Oldsmobile Aurora

gisom · August 2001

has fallen off due to this 95 degree heat. I cannot remove the little plate to replace back on the window. This mirror does not have a little set screw to take plate off of mirror like I am use to seeing. Any suggestions?

rocket95 · August 2001

Aurorabill

I recently had a problem with fuel filler door not opening on my '95. It was due to excessive side load being applied by the fuel filler door hinge spring. Small clip type spring located on the left side of the filler door. By compressing the spring a tiny bit (bending)- it exerted less pressure on the selenoid plunger and the door opened okay. If you had rather use the scientific approach. I think the specs call for a 10mm gap (+/- 0.5mm). This all assumes that your selenoid is working.

Henry · August 2001

The dealer tells me that thte warranty goal adjuster came and looked at the disassembled transmission. The dealer described it as a pleasant experience in which the adjuster agreeed with the dealership as to what needs to be done to fix the car. the dealership can not tell me what caused the problem because it is a question of what cause what to fail first (the old chicken or the egg question). However Mr. Zinc can rest assured that it was not my tendency for Warp-speed accelerations that caused the problem. So sir, feel free to continue to use only two gas pedal levels (100% up or 100% down).

No matter what happens now, the earliest I might get her back is Monday of next week.
Seven weeks with any Aurora. Okay, I'll admit it. I have restored to looking at pictures in magazine and the dealer brouchers I have. I have not done this since I was a teenager.

Is it a ray of sunshine?
a light at the end of the tunnel?
a train coming the other way??

Tune in next week boys and girls

Same Bat Time
Same Bat station
Same Bat Board . . .
(WHAM! . . . POW! . . . ZAP!)

zinc1 · August 2001

Congratulations, Henry, you broke the old record for the most consecutive weeks in the shop. The record was previously held by myself (valve job and water pump) and also by vwbus (rear window seal) at six weeks each. I wish there was a prize for it. Maybe a Right-to-Gripe award, since bragging rights doesn't really apply. Warranybynet picked up the whole $3k for my transmission. I'm curious how WG does on this.

Henry · August 2001

I would like to thank all the little people at Warranty Gold that made this accomplishment possible.

garnes · August 2001

OK, I've been looking around, and I found some more info. on making that Aurora faster. Check out caddyinfo.com and x-m-s.com/xms/mainxms.htm
There is a lot of interesting things about exhaust systems and superchargers for the northstar engine.

I talked to (I think it was Bob) at extreme motor sports (see that second web site) and he agreed that replacing the catalytic converter may result in a bit too much drop in back pressure and low-end torque. They seem to do a lot of work with Caddys and even have some high performance Caddys for sale. He said they could probably make the same system for the Aurora as the Caddy, so I'm looking into this. It would be a "cat-back" system. I'll keep you posted.

In addition, he said they DO NOT use any air induction systems on their high performance Caddys. He said they are not good due to the hot air off the engine. Caddyinfo.com also had some test results of before and after HP for the installation of an air induction system for a 4.6 northstar. The air induction actually made the HP drop just a bit. So I guess it's best to stick with the K&N replacement filter and not mess with the RSM induction system.

There was also some discussion on one of the links at one of the sites about cutting a hole in the bottom of a box that supplies air to the bottom of the air box (on a 4.6) for more air flow. You have to read it for yourself. Anyway, I really think an induction system fitted with a large tube over it that turns down to where the bottom of the air box is would actually work.

larryfl · August 2001

Henry:

That is good news. Hope things continue smoothly and you're back in the saddle next week. Good luck!

garnes · August 2001

Bob at extreem motor sports informed me that the difference between the 275 HP and 300 HP 4.6 L northstars is a different cam and different heads. It's not due to diffrent tuning as I thought.

fjk57702 · August 2001

http://www.gm.com/automotive/gmpowertrain/engines_cartruck/northstar/46_torque.htm

The link will take you to the northstar power curves for both engines. Tuning does include timing differences for valves as well as intake manifold variations.

garnes · August 2001

fjk57702 - thanks. I guess I would expect the two different northstars to be tuned according to differences in things like a different cam and heads. But the 300 HP version can realize the extra power due primarily to the higher performance components.

fjk57702 · August 2001

The difference in the two engines is that the HO version has shifted the torque to higher speeds. The standard engine has greater torque at low speeds and then torque drops off above 5000 RPM faster. Horsepower is a function of the torque and RPM's, so the HO engine produces a greater peak horsepower.

