If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
2001 Buck Century-Just wierd or a junker?
It's got 43,000, mostly city driving with some brief freeway runs. Two
probs. First, it's using about a quart of oil every two or three months. Not leaking on driveway and the car's not smoking. Inside of the exhaust pipe isn't light grey but it's not sooty black either. Is it leaking elsewhere or am I headed for a ring job? Secondly, the Low Coolant light stays on long after other dash lights have checked and gone out. After five or six miles of driving the Low Coolant light goes out. There's plenty of coolant in resevoir and the radiator. On secondary startings during the day, Low Coolant light performs like other dash lights; unless over a long stop, then Low Coolant light stays on for five or six miles. This is not an intermittent occurence. Anybody experience these symptoms? I suspect it might take a legit mechanic days to diagnose? |
Ads |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
2001 Buck Century-Just wierd or a junker?
|
#3
|
|||
|
|||
2001 Buck Century-Just wierd or a junker?
> wrote:
>It's got 43,000, mostly city driving with some brief freeway runs. Two >probs. First, it's using about a quart of oil every two or three >months. Not leaking on driveway and the car's not smoking. Inside of >the exhaust pipe isn't light grey but it's not sooty black either. Is >it leaking elsewhere or am I headed for a ring job? Maybe. Is there any blue smoke? If so, when is it? Could be it is using oil when the engine is started for a couple seconds... could be it's during acceleration. You might have a seal leak somewhere which takes ten minutes to fix, or a cracked block. Could be anything from your description. >Secondly, the Low Coolant light stays on long after other dash lights >have checked and gone out. After five or six miles of driving the Low >Coolant light goes out. There's plenty of coolant in resevoir and the >radiator. On secondary startings during the day, Low Coolant light >performs like other dash lights; unless over a long stop, then Low >Coolant light stays on for five or six miles. This is not an >intermittent occurence. If you disconnect the wire from the low coolant sensor, does the problem persist? if so, you have a wiring issue. Otherwise (and what is most likely) the coolant level sensor is sticking and ought to be replaced. Easy job and not much money. You can do it, or you can leave the wire disconnected and check the coolant level by eye occasionally. --scott -- "C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis." |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
2001 Buck Century-Just wierd or a junker?
N8N wrote: > wrote: > > It's got 43,000, mostly city driving with some brief freeway runs. Two > > probs. First, it's using about a quart of oil every two or three > > months. Not leaking on driveway and the car's not smoking. Inside of > > the exhaust pipe isn't light grey but it's not sooty black either. Is > > it leaking elsewhere or am I headed for a ring job? > > How many miles are you racking up over those two to three months? If > you're putting 2-3K on it in that time, which is probably about average > use, there is absolutely no problem, that is acceptable oil usage. Thanks, Nate. Probably half that mileage, all easy miles driven by a mature driver. If this is acceptable oil usage, it is a surprise to me. I've driven a half dozen GM cars, a Ford, a Chrysler(?),an over-used CJ-7 and a couple of Opals. None used any oil, except once when moving tons of books in the trunk of an Opal. The books were so heavy and the car so underpowered that on three or four trips the car used more oil than gasoline. Once the move was completed the Opal returned to normal oil consumption which was almost nil. > > > > > Secondly, the Low Coolant light stays on long after other dash lights > > have checked and gone out. > Sounds to me like whatever sensor is in the coolant reservoir is > sticky; I would be willing to bet that cleaning or replacing it would > solve your problem. I have had this same issue on various BMWs and VWs > and it's always the sensor. I'll give it a shot. Thanks again. |
#5
|
|||
|
|||
2001 Buck Century-Just wierd or a junker?
Scott Dorsey wrote: > > wrote: > >It's got 43,000, mostly city driving with some brief freeway runs. Two > >probs. First, it's using about a quart of oil every two or three > >months. Not leaking on driveway and the car's not smoking. Inside of > >the exhaust pipe isn't light grey but it's not sooty black either. Is > >it leaking elsewhere or am I headed for a ring job? > > Maybe. Is there any blue smoke? If so, when is it? Could be it is > using oil when the engine is started for a couple seconds... could be > it's during acceleration. You might have a seal leak somewhere which > takes ten minutes to fix, or a cracked block. Could be anything from > your description. Yo Scott. No smoke, blue or otherwise. "Could be anything" is what scares me. So many of my "problems" don't show up on diagnostic; then legit mechanics will start repairing things until they find the one that works. > > >Secondly, the Low Coolant light stays on long after other dash lights > >have checked and gone out. After five or six miles of driving the Low > >Coolant light goes out. There's plenty of coolant in resevoir and the > >radiator. On secondary startings during the day, Low Coolant light > >performs like other dash lights; unless over a long stop, then Low > >Coolant light stays on for five or six miles. This is not an > >intermittent occurence. > > If you disconnect the wire from the low coolant sensor, does the problem > persist? if so, you have a wiring issue. Otherwise (and what is most > likely) the coolant level sensor is sticking and ought to be replaced. > Easy job and not much money. You can do it, or you can leave the wire > disconnected and check the coolant level by eye occasionally. > --scott Hmmmmm. I'm afraid I'd have trouble finding the wire from the low coolant sensor. But the wire or the sensor is probably the problem. And a mechanic ought to be able to check that easily. Thanks. |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Oil Change for a 2001 Buick Century | jarl | Technology | 16 | July 21st 05 10:22 PM |
2001 Buick Century Power Window not Working | [email protected] | Technology | 1 | January 29th 05 02:23 AM |
2001 Buick Century Factory Radio Removal and Repace | [email protected] | Technology | 2 | January 13th 05 04:55 AM |