rick60

This would just be a guess, but when I worked on these cars when they were new, it was always the sensor that corrected the problem. Good luck!

I've been in the hobby for about 35 years. In that time I purchased two misrepresented cars having only seen photos. Both cars were being sold by dealers. Both dealers misrepresented these cars in letters mailed to me. A lawyer advised me that this constitutes mail fraud. As soon as I mentioned "mail fraud" the dealers immediately agreed to take back the cars. I will no longer buy a car without looking at it myself. I have never been burned on a car. Those two were close calls.

Tiger is changing his name to .............................. Cheetah Woods

I worked at an OLDS dealer near O Hare airport. The exhaust from the jets would leave an oily film on everything. Spray wax at car washes can also cause a problem. We had a lot of complaints about streaking windshield wipers. GM advised us to clean the windshield with a kitchen cleanser known as BON AMI (the only one safe for glass). Be sure to rinse the vehicle completely. We also cleaned the edge of the blade with rubbing alcohol. Factory blades are the best. This procedure would correct the problem. If this doesn't work contact your dealer to see if there are any bulletins regarding this issue.

I work in some old buildings built in the early to late 1920s. There must be 100s of these things there. They just replaced all of the old style bulbs with the new low energy use bulbs.

Remove the vacuum line from the fuel pressure regulator and check for fuel leaking past the diaphragm. Also look at the spark plug wires. A light misting of water on the wires will cause them to arc to ground and create a random misfire. Intermittent problems are the hardest to diagnose. Good luck.

Look for a coupon. I picked up the foldable hoist for $99. The coupons are in Hemmings Classic Car and many other magazines. Some of the publications are not auto related.

I had a 1950 Pontisc convertible. I was able to trace ownership back to the original owner. I actually had photos of the car when it was new. After 14 years I wanted to buy a 1960 Ford because my father had one when I was a kid. I couldn't afford two collector cars. The Pontiac had to go. I got a fair price for the car. As the Pontiac left on the car trailer, I knew I had made a mistake. I thought I could take that money and buy a 1960 Ford in nicer condition. Boy, was that an incorrect assumption! I'm still kicking myself for selling the car!

It was the summer of 1968. My family was on vacation in the Ozarks. I was 12 years old. I spotted a two tone blue Olds convertible with a for sale sign in the window. Closer inspection revealed it to be a 1953 Olds Fiesta convertible. The front tires were replaced with narrow width white wall tires. The rear tires were the original wide whitewalls. The paint was slightly faded. The chrome was only dirty. There were no dents. The interior was dirty with some "comfort wrinkles" in the leather. It had a white top that was extremely dirty. Even at that young age I was aware of the low production totals of these cars. I remember this car like it was yesterday. Even in this neglected state the car looked like the most perfectly styled car I had ever seen. I called my Dad over to the car to look at it. He didn't say anything, but I could tell he was impressed with the car. I'm pretty sure he was visualizing himself cruising down the road in the flashy convertible. I tried to convince him to buy it for me so I would have a car to drive when I was 16. At that moment he snapped back to reality and informed me that we didn't need another car. My dream was shattered! The asking price for the car was $300 ! I will never forget this car.

I was also a C&P subscriber since the '70s. I enjoyed the magazine, especially articles by Bob Stevens. I noticed that I was not receiving all issues. I was paying for twelve but receiving ten issues. When I contacted their subscription office I was reprimanded for not understanding the cover date (news stand) versus the actual date. I decided to cancel my subscription when the woman started to yell at me. She could not understand that I was short two issues. I'm sure that I was short two issues. I was able to do the math without removing my shoes!

I hope it's a big room! It will be a lot of fun when those parts start going back on the car!

Great job!! Where do you have the rest of the car stored? I'm doing a "frame on" restoration of my brother's '61 Sunliner. I have more of the car in his basement than I do in my garage. My garage is about the same size as you garage. The lack of space is driving me insane. I'm finally at the point where I'm reinstalling parts. It is very satisfying. It's been two years to this point. It should be done this spring! I enjoy reading your thread and admire your perseverance. I love '58 Buicks. Keep up the good work!

I installed a Pertronix unit with their high output coil in my '60 Ford. It starts immediately, smoother idle and more power. I didn't notice an improvement in fuel economy. I think I drive it a little harder since installing the unit. No problems with the product.

This is probably normal. The cooling system does not function with the engine off. The engine is still at operating temperature when shut down. This will cause the engine temperature to rise immediately after shut down. We called this a "heat soak". It was a good way to check for heat related electrical component failure. There is no problem as long as the engine cools back to operating temperature after restarting.