Since the Aurora was not in production during the 2000 model year, GM's web site does not have an Aurora V8 web site like the Northstar. There is one for the V6 though and other GM's engines.

hardesty · August 2001

I just ordered a 2002 Aurora 4.0L. Here's the breakdown:

Item: ............. MSRP ....... Invoice .... GMO (my price)
-------------------------------------------------------------
3GS29 (base) ...... 34980.00 ... 32006.70 ... 30432.60
U1F (Bose) .......... 500.00 ..... 445.00 ..... 430.00
N94 (chrome) ........ 800.00 ..... 712.00 ..... 688.00
U1S (12 CD) ......... 460.00 ..... 409.40 ..... 395.60
UM8 (navigation) .... 935.00 ..... 832.15 ..... 804.10
BA5 (gold) .......... 175.00 ..... 155.75 ..... 150.50
KA1 (heated seats) .. 345.00 ..... 307.05 ..... 296.70
K05 (block heater) ... 40.00 ...... 35.60 ...... 34.40
--------------------------------------------------------------
Total ............. 38905.00 ... 35573.65 ... 33901.90
--------------------------------------------------------------

So after using the loyalty coupon from the 2001 Aurora, my price will be $32,401.90 and it will come with the 5 year, 60,000 mile warranty. And just to further certify me, it will be Cherry with 2-tone Neutral interior, just like the 2001. Oldsmobile is offering 5.9%, 5 year financing on 2002 models, just enough better than PeopleFirst to keep me with GMAC. And, just to confuse everyone, I am going to keep the "2K1 OLDS" license plates (I can't get "2K2 OLDS" because my wife is getting it for the 2002 Silhouette Premiere AWD that we already have on order).

redline65 · August 2001

hardesty - Thanks for posting the GMO pricing. I've been wondering what GMO prices are for the Aurora. One question - why not get an in-stock 2001 model with GMS pricing and use the $2000 rebate and your $1500 Olds loyalty certificate? You could really save some money that way!

hardesty · August 2001

The only 2001 4.0L's in stock locally have sunroofs and are blue. 2001's don't have the navigation radio. I already have a 2001 4.0L. I really just gotta have the chrome exhaust tips. I really like to order my cars (something about seeing them with all the plastic still on). My wife is getting a 2002 Oldsmobile and I want one too. There, I absolutely have to have a 2002 Aurora (I told you I was certifiable). Actually, I'm not sure that you can take the rebate on a GMO or GMS deal, the financing is available, but I will check the documentation about the rebates and post later.

redline65 · August 2001

You can get the rebate on the GMS deal. I did it with my Intrigue - got $1000 rebate after GMS pricing. I'm not sure if the rebate works with GMO, because sometimes the rebates say something like "must take delivery from dealer stock". I went to the GM BuyPower website, and here in Dallas there is actually a pretty decent selection of 2001 Aurora 4.0's on dealer lots. I didn't find the exact one I was looking for, but one was pretty close. It had chrome wheels, which I don't really want.

So you already have a 2001 4.0? I'm assuming you are selling it? You will probably take a pretty big hit on the depreciation, won't you? But I guess I see your point - the nav system and chrome exhaust tips are a must-have!!

hardesty · August 2001

I rechecked the documents and the only caveat is that "some" incentives may not be available on GMO/GMS purchases. I live in the gold country of Northern California, so dealers are few and far between, and selection is limited. Yes, I will take a very big hit on depreciation, trade-in value is about $25000 on a purchase price of $35000. What I get is a newer car that has the nav system, has never been hit by a stupid little pickup, and has a 5 year warranty for the same monthly payment. In my case, the deal is a no brainer. I love Oldsmobiles, and the Aurora is the cream. This will be our fifth Olds purchased from our local dealer, and they treat us like gold. We will most likely trade in our current cars for the new ones and let the dealer make their profit there. They don't make much at all on GMO buys, mostly just handling charges. Where we live, service is worth paying for, and lack of it is worth walking away from. Mostly, the 5 years of knowing what monthly car costs will be is a major plus to us. I personally suspect that it is the 5 year warranty that has kept Oldsmobile sales up in down times.

zinc1 · August 2001

Hardesty, congrats on your purchase. I'm curious what you'll get for the 2k1 - trade in, or sell by owner? Also, congrats on your twins, you must have a lot of energy for the young'ns. I'm 44 and have two teenagers, and I can't imagine starting again now. But I know I'm a better father now than when I was 30 - experience, or age, I don't know.

one2one · August 2001

Excellent choice! Your color selection is beautiful for that is one of the combinations I was considering. I envy you because you can drive the '01 or '02 Aurora. I sadly cannot insert by 6'8" frame into them. So I got its little brother, a Midnight Blue Intrigue w/two-tone neutral interior.

