both lower ball joints, idler arm, belt tensioner, serpentine belt, battery, heater core, radio, radio speaker, door hinge, both rear rotors, CV joint boot, tailgate light switch, have all been replaced under warranty. The truck now has 42k miles and the warranty period is over. Is this now a good truck? Do you think all this junk is going to need replacing in 30k miles again? Do you think these parts were just defective or are they very low quality? (GM should be asking these very same questions!)
For all its bad points (quality) it does have some good points. The acceleration is amazing. According to my Gtech meter, this truck goes from 0 to 60 in 7.83 secs!! It is faster than my friends 2000 Maxima SE with auto, his time was 7.86 secs. The Blazer actually walks away from the Maxima from 0-35 mph and the Maxima catches up from 35-60mph. Braking is excellent (I replaced the pads at 35k miles) with after market pads. Handling is excellent for a SUV (I replaced the front stabilizer bushings with urethane). The highway ride is very good with the stock Bilstien shocks. The engine has a lot of power when towing heavy loads and the transmission does not hunt gears when towing.
Too bad the Quality is very low. The interior has many rattles. The plastic construction is cheap and squeaks. The gears in the differential(s) whine or groan. The offset test results are so bad after seeing the pictures I can't get them out of my mind. The frame actually starts to bend in two in the middle! The Blazer was worst in class, http://www.hwysafety.org/vehicle_ratings/ce/html/96002.htm#5
If GM is not dumb enough, they then produce a GMC Jimmy commercial promoting the "industrial strength frame" on the Jimmy. They even give the engineer's name on who designed this death traps frame.
Does GM think we are stupid? I guess so. But the real joke is on GM. GMs market share is going down. GM will not be the number automaker in a few years- and I wonder why!
My NEW 2001 Blazers ABS and brake light module has shorted out twice in 2 days. The dealer is fixing it again, but I am a little worried because the Blazer is only 2 days old. 49 miles
And, you didn't list the upper ball joints as being replaced... that may be another source of knocking from underneath the vehicle.
BTW, what was the reason for the rear rotor replacement? I've noticed mine are below the service limit on the stock pads at 46K. It seems like the OEM pad material was too hard a compound?, and wears down the rotors prematurely (the rear pads still have half the original thickness left). I replaced the front pads with a softer compound... a little more brake dust, but I can modulate the brakes better and the pads should wear out before the rotors!
http://www.imcool.com/articles/anitfreeze-coolant/dexcool-macs2001.htm
This link found at:
http://www.s-series.org
I found the rattle- it was coming form the oil pan skid plate. This plate is optional and most blazers do not have it. It seems that the lower control arm frame mounts move slightly when you hit a bump (possibly by design). The skid plate ties the lower control arm mounts together in the rear. Since the skid plate is a plastic non load bearing material it is not capable of being a support member, so GM made the skid plate with oblong bolts holes and spring washers so the skid plate can float on the rear mounts. I must have stuck the plate and moved one of the skid plate mounts that is attached to the lower control arm frame mount. This prevented the frame mount from moving as much at it needed. VERY POOR DESIGN.
The rear rotors were replaced because of rust. They rusted so much that the disk brake material actually bonded to the rotor! I do use this SUV off road and on the beach, but I never had this type of problem before. The rotors also were very close to the service limit.
I have a '91 Full-size 4WD Blazer that I am contemplating selling. It's been an absolutely great vehicle. No complaints from me. But I began to yonder...why don't I ever see other '91 Full-size Blazers driving around? I see all the other year Blazers on the roads. Especially '89s and '90s. But not mine.
I bought it in '95 while living in California. Took it with me to FL for 2 yrs, and then to MI. I can recall maybe seeing 1 or 2 others in all my travels and commuting.
I do know that the '91 Blazer was the last year of its kind. In '92, Chevy went to the new body style, and then to the Tahoe.
I would hate to make a mistake selling mine if it is unique.
Since then I've had no more problems with the truck leaning. Hope this helps.
hope it helps!
