Project Cars--You Get to Vote on "Hold 'em or Fold 'em"

Mr_Shiftright · November 2009

Not so much fragile but less tolerant of neglect. Nobody neglects their cars in the industrialized world like Americans do.

british_rover · November 2009

Exactly only in the US will someone spend 30,000 dollars on a new car then balk at paying a few hundred a year or less in maintenance.

I used to see that all the time at my shop.

Sir or madam you spent 30,000 dollars on this car don't you want to protect your investment by putting the right oil in it and changing it at least every 5,000 or so miles?

When Ford and Honda went to 5w20 spec oil we didn't carry it in bulk initially because we weren't sure they would keep up with using that oil. We had it in bottles and since it was a little more expensive then regular bottled oil we charged 4 or 5 dollars more for an oil change with 5w20.

We had people all the time that didn't want to put the 5w20 in because a 25 dollar oil change became 30 dollars.

We had people that didn't want to change the oil in the interval recommended because it took too long to get an oil change. :mad: :surprise: On your regular mass market american or japanese sedan I could have someone in and out in less then 10 minutes. Actual 10 minutes from the time their car drove over the pit for oil changes till the time they were driving out of the parking lot. On some cars you could even do it faster. Toyota Carola that held less then 4 quarts of oil and had an easy to get to oil with no chassis lube points might take 5 minutes.

Seriously you can't spend 10 minutes if you come by during non-peak times? If you really don't have the time then spend twice as much for full synthetic and more then double your drain interval. No, no, no that was too much money.

Sheesh drove me crazy.

Mr_Shiftright · November 2009

Or they'll put a $3 "Fairview" oil filter into a BMW 335i, or get their brakes done on their Jaguar at Midas. (Special on "Mousepaw Pads" this week only---$29.95, all 4 wheels!)

explorerx4 · November 2009

in the northeast they pretty much look like that one. kept together with parts from other donors.
probably quite few engines left that could be salvaged.

andre1969 · November 2009

My '79 New Yorker has been giving me fits for awhile now, refusing to start, smelling like it's flooding out, and, ultimately, killing the battery. I guess it's been about a month and a half since I successfully started it; I do remember using the NYer to jump start the tractor the last time I cut the grass.

Yesterday I put the LeMans's battery in, and it still wouldn't fire up. I don't know what made me think to do this, but I pulled the distributor cap off, pulled the rotor, blew on it, and rubbed my finger on the contact point. Put it back together, and it fired right up!

So was it maybe just some moisture in there? The cap and rotor are new. Well, less-than-a-year-old, new.

I've never had this problem with my other '79 though, the 5th Ave, which is identical. And if it is just moisture, what's the best way to deal with it? I don't like the idea of having to "pleasure" my car every time I want it to fire up! :P

Mr_Shiftright · November 2009

You're going to laugh your butt off at this, but back in the 1970s, Mercedes had this kind of problem, and they issued little rubber "raincoats" for the distributors on all their cars. This is a totally TRUE story. I was an eye-witness.

Barring that, you might try some silicon spray on the cap and wires (are the wires old--say more than 30,000 miles old?) and you might consider a battery tender on the car to give you that little extra battery boost. I think you have the gear reduction starter, don't you? Those can get a bit "draggy".

andre1969 · November 2009

The spark plug wires look good, but I guess looks can be deceiving I'm sure. I've put less than 2,000 miles on the car in the 2 1/2 years I've had it, and the previous owner let the car sit around a lot. He inherited it after his father died, and at one point, it only got driven something like 10 miles over the course of a year...and that was to take it to the repair shop for its annual inspection! So, probably not too many miles on those wires, but old age could be getting to them.

I did get new wires for it, but for some reason never got around to putting them on. Procrastination, I guess.

Another thing I wondered about...even though the distributor cap is new-ish, I guess it's possible it could've had a defect in it, like a hairline crack or something? Can't that cause all sorts of odd, intermittent problems?

