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Engine Trouble

OK i went out and got the compression tester and all 6 cylinders are just fine so i went ahead and started digging down to the LIM gasket. Taking everything off carefully and labeling all the wires and bolts and such so i can get it all back together and when the UIM finally came off it looked just like the pic you provided. coolant and oil in the center and the gasket has really seen its better days but the UIM itself seems ok and the LIM surface is smooth and not pitted in any way so im comfortable with that. Im going to take the UIM plastic to autozone or anywhere that has a new one on hand for me to closely compare the two or just replace it all together.

Should i dig down any further now that I know the LIM gasket is bad? Also, what else can i replace while ive got the alternator, throttle body, air filter box, fuel line, vacuum hoses, fuel injectors and UIM/LIM off?
 


replace the valve cover gaskets and grommets.

Get new coolant elbows (in the help section). part # 47065

Get a new dorman UIM. 615-180 Comes with new UIM and TB gaskets.

Get the felpro permadry plus LIM gaskets. MS98014T I think... Checked it, thats it... Can't believe i pulled that off the top of my head.

If you pulled off the UIM and you saw coolant, the UIM is damaged. Time for a new one.

Get a new stock temperature thermostat. New O ring will come with the LIM kit.

Take the opportunity to clean out your throttle body really well.

I suggest doing the LIM gasket while you're in there because the plastic ones fail, its not a matter of if, but when.
 
yes, do exactly what Matt said. basically, you're re-doing your top end. it's really quite easy.

if you seen coolant/oil when you removed the UIM, then it's bad. it may look okay, but they will have a pin hole sized leak OR it could be the coolant passage has melted away slightly and made it bigger causing a leak. i'd check near the EGR tube
 
You should also get some good RTV for the 4 corners of the LIM gaskets, and a new set of injector o-rings. And you're gonna need a torque wrench when it comes time to reassemble.
 
And if you're decent with a ratchet and socket, screw the torque wrench. When doing LIM bolts, hold the top of the ratchet and just get it good and snug. And I held the middle of it when doing the rest of the stuff. My second LIM job with no torque wrench.
 


Ok so ive got part on the way in and i figured while i was waiting i would check the gasket that is below the LIM and I cant manage to get the LIM off. Ive removed 10 bolts as shown in the picture below

car :: LIM1.jpg picture by filtiarne - Photobucket

but it just wont budge at all, and i cant seem to find any other bolts or things holding it in place. The gasket im trying to get at can be seen here.

car :: LIMGasket.jpg picture by filtiarne - Photobucket

Obviously thats only a small portion of it sticking out from in-between the LIM and the rest of the engine. However im afraid this gasket will need to be replaced as well because the LIM bolts i removed has a heavy buildup of corrosion on them from both the top and bottom.

Help me get this damn thing off lol.

(also, i took these pics with my phone, i can get higher quality ones if it will help)
 
There are two "hidden" bolts.

When facing the car, in the upper left and lower right corner right beside where the intake runner is, there is a bolt in each corner.

Typically hidden by oil or coolant.

They're on the "inside" when the UIM is on the car.
 
i found them thanks for pointing me in the right direction, i couldnt see them under the coolant puddles but after draining them away the LIM came right off and the LIM gasket was trashed. It literally fell apart once i took the LIM pressure off of it. It has to have been leaking for a while and just finally failed catastrophically. Problem solved, time to order all kinds of shiny new parts!

Ill keep you all updated on the installation and rebuild but it will be a few days until the replacement pieces arrive.

A thousand thank yous for getting me this far.

Gonna get to cleaning everything till it shines while i have access to all the areas. :th_mechanic:
 
For future reference in case someone searches and finds this thread...

DSC03336.jpg
 


So ive finally gotten everything cleaned and put back together and it started up first try and runs smoothly.
Just one other issue now is that the power steering is giving me trouble, it turns easily to the right but doesn't give any assistance when turning to the left.
I didn't have any issues with steering before the car broke down, could it just be that some leaked out while i had the front jacked up or do i have bigger issues?
 
i hate to say it but thats what my car started to do and it was the rack and pinion, i did the p/s pump first, and had no improvement, i got a used rack for 75 bucks, it took around 4 hrs from start to finish, did it by myself, only help i had was a friend who stopped by at the right time to wiggle the steering wheel to get the steering shaft back on the rack.

this is the how to i followed http://www.grandprixforums.net/04_rack_replacement.php

i left all the brake stuff in place, those lines are accessible from the bottom, and i dropped the cradle 2 inches maybe, and i also removed my sway bar completely because it was broken, that may have given me more room to work with.

there's really not a lot of bolts to take off to do this job, its all just tight quarters to work in. overall not the worst job i ever had to tackle.

and do not spin the steering wheel after the rack is removed, lock the steering wheel and dont touch it till you are putting the shaft back on the racks steering box. there is a clock spring behind the air bag and it will break, causing air bag light and loss of radio controls on the wheel.
 
Is there any way for me to check if it is the rack or the p/s pump or should i just start with the easier one then move to the rack if that fails?
 
do you hear the p/s pump whining? if so you may need a new pump, mine was and then it stopped and was dead, so i thought that was my problem, the pump is fun to change too lol

so with a brand new pump the car would steer to the right with some easy while moving and hard as hell to the left, turning the wheel while stopped was impossible. so to sum it up for me there was no power steering at all. so next step was the used rack. unless you can afford a new one.

so basically i lost my rack and my pump at the same time.

and you will need an alignment when you are done to set the toe in out as your wheel will be off when you are done.

another tip: after i got the old one out, i lined the 2 up side by side and turned the steering shaft, where the box is so to say, on the new one to match up the direction of the old one for easy of re installing the steering shaft you remove with the 11 mm socket and 18 inches of extensions.
 
oh and one more thing, pop the trunk on the under side of the lid there should be a sticker with 3 letter and number codes all over it, look for the RPO code FE3, if you have this code you have magna steer rack and pinion. and they cost a little bit more.
 


I can hear the pump whine when i turn it all the way to the right, but it doesn't make a sound when i muscle the wheel back to the left. I guess I'll start with the p/s pump first. Do you know where the how to is for that or should i start searching? Thanks in advance!
 
http://www.grandprixforums.net/power_steering_pump.php

what this write dont tell you is there is a clip on the back side of the pump that holds a wire and its clip, after you un bolt it look behind on the bottom back side for the clip, i removed my pump through the wheel well, it wouldn't fit coming through the top side. the new pump should have a pulley puller with it, its a bolt and nut, and should have instructions how to use it. if not then a good power steering pulley removal tool is 30 bucks and make the job easy.


heres how to vid to use the nut and bolt puller YouTube - ‪How to replace Power Steering Pulley‬‏

this is the puller i have, minus the nice box Power Steering Pulley Puller/Installer | AutoZone.com
 
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