My Meet-Up with Stevic11 -- Take 5
#1
08-13-2018, 04:51 AM
My Meet-Up with Stevic11 -- Take 5
(This is the 5th time I have attempted to post this, only to have it eaten, deleted, erased, fubar'd, evaporate, not autosave, or otherwise slip from my control.)
The encounter described below is entirely factual. No names have been changed, and no animals were hurt in the attempted repair of this vehicle.
A few weekends ago, I had the pleasure of meeting up with Stevic11, owner of a silver 2001 SC2. He'd posted on the forum about having issues with getting his ride inspected, as the EVAP monitor would not go READY.
I had crossed paths with this dude while getting care for my mom last year; total coincidence. He told me of his woes. I told him the EVAP can be a beeeatch based on the 37 pre constraints GM has for the test to run. Many times they were non-obvious things (to us) like matching intake air and coolant temp sensor readings at cold start, outdoor temp range, etc.
He said he lived a few towns over and would get in touch
6 months later, the dude PMs me from some other username asking me why the $%#* did I ban his original username.
I said "inactivity".
He said, "how am I supposed to remain active if you ban me?"
I said "never really thought about it in the 15 years I've been banning inactive accounts. Lemme think on that one".
I unbanned his account.
He sent me some more details about his issue. None of them were the least bit helpful, but I pretended they were so that I could finally get under the hood of a 3rd gen coupe.
A couple more months passed.
I figured he'd found one of the other 3 Saturn drivers in and around Pittsburgh to help him out.
He had no use for me. Cast off like a sweaty bandana at the end of mowing the lawn in the dead of summer -- which it was not.
Finally, he has the nerve to email me at the address in my forum signature that no one ever uses.
We set up meeting times, but it never comes to pass.
Finally, he shows up in my driveway in a silver 2001 SC2--a baby at 110K. He's blasting "Killing in the Name of ..." by Rage Against the Machine, so I know he is both cool and totally insensitive to the fact he's passed about 15 young children while blasting this profane metal rap gem.
The irony hits me face on: The man drives around blaring a song with the repeating lyric "%$#@ you I won't do what you tell me" and low and behold, the EVAP won't do what he tells it.
Luckily the SES is on this gloriously hot and humid day, an event that occurs infrequently -- but clearly JUST often enough to screw up the monitor test sequence.
I scratch my head. what type of code could possibly be pending or setting that would inhibit the EVAP test from running?
After several seconds, the phrase EVAP leak comes to me.
I hook up my handy dandy Bluetooth scanner.
It spits out
P0341 Camshaft position sensor blah blah blah bs
P0456 EVAP small leak
I sense my ordinarily useless knowledge of S car behavior may actually be of use today.
I go after the 0341 first.
NGK 5643 BKR5ESA11 plugs in the DOHC?
Nope.
I swap in an old set I've been keeping around for a decade in case someone should have a use for them.
Stevic11 is impressed that I re-gap the plugs before putting them in.
Pull off the plug wires at the coils. Dull gray with a ring of corrosion where the clip in the boot locks into the post. 100K, makes sense.
A little light sanding and dielectric grease with some superficial exhaust manifold burns, and it's back together.
Code gone.
S car = stock plugs.
Coil tower corrosion -- learned from a Saturn tech who was trying to upsell me on a new pair of coils due to corrosion -- nope. Clean em up.
------
P0456 small Evap Leak
Gas cap removed. Thin layer of rust/corrosion on the outer ring of filler where gas cap seals to it. Some also transferred to gas cap seal ring.
I futzed with the junk on the seal, which seemed to be only on the surface.
Put gas cap back on. Code gone.
Stevic11 has since lightly sanded off the corrosion on the top ring of the filler neck.
Neither code has returned.
I'll nag him before the end of the month to see if he's had the monitors checked and taken it for inspection while all of the planets are aligned.
He has stuff to do.
Oh I forgot the part where, after he left, I couldn't remember if he had an SOHC or DOHC, told him he had an SOHC with his 2002 SC1 and I gave him DOHC plugs, only to realize the next day that it was a 2001 SC2, the valve cover was identical to mine
and that I do indeed have the memory span of a grape and that the plugs were fine.
And I apologized for sweating all over his fan shroud.
Which is probably where my 8mm socket still resides, because I have the manual dexterity of a 4 year old.
And that's how a meet up with me goes.
Jerama is the only other poor soul to witness the general disarray of my mind in action.
Need to meet more of you folks.
The encounter described below is entirely factual. No names have been changed, and no animals were hurt in the attempted repair of this vehicle.
A few weekends ago, I had the pleasure of meeting up with Stevic11, owner of a silver 2001 SC2. He'd posted on the forum about having issues with getting his ride inspected, as the EVAP monitor would not go READY.
I had crossed paths with this dude while getting care for my mom last year; total coincidence. He told me of his woes. I told him the EVAP can be a beeeatch based on the 37 pre constraints GM has for the test to run. Many times they were non-obvious things (to us) like matching intake air and coolant temp sensor readings at cold start, outdoor temp range, etc.