Enjoy the ride! But you were going to do that anyway :-)

shucknet · August 2001

I've got 98 Autobahn with about 64k miles on it. It seems to be picking up more road noise than when I got it 10k miles ago. Maybe my ear is becoming more sensitive to it. Anyone have any good ideas to reduce road noise?

I've got some wind noise from the windows (pukes who owned the car before me used a cheap immitation of an Aurora door to repair a wreck), but I have located that and should be able to get rid of it easily - there just seems to be more and more noise coming from the wheels.

Any help would be great!

Ryan

shucknet · August 2001

Anyone here have the Bose stereo? How does it sound? Do you have pictures of the speakers in the back doors? Anyone have a spare Bose head unit sitting around they'd want to sell me?

I'm going to do a little custom stereo work with a Bose head unit and some external amplifiers so I can get a good full sound and still use my steering wheel controls. I'll have to let everyone know how that goes when I'm finished.

one2one · August 2001

With 64k on the rubber it might be time to check out new tires. The government may say that the tread is still good for another 20k, but your ears may be telling you that now is the time.

shucknet · August 2001

I put brand new Michelin Pilot MXMs on it right after I got it. Maybe 8,000 miles on the tires.

hardesty · August 2001

I am only 5'11", but would run close to 6'5" with legs that matched my torso. That is why I choose to order my cars. Getting rid of the sunroof fetches almost 2 more inches of headroom. I am a little concerned about the Bose option on the 2002. I have looked all over the country on GMBuyPower and have not seen a car with both the navigation radio and the Bose system. On the 2001, the Head unit is the same (save the Bose logo on the cassette flap), the Bose amp plugs into the low level outputs and provides all of the power for all of the speakers. I only hope that the Bose is available with the nav, as after having the Bose on the 2001, I don't want to give it up, but I really want the navigation system as well. The system let us enter both options, but this early in the model year, these things are not always correct, and the factory has the last word. On the 2001, the Bose adds full range speakers in the rear doors, and replaces the full range rear deck speakers with sub-woofers. I don't know if the front four speakers (all in the front doors) are different between the two systems, but the subs do have Bose tags on them. The Bose amp is in the trunk.

hardesty · August 2001

Kelly's just posted pictures of the 2002 Aurora, and the rear 3/4 view shows the chrome exhaust tips on a car that has the 17" chrome wheels (presumably a 4.0L V8). The problem is the car has the steel trunk lid from the 2001 3.5L V6 car. The visable difference is that the steel trunk lid has an insert around the license plate, while the aluminum trunk lid is a clean one piece design. I hope that this is just a "quick, put something together for a picture" car, they did several of those for the 2001 introduction. There are pictures with the emblems in the wrong places, pictures of the 2001 prototype interior (kind of a cross between 1999 and 2001) and so on. Anyway, at least it is good to know that there are a fair number of 2002 Auroras already on lots across the country, so she's not dead yet.

matrixfrog · August 2001

Hello everyone! I hope to be back on here near the end of august. Ive been very busy. BAD NEWS; I went camping with some friends at Silver Lake and one morning I backed up into a water well pipe. I was so mad at myself! Me and 3 other friends were leaving to go into town in the morning and I started backing up when bam! It was only about a foot and a half tall and I couldnt see it when I was backing up cause I was so close and it was so short. Well it ended up hitting my muffler tip and pushing my muffler back and bending the intake pipe on the muffler. It pushed the muffler into my body and bent it a little bit. Now my auto-load leveling is louder that it ever has been. (Sounds like the auto-load leveling on my friends explorer now) I plan on getting it fixed soon and I figure now is a good oppurtunity to get some performance exhaust. Im thinking Borla. BTW on my way up to Silver Lake I checked my DIC and about half the time with my a/c off I was getting around 34mpg which I though was great and Im wondering if my DIC is correct. My girlfriend is leaving for college soon and Im considering working a second job for a year to pour some money in my roura and for a project car. we'll see...

