So it doesn’t actually look like any valves are bent. They’re really just that nasty from 230,000 miles of neglect.
daryl
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S10 Update:
I couldn’t find my compression tester, and ran out to Harbor Freight to pick up a leak down tester so I can stop borrowing them from friends. This is just going to be easier than a compression tester with the state the motor is in.
Bottom line: I have at least 2 bad valves that won’t seal. Â Bent or cruddy? Â Don’t know.
For anyone interested in a leak down test on a motor with the exhaust manifold and throttle body already off, here it is:
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So I changed my mind after some rumination. I decided to leave the head on until I pulled the front cover.
To do that, you need to remove the crank pulley (easy) and then the crank pulley hub (not so easy). There is some chevy specific tool for that, but I just grabbed the steering wheel puller, a wrench, and a breaker bar:
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Progress is being made after another hour or so working on it:
And GM, seriously….making me go through the wheel well to get the last bolt off the alternator? Who do you think you are? Ford?
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My goal for this is to find common vehicles that are selling well (a 4 cylinder work truck absolutely fits my idea of that), obviously that I can make a profit on with minimal investment, and that don’t cost more than I can expect someone to show up with in cash. I’m thinking nothing over the $6k mark (yes, I’ve bought plenty of things with cash well over that, but I don’t think you’ll find non-car-guys doing that kind of thing, unless they are drug dealers). I also want to do things right. I value my reputation in life, and I’m not out to screw anyone at this. I believe that the market is good enough right now to do things right and have both me and the buyer happy with the deal they get.
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So all the cool kids are doing it, and I came across the perfect vehicle to start.
To back up a bit, I couldn’t believe how easily I sold my ’98 Explorer, and the horror stories of the other “similar” vehicles the three people who came to look at it had seen. Seriously, this isn’t hard: make all the lights work, have it run reasonably well, fresh oil, properly functioning AC, and clean the shit out of the inside. Then post an ad that answers all of the questions people are going to ask, and include a lot of good pictures. It seems most people don’t get this.
I’ve been looking for fix and flip vehicles for the last couple months. I came across a 2000 S10 2wd with a 2.2l in it. It doesn’t have compression on 2 cylinders, but appeared to be decent other than that and some expected rust (northeast car). No battery, but I grabbed the jump box and found it had 230k on it. Not a surprise that it would need a head gasket at that mileage.
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Another archive from an old Rennlist post, as this one keeps coming up again and again.
If your voltage stays low when you start the car (alternator not charging) and then jumps up to a normal charging voltage when you hit 2500 or 3000 RPMs, it’s the alarm. Â Yes, the alarm.
Somewhere in Germany in the 80s, some engineer said to himself “ve shall make ze alarm control ze DME relay AND ze alternator field current.” No one knows why. Â But it happened. Â And if your alarm is broken or removed, you or someone before you probably only bridged the wires to allow the DME relay to be energized (pins 1 and 4 on the alarm box connector), started the car and said “good enough.” Â Well, it wasn’t. Â Now go bridge pins 7 and 8 and your alternator will get +12v to the blue D+ (field) wire when you start the car, which will allow the alternator to start working at low RPMs. Â Without that, you need to get the RPMs up high enough to “auto excite” the alternator. Â The better condition your alternator is in, the lower that number will be.
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Reposted from my forum post on rennlist.
I am going to start with re-charging an otherwise working A/C system.– It has started to short cycle, meaning you can hear the A/C compressor under the hood clicking on for 3 seconds, and then off for 3 or 4 seconds repeatedly.– It is not cooling well at all. I have to leave the A/C on full blast for a good 5 minutes on an 80 degree day to get any real cooling in the cabin.– It is NOT my Porsche, but the process and theory are exactly the same. Repair and certain diagnostics are a different matter, as this has a capilary tube and accumulator where our cars have an expansion valve and receiver/dryer.– It is R134a. If you re still on R-12, things aren’t much different other than the refrigerant costing 3x as much and you need an EPA cert ($20 online) to purchase it.It is 83 degrees F outside, with 70% relative humidity.I am going to start with re-charging an otherwise working A/C system.
– It has started to short cycle, meaning you can hear the A/C compressor under the hood clicking on for 3 seconds, and then off for 3 or 4 seconds repeatedly.
– It is not cooling well at all. I have to leave the A/C on full blast for a good 5 minutes on an 80 degree day to get any real cooling in the cabin.
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Yeah… another blog. Â But not really. Â I just want somewhere to post things that might be useful to other people at some point. Â Forum postings really aren’t very searchable or permanent, so I’ve set this up.