Machiner 55

When I cut and past the web address in Kingsley's post I get a page, which among other things, shows the contact info below. If he's located in Tuscon, why's the contact info in California. Perhaps the web address isn't the right one. And, what's with with the cats? John F. © 1996 through present. All rights reserved. Custom Alloy Trading & Supply, Inc. PO BOX 188 Danville, CA 94526 T: 925.820.4088 F: 925.820.2320 URL this site: www.MetalScrap.com

I've got one of those Leather wrapped, T-handles in my '90Maui. I like it. John F,

tb3, Yes. Even though it may look like someone used a length of aluminum tubing to bypass or replace the cooler, it is in fact the way the car came from the factory. John F.

I recently had an issue with a supplier of parts. I wasn't getting a response via their web site about shipment on an order I placed and the elapsed time seemed excessive. It was then I noticed that PayPal has a BETA of a conflict resolution center. I decided to try it out. Long story short. I believe that going that route "inspired" the supplier to get moving. I recievd my part and didn't have to escalate the action from initial communications. Just my 2cents. John F.

Let us not forget the wealth of information provided by the folks over at http://reattaowner.com/ John F.

Ed, I'd love to take it off your hands but the distance is prohibitive. At this point in time, at least. I have a brother-in-law who lives in Simpsonville who might be able to be talked into picking it up but it still not that much closer to me. Not being able to give away a windshield for a Reatta suggests that there may be a rip in the fabric that constitutes the Space-Time continuum. Something must have gone wrong when they fired up the Large Hadron Collider ... horribly wrong. John F.

Dave, I think given just a bit more time, it would have come to you. John F.

tb3, Thanks. Looks good. John F.

Dave, I have a safe and secure Safe at my home. Send the actuator arm to me and I'll see to it that no one but me has access to it. John F.

Jeremy, Here's a link to Padgett's page. Most everything you'll need to know about the ICM and coil packs. The link takes you to his home page . At the top right click the words "Articles and Fixes". Then click on "Replacing the Magnavox Ignition with a Delco Unit" found, third item up from bottom left hand list. To answer you question, If my memory serves me (and it often times doesn't) it should be plug and play. If you are talking about the ICM mounting to the bracket which is bolted to the engine, that should not be an issue. there are only three bolts w/ nuts that hold the ICM to that bracket and they are in the same position regardless of whether it's the Mag. or the Delco being installed. Then you have six screws (two screws per coil set) that hold the three coil packs to the ICM. I don't recall there being a bracket change between the model years but that doesn't mean that there wasn't. Maybe someone else can/will chime in here to clarify. But... if you are trying to install Delco coils on the Magnavox ICM... that ain't happen'n Cap'm. Good Luck. John F.

I wonder how things are working out for this guy? Several times in as many years I've recommended a person change the ICM for driveability issues only to have the thread dropped. This is a fix Padgett brought to the Forums' attention over a decade ago. I think he expressed it as a jerking or hunting when in closed loop, engine at operating temp., at or near 55mph while accelerating or under load as when passing a vehicle or going up a grade. I've had this happen to me on at least two occasions where changing out the ICM absolutely fixed the problem. Now if the engine seems to be bogging down or something similar then maybe it's some other cause but, if it starts that herky- jerky thing or what I would call "bucking" then I would suspect the ICM which is why I suggested it when I saw the video posted by bkcamaro. John F.

tb3, I think I kinda like that look. I also like the Alero on others cars but this may be a new and less dramatic look. Do you think you could post an additional shot of the car? A direct, from the side, profile from say the rear window on back. John F.

It's the ICM. Change it out with a known good one, new or from a salvage yard. Mark and remove the plug wires. There are three nuts underneath the bracket that holds the ICM to the car. There is also a captive screw holding a wire connector to the bottom of the ICM I believe it requires a 7mm socket to fit the head of the screw. When reassembling make sure the contacts are clean and straight. No bent pins. There is an environmental seal (gasket) that goes over the pins. During reassembly, make sure you are using only one of these. Sometimes one will stay in the plug and the other will stay with the ICM. Pick the one that looks the best and pitch the other. A little dielectric grease on the pins before assembly wouldn't hurt. Sometimes the mounting plate (Bracket) exhibits corrosion. Take a wire brush to it and apply a thin film of dielectric grease before mounting the ICM on the plate. Some people don't bother replacing the third retaining nut. (the one that was difficult to get to earlier) Won't hurt anything if you decide to use only the two. If you found green goo inside the coil-pack, that needs to be changed out. May be a good time to go with Padgett's Delco upgrade . Don't need to do this. If you have access to a good Magnavox unit, you can go with that. Try it, then post another video just as you did with the first post. I can almost guarantee the shudder exhibited in you first will be gone. John F.

