NTX5467

Also, don't forget that you'll probably need a new rear axle gear set with at least a 3.91 ratio back there too. You can also go up to about 4.30, but that would compromise daily use and highway cruising a good bit in the process.<P>Then you'll need a transmission upgrade too. Heavier duty clutches in the Turbo400, if that's what you have, would be in order as would a new torque converter.<P>Just some additional thoughts . . <BR>NTX5467

Car Craft or Popular Hot Rodding magazine did a big inch big horsepower comparison test a few months back on the main wedge big blocks of the early '70s--including Buicks. TA Perf and others contributed items to that annual (of sorts) test they did. That should give you a good idea of what combination you need to shoot for and if it might meet your criteria. I don't recall for sure, but think it was Popular Hot Rodding--I suspect that article might be in their archives and a link to it might be there, but I don't know about that.<P>Just like John Coletti, the Ford equivalent of GM's Jon Moss, the Ford guys seem to like to have their "dialogue" on how great their stuff is--and some is pretty credible--but many of them just parrot back what their favorite Ford magazines say or quote other "experts". It's so much fun to bait a hard core 5.0L Mustanger at the red lights too--don't even have to get really serious, just leave before they do so they have to play catch-up, hehe. Then they'll have to want to race and you can maturely decline their offer (and make them mad in the process as you've taken their chance to prove their alleged superiority) as they roar off in their requisite FlowMastered sound.<P>If you undertake that project, do so with a "having fun" attitude and nothing more. If they see that they've been successful in getting under your skin, it gets worse.<P>Don't forget to upgrade the rear suspension too. Having all of that power and TORQUE going to the rear wheels is useless if the car will not hookup properly and efficiently use that power in the desired manner. You might consider putting a timing set in that will retard the cam by 4 degrees to bleed off a little low end torque that you don't need and put a little added edge in the higher rpm levels that you will need.<P>Personally, if you're trying to compete with the Bottle Fed Mustangs, forget it. They are in their own little world, from my observations. Build a good, solid running Buick Big Block with a street chassis that "works" and you can dust many of the non-bottled fed Mustangs on the street--with a reasonably low-maintenance car that will look good and be fun to have and "cheap to keep" in the process. You might contact our resident racer, Ms. Vasilow on the BCA Board (new email on the front page under "BCA Board" member link), if you have any questions on combinations of parts that work.<P>Happy hunting and always have fun!<BR>NTX5467

There are probably more American cars in Sweden than many people in the USA could suspect! In some cases, those people go to extremely involved design and engineering activities to convert a left hand car to right hand drive and do it so it looks absolutely like it was a factory built export model.<P>There also is a large number of Buicks in England and Europe too. If you do get the car over there, there will be activities to take it to display and enjoy it. <P>I have also heard stories of rare American collectible vehicles being dismantled so they can be shipped over there at lesser rates, but I don't recommend that at all!!!! One story was about pulling the engine out of a pristine Skylark so the shipping would be cheaper. Knowing how some things have tended to disappear during those sea voyages (even inside the sealed containers), it would be cheaper in the long run to ship the vehicle "assembled" and not have to deal with missing items later.<P>Perhaps our Past President, Mr. Brashares might have some information on those subjects? I suspect he's closer to the shipping business than most of us are.<P>I certainly appreciate your concerns regarding selling or keeping the car and hope you can reach a justifiable solution in the best interest of the vehicle.<P>NTX5467<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

If I understand what you did, you did a big "KERWHOOOOPS"!<P>The air management valve can send air pump air to three places -- the air cleaner, the exhaust manifolds, and the catalytic converter. In combination or individually depending on the operational mode of the engine. As stated, it sends air to the catalytic converter for a reason and one that could result in your vehicle not passing the visual inspection for emissions equipment.<P>You can buy replacement aftermarket converters to replace the factory converter that have those pipe nipples already made onto them. Use only steel pipe to connect to the converter due to the fact that it gets very hot!<P>I believe there are now replacement air tube manifolds in the aftermarket now. Similar with the check valves. The pipe going to the converter might not be, though, as they typically caused no problems--unless some outside influence caused them to break.<P>You can find the replacement ceramic monolith (honeycomb) converters from various places. The Walker Dynomax site has information and specs--even an online catalog of sorts the last time I looked--so you can put a large pipe converter under there that is correctly sized for your application (engine size and air pump pipes).<P>Considering all of these things, there's no reason to not have a legally compliant exhaust system that also has good performance attributes.<P>NTX5467

