Hi, I have a 96 Bonneville se and i have had a few problems in th past month or so. First, my starter slowly started to die by disengaging at random time during starting and eventually taking 5 min to start car. next a threw a belt driving down the road, so i replaced the belt and tensioner pully. the tensioner pully siezed to the bearing and stopped turning, so thats how i threw the belt, but when that happened, the threads in the tensioner that connect the pully stripped out so i had to replace the whole tensioner assembly. In doing so i broke off the heater hose elbow that goes from the intake to the tensioner. the elbow broke off right at the bend and is stuck floating around the intake. I cant foresee any problems, but any input would be great. Also, the return from the heater core had some spring loaded thing inside that broke instantly as soon as i took the hose out. What was this and was it important? Sorry for the long post and thatks in advance for your help. Also, is there any problems i should look out for, BTW the car has 154K on it.

Tna613....Welcome to the forum - lots of great knowledge here for sure. I have a 96 se also. I just finished the whole UIM, LIM repair. My first piece of advise would be to check the stamp on the UIM to see how old it is and watch your coolant level to see if it'* eating any coolant. A sign that the UIM needs to be replaced and or the LIM gaskets. See this thread http://www.bonnevilleclub.com/forum/...e=article&k=38

Depending on how long you plan on keeping the car, I would suggest getting that piece of the coolant elbow out of there. Depending on the size of it, there'* a chance it could lodge in one of your heads and block the flow of the coolant. I'll let the others chime in about your other Q'*.

Welcome to the club. I agree with BMWhound about the plastic piece in the intake. That part is pretty cheap to replace. Not sure what spring thing you are talking about. And I know you mentioned your car in your post, but it would help out for future posts if you put that info into your profile sig.

thanks for your help, to get the elbow out i need to take off the entire intake, the piece is the size of my middle finger. Also, the AC compressor makes a horrible grinding noise. it is starting to go away, but i don't want anything to seize up and throw my belt again. If anybody has any input or suggestions, just let me know. thanks


EDIT: I checked the dates on the UIM, its a little different. On the right it says 1 in the middle it says 27 and on the left, there is a 5 on the dial but a 96 on the middle of the dial, does this mean the UIM is made in 96 or 01?

Did you use the link that was provided to get these numbers? Your quoting 4 numbers, so I'm confused too. I would think that the first number (1) would actually be (01) indicating that it was built in 2001. 27 is the day, and 5 is the month (May). The other part about 96 on the middle has me scratching my head. How about a picture ?

We need more details to answer the elbow question. Did you replace the elbow already? Are you driving the car now?

dont have a digi right now, maybe later, it has me confused to, it looks nothing like the link you guys gave me.

Guess you know what to put on your list for Santa I'm assuming that you have the new tensioner back on there and your currently driving the car. If it were me I would....

1. determine the date of the UIM, if your not loosing coolant or eating coolant leave it alone.

2. Remove the LIM and replace the gaskets per the link I posted in my first post. Remove the broken piece of the coolant elbow at the same time.

3. Flush the dexcool and replace with Prestone. you should be able to do this for 300.00 in parts ( this includes replacing the UIM)

IMHO if there'* any question about the condition of the UIM and or the gasket I would replace both. You're not out anything time wise anyway. Just another 100.00 for the UIM kit. But it would provide you the piece of mind that your repair should last you a long while.

while you're taking the UIM off to remove the LIM, inspect the condition of the UIM paying attention to the hole that the EGR stove pipe comes through. If you haven't read that link - read it...it will tell you everything you need to know.

thanks, ive been going over the link a few time to familiarize myself with this problem. Im going to try and figure out the date of the UIM, but in the mean time ive been pricing at AZ. Im probably going to replace the UIM no matter the age just to be safe. Its my understanding that the LIM its self doesnt have be replaces, only the gaskets? Would the Aluminum GM ones be better then the felpro or Vise versa? I was also looking at replacing the LIM but money will be the determining factor.

TNA,

The LIM should be able to be reused. Mine was pitted a little bit, and I would guess that yours might be as well. I was actually ordering a LIM from a JY but they could not seem to relieve my concerns about the LIM I would get from them. I was concerned that the JY one would be pitted as well. I ended up growing tired of what to do with the pitting. I consulted a mechanic that I know personally and he told me to dab some RTV around the coolant passages and get the thing running again. After that, I cancelled my order for the LIM and made the repairs. Here'* my link about my ordeal http://www.bonnevilleclub.com/forum/...ic.php?t=89507

You will get varying opinions about the gaskets. I went with the GM. What I've read here on the BC forum they are both good products. The bottom line there is simple, if you buy the GM set and they work you will continue to buy GM. It really doesn't matter. The most important thing is to get them replaced

BTW,

It might be a little tricky trying to get that piece out of the LIM. Try getting the piece setting just inside the hole, grab it with a set of needle nose pliers and break it into smaller pieces that will shake out.