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Buick Park Avenue Engine Problems

51 messages,  Last post on Nov 12, 2011 at 6:07 PM

You are in the Buick Park Avenue Forum.

What is this discussion about? Buick Park Avenue, Engine, Sedan

Messages Page 4 of 6

#22 of 51 coolant by jrackley

Mar 15, 2008 (5:20 pm)

i have 98 park avenue. my thermostate stuck. took guts out. put regular water in radiator to get it home. changed thermostate and drove it down the road temp gauge got to 207 degrees that was as high as it got. it cut off and would not crank back up. changed battery. it started but when i cut it back off it had hard time starting again. I drained water and put 50/50 mixture of dex-cool and water.But now it sounds like rod is knocking did just the water cause that much of a problem

#23 of 51 engine noise by jrackley

Mar 15, 2008 (5:24 pm)

it is making a horrible noise do you think it messed up the bearing on the crankshaft.

#24 of 51 Re: coolant [jrackley] by imidazol97

Mar 16, 2008 (1:12 pm)

Replying to: jrackley (Mar 15, 2008 5:20 pm)
Running hot you may have damaged a head gasket or head. Look at the dip stick to see if the oil shows a milky color like a chocolate shake? If so you have coolant in the oil and that is poison to bearings. It deteriorates them fast chemically.
 
You are going to have to find out what's happening. I suppose it's possible the intake manifold just decided to leak at the time of overheating. And that can put coolant into the cylinders and oil.
 
If you have a knocking, your motor may be past tense already--not to scare you too much.

#25 of 51 adding coolant by icemanstone

Mar 17, 2008 (7:44 am)

Actually I have a two part question. The first is I bought my 96 park ave ultra used with about 125,000 mi. I have had to add coolant to the overflow container three times in the five months since I bought the car. In total it comes to about two and a half gallons of coolant. I have never seen this in any car I have ever owned. the second issue I have is on cold mornings the transmission is very sluggish even after letting the vehicle warm up for approximately ten minutes.I have had the transmission flushed and refilled. If I shut the engine off and wait a couple of minutes then restart the engine it runs normally. Any ideas what is going on?

#26 of 51 2001 Park Avenue Suddenly DOA - Won't start; not battery; not fuses; help? by jonif

Mar 20, 2008 (11:00 am)

I have a 2001 Park Avenue Sedan, 3800 Series II V6, Transmission 4 speed electronic. with Prestige Option Package. One owner, about 54,000 miles. Transmission failed/replaced under warranty at 26K. No other problems. I drove it into the driveway last night after running errands for about an hour. Went out to pull in the garage and it will not start. One click I heard. Then nothing. Gauges were moving without key in it! Battery dead overnight. Recharged. Checked all 4 fuse boxes. Tried starting with and without battery charger on it; and bypassed battery; still just a click and then the car is DEAD. Have tried both key fobs; neither will start it. Was running FINE before this. Have read all forum posts, but don't see a fix. Any ideas? As the seat was returning to memory position it just stopped and the car would not start. Could it be a short somewhere? Totally mystified. Want to avoid towing it to a dealer if possible. No lights inside and I know of no way to check codes. It won't jump start either.
Joni

#27 of 51 Re: 2001 Park Avenue Suddenly DOA - Won't start; not battery; not fuses; he by bowfan

Jun 14, 2008 (8:07 am)

Replying to: jonif (Mar 20, 2008 11:00 am)
I know it's late to reply to your questions, but did you get this resolved? and if so what did it take?
 
When my 98 had it's last plenum failure, I would attempt to crank it with no luck, and after I turned my key off the gauges would jump up and down for a second or two. After pulling the plugs, I tried the starter again with the same results - no crank even with a jump. I then put a breaker bar / socket on the end of the engine to make sure it would turn over and it did. I then pulled the two starter bolts, and backed the starter out and then put it back in place and it would then crank again. I'm just guessing that the solenoid or bendix was stuck. I believe what happened was the starter may have jammed against the ring gear in the extended position, draining the battery.. but that's just a guess. Ended up with a weakened battery that had to be replaced, which again makes me think something was shorting it out with lots of amperage ability like a starter.
 
Would like to know how your's went, Joni. I'm guessing starter related issue. Your answer may help someone who reads these forums in the future.

#28 of 51 Hot/cold start issues by rolexy68

Jun 17, 2008 (7:25 am)

I have an issue with my 2001 Park Ave. Cold start is sluggish and hot start is sometimes real sluggish. I have an rear seal oil leak and a tranny cooler line leak, not major ones.
I'm thinking it may be the fuel pump? Any other thoughts, anyone had similar issues with the 3800 engine.
 

#29 of 51 Re: Hot/cold start issues [rolexy68] by imidazol97

Jun 17, 2008 (8:06 am)

Replying to: rolexy68 (Jun 17, 2008 7:25 am)
At first by "sluggist" I thought you might mean the cranking speed of the starter. But you suggested fuel pump, so I infer it may be cranking but not firing quickly.
 
Check the FPR (fuel pressure regulator). It looks like a top hot with the fuel line coming into it and it sits on the fuel rail on the front of the motor. Another line goes to the front of the throttle body; it's a vacuum line. Pull off the vacuum line at the FPR and see if there's liquid fuel in it. There shouldn't be. The FPR still could be defective.
 
Also try turning the key to ON without cranking after the car sits overnight. Then to OFF and back to ON for a few seconds. You'll hear the fuel pump run for about 2 seconds and turn off. That's what it's supposesd to do to prime the pressure if there's been a drop in the line pressure while standing. Do that a total of 3 times. On the third time crank the motor and see if it starts quicker. That could indicate the pressure valve that doesn't let fuel back into tank is leaking and draining the pressure.
 
Unless the tank has been run low on fuel a lot, below quarter regularly, the chances of a pump failure as low.
 
Report back with any observations you make for me.

#30 of 51 Re: Hot/cold start issues [imidazol97] by rolexy68

Jun 25, 2008 (6:01 pm)

Replying to: imidazol97 (Jun 17, 2008 8:06 am)
I tried that and it does seem to start quicker. I wonder, is it fairly simple to change the FPR myself or is it a simple, cheap fix.

#31 of 51 Re: Hot/cold start issues [rolexy68] by imidazol97

Jun 26, 2008 (8:35 am)

Replying to: rolexy68 (Jun 25, 2008 6:01 pm)
The multiple key turns before starting just pumps up the pressure in the line from the tank. I do not know if the FPR is involved in that. It could be deterioration in the pressure holding valve on the fuel pump in the tank that retains fuel pressure in the line after it's turned off.
 
The FPR does sometimes get replaced even if it's not leaking fuel into the vacuum line controlling it. But I'd want to know it's bad before doing that. It can be replaced at home if you have some mechanical skills.

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