Okay I need to know which sensors is right by the dipstick tube in the back of the motor. The motor is from a 96 Z24 cav and it is a 5 speed. I seem to have oil leaking from that area and someone said it was coming from there. now if that sensor which is right next to I mean right next to where the dipstick enters the block turns out to be a knock sensor could it leak oil? I know in the v-8s they can't but what about on these motors? But I can't even figure out what sensor it is. Thanks alot

 

Sorry I wouldnt know for sure unless I checked my locator book. However what your describing sounds like it could be the crank sensor. The crank sensor goes in the crankcase and is triggered by teeth on the crank. If this is the sensor it should have an O-ring on it to seal the oil in. Sometimes the gm crank sensors will crack and split. If this has happened to yours I would replace the whole sensor. It won't be long before it starts giving you other problems besides just leaking.

 

hey, i don't mean to tack on an unrelated post but i started a thread about my GFs '97 cavalier and it's no-start problem..

could any of you take a look at it and give me some ideas? thanks

 

if we had one at work it'd be a bit of help for you, but we don't at the moment. sounds to me like it may be the crank sensor, but you not only don't describe it very well, but have no idea what it is which only means you shouldn't be working on it. also, if it's leaking, why not just replace it?

 

zippy: i think you expect everyone to know everything about their vehicles..

maybe you should think that possibly this is the first time most people are owrking on a newer car? another thing: everything was standard GM until only 10 years ago so a whole slew of things are unknown to most people..

i've restored 4 vehicles with my Dad and had to learn more on my IROCs than I had to know in all those other vehicles combined

 

i don't expect them to know everything. the point is if you don't know, a message board sure isn't the place to learn. i don't work on a television if it breaks because i don't know how to fix them. same thing, if you don't know, don't touch it. i don't know how many posts i seen from this same guy on backfiring on decel. once again, if you don't know, don't touch it.

 

I'm going to back zippy up on this. As Clint Eastwood once said "A man needs to know his limitations". I love to do as much as I possibly can on my car, but there are times when I will take my car to the shop also. Yes, it is not a bad idea to learn what the problem is EVEN if you plan to take it to a shop, so you don't get burned when they start telling you "the rollikin rod to the bolgen bearing is screwed and you need to replace it IMMEDIATELY".

My "weakest area" is transmissions, specifically automatics. I would love to have a spare 700R4 to "experiment" on and learn, but I won't be "experimenting" on my own car (yet). So I would take my car to the dealership if I need tranny work done.

Also, (and I'm sure zippy has some major horror stories on this one), today's EFI cars often need a scan tool to properly diagnose many problems. And even then, it may not do anything more than "eliminate" possible problems so you can zero on "the other possibilities".

A few years ago, my younger brother had a problem with his daughter's car (non-GM) and was in "limp mode". My brother, who's very mechanically inclined and been working on cars for years figure it was a particular sensor based on the SES codes he was getting (he had a code reader only). So he replaced the sensors that were giving the error, but it didn't fix the problem and he STILL got the same SES codes.

He then called me and I explained: 1) Pity it wasn't a GM car because I have a scan tool to monitor his engine and 2) You can get an SES code for a particular sensor when it might be something else (because the ECM has gone into "Safe or Limp Mode" and the ECM is trying to "compensate" which may make other sensors through a code, because they are now being forced by some other errant sensor to go out of "tolerances within the ECM".

I then told my brother that he had now spent more money than if he had just bought a scan tool, and if he wasn't prepared to get a scan tool, then he should take it to a shop or he'll be just "chasing his tail and end up replacing every sensor ... and THAT may not even be the problem" FYI, if you have something mechanically wrong with your engine like a "wiped cam lobe" it will probably throw a couple of SES codes (O2 most likely and a few others).

So my brother took it to the dealership and it turned out to be one of the sensors that he hadn't changed and it didn't even show an SES code. The cost of the repair was cheaper than all the sensors he'd already replaced.

Moral of the story, no matter how much you know about cars, sometimes the cheapest solution is taking the car in and it's the best advice.

But it is also good to try and find out as much as you can about the problem, so you can make the decision whether you want to fix it yourself or whether you should just take it in. There are people out there that will take advantage of other's lack of knowledge.

 

this is my outlook on things:

all parts go bad anyway, changing an 11 dollar sensor is a good place to start, right?

i've had the same policy iwth all of my vehicles, throw cheap parts at it because a) it's probably worn anyway b) it'll probably go anyway c) it'll prevent something going later..

if zippy wants to be like that, that's fine, but I tend to do things the other way and have had pretty good success. when i bought my '86 IROC it was throwing all kinds of codes so i changed all the sensors and the car ran like a top.. if i'd have taken my car to a shop they would have charged me the same amount anyway (they charge 80 bucks at GM to hit the car with a scope) and I woulda been at square one anyway.

i asked a question, he gave a jack-*** answer, that's fine, but i'll change the sensor and if that doesn't fix it i will take it to the dealer.

