James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

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Lowrider Dave
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by Lowrider Dave »

Good stuff James!
Lowrider Dave.

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humbucker
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by humbucker »

Good work. Did you clean the idle control valve and pipe while you were at it? You should notice a marked improvement in throttle response now.

An Omega lower inlet divider isn't a bad idea next time you've got the inlet manifold off. The C25XE part is solid metal, very heavy and generates a lot of heat. The Omega version is plastic and weighs nothing. Let me know if you want me to dig one out for you when I grab your switch later today (sorry for the delay, been mega busy with magazine mentalism this past month, hence none of my project threads being updated!).
"This is something I find extremely useful when working on computers, it's also very helpful when working on cars too. It's a magnetic parts tray. Just pop in all your unscrewed nuts and bolts and never worry about loosing them."
My problem is remembering which screw goes where...! :lol:
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Cavalier342
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by Cavalier342 »

humbucker wrote:
My problem is remembering which screw goes where...! :lol:

Yep, I know what you mean I usually have the same problem! :lol: :lol:
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James McGrath
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by James McGrath »

humbucker wrote:Good work. Did you clean the idle control valve and pipe while you were at it?
I did indeed; gave it a good clean out with carb spray like I do with the (C)20NEs.

Cavalier342 wrote:
humbucker wrote:
My problem is remembering which screw goes where...! :lol:

Yep, I know what you mean I usually have the same problem! :lol: :lol:
I tent to lay them out in a pattern which reflects their position in the engine bay. Like a map.
You can get magnetic whiteboards which you can draw on and then place screws onto. That'll probably help.
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by btcctroy »

looks a nice original cavalier.
A nice find James. Make sure you keep up with the cambelt changes as this and head gaskets are the engines weak spots.
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James McGrath
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by James McGrath »

Thanks Troy.

I remember talking about V6s with you way back when you did my rear spring seats.
Luckily the cambelt on this one was replaced 5,000 miles ago.
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by btcctroy »

James McGrath wrote:Thanks Troy.

I remember talking about V6s with you way back when you did my rear spring seats.
Luckily the cambelt on this one was replaced 5,000 miles ago.
remember the belts suffer with age rather than wear. every 3 years id change the belt as a minimum.
book states 30k. or every 3 years. But that maybe considered excessive!

cheaper than repairing 2 broken heads and having to replace the belt kit anyway.
not many garages take on the v6 with head gaskets or broken head failure and if they do its a price in excess of 1k.

i have a vectra gsi that had the rear bank head gasket fail, it was a big job that i couldnt be bothered with at the time and i seeked quotes. In the end i did it myself.

Make sure it only uses the red antifreeze as the blue rots the head
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by James McGrath »

btcctroy wrote:Make sure it only uses the red antifreeze as the blue rots the head
:? Looks like I'll be doing a coolant change next then.
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by humbucker »

Book states 80k for belt changes, but it should be done at 40k intervals. Vauxhall changed the service frequency on the V6s because of the number of busted engines that were being returned.

HG isn't a bad job on these, I've done a few (inc. my Cavalier CDX), but the timing belt change will drive you potty and you'll need a proper locking kit. Doesn't sound as though you'll need to worry about it though.

Blue anti-freeze rots the head? Eh? These cars had blue anti-freeze when new. The red stuff is a newer formula. You can't mix the two, and your car should be using red coolant if the service book has been observed, but the blue coolant isn't like the old green stuff that eats through gaskets.

Incidentally, dropping the radiator drain plug only empties half of the coolant from a V6. The rest comes directly out of the block. One for you to look forward to, hehe!
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by btcctroy »

lets try again without mistakes lol
Its meant to say head gasket.
Also it can leave pits in the aluminium itself, red glycol ethylene is safe with all composite gaskets and soft aluminium. I had to replace the rear head on mine as it was eaten very badly between the hg combustion ring and water way.
it could not be skimmed out, my engine builder said it was because they did not use glycol ethylene.
I believe I read somewhere for Vauxhalls belt replacement was 60k reduced to half that as the plastic rollers fail early in life. That was across the whole engine range of that period including the late XE engine.
You can do cambelts without locking kits. The Vectra wasn't that difficult to be honest, there was 3 adjustable rollers that take up the slack.
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by James McGrath »

Thanks for the help guys. I'll get some red coolant in it ASAP and look into changing the cambelt.
I have to say cleaning out the breather system has made it sound so smooth. It sounded good before but now it purrs like a big cat.
Just need to get it insured and TAXed now!

I was just looking through the V5 document, which finally came through the post a few days ago, and was surprised to see that the V6 was first registered on 26th June 1995. Which puts it right at the end of Cavalier production.
All this time I thought it was 1994!
Both my 'L' reg Cavs were registered in 1993 so I just assumed 'M' was 1994.
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ilovedmymantas
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by ilovedmymantas »

My 'M' plate sri was regisistered in October 94. My 'M' plate cdx is registered January 95 :scratch
" It's not rust. It's age-related patina " ;)

1980 vauxhall cavalier MK1 1.6L, 1982 opel manta berlinetta 1.8s, 1985 opel manta 2.0 gte, 1990 cavalier 2.0 gl ,1994 cavalier sri x20xev

-1995 cdx x20xev

---------------
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James McGrath
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by James McGrath »

'M' ran from August '94 until July '95.
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Cavalier342
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by Cavalier342 »

Aren't we supposed to insure and tax cars before we buy them nowadays? lol.

