Need advice before I possibly mess up my SHO

[marshallma0504]

Hello all, I have a 2013 SHO non PP with 116,000 miles that I am about to embark on a rather long road trip with, and I want to do some preventative maintenance before I leave. Some backstory, I picked the car up on marketplace for a good deal, it’s clean inside and is a rebuild with some panel gaps where it was hit in the front drivers side. Since receiving it I have changed the crankshaft position sensor A for a p0016 code which has not come back, but I do have a small rattle on cold start and my mechanic looked at live data for the timing and saw it was about 2 degrees off at idle and he got it to go up to about 11 degrees under revving it. I also replaced the rear brakes because of a seized caliper that was dragging and that has been great. The main issues it has now is a ptu fluid leak that is gray in color and thick, probably never been changed. When the car is cold it upshifts kinda hard from second to third but not enough to cause any clunks. To my knowledge the trans fluid has never been changed. Also under WOT it has a flashing CEL and shudders and then goes into limp mode. In the codes there is a p0300 for a random misfire hence why I am planning on doing the plugs as I don’t think they have ever been done. Does anyone think that a trans drain and fill would be a bad idea and I should do a flush? Should I start looking for a new ptu? Here is the list of maintenance I plan to do:

1. Drain and fill trans fluid (5-6qt)
2. Drain and fill PTU (18oz Royal purple)
3. Change all spark plugs (ngk ruthenium gapped to 0.28-0.30 idk which one is best)
4. Change oil drain line gasket from turbo due to small leak that drips onto exhaust.

My mechanic also recharged the a/c system as it was sitting for a while before the guy sold it to me, and all seems good there. The car drives fine unless you really get on it then it will occasionally throw the flashing CEL and dial back the power. I have attached the document of the codes he pulled from the car using his scanner, and he cleared them all. Also some pretty bad photos of the oil and ptu fluid leaks as I was under the car with jack stands. I can get better photos on Thursday when I plan to do all of the items on the list(Note I live on a sandy gravel road so idk if the specks in the gray ptu fluid are metal or sand.) After I do this maintenance I am planning to take it back to him again to run codes. Any advice is much appreciated as I don’t wanna break anything more than it already is, I just hope this car is saveable and not going to become a giant money out of worse leave my wife and I stranded on this road trip. Any helpful comments are appreciated.

 

[marshallma0504]

I was also going to run a bottle of Techron through it since it was sitting unless that seems like a bad idea for the injectors.

 

[kryptto]

Ok I will start with the PTU, the vent on older models clogs and causes PTU leaks to bubble up from the vent. Look here under maintenance and TSB's. UNLESS its leaking leaking - which was another issue I believe with my year car, check my sig. Grey is "ok" burnt thick black is bad. Either way - it smells awful. That said - if you leave it in, you will destroy the PTU, you can change it and well might develop faster since the grit might be "holding" things together. CHANGE the trans fluid - we have 10+ articles about its proper replacement. SINCE the PTU/RDU oil and transmission are the powertrain figure out how bad things are before going further.

New item by Jason

photos.app.goo.gl

There is a picture of mine after 28K and first change to guage how F'd up things are.

You can always replace plugs oil and get the brake fluid and radiator flushed before heading out.

Change PTU/Tran and see how things are - then RDU - rear diff - then start with the other items I mentioned.

 

[kryptto]

I was also going to run a bottle of Techron through it since it was sitting unless that seems like a bad idea for the injectors.

this is fine and should be done at NON top tier gas stations on fill ups, however the carbon build up in the intake is always there and getting worse. Dont mean to sound gruff - however high maintenance car.

 

[marshallma0504]

Ok I will start with the PTU, the vent on older models clogs and causes PTU leaks to bubble up from the vent. Look here under maintenance and TSB's. UNLESS its leaking leaking - which was another issue I believe with my year car, check my sig. Grey is "ok" burnt thick black is bad. Either way - it smells awful. That said - if you leave it in, you will destroy the PTU, you can change it and well might develop faster since the grit might be "holding" things together. CHANGE the trans fluid - we have 10+ articles about its proper replacement. SINCE the PTU/RDU oil and transmission are the powertrain figure out how bad things are before going further.

New item by Jason

photos.app.goo.gl

There is a picture of mine after 28K and first change to guage how F'd up things are.

You can always replace plugs oil and get the brake fluid and radiator flushed before heading out.

Change PTU/Tran and see how things are - then RDU - rear diff - then start with the other items I mentioned.

Do you think I should also spray the MAP sensors with cleaner to see if that helps the misfire as well?

 

[kryptto]

Do you think I should also spray the MAP sensors with cleaner to see if that helps the misfire as well?

That can help use MAP sensor cleaner ONLY.

 

[marshallma0504]

That can help use MAP sensor cleaner ONLY.

So not this stuff? I’m confused on the difference..

 

[kryptto]

So not this stuff? I’m confused on the difference..

That is the product not carburetor cleaner.

 

[marshallma0504]

That is the product not carburetor cleaner.

