[V8] To Be Continued - I hope not!

[ProfessorGT]

Well, after replacing my engine last Sept, I've been driving my V8
daily and taking the 4.5 hour commute from NJ to RI just about every
weekend, and other than driving a stick in bumper-to-bumper traffic
have been loving it.

This has not however been without incident, as I've had my share of
frustrations along the way so far. Unfortunately we (wife and I)
didn't make it to Carlisle, as there was was too much going on in the
way of needed car repairs: Saturday was spent replacing a window
regulator on my 97 Cherokee (daughter's ride), a high pressure
hydraulic hose (fan and pwr strg) on the wife's 02 Grand Cherokee, and
then Climate Control on the V8.

A couple of weeks ago I tackled replacing all the o-rings in the AC
system, as well as a new accumulator, R-134a conversion fittings, and
orfice tube, sucking the system down and then recharging. Well, the
compressor wouldn't engage due to a code for an open high pressure
switch. The problem turned out to be pin spread of the females at the
high pressure switch connector. Other codes were present for low
voltage, and an open outside temp sensor. Same deal on the female
terminals for the outside temp sensor, so got those repaired as well.
System was cycling and cooling properly, but electric cooling fan was
found to be inop. (bad fan). Upon leaving the shop AC worked fine for
a few miles, but then I smelled something burning. Was it me, or
another vehicle? Shut down the AC. Couple miles later with no more
smell I switched it back on, and then about a mile later the system
went dark and was totally unresponsive! Ugh, the OW-DEE gremlins were
messin' with my head again!
 Well this past Saturday, after dealing with the other rides in the
stable, it was on to the OW-DEE! Common sense says for a total loss of
power to the AC system, let's start at the fuse. Went to pull the 20
amp fuse and it didn't want to release! Yanked it out and found that
the fuse was not just popped, but was totally melted, and the center
between the blades was charred! Good thing we didn't have a "thermal
event"!
Anyway, the blades show absolutely no signs of corrosion, resistance,
or overheat, so the only conclusion I can reach is the fuse itself had
an internal issue. This is obviously the cause of the low voltage
code, which has not returned, and a simple fuse replacement has
resulted in a sustem which has been working fine all week, including
the 4.5 hour trip back to RI.
I did replace the cooling fan so that is now working, but there is no
connection between the 20 amp AC fuse and the cooling fan circuit that
I can see. So, now at lease I can ride in comfort from a climactic
perspective, and I'm smilin' about it.

On another front, I must digress to tell you of my braking woes, if fo
no other reason than to warn you. Last sept/Oct I purchased new brakes
for all four corners (except for rear calipers, thank GOD), including
slotted, drilled and zinc-plated rotors, rebuilt front calipers, front
and rear pads, and all four hoses. I delayed installing all these
parts, as the pads that were on the car were almost new. The car sat
since 2007 so there was lots of rust, so I disassembled them, cleaned
and lubed things up. The pulsation eventually went away, but about a
month ago, the R/F caliper began hanging up. I decided to replace the
front brakes, so I installed all the nice new front brake parts. Low
and behold, the R/F caliper was once again hanging up. It was not
terrible, but dragging enough to glaze the front pads and heat up the
rotor.
I pulled it in the shop to diagnose the problem, and it came down to
an issue with the caliper itself. (remember these were "rebuilt"
calipers). It was difficult to remove one of the pistons, and upon
doing so I found that whoever rebuilt them did a crappy job. Around
the circumference of the piston bore were a series of dings which were
handing the piston. All they did was abrasive blast the calipers, and
replace the pistons, seals and boots. Problem was the dents/dings
which raised metal and were binding the pistons. Guess they just
jambed the pistons in and let it fly! I honed the bores to get a good
fit replaced the seals and boots, and now all is fine.
I mention all this because although I got a great deal on all the
parts (about $240 delivered, for all Centric parts), I would never
ofere another rebuilt caliper from these folks. They didn't even offer
to supply the reseal kit at no charge, stating I was beyond their 30
day warranty! I'm pissed!
I will give them one opportunity to make good on it (send me new pads
and another set of rotors, and I will be satidfied). The company I
purchased all these parts from was Cequence.com They were real nice
when they were taking my order, but refused to offer any support with
the problems they caused due to inferior workmanship, not to mention
all the BS I went through to get it straightened out.
Once they respond to my request, I will follow up this post to let you
know how I make out. I also will also post this on my facebook page
because thus far they have refused to stand behind their products. I
have to see if I can post a "recommendation" on their web site.

Anyway, the V8 is doing well, and the issue I'm dealing with now is
trying to hund down the surging on accell which has recently
developed. I understand this is common on these engines (3.6L) so any
input is appreciated.

-- 
Thanks,
Professor
CavalloGT