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General Buick Tech / Re: A/C problems
« on: October 12 2023, 11:39:51 AM »
Post is a little old, but I thought I'd update. There was a leak inside the compressor. Compressor was replace free of charge under warranty and all is well.
Mustangs - they're not just for breakfast anymore
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General Buick Tech / Re: A/C problems« on: October 12 2023, 11:39:51 AM »
Post is a little old, but I thought I'd update. There was a leak inside the compressor. Compressor was replace free of charge under warranty and all is well.
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General Buick Tech / Re: Shifter button hard to push« on: October 12 2023, 11:37:30 AM »
Well, while it is a floor shift, not a column shift, your advice is still good. Thanks
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General Buick Tech / Shifter button hard to push« on: October 12 2023, 08:14:34 AM »
My TR has the floor shifter, as most do. The flexible rubber boot on the shift cable broke at the mounting bracket on the side of the transmission, so the shifter just slid loosely back and forth without changing gears. I did a tied it back onto the bracket with wire so I had reverse, neutral and drive, but didn't want to spend a lot of time adjusting my temporary repair (very bad back, very painful crawling under a car) so I had the cable replaced. Now the button on the side of the shift "T" handle is very hard to push in. Rather than just start tearing things apart I thought I'd ask what could be causing this. If I can fix it from the inside of the car I'd rather do that than take it back to the friend who helped fix it.
Keith 4
General Buick Tech / Re: A/C problems« on: July 24 2023, 12:37:35 PM »
Well, I'm learning about how to service automotive AC units. Buying the needed equipment. Manifold pressure gauges were pretty cheap, and a vacuum pump too. But I still need to get a recovery tank (pretty cheap) and a refrigerant recovery machine (holy cow!). I did find a relatively cheap used refrigerant recovery tank on Evil-Bay but am waiting to get a replacement credit card as somebody got my number and I had to cancel my card. I'm not liable for any of the fraudulent charges, but what a pain. Anyway, a/c stuff is pretty interesting.
What prompted this was constant problems with my TR a/c. Last summer I had a lot of the system replaced. It would freeze you out after that. But then, over a month ago it stopped blowing cold, so I made an appointment with my mechanic... for almost 2 months later. This is pretty frustrating, as it's been REALLY hot and humid. I did do a simple can-and-hose recharge, and the a/c started blowing a little bit cooler, but won't blow air colder than 60 degrees, even on a cool (75 degree) day. So I bought the manifold pressure gauges and the a/c vacuum. Ran a vacuum test and it pulled down as required on both sides and held it for 30 minutes, so that indicates no leak. But where did my r134a go? I was able to add a can without overcharging.. . hmmm. So I ran a static pressure test, which should show about equal amounts of pressure on both high and low sides, and it did--82 and 82 +/- 1. So I started the car up and ran an operational pressure test. Both sides were somewhat low, with enough pressure on the low side (cycling between 20 and 35psi) to kick the compressor on -- plus the compressor was cycling on and off every few seconds, indicating a low charge. High side was 140 cycling to 160--which is apparently low for the high side. So I cracked open another can and added about half of it to the system through the manifold pressure gauge set rather than the old single-tube-to-the-low-side. Pressures went up a little on both sides (low 24 +/- 2 to 38 and high 190 to 230) until the compressor stopped cycling so often and stayed on for long periods of time. All well and good, but it still won't blow air colder than 60 degrees. I haven't tried running water over the condenser. If the condenser is not exchanging heat well, that will help it, or so they say on YouTube. At first I thought the orifice tube was somewhat clogged because it had been a problem in the past. But those pressure reading aren't the symptoms of a clogged orifice tube. But that's why I asked where it was. Only a few more days until my appointment, at last! I'll let the pro figure it out this time. I'm still learning. 5
For Sale/Trade/Want To Buy / Re: WTB: Good short block« on: July 23 2023, 03:00:54 PM »
on hold for now
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General Buick Tech / A/C problems« on: July 21 2023, 06:47:47 PM »
Where is the POA valve located in the 87 TR? I think mine is malfunctioning or clogged.
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General Buick Tech / Re: DS Exhaust Header Gasket Replacement« on: July 08 2023, 01:47:51 PM »
Thanks for the input. With the encouragement, I went ahead and did it. I did have to jack the car up to reach a couple of the lower bolts, but technically it was a simple job, although time consuming. I do work slower now that I'm in my 70s. Lots of breaks too, what with the hot weather here. But it's done and made a huge difference.
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General Buick Tech / DS Exhaust Header Gasket Replacement« on: July 06 2023, 05:30:50 PM »
I have a very noisy exhaust leak coming from the driver's side header. Examination with a mirror didn't show any rusted out holes or broken welds in the header. The gasket did appear to be coming apart under the pipe nearest the firewall. Anybody done this (with the engine in the car)? Any instructions? For example, do you have to move the AC compressor to get enough clearance to pull the header away from the engine? Can you reach the lower bolt nearest the firewall from up on top or do you have to jack up the car and get underneath? Can you move the header far enough away from the head to clear the studs without disconnecting it from the collector to do so?
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For Sale/Trade/Want To Buy / Re: WTB: Good short block« on: June 24 2023, 11:23:08 AM »
Cancel this post please. Going with rebuild.
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For Sale/Trade/Want To Buy / WTB: Good short block« on: June 15 2023, 10:59:07 AM »
For a 1987 Turbo Regal of course. Needs to be able to handle about 25 pounds of boost.
Keith 11
General Buick Tech / Re: Under hood plate« on: June 09 2023, 11:20:56 AM »
That makes sense. I've been looking at pictures of Regals on-line and nobody has anything there, so I think you're right.
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General Buick Tech / Under hood plate« on: June 08 2023, 02:10:13 PM »
On the top of the radiator support, just to the right of the fan warning decal, are a series of hole. Looks like something was riveted there. Matching holes are also on the underside of the hood. See pictures. Any ideas what could have been there?
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Car Stereo and Electronics / Replacement automatic power antenna« on: February 22 2023, 05:26:47 PM »
I ordered a replacement power antenna assembly off the internet. I didn't order the steel replacement cable from Kirban because I don't want to mess with grinding out rivets and all. I'm not so worried about reliability as the car doesn't get driven much. Just want to pull the old one and install the new one. However, it won't be that simple (of course). The new on doesn't have the three wire connector for the power etc. coming from the relay, but it has three wires, red (power), black (ground) and green (unidentified). It does come with a coaxial cable extender because the attached coax is too short, so that's good. But it doesn't come with any wiring instructions. Anybody know if this will work for our cars and if so which wires connect to our white, green and gray wires?
Keith 14
General Buick Tech / Re: Alternator fix« on: September 30 2022, 06:59:25 PM »
I decided to just replace the alternator. The new alternator came in and it wasn't new. It was a used one in bad condition and it wasn't even for my car, or for an Impala SS. So O'Reilly sent it back and got me a new one just a few hours later. It was the 1996 Impala SS 140 amp and it fit right in as the previous owner had already done the few things to make it fit. Easy install and up and running. And the engine compartment is quieter that it has been since I got the car. That old alternator must have been making a lot of small noises.
Problem fixed and back on the road. Keith 15
General Buick Tech / Re: Alternator fix« on: September 30 2022, 07:59:32 AM »
Nothing stamped on the outside of the case. I think it's a 1996 Impala SS alternator though. I emailed the previous owner, not expecting a response, and he responded. Told me it was...
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