1993 Chevrolet Lumina

I have had a '93 Lumina Euro 3.4 for about two years. I also have owned--and still own--an almost identical '92 Lumina Euro 3.4 which I bought way back in '92.

I don't know the history of my '93 other than it had 112,000 miles on it when I got it; and it has 139,000 on it now. I actually bought this thing as a parts car, intending to strip it and have the body towed away! It ran SO GOOD that I decided to keep it!

I had to replace a fuel pump ($525, but I think I was overcharged about $150--$200. The price "should" have been more like $350, but I was stranded out-of-town and "taken to the cleaners".) The timing belt needed to be replaced; but I "think" it was the original belt. They should be replaced every 80,000 miles--so this one is way overdue!

The car is a joy to drive. I get 24 mpg at 75--80 mph (this is about 1--2 mpg less than what I get with my '92. I will replace the oxygen sensor and see if the mileage picks up; and even with 139K I have to go more than 2000 miles before adding oil. Everything on the car worked as it should except for the brakes--just like my '92, the front rotors warp at the first sign of a hard stop. I resurfaced--or replaced--rotors much too frequently on the '92 until I installed "high performance" $80 slotted rotors from NAPA and haven't had problems on my '92 since. The bigger problem with brakes is the power booster. The brake pedal was VERY hard to push; and the stopping power was marginal. A replacement power booster has ABSOLUTELY fixed that problem.

The door locks automatically lock when the transmission is put into gear on the '93. They do NOT unlock when the transmission is put into Park. The '92 does not have this annoying and hateful feature. Fortunately, it is easily and cheaply disabled by simply unplugging a connector behind the glove box. Instructions are on the internet. I did the work outside in 20F weather in twenty minutes.

Alternators have been a problem on my '92; so far the '93 has not needed a replacement. The cost of the alternator is not bad, but the cost of the labor to put an alternator on the 3.4 engine is insanely high because the alternator is hidden low at the back of the engine and takes considerable effort to get to. I consider this a design fault--alternators should not require that much labor to replace. The 2.5 and 3.1 engines are not affected by this design fault--their alternators are easy to get at.

I cannot recommend the 2.5 liter engine; it is hatefully underpowered. The 3.1 is a nice unit although clearly I prefer the extra power (and the suspension upgrades) of the 3.4-powered cars.

Be aware that the 3.4 engines have a known issue with "ticking" noises especially when cold. There is a GM-approved "fix" that involves re-routing oil to the camshafts. The noise is an annoyance but does not harm anything. Both my '92 and my '93 3.4 have this noise, but the repair parts have been discontinued.

Another known issue is intake manifold gaskets which leak coolant and/or allow air "in" to the engine. My '92 needed those gaskets replaced--so far the '93 doesn't need them.

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