I purchased a 95 Montero LS 3.0 about two months ago from a local College girl, for camping, fishing, etc.. I knew nothing about the model honestly. I inspected it, at our local Ikea parking lot, liking what I had seen so far, 3rd Row seating, straight body, and I am partial to the boxy SUV. I noticed a few spots with fresh oil, but the entire Engine compartment was caked in one fluid, or another. I have never seen a rig with this level of neglect.The Mrs. liked it from the go, so I did too of course.

Picked it up for $1300, drove it home, Steering was very loose, but other than that it had a decent amount of power for a SUV in as much need of TLC as this one. I began the servicing, changed the oil, PCV valve disintegrated in my hand when i went to inspect it. I was downloading diagrams, and troubleshooting guides, as I could find them online. (No local auto Parts store here in Portland had the current Chilton for my rig, so I signed up with Aldata DIY instead. Spark Plugs ( which could have been original) were changed, plug wires, etc...roughly two weeks into owning it, I get a call at work from the Mrs. from the side of the freeway, telling me the Montero "Got Hot".

Running Horribly, billowing white smoke pouring out the rear, my fresh oil turned to milk chocolate...The bottom Radiator hose had popped off while she was doing 65-70MPH for , I have no clue how long. A mechanic friend comes over to help me assess the damage, Blown Head Gasket for sure, So I tear it down, ( BTW we have recently moved into a Townhouse a week prior, in a community that does not allow the hood open more than 30 minutes on the property)So I am pulling parts off, tossing them in a basket, and toting them into our still unfurnished Kitchen, which is getting a salvage yard smell/ feel, and the Mrs. is not happy about it. I have never been deeper into an engine, than a Valve Cover gasket replacement, but how tough could a new Head Gasket be?

I have included a few pics of my Early Mornings, and Late Nights for the past week and a half, Heads right off the block, headed to the machine shop, The head gasket kit I ordered off Ebay ( and was sent the 12 valve version in error instead of the 24) which I was happy about, after I saw the Fel-Pro Kit and the difference in quality. I was able to clean the heck out of darn near each and every part. Met this infamous Sludge face to face , a burnt Valve, a Cylinder that had a foreign object pass through it, and what that does to Aluminum. I can still smell the funk of the Intake Manifold like I just pulled it out. My first timing belt experience, and how ones O.C.D/ A.D.D is affected when someone explains what an Interference engine means... I believe I set the Belt, had everything put back together 3 times total, before I started second guessing myself, as to what Stroke had I set the #1 Piston at TDC...

This was the first forum that had come up on a google search, and I want to Thank You All for your posts, Diagrams, How-To's, Tweaks, Do's, Dont's, etc... you are all the reason I have gotten this far but here is where I am at: I have everything replaced, cleaned, Nearly Leak free, I fired it up last Saturday, let it idle for 10 minutes, while a crawled all over, inside, and under it looking for leaks, MIA sockets, etc.. Drove it around town for a few hours, checked the 4x4 on a dirt road nearby, which functioned as supposed to. Parked it, had a good nights sleep, woke late, wanted doughnuts, hopped in the NEW Montero, and it cranked, cranked, but wouldn't fire. I have checked Fuel, Spark, and compression. I have all three, and has on two occasions came very close to firing. I went back in Friday night to look at timing, and the Cams have not moved off the Mark, and am set at 5 degrees BTDC. I checked the coil Pack, resistance is within Spec. on all three. I have found 23 version of the Plug Order from various sources on the web. My questions are:

1. Any ideas on the No start, I apologize for the format, and length of this post, but I just let it flow.

2. The TRUE Spark plug order for a 1995 Montero LS 3.0l 24 Valve.

I do look forward to owning the truck for a long time, thanks for listening, and I am ready to try any suggestions you are willing to throw at me.


-Gary

 

1. "Any ideas on the No start? Anyone?" I have printed off the troubleshooting guides from Alldata to check the Ignition Timing Closed TPS, TPS, Camshaft Sensor, Crank Sensor, Purge Solenoid, and Airflow Sensors tomorrow. I am also going to install a better Timing Belt as the Masterpro that is in there now I am not confident in its quality, going to swap to a Gates belt instead.

2." The TRUE Spark plug order for a 1995 Montero LS 3.0l 24 Valve?" I have found 4 different Plug orders for this Model. 524163* 521436, 254361, 254163. The engine nearly fired with the first order, hence the *.

Any of you guys with this engine, or knowledge of, any guidance would be very appreciated. Thanks!

 

The "No Start" was due to a Faulty Camshaft Position Sensor that worked intermittently . Now it runs fine, and it is a matter of fixing the little things. It has been fun so far!!!

Yet To Fix-

1. Rough Idle under load.

2. Small Leak in the rear of the engine, Passenger side. (Valve Cover, or Rear Main Seal)

3. Ignition harness is a bit tattered, and would be great to find a replacement. I am going to scan Pick and Pull etc... Unless anyone has suggestions.

4. Tach not functioning

-Gary

 

Wow, you are elbow deep in this project. Unfortunately I have no experience with the older Monteros so my help is limited. What do you mean "Rough Idle under load"? Does it mean engine hesitates when you step on the accelerator? You can start by cleaning the throttle body. Use some carb cleaner and an air compressor to clear up all the internal passages. Does AllData have a troubleshooting chart for Idle Speed problems?

