I've just taken over my brother's Proton Saga 1.3, 1997 model.

Pretty much underpowered, heavy fuel consumption.

I think you are referring the four small hoses at the rear of
the engine, around the carburettor and auto choke.

They are called the U, S, V and carburettor hoses.

The U and S are about 12 mm, and the V and carburettor
hoses are about 8 mm.

If the coolant leaks are minor, you could try tightening their clips.
If the leaks persists and the hoses seem hard and cracked to
the touch, I think it's time to replace them.

You can buy all four at Universal Auto at Jalan Sungei Besi,
near the cross-junction with Jalan Pudu and just after the
fire engine department.

They cost around $20 + for a set.


If you are referring to the two big radiator hoses, they cost
around $12 each for this brand :

http://www.pongcodan.com


A more expensive brand, Fudex, marketed as OEM with
the Proton label, costs $18 each.

http://www.fudex.com.my/


Universal has both. They open till 4 pm on Sunday.



I've bought all six hoses and kept them in my trunk
as spares, just in case.

Turn anticlockwise about 1 to 2 mm for a start. The timing
will probably drop between 3 to 6 degrees.

The sound may be old engine mountings, which sometimes
sound very much like knocking or pinging.

I have the same problem when accelerating uphill at times,
and initially thought it was overly advanced timing causing
knocking, but my brother, whom this Iswara belongs to,
told me it was the mountings.

If they are no longer leaking after tightening the clips,
and the hoses still seem to be in fairly good shape, it's
better to leave them alone for the moment and save some money.

I've been told that if the engine is running fairly well, it's better
to leave things as they are, rather than messing around, which
might well cause more problems later. Once you pull out the old
hoses, there are bound to be some rust, old gasket gum, scaling,
etc on the outlets, and if not properly cleaned, may well cause
leaks later when you push in the new ones.

Anyway, if you still decide to replace them, Universal Parts
is at 26 Jalan Sungei Besi, KL. Tel : 9221 1900. Ask for
James, the boss's son who is there most of the time
running the show. Very young guy, quite nice, good prices.
The boss is Alan Tay. Their shop specializes in mostly Proton parts.

I think it is good enough to get the Pong Codan hoses. They say
that their products are certified to ISO standard on their website.
Two of the main radiator hoses will cost just RM24, compared
to RM36 for the Fudex.



About the timing adjustment. I haven't tried adjusting the Saga's,
and don't have any pics.

I've done that for my older car, a Corolla KE70 many times, whose
electronic distributor is simpler except for the vacuum advance,
which has two hoses. On that one, you just loosen one locknut
and turn the distributor anticlockwise too.

I can see two locknuts on the Saga distributor, which I think are
the ones to be loosened. (Better ask your mechanic first before
trying anything.)

Mark the distributor housing's alignment with the engine body
with a red marker pen before making any adjustment.

Looking at the distributor's top from the front left (driver's side)
of the engine, turn it anticlockwise about 1 or 2 mm. Technically,
you need a timing light to be precise, but you could try this for
the time being. Use the tachometer as a guide, which should show
back the same RPM if you readjust back to the original position.

This post has been edited by Tham: Aug 3 2010, 07:07 PM

I think you just need to replace the halogen bulbs, H4 type.

My right one just burned out on Sunday, a month after I had
taken it over from my brother. Raining whole day long on that
day, and I drove over to my brother's house in Cheras at almost
11 pm to get him to replace it for me (never replaced a halogen
bulb before !)

Open the bonnet, prise open the rear plastic cover, lift up the
two spring clips, take out the bulb.


Buy Osram, Philips or some other good brand of halogen bulbs,
not the Taiwanese ones. Get the standard wattage - 55/60 watts,
not 80/100 watts, which burn out even faster.

Make sure you hold the bulb by its socket terminals, not the
glass, or you'll risk shortening its lifespan even more.


I never did like halogen headlights. Short lifespan (you can note
lots of cars on the road at night with one headlight dark), too bright,
too white, way too glaring.

Sealed beam headlights are what I really like. Not too bright, a bit
yellowish and not glaring whitish like halogens, and - they never
seem to burn out. In my 30 years of driving, I have never burned
out a sealed beam light before. My first car, an Opel Gemini, from
1980 to 1993, sealed beam lights still going strong when I sold it
after 13 years.

Last car, a Corolla KE70, both original sealed beam lights had
smashed away in accidents over the years. The left one, a
Koito sealed beam, was replaced at least seven or eight years
ago, and as good as ever when I sold it last month.

And sealed beams are cheap. Japanese Koito, Stanleys sold for
about RM15 each in the 80s, were like RM28 each when I last
checked. American Wagners about the same price. And this
is for the WHOLE headlight unit, not just the bulb. Sealed beams
don't used flimsy bulbs.

The only down side is it is a bit difficult to repace a sealed beam.
having to take out the side signal light grill in most cases. But
then, as mentioned, you are unlikely to ever replace one in your
car's lifetime, unless they are damaged in an accident.


