nipper

Rod knock is really easy. Yank the spark plug wire to one cylinder at a time. The cylinder with the bad rod should change pitch. Rod knock actually gets louder as engine oil thins out. A knock at startup is piston slap, ignore it and life goes on.

The car does not do it cold because the fluid is thicker when cold. As it heats up it gets thinner and looses pressure. Also as the coil for the solenoid heats up, resistance increases in the solenoid. If the coil is weak it will start to fail. Simple electric theory. As temp increases so does resistance. Add that to thinner oil you have an unresponsive circuit.

I have 270K on Blu. the real question is how much rust is too much, as that can not be fixed. If you want do a compression test wet and dry and that will tell you the important things, or do a quick vacume gauge test. How little mileage vs age is a better question. Low mileage can be more harmful to an old car then high mileage. For a car to hit high mileage it had to be well maintaned. nipper

i suck at painting, i really do. The Justy's tailgate (lower half) is painted. It does almost match the rest of that paint (being anal I can see it but doubt anyone else can). The clearcoat I have no Idea if that is right. It is not smooth to the touch, but is no worse then the rest of the car. i am hoping this polishes out as they said let it rest for three days. Now i am afraid to touch the orange peel on the roof.

Paying less then the bluebook means that the dealer was tyring to get rid of the car. Sit down with a lawyer and see what he says. Sometimes for the price out at a bar you can get a legal letter sent to the dealer and see if that stirs things up.

Finished: Repainted front grill Treated all surface rust Cleaned painted front and rear bumpers Replaced battery (not planned) Re-sealed valve cover Replaced 2 wheel cylinders Replaced 2 brake calipers Replaced Frt Brake Pads Replaced Rear Brake Pads Replaced all brake Hardware Installed Engine oil cooler Installed external Oil Filter Painted fan shroud Painted radiator Mounted and wired Oil press Oil temp and Battery volt gauge Changed oil Rebuilt exhaust system Repaired hatch lock Repaired (hopefully) left rear wheel well rust Lubricated all moving and sliding parts. Installed right side mirror and painted mirror Repacked wheel bearings Replaced front wipper motor Yet to be done: Replace Alt Belt Replace Timing Belt Replace Main Crank Seal Paint tailgate and reassemble Paint wheel well repair Remount fuel pump Replace PCV valve Bleed brakes Repaint roof Diagnose carb issue (rebuild or replace) Strip prime paint roof Paint Body trim (wasnt going to until i realized how bad they look against the painted bumpers) Replace reflective tape on bumpers and body trim Possibly repaint all the black trim parts in the car (yes that the bipolar virgo thing kicking in) Replace body decals New radio and speakerd maybe Outsource: Need 1 tire Call a pull a dent place to have the dents removed. Scary noise: Tick at front of transmission which could be the pilot bearing (remove engine), Transmission input bearing (remove engine), or the powder in the electric clutch just lumped together from sitting. That noise wasnt there when i bought the car so i am going with the last one. i was terrified that the car was almost done, but seeing it all listed here it is about 50% of the way there

Well it is more of a bushing then a bearing. remove the plastic trim from the steering column and see if you can narrow it down to the shaft or the clock spring.

This has NOTHING to do with overheating, period. As I said before, the 16 blinks indicates that there was an electrical fault the last time the car was operated. If the cars trnsmission was overheating the light would come on when hott, and go off when cool, and that would be it. at 13 years old the AWD units do get tired. You can do this in your driveway if you want, there is a lot of information here on the process. Skipping the clutch replacement is like just chainging only the timing belt. It will work but eventually you will be doing the job all over again.

Just to back up a bit, has anyone done a leak down or pressure test on the cooling system yet?

Also this should be reported to the NHTSA as a possible fire hazard.

If it ran before you chnaged the belts and doesnt run now, there is only one possible conclusion: the timing belt is not set properly. And back away from the madman who said it is your stoplight. Back away very slowly as any sudden moves can set off a crazy person.

Thats why i am having a nice little chat with Walker, I expected much better. At least the pipes are stainless and not galvanized. Not that i t helps since I can't use them.

I think this fan is operated by the ECU. IUf this is true there is an aftermarket thermoswitch that can be purchased that just senses the temp of the radiator and turns on the fan. It is not unusual for this type of fan control to go bad.

Chain is good. The chain may have another 50,000 to a gazillion miles left on it depending upon the care the car has received. Was it painted with a brush or spray can

Yuo can try to have the radiator cap 1/2 way on, that may help a bit. But over heating more often is a telling sign of the evil that shall not be spoken.

The mufler is fine. The angle for the connection is fine. Anything after that just does not work. That cat is so big I dont know if that poor little 3cyl engine can push through two full size cats. One of theirflange clamps are junk too as far as matching up.

:mad: I decided to post a PSA. Here are pics of my 1989 exhuast system side by side with a system from Walker. the Walker sustem is supposed to be a "Direct Fit" for the 89. The front pipe from wlaker is too short to replace the factory flex pipe (which does not have a flange anywhere on it) and not long enough to reach the Manifold/converter. I am an Automotive engineer and used to do part interchanges as my first job. Personally I would never approve this. I will share what Walker says.

Lets skip the endwrench instructions, amuse me. With car running, (on level ground) SLOWLY add coolant till the radiator is full. Wait for the t-stat to open, there will be a surge of fluid. Slowly top off the cooling system untill full. Monitor engine temp. Put cap on, make sure overflow tank is filled to the hot line. Drive around the block. Let the car cool off, check level in radiator. Repeat if needed. This is the procedure since cars were water cooled, (some people are impatient and skip this including shops - just an FYI). All cars should be filled like this. Individual soobys can sometimes be a real bear to burp. Did you use 50/50 premix and no tap water?

There is a flex joint in the column under the hood. Soak it with wd40 and see if it goes away. This is just a test and not a cure. The universal joint at this age can start to seize up

Well first thing is first, got to do the basics, a FULL tuneup.

Does it sound like plastic rubbing? can you feel a hesitation in the wheel turning?

Temp gauge has it's own sensor. You may have an air bubble in the engine. Did you use an OE t-stat?

THE ATF light on means there was a electrical failure on the last drive cycle. Does it flash on startup? On a 1998 it can be a bad Duty C, or a sticking pressure valve, or a sticking Duty C. Do all the tires match and are of equal wear? On a sooby this old, instead of just replacing the C, i would also put new clutches in the AWD unit, do right do it once never go back. Do it 1/2 way Mr Murphy will knock on your door. I would NOT touch the filter. It is ony a screen. Most people mess i up removing the pan and make a leak that is tough to resolve.

PS Why on earth was it painted?

They are solid little cars when not rusted out. Find out how old the clutch is when the timing belt (if equipped) was last replaced. This may be a 60K interval. nipper