A couple of questions

I'm thinking of having the rear axle replaced on the 1997 AWD. Is it easier and less costly to have the whole axle replaced or just have the internals of the differential replaced? Opinions?

Does anyone know if there is another connection for the speedometer in the dash cluster? Since I've been having a problem with the sensor at the transfer case in the past, my mechanic is now leaning towards the possibility there may be another connection at the cluster that may be the culprit.
Opinions?

If thewre is another connection, Can you put a name to it so I'd know what to look for or purchase?

Thanks :popcorn:

I'm thinking of having the rear axle replaced on the 1997 AWD. Is it easier and less costly to have the whole axle replaced or just have the internals of the differential replaced? Opinions?

Does anyone know if there is another connection for the speedometer in the dash cluster? Since I've been having a problem with the sensor at the transfer case in the past, my mechanic is now leaning towards the possibility there may be another connection at the cluster that may be the culprit.
Opinions?

If thewre is another connection, Can you put a name to it so I'd know what to look for or purchase?

Thanks :popcorn:

Rear axle? If the ring and pinion in the rear axle is all that's wrong, replace just them only.

Leaning mechanics bother me. ALOT.

I hear you about those leaning mechanics. I've used the same mechanic for a while now, a great mechanic is difficult to find.

Is the ring and pinion job a difficult job for a seasoned mechanic?

On a scale of 1 - 10 ,,, How expensive is it to do? Just looking out for my wallet.

I had the ring and pinion professionally replaced and "set-up" to the tune of $550 with a used 3rd member- about 7 yrs ago---I then blew that rear end out- about 6 yrs later, and opted for the whoile rear axle this time- cost me $150 from a salvage yard- and it was a whole lot easier to do- just had to tranfer some parking brake cables- and bleed the brakes- but without the right tools - you can't set the lash yourself- so I got a low mileage rear-end- that is already set-up- makes a whole lot more sense to me- and it was much cheaper. Of course when I had asked the professional about doing that 7 yrs ago- he said- no way-- but he can't make the big bucks that way- there is no "set up" labor...

I'm going for the whole rear end if I can find one. I had one put in a 99 Ford conversion van a couple of years ago. It cost me $300 for the rear ens and $175.00 for the mechanic to do it. Different mechanic than I use now but I'll go back to him.

This Asto is becoming the van from h*ll. I just went and got my kid on the side of the highway. The oil gauge was reading zero at idle, the oil is full to capacity, he said he thought it was going to overheat. I started it and applied a good amount of gas to the pedal, the oil pressure came up to 40, I dropped it in drive and took off, there was a bit of squealing from underneath up front, that went away, It didn't try to overheat, the fan came on and controlled the temp as it should, It was a bit sluggish going up hills on the way, when I cam to stop signs and such the check gauges light came on, but when I applied the gas it went off, I drove it about 8 miles to my mechanic and left it there, I told him maybe the oil filter is plugged, he said no, maybe the catalytic converter ,,, What do you guys think?

Spun rod bearing. The van is done! Not worth the repair.

Pennzoil?

"Pennzoil?"

Now how could you possibly have known that?

You never answered the Pennzoil question. How'd you know. Is Pennzoil bad for engines?

I bought a Ford E250 for a replacement van but I'd still like to have the Astro done. Rebuilt engine and tranny for $2,601.00 with warranty.

Pennzoil and Fram, great stuff if you're not planning on driving the vehicle. The best place for both of them is on the parts store shelf. As soon as they leave the shelf, the problems start.

Fram is something I stopped buying a long time ago , dealer or Baldwin filters are all I ever buy now but I have not heard of the Pennzoil deal . Just for curiosity please do tell what the problem is with the oil.

I'd like to know what's wrong with using Pennzoil as well. What can you tell us? That's a bold statement without an answer. Myself, I thought Pennzoil was supposed to be good. Now you've got me wondering.

I've had countless engines apart for repairs and more often then not, the ones that were sludged up the worst had a steady diet of Pennzoil. I can't give you a technical answer why, but with 30 some odd years experience in repairing them, I can offer my opinion and share the observations that I have made.

As far as oil filters, check this site: http://minimopar.knizefamily.net/oilfilters/index.html

Pennzoil/Quaker State (same company) have historically (past evidence - They may have recently changed) used the lowest quality base stocks for blending consumer engine oils. That means that in order to meet API requirements, they have used fortifiers extensively. The polymers used to fortify oil typically fail early in their life cycle, burning and turning to sludge. A good oil filter will be able to trap some of that, but that leaves a lot less filter to trap other particulates.

Beyond the problem with sludge in the filter and the rest of the sludge in the engine, the rapid loss of polymers means the oil quickly reverts to its base form. The base oil that would once maintain viscosity at 300º with the aid of polymers becomes thinner than water, and provides very little lubricant film strength.

Engine oils are typically 75-85% base stock, with the remaining volume being comprised of additives. Because of this, base stock is critical to the performance of the final product. Poor quality base oils require more additive, and the additives frequently become contaminants as they are used. Beyond the tendency of the oil to fail, the volume of usable oil decreases as the filter and engine become clogged with sludge. Better oils, even mineral oils using better base stocks, do not suffer that tendency to anywhere near the same degree. Group IV synthetics do not suffer it at all.

