3.0L to 2.5L advice and comment needed

[how2drive]

Hi sifus,

I m new to the VQ world and would like to seek your advise. I recently purchased a 3.0L 1997 and the engine has a mileage of 200km on it. Had couple of good runs on the highway south bound but recently the engine is giving continuous issues. e,g leak on the gearbox, D takes a while to engage, massive carbon build up in the engine, knocking issues, bad fuel consumption and just today... some weird whizzing sound coming from the rear block area whenever i rev the car and when i turn the steering wheel. (anyone knows what causes the whizzing sound?)

I m now contemplating between getting a full engine rebuild on the 3.0L or swapping it with a 2.5L engine. I would greatly appreciate it if any of the sifus here can outline the pro and cons on both my thoughts.

Thanks and in advance.

 

[JasonKam]

bro,just swap to 2.5L....roadtax also cheap.....my 1 also 2.5L very smooth...

 

[ctk22]

leak on the gearbox, D takes a while to engage, massive carbon build up in the engine, knocking issues, bad fuel consumption and just today... some weird whizzing sound coming from the rear block area whenever i rev the car and when i turn the steering wheel. (anyone knows what causes the whizzing sound?)

all these problems sounded very familiar to me cos these were all in my previous VQ30, except that mine was already 400k km yet the fuel consumption still very good at 10.5km/l to 11km/l pure highway. I suppose these are very common symptoms to VQ.

Now on VQ25 for about three months, still having some minor issues though, which i'm still troubleshooting patiently

 

[how2drive]

jason: hahaha yea i m looking forward for a cheaper roadtax too but sayang the torque on the VQ30 la but oh well, there is never best of both worlds.

CTK: Worth the downgrade? besides saving on the roadtax, is the drive on the highway as fun as the 3.0? Dang i would love to have mine running 400km but too bad, at only 220km my engine is starting to give way haha. I use mine to travel mostly on highways too... and love the smooth running of the v6.

 

[ctk22]

u know what, i really miss the surge of torque produced by gear downshift in VQ30. I travel a lot on B-roads too. The torque in VQ30 really handy, and I can even overtake confidently even when i see cars coming from the opposite direction. As for VQ25, it's just adequate, nothing exciting... sigh...

My downgrade was mainly due to the potentially high repair costs on my old VQ30, as the engine was leaking very badly, radiator cooling pipes punctured here and there, ignition coils problems, driveshaft and steering problems, etc. Roadtax was not on my primary consideration.

But to my surprise, the FC of pure highway drive are very similar for VQ30 and VQ25. But come to town drive, VQ25's FC increased quite a lot. Perhaps it's due to the weight it's pulling

 

[JasonKam]

how2drive : bro,2.5L enough power already la....
actually my 1 is save fuel bcos i didn`t drive very fast
and i didn`t hv heavy foot...
my meter max is 180km/h only(comes wit halfcut),so can drive more than tat...

our luxury car can`t compare to sport car or other sedan...
if wanna compare,my ex-Civic Ek also can "tapau" 3.0L easy.....

 

[weikee]

sure ah, your ex-ek is red top VTECH or just a normal Malaysia version? i tapau the Civic 2L leh :), and of course not the real Big V.

the power of high cc car is on the run, try rev it when is at 80km/h, can go easily to 150km/h without problem.

 

[JasonKam]

haha....my 1 is just a local version but already mod,just to share and here is the detials:

-Model 1998/99reg 4dr
-D series engine
-Manual

Mod : Full engine balancing,port polish,spark plug with cable brand HotShot,Large aluminium radiator,Air filter (not open pod),Full exhaust system (Remus) center bullet and (HKS) muffler,racing clutch,short shift,Ecu re-map (already change micro chip set)...

my engine didn`t hv Vtec but since i got this mod,i hv no problem playing wit Vtec engine or other car but can`t play wit turbo car....

(my car can pull until the redline 8K rpm)

 

[how2drive]

Thanks all for the feedback and advise. Just found a pretty good condition new batch VQ25 with lots of other goodies in it and decided to take it. Sending the car in for a transplant first thing in the morning. Base on the feedback, seems that i will just lose out on the high torque during low end and still maintain the high end.... and since my ride is mostly for highway purpose i guess i can make do with the 2.5 :)

Had my final straw of problem today when the car started overheating during a jam and a long case of pinging.

Hopefully my ride will be out in 2 weeks and i can enjoy a problem free drive for another couple of year haha.

 

[doraemon98]

make sure u move EVERY damn thing from the 2.5 head to your 3.0. Else you will be ending troubleshoot problems again... Good Luck!

Curious, where do you get the halfcut? Can post the supplier contact?

 

[how2drive]

Yup, moving the entire works from the 2.5 into my ride inclusive of the door panels too haha.

I got it from NK Brothers in Balakong. They have loads of VQ there and more coming in soon in their new container. Best part is one of the owners there drives a nicely done up A32 too.

The shop is located just along the main road right after the new jusco heading towards Sg Long.

 

[JasonKam]

how2drive : iszit ur door panel from halfcut got trunk open suiz and petrol cover suiz?
My 1 already damaged,need to change...can help me ask how much for
4door panel?

how about your bodykit? come wit halfcut too?

 

[how2drive]

how2drive : iszit ur door panel from halfcut got trunk open suiz and petrol cover suiz?
My 1 already damaged,need to change...can help me ask how much for
4door panel?

how about your bodykit? come wit halfcut too?

Hi Jason,

There is a set of door panels (4pcs) in very good condition and with very new leather trims. Will let you know on the price tag of the door panels.

Yea, comes with body kit but don't plan to install it as my ride has already been kitted.

 

[seizai]

ur armrest wanna sell?

 

[how2drive]

oh don't plan to sell the arm rest.. sorry. Planning to install it as it is the non handbrake version (not sure what it is called haha), uses the leg lever instead. If u are interested, i have the black out meter cluster and a very good condition dashboard :)