havikx Posted July 26, 2005 Report Share Posted July 26, 2005 i just went and checked out a 93 lumina z34. the car is in great condition. its black. no dents. slight faded back bumper. inside is crazy clean. some minor carpet stretching and it'll be perfect. engine bay is clean as well. problem. took a while to start it. need a charge. i think the battery needs to be changed. i had the car in accesory while charing and as soon as the charger was taken off..it died totally. slight knock when it first started. probably from sitting for a little over year combined with bad gas and oil. knock went away after a few minutes. just oil. apparently there were new break calipers put on. ironically..the brakes on this car sucked. it was throwing an ABS light. when i confronted the sales man..he said the guys probably didnt bleed the breaks. easy fix right? the car had really low torque. now i know what your all thinkin. 3.4 - all high end. when my euro was bone stock, even with the airbox, it had low torgue like this. it seemed to pull a little better in the high end as usual. power steering pump made the whole car run rough when turned to full radius. maybe a bad power steering pump. maybe not. even so..easy still. the car is really nice. it was 2000, we talked him down to 1500 being the abs code, power steering, breaks, knock. its only got 75,000. i've got all the parts from my 3.4 euro if it needs anything like the abs module or steering pump. i have a feeling this car is begging for a nice tune up..some high class oil..and maybe some z-max. what do you guys think? body is perfect..speaking dent wise. slight paint on the back bumper..easy spray job. bose sound system..after market cd already installed. everything electric works. maybe a tune up. i got back up parts. 1500 worth it? i'll try to get pics up tommorow. plannin on heading back over too it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GP1138 Posted July 26, 2005 Report Share Posted July 26, 2005 Sounds like an alright deal, but go over there with a known good battery and drive it some more, and see if it knocks again. Knocking is never really a good thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gp90se Posted July 26, 2005 Report Share Posted July 26, 2005 any 3.4 that as a "knock" to it isnt gunna last for any amount of miles, not at all. The ABS could be the fluid needed 2 be bled, but doubtful, figure your gunna have to diagnoce that. p/s is p/s, not the worst thing in the rold. z-max is CRAP!!! I would Tell him $1000 and you drive it off the lot then and there, but not with an engine knock, thats gunna be all kinds of problems not to far down the road. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chadz34 Posted July 28, 2005 Report Share Posted July 28, 2005 Yeah, knocks are bad. Ticks are common for sitting 3.4's trust me I hear it every year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Fury Z Posted July 28, 2005 Report Share Posted July 28, 2005 also check it's timing belt! 7 or 8 mm socket to remove the cover. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SUPERDUTYD Posted July 28, 2005 Report Share Posted July 28, 2005 sounds like too many major problems. basically a car with a bad engine = $500 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy Posted July 28, 2005 Report Share Posted July 28, 2005 $1500 is too much with those problems you listed....if you buy it be prepared to potentially replace the engine somewhere in the near future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havikx Posted July 29, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2005 the knock is almost certainly from sitting. it wasnt really a knock, it was like a slight tap that went away. we started it up again and it didnt even make it this time around. thats a good thing. we figured out that the break problem is part of the acceleration problem. when we took our foot off the break..the car did NOT roll. well..slightly..but you could hear the breaks sqeuling when it did budge a few inches. few inches in a matter of a few seconds. definatly not normal but breaks should clear that up. thankx crimson, i will check it before i get it. i'm defniatly teling him to change the battery and properly bleed the breaks. see if that helps. plus..what you guys dont understand is the fact that my parents recent divorced and i'm looking at about $6k outta the deal. so i figure 1500 for a break problem and a good tune up, royal purple oil, tranny fluid, new filters everywhere, some z-max. should be that much of a big deal. hopefully somwhere between 500-1000 to be fixed if it is a break deal. i'll have plenty of money in reserve to make this thing a monster. why is z-max crap? i've heard nothing but good things from alot of people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cutlassdude96 Posted July 30, 2005 Report Share Posted July 30, 2005 you misspelled brakes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveFromColorado Posted July 30, 2005 Report Share Posted July 30, 2005 .. do NOT use Z-Max unless you really hate this engine... http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2001/02/zmax1.htm it's crap, and it does NOT work - in fact, it's probably harmful for your engine. --Dave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frusciante fan Posted July 30, 2005 Report Share Posted July 30, 2005 pics.now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron Posted July 30, 2005 Report Share Posted July 30, 2005 Becuase he explaining it as a tap or tick, and not a knock, I believe the motor is fine. It is normal for the 3.4 to tick when cold started, for about 10-15 seconds. These are the lifters, they need to get oil pumped up to them. This is 100% normal. The best thing you can do