Dodge Shadow maintenance

I recently put 100,000km on my dodge shadow 2.2L '93 and am going
through a round of maintenance. Replaced air filter, spark plugs, will
replace fuel filter and check the timing soon...

Now why do I have to change the ignition wiring? Its just metal, I can
remove oxidants at the ends, check on the insulation and its like
brand new. Why would replacing ignition wires improve performance?

Secondly how do I clean the throttle body? Can I use water?

Thirdly, beside brakes and tires, anything else do to on this car to
maintain it, and let it go another 100,000? I think Ive covered the
fuel, ignition, wheels, and the rest like muffler, power steering, AC
etc are optional in the sense that the car will keep running and give
you a chance to fix them. Is this all thats required as a minimum to
keep the car running?

 

Insulation on the outside breaks down due to heat and airborne
contaminates. Causes leakage which reduces amount of power that reaches
the plugs. The conductor itself develops micro-cracks which will
increase the resistance of the wires, also leading to reduced power to
the plug.

Spray carb cleaner and a brush for the throttle body. Water won't
dissolve the deposits.

Timing belt, accessory belts, idler pulley(s), distributor rotor and cap
(if not electronic ignition with coil packs), PCV valve and filter,
fully flush brake system, flush cooling system, flush steering fluid,
flush trans fluid and replace filter. May also be a good time to repack
the wheel bearings.

I'm sure Mr. Stern will also suggest other items.

 

You don't mention the PCV system in this list. It needs periodic service,
and almost never gets it. NOT JUST THE PCV VALVE! You have to remove and
disassemble the air cleaner assembly (bottom plastic housing comes off
main metal housing) to access the PCV inlet air filter.

It's not metal, in factory form it's carbon string, and over the years the
conductor, the insulation and -- in this application -- the distributor
end terminals, which also serve as distributor cap contacts, all
deteriorate.

Likewise the distributor cap and rotor ought to be replaced.

Of course you cannot use water. What made you think so?

 

Because they're not wires in the conventional sense.
They're cables, the cores are typically fibergalss strands
impregnated with carbon.

The equipment for checking the insulation value is highly
specialized.

I seriously doubt that the throttle body needs cleaning.
The throttle body injector tends to bathe the throttle body with
gasoline while the engine is running keeping the throttle plate
and the adjacent throttle body squeaky clean.

At 11 years old, regardless of mileage, you should give serious
consideration to replacing the timing belt.
Cooling system maintanance would be another item that may need
attention (flush, belts, hoses).
Transmission service also.
Re-pack the rear wheel bearings.

 

Thanks for the suggestions, I'm taking the recommendations here
seriously, and going by the maintenance manual book. By cleaning with
water, I meant the air filter housing which seems to be soaked in
oil....

Today I replaced the dist cap and cables, and I can notice its more
responsive. The old distributor rotor had a deteriorated tip.

I took out the air filter housing, cleaned it all with tissues and
replaced the two small filters. In the process I think I broke a
T-tube joint below the PCV valve. The PCV valve itself tested fine
(blowing and sucking) with no leaks, but apparently oil leaked over
time and went into the air filter housing soaking everything. With the
tubes below the PVC valve disconnected, I started the engine, and it
gives a small amount of smoke, but not from any of the tubes going
into the air filter housing.... Now the PVC and its tubes are a high
priority to change. The idle RPM of the engine is also really high all
of a sudden. I wonder if the combination of using 94-grade fuel,
replacing the sparkplugs, ignition, dist cap, air filter is the cause,
or the broken PCV pipes.

Repacking the bearings was mentioned twice. What are its symptoms if
things are going wrong? Or is that just regular maintenance?

I can hear a click in the timing belt housing once for each complete
rotation. So thats another priority.

Whats the difference between PCV system, valve + tubing, and PCV
filter? Does the PCV system include all?

 

It's the broken PCV pipe. And quit using 94-octane fuel, you're wasting
your money. Regular gasoline is plenty; there's no advantage in your car
to using 94.

 

It's the broken PCV pipe. And quit using 94-octane fuel, you're wasting

Thanks. I blocked the throttle intake of the PCV, and the idling has
returned no normal. I'm sure it wont pass emissions anymore. Gave the
car a spin on the highway, didnt know it had that much power. I did
notive significant power increase with 94, but will get back to 89
after this refill.

A previous poster suggested flushing all the fluids, and I tried to
reach the power steering outlets, its just impossible. I can see it
but I'll either have to lift the engine or get jackstands (which I
will) and try from underneath.

