1995 sw2 185k was running fine.....
 

Hello, I bought this 95 sw2 5 speed last winter and it had been running good despite burning about 2 quarts of oil per tank of gas. Since buying it the ac pump went bad and I put a delete kit in, replaced the wheel bearings, hubs, tie rod ends, and lower control arms/ball joints, snd one other misc stuff that has all added into the amount that I care about this car. I have a blanket laid across the back as the seats fold down so my 80lb German shepherd has his own rolling bed when we go somewhere, and I honestly just love driving the car as wiwrd as it sounds. I actually.look forward to driving it. I had a 5speed awd eclipse gsx turbo when I was in college and also a 5speed 88 ford ranger, so it's probably just that I missed the shifting aspect of driving. But the car is so zippy.and gets around 33 mpg each tank that I really don't want to have to.scrap it..

anyways, the symptoms came out of nowhere. My fiance picked me up from work in it and said that it was running rough. It chugged and she said it felt like it.had no power.

I got it home and took the egr valve off.and cleaned it, which seemed tp be working fine. Put it back on, no fix. I read on here that the ects goes bad because it's made from plastic but it looked as if the one that was in there was a dealer bought replacement as it had no plastic on it and also had the red ring of rtv like I have seen on threads on here.

so I pulled the plugs and all 4 were dripping oil.... I called my friend that is a manager at Napa and he loomed up that if it was run low on oil that the valves could be burnt?

So as of now its all back together, I put new plugs in, it is really rough starting I.have to pump the throttle and then when it finally stays running the motor shakes pretty bad...

when it is running and I pull the spark plug wires off one by one, the far left two have little affect on the engine running but the two on.the drivers side when removed cause the car to stall. All 4 plugs have spark going to them...

That's as far as I really have the knowledge to go, hope somebody has some advice on what else my problem could be.

Read the post ETCS and it's connector. Oh and looking at it does not mean it good or bad. Plasitc?

https://www.saturnforum.com/forum/general-tech-help-13/etcs-its-connnector-6417/

Stop in the new member area and give yourself an introduction. When your done with that open the USER CP and add your first name, location, and car info into your "signature".

TWO quarts of oil per tank of gas? Plugs are DRIPPING oil ??

Sorry, but that engine is gonna have to come apart, and have serious work ...

Oh, and welcome to the Forum

Yep, plugs dripping oil are not a good sign. You've either got some very faulty valves or your rings are shot. My bet is the rings.

I agree with OceanArcher, I think he is right, but before getting a new engine or rebuilding this one, take off the valve cover and see if the oil is draining back into the pan OK. There are holes for draining back the oil, if they are plugged up, the oil level will rise under the valve covers until it covers the valve stems. From there, it will get sucked into the engine.

If your not sure, a build up of gunk under the valve covers would be a clue. If it is pretty clean under there, then the drain holes are probably OK.

A compression check is in order as well given that two plugs when pulled have little to no effect. post all 4 cyl readings here.

Do this before you spend the money on the ects

The plastic (resin) part of the ects is what is inserted inside the head. Can't see it w/o removing it. Bad design, they all cracked.

IF you replace the ECTS:
Order a new one from gm dealer w connector and have it on hand when you pull the old one lest you leak antifreeze all over the place.
That is a sheetload of oil. 2q per 400 mi comes to about 14q per 3000 mi -- which is the thirstiest saturn that runs with no smoke that I've ever heard of.

I had tthe ects out and it looked to be an aftermarket one by the pictures I've seen in forums. There was no plastic part at all it was all gold colored. It had a red ring around the threads too.

I will do a compression test today and see what that comes up with. I never said it didn't smoke but it ran smooth. Lots of smoke when I would give it any gokd amount of throttle.

If you're getting smoke and your plugs are oil soaked, it's time for a rebuild or at least a ring job.

How extensive/expensive is a ring job vs a rebuild?

Are you up to trying a few tricks before starting an overhaul (rings and valves, and maybe bearings)?

First check the oil drain back holes as I posted above. If they are ok, then remove all the plugs. Turn the engine until all the pistons are at about the same level. You can insert a stick in each hole to determine this. It doesn't have to be exact. Then add a couple ounces of SeaFoam to each cylinder and let it soak overnight.

SeaFoam contains a stoddard oil which will loosen and dissolve the crud that may be causing the rings to stick. You could also use an oil called BreakFree and it may work a little better, but it is fairly expensive. You can find it at most gun shops because it is a great ordinance oil.

After sitting over night, crank the engine with the plugs out to get any excess oil out. Trapped oil can cause hydrolock, but most, if not all the oil will have seeped down around the rings. This oil can stay in the crankcase, it won't hurt anything. Some people add SeaFoam to their regular oil at every oil change but I am personally not a fan of additives unless I have a specific need for them.

Chances of this working are slim, but if it does, look at how much money you will save. Even if it does work, it may only work for a little while, you'll end up doing the overhaul anyway. But the cost and effort is low.

I don't know anyone personally that the SeaFoam (BreakFree or Marval Mystery Oil, etc) worked for but I have heard people claim that they knew someone that it did work for. I do have personal experience with clogged oil drain back holes. I overhauled an engine for a family friend that had perfectly good rings and valves in it, the oil drain back holes were plugged because she never changed her oil.