I have a 2001 with a 3.2L engine. The car had 28K on the odometer when the engine was replaced in Sept. 2005. The car was at 30K when I purchased it in Sept 2011 and has had 3 oil changes since then. The car now has 42K. I'm guessing I have the dual row bearing but with a remanufactured engine, I can't be certain.
I purchased a Durametric recently and started researching about camshaft deviation values. Basically the message I got was as long as the idle values are steady, that means the IMSB is ok. Also, the difference between cam 1 & 2 should be +/- 6.
Last Sunday I attach the Durametric and start the car. I let it idle for about 10 mins. then I head out on the road. I take surface roads and drive under 3000 rpm for 20-30 mins. until I feel the engine is warmed up properly. Then it's all freeway speeds and occasional bursts over 4K rpm until I get home. I drove for 1 hour. I graphed the cam 1/2 values and posted the graph below.
As you can see cam2 is mostly steady at 0.34 and going up slightly to 0.36 in the last 10 mins.
For cam1, it starts at -4.44 then decreases to -5.23 while the car is still idling. I remember leaving the house and seeing -5.23 on the durametric screen. It stays at -5.23 for 14 mins then starts creeping back up. When I'm nearing home, it finally settles at -4.64 and stays steady until I turn off the engine.
Why would the car start at -4.44 and suddenly jump to -5.23 during warm-up? Is there any reason to be concerned about these changing values? Any input would be greatly appreciated.