I've cancelled working with the rear brake drums and the fuel filter
for now. Theyre both rusted shut and any attempts brings big rust
flakes down. I'll still try to force open the fuel filter when the
tank is empty, replacing it should fix things more. Everything is in
great shape, but I'm still wondering why the idling sounds a bit
uneven, even on an 11 year old car that has seen quite a bit of salt
in Canada. ... Back to the throttle body....

 

The fuel filter will be equally easy/difficult regardless of how full the
tank is. If it's rusty enough to be difficult, replace it NOW; it is
stressing your fuel pump -- which is much more expensive and difficult to
replace than the fuel filter.

Two reasons: (1) You've got a broken vacuum hose that hasn't been fixed,
and (2) Chrysler never paid much attention to the idle quality of the 2.2
and 2.5 litre TBI engine.

Which must mean you're using Sunoco gasoline. You'll have better results
with a brand that is NOT blended with alcohol.

DS

 

And the TBI is very succeptible to "dirt". Get the injector cleaned
and the idle quality will likely improve significantly. The alcohol in
Canadian gas does not make a huge difference in idle quality or
general running in my experience.

 

I'm not sure what part of Canada you live in, but it must be a very
interesting part where there are all those myriad "different" Chrysler
ballast resistors and ethanol-adulterated gasoline *doesn't* affect how an
engine runs or the economy it provides...as happens everywhere else in the
world, incluing the part of Canada I live in.

DS

 

The fuel filter will be equally easy/difficult regardless of how full the

Last night I replaced the fuel filter. Wasnt easy... the connector had
the plastic ring broken and was completely rusted so I had to loosen
the filter from the base. The drive feels much better now.

PCV lines were also replaced. At any rep above idle, it sounds perfect
and the car otherwise runs quite smooth. I'm thinking I must be very
picky on idling now...

I'll get back to petrocanada here in Toronto. Tried Sunoco for the
performance boost and it was fun, but time to get back.

So I'd say its like a new car now except for the throttle body parts
like the EGS (or something) and other emissions parts. I dont know if
replacing the catalyst will help things, but I'll try flushing the
transmission fluid. This car has 130,000km and is a 93, I can
reasonably expect another 100,000km easy on it. Hey should I be using
synthetic oil in this one? Heard too many mixed reviews.

 

After many, many years of selling the filthiest, highest-sulphur gasoline,
Esso as of a couple of months ago now has Ontario's cleanest-burning
fuels.

There is no performance boost with Sunoco.

 

Well Dan, whether I use the ethanol blended fuel or regular unleaded,
both my 88 Chrysler and 94 Pontiac give the same performance - a very
minor decrease in fuel mileage with the same octane rating with
ethanol - hardly enough to notice. If I run mid premium, ethanol or
not, the OBD scanner on the pontiac drops from roughly 40 knock sigs
on a common trip to about 13, and going to full premium, ethanol or
not, makes no further difference. Idle quality is NOT affected.
Note - I NEVER stated there was no difference in economy - and I never
said it made NO difference in general running - only that there was no
"huge difference". By that - not enough difference to be
distinguishable without instrumentation.
I am in Central Ontario - midway between Toronto and London.

 

What comes after your "-" above contradicts what comes before it.

 

Daniel - it's obvious your definition of "performance" and mine are
different. Your definition of "huge" and mine are also different.
It's also obvious that regardless what I say, on any subject, you will
find fault and bitch about something.

The original point was poor idle on a 2.2 / 2.5 Mopar with TBI is NOT
a fuel composition problem.
Now you'll tell me injectors are not a problem on these engines and
cleaning them will make no difference.
You are free to believe that - but anyone who has owned one for over 2
or 3 years knows better.

 

An engine's performance includes its power output, its driveability and
"manners", and its economy.

That's your opinion. My experience contradicts it.

The injectors, to fulfil your prophesy, seldom need cleaning on the TBI
2.2/2.5. They are of a very effectively self-cleaning design that
practically never clogs. If they leak, they get replaced.

DS

 

When you quit saying stupid stuff I'll quit finding fault.

 

(2) Chrysler never paid much attention to the idle quality of the 2.2

It's fair to say, however, that they DID make an attempt to smooth things
out over the 2.2L's idle by adding balance shafts when they came out with
the 2.5L design. And the improvement was noticeable.

--Geoff

 

That's a different matter *entirely*. The balance shafts are to cancel
2nd- and higher-order reciprocal vibration, not to address the actual
(firing) smoothness of the idle. There is less vibration to a TBI 2.5
equipped with the balance shafts than to a TBI 2.5 or 2.2 not so equipped,
but the idle *quality* is identical. Listen at the tailpipe with the
transmission in Neutral!

DS

 

My bad. Didn't understand the 'idle quality' term. They made a 2.5L
without balance shafts? I thought they all had them.

--Geoff