New (to me) G20 owner, a few questions (AC, fenders, etc.)
June 15th, 2012, 11:24 PM
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New (to me) G20 owner, a few questions (AC, fenders, etc.)
Well, my dad is a Chevy guy and every male on my mom's side of the family are into Fords. I've always found brand allegiance to be a rather silly thing and consider all vehicles to be equally junk and in likely need of repair (especially if you're buying within my price range 
) I've had three vehicles so far, a 1994 Dodge Dakota automatic as my first (it's still in the family), a 1991 Ford F-150 manual, and a 1994 Ranger manual. I finally got tired of trucks as I could never seem to get the functionality out of them that I needed. I decided that perhaps a van would better fit my lifestyle, so I sold the Ranger and purchased a 1993 Chevy G20 6cyl shorty sportvan. It's my first Chevy and though it has a few cosmetic issues that need taken care of (particularly some rust in the fenderwells, a real pet peeve of mine) I'm really beginning to love this van.
Anyway, I'm new to Chevy's so I've got a few questions about some problems I've been trying to troubleshoot.
When I first got the van about a week ago, I was told by the seller that the AC was weak and likely in need of a freon charge. I checked the system with the gauge and it read around 13psi! I gave it a charge of oil first, then I charged it with two cans of freon. About halfway through the second can (about 45psi on the gauge), the pump clicked to life. But here's how it works; as soon as the gauge reads 45psi, the pump kicks on, then runs down to I think around 35psi (I can't remember exactly how far down it would run), then the pump kicks back off and the gauge goes back up to 45psi, then the pump kicks back on again and goes down to 35ish psi, and repeats consistently. I held my hand in front of all the blowers on the interior, and they're blowing ice-cold and consistently now (but for how long, eh?) even when the system is building back up to 45psi. Is this normal, or should the pump be running continuously when the AC is turned on?
Another problem I'm having is that I can't put my shift lever in the "park" position. I've just been leaving the starter key in the switch and keeping an extra key on me to get back in after I lock it up (I'm used to leaving the parking brake on and putting the **** in neutral from driving stick anyway). Whenever I put the lever in park, the lever jams itself into that position and will not budge without a copious amount of wiggling, jamming, and cussing. The seller told me that it had something to do with a cable somewhere being too tight but she didn't get a chance to have it fixed. I found a repair reciept in the records that states the first owner had the same problem in the early 2000's, and the mechanics response was to install a vacuum switch of some sort (the first owner, who owned the van up until late 2009, kept every single receipt to the van). I don't know where to start taking things apart to try and attempt a fix, so any suggestions there would be appreciated.
The last thing I'm looking for is a way to fix those fenders. I'm thinking about a set of wide stainless fender flares but can't seem to find any on the market. I would just eradicate the rust the best I could, spray it with rust converter, fill it and then cover up the mess with the flares. The only other option is to fill the rust spots and then finish them off clean and tidy, then paint them the same color as the rest of the van... but I have no idea where to start as far as paint matching is concerned. It's a stock Chevy paintjob, color combo no. 7 if I remember the tag correctly. Any other input there would be helpful too.
Well, that's pretty much it for now. I've never considered myself to be a car enthusiast but I've found that I do enjoy working on older vehicles and bringing them up to spec. Plus, with the job market the way it is I have more time than money on my hands so anything I am able to do myself is a big plus. Thanks for the help
) I've had three vehicles so far, a 1994 Dodge Dakota automatic as my first (it's still in the family), a 1991 Ford F-150 manual, and a 1994 Ranger manual. I finally got tired of trucks as I could never seem to get the functionality out of them that I needed. I decided that perhaps a van would better fit my lifestyle, so I sold the Ranger and purchased a 1993 Chevy G20 6cyl shorty sportvan. It's my first Chevy and though it has a few cosmetic issues that need taken care of (particularly some rust in the fenderwells, a real pet peeve of mine) I'm really beginning to love this van. Anyway, I'm new to Chevy's so I've got a few questions about some problems I've been trying to troubleshoot.
When I first got the van about a week ago, I was told by the seller that the AC was weak and likely in need of a freon charge. I checked the system with the gauge and it read around 13psi! I gave it a charge of oil first, then I charged it with two cans of freon. About halfway through the second can (about 45psi on the gauge), the pump clicked to life. But here's how it works; as soon as the gauge reads 45psi, the pump kicks on, then runs down to I think around 35psi (I can't remember exactly how far down it would run), then the pump kicks back off and the gauge goes back up to 45psi, then the pump kicks back on again and goes down to 35ish psi, and repeats consistently. I held my hand in front of all the blowers on the interior, and they're blowing ice-cold and consistently now (but for how long, eh?) even when the system is building back up to 45psi. Is this normal, or should the pump be running continuously when the AC is turned on?
