VT.. were to start

[Nocturnal]

Ok so i pick up this VT s1 with 117000, on the clock for 5k cant go wrong right? f**k..
- runs 200-250 to a tank city/300 long distance
- creaks/sqeaks on body/interior
- heater rattles on 3/4
- bent diff arm (3 degrees outward)
- cleaned the plenum, absolute filth.. (backstory)
- radiator contains about 10% rust to 90% coolant/water
- the car has always pulled to the left violently (even before this strange occurance in the diff arm)
etc..

modestly i've spent 4k on the car in repairs, all of the above are problems in progress

as i was cleaning the throttle body and plenum chamber, also adding a plenum spacer for added low end torque.. however there was one bolt missing at the end, we didn't think much of it so we put everything back together and started the car.. crunched and stalled in 3 seconds "so theres that missing bolt.." my mate and i take apart the engine to the valves, and the head of the plenum chamber bolt was stuck behind the stem of the valve. after a long and arduos task removing the bolt, i quickly looked over the valves.. seemed fine, the valve levers were taken off and put back on during the process of removing the bolt (to no benefit). once again put the engine back together to the T or atleast i think.(no i didn't forget gasket seal)

starting the car for the second time, backfires 2/3+ rpm, engine torque shakes the car violently in idle, drove me home 700metres down the road.. the ecotec engine was running like a 2 cylinder that drive home..

basically what im asking is, were should i begin with fixing the engine..
if i was to take a wild guess, bent valve/adjust valve levers, with the outrageous fuel economy i got no idea what to aproach on this car.

the car is a spoiled brat, over serviced/only ever ran 98
anyway.. i got a bit of a dilemna, desperately need advice

[Cameron P]

Sounds like you bought a dud.. And why would you see a bolt missing and not think much of it lol I'm confused

Good luck with it

[Munz]

cheaper to buy a second hand/ reco one or........l67

[Mirkz]

A car with 117,000 kms, I would have thought would be in much better condition.
Obviously not as spoiled prior to you owning the vehicle.

I'd say you've done more damage than you think to the motor with that missing bolt too.

[GEN3RATD]

cheaper to buy a second hand/ reco one or........l67

for me this advice is win

P plates- buy a reco'ed 6 banger
No P plates - L67.

[kcpwns]

for me this advice is win

P plates- buy a reco'ed 6 banger
No P plates - L67.

+2 for that mate...may end up being cheaper..instead of finding more problems and trying to
repair it

[])R@G()N]

Your lucky that bolt got stuck in the valve, Sounds like you have a bent valve I'd say your valve sit is marked too, you'll need to take that head off and check it. If you can't replace them yourself its probably cheaper to replace it with a secondhand head,

My first car I had the motor totally rebuilt over size pistons the lot, it had webber carby's on it and the airfilters use to bolt on, One of the bolts worked its way loose and came out,,Down the carby it when bouncing around the top of the piston denting it, every time the bolt hit the piston it dented it more and more, it expanded the piston's diameter until it split the cylinder, (probably didn't help having the cylinder bored to the max )

[johnno010684]

hmmm difficult situation you have, if it were me id start pulling the heads off and investigate yourself. you have nothing to lose, there really not that hard to work on these motors. get a valve spring compressor and remove all the valves, springs, seats etc if you find a bent valve so be it and you could probably chuck in new cam lifters while your at it, as for the oil crap in the plenum... elite catch can. but thats me, i love pulling s**t apart and teaching myself how to work on engines, your best bet is to probly trade it in and buy a vt ss

[Tree cutter]

Sounds like you have bent a valve or damaged the seat. Bad fuel economy can be anything like faulty temp sensor or thermostat stuck open,faulty oxygen sensors, blocked fuel filter,faulty injectors or fuel pressure regulator. It could even be a fuel hose leaking.

[Nocturnal]

hmmm difficult situation you have, if it were me id start pulling the heads off and investigate yourself. you have nothing to lose, there really not that hard to work on these motors. get a valve spring compressor and remove all the valves, springs, seats etc if you find a bent valve so be it and you could probably chuck in new cam lifters while your at it, as for the oil crap in the plenum... elite catch can. but thats me, i love pulling s**t apart and teaching myself how to work on engines, your best bet is to probly trade it in and buy a vt ss

wish everyone thought like that, i'm so fed up with people tellin me what i can and cant do.. so i reefed apart the engine again, put everything thing where it goes, new gaskets etc.. nothings wrong with levers/seats/valves (yeah i'm more surprised than you know), i'll skip to the point.. above 1000rpm the car runs like a g6.. absolutely purs (ss induction/redback exhaust) however the drive idle reaches and sits at 39k's on the flat, neutral idle fluctuations.. :/ really jumpy on take offs before my foot touches the pedal, besides that.. its more responsive/sounds great/crisp gear changes in drive.. drank quarter tank in 17kms lol, what ive done to fine tune it
- idle'd for 10ish mins before driving after ECU reset
i don't think the intake was sealed properly due to tubing failure, i have an exaust tip as airbox to throttle body piping.. (thought it'd be funny) nevertheless works great its now resealed with new tubing i can't elaborate just yet
- theres standard slack in throttle cable

.. ehh what i think is wrong but not sure
- basically everything 'tree cutter' mentioned

anyone know the the proper way to reset VT ECU? mines VT hsv chip adaptive, remapped

[Mirkz]

Think it's just a matter of disconnecting the battery for 30 mins or something ?

When I did my throttle body, I basically had it disconnected the whole time (roughly 45 -60mins) then after I'd fitted the new one etc I connected it all back up.
Started the car and revved to about 2-3k and held it for about 20-30 seconds at that and that was it.
Not sure if this would be about the same though...?

[wrx884]

does it do all wat uve said with the standard memcal in? could b a probblem with ur chip.

checked codes at all?

[Cashman_309]

Cleaned the MAF sensor?
All the plugs getting spark at idle?
Checked for error codes?

I'm leaning towards problems with the MAF sensor, IAC or coil pack.
Even if it's not the MAF, get some contact cleaner or MAF cleaner and spray the heck out of it, improves fuel economy.

Reset the ECU by just taking off the positive battery lead for 10 minutes.

EDIT: +1 to wrx884 on error codes.

[Nocturnal]

thanks everyone for the tips and tricks, turned out the purge hose was disconnected from the cannister and there was an air leak on the thing that recycles unburnt gases, and a sensor on the throttle body wasn't sealed.. so now the top half of the engine has been taken apart, cleaned from the inside. cleaned the sensors everything is fixed basically , the car now purs like a kitten i have never driven it before like it is now..

wouldn't of been able to do it without the help and ideas/solutions from everyone who posted

[guerilla_radio07]

I have a 97 VT aswell and I run into the issue with the creaking, its usually the dirver window that does it and it annoying as hell. Not sure where to start with it. Mine seems to be the windows doing it.