As I recall, the air bar option on larger GM cars back then was an effort to silence the insurance lobby people and to get some real world experience with the option. I don't recall the seat belt deletion situation, though. At that time, the insurance people were telling everyone how easy it would be to have airbags keep them in place instead of the cumbersome seat belts in use back then, but I suspect only the shoulder harness would be deleted. I do have a service manual on that option, but I'll have to get it from the archives. When I found it at a dealership "clean-out", I picked it up as more of a little known novelty than anything else. <P>The insurance people were pushing airbags as the next, greatest safety innovation. That was many years before any real, substantive research was done on those contraptions. Another easy fix to a complex problem, it seems.<P>The ABS brake deals you mention were only on the rear wheels on the GM and Ford applications. The '74-5 Chrysler Imperial had a 4 wheel disc brake option which could also have 4 wheel ABS on it, but very few of those cars had the ABS option.<P>"Popular Mechanics" magazine did a big article on the Chrylser system and how technically advanced it was. Unlike the Ford and GM systems which were either "on" or "off", the Chrysler system had two different pressure levels it could use, plus "off" also. Plus it was on all 4 wheels with speed sensors at each wheel--the Ford and GM systems used one speed sensor on the driveshaft (as I understand). Remember, this was 1974!<P>As with most safety related options, the Chrysler 4 wheel ABS system lasted only a few model years and saw dismal installation rates. Price, complexity (computers!), and lack of knowledge could have been factors. Recall also that that was back when drivers had real skills in vehicular control too instead or relying on the car to "save" them.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

Depending on whether the engine you have is stock or otherwise, the smaller AFB would be a good option. BUT getting it to run lean enough might require some "playing with it" time. I perceive that the stock jetting will be for a more performance-oriented (i.e., richer) calibration than for a basically stock situation. I might be wrong in that presumption, though. I suspect the smaller version would be more applicable to your engine size also.<P>The QJet is an extremely "tunable" carburetor. It was used on everything from 230 cid Pontiac OHC inline 6 cylinders (circa '66) up to 500 cid Cadillac V-8s with the basic 750 cfm configuration. If you will read the H.P. Books "Rochester Carburetors" publication, it details all of the "ins and outs" of calibrating QJets--complete with jet and metering rod and power piston spring and secondard metering rod hanger GM part numbers and specifications. <P>I suspect that if you can find an original QJet from a later '60s Buick 350 with an appropriately matching intake manifold (some of the earlier ones had heat tracks as the Chevy V-8s did, I believe) and carb base gaskets, it might put you pretty close to where you need to be. Or at least get the rod/jet/spring specs so you can duplicate them if you buy a rebuilt carb with undetermined jetting in it.<P>At certain air flow velocities through the primaries, the QJet is very efficient compared to other carbs, but the key to any carb is having it correctly calibrated to your application.<P>One area I would favor the AFB would be in ease of changing the metering rods. One small screw and the metering rod/power piston is in your hand. Compare that to what it takes to get to the same place on a QJet!<P>As far as spread bore carbs go, my personal favorite is the Holley #9895 model of 4175 series vacuum secondary carb. It originally was the '79 Chevy L82 spec direct OEM replacement carb but has now been spread across more Chevy applications. I know that it works as I've had one on my Camaro 305 for several hundreds of thousands of miles. Electric choke and all of the hookups too. It's a little pricey, but I found the best price on <A HREF="http://www.racesearch.com." TARGET=_blank>www.racesearch.com.</A> I suspect it might work on your Buick application with a small amount of adapting in the linkage area. I offer that as an option of a new carb that might be an "out of the box" bolt-on situation.<P>Of course, if you desire a basic OEM look, the AFB (with the upper ID band removed) would be the closest thing. Be advised that there are Edlebrock versions of the AFB and there are also some Federal-Mogul AFBs too. Federal-Mogul is who bought the original Carter Carb operation, for what it's worth.<P>Just some thoughts . . .<BR>NTX5467

I don't think there would be any problems putting them under there. The closest clearance item would be the front struts, as I recall.<P>As for the speedometer error, you can go into <A HREF="http://www.tirerack.com" TARGET=_blank>www.tirerack.com</A> and look up a similar General tire to get the "revs/mile" specs for both sizes and then see how fast you'll really be going with the speedometer reads 60mph, for example.<P>I'm not sure what the procedure would be using a different tire size and recalibrating the vehicle's ECM so the speedometer would read correctly. Putting non-stock tire sizes on modern computer controlled vehicles is not what it previously was.<P>Those 215/70-15s would be a great size for a '70s Skylark with factory chrome wheels. The cosmetics would approximate what it would be with the similar 14" factory chrome wheels yet be a 15x7 wheel size.<P>If the "revs/mile" spec for the 215/70-15 size approximates that of the 225/60-16 size that is so common on lots of GM and other brands of cars, then you could use that for the spec to recalibrate the ECM.<P>Just some thoughts . . .<BR>NTX5467

