Questions...J20A Engine Reliability/Timing Chain

[ZukiBloke]

Hi All,

Im a newbie here, and am thinking about buying a 2000 Suzuki GV 3 Door 2.0L Manual...its got only 68,000 klms on the clock.

It has the J20A 2.0L engine, and i have been researching on the internet & various other forums and found that the Timing Chain tensioners are a common issue..along with posibilities of Oil Leaks, but most of these threads mention the 2.5L V6 rather than the 1.6 or 2.0L variants.

I am impressed with the condition of the vehicle, and interior/exterior are virtually like new.

Is it a worthwhile buy for somebody who is just venturing in to the SUV arena?...I want something thats economic, not too big and is capable of some slight off road driving every now and then.

Regards,
ZukiBloke

[ZukiBloke]

Reading up about this, it seems regular oil changes will help to prolong the life of the tensioners??

What does a noisy tensioner sound like??

[Max]

A "clickity-clack" usually during a cold start up, lasting for 2-5 seconds. You may experience engine idle roughness during this period as well. The longer the vehicle sits btwn start up's, the more prevelent the condition.

Here's some additional info as it pertains to the 2.5 engine...
http://www.jasperengines.com/pdf/Suz...inRattleTB.pdf

[XL7Limited]

absolutly. And synethic oil helps a LOT

Originally Posted by ZukiBloke

Reading up about this, it seems regular oil changes will help to prolong the life of the tensioners??

What does a noisy tensioner sound like??

[Rainking157]

The problem I had with the lower tensioner wouldn't have been saved with more frequent oil changes plus I ran synthetic. A metal plug in the tensioner worked it's way out and wreaked havoc: busted one guide, the other tensioner, took the teeth off of two of the gears...in the process took out the whole valve train with the valves then marking the pistons. Admittedly, this was likely a freak thing but one that cost me a total rebuild.

[aquanaut20]

I have a 2.0 with 190k, original chain, run synthetic..... No noises from the front end, but as soon as I do it will get the well deserved chains and tensioners.....

[vhercules]

Do a search on this forum, someone had uploaded a video of the timing chain rattle a few months ago

[poidog16]

Aquanaut20, what kind of syn do you use? Filter Brand? I've hear Lucas Oil Stabilizer does well too but haven't tried that yet.

[Max]

We could get into a whole Syn vs. Dino oil thing here, but I'll tell ya' what....I've had nothing but conventional 5W-30 in my Zuki (2.5) since it was new and I just hit 241,000 miles (and the engine has never been opened up!).