The Stupid Engine Questions Thread

[SUBURBAN5]

Oh and as a fyi the only info I can find at this time is 97 to 98 had different evap canisters. 97 was cylinder type and 98 was rectangular type. Not sure if that plays a roll on gas caps but I wouldnt be surprised if that's along the lines of gas cap compatibility.

 

[Jimmy D]

So my battery light is on, and I'm showing 11v on my gauge inside. I checked voltage at the back of the alternator while running and its only at 12v, and that's identical to not running. This is new alternator time right? There's no fuse or anything that I can see (1992 tbi blazer) and regardless the back of the alternator itself isn't reading what it should.

On the back of the alternator there should be one large gauge battery wire and a small gauge wire that plugs into the alternator. I just had my brand new Delco battery go dead last week on my 91 and I found that little plug in was apparently loose. I unplugged and plugged it a couple of times and it started charging again. It has the plastic lock intact. I bumped the plug and it began to charge so it must not be making good contact inside. It's still good this week but if it happens again I'll "tweak" it a bit.

 

[HotWheelsBurban]

Oh and as a fyi the only info I can find at this time is 97 to 98 had different evap canisters. 97 was cylinder type and 98 was rectangular type. Not sure if that plays a roll on gas caps but I wouldnt be surprised if that's along the lines of gas cap compatibility.

Could be! My experience with EVAP canister on a 400 is limited to the 99s. Stant used to be a good brand, that's why we sold and used them. I need to get a radiator cap for the Burb, I'll be looking at Stant if I can find it.

 

[SUBURBAN5]

Could be! My experience with EVAP canister on a 400 is limited to the 99s. Stant used to be a good brand, that's why we sold and used them. I need to get a radiator cap for the Burb, I'll be looking at Stant if I can find it.

They still sell oem radiator caps. Id get ac delco from rock auto or local auto parts

 

[df2x4]

They still sell oem radiator caps. Id get ac delco from rock auto or local auto parts

X2. @HotWheelsBurban You may want to double check this, but I'm assuming your '99 probably uses the same radiator cap as my '97s. Which would be GM part number 15982188. You can get them for $10-15.

www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000C9CEOO

Most of the aftermarket caps are 16 PSI IIRC, the factory one is 15 PSI. Does that make any difference? Probably not. But it gives me the warm fuzzies having a factory cap on both trucks.

 

[SUBURBAN5]

Anybody here have the gm procedure to adjust a 350vortec throttle body set screw?

 

[HotWheelsBurban]

Are there multiple lengths of engine oil dipstick for the Vortec 350? The one in my Burb ( which may or may not be the original, don't know since we got the truck used) shows way above full, when I have 5 1/2 quarts in it after an oil and filter change. I put about half a quart in the filter, so there's clean fresh oil going into the engine.
Had some valve train clatter upon startup the last few days, when it was cold and the Burb had been sitting a while. I put a little MMO in the oil, that shut it up after it warmed up. Stock 5.7 has 208K on it, doesn't seem to use any oil and doesn't smoke. So when it did the same thing yesterday, and the outside temperature was in the 70s, I thought maybe it was a little low on oil. Put half a pint in, with a few ounces of MMO, and it shut the noise up! Now it starts without any clattering, but the stick shows around 4" above the 4 holes indicating "full". Truck runs great.....but did I do a bad thing to it? The oil pressure ( per factory gauge) is good.

 

[AK49BWL]

I could be wrong but I think the oil dipsticks are the same length on them... Different style pans would change the amount of oil you need to put in, but not the level at which the oil should be. I only put 5qts in mine, and that puts the level just very slightly under full on the stick. All the extras you've added in on top of 5.25qt is probably giving your engine way too much.. Your crank shaft is gonna start dipping, if it isn't already. I don't think that's desired.

 

[drewcrew]

Are there multiple lengths of engine oil dipstick for the Vortec 350? The one in my Burb ( which may or may not be the original, don't know since we got the truck used) shows way above full, when I have 5 1/2 quarts in it after an oil and filter change. I put about half a quart in the filter, so there's clean fresh oil going into the engine.
Had some valve train clatter upon startup the last few days, when it was cold and the Burb had been sitting a while. I put a little MMO in the oil, that shut it up after it warmed up. Stock 5.7 has 208K on it, doesn't seem to use any oil and doesn't smoke. So when it did the same thing yesterday, and the outside temperature was in the 70s, I thought maybe it was a little low on oil. Put half a pint in, with a few ounces of MMO, and it shut the noise up! Now it starts without any clattering, but the stick shows around 4" above the 4 holes indicating "full". Truck runs great.....but did I do a bad thing to it? The oil pressure ( per factory gauge) is good.

I hate to sound stupid but what is MMO ? Thanks

 

[PlayingWithTBI]

I hate to sound stupid but what is MMO ?

Marvel Mystery Oil