[Daly87]

Hi guys,

My sv420 has no power up to aroubd 3000rpm when first starts up. Once the engine is at working temp it's fine and pulls great from start.

The only way I can describe it is if I pull away really really cautiously you can't tell. If you try give a little gas ( not even taking about flooring it ) it seems to have a flat spot where it doesn't react untill revs are built up to over 3k and it goes. And as I said 5mins warming up and she's fine.

Iv tried researching and trouble shooting and all I can find is reference to the sensor in the exhaust ( lambda??)

Is this the culprit?

And I'm thinking of changing the rear main seal been quoted $660 does this seem fair?

Cheers!

[Daly87]

Ps mayb I should mention the cat is goosed and I think it may have holes in it....

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[henno]

I don't have the answer, but you might as well do your clutch at the same time you do your rear seal (unless the clutch is virtually brand new). The clutch itself is only, what, ~$400 or so but requires the same amount of effort involved to install (removal of gearbox etc) to get at the rear main so while it's out they might as well bolt in a new clutch while they are there.

[Mike_B]

I had a faulty oxygen sensor in the exhaust on mine when I got it, it was known there was an issue, just had to fine it, anyway it didn't have the symptoms that you describe, so might be worth doing more research. Should be someone else along soon who knows more about engine management issues than I do.

[DarkHorse]

O2 sensor, TPS, MAF/P sensor, fuel pump/lines... hard to say specifically. That it is fine once it warms up a bit is interesting, so that might be an indicator, but I don't know enough to say.

[Daly87]

Cheers guys.

Yea I was thinking new clutch but funds are tight right now, unless its easy enough to do myself then I can install the clutch and seal myself. Know of any guides?

What symptoms did you have mikeb?

Yes dark horse its fine when warmed up, no flat spot at all... im reading on how to check codes now. Maybe that will tell me, or does the engine light have to be on for that to work.

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[Mike_B]

Sorry for delayed reply, for some reason I wasn't able to log on yesterday.
Firstly, yes the price quoted to change the rear main seal is reasonable, it is a big job, but yes it can be done at home if you have 2 days and some help.

My G16B starts and runs fine from cold but then has a slight flat spot until it warms up properly when it runs fine.
I have reset the TPS a while ago and it fixed a different problem but may have made this one worse, not really sure.

The faulty oxygen sensor was really a problem with the way the generic replacement one had been wired up, whoever installed it had soldered the wires into the loom instead of using the special connectors, but end result was the sensor wouldn't work properly, and the symptoms were most evident when the ecu was in closed loop mode, ie constant speed cruising, the sensor was incorrectly telling the ecu that the mixture was rich, so ecu kept leaning it out, the car would slowly start losing power until it got to lean stumble then it would kick itself out of it and start again, if I hit the accelerator it would also fix it for a short time.

I hope someone with more knowledge of engine management comes along and can shed some light on the flat spot while warming up, AFAIK the oxygen sensor is over-ruled by the ecu while the engine is warming up from cold.
Hope above is of some help.

[Daly87]

Thanks for the detailed response mate. Your g16b sounds like my j20a. The description about the o2 sensor doesn't sound like myn so that's ruled that out thanks!

I still can't find any information about the problem. I guess it's not a common problem then.... or I'm not searching properly. Trying to search for an idiots guide to the rear main seal / clutch installation too see if I can handle the work.

[Mike_B]

As far as rear main seal goes, the hardest part or most time consuming for me (= frustrating) was disconnecting the wiring that goes to the reverse and 4wd switches on the gearbox, might be easier on a J20A, on G16B the connector is buried under the inlet manifold, hard to find, and very fiddly to undo (and reconnect)...apart from that it's all pretty standard stuff; remove gear-sticks, drain transfer case, remove drive shafts, remove starter motor, undo bell-housing bolts, remove gearbox (this is where some help is important if you can't get a gearbox jack, remove clutch, remove flywheel (bolts aren't that tight but you need a bar or something to stop the flywheel turning while you undo the bolts. Then you can remove the old seal and fit a new one, make sure it's greased before it goes in. Refit everything in reverse order, use a torque wrench to do up the flywheel bolts (really not worth having to redo the job if they weren't done right) is helpful to have a clutch aligning tool, and even then it can take a few goes to get the gearbox back in (again help needed here or use a gearbox jack), don't forget to refill transfer case and check gearbox oil level...
There is a relatively cheap workshop manual you can buy that shows the process, it's not a great workshop manual compared to the factory ones but can be cost effective for this kind of job.
Oh and if you have the gearbox out, it really is good idea to have look at your existing clutch and unless you are sure it is nearly new, put a new one in...my clutch kit was lot less than $400, not sure what price range is for J20A.

[VitNick]

I got my rear main seal from Suzuki, cost $77!!! and the clutch was $500 from Supercheap , but to their credit they got it ordered and to me same day and where very helpful. Changing the seal itself wasn't hard but getting to it was. The hardest part for me was getting to all the bell housing bolts and trying to undo them all they are pretty tight and its pretty cramped where some of them are. The cables on the transfer case are easy enough to get to altho I think one of mine has since worked itself loose. I did it on a mates car hoist, with no prior experience in doing a seal or clutch. But had help from a mate who knew what he was doing. EDIT: forgot to add mines an SV420 with the j20

[Daly87]

Hey guys I really appreciate all the replies and advice given. Afterb reading it all iv decided. Im going to get the car cleaned and have a good look at doing it myself this week. I have a mate who said he would give us a hand if I got the beer stocked up!

