sbusby

Okay,

2000 Firebird Trans Am WS6 edition with 53,xxx miles.

So far, I know some of these are just maybe bad luck, but everytime something is fixed, something else comes up. My issues are;

Headlight Out (regular maintenance) - Fixed
Fog Light out (regular maintenance) - Fixed
Rear Pinion Seal Leak - Fixed
Driveshaft input leak
AC Belt shreded (regular maintenance) - Fixed
Main Drive belt cracked (regular maintenance) - Fixed
Power Steering Pump going out
Alternator making noise
Rear differential leaking - Fixed
Rear Shocks Squeak
Some belt/pulley is squeaking, but can't locate
Replaced belt tensioner
Valve covers leaking

I know I'm forgetting some things... but is this normal? I never hot rod the car or abuse the thing.

02NHRAtransAm

iTrader: (17)

you may have low miles on it....., but its 7 going on 8 years old you will have to start replacing some stuff but i wouldnt say it was a lemon..... just my 2cents

aaron653

iTrader: (1)

engine-check
tranny-check
rearend-check
looks like youre in good shape

Ojustracing

iTrader: (4)

Seems like normal stuff to me. Only thing that seems odd is the Valve cover gasket leeking.

John

JimsWS6

iTrader: (1)

I have never herd of a PS pump going bad on any Gen III engines. And i've seen alot of higher mileage motors. My guess would be it was low on fluid. I see that alot. same goes for the valve cover's leaking. My guess wouldb e someone had them off at one time for something.

bjamick

iTrader: (31)

What he said

sbusby

Would that cause it to make the worse sounding squeak in the world

XpEdItIoUs

iTrader: (44)

Its a lemon.

JimsWS6

iTrader: (1)

more like a wine noise. I'm assuming your hearing one of the belts squeeking, my s10 does that. If thats the case take sandpaper, put it on like a paint stir stick and scuff the grooved side of the belt with the engine running. See if that helps

staringback05

iTrader: (8)

they do have a good bit of problems because they are beaten on alot, they are under constant strain from heat and weight, and they require alot of up keep

ive gone through 3 motors, 1 tranny, 1 racknpinion, 1 ac unit, 1 alternator, rotors, and a few other minor things in ONE year......thats not counting what ive modded on the car

alacrity

Pretty much normal, w/ exception to the valve gasket as ojustracing said. Also, I would have to disagree w/ the power steering pump not being normal. This is my second f-body, and both had ps pump issues. 2 pumps on my 97, and 4 on my WS6. Problem is the liquid is too hot, so I had a cooler placed on it. Maybe that should be something to consider? What do you guys think?

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

I think the PS pump/fluid overheating issues happen when you develope the habit of constant/regular high(er) RPM operation when going into turns (autoX type racing) or going WOT with the steering wheel cranked. Of course, some pumps will just fail even if you're easy on 'em. But these pumps don't take abuse very well.

As for your list, the belts and lights can/do happen with any car, so they really don't count. That leaves you with:

Rear Pinion Seal Leak - Pretty common on these cars
Driveshaft input leak - Not as common as the pinion leak, but it still happens on a few
Power Steering Pump going out - See my explanation above
Alternator making noise - Some will die at 50k miles, but most seem to last 70-100k miles
Rear differential leaking - What was leaking besides the pinion seal? The diff cover gasket?
Rear Shocks Squeak - They could be leaking, or it might be a bushing squeaking as well
Some belt/pulley is squeaking, but can't locate - Idler pulley tends to squeak on these cars with mileage and/or exposure to weathering, it's not that expensive and it's an easy part to change
Replaced belt tensioner - Due to the pulley squeaking, or due to lack of proper tension on the belt? Only time I've seen tensioners fail to hold proper tension is with motors revving to higher than stock rpms, or sometimes with aftermarket pulley systems
Valve covers leaking - Can't say that I've seen too many valve cover gasket leaks on these motors, assuming the covers have never been pulled

staringback05

iTrader: (8)

i havent seen many valve covers leak either...

lo_jack

iTrader: (27)

Valve cover leaks on v6 cars are common - does that count?
The rest is more or less normal. Maybe not at your milage, but eventually all that stuff goes.

staringback05

iTrader: (8)

havent dealt with v6 cars that much...soooo

RoysTransAm

I've had valve covers leak only when I replaced the valve cover gasket and as I put the cover back on, part of the gasket came out of the groove. It was at the back of the engine on the bottom part so I never noticed it at first.


But other then that,

'99 with 76k,

Blown one power steering hose, fixed under warranty
Welds on K-Member broke, fixed under warranty
1 drivers side window motor, fixed under warranty
radio display scrambles, fixed under warranty
1 idler pulley squeal, fixed under warranty
1 set of warped front rotors, all me baby
1 radio antenna, my out of pocket again

TwistedSS

iTrader: (3)

Everything seems to be about normal..but I agree the valve cover leaks are not. Go over to AutoZone and pick up an idler pulley, has a lifetime warranty so when it starts making noise again, replace it. I bought a Gatorback belt, seemed to fix the belt noise issue. As for the pinion seal, thats pretty common...but shouldnt be a big deal. Also the leak from the diff cover, I NEVER use a gasket, just a good bead of copper RTV. No leaks. The alternator issue seems to be just normal, mine went out at 46k, had it rebuilt, no problems since.

99camarosupersport

iTrader: (6)

Seems like alot to me, but then again it's all hitting you at once so it's going to seem like more than it is. I have 155k+ miles on mine and *knock on wood* have had to replace nothing, and the car is @ 400rwhp give or take, so it's not stock and not babied lol.

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

I've found that a single gasket seems to leak, because it splits too easy when you tighten down the cover bolts. As it turns out, when I pulled the cover off my stock rear for the first time, I found that GM used two gaskets stuck together.

That seems to work well.

TwistedSS

iTrader: (3)

Ive heard that works too...but I normally just use the copper RTV on a clean surface, let it dry for about 30 minutes. No leaks here.