GM used to have a specific PosiTraction lube and also a regular rear axle lube. In more recent times, they now build a universal lube that you add the PosiTraction Additive to to end up with the same thing you previously did. One bottle of additive for a regular automotive rear axle. <P>Everyone else builds "universal" rear axle lubes too so you just need to see the GM dealer that still stocks the PosiTraction additive and get a bottle.<P>The 3 year / 36,000 mile interval sounds pretty much ballpark so that would be a good interval to aim for.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

There's also a similar Park Avenue model too.<P>NTX5467

The "mechanicals" on the car are the same as a similar Park Avenue so there should be no problems there. If it's supercharged, there will be a "SUPERCHARGED" name plate on the vertical surface of the deck lid, on the passenger side. Many of the chassis items will also cross with the first gen Aurora.<P>Only things that might be issues with replacement would be crash parts and the trim on the interior (other than the seats, which can be redone by a good trim shop if needed). From what I've seen, the quality of the interior trim should be better than the Bonneville and more luxurious than the Avalon. <P>At one time, you could buy a very basic Riviera with plain 15" wheels and wheel covers at a lesser price than the "normally equipped ones". That deal lasted only a couple of years and was gone by the time the woodgrain appeared on the interior, if I remember correctly.<P>Some of those "car price sites" can have different information from differing sources. All the Kelly Blue Book is good for is banking loan values whereas other guides will have different (lower) values so you need to check several to get a good idea. You might try MSN Carpoint, for example. You can also run the VIN through CARFAX and also get a GM dealer to run the VIN through VISS to tell you what warranty repairs were done and where it was sold, possibly.<P>It would be nice to have the Riviera so that it would be a nice, distinctive vehicle, but the better long term bet might be the Bonneville (used crash parts from the salvage yard would be advantage). Forget the "appliance car" Avalon as no one knows what that car is outside of Toyota people (yet everyone knows what the Camry is)! The Bonneville would be more saleable when you decide to get rid of it due to the greater name recognition of the vehicle. Got to look at both sides of the deal (purchase and then resale), but the decision is yours.<P>Have you looked for any Park Avenues? They will probably have lower miles and be in good shape too (due to the typical demographics of the typical Park Avenue owner). Great American Luxury in the Great American Tradition at a really decent price after they age about 5-7 years from new.<P>Just some thoughts . . .<BR>NTX5467

Accel and others also do stock replacement-type HEIs, but I haven't looked to see if they have units for genuine Buick V-8s. You can look in the Accel website and peruse their online catalog listings. I suspect that what they sell will have the high performance advance curve items already in it. The web catalog's in Adobe Acrobat format so it might take a little time, but it's a big catalog.<P>Other than the local auto supply, there might be a genuine rebuilder in your area that would have a faster turnaround time. All they are going to do is replace the bushings in the housing and maybe put a new/refurbished shaft assembly in it plus the electronics. I suspect they'll also cold tank it to make it look nice too. <P>Afterall, all the auto supply is probably going to do is send it "somewhere" to be done so if you can take them out of the loop you'll have more control over the situation and probably save some money too. Doing some research might lessen the downtime somewhat.<P>Just some thoughts . . .<BR>NTX5467

Sometimes if you just want something that's not too heavy duty, you might find something that will work in the cooking/kitchen sections of some grocery stores or discount stores. I bought one of the galvanized ones several years ago at a Checker's Auto Supply that was near my shadetree shop. I looked through the end cap display where they were and found the cheapest one as there were different prices on the same size items.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