 

So far nice job Garifini, It is quite a job but the rough idle under load...???

 

"Rough Idle under Load" Sorry, those are the words of a buddy of mine. In Park, the idle is fairly normal, a bit high, but when I brake, and shift into gear the idle drops significantly, and it seems to pick itself back up just enough to not stall, mildly back up, then nears stalling in a cycle. I have been all over alldata, the FSM (Thanks Bill!), and just a few days ago was Finally able to get my hands on a Chilton.

The FSM Master Troubleshooting says:Rough Idle, or Stalling
Probable Cause:A.*Vacuum leak,B. Ignition System,C. Idle speed set too low,D. Fuel injection problem,E. Engine overheats,F. compression too low.

A*Purge Control valve Hose, Vacuum Hoses, Intake Manifold, Intake Plenum, Throttle Body

To these i say I have checked all vacuum lines that I can find ,removing, and checking each for dry, brittle, cracks etc... Curb idle is a bit high. Engine Temp. is within standard running temperature. I have not done a compression test since It was initialy put back together from the initial head gasket install etc..I will look into the fuel injection tomorrow.

I have been using a plus Gasoline, not Premium, am not sure if it could be gas quality related?

I have Denso double Platinum plugs in there now, NGK Laser double platinum is what is called for. I am going to pull the plugs tomorrow and see if I can find any clues there.. The Manager at 1 of 3 of the local Auto Parts supply stores I have gotten to know quite well, was advising me towards the Bosch +4 Plug, and was preaching how I would see not just a big difference in Idle, but in overall performance, I welcome any feedback in regards to that.

-Gary

 

When I started reading your last post, my first guess was the vacuum lines. Bun since you say you checked them, then it is something else. I would focus on the ignition system. Check coil input voltage and the resistance. Check each of the spark plug wires. Better yet, if they are old - replace them. As far as the spark plugs, i would go with what manufacturer recommends. Just make sure they are gaped correctly.
Check/replace fuel filter. That can be plausible culprit too.
On my newer Montero, I had rough idle situation not too long ago, but it was caused by a failed EGR solenoid. Check Engine light was on when that happened. I do not know if your model has this or not. Something to keep in mind.

 

I Braved a drive to my Brothers for a BBQ, and on the freeway I got a CEL # 11. Oxygen Sensor Fault. I will now begin my research into this code, but from what I have already read, the rough idle( Not reporting the oxygen info to the brain for fuel Lean/Rich adjustment), the way it sounds( Running Rich!),it makes sense.

One thing that I have learned from this experience is not to run out tomorrow morning and buy an Oxygen Sensor without Diagnosing, diagnosing,and more diagnosis. Chilton has a test method for the Oxygen Sensor using frequency.....I do not have the tools to go that route If anyone else has a method to testing these using Voltage, Resistance, etc... I welcome it.


" Check coil input voltage and the resistance"- Done, normal levels

"Check each of the spark plug wires. Better yet, if they are old - replace them. As far as the spark plugs, i would go with what manufacturer recommends. Just make sure they are gapped correctly."- The wires are about a month old, Inspected them this morning, when I pulled the plugs,5 of them had a white tip, surrounded by a Dark burnt in appearance coating over the top 1/3rd of the threads,with one being a bit fouled with no white tip. All of the plugs are at .40 for Gap.

"Check/replace fuel filter"- This was done not 2 weeks ago, right before I found the CPS as the No Start Culprit. Oddly I want to look into my Fuel System a bit more, NO CEL for anything, but I cant help but to feel there is something just not doing what it is supposed to in there.

This model was JUST before the EGR (a few months i believe)







BUT The Good News is:

I believe I pinpointed my leak(s), Rear Passenger side Valve cover, when removed showed oil activity for a good 6" just out of eyesight. one of my Exhaust Manifold bolts was quite loose, I re-torqued after I replaced both valve cover gaskets(using a Touch of RTV in the four corners) after cleaning and decontaminating the perimeter.



I was able to replace my Rear Door Handle( long story, and I did break it accidentally)

Found bulbs for 2 burnt out Dash ones, and a quality Turn Signal combo switch for $19.99 off a 2000 SR, and found 4 other Montero's from 1993-2000 to grab some bulbs for 2 burnt out ones in my cluster.

I appreciate the feedback HunterD and 2001Mitch3.5XS, it is nice to bounce ideas off someone, and get different perspective on these issues.

 

Ok maybe not out of the woods on the leak. There is no oil coming down the side of the engine after I removed the Valve covers, cleaned, and re torqued them. now, but there is still a noticeable amount on the ground, and it shows on the dipstick. It looks like Oil Pan gaskets are in my near future, those are the only fresh oil spots I can see from underneath. I think I might try turning the bolts just a hair, and see if that makes a difference.

O2 sensor replaced, and that has mellowed the Idle alot. It is everlearning rig, thats for sure.

Now that I am getting the bugs out of the engine, I have noticed alot of clammor from under the rig as I drive, when i hit bumps etc... guess its also time to open the Chilten to the suspension page haha. Any ideas of where to start are welcome, It souns like it is coming from the front, but is hard to pinpoint as I only hear it driving.





-Gary