She bought it with a bad head gasket.

Just to mention guys, this has been one of the most interesting threads I've read so far oddly enough... and I don't normally like the technical jabberwalkie. Hey, by the way, how do I know if I have a 16v or an 8v?? Yes, as I've mentioned before, I'm retarded with this stuff.

steveo

 Easily answered. If your engine has a steel valve cover and the spark plugs go in through the side above the exhaust manifold, you have an 8 valve.
If the valve cover is aluminum and the spark plugs go in from the top of the cover, it's a 16 valve.

Bah, it looks like I got an 8v.... thanks for the quick reply, just wonder though, should I be sad at this or happy? :-/

steveo

how do I know if I have a 16v or an 8v?? Yes, as I've mentioned before, I'm retarded with this stuff.

steveo

Well what Idaho said, and the big "16 VALVE" cast into the top
and on the Cam Cover  

Wild

Bah, it looks like I got an 8v.... thanks for the quick reply, just wonder though, should I be sad at this or happy? :-/

steveo

Obviously the 16v would have been nicer, but the 8v works just fine with a couple of tweaks.
Such as, a header, 2-2.5" exhaust, a K&N air filter, a hotter coil like the MSD Blaster2, and good spark plugs and wires.

a hotter coil like the MSD Blaster2

Filter and exhaust I can do... what about a coil...whats that??

steveo

 On the distributor cap you have 5 wires, right? Well the 4 in the outter pattern go to the spark plugs. The one in the center goes to the ignition coil on the firewall. The coil is what makes the spark that the distributor sends to each spark plug. The stock 8v coil I think puts out about 15-25,000 volts. The MSD Blaster2 puts out like 40-45,000 volts. You get a cleaner burning more consistant running engine. The hotter coil really helps at lower RPMs and also at higher RPMs on the freeway.

The stock 8v coil I think puts out about 15-25,000 volts. The MSD Blaster2 puts out like 40-45,000 volts. You get a cleaner burning more consistant running engine. The hotter coil really helps at lower RPMs and also at higher RPMs on the freeway.

Holy JEBUS! I had no idea that stuff like that was out there!!! Any other surprises for me?? I think I'll get one of those new coils A-sap! Thanks for the info! How much does one run ya?

By the way, I've noticed that you can swap the engine in Sidekicks from other posts and posts like this, so what options does a guy like me have? There are cheap wrecks all over Grande Praire, so I can find just about anything!

steveo

How hard are aftermarket coils to wire in?

 Coils are pretty straight forward to wire in. The esiest way to wire one in, if you have the screw terminal version, is look at the factory coil top, I think it is marked with a + sign on one side, the aftermarket coil does too, just unscrew the nuts from the coil, pull off the ring connectors and transfer them over to the new coil and reassemble. Put the new coil into the old coil bracket, you might have to use a small thin strip of rubber to help fill in the extra room in the coil braket, and put it back on the truck. You're done. Start and enjoy.
But, if you have the square style coil, I'll have to get back to you on the wire up.