bk, I'd say it is the Ignition control Module (ICM) located under the coil pack. If you car has the Magnavox coils, you should also check for the "green goo" that oozes out as they age. Here's a link to Padgetts page regarding all things related to the coil pack and module. Once there, at the top right hand corner, click on "Articles and Fixes". Then, in the list on the left hand side of the page, click on "Replacing the Magnavox Ignition with a Delco Unit". There you will find all you need to know. John F.

The house probably doesn't have any problems that a match won't fix. Perhaps some Drug addled hooligans are free-basing Cocaine when things get out of control. When all the fire fighting equipment leaves the scene, all will be right with the world again. Just a thought. John F.

Kevin, Answering your questions in your post #12. The part is a casting and a pretty good quality one at that. At first blush, it looks like it could be made from Aluminium (Queen's English) Except for the heft that can be felt when bouncing it around in your hand. Feels much more dense than typical Aluminum. One indication that it is made of a high Zinc content as opposed to Aluminum is that the numbers cast into the piece are crisp and well defined. Also, being that it's non-magnetic, I believe as you do that it it is a type of "pot metal". As far as to whether or not adding some small steel rod to the mix, I think it would be a good idea. I wish I'd thought of it. Having thought about it, I'd try to find some 4-40 threaded stainless machine screws, lop off the heads and use them as the rods. The threading would add physical "gription". Another thought would be to use a length of steel rod bent into a "U" shape. See pic. below. Or something like that... John F.

Kevin, God forbid that you ever have to replace one of these but, if you do, you will be glad you have one on the shelf. I modified the one I used as the replacement by drilling several .040" holes into the part and coating it with JB Weld. Forcing the compound through the hole so it could bind with compound on the other side of the part. Some may think that drilling holes would weaken the structure but it allows the "stitching together" of the weld compound to the part. "Merlin" made a good point when he noted that the angle gusset of the arm appeared to be cut short. It really should have ran to the end of the arm because it appears that it is the point were the angle terminates is where the arm fails. Also, there is a slot in the connecting link to the arm which is used for fine tuning the adjustment of the tension applied to the door flap during installation at the assembly plant. It can be seen in photo #2 of Ronnie's post #6 of this thread. It may be that at the time of installation, some of these were adjusted with the tension "pre-loaded" to insure a good seal but, over time, caused them to fail at the weak point of the arm. John F.

And the semi-reliable Ebay has them. John F.

Kingsley, Thanks for the update. I just ordered one of these. Good to know there is now a firm date for shipment. My total cost with shipping to Valparaiso, IN. was $170 and change. John F.

Yah, been kind of busy as of late. I posted the same photos on another recent thread. Thanks Ron for posting them on this one also. John F.

Dave, I'm glad we got that straightened out. John F.

I too need some clarification. I'm not sure what firewall mounted bracket of which you speak. Could it be the actuator arm Merlin and I had to replace on our respective cars to fix the "air flow through the defroster vent only" issue? This thing?:

JD., That'll work. John F.

JD., Might as well get new plug wires while you're at it. Also, make sure the new wire set is for the model year of the coil set. If you get the coils and ICM from a '90 Bonniville or Pontiac transport, use that info when ordering or telling the counter guy. The wires for the Magnavox set are longer because three of them have to go around to the left side of the coils where three of the posts are. The Delco setup requires shorter wires as all of the posts are on the same side. You can use the original wire-set from a Magnavox (longer wires) when going to the Delco (shorter wires) but not the other way around. Hope this makes sense. John F.

JD., Regarding your report of "misfire or stutter at high RPMs". Does it happen mostly while driving at highway speeds and during acceleration say like while passing another vehicle? And, could the event be referred to as "bucking" as opposed to "stutter"? If so, It could mean that the Ignition control module (ICM) is on its way out. The ICM is located under the coil pack. John F.