New from Washington State

Hi my name is Steve and I am new to the forum.  Last month I purchased a Black Sapphire 1991 Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser with 113k miles on it.  I purchased it from an older gentleman who had it garaged for 12 years and put 3000 miles on it.  I bought as a backup car so my teenage daughter can use my newer daily driver. It has the 305 TBI V8, leather interior, and electronic leveling system.  It needs a little love to make it perfect.  It has a couple leaks that weren't obvious since it was garaged, a transmission shudder, failing display on the AC head unit (some of the digits don't light), a jumpy Tach, it idles at 900-1000 RPMs no matter what gear (including park), and the clear coat is peeling from the bumpers and side view mirrors. The wife and I have been attempting to tackle the leaks first but winter rain in Washington is relentless and the cold doesn't allow caulk to set well.  So we still have one leaking from the rack down the back into the spare tire well.  During test drives the tranny didn't act up, but after a two hour drive home after buying it, it had a pronounced torque converter shudder. It improved after a fluid change but still rattles and shudders intermittently.  Paint I can worry about later when I have extra cash.  I really like the OCC the best so hopefully I can figure all this out. I already have the shop manual and parts book, I guess I just need to prioritize.  She unfortunately has to sit under a car cover as my garage is taken up by a 1970 Oldsmobile 98.  

She is not my first B-body wagon, I've also owned:
1993 Chevrolet Caprice Classic Wagon (5.0L TBI)
1996 Buick Roadmaster Estate (5.7L LT1 w/tow package)
I learned to drive in my Dad's 1975 Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser and 1983 Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser in the late 80's.

Oldsmobile is my favorite brand so I hope I can save the whale and some day she'll be an antique.  I haven't thought of a name for her yet.

Steve

Welcome to the club!

I'd go easy on the caulking until the source of the leaks is positively identified. Things can get ugly fast. The car cover would stop them for now. Rear windows seals, wing windows, and rivnut seals on the roof are the usual suspects.

There are a number of parts hounds on the forum. If you need something, just ask in the "wanted" section. They'll find you. LOT'S of free advice too.

No matter how vexing the mechanical issues, you have a diamond in the rough: a OCC from a salt-free region. The rest is detail.

Thank you for the info. How do I post a picture to the site?

1.  Select "host an image" from the menu bar (4th tab, first item)
2.  Drag and drop the image from your desktop
3.  Click on "upload" the image
4.  Click on "insert" the image

I think you may need a minimum number of post (5?) before you can post a picture.

You may need to reduce the size of the image if the file is over 1 MB in size.

Try a bottle (one, no more) of shudder fix in the transmission.  If it's original, the 28 year old seals are likely not as flexible as they once were.

Also, I don't know how you did the fluid change but keep a close eye on the dipstick.  If you clean the dipstick with a towel and you can see grit on the rag, keep changing fluid until it stays clean.  Not doing this is why so many people complain of transmission failure after a flush.  The new fluid's fresh detergents start picking up grit and carrying it around but have no place to go. It becomes liquid sandpaper and sandpapers the seals to death.

I use this method here.  At this point I can flush the trans faster than I can do an oil change.

Steve, where are located? We've got a few wagons out here on the eastside/Seattle area.

I'm in unincorporated Bremerton, really more Seabeck. The lines behind my street.

Sherlock9c1,

Thank you for the advice, I'll try to flush it again. I had a shop do the filter and fluid change because the shop manual says remove the transmission mount frame brace and I'm not comfortable doing that in the driveway. How did you get around removing the brace to replace the filter? My car has the 4L60/700R4 not the 4L60E. Does the 4L60E have a frame brace across it?

Steve

Steve, I'm only speaking to the LT1 cars, BUT if you've had the filter done once, you don't need to do it again. Unlike engine oil filters, transmission filters are ahead of the pump, on the suction side, so their pores can't be small enough to catch grit because they'd starve the pump.

So, don't mess with the bottom of the transmission. Did you read my link?

Thanks for that info, it'll be much easier just to flush it.

smparr wrote:

I'm in unincorporated Bremerton, really more Seabeck.  The lines behind my street.

Cool, I'm out near Monroe - let me know if I can help. Also I'm quite jealous of your personal motorpool.

The leaks you describe are usually the body seam under the side of the roof rack, or the top of the cargo bay glass. The easiest one to tackle is the seam. Remove the roof rack sides, and scrape the hardened seal material out with a screw driver or equivalent. You can use any sealant you want, but I used household roof cement. Note the level of the sealant in the channel before removing it. Be careful how full you make the channel, because if you fill it too much, the roof rack parts will not fit.

If it is the quarter window glass, you will have to remove the interior on the side that it leaks, and have the glass removed, the surface prepped, and the glass reinstalled. I believe Lamume has had some experience with glass.

If you need a head unit for the HVAC, I have one with the rear glass heater. It has the off button cracked, but if your button is good, it is not difficult to swap them. When replacing the HVAC unit, remove the entire dash front, not just the woodgrain. The woodgrain is permanently attached to the rest of the dash front. You may have to lower the steering column to get the dash out from behind the steering wheel. You also must put the shift lever in "1"...block the wheels.

The trans may be on its way out. The above mentioned shudder fix will help for a while anyway.

As for the idle, check the IAC. It could be sticking. Cleaning it and its seat may be enough to fix the issue. It is located on the passenger's side at about 45 deg. toward the rear of the TBI. They can get rather cruddy. Other than that, check for vacuum leaks. The small vacuum lines often harden with age and crack or break. If you squirt some water (old ketchup bottle) with a couple drops of dish detergent in it, any vacuum leak will suck the water into it.

Thank you for the advice, we're gonna try some leak checks this weekend and I'll be pulling the IAC.

Here are


some photos, I think.

Stew,its your twin! Welcome,shes a beauty!

I see you have the heavy duty trailer hitch. There is a great demand for them, if you ever get tired of it bottoming out on steep driveways.

Fred,

Well, replaced the IACV this weekend. Only because the gasket crumbled and the only way to get one was to buy a whole new IACV. Idle seems about the same, moving on to vacuum leaks! Waiting for rain to check for water leak fixes.

The shudder has improved since the fluid change but I will pick up some shudder fix today.

Sorry, that is an aftermarket hitch. She doesn't have the towing package, only Electronic Leveling.

All hitches for the wagons are aftermarket.

You can make new gaskets from sheets of gasket material, using a compass and exacto knife.

A car wash can put enough water on the car to make it leak...oh yeah, you are in Washington...just wait a few hours.

Looks like we stopped the tailgate leaks and driver's side roof leak. Still have a pesky trickle during heavy rain down the rear passenger side roof pillar by the tailgate. Looks like I may have to take the roof rack off after all. No room in the garage so it'll have to stay covered until spring when the rains stop.

Hey hows it goin, glad to find some more wagon owners. New to this forum. Also in Washington state. Chapter rep for the INC chapter here since 2010 and impalassforum member since 2005. Here is my 93 caprice wagon project. Got it back from paint recently (originally a woody wagon), and just put on my brand new used wheels

Suede headliner with custom LED lighting for the rear cargo area