Engine light after Tune up !

[Sandfobs]

Van engine light came on 95 - 3.1 almost felt like the engine missing a cyclinder. Took it in for a tune up and picked it up and sounds and runs worse now. Timing was good as explained by garage. They also said the engine's old and the sound we hear while idling is the valve's they said. They recommended buying a new vehicle.

Hmm I think that maybe just adjustments could be made like tighting up a valve or replacing valve springs and valve's or something. Any thoughts?

[aamirmali]

put some GM top end cleaner. that should free up the sticky valves (if that's what it is).

As far as the timing goes, they shouldn't have touched it if you only replaced plugs/wires. What else was done to the car?

When a repair shop tells you to buy a new car instead of recommending a fix, that means they don't know what the fuck they are talking about. Find another shop....

[LMP]

Originally Posted by Sandfobs

...They recommended buying a new vehicle.

WOw..that 's what I call trigger happy
Too bad you did not get the code that was stored....this could shed some light...but I'm trying to figure out: was the light on before the tune up, or just came after?
I had mine run on part of the cylinders lately....turned out to be spark plug wires. If yours are original, they are due for a change anyway.
What was included in the "tune up"...?
ALso, "noise" is a little vague...can you explicit?

Originally Posted by Sandfobs

They also said the engine's old and the sound we hear while idling is the valve's they said.

The 3.1 is prone to "piston jacket slack"....this makes a noise like valve rattle but it is not..(by the way there are no adjustment for valves.). This is common and might be what you describe. However this noise can be heard also as you accelerate. Piston slack noise is an annoyance...period. It is not life threatening and the car will run like that for long..so if you can endure , keep going.