So I took my car to my local mechanic to get a tune up. Its a 98 GST with 67,000 miles. I had the timing belt, water pump, ngk plugs, wires and transmission fluid changed, and I also had a aftermarket intake installed, bringing the bill over $700. When I got the car back it was running like ****. I wanted to bring it back but they closed up by the time I got back, The first thing I noticed was hesitation while accelerating. The second thing I noticed was that the blow off sound sounds nothing like it did before. The car was running pretty good when I took it in, it purred and accelerated smoothly,and now it runs like crap. Is installing a timing belt really easy for a bad mechanic to screw up? Maybe wrong plugs? Wrong firing order? Is the timing off?I have no idea about the intake, I thought it would be louder than it is esspecially the blow off valve. I really need some help...what do you guys think?

 

I looked at the reciept and it says he also changed the balance shaft belt or something like that, and I'm getting really bad gas mileage.....

 

thats EXACTLY what happend to me. The ****ers turned up my boost really high and ****ed a few things up. I reset my ECU and drove the car around for a while... it made things a little better but it took 2 weeks for the car to go back to normal. I was getting like 150 miles to a tank.

 

Does the engine shake really bad? That would be a sign of the wires being wrong. Start unplugging spark plug wires one at a time while engine is running and see if it has an effect. If not then you have the problem cylinder. Also I'd take the reciept back and demand they make the car run right or refund every cent you paid for their incompetence. If not then report them to the BBB.

 

How did they turn up the boost? I checked where my boost controller setting before I took it in, and it seems to be in the same place. Will disconnecting the battery reset the ECU? I wouldnt say that it shakes, the best way I can describe it is as a light bucking, esspecially when I lift off the gas.

 

How would you describe the blow off sound stock compared to with an intake?

 

The BOV won't make a sound until you let off the gas when revving. The BOV is designed to release the air that won't be necessary for the engine when you hit the clutch and drop RPM's.

 

Sounds like the b/s belt might be off.

 

yeah. Sounds like the balance shaft to me

 

I took my car back first thing this morning, and I told the manager I wasnt happy, he test drove my car and agreed something wasnt right. I told him I wanted it fixed or a full refund, and he would take care of it for me. He also said he thought it was the balance shaft belt. Thanks for all your info and input guys, I really appreciate it