McDave

Investors not very happy... http://www.complaints.com/directory/2006/july/14/11.htm

"Source: Ethos Environmental, Inc" You might want to verify that article with North Miami before believing it.

That's what Mike was saying. His light isn't lit now so this is what Autozone told him... "The guy there told me that they only have a Cheapo scanner and it will not display any trouble codes if the MIL is not illuminated."

Spec is 1/4 inch.

(shakes head) Snake oil in the 21st century. Some things never change.

Since it was running fine before pulling the heads, what about ground wires? Not sure about your model but mine has a small ecu harness ground wire that attaches to the same point above the left head that the fender ground wire attaches to. Other models may have it on the intake manifold.

I've done some more research on this and a maf failure is pretty common. If it gets to the point it acts up consistently, try unplugging the maf and see if it smooths out. If it does, replace maf.

Thanks for the update. I still feel confident about my original suggestions. The thing about a dirty maf is the crud could have burned itself off and the problem may not reoccur for some time. Plugs, wires, coil, fuel pressure, water in the gas... any of those likely would have caused it to act up again on your 25 - 30 mile drive. Cleaning the maf and changing the air filter should do the trick. Just try to get in plenty of miles after cleaning and before the trip to build confidence. PS If it does act up again before the trip, get the codes read by a real garage... someone that can give a proper diagnosis.

I don't see how anything could have gotten out of adjustment by what you did. Try disconnecting the steering column again and turning it back 90 degrees and bolting it back together. Edit: I misunderstood what boot was changed. See GD's post below.

Or you could find one in a junk yard.

I suspected that was going to happen. The caliper is hitting the suspension. I said it before and I'll say it again, you really need to get the "right" parts. Post a request in the Wanted section. There's probably no way you'll have one by Friday, but at least you'll have something in the pipeline.

Just don't use carb or throttle body cleaner as it's too harsh. Some manufacturers (GM) say you can even use spray Brake Kleen since it won't leave a residue either. A dirty air filter surely will cause your symptoms as it only takes a bit of dust to cause a MAF to malfunction, and they do act up intermittently when dirty. You might want to pump a pint of gas into a clean coffee can to see if there's any water in it. Good luck!

Thanks. I like it!

That's an interesting tip. I've got a set of those high dollar OEM grommets that I will be putting on soon and want to ensure I get the most out of them. Are you bending the spring washers somehow, or are you just referring to their original shape?

It sounds like a dirty Mass Airflow Sensor to me. CRC makes a spray MAF cleaner. Their Electric Contact Cleaner works just as well if you can't find the other. Just remove the MAF and spray it down good from both directions. It will air dry quickly. Take care to not actually touch the thin wires with the nozzle tip. Go ahead and pick up a new air filter at the parts store if it's about due too. That should keep it clean. If you have a chance to get the codes read it wouldn't hurt. The code will still be in memory even if the MIL light is off. I expect you will have a code for a lean O2 sensor if the MAF was truly at fault.

Besides not having an emergency brake, your bleeder will be pointing down, meaning you won't be able to bleed the air out of the system. Get the right parts. (er, make that the left parts)

Timing was 24 degrees retarded? Sounds like the left timing belt is a tooth off.

$30 worth of diesel ought to get you up there and back... maybe even while pulling a travel trailer!

The only way to be 100% sure is to mount the tire and measure the circumference between the two.

Thanks for that tip. An old salt told me once to use oil on something you want to easily take apart later, but use grease instead if you want it to stay tight. I saw an old post here that says to make sure you get the spring washer between the nut and cone washer flipped the correct way. Painted side towards the cone? I haven't taken mine apart yet. I hope there's still paint on it.

Correct! I believe the low threshold may be even lower though. On auto transmissions with lock up torque converters the converter will unlock at about 1200 rpm to keep the car from chugging... like a manual left in gear approaching a stop. At this point the fuel would have to turn back on to maintain idle speed since you lose engine braking, as you would when pushing in the clutch on a manual. Though fuel used from idling is less than from leaving it in gear and having engine braking shorten the distance traveled. It's amazing how far you can often coast in neutral. As far as stopped at a light: In gear the idle air control valve has to open further, so as a result more fuel would have to be added to maintain stoich a/f ratios. May not be much but every bit counts with hypermilers.

I just went through this with Mizpah. A couple of the lifters they sent me had a significant part of the tip ground off flat. Enough to where the cam followers probably would have made mincemeat out of the lifters in short order due to the loss of the hardened surface. When I called them up, John stated emphatically "We do not grind lifters". His conclusion was someone else had and they, Mizpah, had missed it on inspection. He's sending a couple more and told me to throw the others away.

What a deal! I wish somebody would give me a whole 2wd Loyale with 5 speed!

Thank you for the offer Erik, but I'll probably order a couple new ones from the dealer Monday. I was just hoping to get an idea of what they sell for elsewhere... if there even is an elsewhere. I nearly got blindsided on an egr solenoid from the dealer the other day. Fortunately Rockauto.com had one listed for much cheaper.