hey all. first post here. so my girlfriend has a 1998 5.2l 2wd, with about 140k on it. its been pretty neglected. im pretty good with my vehicle maintenance, she is pretty terrible with hers. i decided im gonna take over maintenance on her car...
im starting with a tune up. dont want to do anything fancy, just get what is best for it. here is my list
plugs
plug wires
fuel filter
air filter

id prefer to get it all at advanced auto.

also, her heat doesnt work. her mechanic(supposedly a friend), has tried the water pump, thermostat, etc, but never bothered to back-flush the heater core. i plan on doing that as well. any advice there? can i use standard coolant(in my jeep i had to use some expensive nonsense for the aluminum block)

for oil, 10w30 is fine right? with a basic fram filter?

thanks in advance for all the help. if i missed a sticky of a FAQ post with all this info, just lemme know. not too lazy to do my own reading.

 

Autolite 3923 plugs, any good wires will do, fuel filter is in the tank, air filter is your choice.

Heat: inspect blower fan and resistor operation, as well as blend door. Flushing heater core not a bad idea at all.

Oil, I bounce around a bit. I'd have to look and see what I have in it now, I went up a viscosity at the last oil change, I think from 30 to 40 or 40 to 50. Oil pressure went down a shave, but that's to be expected.

Regular anti-freeze is fine.

 

Unless you're prepared to drop the gas tank, cross that fuel filter off the list.

Uses standard green prestone. If the heater supply hoses are hot, probably isn't a problem with the heater core (unless it's leaking.) Might be the blend door isn't functioning. You can try back flushing, it's cheap and worth the gamble.

Add a cap and rotor to the list. Probably a PCV valve. 10w40 is fine, get it in 5 quart jugs at Walmart (their brand) and any old oil filter will do.

Long term, you might want to have the brakes & trannie flushed. And the differential cover seal checked.

 

thanks for the quick responses. lots of good info.

ok, ill go with the autolites, mid range wires, skip the fuel filter, and get whatever air filter is cheapest.

thanks for the oil recommendations.

ill get a cap and rotor as well. good suggestion. im so used to my cars with coil packs i forgot about that.

pcv valve, also a good recommendation. where is it located on the truck? its just a vacuum thing, so im thinking i should just be able to find it.

ill do the heater hose check for temperature and go from there.

what is involved in blend door checking, resistor operation?
im assuming that checking the blower function is just putting my hand over a vent?

 

one more quick q. when i go to autozone or advanced auto .com the "Autolite 3923" says it doesnt fit the 5.2l 1998. am i missing something?

 

Champions came with the truck originally.

The 3923 is a common swap. You'll have to ask for them.

 

yep, sorry, i did some research. slightly colder plugs. ill be sure to ask for them via part #.

 

While you're in there check the belt and hoses too. Top off all the fluids.

5w-30 or 10w-30 would be fine. Check the owners manual. There's no need to go heavier.

 

Napa cap and rotor will be much better quality than the cheaper lines sold at Advance or Auto Zone. Ask for the Echlin brand with the brass contacts. They last longer, do not corrode as easily and will get a slightly better spark to the plugs. For plugs 3923's do work well but I would say use them only if the engine has preignition ping. Otherwise stay with the stock heat range. No offense to Dan but Champions really suck..go with NGK, they are much better, also available at Napa, and only a few cents more expensive. I believe the stock heat NGK is a FRF-11. Autolite has had some reported quality problems since they moved their manufacturing to Mexico and China. Some NGK's are still made here in the USA, but I think the last set of NGK's I bought may have been made in Japan. They are still great quality though. For plug wires use the Belden Premium set, also from Napa. They are excellent quality, better than OE and decent price. The Belden set for my V6 is only about $32.00, a V8 can not be much more.

For oil, it kind of depends what the climate is like where you live. If it is a cold area like up north, 5W30 will be best. If you live in a warmer area like the south or maybe out west, go with 10W30. Like Dan said either one will do fine and there is no need to go to a heavier viscosity. Use a good quality name brand oil and do the same with the filter, avoid Fram and STP/E-core clones and it will be fine. When I replaced the water pump on my truck a few years back, Auto Zone was the only place I could find plain green ethylene glycol coolant.

It would be a good idea to remove the throttle body and clean it and the IAC valve while you are doing the rest of the tune-up. Probably need to r&r the TB anyway to have enough access to replace the cap and rotor.

Jimmy

 

No offense taken. I don't have the 3.9 so no experience with them. I do use Champions in my 4.7 though.