[Chris Morin]

Hey all.

I've been having oil consumption issues with my '07 Ion Redline over the last six months. I've already gone through all the common checks recommended in another thread, and I'm going to chalk it up to high miles and think it's time for a rebuild.

I bought the car with about 145k on it, and it's 190k now. The previous owner said it had a ported/polished head and an aftermarket downpipe. It had some ZZP decals on the back windows, so I'm not sure what else has been done performance-wise. Maybe a tune? The car still runs and drives great but goes through a quart of oil in about 300 miles.

I rebuilt a few CSB's in the past but haven't dived this deep into one of these engines other than basic repairs when I worked for Chevy in the 2000s.

I'm just looking for suggestions on what I should be looking to replace aside from the obvious (rings/gaskets/maybe pistons?). Are there any rebuilt parts-kits out there, or should I be looking for parts individually? I have all next week off for vacation and was hoping to bang this out while I have time.

Any advice would be awesome. Thanks!

 

[goaliemo]

Most rebuilds I've seen we're with performance parts. I personally haven't dug that deep into one yet. The very least I'd use acdelco parts though unless wanting to spend the extra bread on performance brands

 

[Eagle_f90]

If it has a port/polished head it is most likely tuned. I have not seen any rebuild kits beyond the timechain and associated parts. Zzperformace is a big name for lsj and they are my perfered vender so check out hlwhat they have for parts.

If your not going for upgrades and power the is no real reason to go aftermarket

 

[Chris Morin]

If it has a port/polished head it is most likely tuned. I have not seen any rebuild kits beyond the timechain and associated parts. Zzperformace is a big name for lsj and they are my perfered vender so check out hlwhat they have for parts.

If your not going for upgrades and power the is no real reason to go aftermarket

I'm not opposed to upgrades/power, but it's not what I'm really after. It's my daily driver that I commute about 60 miles round trip a day. I just want it to be reliable more than anything.

 

[Chris Morin]

So, I went parts hunting today to see what was available for stock replacement. I reached out to a friend at a local dealership and sent him a parts list (below). Unfortunately, some of the larger items have been discontinued by GM. I did find a few websites that offer a "master rebuild kit" like justengineparts.com and a deluxe timing kit from crate engine depot. Would either of those be a good option or should I be looking elsewhere?

This is what GM sent back to me:
Head gasket - $86.99 4 days out
Head Bolts - $9.99 ea 1 day out
Pistons - discontinued(part# 12791210)
Piston rings - discontinued(part# 93180138)
Connecting Rods - discontinued no part# avail
Connecting rod bearings - discontinued no part# avail
Crankshaft bearings - $47.99 4 days out
Lower griddle bolts (20) - $6.99 ea 1 day out
Rear main seal - $32.99 in stock
Crank pulley bolt - $7.99 in stock

Deluxe timing kit (breakdown below):
Ecotec Front Cover Gasket 24435052 - $26.99 1 day out
Ecotec Timing Cover Seal 12584041 - $12.99 1 day out
Chain Pkg-Tmg 12680750 - $177.99 backorder
Sprocket 90537632 - $41.99 1 day out
Sprocket 24424758 - $43.99 1 day out
Ecotec Cam Gear Bolt 90537451 - $13.99 1 day out
Ecotec Balancer Bolt 11589123 - $7.99 1 day out
Sprocket, Crank Shaft 12642713 - $163.99 4 days out

 

[goaliemo]

Crate engine depot is definitely a solid supplier with authentic parts! List is looking solid to me

 

[Eagle_f90]

I'm not opposed to upgrades/power, but it's not what I'm really after. It's my daily driver that I commute about 60 miles round trip a day. I just want it to be reliable more than anything.

Then I would stick with OEM. They are plenty strong and reliable. Thought with the holidays you might be able to find upgrades for a good deal and then I would go that route

 

[NFLT!]

Did you do a compression test yet? Could be a valve seat issue, or piston ring blow by. You could try running some seafoam through the crank case for a few minutes, drain and refill and see if the rings were sticking from carbon buildup.

 

[Chris Morin]

Did you do a compression test yet? Could be a valve seat issue, or piston ring blow by. You could try running some seafoam through the crank case for a few minutes, drain and refill and see if the rings were sticking from carbon buildup.

Yes. Did both compression and cylinder leak down tests. All tests checked out within or better than spec. Ran seafoam and a few other oil flushes through the crankcase and nothing seemed to help unfortunately.

 

[Blk06CompIRL]

I'm not reading all the posts, but i rebuilt my engine using a kit i found from a company called DNJ its a kinda generic ecotec kit that gave me most of what i needed , but i did have to buy a different head gasket and i didn't use some of the timing parts. I also had to buy head bolts separately. Even with buying stuff extra it was the most cost effective way i found to get my 250k miles going again.

Note i also did my clutch while i had the engine out as it had over 200k on it and I didn't want to go back in lol those parts i got from zzp.

Rebuild Kit for Chevy Saturn 2004-07 2.0L L4

DNJ Master Engine Rebuild Kit EK313M fits 04-07 Chevrolet, Saturn / Cobalt, Ion 2.0L L4 DOHC Supercharged

partsology.com

 

[Chris Morin]

Sweet. That looks like it would do the trick. Thanks!

 

[Blk06CompIRL]

Yeah it'll get you most of the way, is it quality for a super build race car that gets Hammered on at the track? Maybe not, but i went from burning over 2qrts per 1k miles to burning zero oil in 3k miles and i do full 2nd / 3rd gear pulls to redline almost daily cause ya know boost life lol, I have about 8k miles since my rebuild with no issues, oh I also honed my cylinder walls as my cross hatch was non existent.