Roadmaster75

Thought I'd share a bit of history on how and why I kept these all these years. This 58 Roadmaster of mine is my third 58. I never had issues with wipers on the first two. This car was a 31,800 mile original car in 1989 when I found it. It had not been started in 17 years after being stored in an unheated garage all that time. It was horribly dirty, but a diamond in the rough and I bought it on the spot. After 3 days of prep (incl. a drop and drain of the tank), I fired it and it ran remarkably well. AFter further fine tuning it ran even better and smoother ....HOWEVER, the better it ran the more it began to smoke ! At that time I had no awareness of the vacuum pump in the pan! SO, I suspected badly corroded valve guides after sitting in that dank old garage. Off came the heads. They were in great shape, but I had both of them completely gone through.. guides, valves, the works. Put everything back together, fired instantly, and due to even better vacuum it smoked even worse!! I walked away from it in disgust for a week or two and came back to investigate the poor performance of the wipers ..... Immediately upon pulling the lines from the wiper motor while the car was running the smoking stopped! Only then did I investigate the line leading to the pan ......!! Only then did I actually consult the shop manual and make the connection!! I felt like an idiot. Hopefully, my diagnostic skills have improved over the decades... Now I wonder how many 57-58s met untimely ends after they began to smoke. Roadmaster75 mike

Rob, thanks for the numbers info! & David, thanks for the info and photos! David, I can turn one of the shafts fairly easily by hand & the other is slightly stiffer ...meaning, I can spin it by hand but easier with some leverage. The stiffer one seemed to have some "brownish" factory substance sprayed on the lower vacuum portion ...perhaps to preserve the surface ... That is the one I took the picture of above; you can kinda see the brownish hue .. The hole for vacuum looks almost tapered to me ... so, I'm suspecting a "press fit" was needed for the copper tube when reconnecting everything after rebuilding or replacing. And, yes ...I can hear "sucky" sounds when twirling them....! Lastly, in full disclosure I recently retired and have been blowing out my stashed parts on eBay lately to raise cash for my next Buick (65 Riviera). Since these pumps are so rare and the information gained from opening one up could be very helpful to the membership; I would be willing to sell one to help the cause. But, to maintain forum protocol we should probably take that offline. More later .... mike

Hello Guys, I've been auditing my spare parts inventory and have come across a couple of new 57-58 oil/vacuum pumps. I bought 3 of these (new unopened in the GM Parts box) many years ago at a BCA National and rat holed them away. I traded one to a fellow Chicagoland Chapter member in 1982 and still have two. The GM part numbers Gr 1.652 and #1175268 on the boxes lead me back to 57-58 Buicks; and the units themselves seem physically identical to the manuals in that they have the attached vacuum pump and screens, etc. BUT, the numbers stamped on the oil pump portion of the assembly is 1174282-16. I've attached a pic of the unit and the box. Did GM (AC-Delco) just use the number of the whole assembly? and,separate numbers for the individual oil and vacuum pump portions? Since my 58 Roadmaster pump is safely ensconced in the oil pan I can't really check it against these beauties! Thanks for any light that can be shed. Roadmaster75 - mike

Thanks, Leif! Looks like I have two passenger side guards ... They sure look symmetrical to me .... but, there is a small hole on the top side that is probably for the cross bar... I'm guessing they'd be interchangeable otherwise ... Appreciate you looking up the info for me!

In pulling down the Christmas stuff from the attic I found that I have a pair of Buick NOS bumper guards in the original boxes; that I'd like to accurately I.D. I acquired them when I first joined BCA in 1973 for a 48 Super I was restoring. Then someone told me they were only for 46-49 Specials .. so, I never used them. They are both marked as follow: Group 7- 828 Part Number 1336964 Can anyone enlighten me as to what they are correct for? Thanks! mike Roadmaster75

Well, A great outcome for you and your car! Enjoy driving it again! Roadmaster75

I can't believe a well maintained, 52,000 mile car needs a new timing gear set and chain. Funny how he jumped immediately to the most expensive repair. He should be starting with a simple timing check, vacuum check, coil check, EGR stuff, etc. before preparing you for a $600 repair. A good mechanic will observe the results of these simple & various diagnostic tests and work towards the actual cause (s) of your backfiring issues. Go somewhere else and have someone go through the process of elimination; and beware of this guy in my opinion. Roadmaster75

