WhosNXT

Well I called my local chevy dealer and they wanted 775$ to do a tune up on my work van. I really dont feel like dropping that kinda change on a tune up. I have changed plugs and wires and fuel filters and all that good stuff on my t/a. But the engine compartment is really small on these vans. I was wanting to know if any of you have worked on one of these vans. There is a pop away under the console in the van which gives you access to the motor I believe, I have never removed it. Do any of you know how difficult it is to gain access to the plugs and wires and do you have any tips. I looks like I have a real fun day ahead of me Saturday. Any input would be helpful, I am not with out mechanical know how. I did the H/C swap on my car, but this seems like it will be harder due to the room available under the hood. So what I have planned - Sea foam, oil change, plugs and wires, fuel filter, air filter. The van has 110k on it, at what mileage is it recommended to change the coils?

01WS6/tamu

iTrader: (37)

There is no need to mess with the coils until they die. Change all of the filters and replace the plugs now. Be sure you use delco plugs. If you have done a H/C swap you are good to go. However after having done a couple of these at work, plugs are a ****** son of a bitch to do. Your arms will look like you got in a fight with a box of razor blades when you are done. May as well go ahead and put new wires on it while you are at it especially being a van you do not want to have to do it twice. Good luck. You have to remove the "doghouse" inside the vehicle to gain any reasonable access to get to anything.

WhosNXT

Alright man, thanks for the advice

eallanboggs

iTrader: (1)

The one question people never think to ask when they buy a new vehicle is "How much does a tune up on this thing cost?". I just did a tuneup on a Jaguar S type. The dealerships charge over $1,000.00 out the door. It's actually a Ford Taurus engine in a Jag. The windshield wipers have to be removed to change the spark plugs as do the wiper arms and the cowl to get a bracket off the blocks the intake manifold from coming off which has to be removed because it blocks access to the spark plugs. What a nightmare. If you plan to buy a new vehicle and keep it long enough to need a tuneup you might want to ask this question from the salesperson.

WhosNXT

Got the tune up finished on Sunday. It was not as bad as I thought it would be. The rear plugs were very easy to change as the motors rear is right there once you remove the dog house. The front two plugs on either side were a bit more tricky, I used my 2 foot long needle nose pliers to pull the wire boots off and the got the plugs out with a jointed extension. The top end was not as dirty as I had imagined after 107k miles, it only smoked for 6-8 minutes after I put the seafoam in. I also learned will trying to put the seafoam in the brake booster line that the van and all the trucks, suv platform for that matter do not have break boosters due to the hydraulic brakes. So I pulled the pcv line off the rear of the drivers valve cover and put the treatment in from there. All in all it went pretty smooth.