Could use some help!

[GungHoPopsicle]

Hi guys - been a while since I've posted on here, but I've decided to get the ol' SS back up and running again like she was when I first got her. So, that being said, there are a few things I'm having done that I could use some advice from other Camaro/Firebird owners for:

-Years ago, I pretty much destroyed the chunk in my rear end (I blame myself...young age, dumping the clutch, blah blah). My stepdad hooked me up with a rear-end to replace it, but my mechanic friend who installed it suspected it was a 5-speed from a V6 Camaro, so obviously the gears are different and it definitely shows on the speedometer that it's not the same. I'm wanting to put the original 3.42 gears in, but will they fit in the current casing? I did a little research on this and there's a series 2 and series 3 carrier. I don't want to buy new gears if they aren't going to fit!
-I'm getting a lot of squeaking under the hood, especially under acceleration. I've replaced both the water pump and the serpentine belt and neither made a difference, so is it likely that it's the tensioner? Is this a common problem with Camaros?
-Looking into getting the SLP Cold Air Package from LM Performance. Any thoughts on this from people who've had experience with them or recommendations otherwise?
-Getting some power surges at around the 30mph mark. Not build-up from the cats either, as I had them checked today. Build-up from the throttle plate perhaps?
-At the advice of others, a long time ago I started utilizing the handbrake trick where you leave it up for just one click to disable the DRLs. Now, my brake message is always on the screen regardless of the handbrake's position. Is this an easy clear? Also, my ASR is always disabled. Not that it really matters so much, but it's another message on my dash that annoys the hell out of me. How do I get this to clear?

Thanks a lot guys! Help is always easy to come by here. Check out the CME I had installed today!

[cammed goat]

I'm not an F-Body owner, but as for the rearend question, folks here will suggest a Strange S60 or Moser rear with an Eaton TruTrac differential. BUT a tune should correct your current issue. Send Frost, our resident tuner, an email about having your ECM recalibrated. As for the squeal, what belt are you running? Our cars DO NOT like anything but a good ol Goodyear Gatorback belt. I run those in my car as the Daycos that came with mine squealed like MAD when it was humid/rainy. As for the power surge, you could check your throttle blade for build up and clean that AND pull the IAC and clean that with a rag and throttle body cleaner. Might as well get some CRC MAF cleaner and clean that while you have all the intake parts off. As for the "brake" warning message, you might have shorted out the switch, causing the light to stay on. How did you disable the ASR?

[GungHoPopsicle]

-Well, I'm not looking to swap out the entire rear-end and the differential - just the gearing; I liked it stock, and I don't aspire to race the car by any means, so I'm not out to make it a beast on the streets. If I had the money, I'd love to change it out entirely! But not in the near, near future. What do you mean by "a tune should correct your current issue?" If the gearing is completely different, I'm not understanding you on this...
-I'm just running a regular Duralast serpentine belt from Auto Zone. Nothing special. But I took the old one off and the thing's practically new. Drove it around a little tonight and the noise just persists... It's embarrassing! Noise seems to be coming from the tensioner side, so I'm willing to bet that's it.
-I'll prolly clean around the throttle blade the next clear day I get (just started storming tonight, of course).
-I'm guessing the ASR was disabled altogether after clicking the switch just about every time I got in the car. Maybe it thinks it's doing me a favor, who knows?

[Naaman]

As for the brakes, is it possible that the WSS is not jiving with the engine RPMs (due to wonky gering) and therefore, the computer is confused?

[Too Fast]

GungHo, your ASR is probably disabled since the car thinks the E-brake is on. Naaman, that's a good theory, but those items don't talk to each other like that.

GungHo, I'd clean the TB and also the MAF for the surging, and then check fuel pressure. Should be 58-60 KOEO.

What is V6 5-speed rear gearing? 3.23? If so, that's not too far off from a 3.42. If it's a 2.73, then yeah you want it changed, and no, the 2 series carrier won't work for the 3.42 gears you want.

Is the belt noise always there? You could take the belts off, and with a FULLY COLD ENGINE, run it around the block and see if the noise is gone. You don't want to drive it more than a mile, so it doesn't overheat. Or you could take the belts with you and put them on in a parking lot, after that very short drive, they're not that hard to remove/install. This will confirm it is indeed a belt/tensioner noise. Could be the alternator bearing, or a tensioner bearing, or something else.

[pajeff02]

You can easily figure out what you have for rear gears. Chock the front wheels, jack up the rear and support it on jackstands. Under the car, place a mark or a piece of tape on the driveshaft with an adjoining mark on the differential. Then place a mark or piece of tape on the inside of a rear tire at the bottom center. Place the transmission in neutral, release the parking brake, and then rotate the tire one (1) complete revolution while you watch and count how many times the driveshaft rotates. You'll have to estimate just a bit - for 2.73, you'll see it turn just shy of 2-3/4 revolutions, 3.23 will fall just short of 3-1/4 revolutions, etc... As you have already recognized, GM utilizes different series carries with the difference being the spacing between the ring gear and the pinion. In order to install a 3 series gear in a 2 series carrier, you can shim the ring gear, however, this is not your best option when it comes to building a strong rear.

[SMWS6TA]

In addition to what Jeff said to answer your question about the speedometer. The 4L60E & T56's have the sensor a acts like the cam & crank position sensors. There is a gear that the sensor counts and reports it to the PCM. Based on the # of rotations and gears programmed into the ECM it will tell the speedometer what you are doing within 2-3 mph. Tire size also effects the speed.

You need to know what the GR is before you try to have a tuner program for correct gears.


And if the current rear isn't working for you there are (sadly) a lot of f bodies in the junk yards to pick one from.