gr8scott

Thanks for your detailed reply. Judging from your description as well as the excellent link provided, the safe thing to do is to replace the main relay, which I will do pronto.

Thanks for the advice in your numerous responses. To update, I had a new oxygen sensor installed as well as an induction kit, and ran some injector cleaner through a tankful of gas to give it a liquid tune-up. Last Sunday my wife and I took a 240 mile round trip, and although there were a few traffic snarls, most of it was on open freeway driving. Upon refueling at the end of the trip, I calculated my mileage to be 26.1 MPG, which, considering that we ran the air conditioner at times, is quite reasonable.

Driving around in slow moving traffic on a hot day, I decided to keep an eye on coolant temperature. While at a brief stand-still or while crawling through congestion, the temperature fequently reached 210 degrees. Once the traffic started moving again, it would settle in @185, and on the open road @173. When I got home, it was high again, so I opened the hood to see if the radiator fan was running. It wasn't, but just then it kicked in. Is it normal for the fan not to run until the temp gets this high? I have a good anti-freeze mixture, and the gage shows it to be good to 265F, so boil over isn't likely to occur. With the engine off and cool, I can freely spin the radiator fan by hand and it shows no resistance. Is that normal? Thanks for any insight you may offer.

I took my first extended ride in mu recently acquired 88 Reatta. 240 miles round trip with several stops at the destination. After one restart, the antilock brake warning light came on and stayed on until I stopped a short distance away at a restaurant. The next time I started, it came on as supposed to, then turned off after 10 seconds or so. This happened several times in a row. Sometimes it would stay on, other times not. It never came on during operation of the vehicle, only at the start. I would think this is more of a warning light malfunction than an actual problem with the ABS system, but I thought I'd better ask for opinions.<P>While on the subject on brakes, I have another question concerning brake fluid level. I'm aware that pumping the brake pedal 25 times with the ignition off will refill the reservoir to a higher level. But at this point, the oil level is still about 1/2inch below the top of the reservoir. Should I refill it completely?

Thank you for your extensive reply. But since I don't want to mess things up and render the vehicle inoperable, I'd like to ask a few clarifying questions. <P>If I understand you correctly, I should set "Clear all codes" and then "Level" under each of the following: ECM, BCM, IPC and CRT. (By the way, are these acronyms for something, or random code letters?) <P>During the next run the computer will set new codes. I should then check them again and compare the codes to the ones I'd written down during the first step.<P>If I understood you right, these codes should change each time, and if they are consistently reset, the issue must be addressed. Should this happen, how is it "addressed"? <P>On the other and, if the new codes set are different and the "Service Engine Soon" alert comes on, I can presume everything to be all right and no further action is required - right?<P>Again, thanks for your assistance.

I recently acquired a red 1988 model with 62,000 miles on the odometer. Showroom condition inside and out, all gages and accessories work as they're supposed to, and after 250 miles or so of driving I'm quite satisfied with the car. All but one thing. I'm only getting around 16.5 miles per gallon in combined highway and citi driving. That's quite a bit below the claimed 19/29. Was I expecting too much? Tomorrow I'm having the (original) oxygen sensor replaced and the injectors cleaned in hopes of upping the mileage.<P>I have two maintenance related questions:<P>1. Checking the oil level, (engine off and cool) I found it to be about an inch above the full mark, meaning above the scribed area with the perforations on the dipstick. This is too much, isn't it?<P>2. I want to check the sparkplugs but found an odd (to me) metal, sleeve-like device, into which the rubber caps of the cable fit.<BR>Sould I pull the cable out or should I grasp the metal sleeve and pull it all off? How does one get to the plugs themselves?<P>Your input is appreciated.<BR>