Look what Fram paranoia made me do...

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rcy

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I recently put a Fram Extra Guard on my wife's 2010 Equinox. 4000KM later the check engine light came on. P0365 and P0366 which have something to do with the camshaft.

The GM service guy told me to check the oil level saying the oil activates the variable valve flux capacitor (or something like that).

So right away, I panic and think it must be that [censored] Fram filter..maybe it's not letting enough oil flow or something - oh the horror!!

So I run (drive) to the dealership and buy the official GM filter, install it, clear the codes with my Scanguage II and happily motor on.

Two days later the check engine light comes on again.

LOL....funny thing is, the dealership checked the vehicle and they don't know why the check engine light is coming on either. I wonder if I had left the Fram filter on before going to the dealership if they would have blamed Fram too.
 
Maybe a piece of the fram is in the oil gallery feed! The paranioa is real
wink.gif
Have fun with the VVT systems - I'm my app they are very sensitive to oil viscosity and volume flow.
 
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ARCO is correct. VVT systems are also sensitive to sludge. What viscosity are you running relative to recommendation? Has it seen proper oil maintenance?
 
I still have the Fram filter draining into a pan (I don't normally let my filters drain for two weeks, just been busy (lazy). I should cut it open and see if any pieces are missing...lol.
 
Originally Posted By: Kestas
ARCO is correct. VVT systems are also sensitive to sludge. What viscosity are you running relative to recommendation? Has it seen proper oil maintenance?


Sorry I wasn't too specific. It's a 2010 with the V6 (Direct Injection). This was it's first oil change, having gone 16000KM on the factory fill. The vehicle was picked up the week before Christmas, and it hit 16000km in April or May. 90% highway miles.

Replacement oil was Mobil Super 1000 5w30 (recommended weight and meets the recommended GM spec for this engine) and the Fram filter. It now has the GM filter on it. I don't think proper oil maintenance is the problem (though 16000KM on FF was scary - but it's a company vehicle so I followed the manual which says follow the OLM)
 
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The more plumbing there is the easier it is to clog up the pipes . There is too much high tech stuff on cars and the consumers love it.
 
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Sometimes a high level of ethanol in the gas you fill up with causes check engine lights.Also check your gas cap, make sure it is fully screwed on.
 
Those codes are for crank position sensor:

P0365 Crank Pos SensorB Circ Error (bank
P0366 Crank Pos SensorB Circ Range/Perf (bank

If the light comes on again, you need to leave the code on and return to the dealer, and have them replace the sensor under warranty.
When the crank sensor is bad, the vehicle may go into "limp" mode (limits engine rpm) or may not start.
 
Originally Posted By: rcy
This was it's first oil change, having gone 16000KM on the factory fill.


Good thing it's not his vehicle. 16k km on a factory fill is crazy. Who knows what kind of metal shards and flakes are floating around in a new engine. If I owned that vehicle, the FF would be out at 1k km, and again at 3k km, regardless of what the OLM said.
 
Originally Posted By: carwreck
Those codes are for crank position sensor:

P0365 Crank Pos SensorB Circ Error (bank
P0366 Crank Pos SensorB Circ Range/Perf (bank

If the light comes on again, you need to leave the code on and return to the dealer, and have them replace the sensor under warranty.
When the crank sensor is bad, the vehicle may go into "limp" mode (limits engine rpm) or may not start.


Yes, the light was out when I took it there last week, though the codes had been stored and they pulled the codes themselves. Don't know why they didn't just replace the sensor then, but they asked me to bring it back when the light was actually ON, which I did today. Now driving a rental vehicle courtesy of GM and hopefully they'll repair it this time.
 
Originally Posted By: bigbird_1
Originally Posted By: rcy
This was it's first oil change, having gone 16000KM on the factory fill.


Good thing it's not his vehicle. 16k km on a factory fill is crazy. Who knows what kind of metal shards and flakes are floating around in a new engine. If I owned that vehicle, the FF would be out at 1k km, and again at 3k km, regardless of what the OLM said.


Took a sample of that 16000km factory fill to Wearcheck today and also paid extra for a TBN to see how accurate the OLM is when it comes to life left in the oil. Others have posted on here saying the OLM was fairly accurate.
 
its not the oil or filter. it's most likely the VVT cam gear/chain or sensor that has gone bad.

the good old days of timing belt replacements are a thing of the past. some genius engineer's thought timing chains and VVT would last the life of the car and require less maintenance than the t-belt setup..

well...im constantly replacing VVT cam gears and chains for codes and noises under warranty...wait until all these cars are out of warranty...every POS on the road will have chain rattles and MIL lights on because it's NOT easy or cheap to replace those components...we never had such issues with a standard timing belt setup.

i will hang on to my timing belt car as long as i can..

to the OP...just leave the car with the dealer and have them fix it.
 
Will be interestng to see that UOA.

I don't think I'd go 16k km on a factory fill either, but as the OP says, thats what GM wants you to do.....
 
Equinox, flux capacitor, that is one "far-out" auto mobile. FC's are a pain to fix, as dealer implies.

But in general, it is the Fram that caused it, whatever it is.
 
Originally Posted By: Shagger
Originally Posted By: rcy
the oil activates the variable valve flux capacitor...

Does your car travel through time?!?
56.gif




That comes standard. Forward ranges only. Now if you want reverse, that's an expensive option.
 
Cars have too much technology for something that all it needs to really do is get you from point to point with out issue.
 
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