Have a great weekend everyone.

garnes · August 2001

Check out x-m-s.com/xms/mainxms.htm and caddyinfo.com. They have a lot of interesting info on the northstar. Xtreem motor sports (XMS) specializes in the caddy and makes custom exhaust for it. I talked to Bob there and he is looking into a custom cat-back system for the Aurora for me. He is on Vacation I think till the end of the month. Be careful though, a custom exhaust system could be LOUD on the Aurora. I'm not sure I want to do this myself.

I looked again at that stupid air box. I'm sorry and I was wrong - the air does not come up through the 3 "ports" as I thought. Upon closer inspection, those are just drip/water/debris traps. The air is sucked from the side of the box and pulls air from behing the front fender. Water and debris is supposed to fall into the 3 depressions and there is a weep hole to let the water out.

I really don't like the RSM racing induction system because of the induction of hot air off the engine. Caddyifo.com has a test of a similar system and HP actually dropped a little. I looked at my car today for some time. The air is literally channeled to a small percentage of the filter and really seems to limit air flow. I'm really tempted to cut a hole in the bottom of the air box and the metal below it to let air flow right through the entire filter area. I'm going to look at this further. If the idea turns out to be no good, you could always put a new air box bottom in that covers up the hole (there is already a hole in the metal under the air box for the debris traps I mentioned).

The Aurora 4.0 is such a great engine. It's a shame it is all bottled up with the poor after-thought air intake and exhaust.

Extreme motor sports claims about 40 HP gain at the engine with the performance exhaust for the 300 HP Caddy. An Aurora might get 30. But Bassani exhaust (that's what extreme uses) said that it is loud. The Northstars (Caddy and Aurora) are just really bottled up to keep them quiet.

Please give me feedback on the air through the bottom of the box idea.

Also - Have any of you Aurora guys had your car use a wee-bit of antifreeze every 6000 miles or so?? No leaks. It's gone. Very little though, but I like to worry.

blk97aurora · August 2001

Greg,

My thoughts on the air box are very similar to yours. We need to find a way to get more cool air to the dirty side of the filter. Your point about the air coming in from the small side opening and using only a small portion of the filter is a good one. Cutting out the bottom of the box will be a good experiment. Will hot air off the engine be a problem there? I still want to find a way to duct cool (relatively, anyway) air to the air box. Another problem, I think, is that the radiator hoses are only about 2 to 3 inches away from the box.

I dusted off my G-Tech/Pro today. I don't know why I haven't used it with my Aurora before. Made six runs 0 to 60. I was happy all were under 8 seconds but the variation (7.67 to 7.98) was a bit more than I had hoped. However, I shouldn't be surprised as the six runs were in five different places -- all flat but with different traction. I accelerated from idle with brakes off. I'll try some more aggressive runs. First-to-second shift occurred at about 5800-5900 rpm and seemed to take forever; I had the transaxle performance switch on.

silotwo · August 2001

Purchased a one owner 95 with 60K miles for $9,100.00 from a local olds dealer. Only problem is that the CD player eats the cd and displays and E23 error code. The dealer has been of no help, claim they sold it too cheap to get involved with a radio problem. Anyone know what E23 means, where I can get a replacement unit, it is not the Bose, can I replace it with a Bose, or if I can use a unit from a later model? I do want to use an OEM unit.

Otherwise the car is truly perfect and I want to keep in factory condition.

Appreciate any help.

garnes · August 2001

BLK97aurora - The radiator hose next to the box should not be a problem. The thick plastic shields the fresh air that flows through the box for just a moment. Yeah the plastic gets hot, but the air is not in there long. A second or so. At idle, that's different, but doesn't matter.

The air box seems to sit on top of a metal "shelf". Under the shelf you can see the plastic across the bottom. That plastic is part of the wheel well plastic. Any hole in that box would be pulling air from the bottom area. I looked at it awhile and it seems to me that the air coming through the radiator should pass through/by this area and feed the air - relatively fresh air. It would also be pulling air from its usual fender area too (actually if you look at the crummy box, some air from the engine compartment slips around the opening - it's not like the box is sealed to the fender opening.)

I'm going to take the box apart again, and try to remove that 3-port sediment/drip/whatever trap. There is already a hole in the metal and air box for this protruding piece of plastic. I hope I can remove this little piece of plastic. This should be a good trial run at the idea. If it seems OK, then maybe open the hole bigger.

