Yikes!!!!

[Monty123]

Hi all,

I'm new to this forum...I have a 2002 Pontiac Montana with the 3400 engine. 144,000 miles...Very relaible van!!!LOVE IT...

Changed the dreaded air filter last pm. As I was buttoning everything back up, I noticed the plastic pipe, which sorta looks like the PCV valve, it is in between the the throttle body and the air box, had come out at the front connection and at the rear!!! The plastic pipe is about 18-24" long and snakes abit. I cannot for the life of me figure out where it connects at the rear? It has a circular end.

Can anyone help???

Monty123

[Monty123]

OK...After an Advanced Search and 1.5 hours of searching. I found the hole where the rear of the plastic tube fit. Lucklily I have small hands and can bend like a gymnist...

Wish I had a say in the design of the enginer bay/spacing on this van!! Way too tight!!

Monty123

[97Venture_Chick]

I know what you mean about the small size of the engine bay...my fiance won't work on it because everything is so tightly held together...So, I am doing a lot of the repairs myself. I mean...to even replace the spark plugs, the engine has to be dropped. Wow...someone wasn't thinking too well.

[dewaynep]

Just to clarify: The engine Does Not need to be dropped to change the spark plugs. You can reach up in between the downpipe and the firewall and remove the back 3 plugs. Is it ideal? No, but cars haven't been ideal to work on since the early 1960's. It takes about 45 minutes to change the plugs on these vans, not easy but do-able.

[rdh2]

Originally Posted by 97Venture_Chick

I know what you mean about the small size of the engine bay...my fiance won't work on it because everything is so tightly held together...So, I am doing a lot of the repairs myself. I mean...to even replace the spark plugs, the engine has to be dropped. Wow...someone wasn't thinking too well.

It's real easy to change the rear plugs if the two front engine isolator struts are disconnected and the engine rotated forward.

[Cressidaadr]

Originally Posted by 97Venture_Chick

I I mean...to even replace the spark plugs, the engine has to be dropped. Wow...someone wasn't thinking too well.

Come on - this is about as easy as it gets. The GM engineers designed this engine so that the head gaskets and lower intake gaskets would fail around 75,000 miles thus making changing the plugs very easy since you'll have the heads sitting out on the bench

[roadrunner2]

I still think the manufacturers should have simply installed four corner mounting bolts and four corner lifting eyes on the roof.

The cabins are lowered onto the chassis over top everything when on the line.