RareGMFan Posted June 17, 2005 Report Share Posted June 17, 2005 Well, as some of you may remember, I picked up a TGP for dirt cheap just over a year ago. Got it running just a couple of months ago. I took it to the little Chicago w-body meet we had last month. Since, I've made a few little trips here and there (to the grocery store, etc), and it's done ok so far. I even took it to and from work the past 3 days (25 min. trip each way), and so far, so good as far as the thing not dying or leaving me stranded (yes, I KNOW I just screwed myself over by saying that). However, in driving it around a bit, I've come across numerous, odd problems. Things I didn't even think I'd encounter. For example, I reset my trip meter to see what kind of mileage I could get per fill-up. Well....it started counting....BACKWARDS! :shock: I was like wtf??? It went to about 998, then back to 0 and on to 5 miles before it started counting down again for a few miles, then the right way again. It was the damndest thing I've ever seen. Then there's the speedo problem. No, not the gauge, which IS horribly off. I'm talking about the HUD. The speed it was showing always seemed too high to be accurate. So I had a friend pace me a few days ago, and sure enough, I was right. It said I was doing 30 when I was doing 25, and 35 when I was doing 29. I'm sure it gets worse the faster I go. Not sure what's up with that. Maybe the fact that each one of my tires is a different size?! :shock: Another interesting problem, but not that big a deal, is the boost gauge doesn't work what so ever. Niether does the cruise control, so I was thinking maybe a vacuum line? The gauge that concerns me a bit is the oil pressure gauge. By the end of my 25 minute trips to/from work these past 3 days, it got fairly low at idle. Never in trouble, but low nonetheless. The thing that bugs/worrys me worse, though, is the fact that it will occassionaly and randomly dip down to nothing and trigger the "check gauges" light for about 3 seconds or so, then pop right back up to 20 or 30 psi. This usually happens as I take my foot off the accelerator to make a turn, or immediately after I get back on it. It goes from holding steady, to suddenly dropping to nothing, to popping right back up to where it was, or higher. I'm guessing it's the sending unit/sensor, or something. Maybe even the gauge itself. The whole gauge cluster seems to be one of the worst ones I've encountered as far as accuracey. But I don't hear any knocking or anything, and it doesn't seem to run any differently when I supposedly have 0 psi, so I'm fairly confident it's not the oil pump itself, or anything to that nature (though I haven't completely ruled it out, yet). One problem I need to address pretty soon is the loud humming (at any speed) accompanied by grinding. I'm pretty sure it's a hub, or possibly a ball joint or tie rod. Could be a combo, as the car pulls left and right pretty badly when hitting imperfections in the road, or giving it some throttle off the line. I'm getting the whole suspension checked out next week, and I'll go from there depending on the results. The car also had a bad reaction to a race tonight (see TGP vs V6 Mustang). I'm not TOO worried about it yet, as much needs to be done. As I said in the post about when I got her running, all that's been changed so far is the fuel pump, sending unit, fuel filter, and cleaned injectors. I spent 2 hours, 2 Engine Bright Foaming degreaser cans, and 3 detailing brushes last Friday, and went digging in the engine bay. I struck engine! GOD that thing was filthy!!! I wish I took some before and after photos, because the after doesn't do much justice (looks about average for it's age) without realizing what I had to deal/start with. I'll get some after photos up, regardless. This weekend, I detail the horrible excuse for an interior. And so, here we go again. I'm I just a glutton for punishment, or what! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GP1138 Posted June 17, 2005 Report Share Posted June 17, 2005 Hmm.. maybe when you let off the gas to turn, the engine is stalling a little. Check your Idle Air Control. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RareGMFan Posted June 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2005 I'm sure that may need a good cleaning or replacement, too, but I don't think that's what's causing the oil pressure issue, if that's what you're referring to. It actually runs pretty damn good right now. Plus, as I said, many times the gauge will drop like a rock to nothing as I'm pressing the pedal after a turn. It's rather spuratic. I'm pretty sure it's the sensor itself. I've had several 6000 STE ones go out before, and the bars on the digital gauge would sometimes randomly go nuts and shoot to full, then settle back down to whatever the right number was. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pontiac6KSTEAWD Posted June 19, 2005 Report Share Posted June 19, 2005 So you going to try the emissions thing like I did on my car?? I wouldnt until you get that idle/oil pressure problem fixed. Hope you can get it road legal.. My K&N air filter I had on my turbo melted off 2 days ago. Hope I can figure out a way around it. My only complaint this far, the turbo in my TGP isnt nearly as loud as the one in my 12.7 liter Detroit deisel LOL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samiamryan Posted June 20, 2005 Report Share Posted June 20, 2005 odometer is going backwards.....did you ever see the movie christine?? Enough said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joberlee Posted June 20, 2005 Report Share Posted June 20, 2005 I've had that speedo problem before on a regal with a digital dash. In my case it turned out to be a bad ECM. It was also giving me false check engine codes and stalling at idle. Could also be the VSS, the HUD doesn't get its speed signal directly through the cluster, so if the HUD is off then it's not the fault of the cluster. the odo goin backwards is a bad servo motor in the cluster. The cruise control and the boost guage are unrelated as far as the vacuum source, but a bad ECM might kill the boost guage, IIRC the signal for the boost guage comes from the MAP sensor through the ECM. Do your heat and a/c controls work properly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam S. Posted June 21, 2005 Report Share Posted June 21, 2005 The low oil pressure problem is probably due to a faulty oil pressure sensor. I have replaced mine and it's all good. The 3.1 non turbo engine oil pressure sensor did not work for me I had to get one specific for the Turbo 3.1 (or maybe the GM guy was pulling my leg) As for the speedo sounds like an electronic ghost. Start with the VSS sensor than ECM. Hope this helps Adam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RareGMFan Posted June 21, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2005 Could