I'll try the silicon spray and see if that helps. And yeah, it does have a gear reduction starter. What is a battery tender? Just a little charger?

Mr_Shiftright · November 2009

It's a charger with a "brain" that maintains proper battery voltage as you need it.

lemko · November 2009

My 1989 Mercury Grand Marquis LS had a thick rubber cover on the distributor cap held in place by thick rubber tabs.

Mr_Shiftright · November 2009

yeah that was it exactly!! It was a little rubber overcoat that you buttoned up before you sent the car out on a rainy day. That was sooooo cute. I wish I had one for my car.

srs_49 · November 2009

I thought I had mentioned this before, but maybe not.

My '73 Fiat 128 SL would need a new distributor cap and rotor every maybe 30,000 miles or so. I could tell when it was time to replace them because on some cold, damp morning the car would refuse to start. I would yank the cap, rotor, and plug wires and bake them in the oven for a half hour or so to dry them out. Then , the car would fire right up.

My theory is that the distributor cap or rotor would develop microscopic cracks that would allow moisture to collect, which would short out the spark.

Maybe it needed a distributor cap condom like those Mercedes Shifty mentioned.

andre1969 · November 2009

I think you have mentioned that story before, as it does sound familiar! If they made a distributor "condom" for a Chrysler product, I wonder if they'd call it a "Magnum" :P

Personally, I'd be tempted to just ditch the whole Lean burn system...distributor, carb, and all, and just go for the simple aftermarket Mopar Performance distributor setup. I'm not knowledgeable enough to do it myself though, and my mechanic said that it's so rare to find a car as nice and original as my '79 NYer, that he doesn't want to butcher it up like that. Personally I don't care how original it is, I just want the danged thing to start semi-reliably!

tjc78 · November 2009

I was cruising Ebay and by coincidence saw a nice clean 89 GM with a good shot of the engine. Figured I would post it because of the distributor cap cover discussion.

See more Car Pictures at CarSpace.com

texases · November 2009

Isn't that a Ford?

tjc78 · November 2009

Look under the hood of a late 80s Grand Marq, CV, or Town Car its all the same. Never understood why they didn't have model specific logo on the manifold. Probably saved $.12 a car....

texases · November 2009

My mistake, I read "GM" and thought, well, GM, not Grand Marquis...

tjc78 · November 2009

That clears it up. At first I thought you were joking

explorerx4 · November 2009

my mustang has one of those condoms over the distributor.
i'll bet they had them until they went to the 4.6 with cops.

explorerx4 · November 2009

what is strange about that picture to me is, my 91 mustang has the same setup, but the manifold is turned 180 degrees. the oil filler is in the same position.

tjc78 · November 2009

The GM/CV/TC all use the low output 302. On the Mustang and Mark VIIs they got the HO 302 and they are reversed, I guess because the air intake needed to be on the passenger side.

Mustang

Mark VII

explorerx4 · November 2009

good pics. i think the mustang does not have a/c.

qbrozen · November 2009

The real project here is returning it to stock.

michaellno · November 2009

q - registration needed to see your picture

qbrozen · November 2009

D'oh!! sorry bout that.

Ok... let's try this. Shoulda used this on the Mystery Car Pics thread.

arrrggg. pic too big. lemme resize, rehost, and repost.

xwesx · November 2009

Oh, dear.... huge photo! From what I can see, though, it looks like it was once a Maxima. My aunt had one of those cars (dark grey), and it was quite a lot of fun.

qbrozen · November 2009

And here is the ad copy. Price is $850:

1987 Nissan Maxima This Maxima is a one of a kind. Build by Erebuni Corp. in 1987 as a show car. This car was on the showroom floor in Queens, NY for a long time then abandon outside for a long time after that. The Title says 79,971 miles but the dash says 51,000 miles so Im not sure which one is correct. This car was running about a month ago until the fuel pump broke. Now the car is located on my driveway. Body also needs work as you can tell from the pictures. Special Gotti deep dish wheels and tires included. New battery and exhaust. Car must be towed away. Please contact me if you have any further questions

Mr_Shiftright · November 2009

Oh man, PERFECT car for the 24 hours of Lemons jalopy races!!

