envoy_to_the_stars

The noise seems to be loudest from about the level of the spark plugs. But i'll probably have to get a stethoscope to figure it out for sure. I took a video of the valves for fun - they seem to be functioning properly, though there's not a whole lot of oil up there. I'm used to my other vehicles, where it'll squirt you in the face if you don't have the valve cover on. The car was only at about 3/4 full of oil, so i filled it up. The oil I'm using is a mix of 30 weight and Lucas Oil Stabilizer - maybe it's too thick? I'm getting about 30 lbs of oil pressure at idle according to the gauge.

Hello all, I'm getting a bit of noise from the engine of my '31 Buick. I'm not entirely sure how to diagnose it...maybe a rod bearing needs to be tightened? Valve out of adjustment? If anyone has heard this before and can give some advice on how to diagnose, I'd appreciate it! The sound can be heard in the videos below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_2NJ0Mxw6w https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YegwPOOoZcE

That was one of Tony Gullo's cars - he was there, but he made himself scarce!

Very cool, Mark! Are those decorative plaques on the front from the portland rose festival?

I had an opportunity to feature my '31 Buick in the Houston Auto Show this year in the antiques section - what a cool experience! It was sitting amongst some pretty high dollar rides, including a totally original Pierce Arrow barn find (right behind it). It was neat to see people of all ages peering around it trying to see how cars used to be made. And this picture is pretty cool too! Full resolution here: http://i.imgur.com/Obg64da.jpg

I would expect an incident command vehicle to have a radio and provisions for tools/gear at a minimum....this looks like a standard sedan to me.

That price seems fishy....right? It looks almost brand new. Even NADA has it priced around $15k.

Another update: Today was about 70 degrees and sunny outside. I put the hood back on Betty and took her out. She maintained 175 degrees without issue with the hood latched - both idling and driving. It appeared as though the louvers didn't need to open all the way to maintain that temperature, so we may still have a ways to go (which will be helpful in the summer).

No affiliation, looks to be in good shape: http://austin.craigslist.org/cto/5315580963.html

Gents, I have some [preliminary] good news! After cleaning out the radiator and checking flow and filling up with 3 gallons of Peak Green Conventional coolant (mixed 50/50), the car maintains 160 degrees even when sitting still! Before in a similar situation, it would reach 190 and keep climbing. It looks like spraying all of the crud out of the honeycomb made a huge difference in the ability of the radiator to transfer heat, and flushing upside down with CLR cleared out some sediment that may have been causing issues as well. I say "preliminary" good news because it's rather chilly outside (60s) and I have not put the hood back on - so there is a bit more natural airflow over the engine right now than there wood be with the hood on, obviously, and it's about 45 degrees hotter outside in the summer than in the winter. But I'm excited about what I'm seeing so far!

Most radiator shops in town quoted me $750+ to get the radiator steam cleaned with a few weeks of lead time, due to the age and complications of working with honeycomb. All of them were very clear that they couldn't guarantee they wouldn't break it in the process. So I decided to pass on that unless absolutely necessary. Before I ran any water through the radiator, I hosed it down with cleaner/degreaser and sprayed water through the honeycomb fins to clean it out. A disgusting amount of bugs, dirt, rocks, and general dirt fell out of the fins. A big portion of the area 3 inches on either side of the top inlet didn't even let pressurized water pas through from one side to the other. Now, water flows easily from front to back, and after running water through the radiator upside down and letting hot water and CLR sit in it for a few minutes, the radiator empties in 4-5 seconds. I'd call that "good!" I feel confident that the radiator is in good shape now - I'll re-install, add new coolant, and see how it does!

I finally had time to get the radiator out today. I'm going to start flushing it upside down tonight, and then run some hot water and CLR through it. A few gallons of not-really-that-bad water came out of it when I drained it, and the engine was recently rebuilt so there shouldn't be much scale in the system from the block. I'll report back shortly! FYI - this video shows the process fairly well if anyone is bad at visualization:

For what it's worth, the width on a Model 57 is 59.5 inches, measured at your points above. I have a Fisher Body manual in the garage, I'll check and see if it has any other info.

Got some great pictures of "Betty Lou Buick" a few weekends ago as part of a wedding shoot. Enjoy!

Brokers are the WORST. I'll never use one again. Give Intercity Lines a call - they run their own trucks and they are very reliable.

I'm trying to track down the rod and connecting hardware to connect my steering wheel throttle control. The parts are circled in red below. My car is a '31 Model 57, but I know that it'll likely work with other years/models as well. Thanks!

I brought "Betty Lou Buick" out this weekend to be featured in a friend's engagement pictures. The photographer got some great pictures of them, and of the car too! I'll make a full album when they're all edited, but here's a teaser!

I'd be happy to get you a measurement from my 31 8-57 if that would help.

That's promising. I'll see if I can get the radiator out today. I haven't looked at it too closely yet, but I imagine it involves removing the hood cowling and the radiator shroud, right?

Bob, I will be away from home this week, and won't have access to a pump to recirculate water in the manner you mentioned, but I will have a hose with a hot water tap! Would it be worthwhile to turn the radiator upside down, stick a hose with hot water in the top, and flush fresh water through it overnight? I could stop every once in a while to slosh some chemical cleaner through there...

Yep! I have it installed. The radiator isn't overflowing, it's just not flowing that well in general. Probably just some crud in there that needs to be washed out. I'm going to use this as an opportunity to re-pack the water pump as well.

Hello everyone, Just wanted to follow up here. The timing and Air/Fuel mixture on the car have been adjusted to the exact specifications provided in the manual, and the temperature still climbs consistently past 180 and doesn't level off. I cut it off at 195 to avoid damage. I did take a laser temperature gun on the radiator and found the 190+ degree temperature reading to be accurate. I am going to try Bob's "upside down radiator fix" above next weekend, and see if that works.

Some additional information about the old Black and White picture, for those interested: "The picture was taken in the 60's. We know this because one of those trucks is a 1964 model puchased through the long closed Kitzman dealership in Cypress, TX. The location was at Telge Rd & Huffmiester in Cypress. This was taken when all the trucks were brought together for the annual Bar-B-Que fundraiser at Tin Hall down the street from this location. Many of our founding members are featured in this picture."

Sure, I can do interior! See a few more pictures below. I believe Red was the original color of the vehicle as well, which would make it pretty rare! I don't recall seeing bright red as a standard Buick color, especially in the conservative 30's. INTERIOR SHOTS:

Correct, that's Memorial Herman Hospital's Life Flight helicopter. http://trauma.memorialhermann.org/life-flight/ In a city as big as Houston, that's often the fastest way to get someone to a Level 1 Trauma Center.