Ping-a-ling

[tomlcollins]

I've had it with this d*mn pinging...I've replaced my pcv and THOROUGHLY cleaned my egr and nothing has seemed to help. I'm not running sea foam or anything like that b/c I'm still under warranty at the moment. I refuse to run higher octane with gas as high as it is, so I'm taking her in to the dealer one last time before my warranty runs out in the end of May.

I've heard that the timing/ecm adjustment is a risky fix, and that in many cases it stops the pinging buts kills your gas mileage and your power at the same time. My gas mileage isn't great to begin with (17-18), so I'm not really willing to sacrifice much to fix this. That includes constantly having to run additives or occasionally having to cleanse the engine of carbon via sea foam or some other alternative.

Anyone have any suggestions on what to do about this? Pinging definitely effects the life of your engine, and I'm considering bringing out the "for sale" sign if I can't find a reasonable fix for this problem.
My Dad just bought a 4 wheel drive, 4 door Colorado that is getting 21 PING FREE mpg city, and I'm seriously thinking about following suit. Sorry to all you GM haters, but you have to admit that is pretty d*mn tempting.

All suggestions are appreciated!

Thanks,
Tom

[amigo-2k]

I went through this same thing with my dealer. I also submited a complaint to (????; the place for car compaints) and I recieved a letter from corp Isuzu along with a photocopy of the owners manual (1 sheet) that states that Pinging (or knocking) while accelerating up hill is normal.

Techron every 3k has pretty much kept the ping away. When I notice it once every 3k or so I just fill up with the mid grade gas.

My previous truck (Chevy S10) did the same thing from 80K - 181K (sold it and I still see it driving around 4 years later).

[Ramblin Fever]

17/18 mpg in town, IS the standard for a 3.2L V6 Rodeo with 16" tires.

Some times some Rodeo's even average 15/16 in town, just depends on how much stuff is in the truck or on the truck, i.e. brush bar, slightly bigger tires, etc.

You say you're using additives, fuel additives? What kind?

Also, my 97 Rodeo pinged like crazy the whole time I lived in Vegas, NV, didn't seem to matter what grade of gas or where I got the gas at.

I did have the dealership do the PCM reprogram, at the time, I didn't know that it actually retarded the timing. Didn't help - not one bit.

I had family back home here in Colorado and would come visit, the minute, and I mean the minute I would hit Cedar City, UT truck would stop pinging.

It did this without fail everytime. Well I eventually ended up moving back to Colorado - been here 4 yrs and not a single ping.

Can't explain it myself, have no clues. But it pinged for 3-4yrs from 11K miles to 76+K, and would ping at the slightest of incline. Now it was never a hard ping, just a light ping - but it pinged.

Now have 137K miles, engine runs flawlessly, no inclination what-so-ever of it's past pinging days.

Have never used any kind of fuel or oil additives except a good bottle of "HEET" every so often in the winter time.

Out of curiousity, what kind of spark plugs you got in there? Those can cause problems too, Isuzu's like certain brands better then others.

[Cat Fuzz]

"Pinging" is what happens when the air/fuel mixture explodes prematurely and the piston "slams" up into the exploding gasses instead of being pushed back down on the power stroke. I can't comprehend pinging being normal in any gasoline engine. Pinging is bad. It can damage your engine and a pinging engine is less efficiant because of the wasted power.

Spark plugs wouldn't have any effect on pinging. Well, maybe they could if you had a plug in there that has a higher heat range than stock.

A fuels octane rating is a measure of how well a fuel resists combustion due to heat and/or compression. The higher the number, the higher the resistance. An engine that does not have a pinging problem will *NOT* benefit in any way using a higher octane fuel. The gas stations love to sell high octane fuel to people that don't need it because these people think they are getting some benefit from the higher octane.

Several things can cause pinging: 1) High compression. Usually not something to worry about unless you have a high performance or custom built engine. 2) Advanced timing. Spark goes to the plug too soon and ignites the air/fuel mixture too soon. Too much advance and you'll get a backfire out the carb/ throttle body because the mixture explodes when the intake valve is still open. 3) Heat. If an engine is running too hot or has a blockage around the upper cylinder area, this can cause pinging. Also, hot carbon deposits can ignite the mixture at odd times.

Judging by what you've said so far, you might have a cooling issue. Does the engine ping when its cold? If it only pings when its warmed up, you might need to have your engines cooling system flushed. You might have a blockage or restriction somewhere thats not showing up on your temp gauge.


This concludes this weeks lesson on pre-detination or "pinging".

[tomlcollins]

Been out of town for the last couple of days, thanks for the responses.......However, regretfully enough I'm already fully aware of how and why pinging occurs. I've built a couple of small blocks in the past that have presented this problem to me.

