I'm about to go out and check compression on my car, because lately it's getting reeeally tired and is feeling really sluggish compared to what it used to do. The mileage is really getting out of hand (in excess of 250K!) and i've never even had the heads off so i have no idea what the internals are looking like. I drive the balls off my car (what else do you do with a Mustang??) so i think it's getting time to either rebuild or throw an Explorer motor in. Anyways, this kid kept goosing me from every red light we'd come to so i finally said hell with it and holeshotted him. It really wasn't too bad untill i stopped spinning and then i started pulling away. We only ran to about 40-50 (in a 55mph zone) so in the quarter i'd have put a good distance on him, but for a Cobalt it really wasn't too bad. I've gotta get some heads and a cam lol.
LOL yeah. My car basically is a monster for having stock heads/cam but only once the RPMs get up at/above 3k. I've got plenty of exhaust and pleeenty of intake, but it really bottlenecks at the heads. I've got too much carb, way too much intake (Edel Vic Jr which doesn't even come alive untill about 3k and then peaks at 8k). If my car had stock gears it would be a highway bullet but a slug off the line since my bottom end is so flat. I'm working on a GT40P based engine but i just started a new job so i'm trying to get my finances worked out. It's gonna be pretty mild....just a rebuilt 302 with P heads and an E cam but it should be fun. I might trade the E for a TFS Stage 1 though.
You know it! I can't wait untill i tear it down so i can see if there's any cross hatch left in the cylinders because i bet there is. I think the rings are just getting worn and compression is getting low, and i know for sure that it really REEALLY needs a valve job. It smokes every now and then and i'm 99.999% sure the valve guides are shot and oil is leaking through them and into the cylinders.
You should take a pic of the odometer and send it to FoMoCo along with the video of that long burnout you posted a while back.
The odometer quit turning at 232k lol. I think the speedo gear is chewed up....haven't looked into it yet.
It doesn't take a ton of power to burn out. Hey, I'm just surprised that you car doesn't smoke with that many miles on it.
Yeah i really don't know what those cars are worth performance wise but i was pretty impressed. I really respect the "underdog" aspect of imports. If you can take an engine with half the displacement and cylinders as mine and keep up...that's impressive in my book. It's the same principle behind the 5.0 vs. the GM 5.7, not to mention the 4.6 vs. the 5.7.
I'm pretty much in the same boat, aside from having heads and a cam. My '90 is sitting at around 315,000 right now. Like you, I have never babied this car at all. Bought it in '94 and it was getting put through the ringer from day one. lol The heads and cam went in at 150k. At that time new rings and bearings were installed also but otherwise it's the factory block. If I go out "cruising" for a couple hours the car sounds tired as hell by the time I get home. lol I recently got some confirmation that it'll still run if it has to. I had a run-in with an m6 LS1 Z28 (stock) on the highway a few weeks ago. We went a few times and each time I'd pull away in 5th...way into 5th (hurray 4.10!). Not exactly earth-shattering but for being a 10 year old combo I was happy about it.
Yeah i've seen it coming all year long. It really hit me about a month or so ago when i got SHUT DOWN by a pretty stout running Vtec Civic on the highway. That car wasn't even turbo but word has it that he still somehow runs high 13s all motor. Over the time i've owned this car, i've done a lot of crap to it but i've never really touched the motor aside from the intake/exhaust and a short belt. The long block is bone-assed '85 stock down to the oil pan, so i guess it really runs pretty good all things considered. It just sucks having to come to grips with the fact that my poor baby is getting up in her years lol. Oh well, hopefully within this month i'll have my new engine finished up and then maybe some control arms and DR's and i'll be flashing some high 12 second ET slips on everyone Oh, and yeah i beat the F'in crap out of my car and i'm proud of it. That said, i DO take good care of her...i change the oil and make sure everything is in great working order....i just don't hold back when it comes time to drive it like it's made to be driven. Right now i figure the engine is probably on borrowed time anyways, and really it's more than put in it's worth so if it lets go i really wouldn't be hurt any and at least she'd go out rockin.
I have seen tons of those Colbalt SS run at IRP in Indy. Most of them are running right on 14 even. Maybe not bad for a Cobalt/ Cavalier but for $26K that isn't too good, lol. I wish they never made them cars. There are like 10 of them in our town and they all think they got a race car.
I hear you man, same here. I do all the regular maintence with some tweaking here and there but out on the road, "No commercials...no mercyyyy!!"
