My Wife and I have had this car(2GNT Black 95 - (built Aug 94) Eagle Talon Esi) since 96. I use it to commute 220 miles a day 4 days a week.
The car has the shock tower rust holes. I am concerned about driving down the highway and having my struts bust through and throw the hood, over my windshield at speed sending me out of control at 75+ mph into the path of a semi carrying logs or what not, but I don't think its to that extent yet.
Because this car gets 530 miles to a 15 gallon tank (35mpg), I really want to keep it until it hits 300,000 miles... that is the goal anyway. It uses about 1 quart of oil every 5,000 miles. I do not use synthetic, I use 10w30 Napa oil (Valvoline makes oil for Napa private label). I change the oil every 7500 miles and use a K&N.
It's been one of the most reliable cars I've owned... as long as I keep up on changing the timing belt, bearings, tensioner, and water pump.
The engine did bend the valves at 100,000 due to a broken belt, so I learned my lesson then.
The car now has 246,000 miles on it and only now has been acting up and behaving strangely.
Recently the car has been killing front wheel bearings, every 5-8000 miles the drivers left would die.
I have ordered rebuilt cv axles, with new rotors, pads and calipers plus a new wheel bearing to hopefully put this to bed... but we'll see.
The other area I am having issue with is the idling and throttle. The car has a hard time idling and starting when cold. I usually have to keep the key engaged and my foot on the gas to get it going in the morning.
I cleaned the IAC which was all black and sooty, and replaced the gasket on the throttle body and still have the same problem.
I read only one code with my reader that said "P1294 could not reach the desired idle."
After I cleaned the IAC I reset this code and it hasn't returned.
The car still has a hard time starting and I cannot press the accelerator pedal past 50% without it losing power at idle or at speed.
I think it could be my TPS but would like to be able to check it with a multimeter.... is there a posted procedure?
#311, "RE: 95 Eagle Talon Esi 246,000 miles so far" In response to Reply # 0
Good luck getting the car up and running. I'm having a wee bit of trouble myself right now. I'm sure someone will be able to offer you some worthwhile advice though.
#312, "RE: 95 Eagle Talon Esi 246,000 miles so far" In response to Reply # 1
These cars, if well maintained, are superb. Think of it as a really sexy Neon.
How long since you replaced the plug wires? Common symptoms of wire age is a loss of power (misfire/stutter/bogging) above ~50% throttle input under load. If it's been a while, consider picking up a set of the Bosch wires from Autozone. $45 or so and lifetime warranty, so you just take them in and swap 'em out when they go bad again.
As for target idle and the car not wanting to start when cold, I wonder if the coolant temp sensor might be to blame. Usually, this presents problems starting when it's hot outside, as the sensor typically fails by telling the ECU it's -235* or so in the engine bay, but it could be both ways. Of the two sensors under the radiator cap, it is the one with the larger connector. The other, single pin connector is for the gauge in the cluster.
Finally, have you ever had the lower ball joint recall performed by the local dealership? If not, look into it. It's a long shot, but perhaps the ball joint is on its way out and causing things to load up out of sync. Can't say I've ever heard of something like that. Should you decide you need to replace the front hubs, drop me a PM. I've got a set taking up space that I never ended up needing. $50+ shipping and they're yours.
Welcome to the board, though. We're glad you found us. I'd suggest giving the search a try, but consider searching by thread title when you do. It's a bit easier to find what you need that way.
#318, "RE: 95 Eagle Talon Esi 246,000 miles so far" In response to Reply # 2
I'm with DR1556 on the startup idle problem being due to the coolant temp switch, first I'd check the coolant level at the T-stat housing though. sometimes if you get a bubble in the coolant that's where it rises to and the air will throw off the CTS resulting in a hard startup that won't find a good idle until you put your foot into it for a moment. I had the same problem until I found out that my reservoir cap was cracked and sucking air in while the engine was cooling down
Erik P. Official 2GNT thread Hijacker Some say that he's driven over more Covenant than he's shot, and that his grenades aren't where you'd expect them to be... All we know is, He's not The Stig... But he is The Stig's Spartan cousin!