To lube the speedometer cable disconnect the cable from the speedometer. Remove the inner cable be careful not to kink it. We used a silicone past at the dealer to lube the cable. I think it was called SYLGLIDE. Put a very light coating on the inner cable and work the lube into the wire coils of the cable. Reinstall the cable making sure that the square end of the cable is fully seated in the speedometer gear of the transmission. Before you connect the speedometer cable to the speedometer make sure there is no lube in the end of the cable housing. If there is excessive lube in the end of the housing it will be forced into the speedometer head when you install the cable. This will cause the speedometer to bind and be inaccurate. Good luck.

Oldsmobile Toronados of the same vintage were equipped with a sun load sensor. The interior lights will not come on when it is sunny or a very bright day. I also had a Toro with a complaint of "no interior lights". The customer drove to the dealer for repair. I started the car and drove it into my bay to repair it. I spent a lot of time diagnosing the circuit and could not find a problem. After an extended amount of time in my bay with the key on/engine off, the battery went dead. I charged the battery. After the charge the interior lights worked perfectly. Apparently the low battery caused the body control module or central power supply not to activate the interior lights, even with the engine running. The field service rep could not explain this one to me. I don't know if Buick circuits are the same as Olds. I'm sure they will be similar. Maybe this information will help. Good luck.

When I need to install a press fit part I wrap it in plastic and put it in the freezer for a few weeks. I warm the area where the part will be installed with a light bulb or heat gun. The part will go in much easier. I once installed a bushing in my 1950 Pontiac steering gear. I was able to install it using only my hands. It was simple to locate the bushing without damage. When temperatures equalized the bushing was installed perfectly. Good luck with your car.

As a former mechanic I would occasionally replace AC lines. GM cars had insulation material for AC lines that were routed near the exhaust pipes. They are made of a reflective foil type of material. I cut the hose and remove the insulation. These will slip nicely over fuel lines. They look professional and do a good job of insulating the fuel line. There must be a lot of these in salvage yards.

I forgot to mention that I trim off the remaining plastic and leave the bag in the seat assembly. There are no noises. You don't know the bag is there.

I also use the plastic garbage bag to install seat covers. I wrap the open end around my shop vac and seal it with tape. Turn on the vac, the material compresses, install the cover and align it, turn off the vac and the padding is in place with a very nice fit. It allows you to fully pad the backrest with no aggravation.

I experienced a similar situation. In 1977 I was working as a mechanic at an Oldsmobile dealer. I was assigned a brand new 98 four door. The right rear window was inop. I removed the trim panel. " &*%$ YOU LETS SEE YOU FIX THIS ONE! " was written on the vapor barrier. The inside of the door was filled with paper cups, pop cans and garbage. I showed it to my boss. He said "just fix it". It was an easy repair. It only needed a regulator. I wonder if that worker lost his job when people started buying imports?

Don't use an exhaust manifold bolt as a mounting point for your battery ground cable. This will cause high resistance when the engine gets hot. My '60 Ford was grounded in this manner when I purchased it. This caused excessive resistance. Electricity will always seek the path of least resistance. In this case it was the temperature sending unit wire in conjunction with the previously mentioned ground wire to the fire wall. The current flow was more than the sender wire could handle. It cause the wire to melt. The entire harness was damaged from the sender to the temperature gauge. It was necessary to repair the engine and dash harness. Be sure all electrical connections are clean and tight. Also be sure there is no paint on the surfaces. That will also cause high resistance. The new parts could also be defective. When I worked as a GM mechanic the GM tech line would tell us to use a "known good part", not necessarily a new one. Good luck.

I'm a retired GM mechanic. I used MAC tool numbers S213 and S215 to remove the inverted nuts. I don't know if they are still available.

In the summer of 1977 I was working at an Olds dealer as a mechanic. I remember seeing a 1974 Toronado with a factory airbag. It was the first time I had seen a huge horn pad. Now when I see an eighties car without air bags those steering wheels look unusual. There was also a network news magazine show that did a story about airbag equipped cars. This was before they were common on production cars. The show told stories of people whose lives were saved by the airbags. The people had purchased their cars used and were unaware that the car had airbags. It was an effort to force the government to mandate airbags. I guess it worked. And so do the airbags!

Thanks for the information. The tap pads on my brother's car were in very poor condition. The literally fell apart as I was removing them. I did not notice any snaps on the top pads. Those pads were probably not the originals. I don't know if the replacement pads will have snaps. I haven't seen the pads as of yet and the car will not be ready to have the top installed until later this year. Thanks. Rick