Another problem I'm having is that I can't put my shift lever in the "park" position. I've just been leaving the starter key in the switch and keeping an extra key on me to get back in after I lock it up (I'm used to leaving the parking brake on and putting the **** in neutral from driving stick anyway). Whenever I put the lever in park, the lever jams itself into that position and will not budge without a copious amount of wiggling, jamming, and cussing. The seller told me that it had something to do with a cable somewhere being too tight but she didn't get a chance to have it fixed. I found a repair reciept in the records that states the first owner had the same problem in the early 2000's, and the mechanics response was to install a vacuum switch of some sort (the first owner, who owned the van up until late 2009, kept every single receipt to the van). I don't know where to start taking things apart to try and attempt a fix, so any suggestions there would be appreciated.
The last thing I'm looking for is a way to fix those fenders. I'm thinking about a set of wide stainless fender flares but can't seem to find any on the market. I would just eradicate the rust the best I could, spray it with rust converter, fill it and then cover up the mess with the flares. The only other option is to fill the rust spots and then finish them off clean and tidy, then paint them the same color as the rest of the van... but I have no idea where to start as far as paint matching is concerned. It's a stock Chevy paintjob, color combo no. 7 if I remember the tag correctly. Any other input there would be helpful too.
Well, that's pretty much it for now. I've never considered myself to be a car enthusiast but I've found that I do enjoy working on older vehicles and bringing them up to spec. Plus, with the job market the way it is I have more time than money on my hands so anything I am able to do myself is a big plus. Thanks for the help
Last edited by the68; June 15th, 2012 at 11:27 PM.
June 16th, 2012, 7:36 PM
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45psi is too low. The air cant be that cold coming out of the vents especially since you have the compressor clutch cycling short. You need to put at least 1 more can in there.
you should crawl under it to see if the linkage on the transmission is binding or bent preventing you from putting it into park.
you should crawl under it to see if the linkage on the transmission is binding or bent preventing you from putting it into park.
June 17th, 2012, 3:54 PM
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You were right, I topped the system off with another can and now the compressor is running consistently. What should the PSI level be for this particular system? It's also running a lot colder now, I guess I thought it was really cold at first because I'm so used to not having AC. Thanks!
I haven't looked underneath to see about the linkage yet. I can get the van into park, the problem is that it won't go back into drive once it's in park. If you mess around with the **** enough it eventually hits a "sweet spot" that allows it to shift easily into drive. The problem is that it takes quite a bit of jiggling around before you find the sweet spot.
I haven't looked underneath to see about the linkage yet. I can get the van into park, the problem is that it won't go back into drive once it's in park. If you mess around with the **** enough it eventually hits a "sweet spot" that allows it to shift easily into drive. The problem is that it takes quite a bit of jiggling around before you find the sweet spot.
July 11th, 2012, 3:04 PM
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Sorry to revive a dead thread, but I just wanted to let everyone know that I traced the problem with my steering column to a bad vacuum switch. I have yet to replace it but will do so when I get a chance.
I'm still looking for a set of fender flares or wide fender trim for this thing! I live down a long and oftentimes muddy lane, so in addition to covering up my rust repair job they'll come in handy keeping the mud off the sides of my van. If anyone knows where I can get a really wide set that will cover the entirety of the old fender wells, that would be great! If someone has fashioned their own flares and they have a few tips to share that would be great too.
Another problem that came up is the stock roof rack. I was tying down a friend's kayak to the roof with some straps (just pull-through, not ratchets... I didn't torque 'em up much) and the plastic corners on the roof rack broke. I've got the entire thing off and am thinking of getting some of those rubber-coated rivnuts to attach something else. I'd like to put something like 4 eyelets or something up there that I could attach and remove a custom rack as I please. I'm thinking of building my own rack out of runner-sled type wooden slats supported by a metal frame that somehow clamps down to the drip edge at multiple points as well as to the roof mounts I am going to install in place of the old roof rack. If anyone has any tips that would be great. I'll post some pics once I get something together.
Thanks!
I'm still looking for a set of fender flares or wide fender trim for this thing! I live down a long and oftentimes muddy lane, so in addition to covering up my rust repair job they'll come in handy keeping the mud off the sides of my van. If anyone knows where I can get a really wide set that will cover the entirety of the old fender wells, that would be great! If someone has fashioned their own flares and they have a few tips to share that would be great too.
Another problem that came up is the stock roof rack. I was tying down a friend's kayak to the roof with some straps (just pull-through, not ratchets... I didn't torque 'em up much) and the plastic corners on the roof rack broke. I've got the entire thing off and am thinking of getting some of those rubber-coated rivnuts to attach something else. I'd like to put something like 4 eyelets or something up there that I could attach and remove a custom rack as I please. I'm thinking of building my own rack out of runner-sled type wooden slats supported by a metal frame that somehow clamps down to the drip edge at multiple points as well as to the roof mounts I am going to install in place of the old roof rack. If anyone has any tips that would be great. I'll post some pics once I get something together.
Thanks!
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