anyone good with GM 3.1L engines?

[1972ChevyGuy 10+ year member]

How long has it been since you changed the plugs and wires?

 

[jellyfish420 10+ year member]

do you have enough air in your tires? and have you checked your brakes lately? low air pressure will cause a higher rolling resistance, and if you have a caliper hanging up or something that will cause the milage to go strait down hill. just some suggestions.

p.s. 32psi for your tires.

 

[sumone 10+ year member]

How long has it been since you changed the plugs and wires?

Well I got the tuneup 2.5 weeks ago. the reports says they change 6 spark plugs & a max of 2 wires. So the plugs shouldn't be a problem. However, how would I check for a bad spark plug wire?

do you have enough air in your tires? and have you checked your brakes lately? low air pressure will cause a higher rolling resistance, and if you have a caliper hanging up or something that will cause the milage to go strait down hill.

tire pressure...haven't measured recently (..er, actually ever). The brakes, I got the pads replaced like 1-2 months ago. One of them (front left tire) squeaks on turns though (ever since the moment I drove away from the shop). the problem I was having was that there was an "airy" sound and when I tapped on my brakes, the sound went away; they said I needed to replace my brake pads.

 

[jujumantb 10+ year member]

Should have got the 3.8L //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smash.gif.499e08a4a35ffaf54f4c8194fb8fe8ed.gif

 

[1972ChevyGuy 10+ year member]

The only real way to check for a bad wire is to measure the ohms. I always change my wires when I change the plugs, every other oil change.......(Normally 5-6 months) Wires will be good way longer than 6 months, but I am just a freak I guess.

If it is squeeking on the turns... it could be the CV joints, but they make more a popping noise. Have you ever put grease in the zyrk fittings on the A arms and/or tie rod? ( Dunno if you have a tie rod? )

PS: Brake pads wont keep a caliper from sticking

Few tips for better milage:

Taller and more narrow tires

More tire PSI

I know your going to hate me for this one but... Change the way you drive.

Roll down the windows... turn off the AC

^^ Just a couple off the top of my head that really work.

 

[sumone 10+ year member]

The only real way to check for a bad wire is to measure the ohms. I always change my wires when I change the plugs, every other oil change.......(Normally 5-6 months) Wires will be good way longer than 6 months, but I am just a freak I guess.

at which points do I wanna measure...and how the hell do I get to them??

If it is squeeking on the turns... it could be the CV joints, but they make more a popping noise. Have you ever put grease in the zyrk fittings on the A arms and/or tie rod? ( Dunno if you have a tie rod? )

cv joints, zyrk fittings, a arms, tie rods - don't know what none of those are...I haven't done any mechanical work on my car...not even an oil change.

PS: Brake pads wont keep a caliper from sticking

don't know what that supposed to mean either...

Taller and more narrow tires

More tire PSI

I know your going to hate me for this one but... Change the way you drive.

Roll down the windows... turn off the AC

the thing is, I used to get good mileage a while back - then all of a sudden I noticed that I would have to fill up more often...and that's when I noticed how much the fuel gauge moves on a daily basis.

- tires...doubt I'm gonna change

- tire pressure...that's one thing I've never measured

- change the way I drive...yea I've tried that one. I have changed the way I drive. for a whole tank I drove like gramma and it was only a small improvement.

- don't use ac...I never use my AC...ALWAYS with the windows down.

 

[skeptikal Premium Member]

94850 Miles here!

 

[jellyfish420 10+ year member]

If it is squeeking on the turns... it could be the CV joints, but they make more a popping noise. Have you ever put grease in the zyrk fittings on the A arms and/or tie rod? ( Dunno if you have a tie rod? )

PS: Brake pads wont keep a caliper from sticking

.

true you change the pads the caliper will still be stuck. the squeak on turns is probably a dry socket, maybe a tierod or ball joint. being that they are probably still original(are they) they probably dont have any grease fittings on them. i'd take it to a suspension shop and have some on check out the suspension. maybe the alignment might make gas milage go down, if you got a joint bad and your alignment is out you could be dragging you tires.

edit: look at your tires. . . are they wore relitivly flat across the tire? is the tread choppy, or rounded on one edge or the other, maybe both. looking at the tires could tell you alot. look at the tires and let me know what they look like and i might be able to help you out.