I've never heard of using vinegar for those things (any particular type?) but that doesn't mean it doesn't work.<P>From my experience, WD-40 is only good for short term protection (although other people might state otherwise--just my experiences). As for cleaning whatever petroleum based coating you put on the manifold between cleaning and paint operations, I suspect that brakeclean spray might be the best option as it removes all oil from the surface. Before that, I had good luck using Berryman's B-12 carb spray cleaner. I suspect anything that will cut the oil will work, but the brakeclean should dry with no residue. Putting it in a plastic bag to keep the moistsure rising and falling more away from it.<P>Instead of the towel, I might recommend a hand held hair drier to speed things along a little. Probably using an intermediate setting with some of the blue "reuseable shop towel" paper towels made by Scott (I believe).<P>As for engine paint, if you don't buy the desired color from a vendor, you can get some hand matched mixed at a local paint supplier-if they can't find the correct formula. I got some acrylic enamel mixed for some valve covers many years ago and it worked great, using one of those PreVal spray units that many of the paint supply places sell (a glass container topped by a screw on pressure "can" that makes the whole setup a customized spray can that is reusable).<P>A Pontiac guy mentioned years ago that painting the heat crossover area of the intake with the Eastwood high heat paint before putting the final engine color on the manifold seemed to lessen the heat bake of that area with use.<P>For the black parts of the engine, I have found that GM Glossy Black Engine Enamel is a dead-on match. Even though the word "glossy" is in the title, it is a satiny, semi-gloss paint that matches air cleaners, brackets, and anything else on the motor that was black. Even works for Chryslers too.<P>Many of the "correct" paints sold by the restoration people are not quite as "correct" as they are said to be and in some cases are too glossy or of an incorrect shade for the particular application. End result is that shiney black paint exists in places that GM never put shiney black paint at the factory.<P>Everyone has their own particular way of doing things or things that work for them, these are mine and others can work well too.<P>NTX5467

I suspect that Barney will make you as good of a deal as anyone else might for the same fabric of car cover. <P>In the long run, a custom cover will probably be better than the universal one as it will more closely fit the vehicle and decrease wind whipping and such (remember, when that cover moves it's moving against the vehicle's paint and if there happens to be any grit on the paint when that happens . . . .). <P>There are good points and bad points to using car covers, just as there are for "bras" for the front ends of vehicles. For a vehicle you're going to drive every day, it can be a hassle and not a good alternative to some sort of carport that would be nicer to have.<P>Car covers are one commodity that it would pay to do all of the research you can on fabrics and vendor prices BEFORE you make your final decision. A quality fabric in a quality cover will cost more than a universal "inexpensive" cover from WalMart or PepBoys, but you get what you pay for so be an informed shopper. Once you determine what fabric, then shop price and such.<P>NTX5467

Any time you "overcompress" rubberized items, you will hasten their deterioration. In this case, unless the bolt that goes through them is a shouldered bolt or has some internal sleeve to allow only a certain amount of compression, then I suspect you'd be better off to just aim for a moderate degree of compression in the rubber as you tighten the bolt.<P>There might be some polyurethane grommets that might fit that application. If the grommets on that vehicle are basically like shock grommets on later model vehicles, then you can use the polyurethane sway bar link bolt grommets that are available from several aftermarket vendors or available with GM part number 464167 Link Bolt Kit (does one side) as fits my '77 Camaro and lots of other vehicles too (that use a sway bar link bolt grommet that is the same as an upper shock grommet on the same Camaro application).<P>I'm not sure if neoprene would have any advantages over the normal rubber, but polyurethane will make the bar mounting more "firm" and effectively increase the resistance of the sway bar by about 20%.<P>Hope that helps.<P>NTX5467

The manual I was looking at is the 1970 "Buick Chassis Service Manual". It has many "body shop" type items in it(graphics of the front end sheet metal and how to adjust/aligh it too). The GM "Body Manual" of those years was more involved with how to adjust door glass and those types of things and, for what I generally get into, not what I need. It also covers all makes and models instead of just Buicks or Chevrolets or whatever. Hence, it's more universality.<P>Those old GM chassis service manuals contained a whole lot of information regarding specs, theory of operation/design, and other great information that the modern manuals replace with trouble trees that end in "replace part" instead of telling people how to repair them. Different orientations for different times.<P>There are some vendors who also have these things on CD-rom media. I haven't personally used any of them, but they are supposed to have the service manual and parts manual and even some sales literature on the specific year of vehicle. I understand they might be a little pricey, but not when compared to finding good, useable manuals and sales lit. Otherwise, there are several literature vendors you might check with at swap meets or from ads in The Bugle.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

The front fenders are bolted on. You can see how they attach in a Buick Service Manual illustration and in the GM Parts Book illustration section. <P>In my '70 Buick Chassis Manual, it shows:<BR>1 bolt at the bottom of the A-pillar (seen with the door open), 1 vertical and 1 horizontal that go directly into the cowl (near the a/c blower motor), and 2 at the bottom rear horizontal section of the fender behind the wheel. Then there are two at the front where the upper rail of the radiator core support has a flange that mates with the upper fender using 2 bolts.<P>In removing the front fender, don't forget to take the hood hinge loose from the fender itself (supporting the hood or removing it entirely!).<P>Hope this might help get you started.<P>NTX5467