to prolong engine life is to IMMEDIATELY swap in a fully synthetic oil, and keep at it every 3k. Also, don't go cheap on the filter, I use a $7 PureOne filter every change, and will continue to do so. The best thing you can do to see how it runs is to drive it, and hammer it to redline through a couple gears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White93z34 Posted July 30, 2005 Report Share Posted July 30, 2005 at 75,000 i'd be VERY leary of switching to a synthetic oil. if it had less then say 30k i'd do it. but not at 75k Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron Posted July 30, 2005 Report Share Posted July 30, 2005 at 75,000 i'd be VERY leary of switching to a synthetic oil. if it had less then say 30k i'd do it. but not at 75k I switched my old 3.4 over to synthetic at 121k, the day I bought it, and the machine shop that rebuilt my motor said it saved me nearly $2000 in new cams, lifters, and other misc parts. He swears by synthetic oils WITHOUT adding additives, and I will trust his word, even if he did fuck up the cam timing the first try... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havikx Posted July 30, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 30, 2005 brakes* well i'm a horse-power tv type of guy so i was probably going with royal purple. expensive as a bitch, but thats the last thing on my mind. RP should do it some good, right? plus the tranny fluid is going to be RP as well and i'm going to add the coolant aid to it. hopefully it'll be runnin right. looks like i'm buyin this car on monday. i get my check and i'm runnin over to get it. then i'm parking it here in the driveway, taking a few pics, and then gunna work the hell outta it. needs a slight paint touch up on the back bummer, but other than that, perfect body. not a stratch, dent, or chip. changing out the battery because its been sitting and i dont trust that battery. optima yellow top. bleed brake, oil change, tranny fluid change. that everything i'm doing here. then i'm probably gunna take it for a tune up cuz i dont feel like doing one. new plugs/wires. any1 know of any good race wires? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88Regal Limited Posted July 30, 2005 Report Share Posted July 30, 2005 Race wires on a stock 3.4? :? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havikx Posted August 1, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 1, 2005 Race wires on a stock 3.4? :? well not stock for long. after the basic up-keep of the engine like a tune up/oil change/trans fluid change/blinker fluid change, then i'll start to mod it. this is hopefully the set up i'm lookin at.. magna flow unpolished mufflers with original z tips high flow cat cherry bomb glasspack intake ffp bone ffp underdrive pulley 60* chip - tuned of course. miled plenium any1 else for any advice? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron Posted August 1, 2005 Report Share Posted August 1, 2005 Yah, do a full exhaust, not just pieces. All mandrel bent, etc. And use all Magnaflow parts, even the cat. It will sound great, and add as much power as possible. Worth every penny! Also, a 96 intake swap would be very worth it, and I highly suggest doing it. BUt with these you should also do some trannsmission work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havikx Posted August 2, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 2, 2005 yea. i was thinking putting on a tranny cooler. good news..i bought the car today. its great. the breaks were an easy bleeding job, now they are fine. the tap is pretty much gone. the only thing that conerns me is whenever it starts up..it sounds like something is loose. only for the first second. plus...once it idles, after like 10 seconds..it revs itself to about 2500 for no reason, foot off the gas. then dies down back to normal. any ideas? i'll post pics when i get em. few minor questions as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Fury Z Posted August 2, 2005 Report Share Posted August 2, 2005 for the intake swap, ben is currently making a new intake manifold for the 3.4, so i'd either ask him over @ 60* or wait till he has it done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supreme Cutlass Posted August 2, 2005 Report Share Posted August 2, 2005 When I first got my car, It had been sitting for a LONG time, and it gave most of your symptoms. After several starts, all of the problems went away slowly, so I wouldn't worry about it too much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havikx Posted August 2, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 2, 2005 kewl. i asked them over there. he's gotta get back to me. i think its only for 96+ intakes and i really dont feel like hunting down all the parts for a swap. lol. maybe later on. any1 know what color code the black z34 was in 93? i need to pick up some duplicolor for some minor touch ups to sun damaged paint on the bumper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GP1138 Posted August 2, 2005 Report Share Posted August 2, 2005 Did it have the battery disconnected for a long period of time? The idle to 2000 problem might just require an idle relearn. Do a search here for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havikx Posted August 3, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 3, 2005 i think i might have to relearn the idle. probably a good idea. i'm changing into royal purple tommorow. plus a new oil filter and cone filter. cleaned out the TB today. its running a little smoother. any1 know the paint code for the z34 from 93. black. i've got a few other questions but i'll leave those til i post pics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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