I checked my K&N filter and sure enough it was a little dirty only where that air feed channel points up to the filter. Not much of that filter is being used. I think the air channel should maybe go too. I don't see how this helps - only hurts. I'm a civil engineer, and I deal with friction losses with fluid flow all the time, and I swear that trying to pull all the air requirements through a small % of the filter is restrictive. Only so much air can be pulled, the mass air flow sensor measures it, and only feeds the amount of gas that's right for that restricted air flow. By the way, that Aurora filter fits a lot of other GM cars. They in no way designed an air intake system to adequately feed that wonderful engine. They just pulled an old design off the shelf for an older 1/2 the HP (literally) car.

Blk97aurora - do you have an autobahn with the 3.71 transaxle?? The regular ones have a 3.48. Did you have the traction control on or off??? If you spin the tires at all, the car supposedly starts to apply break pressure and maybe even retard the engine with the traction control. Even after the slip stops, I wonder if the car is still supressed for a moment. Those 0 to 60 times are cool. Thanks. If you have the regular Aurora, I wonder why it is quicker than the stated 8.1 or 8.2 seconds? I've always doubted some of those numbers sometimes.

Thanks for the interest. If you could give that stock filter (replaced with a K&N of course) a huge straight-in feed area, I would think that would be as good as any induction system. Note the K&N induction system for a Jeep Grand Cherokee (OK, I maybe don't know how to spell the darn thing) added 26 HP!!! The stock air intake must have been really bad. The Aurora engine should be able to take great advantage of any added air.

garnes · August 2001

OK, I took apart the box again and removed the bottom (you need a 10mm socket - the other side just pops out). I removed the 3 port trap thing and there is a nice hole in the bottom there for more intake air flow. The air comes from the same place as the original set-up - the front fender. It's all connected open space. It's self explanitory when you see it.

I got a very very slight bit of extra throaty sound - full throttle, really nothing at typical driving. It sounded good! I'm sure the air flow into the bottom is a little better now, BUT I noticed by the amount of dirt and splatters on the plastic insert that drops into the hole that water does get in there. In fact it gets into the original stock set up too by the evidence of splatters. Anyway, I can switch back to the stock set-up in 5 minutes. I am NOT a mechanic in any way and this is easy for me. THE NEXT RAINY DAY, I'M GOING TO CHECK THE AIR FILTER AND BOX TO MAKE SURE NO WATER GETS PULLED INTO THE BOX THE WAY I HAVE IT. If so, this modification is over.

Now, I noticed that the top of the air box is no good as well. But if you pry the white plastic insert back with a screw driver and peek in, you can see that the outer box would basically pull air from the whole filter top side. The white inner plastic chokes the top portion down as well to utilize only a small portion of filter. I think I will get a second box to experiment with (about $140) I'm not messing with a junk yard because that top part does have the temp sensor that the computer uses.

I'll remove the inner plastic on the upper section and cut the hole in the bottom part bigger to match the existing hole in the metal. It would be nice to open it up even bigger. It would help more, but how much??

I think that inner white plastic liner on the top section is for more intake sound insulation, maybe temp too, but as long as the air is shielded and not allowed to mix with the engine compartment air it should be cool as it only is there for a brief moment.

About that lower area under the box - I put my hand down there (that sounds bad) after trying out my small mod by zipping around a bit, and the air was cool. It was totally different from the air just under that hood.

BLK97Aurora - If you try this mod too, and remove the inner plastic from the top piece as well, PLEASE give us the 0 to 60 times. That would really be interesting.

Since K&N claims a 2% to 4% increase in HP with just their filter ( that's 5 to 10 for the Aurora) I have to believe this modification should AT LEAST get you to the 10 HP increase level. Maybe more. Even if I do decide to put the plastic thing back in the hole, I'm cutting off the channels that direct the air to a small area on the filter and I will (assuming it works) remove the inner liner from the top part of the air box.

I hope this is of some value for zipping your Aurora a little. Feedback is great. Now if there was a chip too, .........

blk97aurora · August 2001

Greg,

Thanks for the very useful information. I had forgotten about that white plastic filler in the upper part of the air box. I have a lead on getting an air box from a salvage yard to experiment on; I figure I can swap my current temp sensor if that one seems bad.

My Aurora has the 3.48 transaxle. I did have the traction control on and that's probably why the car seemed so slow getting started (that and 4000 pounds). Yesterday was a bit damp around here -- not ideal conditions. I did experience some initial wheel spin.