87 octane.
Thats what i run in my silverado, my mom runs in her 2000 blazer and my dad runs in hos 92 S-10.
All are in great shape never had any gas related problems
Ryan
Now the oil lines from the engine to the remote adapter are starting to leak with 43k miles. Has anyone had these lines leak too? Although I know this is an inferior design I do give them credit for taking responsibility.
My email: "I want to buy a new Blazer but my wife is seriously against it because she saw that the Blazer scored "Poor" in the Front Offset crash test conducted by NHTSA. I have been trying to find any available data on the web to refute this, or find additional data, to show her that the Blazer is in fact a safe vehicle; like handling comparisons with other vehicles, braking distance comparisons, other crash data, etc. Could you please mail me all info you have and/or give me some web addresses to visit to help my cause?"
Their Reply: "Thank you for contacting the Chevrolet Internet Response Center.
It is always a matter of importance when one of our current or potential customers has a concern about one of our products. All of our vehicles meet or exceed 2001 Federal Crash and Safety Standards set by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
If you have concerns with the crash test rating of the Blazer please bring it to the attention of your authorized Chevrolet Dealership. We have included dealerships in your area that may be of some assistance to you."
Thanks in advance to anyone who can help.
He'll write back thanking you for supporting gun control, and did you visit the Kennedy library and did you know John was his brother?
However, things change when vehicle dynamics is the only factor, such as hitting a bridge. In this case you are purely dependant on your cars structure because the bridge will not absorb any energy. The Honda should be safer in this case(this is when the Blazer frame starts to bend in the center).
When you factor in the SUV rollover death rates, the SUV weight advantage starts to diminish. In short, if you are looking for safety the Blazer is not the SUV for you. It is not wide enough to be very stable and has a poor frame design.
I started noticing that when the engine was first started in the mornings (initially) it idled roughly. Has time has gone on it is getting worse. After it worms up the problem goes away. The engine runs smoothly and with lots of general power. This all started in 1998 and in the past year the “Check Engine Soon” light now comes on when I accelerate quickly and then let off the gas just as fast.
I have thoughts to replace the Catalytic Converter to see if backpressure is causing this problem. Backpressure would push the valve open at idle and cause it to flood the combustion chambers with excess exhaust. Please let me know if any of you have the same type of problem.
See, that one test, the Offset test, is the one stumbling block to my buying the Blazer. My brother is a lead mechanic at a local Chevy dealership and can get me a great deal on it, and I know that any problems I have with it will get taken care of personally by him.
I don't want to end up having to buy someone else's SUV.
They replace that and also had to replaced the fuel injectors. Most of it was covered under warranty. 3 times I had to take my blazer in for rough idling. They said they had to clean all the carbon deposits out of the ear valve. What a pain.
All new fuel injectors and a new valve. For a total of over $1700.00 I had to pay about $400 of it. I read a lot about blazers and this is common in most of them. Blazer looks great but doesn't run worth anything. Buy Toyota.
They replace that and also had to replaced the fuel injectors. Most of it was covered under warranty. 3 times I had to take my blazer in for rough idling. They said they had to clean all the carbon deposits out of the egr valve. What a pain.
All new fuel injectors and a new valve. For a total of over $1700.00 I had to pay about $400 of it. I read a lot about blazers and this is common in most of them. Blazer looks great but doesn't run worth anything. Buy Toyota.
The IIHS does the offset crash tests and the NHSTA does the full frontal, and front- and rear-side crash tests. Many folks put more importance on the IIHS tests since they approximate a typical collison when someone crosses the double-yellow line.
The bottom line is that the 2001 Blazer/Jimmy did poorly on all the tests. I don't care how much money I can save, I won't put a price on my family's life. Throw in the fast depreciation because of the new 2002 models, plus the spotty reliability record, and you've got one heck of a "value" here.
Also, being a current GM owner, I can do without all the "cheapness" of the typical GM plastics and interior parts. This stuff is garbage.
Of course, your milage may vary.
thanks.