Have you check the distrbutor gear?
My 94 LeSabre has been doing this for about 2 years. Lots of research. Just changed the Crankshaft Position Sensor on 5/10/08 and no problems.
Yes, if the policy goes into the child's name, they can claim it as soon as they reach the age of majority for the state they live in (usually between 16 an 18). However, often times the policy would go into someone elses name (guardian, grandparent, godparent as set up by the parent) and then they would be the only person who could access the cash/surrender value.