You've doubted some of the numbers -- me, too. A big discrepancy for me is the 3.48 vs 3.71 transaxle ratios. In the good ole rear-wheel drive days, a lower rear-end ratio (higher numerically) meant quicker acceleration, higher engine revs for any given road speed, and lower top-end speed. The laws of physics haven't changed in going from rear-wheel drive to front-wheel drive. So how is it that the Autobahn 3.71 transaxle can provide higher top end and lower engine revs compared to the standard 3.48? And many people, remembering that higher numerical axle ratios (3.71 vs 3.48) provide quicker acceleration, believe that the Autobahn package can deliver both quicker acceleration and higher top end -- too good to be true.

The change in the ECM rev limiter (or speed limiter) allows for the autobahn to achieve higher speeds, but is not the answer. I think the answer is in the sprocket-and-chain set inside the transaxle. After poring many hours over both the factory service manual and parts microfiche, I do not yet have a definitive answer. The transaxle used in the Riviera can have sprocket ratios of 33:37, 34:36, 35:35, 36:34, and 37:33. The Aurora transaxle is quite similar and its parts drawings are almost identical. However, I have not been able to find any reference to the number of teeth on the drive and driven sprockets.

My belief is that the Aurora standard and autobahn transaxles have different sprocket sets that account for the autobahn's higher top end. That also means the standard Aurora has faster acceleration.

garnes · August 2001

BLK97Aurora - you are way over my head with the sprocket stuff. I'm not that good.

I got the autobahn. This is the way I see it. The Autobahn package sounds cool and it is called that purely for marketing reasons. The package gives you the Michilin MXV4 tires (OK speed rated tires for some crazy I would never do that speed) and the 3.71 transaxle. The 3.71 probably (I'd put good money on it) LOWERS top end(not counting any computer limiter) - and probably takes a nip out of highway mileage too, but the overdrive does help. Autobahn just sounds cool. I really believe it makes you accelerate faster because that is a very aggresive "rear end". My buddy's truck I think has a special rear end for towing and it is a 3.73. I really doubt the 3.71 gives better top end though.

I'm really interested in 0 to 60 with the traction off. (don't get a ticket now) I watched "crank & chrome" and when they dyno'd a corvette with the K&N air induction system, they turned off the traction control and mentioned it. I guess it maybe dampens performance a little.

Thanks again for the great 0 to 60 stuff. 7.67 is wonderful for a black 2 ton beauty. The 3.48 is pretty aggressive too. The new 300 HP Mercury Marauder (in black only) will have a 3.52. The 3.71 is kind of radical really.

Again, I'm definitly trying the top air box remove the inner liner thing - and I'll try to smooth out the interior if possible to reduce induced turbulence. I'm going to at least open that hole on the bottm a little bigger to match the existing hole in the metal. If water doesn't get in there, I may just cut a big hole in there. But once you cut a big hole in the metal - you can't go back to stock with the weird plastic thing.

I'm also going to run this idea past Extreme motor sports as they are into the Caddys and they do not do anything with air induction systems.

It just has to help. Right now I'm getting most of the dirt on a small fraction of the filter and that can only be because air is only passing through that small area.

Again - great to hear from you BLK97. Keep us posted.

garnes · August 2001

Oh yeah, if there ever is a "chip", it will maybe tighten up the shifting too. They make it sloppy for smoothness. Actually the tighter shifting would be less wear on the trans.

Those cars are very much dummied up for a quiet smooth ride. Too bad you couldn't buy a "sport version" that shifted better and had a somewhat performance exhaust and intake.

aurorabill · August 2001

Hello Aurorians... I will report back on my trip (in an Aurora-centric way) from Northern NJ to Montgomery County MD. That's basically NYC to DC for those not of these parts.

I didn't see on 2001 on my entire trip, although I have seen them around Northern NJ. I saw about a total of 10 legacy models, all in "like-new" condition. I even pulled up next to -what-looked-like- a 95 black on graphite, even honked once to say hi, but the older lady didn't get it and didn't even look my way.

I am continually impressed with the wide range of exterior colors. It seems like the public bought a wide range of the colors offered.

As far as something specific to report, I am not sure I got an accurate read on the economy of the mileage. I guess I have to read the manual, it read out 19.8 at both fillups. I must be doing something wrong.

I got a better handle on the performance enigma. I drove most of the trip at 70-75, along with most motorists. I never felt I would be pulled over. There seem to be less cops on the prowl, there certainly have been less in North Jersey the last 5 years or so.

