Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

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davkat

HHR Turbo
It's been awhile since I've posted. My truck has been on jack stands since March '08 and I'm hoping for it to be running again before Christmas! Back in March, due to running hard with 87 octane fuel, #6 cylinder got toasted. The valves got hot and nearly melted, the spark plug electrode was blown off and the piston was badly pitted. Fortunately the cylinder wall were not damaged.

All of that is fixed now and my truck is most of the way back together. What's left to do is finish putting the brake pads back on the right front wheel, install the intercooler and air conditioning compressor & assembly, connect up the transmission cooling lines, install the Fan and fan shroud, fill it up with oil & antifreeze and tune it. All in all not a great deal to finish up.

I want to thank akryder86 and Timbo for all of their hard work to come over on their time off to work on my truck. I've been able to do some of the smaller work but they've done the bulk of it. Thanks guys!! It's been a slow process but the light is getting very bright at the end of the tunnel. :D
 
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davkat

HHR Turbo
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

Why did I run 87 octane? Stupidity! Gas prices were going up and my wife asked if we could save some money and run regular. Well, we paid for it alright now going on 7 months without the truck and about $1000 later. Will never do that again.:(

Regarding mods, I wanted to keep it stock for showing as much as possible. I did put in a set of 1.6 Crane Roller Rockers. Otherwise it's stock.
 
WannabaTY

WannabaTY

New member
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

I did that a couple weeks ago. Had only $10 in my pocket and needed gas badly. Threw in 87 octane. It did run well all day until I stomped on it to pass a slower car. Started knocking like crazy. Got off the gas and drove it normal. The next day I had some money and I put 91 right back in it.
 
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davkat

HHR Turbo
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

We got a lot done on the truck today. It's finally off of the jackstands and nearly done. Our only problem is we didn't originally remove the intercooler and are not sure how it mounts back on. I've got the manuals but they really don't depict very well how the mounting brackets are situated on the motor. If anyone has an idea or pictures of a stock setup please let me know.
 
Chest Rockwell

Chest Rockwell

Active member
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

Does this help?
intercooler_brackets.jpg
 
SY2932

SY2932

Administrator
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

Yep, you don't want get into boost without the intercooler support brackets on. It will blow off the throttle body if you do... In the pic above, disregard the bracket labeled #6. I have never seen that on a syty. Ever.
 
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davkat

HHR Turbo
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

I didn't see that pic in the GM Manuals I've got. I think the 3 holes on Bracket #6 are actually the 3 holes that are on the bottom of the Intercooler. I've got the two brackets that mount on the exhaust manifold but not the one that mounts to the intake manifold. Thanks for the picture, it certainly helps!
 
SY2932

SY2932

Administrator
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

davkat said:
I think the 3 holes on Bracket #6 are actually the 3 holes that are on the bottom of the Intercooler. I've got the two brackets that mount on the exhaust manifold but not the one that mounts to the intake manifold.
Click to expand...

Yeah, looks like the accuracy of the drawing in a *little* off. "Intercooler is representative and may look different that the one depicted" :lol:. My bud fabricated a replacement bracket out of one of the "lock bars" that come with those small roll around toolboxes. It's a flat piece of steel that drops down in front of all the drawers so that you can't open then. Been on his truck for 10+ years now.
 
SY2932

SY2932

Administrator
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

If you need some engine diagrams, you can find them on the old syty.org. Man, I feel old posting a link to that :lol:...
 
midnightbluS10

midnightbluS10

Banned
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

Why would anyone run 87? If you're only getting $10 worth, and premium is .30 more than regular....you'd get maybe an extra gallon.


That's retarded.
 
C

Captain Morgan

Moderated User
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

TwinTurboV8Ty said:
Did you put that tank of gas in right before you drove it last just to keep the tank full?
Click to expand...

no, I drove it from St. Louis to New Jersey on 87, then drove it for the next year or so on 87 around here, then when I parked it in Dec 2006, I just left whatever was in it, I have no clue how much is in it at the moment, but its probably around a 1/4 tank.
 
SY2932

SY2932

Administrator
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

midnightbluS10 said:
Why would anyone run 87? If you're only getting $10 worth, and premium is .30 more than regular....you'd get maybe an extra gallon.


That's retarded.
Click to expand...

You can do it safely IF you have enough discipline to STAY OUT OF BOOST. Keep the boost gauge in vacuum at all times and you will be fine. I have never done it personally since I figure if I can't afford to put the proper fuel in it, I shouldn't be driving it. That's why I have a commuter, a 97 2.2L Pontiac Sunfire, to putt around in...
 
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davkat

HHR Turbo
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

Thanks everyone for your help. I got the intercooler reinstalled yesterday afternoon. What's left is the AC compressor & assembly, the fan & shroud and some minor things and we're ready to fire it up. Fresh oil & filter is already in and just have to fill up the radiator & intercooler system with anti-freeze. I did replace the distributor cap & rotor and also replaced all the plug wires. Sy #2227 will be back on the road this week! Finally after 8 months!
 
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davkat

HHR Turbo
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

It was a monumental night last night, no not the election results, we finally finished reassembling my truck and actually got it started! It's running again :D:D What's left to do is get a hold of a timing light and set the timing. Once that's done it's out of the garage after 8 months and back on the road to the gas station for some premium gas and maybe even a can of Torco :rotf::rotf:
 
Sy-1177

Sy-1177

Turbo Inside
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

Did you ever find the center support bracket for the upper intercooler? Thats the important one that keeps the IC attached to the throttlebody. With just the 2 exaust brackets bolted up, more than likely you'll blow the ic to throttle body hose apart once you get into boost. It happened to me a few times before I realized I was missing that middle bolt underneath.
 
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davkat

HHR Turbo
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

It turns out that mine only had the two brackets. The bracket that appeared to mount to the lower intake manifold (center bracket) was never installed in the first place. I did make sure both brackets I do have are attached at the proper locations.
 
Sy-1177

Sy-1177

Turbo Inside
Re: Hope I didn't blow it; Continued

davkat said:
It turns out that mine only had the two brackets. The bracket that appeared to mount to the lower intake manifold (center bracket) was never installed in the first place. I did make sure both brackets I do have are attached at the proper locations.
Click to expand...
Just keep an eye on it then. Like I said, with just the 2 exaust brackets bolted up, the IC would "pull away" from the throttle body just enough to pop the rubber boot and hence no boost! Others haven't had issues with no center bracket either, but I did.

Congrats on gettin it running again though! You must be pumped!! :tup:
 
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