Yes, a bad coil could manifest itself in the symptoms you describe ... Especially after the thing gets heated up. Not saying that's your problem, but since you've already got the cap, rotor, etc may as well pop for the coil, too. my 2 cents Roadmaster75

Looks like two cars gave their bits up for this old Roady ... I'm guessing a 49 Ford for the bullet nose in the center and, the grille/parking light pieces look very Studebaker or Packard to me.... mike :confused:

I don't know what kind of trans you have, but the T350s and t400s use a vacuum modulator to control shifts via intake manifold vacuum connection. It's just a can that pushes into the side of the trans. About $10 at an auto parts store. I 've had these go bad from time to time and cause similar symptoms you describe. They can also cause trans fluid to get sucked up into the intake and make lots of smoke! mike

Roy I seem to recall that some GM cars had a "kill engine" capability built into the circuitry/ECU ..... Such that, if low or no oil pressure indication came from the sending unit the default was to kill the ignition or stop fuel flow or both. Shop manual might shed some light there.... m

Well, since we are all coming clean on electrical messes ..... I , too, had a near catastrophe with the 58 RoadSmasher about 1998. I had attached a commercial "fast start" charger ( a BIG one on four wheels!) to the car to awaken it from a long sleep ...... Unfortunately, I left the key "on" and walked away for about 4 minutes ..... Turned around and the car was engulfed in acrid smoke! Fried every wire under the hood associated with the charging/starter/ignition circuits; right up to the bulkhead connector. In fact, by the time I caught it, the bulkhead connector was starting to melt ..... The fix? Ended up enlarging the color schematic from the shop manual (so could actually see it) and bought LOTS of color coded wire and set about replacing the entire under hood harness - wire by wire. Also, since the key was "ON" it fried the coil and points and the regulator and the bakelite starter switch at the carb ........ Took me 3 weeks, but a new battery and some prayer & she fired right up and great....! I am more religious now.......! take heart, at least the old cars have simpler under hood wiring and can be repaired with some diligence! mike PS MAKE SURE THE KEY IS OFF ON OLD BUICKS BEFORE QUICK CHARGING THEM PPS NEVER WALK AWAY FROM A BIG QUICK CHARGER LIKE I DID

NIce find! There's an outfit that advertises in Hemmings Motor News that reproduces the "plastic filler panels" that you refer to. They might have them for your car. musselman distributing Co. musselmandist.com I think if you go to the cadillac or buick parts section or the general section you'll see their ads. good luck mike

The folks at Eaton Detroit Springs did right by me. I bought a set of their replacement coils for the back of my 58 Roadmaster when I did the U joint job earlier this year. Also, they offered "standard" replacements or "Heavy Duty" ones. They cautioned that the heavy duties were for cars driven with lots people and cargo on board & on a regular basis and would make the car's ride height slightly higher. I got the standards and the car rides at the correct height and the ride was never better. I'm sure we've all seen nicely restored cars with nice new springs, but the car just sits too high ....... mike

Hi Steve It occurred to me that a call to these guys might yield results in getting a set of 4 bolt - 14 or 15 inch wheels for your car. I have purchased plain steel as well as their "smoothies" & custom wheels for various projects of mine. They are quick and knowledgeable. Wheels for Vintage Muscle Cars and Hot Rods - ShopVintageWheels.com I suspect they'd be able to build or source a set of nice new steel wheels to suit your specs. I believe they are in Colorado. I had a similar need to improve the footprint on my 49 Willys Jeepster. It had incredibly narrow stock rims and I wanted the safety of wider radials. THey made up a set of plain steel wheels for me in exactly the bolt pattern and size I was looking for. I believe Their standard steels wheels start at around 79 bucks and go up from there. Might be worth a call..... mike

Steve It's what you don't see that can bite you ... esp. fuel tanks and lines. Take the time to drop the tank and thoroughly clean it (professionally if needed) and replace the fuel line front to back. While it's down you can check that the fuel gauge sending unit is working ok and fix it if needed while readily accessible. Then you can tick those items off the "worry" list! that's my 2 cents! mike

