D-a-n-i-e-l

No the bose system in the Riv isjust like ours, the radio brain has a built in amp with the bass roll off issue. The bs roll-off is intended to protect the cheap factory speakers from damaging bass at higher volumes. But when the speakers are upgraded or even just replaced by non-factory speakers the bass roll-off is a killer for good sound. At high levels, and you will find yourself adjusting your EQ/tone constantly.

Philip, The fuel pump is the same, I just figured it would be easier to get it out of a vehicle with less options. The Reatta throttle cable plate works just fine. It just has to be put on the SC engine. TDman: Thank you for mentioning the fuel delivery system. The ECM has to be reprogrammed for the fuel delivery, but Ryan from Sinisterperformance (gmtuners.com) should have a tune that works well in a couple weeks, once mine is done. I have not checked his prices lately, but he is very qualified and cheap. My setup with the the memcal (chip) adapter and programming was under one-hundred dollars. Also he is very willing to work with you, I started my swap almost a year ago and trip to Iraq and he has worked with me the whole time.

I agreee with Vincent

I was wondering if any one would be interested in knowing how to get great sound in their Reatta without losing control of the radio from the touch screan. If so the key is to find a 1996 Caddilac with the bose sound system. The Radio box (located in the trunk) can be controlled by our system. You lose the 7 band EQ and balance, but nothing else. Now for the down and dirty of why. The Caddy radio does not have a built in amplifier, this means no bass roll-off, that delco and others are famous for. This means that it alone will not power speakers, but the outputs from the radio box can be spliced into RCA cables and ran directly to an aftermarket amp. I have been trying to find a way around the bass roll off of our radios ever sense I bought the car. Now I have coplete controll and great sound with out going to an afermarket deck. If any one would like a more indepth write up or more info just let me know

First off I do not have all the pictures I would like to add to this post, and I will not bee going over step by step engine swapping. This post is to provide an insight to the issues I encountered while swapping a Series one supercharged 3.8 into my Reatta. OK let’s talk about the weakest link, the transmission. The two major enemies of transmissions are heat and dirt. I suggest adding two things to help with improving the life of our transmission. Add an aftermarket trany cooler, bigger the better. Second, an add-on trany filter. These are not too hard to find and can be changed just like an oil filter and at the same time. They can be added by removing the steel lines and replacing them with 5/16” rubber trany hose and 5/16” nipple to hose fitting (my favorite are the haden brand). Start the swap with a complete supercharged engine to include all accessories. This is a must to keep cost down. You will be using all the supercharged accessory mounts and accessories. The only accessory you can reuse is the AC pump. I would suggest using the pump from the supercharged engine, if the engine is 94’ or newer. The reason for this is the pump is designed to run on r134a. This means that the pump is much more efficient while running on the newer refrigerant. Now I will begin to lay out as much info on modifications as I can recall. The one and only Reatta accessory mount to be used is the AC pump mount. The reason for this is the front engine mount is bolted to the bracket. The steel power steering hose must be modified. I did this by cutting the hose just below wear it screws into the power steering pump. Use a tube cutter to cut the tubing. Clean out the burrs and use a piece of 5/16” trany hose and hose clamps to reroute the hose to just under the passenger side of the engine compartment to were the hose originally ran. (this is for the power steering cooler) While in that area, you must swap in the Reatta’s oil pressure switch. This is a simple screw in and out affair. If you do not do this your IC will read “electrical problem” and the oil pressure will read 255psi (running). You must remove and not reinstall the little motor strut. Heater hoses must be modified. This can be done by using four heater hose elbows (found in the Help parts section) or you may use a straight hose connector and Goodyear hose springs (they allow you to bend a hose how you like and not have to worry about collapsing the houses). I prefer the second option. Throttle linkage and down shift cable bracket from the Reatta must be used (the SC model had an electronic trany so there is no spot for the down shift cable). The Reatta downshift cable attachment from the throttle body must be used (just one bolt) The Reatta injector wire harness may and should be used, but it must be extended a couple inches to reach up and over the supercharger. The Reatta fuel pump must be swapped with one out of a 93’ S-10 Blazer with Vin W (mean Vortec engine) Partsamarica part # P74074 Connecting the fuel rails to the existing fuel lines may be one of the most adventurous parts of this swap. The reason I say this is that I have seen a couple different rail assemblies. The rail assembly I used is from the Park Avenue Ultra. Using this rail I switched to a fuel filter out of a 95’ S-10 Blazer, and found a plastic fuel line out of a gm car that was roughly the length I needed. This mans I did not have to splice the supply line (less likely to fail). I did splice the return line to a from the metal Reatta return line to a plastic line from the Park Avenue Ultra (I figured there is not ass much pressure todeal with for the return path). I suggest using the Series one engine because many of the components are directly compatible with our systems. If the series two engine will be used you will be looking to modify a lot of wiring, and a few other issues. You would get more power out of the series two, but this also means more likely to blow your trany. Also power is no good if you can not put it to the ground. The series one gave me just what I was looking for, a little kick when passing on the freeway. Picking your engine: look for a 94/95’. These have a bigger intake and the supercharger was redesigned and epoxy coated. This mean more power and less wear on the supercharged. If there are any other questions or comments fell free to ask or state. The ECM has to be reprogrammed for the fuel delivery, but Ryan from Sinisterperformance (gmtuners.com) should have a tune that works well in a couple weeks, once mine is done. I have not checked his prices lately, but he is very qualified and cheap. My setup with the the memcal (chip) adapter and programming was under one-hundred dollars. Also he is very willing to work with you, I started my swap almost a year ago and trip to Iraq and he has worked with me the whole time.

