93 Lumina APV- Various issues, please help!!

[Femtex23]

Ok guys, I just typed this really long, pleading thread and when I went to post it, it erased it all...so, here I go again...

A brief history about the van: I love my van. I bought it about 8 months ago from a little old lady. It doesn't have anything cosmetically wrong with it other than some rock chips in the paint. The interior is great accept for a leak in the passenger floorboard. I had the evaporator drain plug blown out but then after a week, the leak started again. Is this a common problem or could it be something more serious and expensive? lol

When I bought the van, there were 2 things wrong with it...the passenger window would only go up or down either way about 5 inches. Then, if it hits the very top of the door or the very bottom of the 5 inches, it makes this nasty, fast grindy kinda gear skipping noise. The 2nd problem with the van was that it doesnt start sometimes. It only happens every now and then, but progressively, the problem is getting worse. Sometimes when you turn the key to start her up, it wont start: you just hear this little click. But, then if you jiggle the shifter or press the brake, she starts up real strong. But just recently, the issue has gotten a bit worse...now, regardless of the temperatures outside, if shes been sitting for 3-4 days, she dies right after she starts. Could it be something related to the spark plugs, or idle?

Also, now the passenger window has started up. It will go down just fine but it goes up really slow. I dont use it b/c I'm afraid I wont be able to get it all the way back up one day. Do I need 2 new motors? If so, how much are they brand new? Could I do that myself?

The brakes are starting to squeak a little bit...how much are brake pads? Is that something I could do myself? My experience with cars is limited. I can do basic maintenance and thats about it, but I do have some some-what knowledgeable mechanics around to help out.

Also, the car is an automatic and is starting to shift a little rough. Is it ok to put a synthetic tranny fluid in it? If so, what brand do you guys recommend?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!

-K-

[Femtex23]

Anybody have any ideas??

[richtazz]

let's break it down by issue.

The passenger side window problem is very likely a bad motor or regulator assembly. Pretty common on these vans. This is a job I wouldn't suggest for a novice mechanic, as it can be quite involved.

If you have a roof rack, it's possible you're getting water through the mounting holes, it's running along the headliner, and coming out the passenger side. It's also possible that debris has once again gotten into the windshield cowl and plugged the drain. (I assume the passenger leak is just water, not coolant). The roof rack can be sealed by a novice mechanic by removing it and putting silicone sealant on all the bolt threads, then reattaching it.

The starting problem sounds like a bad connection. Either a loose or corroded/greasy battery cable would be my guess. IF your van has the theftlock radio, and the theftlock light on the front is lit, make sure you have the code before you unhook the battery, or your radio will be rendered useless.

Front brakes are fairly simple, so buy a repair manual for your van (about $15) and follow the proceedure. Make sure you replace/resurface the rotors or they will squeal. Also make sure you tighten the lug nuts to spec (100 ft/lbs) or your rotors could warp.

Depending on the mileage, you're probably in need of a trans filter service. Make sure you just change the filter, and the fluid that comes out when you drop the pan. DO NOT let them talk you into a fluid exchange, or you'll be replacing your transmission soon (unless the van has less than 50,000 miles). I wouldn't switch to synthetic, as there is no real advantage in a daily driver car. Trans-x and Seafoam are both excellent additives for freeing up sticky shift valves, as is Lucas trans treatment. Add a can of one of those when you do the filter change.

[Femtex23]

Well, I have no roof rack, so the leak can't be coming from there. The liquid doesn't smell like anything...and it's clear...Blowing the evaporator drain plug out worked last time, but only for a week so I hope it isnt anything more serious.

I don't think the van has the theftlock radio...this van is pretty stock and basic...no frills on this thing...lol. I'll check the battery cables when I get home. I just ordered some manuals too: Books 1 and 2 on ebay for $20. Not too shabby.

The mileage is getting on up there. I'm at 117,000 now. How are the trannys on these cars anyway? Are they pretty strong?

Does the seafoam come with detailed directions? On other forums, I have seen some pretty nasty debates about what is the right and wrong way to use it. Some say the car needs to be hot, others say no, or that the car needs to be on the whole time, while others say its ok to turn it off for a minute, etc...

Lastly, where is a good database of information that explains everything about these cars? Meaning, the changes to the different models through the years, the names of the different models, or even a list of all the colors the car came in.

Thanks so much, you've been such a big help!

[botteman]

The leak: The condensation water from my ('90 APV) a/c runs out through the firewall, then runs back in on the outside of the drain spout and down into the carpet pad. What I have to do to fix it is to add a short piece of hose (tightly fitted) to the spout to direct the water away from the firewall. On an unrelated note, the floorboard on the driver side was wet for many months until I discovered the source. The tubing for the rear window washer runs under the carpet along the the driver door frame. It cracked with age and seeped, soaking the carpet.

Window motors: I've replaced them a couple of times on both doors. The window mechanism wears, gets dirty, grease dries up, and the gearmotor sees much more drag. The gearmotor has a built-in overload device that opens up when too much current is drawn for too long a time. After a short cooling period, it re-closes, allowing the motor to work again. Last time I changed one, I bypassed the overload. Changing out a gearmotor isn't tough, maybe a five out of a scale of ten. With a grinding sound, I suspect you've got some serious mechanical issues.

Brakes: Changing the front brake pads is a two out of ten ... a piece of cake. Rear isn't bad either. Plan on changing front pads a lot more often than the rear.

Tranny: NEVER do a transmission flush / fluid replacement on a tranny with lotsa miles. It stirs up and puts into suspension all the dirt and metal particles that had settled out of the way inside the tranny. I made that mistake on my APV with over 100k miles. Right afterwards, the torque converter clutch wouldn't release when I came to a stop at the end of a freeway ramp. Engine stalled ... like stopping a car with a manual tranny without pushing in the clutch. I finally just disconnected the electrical connector for the TCC right on the transaxle body. That was 300k miles ago. (Now at 423k miles on the original, unserviced tranny!)

[Femtex23]

Thank you so much! I'm so glad you guys have told me about not flushing the tranny...thanks for saving me a lot of headache...lol. I'll do the extra bit of hose thing on the drain plug...I hope it helps! Also, since you have had to replace your window motors a couple times, where is the best place to get new motors at a reasonable cost? How much are brand new ones? Can you even get brand new ones anymore?

[botteman]

Originally Posted by Femtex23

Thank you so much! I'm so glad you guys have told me about not flushing the tranny...thanks for saving me a lot of headache...lol. I'll do the extra bit of hose thing on the drain plug...I hope it helps! Also, since you have had to replace your window motors a couple times, where is the best place to get new motors at a reasonable cost? How much are brand new ones? Can you even get brand new ones anymore?

What's reasonable?
I've bought both boneyard and new motors.
Autozone lists new ones online for 40 bucks.

After replacing the motor, I take the old one apart and re-lube it and, as I said, on the last one I soldered together the overload breaker. Since the overload protection is no longer there, I removed the locking mechanism on the window switch. That is, I now have to continue holding the "down" switch to get the driver side window to go all the way down. I was concerned about it anyway, as the switch wouldn't always release when the window stopped at the bottom, so it kept supplying power to the window motor even though it had stopped.

Merry Christmas