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Grandpa's 2001 Silver Metalic GTP

Got it back from the alignment. Tracks nice and straight now. Did a little engine detail.
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Found a wire loom bracket at the yard. Keeping it looking good.
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Raised it up and crawled underneath. Definitely the rear VC gasket leaking. Badly! The whole back side of the block was wet. Gaskets on order...

Found the AC leak also. Looks like the hose connections (maybe o-rings) on the compressor are the source. Thinking we can get through this summer using the 152a trick. Probably buy a seal kit and necessary tools next spring. Gonna add AC work to the resume.
 


Re: Grandpa's 2001 Silver Metalic GTP: Getting new VC gaskets

So, I started the valve cover gasket install this afternoon.
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Everything looks good here.
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I decided to completely remove the alternator bracket since I was doing the coolant elbows also. Plus, it gave me an excuse to use my new tool.
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To the people in the know... Because it has two different color gaskets, the front wasn't leaking, and that spark plug wire holder was missing, can we assume the recall was performed? Not that it matters, I'm just curious.
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Oil on the wrong side of the gasket as proof of the leak. That, and all the oil on the back of the engine!
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Cleaned the bracket and screws since it was apart.
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Going to let the covers soak in Super Clean overnight, then flip them around before work tomorrow so the other side can soak all day. Hopefully that's enough time to get most of the crust off.
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Tomorrow will probably just be cleaning the mating surface on the heads. Then I'll be ready to toss it back together Wednesday after work. I'm debating on painting the covers while they're off. I'm pretty sure my father in law doesn't care, an I know I don't. So, probably not. Clean will have to be good enough.
 


Careful with those iridum tips, they chip really easily. If you do end up replacing the just go with coppers. The gap could be fine, it might just be the way the picture was taken.
 


Didn't bother checking the plugs. This car has/had enough problems. No need to go looking for them!

I did get it all put back together though.

All cleaned up, ready for the dance.
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And through the magic if the internet, it's done.
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One more night in the garage, then she's back out on the street. I dare say, this engine is a far cry from what it looked like before. Now it's on par with the rest of the car.
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Probably put a few more miles on it, then finally hand it off to my father in law (grandpa).

Remaining known issues;
1.) Stereo display light (bulb)
2.) Slow AC leak. Still need to pinpoint the leak. I'm thinking the o-rings at the compressor.
 
That's some awesome clean up and repair work! I've helped change several trans' in many of our cars, but I've never looked inside one of them. With how easy it looked to be when you did it, I'm feeling fairly confident my dad and I can do it sometime. Just need to put money aside for all the parts needed to get one of the junk ones here rebuilt.

Nicely done! Subbed for more cool stuff! (Literally Lol)
 
Hey, thanks! This was my second trans swap, and it went much better the second time. I fully anticipate the third will be even easier. The car was pretty clean to start with, I just focused on the engine compartment. That's kind of where my passion is anyway.

I had a blast doing the trans rebuild. It was a challenge, for sure, but I learned a ton! Having the tools I showed previously made it real nice. The only thing I plan on getting for the next build is a clutch spring compressor tool, and a better set of snap ring pliers.

Hopefully it will be a little while before anymore updates, but I plan to fully document everything I do. I did catch the AC pun. Nicely done!
 
So, I guess I wasn't done just yet. I decided to take a couple minutes and fix the side mirror. It was really bothering me.

For some reason, the mirror would not hold position. Previous owner's workaround was some Velcro pieces. To his credit, it worked. Just bounced a little.
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Tore it open and found the problem.
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Quick tip: When going to a u-pull, get down to the bare minimum of what you need if you want to save some cash. An entire mirror was around $30, glass only was something like $24. This piece cost me $3 dollars.
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A little re-assembly.
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And it's done!
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Summary: I managed to fix this mirror for $3 plus the cost of fuel to get to the yard. I'm not even worried about the fuel either, because I fount this:
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So, Grandpa's been driving it for a little under a week now. Gave me a call last night. Said the CEL came on. Told him to bring it by this afternoon. Scanned it and got a P0121 (Throttle Position Sensor/Switch A Circuit Range/Performance Problem) code. Cleared it. We'll see if it comes back. Checked all the wires in the harness and they look good. Maybe needs a TPS?
 
Re: Grandpa's 2001 Silver Metalic GTP - Another boost problem?!

Well the same P0121 code came back. Decided I would drive that to the junkyard to confirm any performance issues. Sure enough, something's wrong.

With the code still in memory, but not setting a MIL...
Under moderate acceleration, it would hold 1st all the way to 5700 (or whatever the max shift PRM is).... Sometimes. Also, Just cruising down the highway, or even sitting at a stop, I was seeing two bricks/blocks on the boost gauge. It never went to zero. I hit full boost at half throttle.

On the way home from the yard, after the car sat for about 45 minutes, it ran great and shifting was back to normal. BUT... I had little to no boost. 1 block/brick at WOT. I could feel a lack of power too. I believe the gauge reading was legit.

I apologize for not having actual boost numbers. His car doesn't have any real guages, and I didn't have my scanner with me.

Obviously, the TPS code COULD, and probably is related to the TPS, but could the boost and shifting problems be related as well?
 
Re: Grandpa's 2001 Silver Metalic GTP -Low on boost?!

New TPS is in. Decided to clean the throttle body and IAC while I was in there.

Before:
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After:
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Also cleaned the MAF. Now... If I spray it twice, I should get at least 8 horse, right?
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Took it for a couple short drives, and the code hasn't come back yet. I need to put more miles on it to confirm. Also, still not seeing the boost numbers I would expect. When revving the engine by hand, I can see the bypass valve closing. The LTFT is way negative according to my code reader also. Not sure If that's related.

I'm going to take it for a drive with the VCM Scanner recording to try to get a better idea of what's going on.
 
Re: Grandpa's 2001 Silver Metalic GTP -Low on boost?!

Negative LTFTs mean it's running rich, so I don't think it'd be related to the boost. No misfires or anything? I dunno if your scanner would show individual cylinders or anything.
 
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