Saturn LW300 woes..

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When I thought my IAC valve was bad on my 95 Neon coupe I bought a cheap new one on eBay and no difference at all. By the way it should mount on the throttle body about the middle somewhere if it is similar to the Neon setup. My symptoms were dying every time I rolled to a stop. No codes at all except issues I was already aware of that had nothing to do with the problem or affected run quality or drivability. It turned out to be the EGR valve was probably crudded up and sticking open or something. I fixed it by unplugging the electrical plug for the valve and plugging the vacuum port that helped operate it. It still passes emissions tests and hasn't died at stop lights since. It's possible your issue is tied in with the IAC valve has it was claimed to be one of the causes for the dying problem on my Neon and mine never had cold start or warm start issues.
Good luck and probably just plugging a vacuum hose or port for the EGR valve without even unplugging the connector might cure it IF it is similar to the issue mine had. Good luck, finding intermittent or oddball problems like that can be frustrating and sometimes down to a lucky guess.
 
Robert,

before you push `er off a cliff, like the one one your east end of San Diego, where those kids were playing Pokemon go, and fell off and died because they didn't see it;
Try researching a UK Opel service tech guide, for the V6, or a German one in English.
Also not all of them done by mechanics may be accurate. The L200 may not have that IAC valve, and an L300 may have one.
Another issue older cars have is a dirty throttle body that causes poor starting, idling, and performance. There is a critical sensor on it as well.
At that age, a check engine light trouble code diagnosis can lead no where other than an evaporative canister purge valve, line or tank leak, gas cap missing, or coolant sensor.
Have you also had the catlayst inspected for clogging? If the car is now lsoing power, and won't reach a speed of about 25 m.ph., have it checked.
 
Timing chain or timing belt?

Quite a few years ago I had a Plymouth Duster with a 318 v8. I loved that car, but it began to have trouble starting and was making me crazy. It had fuel, it had air, and it had a good hot spark. So not being a properly trained mechanic yet I was really puzzled. But the thing I found really odd was that I would turn the key into the start position and the car would crank and crank and crank without ever starting. But as soon as I gave up the effort and backed the key off to the run position it would start, almost as if the car was mocking me. This didn’t happen every time, but frequently. Then my dad used a timing light to see where it was firing. I don’t recall how many degrees before top dead center the number one cylinder was supposed to fire, but it was all over the place; sometimes well before the timing mark and sometimes well after. My dad was puzzled and said he’d think it over a bit and see what he could come up with to explain what we were seeing. I drove the car to school the next day and on the way home I pushed in the clutch and the engine stalled. This time I couldn’t get it restarted so it was towed home. Finally tearing into the engine revealed the problem. The timing chain had either stretched or the nylon gear affixed to the cam shaft had word down. Whichever it was the result was the same. Too much slack had caused Crank and cam to be randomly out of sink by a small amount which caused the hard starting. On the way home from school that day they became way out of sink, the pistons came up and smacked all the valves and bent all the pushrods and the engine was done. So with that in mind, have you checked the timing?
 
Duster problem

sounds most like a missing flywheel tooth. Did post 1971 models have electronic ignition like full size Chryslers?
If the Opel 2.5 and 3.0 V6's have no spark distributor, and have a coil pack there isn't that type of timing adjustment. They do have a crank position sensor though, which works with the engine computer which energizes the coil pack for firing order. If one or other is faulty, poor or no operation.
 
Mine was a 75 and had electronic ignition. Don’t see how you arrive at a flywheel problem since the car had no problem cranking, but just to be clear the Dusters problem was definitely to much slack in the timing chain which ultimately jumped a few teeth on the camshaft drive gear with catastrophic consequences. As Roberts car is getting worse I think if timing hasn’t been looked at yet it should be, if for no other reason than to rule it out.
 
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Well FINALLY this story comes to an end...
do LW300’s even have IAC’s, was it by cliff or crusher? So many questions. Here is what happened.
A friend I worked at a gas station with one summer—35 YEARS AGO—mentioned to me the mechanic, Bentley, was still there working as he ever was...”Bentley always knew his stuff”, I thought, and more importantly, I trusted him.
So after three and one half decades I rolled into the nearby Shell station and told the whole sorted tale...he sorta remembered me, and said “I’ll check it out”. Two hours later I had THE answer I have been waiting months for...three letters...any guesses?

stricklybojack-2018082815152300318_1.jpg
 
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Ah no...
Try M-A-P...
a small sensor that sits on the throttle body which I just recently noticed and started to think about before I threw in the towel and took it to a pro.

stricklybojack-2018082820003804688_1.jpg
 
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I replaced the MAF sensor so whenever I saw “MAP sensor” mentioned I thought it was a different name for the same thing (MAF) oops...like body control module BCM vs engine control module ECM, seems it varies depending on manufacturer.
Nope, MAP is it’s own animal, my bad.[this post was last edited: 8/29/2018-00:07]
 
Glad you finally got it straightened it out. Problems like that can be a real PITA to resolve as you well know.
 
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Decided to change (not flush) the trans fluid. On this car that means dropping the pan as there is no drain plug, or even a dipstick...other than the guy driving! The car only has 60k miles, but those are mostly stop and go. The manual says change at 100k for normal 50k for tough conditions...trailers, etc. so I figured it was time. Got bids from $130-$280. Ended up going with the low bidder, but had them use a premium pan gasket rather than the minimum they usually use, that added $8. It uses metal grommets around the bolt holes, and has a centering pin, rather than not.
My research said never flush auto transmissions (bad for seals), and be wary of even changing fluid in a high mileage unit. Sometimes high mileage transmissions need the grit and varnish to keep from slipping.
To fill, you shift through the gears and remove a particular bolt which will then start to leak fluid once the trans has been filled to where it should be. It took 8 quarts of new fluid, and man does she shift and drive smooth now. The trans capacity is higher but a significant amount of fluid stays in the torque converter and other nooks and crannies. Thankfully the service manager snapped a couple of pics to show me the job was actually done, and what the old fluid looked like...toasty but not too burnt. I would swear it’s quieter too, I wonder if she was a couple of q’s low. I doubt it leaked any, but was it full when it left the factory? [this post was last edited: 9/8/2018-20:55]
 
<strong>be wary of even changing fluid in a high mileage unit. Sometimes high mileage transmissions need the grit and varnish to keep from slipping.</strong>

 

From what I've heard, it sounds like it isn't high mileage that's a problem. It's when it's high mileage with fluid that hasn't been properly maintained (e.g., a transmission with high miles that still has its original fluid).
 
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Ya there’s the consideration that ATF is inherently detergent by nature, and that new fluid might loosen crap from a poorly cared for tranny, and then clog an artery or capillary in the transmission as it were.
My ‘97 mercedes s420 also lacks a dipstick, it’s next up for an ATF change.
 
Well new fluids have improved components  in them.  Like Dexron 6 that can be used in an old car but Dexron 3 can't be used in a new car.  I'm sure the fluid itself on the shelf is perfectly usable but I'd personally rather have "new and improved" fluid in my old SUV.
 

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