mrasgt

I just bought a 2014 Chevy Equinox with the 2.4 LEA engine with 76,000 miles on it.

I've read everything I can find about all the troubles the 2.4 has had, from oil leaks, the so called PCV pipe to rings and valves

going bad, etc. I've got all the records for the rig and it appears all work done to it was by a dealer adhering to the manual.

Here is my question:

Are there any 2.4 engine series out there that have not had these well known issues?

My rig seems to be perfect, no oil use or loss, dry under carriage, clean PCV pipe, no gunk under the oil filler cap, etc.

I'm very good at getting the oil changed at a dealer before it's due. I check the oil level about three times a week.

Thank you in advance.

Doug D

We purchased a '14 Equinox with the 2.4L last December. Wife totaled her '10 Journey. Anyway, the Equinox had 67K miles at purchase and now has 95K miles with no issues.

Cowpie

Not nearly the miles you have but my wife's 2017 Equinox with 44K miles is going great. No oil consumption. Now, at each oil change I also do a CRC Intake valve cleaning job. The only fuel the vehicle has gotten is E85 with which it runs far better than regular or premium. And even with the lower mpg, the lower cost still makes it very cost effective on a per mile basis comparison. I change the oil at around 5000-6000 miles and it uses, maybe, 1/8 quart in that time.

One thing that I would advise is replacing the stock oil filler cap with a pressure vented one like this one I put on our 2.4. The main issue with the 2.4 is the internal PCV port unlike a typical port and hose to the intake like most other engines. The actual PCV port is internal in the head of the engine. The PVC pipe you are checking is the clean side pipe that clean air goes from the intake back in to the engine to complete the cycle. If that port plugs, a high amount of the contaminates and such go backward thru the clean side PCV hose that goes from the air intake plenum to the valve cover. When that happens, if the vehicles sits outside in cold weather, the water and contaminates can freeze where the hose enters the intake plenum and when the vehicle is initially run, internal pressures build up causing high oil consumption and can blow the rear seal eventually. Best to put on a vented oil filler cap as a preventative measure.....

https://www.carid.com/acdelco/gm-ori...mpn-fc219.html

ASE Doc

The 2.4L L4 and its big brother the 3.6L V6, both have a high rate of timing chain failures. You should have found this in your research. The average 3.6 timing replacement is 100Kmi which is unusual for a timing chain engine. Most timing chains last 200-300Kmi. All direct injected engines have an issue with carbon build up on intake valves. We have a Gasoline Direct Injection valve cleaning system for these but my experience is that this is of limited effectiveness. A number of OEMs are adding port injectors back into their direct injected engines for the purpose of preventing intake valve carbon build up, though they may not admit this is the reason. The fact is that dry intake valves in an ICE is simply a bad idea. There is no way to prevent crankcase gases and fine dirt from producing build up on the intake valves without fuel to keep them clean.

The 2.4L have a high rate of piston ring failures as well as an unusually high rate of timing chain failures. The ones that I've seen had the front timing chain guide break. This allows too much chain slack and incorrect cam timing. I've also seen more than one 2.4L where the piston rings failed in spite of regular oil changes. I would not recommend purchasing any vehicle with either the 2.4L or 3.6L engine. However, if you do own one, The absolute best preventative measure you can take is regular oil changes with a quality oil. The 2014 is going to be a Dexos vehicle. GM would say 10Kmi oil service interval. I recommend 5Kmi for synthetic oil, 3Kmi for organic oil. If you're not running synthetic, switch to high mileage at 100Kmi. I prefer Valvoline High Mileage.

Cowpie

Wow. My mom has about 80,000 miles on her 2013 2.4 Nox and nary a problem. Many of the issues that were mentioned seemed to have been substantially reduced with the 2014 models onward. The intake valve coking problem can be mitigated substantially by doing a CRC intake valve cleaning procedure at each oil change. I do on my wife’s 2017 2.4 Nox. Very simple and easy.

There have been a substantial number lot of Equinox/Terrain vehicles sold over the last decade. Some of the largest vehicle numbers in N. America, selling around 300,000 per year at the peak not long ago. That is why one hears of a higher level of failures. Yet on a percentage basis, it isn’t as bad as it is being made out to be.

We also had the 3.6 in a 2006 Cadillac CTS. No timing chain failures with it either. Just recently sold the car and it is still running fine.