Well she'll make a lovely show car, now that you know she's one of the last ones made.
Previous:
China Blue 1989 Vauxhall Cavalier L 18SV
Kings Blue 1992 Vauxhall Cavalier LSi Auto C18NZ
Smoke Grey 1994 Vauxhall Cavalier V6 C25XE

Am I a light sleeper or a heavy sleeper? Well that depends on how much I've had to drink...
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by James McGrath »

The previous owner actually delivered it to my house.
Nice chap really.
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Cavalier342
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by Cavalier342 »

Oh fair enough. I suppose that's very reasonable. James is getting it all recently lol.
Previous:
China Blue 1989 Vauxhall Cavalier L 18SV
Kings Blue 1992 Vauxhall Cavalier LSi Auto C18NZ
Smoke Grey 1994 Vauxhall Cavalier V6 C25XE

Am I a light sleeper or a heavy sleeper? Well that depends on how much I've had to drink...
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by James McGrath »

Got round to doing a bit of detailing the other day.
Had a bit of a result with the bumpers using Autoglym bumper and trim gel.
There seems to be something stuck on the rear bumper which gave it a strange look. Requires further investigation I think but for now it's fairly well hidden

Before:

Image

After:

Image

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Also took the rear boot panel off. Mainly so I could get the right part number for a replacement but also just so I could inspect the area for any possible rust. Unlike the Diplomat's original panel, I'm glad to say it came off easily.

Luckily it's all good apart form a small amount around the screw holes which I patched up using Bilt Hamber Hydrate 80 before giving the area a good polish and wax to protect it further:

Image

This Hydrate 80 stuff is brilliant. I've been using it for years and it's perfect for stopping any light surface rust in it's tracks. Thoroughly recommended.
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by James McGrath »

Well, the day finally came and as of Sunday 15th it's officially back on the road!

It feels quite a bit different to the other Cavs. Handling is defiantly better and the bigger brakes on the V6 make a difference too.
Engine is superb, no matter where I am in the rev range or what gear I'm in it always has power on demand and it sounds fantastic.
As for the gearbox I don't know what everyone is complaining about, I think the gearing is perfect.

According to the trip computer I've averaged 39MPG, which I really doubt is accurate, but then I was driving as carefully as I could.
I'll find out my real MPG at my next fill up.

Anyway, I spent about 4 hours on Sunday polishing and waxing it. Here are the results:

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Got it booked in tomorrow morning to get a new radio fitted.
After spending a month unsuccessfully looking for an original CD300 unit I thought, bugger it, I'll get a new one instead. Opted for a Sony mex-n5100bt, hopefully It'll turn out well and won't look too out of place.
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by colin1 »

She's a beauty James
93K C20XE Cavalier SRi Hatchback Spectral Blue Metallic
94M X20XEV Cavalier SRi Hatchback Flame Red

96N C14NZ Corsa B 4-dr Flame Red'ish
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by cavalier1990 »

Got a source for boot panels James? Can't seem to get anywhere?
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by Super89 »

Looks like the black bumper bits have been sprayed in the past.
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by James McGrath »

colin1 wrote:She's a beauty James
Thanks Colin. :thumb

cavalier1990 wrote:Got a source for boot panels James? Can't seem to get anywhere?
Not yet. I'm still looking for one.

Super89 wrote:Looks like the black bumper bits have been sprayed in the past.
That's what I thought. It's only on that corner and the bumper care I put on seems to hide it quite well.



Well my new radio is in. Here's the mess of wires that was there before. Last person to work on this made a real pigs ear of it:

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New radio in! :)

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The guy who fitted it was surprised to see a V6, and even more surprised that it had all the wires necessary for all the features of the new radio. As you can see, even the dimmer function works so when you turn on the headlights the display dims slightly so that it's not too bright in the dark. Neat. :cool

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At first the aerial didn't go all the way up but, as is most often the case, after a good clean it's working perfectly.

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Very pleased with how it turned out. Now I know what I've been missing all these years, it sounds a mile better than the OE units.
This radio can change its display to any colour I wish but I think it fits in really nicely with the rest of the dashboard lights in it's current colour.
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by 3cav3 »

Looks an awesome car, would love to have one similar but I think it would bankrupt me in fuel. I've never had a car with a v6 petrol but have had a diesel v6 and the smoothness is something else.
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by James McGrath »

3cav3 wrote:Looks an awesome car, would love to have one similar but I think it would bankrupt me in fuel. I've never had a car with a v6 petrol but have had a diesel v6 and the smoothness is something else.
Thanks.

It's not been too bad on fuel so far. I haven't had the chance to make a accurate calculation yet but the trip computer sais I've averaged 36 mpg. How accurate that is though I'm not sure and I have been driving it very carefully.
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Re: James' 1995 Manual CDX V6 Saloon

Post by James McGrath »

Yay! Problems already!

I was driving home on Tuesday along some of the country lanes near Burwash when I heard a nasty clonk.
I slowed right down and everything seemed fine so I carried on and thought nothing of it.
When I got home however I found this:

Image

Front nearside anti-roll bar drop link. :wall


Looking at the other side, that didn't look much better either:

Image


Time for some OEM parts I think.
I thought I already had a spare anti-roll bar drop link but it turns out the V6 has different ones to the 2.0i Cavs.
New V6 ones on the right, 2.0I on the left:

Image


Going to attempt to fit them myself now. They look simple enough to do...
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