I just bought a '95 Suzuki Swift. Wanted a commuter car that would get good gas mileage, this should do the trick. I got it for cheap, so it has a few issues. Maybe you all can help me. This little engine is new design to me, I come from a Mopar V8 world.
It seems to be leaking oil from an area underneath/behind the distributor. Not out of the distributor hole itself, but maybe out of where that section connects to the side of the engine. Any ideas?
How good is the Chiltons or Haynes manual for this car, pretty informative?
As usual ...the generic manuals often include too many model years and are sometimes confusing ...although at least with these cars there were not so many changes. If you can find one on eBay, an actual OEM Shop Manual would be best ...or the equivalent Geo Metro (North American version of Swift) Manual could also probably be used.
1. Clean the area
2. Remove the distributor cap (not the cables)
3. Mark the relationship between the distributor and the block. Use a sharpie.
4. Remove the distributor, on the shaft you should see a black rubber O-ring.
5. Replace the O-Ring with a new one.
6. Assemble all back. The shaft will be harder to install due to the new O-ring size.
Lube it with a little oil.
I had seen that on a Mazda GLC '85 I had, on my inlaws 96 Civic and on a friend Sentra.
Ok, i'll check that out Ironrat, thanks. I checked the valve cover gasket, and really don't think that is where it is coming from. All the oil seems to be underneath the distributor only. I have a feeling the previous owner may have overfilled it with oil too, so that may part of it. I'll remedy that tonight though when I do a tune-up and oil change.
Another question for you. Looking online, i've seen a couple pictures of these engines. Some seem to have a cover over the timing belt on the passenger side of the engine, while others do not. My car does not. Is this an issue, or just how it is supposed to be? Everything i've ever owned before had a timing chain, and it was defiently behind a cover. Thanks again.
Well there is definitely a Timing Belt Cover must have been removed by one of the former owners and not replaced for some reason ...perhaps he was having issues with the Timing-belt jumping a tooth and got tired of removing it to check ...if that's the case, hopefully Belt was replaced because old one was possibly/probably stretched.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Green_Swift
Ok, i'll check that out Ironrat, thanks. I checked the valve cover gasket, and really don't think that is where it is coming from. All the oil seems to be underneath the distributor only. I have a feeling the previous owner may have overfilled it with oil too, so that may part of it. I'll remedy that tonight though when I do a tune-up and oil change.
Another question for you. Looking online, i've seen a couple pictures of these engines. Some seem to have a cover over the timing belt on the passenger side of the engine, while others do not. My car does not. Is this an issue, or just how it is supposed to be? Everything i've ever owned before had a timing chain, and it was defiently behind a cover. Thanks again.
Ya, it's a brand new belt. I'll check the tensioner too to see if it is new. Hopefully I won't have any issue with it jumping a tooth.
Is it any issue to run it without the cover?
He also said there was some sort of harmonic device or a resonator that was supposed to be installed with the timing belt, but he left it off. Any idea what he was talking about? I can't imagine he meant a harmonic balancer, but maybe he did. He didn't really seem to know, just a comment he tossed out that I made a mental note of. Do these engines have a harmonic balancer?
He said it was something that quieted the sounds from the timing belt area. Maybe he meant the cover. Anyone got a picture of the timing belt area they can post so I can compare to what I have (to see if something is missing).
Also, any comments about running it without the timing belt cover. I don't really see any issue till I can find one from a junk yard or eBay, but looking for a second opinion from those that own cars like this.
Thanks.
Last edited by Green_Swift : 04-16-2008 at 09:07 PM.
I've never noticed any real noise from the timing belt. I don't have a cover on mine and have read many posts by other people that don't. I've never had a problem, it could pose more of a safety issue than anything else. I just pretend I'm running a blower. lol I had a problem with my woodruff key and left it off since i assumed I would have to work on my timing and I could adjust my timing belt a tooth either way in a few minutes instead of taking my crank pulley off and the then the cover. I have a couple if you really want one just let me know and we can work something out but i really don't think it's needed....
As for your leak I would think it's your o-ring for the distributor. Mine leaks a little and the gasket set I bought didn't have the right size in it. It's on my list of things to do.
Last edited by $400chevymetro : 04-16-2008 at 10:38 PM.
New Swift Owner
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