 

[Einzee 10+ year member]

#1: I have a far fetched but possible reason to your mileage crisis. Could someone be stealing your gas?

#2: Did you know that there is a light that comes on when you turn the ignition key. It should remain on for like a second or two after the car starts. It's the "Check Engine" or "Service Engine Soon" light. Like all lights, this one will eventually burn out. Check to see if this light works. If it doesn't, you need to replace/have it replaced. Your car may have a faulty electronic part that you wouldn't know of b/c the light doesn't work. If it does work, have you seen it while you're driving? If your car is newer than 95 then youll need a "scan tool" to retrieve the trouble codes. And PLEASE check your tire pressure or goto Pep Boys and someone in the service dept. will do it for free. Ask if any were low.

#3: This squeak started with the brake service? WTF? You need to return the vehicle to the shop and explain your situation. Any reputable shop will definately put the car on a lift and see what they f***ed up. Or at least tell you what is wrong after they lift the car and inspect it. :EDIT: There are retainer clips that hold the pads to the calipers. The retainers keep the pads from "floating" around and possibly making noises while you drive. It is possible that the mech. simply forgot or broke the retainer. Also while driving to the shop, take notice if your car pulls to the side that the noise is coming from by letting go of the steering wheel while driving. If it pulls, a stuck caliper is likely to blame.

To possibly ease your mind, here are my credentials:

During high school I enrolled into a GM Goodwrench Certified auto mecs. class and I trained at the local Chevy dealer. (Cone Chev. Fullerton CA).((Have certificate)) I have also worked at Econo Lube

 

[jellyfish420 10+ year member]

not all brake pads have retainer clips. . . and a squeak while turning would not have anything to do with the brake system.

 

[sumone 10+ year member]

well, as far as the condition of the tires, they look alright (in my eyes). I looked on the tire info placard thing and it said I should have 29psi in front & 26 psi in back. when I measured, the rear ones were exactly 26 except the right side looked about 25.9 or so. the front ones were: about 27 & 26. So as far as the recommendations, does 1 or 2 psi make that much of a difference? I'll try to take pics today of the condition of them.

gas stealing...nahh...highly doubt it...

check engine light...I know it does work. Cause I remember some time ago (happened after I noticed I got poor mileage) I had lost the fuel cap after I had filled up, and the next day I noticed the check engine light was on. then, after I bought another one 2 days later, the indicator lamp went off a day after I bought the new cap.

car is a 2000 malibu with about 69k miles. I was thinking about getting a scan tool to see if any dtc's were being thrown but then someone (from n-body.net) told me they were like $150 - $300.

as far as the squeak: here is a chronology:

0. got the car. no squeaking problems

1. started getting the "airy" sounds where someone told me it was a sign of the brake pads going bad. tapping the brakes, and the sound goes away; but the sound is intermittent. also, the squeals when braking (especially noticeable while parking).

2. bought the brake pads (all 4) & a shop replaced them.

3. noticed the squeak when turning left in the front-left tire. (also note that I'm not braking while I'm turning; and that when I do brake, I DON'T here the squeak. The only time I hear the squeak is if I turn left while not braking).

 

[skeptikal Premium Member]

buddy of mines has the same problem with his front left tire. he's gotta 1996 Dodge Avenger.. He just got it fixed like 3 days ago for hte problem. imma ask him tonight what it was. because he squeaked bad in his left front tire when he turned left or right and even when he was driving. imma ask him what he had the shop do and i'll post back either tonight or tomorrow

 

[1972ChevyGuy 10+ year member]

On our lumina... there a connection under the dash where you can put a wire between 2 points. It will flash the check engine light. This is the diagnostic code, you count the flash's then cross reference that to a book and it shows a problem. I dont know if that new of a car has them though.

 

[jellyfish420 10+ year member]

raise your tire pressure up to 32 psi front and back. try that.

also have you tried some kinda fuel injector cleaner? how does it run. does it run as good as it did before all these problems? are the tires wore flat?

edit: also i don't think the malibu's got 4wheel disk, does it? if not then you got 2 pads and 2 shoes. did the shop turn the rotor's when doing your brakes or just slap pads and be done with it?

 

[jellyfish420 10+ year member]

if you wanted to drive down to STL i could take a look at it for you. and if you brought it on a weekday, i'd be at work and we could get it on a lift and look at it from all angles. we even got a scan tool to hook it up to the computer.