 

well, you have a point collin, it was a jackass answer, but it is for a reason. i so often see someone trying to fix something simply by guessing and it can end up in more problems. if you wanted to guess on the part and it happens to fix it, that's fine. the problem is if your wrong, you just bought a part that didn't need to be replaced and in process of replacing it you could cause other problems. i've seen many other things break on cars while people were trying to replace something else, it happens. replacing everything on your 86 is not only a different situation, but it was a waste of money. you may have all new sensors, but do you know what caused the problem or just that it was something you replaced? stuff like crank sensors can break off when your trying to replace them and you might end up removing the oil pan. are you prepared? do you have the right tools to do it? it's a situation where you could cause another problem like replacing and o2 sensor and messing up the threads it goes into just to find out it wasn't bad to start with. all in all here, a newer car is a bad place to start learning what and how to replace something.

as for where the answer comes from? how about the air pump as a blower, bored 305 to a 350, valve adjustment, cam replacement stuff. items like valve adjustment, cam replacement, etc. are things that can be found in a book, but it seems some are too cheap to buy a book. same with torque specs. how about the how much hp do i have questions. just exactly what is that person going to benefit by knowing that forum guessed number. should someone be adjusting valves from the 6 different ways they seen on a forum reply because they were too lazy to read it in a manual? i feel things like that shouldn't be done without knowing more about it to start with. it's not an insult because someone isn't car smart because everyone has there area. it's simply not getting into something which you know nothing about just to put it on someone else to tell you what to try next. the forum is great for questions within someone's capability.

 

(in responce to zippy)

Why even have a BB system in the first place. Heck, no one needs to ask questions, no one needs to know anything. If you don't know, buy books and read about it, or just take it to your local rip-off dealer.

No one cares what kind of stuff you can do to make your car look better, if you want suggestions go to a car show or read a book on it. No one needs to ask opinions on exhaust and the sounds they make, if you want to know go work at an exhaust shop or read a book.

And, to top it off...
"the forum is great for questions within someone's capability."

Maybe we're not all on your ability level, maybe we know nothing about it to know if it's on our level or not. Automatic transmissions are above probably 90-95% of us, yet that shouldn't make us stop posting on them. I think of this BB service as an education system, ask an ye shall recieve.

As far as scan tools to diagnose todays cars.... last I checked they don't tell you where oil is leaking from, and just because it leaks doesn't mean it stops working, and you certainly can't replace it unless you know what it is, which is the whole point of this d*mned post...

IMHO, if you have information to share with us willingly, please do so, otherwise don't b*tch at us because we don't know as much as you.

(not ment to be a flame, I just felt this needed to be said)

 

Thank you, If I can figure out what sensor it is, and if it is possiable for it to leak oil then I could buy it and replace it. It is hard to see with everything in the way if it is leaking for sure, but it is the only place I can see leaking. Now the dealers pics are not that good and they where not sure if it is a knock sensor that it could leak oil but I have heard diffrent storys.

 

BLACK Z,

is it on the 'back' of the motor? if it's on the very bottom of the engine it is the CPS.. there were a couple other sensors back there when I looked but i didn't know what they were..

whee, i get to reply to zippy yet again!

Zippy, between my Dad and I (yes, I DO own my own tools) we have over 10 grand worth of tools including air tools and the like. I have read up on more than you know, and actually like to think I have my head out of my ***.

You have no grasp of what I know. You're making invalid assumptions based on a single question that I asked. Isn't that a bit... rude? Possibly you should open your mind to the possibility that people don't do things YOUR way.

If I had had problems with my GFs Cavalier would I have had the right tools to fix it? Hmm, let's see. I have the engine hoist, the power tools, the cleaners, the wrenches, the sockets and wratches. So yes, I could have fixed the job correctly.

I'm not stupid enough to ask questions like, "Can i bore my 305 into a 350, or my 350 into a 400?" or questions like, "Hey, where is my timing chain?"

Do you honestly think I would run a car website if all I knew how to do was knit a friggin sweater?

Damn, the ignorance of some people is absolutely mind-boggling. How about you change the way you attack people because honestly, putting people on the defensive all the time is 'not' the way to make friends.

late,
Colin

 

haven't been to your web site in quite a while. having tools does not make you a mechanic. i do know you've looked into cars, unfortunatly only as required where as everything else is just what you've heard that sounded logical at the time. i'm not assuming your an idiot because i'm sure you have capabilities, but you still have alot to learn about cars yet.

 

btt

 

Btt

 

ZIPPY, Do you even really know what your talking about????
Some people like to learn from experience so back off !!!!!!!!
The Quad 4 now known as the DOHC 2.4 has hanged som much in the past 5 years that maybe it's a little hard to know everything so he asked a good question. So like I said back off....

 

back off, lol, no. so, is it fixed yet? so cody, care to tell me how much it's changed in the last 5 years and what was changed?

 

The reason it is not fixed yet is because I am in no big rush to get it fixed, it is not leaking that bad and i would rather fix it my self.I am still trying to find out what it is that I need to so I can fix it. I have had 3 diffrent gm dealers tell me it is a diffrent part.

 

i seen you brought it back to the top, i assumed though that there was a point to it.

 

Well let's see here

#1 Major head work, including different coolant passages and
bolt sizes.

#2 Cams

#3 Intake and Throttle body

#4 Exhaust manifold

#5 Different balance shafts


Do I really need to continue? Like I have said in other posts I used to own a 1992 Achieva SCX W41 so yes I know my Quad 4's

 

yes, i'd like to see you continue. in the last 5 years not much has changed. the 2.4 is since 95. and as for the car you've owned, many people on here own different versions of camaro's and don't know much about them.

 

The 2.4 is the same as the 2.3 with minor head and piston differences. And even since 1995 there has been several intake changes, better balance shaft in 97 1/2, and throttle body changes. Face it zippy you don't know what I do.

 

since 95 there has been very few changes. your statement was that alot has changed in the last 5 years, well not much has changed since 97. in the last 8 years, alot has changed. 1994 to 1995 brought on alot of differences and more than just piston and head changes.