2004 BLAZER.I CHANGED THE PLUGS AND WIRES FOR THE FIRST (and maybe last) TIME . THE # 3 PLUG IS HIDDEN BEHND THE STEERING COLUMN.I SPENT A FEW HOURS WORKING ON THAT.I LATER FOUND OUT THAT A 5/8 UNIVERSAL SOCKET WILL WORK IF USED OVER THE TOP OF THE STEERING COLUMN.TRY THAT NEXT TME.I KNEW IT HAD TO BE THROUGH THE WHEEL WELL.
THE WIRES WERE EVEN WORSE.THE EVEN SIDE WAS NOT TO TO BAD,COMPARED TO THE ODD SIDE THEY WERE A BREEZE.
THE GM WIRE LOOMS ARE MADE TO BE OPENED STRAIGHT ON WITH A FLAT BLADED SCREWDRIVER, THAT'S OKAY WHEN THE ENGINE IS ON A DOLLEY DURING ASSEMBLY BUT WHEN GM SHOE HORNED THIS 4.3L V6 INTO THE BLAZER (S10) FRAME
THEY MISSED LEAVING ACCESS TO A NUMBER OF ITEMS YOU GUESSED IT ONE SPARK PLUG WIRE LOOM IS STUCK BETWEEN THE POWER STEERING BOOSTER,STEERING SHAFT,FIREWALL,VALVE COVER,BRAKE LINES AND ALL KINDS OF MISCELLANEOUS WIRES,CABLES AND HOSES.I COULDN'T EVEN GET MY HANDS ON IT !!!! I FINALLY DID WHAT ONE PERSON ON THE BLAZER FORUM SAID....I CUT THE WIRES OUT.THEN WITH OUT THE PRESSURE OF THE WIRES I GOT A SCREWDRIVER IN SIDEWAYS AND IT SNAPPED OPEN. GETTING THE NEW WIRES IN WAS JUST SLIGHTLY EASIER THAN TAKING THE OLD OUT. GM ????????????????
WELL SO MUCH FOR GOING TO TOP OF THE LINE PLUGS (NGK IRIDIUM) AND WIRES (ACCEL 9000'S). ONE GOOD THING, IT'S DONE NOW,SHOULD BE GOOD FOR YEARS. NOW THE TRANNY.......IF IT WOULD SHIFT W/O TAKING SO MUCH TIME (OVERLAP)
AND THEN SLIDING INTO THE NEXT GEAR...(PRESSURE ) GM ?????????????????I THOUGHT GM WOULD HAVE LEARNED HOW TO BUILD A DECENT SHIFTING OEM TRANNY BY NOW. NO SUCH LUCK. SEEMS LIKE A WEEK SLIDING BETWEEN GEARS.
ONE LAST NOTE ON THE TRANNY......DOES EVERYONE HAVE TO GO TO 3/4 OR WOT TO GET IT TO DOWNSHIFT ?

 

Please stop writing in caps!!!

Hmm. Never did find it that difficult to do the same job... Hope the iridium plugs work well for you. Haven't heard anything good or bad about them.

My trans shifts just fine. Doesn't seem too long between shifts nor do I have to really push hard on the throttle to get it to kick down.

Being a 2004, why are you doing all of this work to it? Isn't it still under warranty (3yr/36,000mile) or are you over the mileage? I just did a tune-up on my Bravada (plugs/wires/cap/rotor) at 75k miles. I wouldn't think that an '04 would need a tune-up this soon unless it has had the wheels driven off of it.

If you don't like how the transmission shifts, you could always install a shift kit.

Happy motoring.

 

Yea I was helping a buddy do all that and more this week end. #3 plug and clips aren't that much fun. But a little pain now will pay for it self in the long run. BTW it reminded me why I love my 6.5 Turbo Diesel... No spark plugs [sm=icon_rock.gif]

 

A little testy are we. Caps/no caps I don't care, not a big thing. Believe it or not some Blazer owners would like to get just a bit more throttle response than that which comes from the factory.My '04 had quite a noticeable lag from pedal down to engine rpm up.It was nothing really bad just after having a number of small block carburated chevies I miss the almost intantaneous,crisp throttle response,trying to get a bit of that back.
The tranny is a whole other matter.It is a typical GM long overlap/low pressure shifting program. Try a Toyota Camry trans and you'll see the difference.Somehow Toyota manages to get their tranny programs to work without so much overlap,and they make it a smoother transition.At WOT Camrys shift is excellent. I only wish GM could copy that program.You know GM has a torque management program in their shift program,it backs OFF timing at WOT shifts in an attempt to "save" the tranny from damage. Unfortunately it has a negative impact on WOT shifting !!! I believe GM has the hardware but somehow miss the crisp firm shifting program. I think that is why so much aftermarket tranny hardware and software is available to firm up the Blazer shifts.
The Accel cap,coil and wires and NGK plugs are part of upgrading the ignition spark just a bit in an attempt at a little better throttle response.(slightly hotter spark) Did I mention the K & N "drop-in" filter? I am now looking at the throttle body itself.I have heard That GM put in an "air diffuser" or "air diverter" or some such thing attached to the throttle blade.Some people say the reason was to decrease the low end torque so as to not be to "harsh" a response when the throttle first opens.I am still looking at this matter. Believe it or not I have not touched the MAF since from what I hear it is put together very well from the factory.I checked it yesterday and it still looks brand new shiny....some people claim the K & N filter oil carry over dirties up the hot wires,haven't seen even a tiny bit of that.Perhaps over oiling is the cause. I have yet to have to clean the K & N so it is factory oiled.
Well if anyone has any constuctive criticism I'm ready and willing to hear it. I am new at tuning these 4.3L (X) engine/drivetrains so any help is appreciated. Have a nice day......GM all the way.