Queens? Don't they have nuclear weapons?

qbrozen · November 2009

LOL.

Hadn't thought of it as a Lemons candidate, but now that you say it...
Heck, it even has excess protection for bumpin' and rubbin'.

Mr_Shiftright · November 2009

AND...it's hideous enough to get respect and probably tough enough to win!

steine13 · November 2009

Well, it is ribbed, for your pleasure!

-m

qbrozen · November 2009

Surfing while on standby here at work...

Only costs $64 to fix! Ok. Tell ya what, I'll give you $100 to fix it for me. You can make a profit!

Its not uncommon to hear of these engines going over 500,000 miles. Huh. Must be in some other car cause these bodies don't last 500k miles.

Hey stickguy! Weren't you looking for a FWD V70 2.5T? This seems like a good deal. Too good, actually.

Mr_Shiftright · November 2009

Ah you didn't read the fine print on that 1990 Volvo ad:

"It is not uncommon to HEAR of these engines going 500,000 miles"

is what he says.

True enough. :P

99 Infiniti -- $64 to jack the car up maybe. Another $250 to fix the axle, presuming of course that that is what that horrible sound actually IS....

british_rover · November 2009

O-U-C-H.

jrosasmc · November 2009

I may be a dyed-in-the-wool Volvo enthusiast but that Craigslist ad from NJ was just too much for me. "It is not uncommon to HEAR of these engines going 500,000 miles?!"

What is the seller on, something I haven't tried yet? I can safely tell anyone here that those B230F engines do need quite a lot of TLC just to keep running - constant timing belt changes, anyone? No, those bodies will not last over a half million miles - even though they were galvanized post-1986, they are still prone to rust. Those 240s have little nooks and crannies where gunk can accumulate and contribute to the tinworm. Shifty will probably attest to this too.

stickguy · November 2009

that, my friend, is the car I was looking for. Price does seem a tad low at a new car (not volvo of course) dealer. If it was a bit closer, I might just have to take a ride. i do have a Honda to trade them...

Nice pictures in that ad too! Had to go to the dealer web site to find some.

Looks like it needs a serious detail, probably tires soon too, so who knows what else.

Why does a dealer not even bother to vacuum or wipe down the interior before taking the pictures?

My favorite item though is it needs a headlight bulb replaced (it is, after all, a Volvo). They have a shot of the guages, where you can read the bulb failure message, plus a shot of the front end with the lights (er., light) on!

stickguy · November 2009

Found the fine print (the dealer site ad has a pirce of $11,995, with a special of $9,995

"Vehicle prices reflect fifteen hundred dollars owners loyalty discount. Five hundred dollars college graduate discount to qualifying customers.Must be financed through dealer"

qbrozen · November 2009

Well, you did say you have a Honda to trade ... so you must qualify for the owner's loyalty discount when trading a Honda at a Honda dealer for a used ... ummm... volvo. :lemon:

oh, and their website also says its AWD. :confuse:

210delray · November 2009

Yes, I had an '80 Volvo 240 from 1982 -2003. The tin worm and the infamous "biodegradable" wiring got it in the end. It was still running though, and I sold it for $550. I doubt it lasted much longer, because my wife spotted it less than a year later with some new scrapes and a dangling rear mudguard. The VDO odometer with the plastic gears worked only intermittently toward the end. I estimate it had 245K miles when I sold it. Good car overall, which is why I had it so long, but it wasn't trouble free like the best Asian cars today.

explorerx4 · November 2009

that's a very strange picture, and i don't just mean the car.
doesn't it look like the hose nozzle is set up to spray into the radiator opening in the 300 zx? :confuse:

fintail · November 2009

In the classifieds section of one of the German magazines I brought home, I noticed a 1943 GPW Jeep with a MB 180D (I assume ponton) engine. That's an odd hybrid.