Try replacing the whole Proton headlight, and you will be
poorer by at least RM160. With some of the more fancy cars
on the road, be ready to spend above RM200 each.


As for the signal cover, you can get them at any shop, like
Universal Auto above. Won't cost very much.

Oops, forgot to tell you the cost of the bulb,

Osram H4s will cost around RM12 each.


Taiwanese ones are cheaper, usually below RM10.
They have names like "Phyllis".

I have also seen Chinese ones selling in pairs in Carrefour
and Giant, "Type R" brand, can't remember the price, but fairly
cheap. Not so durable as Osrams or Philips of course, but usable
if you are short of money.


Called James of Univeral Auto just now, and he said
the front signal cover is also RM12.



This post has been edited by Tham: Aug 6 2010, 05:26 PM

Not sure how much it costs to clean a Saga carburettor, but
this mechanic, Mr Liew in Cheras Kampong Baru, cleaned my
former car's carb (Corolla) a few years ago for $40.

That carb was much simpler than the Saga's, which is a big mess
of auto choke, diaphragms, vacuum pumps, and other pollution
control devices.

He seems to be quite busy these days, being out mostly to
repair small lorries and vans in customers' factories or out
on the road. You could try calling him 012-234 8289.

Another mechanic, Tan, who had a shop opposite Federal Bakery,
cleaned the Corolla carb for $50 a few months ago, but he is now
..... a mee seller !


However, many people, including mechanics, advised me that if
your carburettor is in fair shape or has only minor problems, leave
it alone. A very sensitive and precision-made device, once opened
up, it is prone to giving bigger trouble later. This is why some
mechanics, including Liew above, are reluctant to clean carburettors.

Note that the Saga's auto choke is prone to giving trouble. In those
days, you had to either replace the whole choke as a unit, or the
whole carb. James told me that they now have a repair kit for it
for around $30.

I've seen some of these shops on the net pricing
the motor at $50 or $60. Maybe made in Taiwan.

You can call James of Universal Auto to ask for
his price, at 03- 922 11 900.

Otherwise, you can buy the whole fan, used, for
maybe $60 or $70.

This guy I met at the Petronas station in Taman Tenaga,
Cheras, had a Toyota Altis 1.8, second generation, engine
in his Proton Saga.

Sigh .... how come you don't understand plain English ?

It means he swapped his 4G13 or 4G15 for an Altis engine.

It looked like a Mitsubishi engine, though I'm sure he
said it was an Altis.

He said it had good fuel comsumption. Also had an auto gearbox.
Changed to a double layer radiator, and his temp never went
above the first quarter mark, which means the fan hardly ever
comes on.

Using a GP battery meant for racing, cost some $300.

He said the engine cost him $3,800, and had to wait for
a few months. If you are interested in this conversion,
I'll have to phone him to ask where he did it.

He told me some guy offered him $18,000 for his Iswara
sedan, 1995 model I think. Body and paintwork still in
good condition, I think repainted.

This compares with my 1997 model, which used to belong
to my younger brother, and Honda offered him .... $4,000
when he asked about trading it in for his new City. So my
elder brother decided to buy it from him for the same price,
and I'm the one who has now borrowed it.

Quite a nice guy, good conversationist and very helpful.

Might be a good idea to wrap a couple of turns of
white teflon tape around the base of the threads
of the sensor to insure against leaks ?

If you have not bought the sensor yet, you can do this.
In the meantime, I think you can bypass the sensor
to let the fan run directly. I believe the sensor (actually
just a bimetallic strip) is just a link between the fan's
negative wire and earth, with the radiator's body acting
as the earth.

Just disconnect it, and connect a jumper wire from
the fan's connector to any body earth, say the
radiator mounting nut.

The fan will run continously the moment the ignition
key is turned to "ACC", and the engine will run a bit
cool (probably up to the first quarter mark), but should
be alright.

As for the fuse, I'm a new owner too, not sure where
the fuse box is located, but I think I see a panel for one
under the right side of the dashboard ?

---

Added on August 9, 2010, 6:15 pmSame here from the 1997 saloon which I've just
started taking over from my brother, though the
engine mounting shake is not very bad.

If you can live it, leave it alone for the moment.
I remember checking the mountings cost on the
net and not really cheap - four in all, front, back,
sides.

Call James of Universal Auto at 03-922 11 900
and check the prices.


Try raising both your idle speed and FICD to say
1,100 rpm.

The "bling blang" sound may be from the doors or
maybe the floor panels below them. I get them
even when just going over slightly rough roads and
was wondering what it was. Sounds like we are driving
a lorry, right ? I just ignore it.

Otherwise, will have to check with a mudguard man.



This post has been edited by Tham: Aug 9 2010, 06:15 PM

You can find me working on the car sometimes
at the Petronas station in Taman Tenaga, more
on Wednesday or Saturday nights.

I'm a familiar figure to the people in that area, as
I had been spending a lot of time there trying to
keep my previous car, a Corolla, alive !