 

K&N has been known to over oil some of their filters from the factory. It's a crap shoot at best to whether or not you are getting a properly oiled filter out of the box. I know that my K&N drop-in for my Bonneville was over oiled from the factory and it coated my MAF in less than a tank of gas.

I do agree about the shifting of atleast the 4L60E in my Bravada, but you have to realize how much heft you are moving around with you. A camry is a poor comparison to any SUV. My wife's brand new '06 Malibu shifts crisp and quick through all of the gears and for that matter, so does my Bonneville. For the trans, I would recommend installing a shift kit (like what 4lowlife and I put in his Blazer). It really firmed up his shifts, but I'll let him explain that more. He has done some other things to the trans as well to improve the shifting.

I would not recommend completely removing the air deflector . Its primary function is to help turn the air towards the back of the intake plenum. With the TB so far forward on the intake plenum, it is necessary to help out the air flow to the rear cylinders. Plus it promotes a more even distribution of the EGR gasses to all cylinders. I have completely removed my deflector and am now in search of a replacement from a chevy 350 (same TB just 1/2 of a deflector). Now I haven't fully realized the additional air flow through the TB because that would require a larger MAF sensor as well.

And back to your first sentance, no I'm not being testy, but when you come here asking for help, you could atleast be courteous. Most people will see a post like that and won't even bother reading it. It's help you get the answers you seek, not for my benefit at all.

*EDIT* - Don't know if any of this was *constructive*. LOL That statement cracked me up!

 

I agree the Camry is not at all in the weight range of the S10. I still believe GM could do a better job with their shift programming,you do also.I have driven a Lexus SUV and that shifts quite nicely...To the tune of $45K plus. All I am trying to say is
Toyota for whatever reason programs shifting in their whole line of vehicles much better than GM.
Do you have any more articles (posts or whatever) describing why the air deflector is needed in the TB. I'd love to see GM come out with the resoning.The post you use is quite enlightening for those of us new to this 4.3 tuning.
On a different note :I once wrote to Hypertech about why their programmer gained so little HP on the 4.3 and they replied that the factory had done such a good job they couldn't do any better. (well 1HP) So their programmer is essentially a tranny shift reprogrammmer, for a lot of $$$$$$.
I would like to know what transmission kit (mfr. and model #) for the 4L360E does the best job.
I would really like to upgrade the stock shifting whether by software or a hardware kit. e.g. B&M whomever.
All replies will be appreciated, I need to learn these drivetrains and PCM's, I'm still in the 60's and 70's mode to some extent.
Yah I'm an old musclecar man. Loved my '67 Nova SS,come to think of it that shifted a bit slow too....but that was my fault it was a 4-speed. Those days are long gone though, I need to learn the latest electronic control schemes.
Have a great weekend.

 

Ernie:

I have removed the diffuser on my TB and it feels better in throttle response but like swartlkk I am looking for the throttle blade from a 350 since they are identical to ours and about 1/2 the height to see if there will be a difference. No luck yet. A friend and I have tried another free mod but I don't recomend this one to any one still under warranty, we found some spare MAF's in the salvage yard. Dissasembled them and then hand machined the back end wedge portion of the MAF out so that there is simply just an empty space on the outlet side of the MAF. I still kept my original in case that this "Mod" did not really do anything.

As far as the tranny shifting sluggish, I have been reading on other forums and some in hear the 4L60E is also the same tranny in the full size C/K series trucks and the Corvette. Some people have been installing a Corvette "Apply Servo" to get firmer shifts and the parts are under $40 if you do the work yourself. I have looked at the "How To Sections" and if you are mechanically proficient it can be done in the driveway/garage in less than an hour and less than a quart of fluid loss (to clean). And it is recomended that if you do this upgrade to the tranny then you don't need the expensive shift kits, to take to transmission shop install and new filter and fluids.

Hope that this helps.

 

Thanks for the info on TB and 4L60E shifting.Here is a mesage I received from a guy who works with TBs as a business.


"The air diverter is only used to detune the motors, nothing more. Have gotten this straight from a GM power train engineer.
Think of all the motors that have the throttle body on the front of the motor and do just fine - TPI, LT1, LS1 just to name a few."
NOTE: he talks about front mounted TBs'cause I brought up the 4.3s TB being closer to front (not centered on cyls.)

"I believe we have already answered your questions, the diverter is to limit torque only."

I can't vouch for anyones answers on this TB stuff , to me it is still an unsettled question. I'll keep looking for others
opinions 'cause both this guy and swartlkk have powerful arguments. I wonder if anyone has run w/o the diverter
for a long time with lots of miles and then checked their plugs for signs of rich/lean from cylinder to cylinder.?
Would love to see someone run their 4.3 on a dyno with individual sensors on each exhaust port.
That will never happen though, but is probably the only sure way to know if any cylinders are running lean or rich.
Good luck with your TB work, sounds like a compromise (smaller diverter) may be the way to go.

I have posted a new name for this TB stuff since my "Plugs and wires" has morfed into TB talk.
Trying to keep my messages in line with heading. I am new and learning. Have a good day.

 

Please keep all TB diverter related posts to the new post by Ernie1019, click on the link below:

Throttlebody Diverter is it necessary ???

If someone would actually like to talk about what was originally brought up (Plugs & Plug Wires), please PM me and I'll unlock the thread again. Until then, it'll be locked.

Ernie1019, please post this information (copy & paste) into the other thread so I can reply there.