Cars suck!

2

2QuickZ's

Club Member
Damn can cars be annoying. I finally get to drive my Camaro again after getting the rear fixed so I decide to drive it in to work this morning. I notice the whine from the transmission getting louder and louder. At least, I've been assuming it was the transmission because when you push in the clutch the whining noise goes away. I had just assumed it was the new synchro's since the trans has less than 1000 miles on it since it was built.

Anyway, about 3/4 of the way to work my SES light flashes a half dozen times and then stays on. The last time I drove the car it flashed a half dozen times but then went back off. So when I get to work I pop the hood and start looking around. It was then I realized the whining noise wasn't the trans but is the power steering. It's quite low on fluid. I have no idea where it is going. :dontknow: It doesn't groan and whine when I turn so that's why I never suspected the power steering.

I also still have no idea what code is being thrown. I guess I'll be making a stop at Murrays on the way home. Hopefully it's just a bad o2 sensor or something since the car still seems to run fine.
 
It sounds like you Canutens Valve is going bad......Its not releasing the power steering fluid back into the resivoir.
 
The sad part is the car just rolled over 16k miles this year and I've put less than 500 miles on it so far this year! :(:(:(:( Oh well, that's life!
 
2QuickZ's said:
The sad part is the car just rolled over 16k miles this year and I've put less than 500 miles on it so far this year! :(:(:(:( Oh well, that's life!
Click to expand...

Sometimes sitting is just as bad as driving them
 
I noticed the transmission noise also when I drove it. It also sounds like either a throw out bearing or pilot bearing may be going bad also. But it goes down the road a whole lot smoother with less vibration with the new axle and driveshaft.
 
1bad86z said:
I noticed the transmission noise also when I drove it. It also sounds like either a throw out bearing or pilot bearing may be going bad also. But it goes down the road a whole lot smoother with less vibration with the new axle and driveshaft.
Click to expand...
The clutch, pressure plate, TO bearing and transmission all have less than 1000 miles on them and are only slightly over a year old. If something is going bad in there, I am going to slightly upset. The clutch is a Ram Powergrip and the transmission was built by Liberty Gears with all the basic upgrades.
 
If you sit there in neutral not moving with the engine running and push in the clutch and release can you tell a difference? What tq arm is on there? Poly trans mount?
 
QUASAR said:
If you sit there in neutral not moving with the engine running and push in the clutch and release can you tell a difference? What tq arm is on there? Poly trans mount?
Click to expand...


Stock TA with stock TA rubber mount, I'm not sure on the transmission mount though.
 
Stock trans mount, too. I better not have a problem with the tans/clutch! :mad: So here is my current running list of potential problems:

- Unknown problem with power steering that is causing fluid loss
- SES light illuminated for unknown reason
- Possible problems with transmission

Sweet! I'm beginning to think I should have just sold the damn thing instead of getting it fixed. :mad: I can't wait to find out what the SES light is all about. Knowing my luck there might be a forged stroker motor in my future. :(
 
You can have the SES code read at Autozone. They have scanners they can hook up for you.

Your tranny mount might be shot. Mine is and I get a lot of movement of the stick at the moment. Gotta replace that this winter if not sooner....

Power steering, I am at a loss. There are no traces of fluid anywhere? That is strange. Good luck with it.
 
And the code is? ........... Misfire - cylinder 7!
Yeah! One I actually have to trouble shoot. Possible causes?

- Bad plug
- Bad wire
- Bad coil
- Bad injector

Let's see, how do I trouble shoot any of these? I can pull the plug and read it but that won't necessarily tell me the plug is the problem. How do I check the wire? Visually it is fine. How do you test a coil? An injector? Shit do I hate cars right now.

As for the steering rack, after thinking about it I remember noticing oil on it at the last oil change or two so something is leaking. The weird thing is, it never leaves so much as a drop of oil on the garage floor.

Dumb question: Cylinder 1 is the DS front right? So cylinder 7 is DS rear?


One more piece of information: I reset the code while I was checking it at Murrays. It flashed at me on two different occasions on the way home. The first time it flashed a couple dozen times then went off when I changed speed. The second time it only flashed a half dozen times before I changed speeds and it went off. The weird thing is that all 3 times it flashed at me today was when I was doing a steady 75 mph in 6th gear. Never in any other gear or during accel/decel. Any thoughts?
 
Last edited:
The best way to trouble shoot a cylinder misfire is to swap the parts with another cylinder and see if the code moves.
My first guess would be a bad sparkplug. 6th gear at 75mph is low rpm high load this is often where a bad plug will show itself.
Take the #7 plug and swap it with #3 then drive it. If it sets a code for #3 then you found the problem. If they code stays at #7 cylinder then swap the wires, then the coils, then the injectors. When the code moves to #3 then you found the bad part. This way you never have to spend a dime on parts that might not be the problem.
 
That's exactly what I did Al. I put a new plug in cylinder 7 and swapped out the plug wires between 3 & 7 last night. I drove the car to work today with no SES light. Hopefully that is all it was. I ditched the factory platinum plugs for plain old copper, too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top