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Retired old Gearhead

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Everything posted by Retired old Gearhead

  1. Retired old Gearhead
    Thanx for the kind words Bobby...Actually I have very close to 200K on the 2013 Spark..My neighbor has a Benz..2015, I believe and he has one issue after another including a bad tranny leak that the Benz dealer has repeated a fix but it always leaks again after a few weeks. Also has paint flaking off around the logos. I find Buick owners have very few complaints. I have our Pizza driver in a 2013 Spark 4sp-auto tranny with well over 200Kmi..car is driven by a few other pizza drivers so it is always on the road..only a few minor issues. My 2015 Rover has been in the shop more often than the Spa
  2. Retired old Gearhead
    Using process of elimination, sounds like the belts were the cause of noise since that was resolved by a belt replace. The CVT tranny issue may need a 'reprogram' to resolve the odd shifting issue. Many others have had the 'hesitation' issue while at a stop light and then trying to get up to speed again as well as hesitation while at speed and then suddenly giving gas to increase speed rapidly..say to pas traffic etc. The 2014's had more issues with the CVT than later years. I do believe there were one or two recalls for the CVT..hope that points you to a better understanding of the issue and
  3. Retired old Gearhead
    My best guess would be a bad fuel pump relay located in the fuse box under the hood. My next best guess is the idle controller fuel delivery needs replace or repair-adjustment. Hope this points you in the right direction when talking with the tech at the dealer or try an independent garage you trust.
  4. Retired old Gearhead
    Mine was done by by a garage I have used for many years..since he also does my boat he gave me a break on cost. Head was not warped so cost to me was small..under $500. Normally a warped head is replaced and costs range from about $850 to $1,400.
  5. Retired old Gearhead
    Welcome to the forum to you and Clark..lots of all kinds of info and common problem/issues help on these pages.
  6. Retired old Gearhead
    Long ago when I lived in the snow belt, I had a rear engine VW Carmen Ghia...same thing..never got stuck.
  7. Retired old Gearhead
    "Reduced friction, including low-friction piston rings, a low-friction camshaft drive and a low-friction oil pump to increase engine efficiency" Thanx Bobby...The lower friction component aspect stands out for me since this will contribute to a longer component/engine life. I have previously looked into this line of GM engines with their torque at lower and upper rpm's and I think they have a winner on their new LV7. This fairly flat torque aspect is also well suited to a CVT. I have a fairly flat torque at all RPM's on my newer marine engine and it saves on gas while providing lower main
  8. Retired old Gearhead
    Loose caliper sliding rods. Sometimes sounds like boiling water or marbles....that's my best guess.
  9. Retired old Gearhead
    Haha Bobby..couldn't agree with you more! I've been saying that for years. Don't forget the pollution caused by battery disposal with all that nasty stuff in batteries that will need to be replaced every 5 years or so. Gas powered cars are now much more efficient than they were even 5 years ago and the emissions are mostly CO2 which is NOT pollution and the vegetation..trees etc need it to produce our oxygen...only car pollution is the carbon monoxide and that is now emitted in VERY low amounts by these newer gas cars...'Nuff said on that.
  10. Retired old Gearhead
    Interesting article Blue...Just want to say, and have said in previous posts, that I always have a lot of respect for people who are willing to do the research and work themselves. You learn something and get some hands on experience..learn as you go..just don't make the car blow...'Nuff said....
  11. Retired old Gearhead
    Most likely would work..try a connection and if it sounds OK and no fuses pop...it works.
  12. Retired old Gearhead
    Ya, I agree with you Bobby..well..mostly...it doesn't hurt to change the factory oil early on. Some units may have more debris and shavings in the oil than others and the tiny filter may be at limit sooner than others. Break-in oil is now used only on rebuilds or larger 'crate' engines and the factory oil is usually natural aspire or a mix of synthetic/natural. As far as a visual on the oil and level, well, that's a given but I do find my oil monitor is pretty well accurate on both the Spark and the Rover..only thing I look for when checking oil is color and clarity...black..it gets changed AS
  13. Retired old Gearhead
    I use the same battery....Good value and no issues with fit/install and function for the last year or so.
  14. Retired old Gearhead
    Anything is possible for the right price. In the case of a turbo, might be cheaper and simpler to just do a trade-in for a faster car. Compression at 10.5 for the Spark means the valves are already very close to the piston at TDC..a costly head shave and a change to VVT and sensors, reprogram the ECM would maybe give you an xtra 0.5 compression..still too high for all but a very low end turbo and a huge cost thus offsetting any fuel savings...but like I said in a previous post...anything is possible for a price. Just not practical and I would not like to drive with such a small valve clearance
  15. Retired old Gearhead
    Compression on the Spark 1.2/1.4 is too high for a turbo and this car is not designed to accept a turbo. This page should be renamed "Crazy mods that don't work"..I particularly like the tin-foil mod...Really??
  16. Retired old Gearhead
    I bought ours mostly for my wife...also retired, who wanted small and easy to park. I thought the spark was a good fit for her and picked up a 2013 auto tranny with 2kmi on it for $10.5K...cash to reduce the interest. I thought I could get about 100K mi out of it without issues. Now well over 160Kmi, no real issues, runs like new and although I also have a big Range Rover V8..I drive the Spark whenever available because it handles so well and parks anywhere. I drive it hard and change the synthetic oil only once every year or so and I am somewhat surprised that it has come this far without maj
  17. Retired old Gearhead
    My 2013 Spark came with the factory conventional oil. I was told the 'oil life monitor' was calibrated at the factory for conventional oil. I use synthetic and just change it once a year.
  18. Retired old Gearhead
    Excellent!..Always try before you buy. I recently had a problem with my Cable TV and internet at the same time. I have two different providers for each service..no tv and no internet. It was decided to call my internet provider as both use the common TV cable with a splitter. I was on hold so hung up and tried to see if I could resolve it. I took the splitter out of the equation and hooked the tv and internet modem direct to main cable from wall. Each worked fine without the splitter. Found a spare splitter in toolbox, installed and now they both work with correct speed and all channels. So so
  19. Retired old Gearhead
    Nice explanation and excellent diagram!
  20. Retired old Gearhead
    Bobby...Don't go by sound..go by function..try it and see if it still works as expected.
  21. Retired old Gearhead
    I'd go by 10Kmi for the rotations and one year 10Kmi as well for synthetic oil which you can change to at any time. That way you make one trip for rotation and oil. Synthetic will improve mileage and engine life.
  22. Retired old Gearhead
    If the lights do not come on all the time and the car runs normally, it is probably a minor issue such as a sensor. I would just drive it and if the car runs abnormally and or the lights stay on...then take it in. Mostly these things are under powertrain warranty if they are causing the car not to run properly. The posts on the longer thread relate mostly to the 2013 spark with a recall and fix regarding the PCV valve failure. This was fixed on the 2014. That's really the best I can come up with without actually driving the car. BTW..check your oil and coolant tank for proper levels..Unlikely
  23. Retired old Gearhead
    I have over 175,000mi on my 2013 4sp-Auto tranny....no issues and runs like new...got 65Kmi out of the factory front brake pads/rotors. I use synthetic 5w20...never burns more than 1/4qt of oil between 7,500Kmi/18 month changes.
  24. Retired old Gearhead
    May not adhere well after 3 months and is not required. A polishing/buffer rotary tool can fix that.
  25. Retired old Gearhead
    Ha,ha...excellent video but I think the main issue here is the 6 second lights..I would have totally lost it!!!
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