ASE Doc

I'm not familiar with what design changes GM might have made to the 2.4L engine from 2014 on. The 2.4 has historically been made by Daewoo. I don't know where that stands today. I was asked yesterday by a colleague about the 2019 3.6L. I had to admit that I just don't know what to expect from the newest of these engines.

I understand that there are a lot of the 2.4L and 3.6L engines in service. This doesn't by itself account for the high number of major engine repairs and engine replacements that have been done at the Chevrolet dealership next door on these two engines in particular, this in addition to reports from my fellow professionals. I do suppose that the majority of issues I've seen have been with the 2006 through 2009 model years. I would say you did well with the Cadillac. That model year was one of the worst in my experience. Keeping the oil clean and using quality oil is again the best prevention possible.

I am an independent repair technician and while I don't see these vehicles for warranty repairs, I do see alot of them after the Manufacturer's warranty has expired. I am not trying to frighten anyone who owns one of these motors. Just a warning to be very diligent in your services. The CRC product you refer to is a retail version of the BG professional product that we use. How do you apply it? We use a pressurized injection system that atomizes the liquid and injects it into the intake system. Unfortunately, many of the vehicles that we get in, this includes all makes and models of GDI engines, already have power loss complaints caused by restricted intake ports. At this point, the chemical cleaning is of little value. The intake manifolds have to be removed for a mechanical cleaning of the valves and ports, followed by the chemical cleaning process. By doing a valve clean service at each LOF interval, you may stave off the worst of this problem. Good luck and happy motoring. BTW, just to be clear, I am a big Chevy fan. Worked for GM as a tech years ago and have always loved my GM cars. I am not trying to bash the brand. Just sharing my experience.

Cowpie

We had the 3.6 in a 2006 Cadillac CTS. Just sold it this last summer and it never had any issues. Still running great. Now that motor had a horribly designed PCV port that would allow a lot of oil to migrate thru to the intake. I corrected that problem early on by installing an Elite Engineering air oil separator in the PCV line. As for timing chain, no issues. GM called for M1 5w30 in that motor. All I ever used in it was Pennzoil conventional 10w30. Quite a good oil with a high level of molybdenum in the formulation. Beat even M1 in many areas of testing.

Pennzoil SAE 10W-30 API SN/ILSAC GF-5

I am convinced that some of this timing chain stuff can be mitigated by using a oil with a high level of molybdenum in the add pack. I use a brand that has built its reputation on using higher levels of moly and I have had very good results in many engines over the years. Moly is a premier friction modifier. The Detroit 60 in my semi truck now has 1,028,491 miles on it and it still uses less oil than many cars on the forum, about 1 quart per 11-12,000 miles, and it is all original except for a water pump. Schaeffer 7000 15w40 syn blend oil is all that it has gotten.

For my current oil that I use in both the Nox and my 2015 2500HD 6.0, it is Schaeffer 9000 5w30.

http://www.pqiamerica.com/March2013P...haeffersyn.htm

One can check their oil preference at the Petroleum Quality Institute of America. http://www.pqiamerica.com

Darone

ASE Doc

I'm not sure what changes GM might have made from year to year after 2013. As far as the PCV system is concerned, I would not advise a vented PCV cap as a solution to the PCV system issues. GM issued a TSB on this which details the correct repair method. This involves removal of the intake manifold, which isn't too difficult, and drilling the orifice out one drill size larger. They not to go too large. I would suggest doing some research on this. The problem is, when the small orifice becomes plugged, positive ventilation ceases and only natural pressure ventilation is left, which is not sufficient to evacuate condensation from the crankcase. I have now performed this TSB on a few of the 2.4s and it really is effective at solving the milky oil buildup issue. It also helps prevent carbon build up by more effectively venting combustion gases.

Installing a vented oil fill cap doesn't seem like it would do much more than the PCV vent already does. A vented cap does not replace the function of positive crankcase ventilation.

I do support regular intake valve cleaning. Short of removing the intake manifold and manually scrubbing the intake valves, a regular chemical cleaning is the best we can do on any direct injected motor. Above all, frequent oil changes are a must.

Darone

from what I have gathered on this, the vented cap does nothing until the pcv is plugged. Then it releases the built up pressure thru the cap instead of thru the rear main seal. I really don't see a problem with doing this.. and the answer to the original question is Yes. The cap will fit.
20 dollar cap vs 1800 dollar main seal replacement. I am doing it tomorrow.