I found that about 2/3 of the time that I wanted good acceleration to pass, it wasn't there. This has long bothered me and I tried to apply my mind to making observations. Its seems that most of the time I am riding around, whether at 40 mph or as high as 75 mph, the tach is reading in low 2,000 up to about 2,600-2,700. When I apply the gas moderately (maybe halfway??), I get a surge ranging from mediocre to barely adequate. When I "gun it", i.e. pressing the accelerator about 3/4 or more to the floor, it kicks into low (?)gear. The noise and rpm is more fierce the surge, so it too, leaves me unsatisfied most of the time.

The fact that I cruise along at 2,200 rpm makes it quiet and lower gas consumption. But that same 2,200 rpm does not seem to have the torque to "do much". Likewise there is not enough pep to get up to the truer torque range. That's the dilemma, as I see it. Maybe it just all gets back to the 3,950 lb weight and the way the engine was engineered.

Any comments or speculation appreciated.

I had a good time at the reunion and, except for the aforementioned passing situation, found the old 95 a pleasure to ride in.

Aurorabill

fjk57702 · August 2001

Are you using the power botton on the transmission when you get ready to pass someone? This will make the transmission shiftdown quicker. It should be used for passing situations. If you leave it in power all the time you will burnup more gas.

fjk57702 · August 2001

The autobahn package removed the speed limiter because high speed tires were included. Top speed is where the engines power output is balanced by the drag or the engine redline is reached. In third gear the 3.48 gears should reach a higher speed than the 3.71. In overdrive, drag overcomes the horsepower at something under 5000 RPM's. Remember horsepower increases with RPM's up to the peak at 5600 RPM's on the Aurora. Remember also that drag increases with speed. Roughly, drag is 4 times at much at 150 mph as at 75 mph.

Henry · August 2001

Can you start posting a "kindegarden" version of your postings so the rest of us can follow along????

fjk57702 · August 2001

They are trying to figure out the gearing. My 98 with 3.48 gears does 66 mph @ 2000 RPMs. Car and Driver reports on 2001 model 4.0 with 3.71 gears and different tires does 62 mph @ 2000 RPMs. If we look at 66/62 X 3.48/3.71 = 0.998 This should be about 1 but the tires are different although the diameters are nearly the same I think.

shucknet · August 2001

I would say just go on Ebay and buy one or go to www.car-part.com and search for the radio there. You should be able to find one with a 90 day guarantee for around $200. Don't mess with the dealers when it comes to radios in these - you'll end up in the quadruple digits before long.

Henry · August 2001

That the Autobahn gearing is slower at the high end and therefore burns more gas to travel at highway speeds. However, there is greater power at the low end for faster 0- 60mph times. Is this a correct statement?

Dam it Jim! I'm a Doctor not a mechanical engineer!

Henry · August 2001

What is GMO and GMS ???

garnes · August 2001

Henry - sorry about the blabbering. If I tried to explain how to tie shoes word by word, I'd make it sound difficult. Sometimes you just need a picture. You are right in your last post about the 3.71 autobahn. My mileage is up to spec on my car, so it probably doesn't hurt that much, but a 3.48 transaxle has to be a little better on gas.

All I've been trying to explain is how to open up the air box more for better air flow. I ordered a second air box today for my experiments. I'm basically just removing the inner plastic liner from the top part, and removing the plastic "drop thing" from the lower part. The stock air box is restrictive - it only sucks air from a small area of the filter. The dirt on the filter will show you this. The filter for the Aurora fits other (older) GM cars too, so it was not specially designed for the car. They never are. K&N induction kits make big differences on Corvetts too because the stock system is marginal. It is designed poorly for air flow but is great for muffling all air intake noise. It's a luxury car first, sport second, so quiet is the game and the wonderful northstar gets bottled up. Just open up the air box and you will see what I'm saying.

MORE GREAT AURORA PERFORMANCE NEWS. I read an article at caddyinfo.com about Tim "the tool man's" real life project car with Wheel to Wheel. They produced a 396 HP Deville!! The article said (one of the many modifications) was to improved the air intake. So I called Wheel to Wheel (Wheel to Wheel does the pace cars for GM - they are the real thing) I asked them what they did to make the Caddy's air intake better. The Caddy and Aurora are generally the same under the hood. Guess What - he said they removed the plastic thing from the bottom (it is supposed to cancel out intake noise according to them) and cut a big intake hole there too. He thinks they removed the inner liner from the top - just like I want to do, and they added a little scoop (inside the fender - can't see it from the outside) to channel air through the side opening and into the box. They basically did what I've been rambling about. So I'm not crazy - just obsessed. I asked about the possibility of crap coming up the new opening on the bottom. He said he was not sure because these are special dry weather cars - it was not a concern for them. So I'll keep an eye on that aspect with my car. I think it will be fine. I'm going to cut some of the plastic from the bottom piece to expose all of the existing hole in the metal for now. A body shop said they would cut a bigger hole in the bottom for me if I wanted. If I do that, I will leave a little strip in place so I can put it back together stock and the "lower plastic thing" has somthing to attach to. Open it up and you will see. You need a 10 mm socket. the other side just pulls off - a little tough though.