He said he lived a few towns over and would get in touch
6 months later, the dude PMs me from some other username asking me why the $%#* did I ban his original username.
I said "inactivity".
He said, "how am I supposed to remain active if you ban me?"
I said "never really thought about it in the 15 years I've been banning inactive accounts. Lemme think on that one".
I unbanned his account.
He sent me some more details about his issue. None of them were the least bit helpful, but I pretended they were so that I could finally get under the hood of a 3rd gen coupe.
A couple more months passed.
I figured he'd found one of the other 3 Saturn drivers in and around Pittsburgh to help him out.
He had no use for me. Cast off like a sweaty bandana at the end of mowing the lawn in the dead of summer -- which it was not.
Finally, he has the nerve to email me at the address in my forum signature that no one ever uses.
We set up meeting times, but it never comes to pass.
Finally, he shows up in my driveway in a silver 2001 SC2--a baby at 110K. He's blasting "Killing in the Name of ..." by Rage Against the Machine, so I know he is both cool and totally insensitive to the fact he's passed about 15 young children while blasting this profane metal rap gem.
The irony hits me face on: The man drives around blaring a song with the repeating lyric "%$#@ you I won't do what you tell me" and low and behold, the EVAP won't do what he tells it.
Luckily the SES is on this gloriously hot and humid day, an event that occurs infrequently -- but clearly JUST often enough to screw up the monitor test sequence.
I scratch my head. what type of code could possibly be pending or setting that would inhibit the EVAP test from running?
After several seconds, the phrase EVAP leak comes to me.
I hook up my handy dandy Bluetooth scanner.
It spits out
P0341 Camshaft position sensor blah blah blah bs
P0456 EVAP small leak
I sense my ordinarily useless knowledge of S car behavior may actually be of use today.
I go after the 0341 first.
NGK 5643 BKR5ESA11 plugs in the DOHC?
Nope.
I swap in an old set I've been keeping around for a decade in case someone should have a use for them.
Stevic11 is impressed that I re-gap the plugs before putting them in.
Pull off the plug wires at the coils. Dull gray with a ring of corrosion where the clip in the boot locks into the post. 100K, makes sense.
A little light sanding and dielectric grease with some superficial exhaust manifold burns, and it's back together.
Code gone.
S car = stock plugs.
Coil tower corrosion -- learned from a Saturn tech who was trying to upsell me on a new pair of coils due to corrosion -- nope. Clean em up.
------
P0456 small Evap Leak
Gas cap removed. Thin layer of rust/corrosion on the outer ring of filler where gas cap seals to it. Some also transferred to gas cap seal ring.
I futzed with the junk on the seal, which seemed to be only on the surface.
Put gas cap back on. Code gone.
Stevic11 has since lightly sanded off the corrosion on the top ring of the filler neck.
Neither code has returned.
I'll nag him before the end of the month to see if he's had the monitors checked and taken it for inspection while all of the planets are aligned.
He has stuff to do.
Oh I forgot the part where, after he left, I couldn't remember if he had an SOHC or DOHC, told him he had an SOHC with his 2002 SC1 and I gave him DOHC plugs, only to realize the next day that it was a 2001 SC2, the valve cover was identical to mine
and that I do indeed have the memory span of a grape and that the plugs were fine.
And I apologized for sweating all over his fan shroud.
Which is probably where my 8mm socket still resides, because I have the manual dexterity of a 4 year old.
And that's how a meet up with me goes.
Jerama is the only other poor soul to witness the general disarray of my mind in action.
Need to meet more of you folks.
Last edited by derf; 08-13-2018 at 04:54 AM.
#2
08-13-2018, 06:32 AM
I'm glad to hear you solved the problems for him relatively quickly, derf. He should mail you an 8mm socket for all that work, along with a $10 bill for a six-pack of your favorite frosty beverage. As for meeting more folks, are you SURE you'd want to? Life's full of disappointment, you know. LOL I'm trying to get back to TN within the next 2 years. Once I'm back there and settled in, who knows? FL is just too far to drive and I don't like it here anyway.
#3
08-13-2018, 12:14 PM
I told him before we started I accept no cash for my efforts. I do this stuff because I like helping people.
Plus I've never seen a six pack of tequila
Plus I've never seen a six pack of tequila
Last edited by derf; 08-13-2018 at 05:37 PM.
#4
08-13-2018, 01:35 PM
I could extend an offer to come and eco-mod your car for ya... but you may not like how it would look afterward lol
Really, I would love to see a forum meetup, but Derf is the only one within 150mi of me lol
Really, I would love to see a forum meetup, but Derf is the only one within 150mi of me lol
Last edited by 19bonestock88; 08-13-2018 at 01:38 PM.
#5
08-13-2018, 06:05 PM
Thank you, but you know better than to get within 100 yds of my SC2 with that "space age" technology of yours.