My truck is completely stock, it only has 42K miles on it. It pings all the time, not just when it's warm. What annoys me is that I bought this thing thinking I could run 87 octane in it without a problem and now I seem to be finding out that I can't. I'm not really happy with my gas mileage to begin with, especially considering that it's a 2 wheel drive and that it is really a small suv (much smaller than it looks).

Also, I live in Charleston, SC. Don't know if you all know much about the area, but it's nicknamed "The Lowcountry". That equates to "no hills". Isuzu's pinging under acceleration uphill isn't really applicable.

Guess I'll take it in. I'm nervous about doing the PCM reprogram because the Service Manager told me that it has shaved 2-3 mpg off of some people's already poor gas mileage.

Might just have to suck it up and start using additives and mid-grade or premium every other tank. I really don't want to do that, but may have to just to stop this.

[Ramblin Fever]

Exactly the same issues I had. Mine pinged at low altitude, with or without a very mild incline.

As I may have already stated, I had the PCM reprogram, didn't do a thing for my truck. I sure hope you have better luck then I did in that regard.

Only thing that "cured" mine, however weird it may sound, was moving to Colorado. So believe me, I understand you when you say you're in "low country" and it pings.

Most vehicles ping in high altitude.

I don't know if I could've tolerated mine had it kept pinging, just because it would've made me nervous for the long haul, so I understand your frustration.

That Colorado sure is a nice looking truck, and I'll admit it grabs my eye for sure.

I'm not a chevy hater by any means, my father had always owned Chevy trucks and loved them til the last one. A 99 Chevy 3/4 ton truck, 6.0Vortec, the day it turned 80K miles, nothing but major problems, one right after the other. Couldn't get any kind of information or assistance from the dealership or GM/Chevy corporation; they were the rudest, and most inconsiderate people I've ever worked with.

We have had '76 1/2 ton, '78 3/4 ton, a '79 3/4 ton, and an '86 1 ton, along with the '99 3/4, all chevy trucks. All of the pre-99 truck had well over 300K miles in the course of our ownership; but that '99 Chevy was the worst vehicle we had ever owned.

I definitely agree that the Colorado is a nice truck, but too new to the market with not enough history or time to work out the quirks. Maybe in 3yrs or so, but for now, I'm loving the idea of no payments and see no need to create any.

But with your 2002 Rodeo, I can see your curiousity in looking at another vehicle, as your's is still fairly new with very low mileage.

[rodeo02]

Tom, this is a strange one given the age/mileage & level of maintenance you've done on the truck. Has is done this since new? I'm at 40Kmi with my 2002 LS 4x4. It has pinged slightly here & there, but it's rare. I top out at about 17mpg. I hear you on buying higher oct. fuels. No way I'd do it. You've made your dealer aware of your situation, so if you have the 10yr/120K mile P-train warranty, i'd keep up on the maintenance & drive it until it craters, then have them fix it ! Historically, trading-in or selling a used 'Zu does not gain you much $ . It's possible, whatever system is creating the ping may rear it's ugly head someday by lighting up the CEL, then your problems *could* be solved! Until then, I'd just keep the radio on.
G/luck
Joel

[Cat Fuzz]

I have been to Charlston! : My father-in-law lives there. Gawd, the humidity drives me nutz. :22yikes:

[tomlcollins]

Originally Posted by Cat Fuzz

I have been to Charlston! : My father-in-law lives there. Gawd, the humidity drives me nutz. :22yikes:

You must not have been to close to the beach or the College of Charleston campus. The humidity wouldn't drive you nearly as nuts as the women (we can all look even if we're married!). You get used to it pretty quickly.

Put in some mid-grade gasoline this morning on a dangerously empty tank, seems to have gotten rid of my pinging problem. So basically, if I want to spend an estimated extra $150 on gasoline a year, I can get rid of my pinging problem. It's just the principle of this.....I'm told I can use regular, but not really. Maybe I'll send my bill to Isuzu for the extra money I have to spend at the pumps, sure I'll see that money real fast.

[wreck05]

Gas at $2.25/gallon for regular unleaded -- is a bottle of Octane Booster a better value than going up to mid-grade?

[mospeed1]

i live in sunny south florida. i use use mid grade gas and mine ping under hard accleration..always thought it was bad gas or something

[hazegrey]

I am a newbe here but what ramblinfever has said isn't that strange at all. I have made many trips to southern idaho from Seattle and when you get into the mountains the knock/ping stops. I thought it was a fluke myself but its true. I often wonder if it is the combination of thinner air combined with lower octane gas(85). I will be making the trip again this summer and I will see If it will do it again.