And there is MORE MORE MORE - Wheel to Wheel said they added a cat-back exhaust system to the project Caddy too. They use Corsa. They said they are great and the performance exhaust is not loud for every day driving. I called Corsa at 1-800-486-0999. They don't make a cat back for the Aurora, but can and will eventually. They will look at "a friends car" to see how different it is from the Caddy systems they make. They swear by the livabilty quiet around town performance, and with Wheel to Wheel's endorsement, I think I'm gonna do this. He admitted to being more inspired to offer this sooner if more people are interested. SO CALL JIM BROWNING JR. AT CORSA!! He said it would be about $1,000 - stainless steel. They dyno'd an STS with the system and it added 22 HP at the rear wheels!!!! that's about 30 HP at the engine (for reference - wheels is where it counts). If proportional, the Aurora may get 15 - 18 at the wheels, 20 - 24 at the engine.

So, with their cat-back system and some air intake box mods and a K&N filter, a 280 HP, 290+ torque, haul [non-permissible content removed] Aurora may be a reality. Those numbers could even be better. Now if there was a chip too, ........ (I'd probably James Dean myself)

I don't expect my air box mods to be loud. Full throttle will be "throaty". Sounds good.

hammen2 · August 2001

Hi Henry,

GMO and GMS are two different acronyms for the discounts offered to GM employees and their families, not to mention suppliers. GMO is build-to-order, while GMS is out of dealer stock.

See http://www.gmfamilysavings.com/family/discount/cert_overview.html for more info.

How do I know this? My mother-in-law works for GM, and my wife is looking at picking up a Grand Prix GT via GMS (with the 0% financing or $2k cash-back, on top of the $3500 GMS discount, it's pretty much a no-brainer)...

After test-driving the GP (not a bad car) and a Bonneville SLE (not my cup of tea), I was happy to get inside my Classic for the ride home :-)

Hoping you get your Aurora back soon,

--Robert

Henry · August 2001

If the difference between the 275hp and 300hp Caddie is in the parts that were used. Why can't we just install the performence parts from the caddie into the aurora and therby bypass the need to install the 4.6 Caddie engine??

Am I being too simplistic??

Hey blk97aurora & Garnes, if the answer to this question involves any refernce to the Periodic Table of Elements I am out of here.

Henri

Henry · August 2001

thanks for the good wishes.

garnes · August 2001

Henry - Bob at Exteme Motor Sports told me that the difference between the 275 and 300 HP northstars is indeed the camshaft and heads. They specialize in high performance Caddys. I'm sure the computer is "tuned" a little different as well to accomodate the higher performance nature of the engine. I think the 300 HP Caddys may have the 3.71 transaxle like the autobahn Aurora (or something close to it).

The Aurora (as someone here has pointed out in the past) is right between the two Caddys in HP/cubic inch. The biggest difference is that the bore of the cylinders is smaller. My guess is that if the Aurora was bored to 4.6 liters, it would probably do about 288 HP and about 300 ft-lbs of torque. I'm sure it gets more complicated, and who knows if the throttle body or the fuel injection or whatever needs to be changed as well.

That's my understanding anyway. One question I have is why Caddy makes the two differnt engines in the first place. Conserve the effort and make the best one. It would probably be cheaper than either option now.

fjk57702 · August 2001

With variable valve timing they could probably have the best of both engines in one engine. The HO engine is for high performance (STS, DTS) and yes it does come with the 3.71 axle. The base engine is tuned for low speed torque and has a 3.11 axle (if I remember right). This engine will produce 30 mpg on the highway, my boss has one in a base deville. That was exceptionally good mileage though. There is good reason for both engines. For one thing, the STS should have better performance than a base deville.

Henry · August 2001

According to the guy at Motor Trend.

gisom · August 2001

e23 is not in my book for errors but I did see e32 which was a motor error for the cd player. Errors could be caused by the air being very humid. If so wait about an hour and try again.

Oldsmobile Aurora

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