If I wanted my car to get 70 mph, I'd swap out the DOHC for a Metro engine, strip the interior, remove the dash and wiring, and apply aerolube to the body after filling in the road rash and scratches.
I'll start believing your mileage claims when you start using the identical pump at the identical gas station and let it click off by itself and add no more. EVERY FILL-UP.
Otherwise, you are leaving half the calculation ill-defined because every gas pump is a little different in shutoff pressure and every station's gas is not the same.
0.5 out of 14.4 (S car, don't know what Ions hold) is 3.5%, So if one pump adds 0.5 less than the previous (which could have been low relative to a true fill, whatever that is), then it looks like your mileage increased by 3.5 %, when in reality it's just a difference in the friggin pumps.
I'm not bashing your efforts to aeromod -- I give you crap all the time about it but you're the dude saving money by doing it.
I just want some add'l consistency -- for your sake -- so that you can better tell what apparent increase is due to what and how much.
The pump variation is easy to take out of the equation.
-------------------------------------------------
We should meet up in podunk Kansas in a town with 12 people and see if we can buy land for cheap. We could establish the 1st location for the SLIonsnMore speed shop.
Once we master the V8 RWD swap we can sell kits at prices that no one can beat (because we have no competition.)
The idea of driving to nowhere Kansas to get my old tired Saturn upgraded to a monster is ridiculous.
Which is why it will garner press attention and be successful.
---------------------------------------------
When I look over my shoulder
What do you think I see?
Some other cat lookin' over
His shoulder at me
And he's strange
Sure is strange
You got to pick up every stitch
You got to pick up every stitch, yeah
Beatniks are out to make it rich
Oh no, must be the season of the witch
Must be the season of the witch, yeah
Must be the season of the witch
If I wanted my car to get 70 mph, I'd swap out the DOHC for a Metro engine, strip the interior, remove the dash and wiring, and apply aerolube to the body after filling in the road rash and scratches.
I'll start believing your mileage claims when you start using the identical pump at the identical gas station and let it click off by itself and add no more. EVERY FILL-UP.
Otherwise, you are leaving half the calculation ill-defined because every gas pump is a little different in shutoff pressure and every station's gas is not the same.
0.5 out of 14.4 (S car, don't know what Ions hold) is 3.5%, So if one pump adds 0.5 less than the previous (which could have been low relative to a true fill, whatever that is), then it looks like your mileage increased by 3.5 %, when in reality it's just a difference in the friggin pumps.
I'm not bashing your efforts to aeromod -- I give you crap all the time about it but you're the dude saving money by doing it.
I just want some add'l consistency -- for your sake -- so that you can better tell what apparent increase is due to what and how much.
The pump variation is easy to take out of the equation.
-------------------------------------------------
We should meet up in podunk Kansas in a town with 12 people and see if we can buy land for cheap. We could establish the 1st location for the SLIonsnMore speed shop.
Once we master the V8 RWD swap we can sell kits at prices that no one can beat (because we have no competition.)
The idea of driving to nowhere Kansas to get my old tired Saturn upgraded to a monster is ridiculous.
Which is why it will garner press attention and be successful.
---------------------------------------------
When I look over my shoulder
What do you think I see?
Some other cat lookin' over
His shoulder at me
And he's strange
Sure is strange
You got to pick up every stitch
You got to pick up every stitch, yeah
Beatniks are out to make it rich
Oh no, must be the season of the witch
Must be the season of the witch, yeah
Must be the season of the witch
#9
08-14-2018, 11:19 AM
Oh yeah! Road trip!
Hey, I’d love to open a speed shop but I don’t have any capital to play with lol...
ive long since stopped trying to test mods on a tank by tank basis, instead relying on data taken from the UltraGauge for feedback on what I’m doing, mileage wise... usually I can know within ten miles if a mod is helping and approximately by how much... while the gauge isn’t calibrated perfectly to how much fuel the car uses, I don’t change the calibration to keep the error about the same...
As for Derf’s car, an Sx1 5th gear set and smooth wheel covers is about all he’dneed to start nailing down 40-ish on the freeway, provides he goes 65-70mph
Hey, I’d love to open a speed shop but I don’t have any capital to play with lol...
ive long since stopped trying to test mods on a tank by tank basis, instead relying on data taken from the UltraGauge for feedback on what I’m doing, mileage wise... usually I can know within ten miles if a mod is helping and approximately by how much... while the gauge isn’t calibrated perfectly to how much fuel the car uses, I don’t change the calibration to keep the error about the same...
As for Derf’s car, an Sx1 5th gear set and smooth wheel covers is about all he’dneed to start nailing down 40-ish on the freeway, provides he goes 65-70mph
#10
08-21-2018, 11:21 PM
I am pleased to report that Stevic11's 2001 SC2 has passed inspection and has once again been welcomed back to the crappy roads of Pennsylvania in a legal manner.
Another one back in circulation.
That's what we do here.
Another one back in circulation.
That's what we do here.