Have lately been replacing the cooling system
with distilled water.

Is the correct battery for the Proton Iswara 1.3s, ( 1996 model),
NS60 or NS60L ?

I am now driving the above car which belongs to my brother, and
the last battery he installed, the "Auto Master", is an NS60L.

I was about to go out today at 7 pm, and found that this battery
had finally given out.


So I called James's father, who owns the Universal Auto parts shop
in Pudu. He was very kind to deliver an FB battery all the way
to my house in SS1, PJ, while on the way home to Klang. He came
with James.

He wasn't sure of the way there (difficult if you are unfamiliar), but
he managed to find it with my directions. It was past 8 pm by then,
but he was very nice to install it as well. (I am unfamiliar with installing
batteries in alarm-equipped cars, my last being an alarm-free vintage
Toyota KE70 !)

He never charged me anything for the delivery or installation.

However, he gave me an NS60. I asked if he was sure this was the
right one, and he replied in the affirmative, saying that this was the
specification in his catalog, and that he had also sold this model
to many Iswara taxi drivers over the years.

However, I noted that, after installing, the positive terminal, was
now facing outwards instead of inwards towards the engine as with
the NS60L previously, which caused it to be dangerously close to
the metal bracket of the chassis on its left, on which the battery tray
was mounted. I quickly stuck some black insulation tape against this
bracket just to be safe.

Secondly, the positive clamp and wire had to be bent awkwardly to
the left, which didn't seem to look natural.

Both positive and negative wires also had to be stretched a bit to
reach their new positions, since the terminals were now further.

This Malay mechanic behind my house also said the correct battery
for both the Iswara and Wira was the NS60L.

Then again, these references and links appear to mention that
the NS60 is the right one for the Iswara, and for the Wira as well.


http://www.global-p.com.my/pdf/battery.pdf

http://carbattery.com.my/index.asp?p=/static/Proton.html

http://mymall.netbuilder.com.my/index.php?...howclass&cid=10

http://forum.lowyat.net/topic/766756/+60

http://forum.autoworld.com.my/index.php?sh...99&#entry526099

http://abc-deliverycarservices.com/index.p...e&id=4&Itemid=7


On calling my auto aircon man in Kepong, Ah Tee, who used to
own an Iswara, he said the proper battery is the NS60L, but the NS60
may also be used as well without problems.


Any feedback from the good Iswara owners here ?

The Iswara apparently was fitted with two types of
radiators, one by Denso, the other APM.

The APM fan motor costs around $60.

http://jenfookbee.blogspot.com/2010/06/pro...-fan-motor.html


The Denso motor is Japanese made, about $110 to $120.


The motors are not interchangeable with either radiator.

If you can convert your Iswara's (I'm driving my brother's
car now) hopeless, problematic (wax auto choke !) Aisan
carburettor to your Nissan Vannette's carb, which I believe
is a far more reliable Hitachi, by all means go ahead.

In the first place, your electric choke is far more reliable
than the stupid wax-operated (very expensive too, costs
more than $400 if you order it, I am told) choke on the Aisan.

Electric (bimetallic strip) chokes hardly ever fail, and if they
do, it's a simple matter of disconnecting its linkage to the
flap on your carb and not using it. I used to drive an Opel
Gemini from 1983 to 1993, and the Nikki carb's electric
choke never gave any trouble. Nikki is a subsidiary of Hitachi.

Secondly, Hitachi carburettors are usually far more economical
and reliable than Aisans.

My last car was a Toyota Corolla KE70, and its Aisan carb,
even when I replaced with a new one, gave endless problems,
not to mention a gas guzzler.

This mechanic I know said he used to convert the Aisan on
this type of car to a Datsun 120Y or Nissan Sunny's Hitachi
for his customers, with far better economy and reliabilty,
at the expense of a slight loss in performance.

The secondary venturi typically opens at 3,000 to 4,000 rpm.





This post has been edited by Tham: Nov 9 2010, 02:49 AM

I noted from your tachometer readings that your
idle speed fell from about 800 rpm to nearly 500 rpm
- a drop of almost 300 rpm !

Assuming if your FICD is not functioning, that is still
a big loss in power - you must have a really heavy compressor.

Say you are driving an Iswara 1.3, with an average-sized
compressor like the Sankyo/Sanden 507, it should fall
by about only 180 to 200 rpm when the magnetic clutch
kicks in. What kind of compressor are you using ??
The Sankyo 508 ?


The FICD solenoid's hose is connected to a vaccum-operated diaphragm,
at the left-hand corner of the picture. This has a rod which pushes
the idle linkage of the carburettor when the solenoid switches on
and allows the manifold vacuum to suck activate it.

This rod has an adjustment screw, which I indicated with a yellow
arrow. It is facing upwards, you can just about see it if you look
in closely.

Use an ordinary flat-bladed screwdriver and turn it in or out
to adjust the idle speed when the compressor is on.




This post has been edited by Tham: Nov 14 2010, 04:40 AM