If you use low-grade oil and change every 1,500-2,000 miles, you might just get by without serious engine wear and sludge. That's a gamble, but in the long run, you've saved nothing over using a superior lubricant changed one-third as often. You can take the big step to Group IV synthetics and use it confidently for up to 10,000 miles, more if you care to sample and analyze it.

Old Master - I feel it necessary to warn you that if you continue to advise people to use good products, you may be held responsible for putting several good engine rebuilders out of business, and possibly eliminating an already strained segment of the economy. Do you really want that weight hanging over your head?

Please, keep our little secret. We'll keep driving while everyone else keeps rebuilding.

Old Master, Blue Bowtie, Thanks for the info. As luck would have it I picked up a nice 2000 E250 van a couple of weeks ago to replace my ailing Astro. I'm due for an oil change and guess what sticker is in the upper left hand corner of the windshield? "Quaker State" Man, is it me or what? So now I definitely want the oil changed to the best to be used. So, since you guys are the Guru's in my opinion on these matters, please do tell me a specific oil to use and oil filter as well. I di read a lot of the filter link but it has left me guessing. So, opinions on what to use would be very helpful. Thanks ,,,,

Steve,
I've used Mobil 1 fully synthetic 5W30 in my 4.3L with a Purolator Pure One oil filter since it was new. At 3,500 miles I change the filter & top it off. At 7,000 I change the whole works. Yes, it's expensive, but so is a new engine. The inside of the engine is SPOTLESS, and there are no oil leaks after 170,000 miles. You'll get all kinds of responses to this question, so, take my advice and do what you want, I know what works for me, and I'm not about to switch. ;)


Ya think the oil filter site was confusing??? Check this one:

http://micapeak.com/info/oiled.html

It hasn't been updated in a while, but you'll get the idea.

Third Safari with over 300,000 Km on the motor. This one is still going strong (and I pull a 26' travel trailer with it too).
About five vehicles ago, I stumbled on what seems to be the ideal combination (for me anyway). With all three vans; my wife's car and my Dodge Caliber, I use the combination of Bosch +4 platinum spark plugs; K&N air filter and Castrol Syntec motor oil. The Syntec is a fully synthetic motor oil and has proven itself in my books to reduce wear and tear to a considerable degree. We log some pretty high mileages on our vehicles with no problems at all. In the Safari, I run 5W-30 in the winter and change it to 20W-50 in the summer to compensate for the heat and towing the trailer. In my Caliber, I simply go with the factory-recommended 5W-20 and use the factory recommended grades for my wife's car as well. In fact, I purchased the Caliber brand-new last December and did not even drive it off the lot before having them change the oil and put in the new plugs and air filter.
The Bosch plugs have four electrodes arranged in a circle around the center electrode. This produces a clean, hot spark and nets much better fuel mileage (and the K&N air filter contributes to that as well. The result is that my motors do not foul up and run very clean. I also get much better mileage than average on these vehicles. (My Caliber AWD gets about 8.2l/100Km.)
A freind of mine used to swear by Pennzoil. After blowing a motor at less that 100,000 Km. and having his mechanic say that he suspected the oil, he now swears AT it.

Steve,
Ya think the oil filter site was confusing??? :confused:

You got me there.

I went back to my "OLD" mechanic today about the Astro. I told him I'd like him to pull th pan and have a look. That's the only way to see if I dodged a bullet or if everything is shot right? Right off the bat he says he want to hear it and tells me the oil pressure will be the key, so to speak. I told him the pan is a easy pull on this and he should be able to see everything needed, am I right? I just have to know before making a decision on trashing it or not. I think I should at least have the pan pulled to know what's up.

When he pulls the pan, should there be metal shavings or whatnot if the bearing spun that are visible?

By the way, the pan is going to be taken off on Wednesday or Thursday of this week. What should I be looking for when he does? I'll tell you guys what we find.

Another Mobil 1 user here, in everything from my generator, lawnmowers, and snowblower to every vehicle. I use 10W30, but it rarely gets much colder than -25ºF here, so there's no reason for me to go to 5W30. 10W30 still pumps and flows at -60ºF, and if it's that cold, I'm probably not going anywhere anyway. That along with the older Champ or Wix oil filters has been a good recipe for me. I stretch the oil changes to 5,500-6,000 miles in warmer weather, and 4,000 miles in colder weather. That turns out to be 2 changes a year for most of them, and at least one change a year on the vehicles which only get 100 or so miles (to keep acid formation in check). I get 5-quart jusgs of M1 for about $23 and a filter for $5. That's under $60 a year for oil changes per vehicle. If i ever had to return to mineral oil, it would be Valvoline, Mobil 0, or Rotella, and I would change the oil and filter at least 4 times per vehicle at a cost of about $14 each. With PAO synthetic, the cost is a wash for me, and I'm not changing oil in one of 7 vehicles and 5 small engines every weekend. Beyond that, tear-downs of higher mileage engines which have been pushed hard have proven to me that PAO prevents wear.

As for the oil pan removal, the starter will have to be removed, then the transmission lower flange bolts, then the oil pan bolts. There should be plenty of space to drop the pan and get good access to the rod and main caps to take a look at the journals.

http://mysite.verizon.net/strey/files/4WDOilPan.jpg