1995 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Z34 from North America - Comments

Since the first week I had the car, things started to go terribly wrong.

I noticed a clanking noise like a rock in a tin can when I drove it. I went to get it checked out and the mechanic said that the filter in my catalytic converter was hard and I needed a new one. Thinking I would come out cheaper just to go to an auto parts store to get it and pay the mechanic for just the labor was a BIG mistake.

The car still burned gas heavily and the engine made the whole car shake whenever I accelerated. Also, my RPM was going up to 4. Other than that, it was fine to drive...Until, a couple of months rolled by and I found out I needed another Catalytic Converter because the one I thought I was saving money on was too small and it was burning cherry red. They also told me I might need 2 fuel injectors, but needed to put it on a machine to be certain... I passed.

When the winter came, the car began shutting off when I put it in park, sometimes not turning back on until I let it sit for a while.

One day while driving, I noticed that I had no heat and that my car was smoking under the hood. Turns out, I needed a water pump because antifreeze was leaking and spraying into and onto the engine.

Now I'm at another loss because the car is not accelerating properly (after stopping at stop signs and/or lights, the car only goes 10-20 mph tops before kicking into gears) and this time they said it was the transmission. The transmission people said it was the catalytic converter blowing exhaust back into the engine, and the catalytic converter people say it's fuel injectors, two cylinders in my V6 are bad, I'm only running on four and I need another (you guessed it) Catalytic Converter.

Costs:

Catalytic Converter#1- 45 dollars

Mechanic to fix it- 50 dollars.

Catalytic Converter#2- 125 parts and labor.

Water Pump- 65 dollars

Mechanic- 50 dollars.

Major Tune up- 135 dollars.

Estimated cost of Fuel Injectors, Catalytic Converter#3 and labor- 480 dollars.

Estimated Cost of PRNDL clutch and Torque Converter for trans- 300 dollars.

That's a shame that you think it is a poor car... I myself own one and I think its the greatest car I have ever owned... i keep the oil changed and have regular tune-ups and the only think I have had to replace in the past 4 years I have owned it is a set of spark plugs and the tires... i myself give Chevy a big thumbs up on this car! and would recommend it to any of my friends!!

MY two year ordeal with a 95 Z34 Monte Carlo resulted in 4 new fuel injectors, timing belt, timing belt idler pulley, power steering pump, power steering high pressure hose, power steering pulley, alternator, an oil leak that couldn't be found also the transmission was slipping. I let the bank take it back.

First of all if you don't notice 5 plus liters of coolant has leaked out of your car, you should not be allowed to drive. Second when you overheat your car because you run it out of coolant to the point where it is smoking you will have all the problems that you have described. Water pumps fail. It happens with all makes and models. The 3.4L is a well built motor, just hard to work on. In other words the things you are complaining about are your own fault. Take better care of your vehicles so in future we all don't have to endure your whining.

Cat Converters don't just go bad, they are scientifically built to change the contaminents coming out of your exhaust. 99.999999% of the time when they go bad it is a direct result from poor engine maintaince. I.E. running rich or having a bad misfire...That's your own fault for not properly repairing a car that needs it. If you had a 96 or newer the dummy light would have came on to save your butt.

Maybe you jus need a 96 or newer car (OBD-II) that way you can just take it in when the dummy light comes on, since you can't seem to figure out when the engine isn't running right.

It sounds like the valve body has gone bad. My Z34 ran rough, would shake, bang gears, not shift right, rev like a banshee and driver's side window would not go up. Whenever there is something wrong the driver's side window stays down. Fix the problem and the window goes up.