If I do it myself it means I can afford a new clutch!

[Daly87]

Rear main done. Leak has gone. However had to pay a fortune (800)

Now the surging problems.

Could a bad cat be the cause? My cat is blowing pretty bad.

Also this is what the plugs look like, I know sometimes they can give some information. They were dry...

[VitNick]

Dry and whitish plugs normally means its running very lean

[Daly87]

The car is in on Monday for a new exhaust. Ill give it a service then and see how it goes.

Right now it's pulling a code 32 ( I think that's the o2 sensor right) could the messed up cat contribute to this code? ?

[VitNick]

o2 is 13, you should get 12 for all normal. Not sure on 32, I'm sure there is a thread on here for the codes, just can't seem to find it

[Daly87]

Yep, your right, I just checked my notes it was 13, HO2S-1 no activity detected.

[Daly87]

For any people with the same problems the power surging seems to have gone.

I replaced the headers with a hurricane set as the stock ones were cracked when I took the heat shield off.
Replaced the blowing cat and muffler.
Replaced the fuel filter.
Changed spark plugs ( and gapped these to 0.8 the others were at 1.1 )
Cleaned the MAF and everything else I could around the intake such as EGR ect.

Now not sure which helped maybe a combination off all but I hope this may help someone looking for solutions.

[fordem]

Got any pictures of those headers installed?

[Daly87]

Not the best but I can get a better one when I get to the car If you need.

[Daly87]

Right seems the surging power issue hasnt gone!! Really annoying now. Plus one more annoyance.

Power surging:
Iv changed the cracked headers and exhaust, fuel filter, plugs, cleaned as much as I could around the inlet with o2 sensor cleaner.

It starts fine, no cutting out or anything just a lack of power when cold but is ok when at temp. You go set of and it goes to around 1750 rpm and power drains and it feels like its trying to gain it back.

Could it be an o2 sensor issue? If so is yhe following plug ok? Its over 100dollars cheaper than any other I can find.
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.vi ... 44&alt=web

Now problem two. I think the throttle is sticking, after driving the revs sometimes stay at 1500 but if I pull on the gas pedal with my foot it drops to 900 and stays there till I press it again and same thing.

Help

[tonyevans]

I have a almost the same problem with a 625 - viewtopic.php?f=5&t=45614

I have replaced the O2 sensors - No different - The TPS - No different and am now waiting for a MAF sensor to arrive from the USA. Suzuki will only sell the whole throttle body at over $1400 bucks

The other O2 sensors you listed have a bad reputation but I have not had one so don't know for sure - I got good plug in ones from Greg at 4WDparts on Ebay for $108 posted.

Hope this helps - Tony

[Daly87]

So you went and paid $1400 for a throttle body to get the MAF? Wow. I dont know where to begin with myn, maybe start out like you. Get an o2 sensor then tps and go from there... yours sounds like the oposite, myn has a drain of power when cold but ok when warmed up.

[tonyevans]

Daly87 wrote:

So you went and paid $1400 for a throttle body to get the MAF?

NO - As I said I am waiting for one from the USA $100 with postage but you have to wait.

In your posts you say you cleaned the MAF - I have been told (as I am and old fashioned fart, I don't know about these things) they are VERY delicate and trying to clean them will most likely stuff them even if they were OK before. It says words to this affect in the manual and I was told by a local mechanic that does not sell parts.

[losfer]

so far in this thread and noone has asked the obvious question ... have you checked the ecu for error codes ?

your spark plugs actually look quite good , clean electrode and black around the outer ring isnt a bad thing .

A flat spot until engine warms up could be a faulty coolant temp sensor , but i wouldnt jump to conclusions before doing tests.

[tonyevans]

Yes I did - I used Rhinoview and it said I had a bad O2 sensor so I replaced both and now it says I have 2 bad O2 sensors?

[tonyevans]

OK - I have a MAF sensor just arrived from the USA but will not have time till next week to fit it.

I can see why Suzuki say don't touch it inside or try to clear it. Fragile is the word all right.

If anyone is interested I will try and get a picture of the inside the intake bit.

[Daly87]

losfer wrote:

so far in this thread and noone has asked the obvious question ... have you checked the ecu for error codes ?

your spark plugs actually look quite good , clean electrode and black around the outer ring isnt a bad thing .

A flat spot until engine warms up could be a faulty coolant temp sensor , but i wouldnt jump to conclusions before doing tests.

I did check the codes before I changed everything I mentioned previously. I had bad o2 codes. But due to a cracked manifold and blown cat and muffler I changed them first. Thanks for confirming the plugs, changed them anyway as I gave it a service as I was changing oil and filters etc. What test could be done for the coolant temp sensor? I feel like im going to end up changing everything as I'm eliminating sensors haha

Keep us informed on how the maf replacment goes please!

[Daly87]

losfer wrote:

so far in this thread and noone has asked the obvious question ... have you checked the ecu for error codes ?

your spark plugs actually look quite good , clean electrode and black around the outer ring isnt a bad thing .

A flat spot until engine warms up could be a faulty coolant temp sensor , but i wouldnt jump to conclusions before doing tests.

I did check the codes before I changed everything I mentioned previously. I had bad o2 codes. But due to a cracked manifold and blown cat and muffler I changed them first. Thanks for confirming the plugs, changed them anyway as I gave it a service as I was changing oil and filters etc. What test could be done for the coolant temp sensor? I feel like im going to end up changing everything as I'm eliminating sensors haha

Keep us informed on how the maf replacment goes please!