Marty, My testament to the 55 Dynaflows... You have reminded me of my ill spent youth (1965-1966) at drag strips with a 55 Special coupe. It was 264 inches and ended up in the same class as the 55-56 Chevys. (H/SA) Week after week I never lost! I'd brake torque it in low range for the launch, wind it up till the poor old lifters floated, then shift it into "D". I got bored after winning the class so often.......... The car was bone stock and I only paid ONE Dollar for it from a neighbor who wanted it out of his garage after the brakes failed and it wouldn't start one -10 degree afternoon. I happily took the offer and to his amazement, a friend and I drove it out of the garage after about an hour of ignition tuning and a fresh battery. In between drag racing duties the car was driven to 2 proms and I put 27,000 miles on it in a year and a half! That car made me a "BUICK" man, and I ended up trading it in on a pristine 27,500 mi. 58 Special coupe .... for $250!! I'll save that story for another post..... mike

Excellent point, Ron The old car guy's best friend is an "InfraRed" or "Laser" thermometer. Instant, accurate readings can be taken anywhere in the system. THermostat housing, radiator, block, heads, etc. Even my "new" AutoMeter gauges (not in a Buick!) are now known to be at least 10-20 degrees too hot in their readings. Used it regularly when I ran my front engine alcohol dragster as a cheap alternative to expensive exhaust gas temperature probes in every exhaust port. Now it comes with me on any old car outing.... I just don't trust old or new gauges all that much. mike

Willie I, too, read it and was confused as to what system they were talking about. As far as the condemnation of (Bendix) Buick brakes ..... I can only say I've been doing brakes on 40's/50's Buicks (as a hobbyist) for many years and when the systems are installed and serviced properly they are quite adequate. The bit about installing all "long" linings is at best questionable and at worst, dangerous. Having said all that; If someone wishes to modernize or improve on brakes for their car, I support them wholeheartedly; and I want to know more details on the results. But, the assertions, premise, and facts of that article should have been more highly "edited" by the Bugle. I hope they address it properly. mike

Looks like it has an "ivory" colored steering wheel which would make it a 47 ..... mike

Here's how bad it is here.... ALL gas is ethanol blend in Illinois. Can't get real gas. I bought at 40,000 mile Black '73 455 LeSabre Custom coupe 4 years ago from an elderly couple in rural Wisconsin. A beautiful original car & (They have real gas in Wisconsin) The car was pristine and I happily drove it home one crisp November day. After about 3 tankfuls of Illinois' "special corn 'pone" ....... I strolled out to the shop where the 73 was resting on the upper berth of the lift. I smelled gas .....strong, too! Luckily, the drip pans all worked. Long story short ... the 3 short rubber transition fuel lines from the chassis to the tank had COMPLETELY deteriorated; from the inside, out. Still had GM logos on them, but, after I quickly replaced them all; I cut them open and found that the insides had all turned to a "black bubble gum" consistency. AFTER 3 TANKFULS! Imagine what ETHANOL is doing to antique car carb, fuel pump, fuel line, and fittings across the country! Ethanol is the biggest hoax ever foisted on the un-informed populace. Bad science is accepted and embraced by lawmakers. The damage is being done and nobody cares. Unfortunately, Willie is right .....it ain't gettin' better. Circle the wagons, Boys!!! mike RoadMaster75

John, I was thinking that! But, you actually said it....! I always wanted to put a 455 - TH400 set up in an older Buick..... Bulletproof suspension, brakes, etc. Kinda like Jay's 55 ........ Looks old, but is a stealth monster! There..the dirty little secret is out! mike

Agreed that a good body shop can repair all the damage..... It's amazing what a good bumper/chrome shop can do with damaged bumpers. Yours are not that bad. THis is where I'd focus settlement dollars. Your body shop can pull the rear frame back into shape and pull the sheet metal back where it's supposed to be. The hood has some tricky damage, but is repairable. The alternative is source a replacement; a cost trade off exercise. Seriously, the old girl has plenty of life left and will look as good as new! mike

I second that motion, Beemon. Rebuild the stock system. Once done correctly, it will be very reliable and you will not adversely affect the value of your new gift! Congrats on being gifted a very nice Buick! Since you have power brakes, engine vacuum will be an important in a total rebuild of the existing system. If you are in need of some braking power before trying to awaken the car from its long sleep go ahead and replace or rebuild ALL the wheel cylinders, brake hardware, and lines. Either secure a rebuild kit for the MC and booster or send it out to a shop that specializes in this. Then you'll at least have some stopping power while you are rolling the car around the garage. Then it's on to the wake up of the engine and get vacuum to the new booster! mike

As recommended earlier.... keep the car at 6 volts. There is no reason to switch it if the basics are covered and the correct batt cables, grounds, and wiring is in good shape. mike