Hahaha officer Barbie was mad! Most effective of all of them!
So this weekend I got my hands dirty and gave the Suzi a good service and check to get a better idea of its mechanical condition. My verdict is that the last mechanic/owners who were servicing it were quite incapable or just ignored the service book and timelines completely.
I got it up on stands and wheeled out my popcorn shop trolley!
When I bought it I was told the oil and filter have "just been changed". I didnt believe it for a second when I observed the oil on the stick was dirty. Changing the filter on one of these is not the most difficult thing in the world but its up there for difficulty. Its high up wedged on the side of the block between the body and the exhaust so it takes a bit of planning with towels because it does get messy. I found out that the filter that was on there is for a Sierra and not the V6. Also looked quite old judging by the fading on the writing and the blistering paint. I doubt it had been changed for quite some time. I replaced it with a genuine Suzuki one and filled the motor with some full syn Shell HX8 5-30w. Heres what the old oil looked like. Remembering that it was "just changed"
Then I pulled the top cover off to change the plugs and clean the throttle body. I didnt know these had an ETM so to clean the throttle body I had to turn the key on and press the throttle down and keep it down with a small stick. Inside it was all gunked up with oil so it took a few goes to get it clean. Then I cleaned the intake tube to remove any grime that was in there. Changing the plugs turned from a simple job to a full on extraction. Upon removing the first plug and it being unusually difficult to remove I knew this wouldnt be a simple remove and replace. The second plug confirmed that fear as it was pretty much stuck in there solid. I filled the hole with WD and very very slowly turned it a quarter turn forwards and two quarters back. I had to do this the whole way until the plug was out. Upon inspection of the plug and the new ones I had it was a different thread! The new ones went in smooth as silk with no resistance what so ever. Photos:
Then I changed all of the oil in the driveline. That included the front diff, transmission, transfer case and rear diff. The transmission oil had obviously never been changed before as it was murky and quite aerated. The diffs didnt look too bad but I changed them anyway. I put 75-90 full syn penrite oil into the transmission and Nulon 80-90 in the transfer case and diffs.
See how muddy it looks!
Few shavings. Ill have to watch it next time and make sure it isnt eating itself.
I then tensioned the drive belts a little tighter than they were as I found a TSB that discussed the deflection of the belts needing to be changed due to an issue where they oscillate on the crank causing a dull knock which mine was doing. It still does it a little bit but its nowhere near as noticeable.
It was quite a busy day but I'm happier now knowing most of the work is done and we can get down to enjoying it!