SavVYute
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- Nov 26, 2009
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- Townsville
- Members Ride
- VY S V6 Ute Series II 2004
I’ve noticed a lot of posts by VY V6 owners (mostly series II) trying to solve without much success a vibration or rattle that haunts them while sitting at the lights in drive at idle, but goes away when they drive off or increase the RPM slightly.
Now the first most important thing to do is make sure that you give the car a full service. Fresh oils, plugs, leads and filters (air, oil and fuel). This might solve it straight up if you're lucky, but it's essential to start with.
Then you move on. There are a few obvious things that you can check and fix like:-
(1) Loose or bent heat shields (on exhaust pipes). The insulation material inside them breaks down or comes loose.
(2) Not enough clearance between the exhaust and chassis or busted rubber exhaust hangers. Loose pipe connections. Check and tighten the flange where pipes connect to exhaust manifold.
(3) Bits of loose material inside the system
But if you’ve done all these checks and it still rattles or vibrates then check the flexible exhaust joint with the two springs on it. Make sure it is aligned so the sides of the bolts don’t touch the flange they go through, or touch the coils of the springs. Make sure there’s plenty of clearance.
If it is misaligned even slightly you’ll get a vibration. It took me ages to track down this last remedy and it made the car a pleasure to drive again!
Another thing I've noticed is the series 2 VY exhaust is different to the series 1 (has two catalytic converters instead of a single one) and they seem to be more prone to causing vibrations through the car. I think it could also have something to do with the changes Holden made to the engine management system trying to make it more fuel efficient (at idle) but also causing harmonics that make the exhaust shake around like a frog in a sock.
I might be wrong but that's my theory.:idea3:
If you're feeling vibrations through your seat check the transmission mount. The exhaust hangs from the transmission at one point. I've seen the safety hook on the transmission mount too close and transmitting vibrations. You have to bend it back slightly for a bit more clearance.
An important thing to note is that the ecotec even from new was never a smooth idler. It's just the nature of the beast (these days you could almost call it agricultural) so don't get too hung up trying to get it absolutely smooth. You won't do it.
It's the buzzing and rattling that amplify the coarseness, so tracking that down and sorting it helps a lot.
Hopefully other members will add to this post with their solutions as they find them as well.
Now the first most important thing to do is make sure that you give the car a full service. Fresh oils, plugs, leads and filters (air, oil and fuel). This might solve it straight up if you're lucky, but it's essential to start with.
Then you move on. There are a few obvious things that you can check and fix like:-
(1) Loose or bent heat shields (on exhaust pipes). The insulation material inside them breaks down or comes loose.
(2) Not enough clearance between the exhaust and chassis or busted rubber exhaust hangers. Loose pipe connections. Check and tighten the flange where pipes connect to exhaust manifold.
(3) Bits of loose material inside the system
But if you’ve done all these checks and it still rattles or vibrates then check the flexible exhaust joint with the two springs on it. Make sure it is aligned so the sides of the bolts don’t touch the flange they go through, or touch the coils of the springs. Make sure there’s plenty of clearance.
If it is misaligned even slightly you’ll get a vibration. It took me ages to track down this last remedy and it made the car a pleasure to drive again!
Another thing I've noticed is the series 2 VY exhaust is different to the series 1 (has two catalytic converters instead of a single one) and they seem to be more prone to causing vibrations through the car. I think it could also have something to do with the changes Holden made to the engine management system trying to make it more fuel efficient (at idle) but also causing harmonics that make the exhaust shake around like a frog in a sock.
I might be wrong but that's my theory.:idea3:
If you're feeling vibrations through your seat check the transmission mount. The exhaust hangs from the transmission at one point. I've seen the safety hook on the transmission mount too close and transmitting vibrations. You have to bend it back slightly for a bit more clearance.
An important thing to note is that the ecotec even from new was never a smooth idler. It's just the nature of the beast (these days you could almost call it agricultural) so don't get too hung up trying to get it absolutely smooth. You won't do it.
It's the buzzing and rattling that amplify the coarseness, so tracking that down and sorting it helps a lot.
Hopefully other members will add to this post with their solutions as they find them as well.
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