I wish I had the 700 I would start on my northstar swap

I used a complete engine and accessories. This is a must to keep the cost down. Most yard will sell the engine complete if you catch it before there are too many parts gone. At a minimum you must get the accessory brackets.

OK I will do a write up on the swap but it will only be on the diffrences/modifications that would not be included in a natrally asperated swap. Give me a day or two and I will post it.

OK the 4.3 does not have the same intake pattern and the bellhousing pattern is way off too. I do own a 93 blazer with the vortec and would love to throw it in a reatta, but t would only make sense in a rear wheel drive setup. I believe that olds use a newer 4.0 in the aurora, kind of a forerunner to the northstart series. If I remember right the bell housing is the same as the 3.8. That would make for a great reatta or bout engine. (I was told that people still use it in race applications. Barney, the 4.1 would work bueatifuly. The engine is basically a bored out 3.8

I am running a series 1 SC engine and stock trany. It gives the car enough power to satify me. If I get my hands on a droptop want to do the northstar swap. I will not do the swap in a 88 or 89 for I would not want to mess up the function of the TCC. Later I may try to do the 6 speed swap but fo now I am happy with this setup.

when sitting over night my brake system loses pressure after sitting (off) for a while. There are no leaks (external), just a loss of pressure for the sytem. Is this normal or does anyone know what would cause it?

I know I am not the first to install a supercharged engine in one of these beautiful automobles, and lets hope I am not the last. I know many of the people that own these cars believe that they should be left alone, but I believe they were built to be driven and enjoyed. My tune is not finished but the diffrence in the power of these two engines is amazing. The extra 40 or so horses is just what the reatta was missing when they rolled them off the hand crafted assembly line. If you ever have to replace your engine I would recommend this upgrade to everyone. when my tune is done I am sure Ryan would be willing to keep a copy of it for future use. Also there is very littel to be modified when the engine is swapped. all in all I am verry ipressed with the results of this swap.

does anyone know why the 91 right side CV shaft is not interchangeable with the 88-90 models? I compared them and they have the same spline counts, lengths, and abs ridges. The only diffrence I could see was a build up in the center of the shaft that looks to be some sort of device to lessen the impact of the torq. Any help would be appreciated. I already installed the CV shaft and it seems to be doing a great job, and if the cylindical build up is to lessen the inpact on the tranny/shaft/wheel hub, it may help with the wear and tear from having a series 1 supercharged engine conected to the tranny.

OK I took out the CRT and cleaned all conections and everything else that I could clean. Put the CRT back in and it works great. I wish I would hae found something that was a bit more of a telltail sign, but at least it works. Thanks for the imput.

I know how to access the diagnostic mode but it will not enter the mode

There atre two plugs that conect to the touch screan. one that plugs into the touch screan and one that is for the buttons on the outside (or at least that is how they appear to function to my eyes). I would start there and see where it leads you.

I can not enter diagnostic mode through the touch screan. The TCC is working but for some reason I can not access the diagnostic mode. Any one ever had this issue?

I have also pulled this system off a boniville of the same time frame

the alto system works and is identical, with one minor diffrence. you have to swap the "I nut, the piece that conectsto the brake pedal" with the one off the teeves. I would imagine it may be the same withthe saab veriation. ps I am and have been using the alto setup fo two years and have found them a bit easier to find, If you cross reffrence on partsamerica.com it will show that these two syestems are interchangable between a handful of cars. well here is a link to the interchange http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductGuide.aspx?mfrcode=RAY&mfrpartnumber=ABS540096

And thank you for thinking of our millitary members, it truly is apprecitated by all of us

Here if you want to send cards to our troops send them to: Any soldier LSA Anaconda Iraq APO AE 09391 I just got back from there and I can tell you that we received mail adressed just like this on a regular basis.

I would definately check the connections to the BCM. All those sensors and systems run through it so I would start there. The ECM also is involved in most of them except the AC issue.

I AM BACK IN THE STATES AND WILL BE RESERCHING THIS IN DETAIL. I WOULD LOVE TO MOVE TO A VACUUM ABS SYSTEM BEFORE I PUT THE F-BODY CALIPIERS ON

check the pressure and then turn off the car, if the pressure drops your check vaulve is not working. I believe the check vaulve is intergrated into the fuel pump. Some one please correct me if I am wrong

yes it may but it is not unlike alot of other gm products from the same time frame. Drive the car like you normaly would, but I would do a complete tune up and check all the engine trany seals before any long operating. Oh yeah, Enjoy your new Reatta, they are great cars.