also be the VSS, the HUD doesn't get its speed signal directly through the cluster, so if the HUD is off then it's not the fault of the cluster. the odo goin backwards is a bad servo motor in the cluster. The cruise control and the boost guage are unrelated as far as the vacuum source, but a bad ECM might kill the boost guage, IIRC the signal for the boost guage comes from the MAP sensor through the ECM. Do your heat and a/c controls work properly? Yes, the controls work fine. VSS is top on my list of culprits.....IF it's not the ECM. And with the number of wierdo things the car is doing, I'm starting to think more and more the ECM is a big possibility. I'll have to swap it with the TSTE one when I get a chance and see what happens. But I know the HUD isn't related to the speedo gauge. That's why I was so hopefull when I got this car running with a standard HUD that I'd finally get to know exactly how fast I was going in a GP, even though there's a 99% chance the actual gauge part is off. Granted, the gauge on this one is a MUCH greater percentage off then the HUD, the HUD is still off nonetheless. The low oil pressure problem is probably due to a faulty oil pressure sensor. I have replaced mine and it's all good. The 3.1 non turbo engine oil pressure sensor did not work for me I had to get one specific for the Turbo 3.1 (or maybe the GM guy was pulling my leg)As for the speedo sounds like an electronic ghost. Start with the VSS sensor than ECM. Yeah, I've had the sensor go bad on nearly every 6000 STE I've had in the past. Don't know if the TGP ones are different then the standard GP, but the one for my 6000 STE (which came standard with digital cluster) was different then the ones with analog gauges. Thanks for the replies, guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TurboSedan Posted June 21, 2005 Report Share Posted June 21, 2005 i've had the same problem with the oil pressure gauge on my SSE...it will go to max pressure and then go back down to the actual oil pressure. intermittent problem; i fully believe i need a new oil pressure sensor. swap that ECM out for the one in your TSTE and let us know what happens! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RareGMFan Posted July 16, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2005 Ok, I have a quick update on the oil pressure gauge issue. I just noticed what it's doing. It ONLY drops to 0 when I make a hard left. :? Going straight, no problem. Making a right, no problem. As soon as I go into a left turn, it drops like a rock. Sometimes it struggles to get there, but it eventually drops to well below 0 even. I haven't had a chance to swap sending units yet, but I found that odd. Any thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff M Posted July 16, 2005 Report Share Posted July 16, 2005 Ok, I have a quick update on the oil pressure gauge issue. I just noticed what it's doing. It ONLY drops to 0 when I make a hard left. :? Going straight, no problem. Making a right, no problem. As soon as I go into a left turn, it drops like a rock. Sometimes it struggles to get there, but it eventually drops to well below 0 even. I haven't had a chance to swap sending units yet, but I found that odd. Any thoughts? Been told this happens when the oil pump pickup has fallen out of its hole in the oil pump body All other times you should have oil pressure/supply, so don't corner too hard and especially for a long time when making a left (like a long highway ramp), know someone that ran this way for years with no problems, though a fix would make things better. Jeff M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RareGMFan Posted July 16, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2005 :shock: That's what I was afraid of, that it would be something more serious since it consistently kept doing this. What does repairing this entail? I'd rather get it fixed then panick around turns. I think I hear some very mild knocking now, too. :shock: Definitly some high pitched ticking for about 10 seconds on start up before it suddenly disappears. I know that can be normal, but I'm paranoid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff M Posted July 18, 2005 Report Share Posted July 18, 2005 :shock: That's what I was afraid of, that it would be something more serious since it consistently kept doing this. What does repairing this entail? I'd rather get it fixed then panick around turns. I think I hear some very mild knocking now, too. :shock: Definitly some high pitched ticking for about 10 seconds on start up before it suddenly disappears. I know that can be normal, but I'm paranoid. Nayyyy, no worries mate, little ticking that goes away fast is nothing, little sticking in the lifters maybe that I would address with some Rislone in you next oil change, or if for some reason you do not have the PF52 type oil filter with its "check valve", clatter can happen upon start up. The repair is a little involved, as I found (maybe others can offer something better!!!), had to lift the engine while still in the engine bay with am engine hoist, and drop the sub-frame to allow clearance to pull out the oil pan to access a repair in this area, even with this the half-shafts were pretty contorted. Pulling off the engine to sub-frame motor mount (replace it while there!!!) and its bracket allowed me to aim the oil pan out through that area/passenger's side, too much shit/sub-frame for one in the way to drop the oil pan straight down! Then I was able to access the oil pump, rods big ends and crank bearings as needed for whatever repair I was after. Some put a small spot weld to hold the oil pump pickup tube into the oil pump body, others super clean out the oil in the area and use red/permanent Lock-Tight, both work great!!!...long as there is no oil in there when the Lock-Tight is used, and has been my choice most of all! Oil pump pickup needs to be aligned, some stick a layer of putting over the 4-way "X" in the bottom of the oil pan, and trial fit the oil pan to ensure the pickup screen has enough clearance away from the bottom of the oil pan, then once its happy where it fits, mark it before you pull it to secure/Lock-Tight it in place. I would not worry a lot about the oil dropping, long as it's time lenght is kept short and rpms/load kept low, but I would want to fix it too , and the repair is like any repair to any car, take your time/just shy of being unsure of this new work, know it can be done and there is no hidden crap hiding to undo your success, and have at it, like others say, when not sure or running out of pactients, take a beer break, or a break for the day, come here and ask for more tips. And I say "when in doubt, check it out", let us help you assume so that you can blame it on us too if it does not work out Jeff M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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