Seems like POR-15 has a good rust remover liquid/gel that seems to work reasonably well from the demos I've seen at the swap meets. Seems like there's another brand too. They might all be the same stuff, but it might take a chemist to determine that. They all typically neutralize with water.<P>The "carcinogenic" issues are related to the particulate size of the dust. I suspect the EPA stance on these things are somewhat overblown (all things considered), but that's probably where all of that dialogue originated. A blast cabinet really is the best way to do small work as it keeps things a lot cleaner and the media is easily recycled.<P>When we were doing the sandblasting activities a while back, we went to a commercial sandblaster locally and bought the sand. It might have been more expensive, but it was local and it was in grades.<P>Be sure to follow the sandblasting with a good metal prep that will get into all of the little craters in the "cleaned" part. If this is not done, the paint/primer will skin over and not penetrate well--result is poor adhesion and other issues. We sandblasted a vehicle, primed it, and within two weeks of dry summer weather, rust was popping through the primer. We took the "advice" of people who should have known and primed the bare metal without metal prepping it.<P>Since those days, there are all kinds of new blast media. Glass beads, aluminum oxide, soda, and even plastic. Just as with wetsanding a paint job, use the blast media to just take off what you're wanting removed and maybe even stop early so you don't remove too much of the base metal with your activities.<P>NTX5467

Thanks for that additional information.<P>NTX5467

There are lots of "ins and outs" with car covers. There are universals and custom fits. There are several fabric choices too.<P>You might contact Barney Eaton (of the Reatta Division) at "barney@texas.net" for information and pricing as he sells them. I suspect he can cut you a deal and also advise you on the fabric that would suit your use best.<P>I found that email address on a reatta.org link so if it doesn't work, email me back direct and I'll get his snail mail address for you, but I think that email is correct.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

Last time I knew about sandblasting equipment, which has been a while, the sand came in "fine", "medium", and "coarse" grades just as regular sand paper did then. Similarly, you used the sand in a manner such that you used the coarse for the quick cut of heavy accumulations, then switched to the finer grades for finish work. Your instructions with the unit might have covered that strategy and should also indicate what media the existing spray tip/nozzle will work best with.<P>With respect to filter/respirators, the type the body shop painters used to be advised to use had two round filters in the front and acitivated charcoal in the filter mix also (looking somewhat like a WW2 "gas mask"). If the one you have is rated for "nuisance dust" you might see if there are any filters for it that will filter down to a smaller particulate size. Some of the automotive paint suppliers in your area might be able to help in that situation.<P>Hope that might help . . .<BR>NTX5467

I know that sand is a common blast media, but you might have better luck with glass beads or plastic. I suspect the glass beads or plastic might not be quite so critical to moisture as the sand can be and still work well. As always, make sure the gun head matches the type and size of the blast media.<P>What about using some of the liquid dip rust remover solutions instead of sand (provided they are compatible with the metals you are cleaning)?<P>Just some thoughts . . .<BR>NTX5467

Once you do get it loosened up and removed, be sure to polish and deburr the shaft so the friction surfaces are nice and smooth and round. If you have a rebuilding kit, there probably would be a bushing to go into the manifold to serve as the friction interface for the heat riser shaft. <P>Once the new bushing is installed (which would apply to the existing bushing if you are just freeing things up), you might need to get an appropriately sized reamer to "clearance" the ID of the hole the shaft will be inserted into. This plus the polished shaft will ensure that there is no binding or excessive friction on the shaft so the thermostatic spring on the heat riser can work properly. It's better to be a little loose than to be too tight. From my experience, if you can't turn it with your fingers and the spring will snap it closed when cold, it's too tight.<P>During reassembly, after making sure the clearances are ok "dry", you might lubricate the shaft and bushing with GM Heat Riser Lube or similar (in a spray can) as it has a certain amount of graphite in it. It's also a penetrant.<P>Just some thoughts . . .<BR>NTX5467

Selling it back to the same salvage yard might be the best option. Naturally, they'll probably pay you less than you paid them (and hopefully come and get it). Even if they came and got it and paid you $1.00, you're still ahead in the game as you now have parts and will not worry about a municipality being on your case for a junk vehicle being around.<P>Even if it was the same salvage yard, they might want to see the purchase documents they gave you initially as proof that the "remains" do belong to you, so you might make some copies just in case. Then, they can also give you a receipt for the merchandise to keep their books straight too.<P>Just some thoughts . . .<BR>NTX5467

Hopefully, there should also be a contact listed in The Bugle on the page with all of the chapter directors and their respective chapters. I beleive the regional coordinators and such are also listed on that same page.<P>Hope you find a chapter to your liking.<P>NTX5467