Also several W110 fintails over 10K Euro.

explorerx4 · November 2009

great spelling

asking that much money, could you at least move the trash bin?

price keeps dropping started out @9200

lots of info, some confusing. did these have an ECU?

hmm

if andre hits the lottery this would look good in his garage

Mr_Shiftright · November 2009

Shoot, ship that Impala SS out to California. On the other hand, maybe not. To bring top dollar, these cars MUST have 1) low miles 2) set of dubs and nice wheels. 3) be super super sharp condition top to bottom.

69 Camaro -- LOL! "Awwww, why do I have to move the trash bin. I ALWAYS have to move the trash bin...."

steine13 · November 2009

On the SS, I remember reading back then in C/D that Chevrolet was "selling all they can paint" and that the only way they painted them was black.... "Lord Vader, your car is ready" if you remember that hokey ad..???

Am I losing it faster than usual, or does anyone else rmember it this way... c'mon guys, a short 14 years ago...

-m

tjc78 · November 2009

I don't remember the color of the one in the ad. However, they did have a dark maroon available at one time (probably later in the run).

andre1969 · November 2009

The Impala SS had a limited run in 1994, and I think that was the year you could only get black. Possibly 1995 as well. For 1996, they offered it in black, burgundy, and the grayish-green that Craigslist SS is sporting.

I liked that greenish-gray color. Came close to buying a '96 Roadhazzard in that same color about 4-5 years ago. Black is probably the color to have, but I prefer that green.j

I forget what production of them was over the three years, but in 1996, I remember they built about 100,000 total of the RWD B/D body. Of that, around 40,000 was the Impala SS, leaving the Caprice, Roadmaster, and Fleetwood to scrap for the remaining 60K.

Can't say as I remember the "Lord Vader, your car is ready" as it pertains to the Impala SS. However, for some reason, I remember it being used with the '81 Imperial! It wasn't a car advertisement, but I think one of the buff rags might have said it. Or a classic car rag.

andre1969 · November 2009

That '73 Duster would have an ECU, but not the type of ECU you're probably thinking of. It stood for "Electronic Control Unit", and was that little flat box for the electronic ignition. Usually it's mounted on the firewall, but on this Duster it looks like it might be mounted on the driver's fender, near the hood hinge. Normally from the factory they're black or gray, but often the high performance ones are orange. IIRC, Chrysler started converting from points to electronic ignition in 1971, but I don't remember if all the engines switched over that year or not.

The only thing it controlled was the electronic ignition. It wasn't like the later ECU's that were complete computer systems that would control a variety of functions, and were a pain in the butt when they started failing. GM started putting those things down in the passenger side kick panel of their cars starting in 1981. Not sure when Chrysler or the others did that.

andre1969 · November 2009

I like that '67 GTX, too. Stylewise, it looks like the box the '68 came in, but I still like its tough, muscular, no-nonsense look.

british_rover · November 2009

Lord Vader your car is ready is from a Buick GNX ad.

Or at least it was originally.

Looks like they used it for Impala SS ads too.

link title

boomchek · November 2009

Erebuni was famous/notorious for their outrageosu body kits in the 80s and 90s. Every one of their kits had Testarossa cheese graters. Thankfully that style went away.

No wonder it was in a showroom for very long time...nobody wanted to buy it because it's so ugly. And then it was abandoned probably because nobody even wanted it for free.

But for $850 you get a piece of 80s car tuning history that nobody cares about anyways.

boomchek · November 2009

Leftover wartime Jeep, plus a rusty/accidetn damaged Benz, with a good engine = oddball hybrid.

Project Cars--You Get to Vote on "Hold 'em or Fold 'em"

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