New guy looking for some info.

[nostalgic]

(i hope i posted this in the correct place)
hello all,

i'm new to the 3.4 scene i've always wanted a car with a 3.4 and today i bought a 97 monte carlo z34. it has 98k on the clock but when i test drove it today it pulled like it was show room fresh. i have however a few issues first the idle is a bit odd even after it warms up the idle is around 1k or just above i'm not sure if this is normal or possibly something as simple as a clogged pcv. also i've been reading a bit on this site, i'm a bit confused with dex cool and regular old antifreeze. the previous owners used dex cool which is becomming very dark so i'm fairly sure a flush is on the way should i refill with dex cool or switch to the green.. i can see a bit of build up but i thought due to the metals in the motor i should only use dex cool. and finally (as far as i can remember at this time) are there any areas i should look, the motor doesn't seem to have any large leaks i see a bit comming down the front of the block but it's comming from the valve cover gasket, it pulls strong and surprised me the tranny shifted smooth even at high rpm. i checked the timing belt and it seems to be in great shape looks fairly new. thanks in advance i hope to learn a lot from this forum as well as help when i can.

[HayesPerformance]

Hey,

Have the Dex-cool Flushed completely and then just have them replace it with REGULAR anti-freeze. The Dex-coolant is just a long life coolant BUT is Acidic and Eats the softer metals in your motor, Unless is changed very regularlaly and mixed properly with water.

There are a few in my famliy from Ontario the work high up in the development department at GM and they will openly tell me to replace the DEX-COOL with regular antifreeze. and simply change it more often.
The DEX-COOL can result in damage to soft metal parts (eg. aluminuum) once It starts to break down over time and becomes TOO acidic for ANY engine internal parts.

Best regards,
Dave

[nostalgic]

thanks for the info i'll flush it tomorrow the dex cool is getting old and rusty red looking definatly time to get it out of there

[95SleeperAcheiva]

Now I read that dex-cool also has differant anti'corosive properties, and the "heavy metals" in the green coolant for anti-corrsion will wear out the seals of your water pump faster on a motor that was supposed to have dex. I don't know if anybody else read the article, it's on the net, another guy with too much time on his hands looked into it and every oil filter made. It was really too in-depth to be BS.

Also the dex has a lower gravity than green, ie less water pump resistance to pump.

I run dex in everything I own, I also make sure to mix with distilled water not tap water. But, I also change it every year regardless of it's 5 year life.
Don't tell me there is anyone here who actually believes a "high-tech" oil can go over 3000 miles and goes more than that? BTW I change mine every 2000.

[Juglenaut]

Can use see a small portion of the belt cog on either side of the belt?

[patgizz]

Don't tell me there is anyone here who actually believes a "high-tech" oil can go over 3000 miles and goes more than that? BTW I change mine every 2000.

huh?? i've run royal purple to 17,000 miles and sent it off for testing and had no problems with it, the lab told me i could have run it longer.

[nostalgic]

Can use see a small portion of the belt cog on either side of the belt?

on the timming belt? no not that i remember. the belt pretty much covers the entire cog maybe just a hair on either side. as for the coolant type i was reading aswell and it seems aslong as you flush the dex cool in the same amount of time like you would flush the green things will be okay.

[nostalgic]

actually i looked at it again and you can see about a half an inch of belt on the motor side and about a quater on the other side. i can still see dayco do not crimp on the top of the belt i was always told aslong as theres no strings hanging off and you can still read the letters it's in good shape.

[Green1995Camarov6]

flip the belt over on the grooved side and look for cracking, if there are 8-10 cracks per inch of the belt, replace it.,

[Scott205]

I run my Mobile 1 synthetic for about 6,000 miles, changing the filter at around 3,000 and adding usually a quart to get it back to full. Oil isn't the issue, getting the dirt out of it is. Assuming you don't have heating issues.

[dohcfiend]

colonial heights, huh?? you are only about an hour from me then. perhaps we'll see each other at some point. probably at circle auto....LOL.

if u like going to car meets, there is a fairly large one that goes down every weekend in chesterfield. last sunday over 100 cars showed up.

[z34phoenix]

flip the belt over on the grooved side and look for cracking, if there are 8-10 cracks per inch of the belt, replace it.,

im assuming your talking about the regular belt. cause the if your timing belt is loose enough for you to flip it! you have problems! heck even for your reg belt it shouldnt be that loose.

Scott205
im guessing you have the Oil pump Oring leak huh? i was dealing with that too... but i think i have it fixed now... when i swapped in my Port and Polished lower intake manifold i cleaned that area up and layed down some high temp RTV.


Good find on the 97Z when i first got my car, i didnt do much research.... heck i didnt even know there was a Z34... Im glad i got the 96 but would have been even happier with a 97 cause you got the better trany! 97 started the 4t65e dont let anyone scare you. yes this engine does take some maintenace skills, but when you compare all the probs that happen between this 3.4DOHC, the 3100, 3800 you'll find many of the fixes are easyer on this one. IMO yes the aftermarket is a bit smaller, but there is still stuff out there. if you are looking to boost performance a bit, check out my http://www.cardomain.com/ride/473859 on pg 6 i have a bunch of writeups on common issues and upgrades. and if you got questions feel free to ask!