Ok great I’ll spray them both and see how it all goes. Thanks for all your help!

 

[kryptto]

Ok great I’ll spray them both and see how it all goes. Thanks for all your help!

follow the directions carefully.

 

[marshallma0504]

follow the directions carefully.

Ok I will. This is my first turbocharged car and I just want to make it run good and enjoy it.

 

[SHOrod]

Do you have any record of whether or not the timing chain and water pump have been replaced? If not, you may want to add that to your list if you determine that you want to keep the car and help with the reliability. If your car had a MAF sensor, spraying it could help with fuel economy, but would be unlikely to help with a random misfire. But I would not recommend spraying any cleaner on the MAP sensor. The crankshaft position code is most likely related to your random misfire. I wouldn't hold your breath that new spark plugs will remedy the P0300, but that's also not bad maintenance given the mileage on the car either.

There are quite a few codes that could be related to low charging system voltage. If the battery in the car appears to be pretty old, or if you know it's more than 3 years old, you might want to consider replacing it as well. But since the codes have since been cleared, you can also see if any of those battery voltage or communication codes return and, if so, consider a new battery at that time.

-Rod

 

[marshallma0504]

Do you have any record of whether or not the timing chain and water pump have been replaced? If not, you may want to add that to your list if you determine that you want to keep the car and help with the reliability. If your car had a MAF sensor, spraying it could help with fuel economy, but would be unlikely to help with a random misfire. But I would not recommend spraying any cleaner on the MAP sensor.

-Rod

To my knowledge the chains have not been done but it was recommended in a service inspection from the previous owner when the rear turbo let go at 88,000 and got replaced. That probably doesn’t bode well for me seeing as it has 116,000 and I’m planning on taking it on a road trip..

 

[marshallma0504]

Do you have any record of whether or not the timing chain and water pump have been replaced? If not, you may want to add that to your list if you determine that you want to keep the car and help with the reliability. If your car had a MAF sensor, spraying it could help with fuel economy, but would be unlikely to help with a random misfire. But I would not recommend spraying any cleaner on the MAP sensor. The crankshaft position code is most likely related to your random misfire. I wouldn't hold your breath that new spark plugs will remedy the P0300, but that's also not bad maintenance given the mileage on the car either.

There are quite a few codes that could be related to low charging system voltage. If the battery in the car appears to be pretty old, or if you know it's more than 3 years old, you might want to consider replacing it as well. But since the codes have since been cleared, you can also see if any of those battery voltage or communication codes return and, if so, consider a new battery at that time.

-Rod

The battery is from July 2021 and was tested good February of 2024. Honestly I’m not sure if those low voltage codes were from my ownership of the car or not since my mechanic said that the codes had not been cleared for a while. The misfire does seem fewer and farther between now that the codes have been cleared and the trans shifting has sort of cleared up. So I’m hoping these fluids and the plugs will be good for the car overall and keep it healthy on the road.

 

[Ta2dResqr]

If you change the oil line gaskets, change the filters as well.

 

[marshallma0504]

If you change the oil line gaskets, change the filters as well.

So since it’s the drain line on the turbo side there is no filter to my knowledge the filter is only on the block side for the oil suction line/ fill line

 

[Ta2dResqr]

With 116

So since it’s the drain line on the turbo side there is no filter to my knowledge the filter is only on the block side for the oil suction line/ fill line

With 116k on it and you being right there, it will be well worth the few dollars and time. I lost my rear turbo at slightly higher mileage. The shaft broke and there was heat evidence on it. The filters were also pretty plugged.

 

[marshallma0504]

With 116

With 116k on it and you being right there, it will be well worth the few dollars and time. I lost my rear turbo at slightly higher mileage. The shaft broke and there was heat evidence on it. The filters were also pretty plugged.

Rear turbo was replaced at 88k so maybe I’ll change out the filters on the front first and then the rear later on idk yet I’m just trying to make the car run decent overall it just has problems when you get on the gas hard and it makes me nervous.

 

[marshallma0504]

follow the directions carefully.

Hey Kryptto, what advice do you have regarding draining the gunk out of the intercooler? Do you think the drilling a hole and plugging it is an appropriate solution? Or do you recommend removing the intercooler and draining it manually? Because I have a feeling that could possibly be contributing to my hesitation and misfires if the buildup is bad enough. Just curious, any help would be appreciated just want to hear from an experienced SHO owner like yourself.

 

[kryptto]

Hey Kryptto, what advice do you have regarding draining the gunk out of the intercooler? Do you think the drilling a hole and plugging it is an appropriate solution? Or do you recommend removing the intercooler and draining it manually? Because I have a feeling that could possibly be contributing to my hesitation and misfires if the buildup is bad enough. Just curious, any help would be appreciated just want to hear from an experienced SHO owner like yourself.

pump system you would use for brake fluid removal such as https://a.co/d/6Q3cT72 and an endoscope to look down. take the pipe off the TB and cooler, then jack the driver side up to pool the fluid on passenger side.