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Jeff, thanks for the hint. I did some try and error and finally pushed the insert out of the one nut. I had to widen the notch, re-insert the handbrake cable and tighten the whole thing real hard. Now it holds. I attach some photos, maybe it helps future readers who might have the same problem. Sorry for the lousy quality. Made it with my iphone. Christian

Hi there, during a checkup underneath my 37 Roadmaster I pulled on the rear brake cable and suddenly held it in my hand. It just slipped out of the adjustment clevis stud. See attached photos. Looking at it it seems as if it is just held tight by pressure. Question: How can I fix it? Is there some soldering involved? Do I just put the cable back in and tighten all nuts? What is this notch for in the union nut? Thanks as always for your experience and practical help Christian

I am using Hypoid gear box oil SAE140 from Penrite. It didn´t make much difference to the thinner one I used before. Would it support a worn primary ball bearing if the noise occurs also in idle and dissappears when I push the clutch? Thanks, Christian

the gearbox on my 37 Coupe makes the same singing noise in first and second gear, as you normally only hear in reverse. Straight cut gears typically make these noises, angled cut don´t. Since my 37 Coupe might be a very early one (manufacturing date shows Dec 1936), ist there a remote possibility that a different gearbox has been used and all is normal, or am I in trouble sooner or later with that gearbox? Thanks, Christian

agree with the afore said to keep it 6V. I had my 37 Coupe converted to 12V and it didn´t make too much improvement. Anyway, this is what needs to get done: 1. rewind the generator coils - only few specialists can do that 2. replace the voltage regulator 3. rewind the starter solenoid - only few specialists can do that 4. replace the ignition coil with a 12V one 5. install a voltage divider to 6V for the gas gauge instrument 6. replace all bulbs note that I didn´t rewind the starter coils, so now the starter motor cranks real fast and on shouldn´t crank too long at a time to avoid overheating.

Hi all, happy new year! Does anybody know of a source for a good reproduction (or original to restore) hood ornament from 1936? I mean the flying lady. Thanks, Christian

I would also guess that the carb dries out (mine does), so pumping the pedal has no use if there is nothing left in the carb chamber. If you don´t have an electric fuel pump, starter spray does it or fill in some gas through the check hole of the carb with a syringe. It has become almost a ritual with my Coupe when it sat for a while. Christian

Hi Bob, that´s perfect! Thanks a lot. Christian

Hi there, I am about to overhaul my dual action AC-1 fuelpump (see photo), the kit has arrived and due to the sheer number and delicateness of parts I am getting concerned to break more than fix, when working without instructions / schematics etc. (been there before) Is there a source or place to download an AC fuel pump service manual? Thanks, Christian

I have after market (old time contemporary) turn signals in both my 37s (as it is a precondition to get a car licensed in Germany). Here is how it works: Use dual filament bulbs and bulb sockets. They fit in the original places, available at Bobs. In the rear you combine rear lights with turn signals, in the front you use the parking lights. It is necessary to have a separate wire from your turn signal unit to each of the sockets and connect it to the terminal at the sockets that belongs to the turn signal. Don´t combine it with brake light lines or any other lines etc. Chris

Walter, I had my electric system on the coupe converted to 12V and installed a quite strong fan in front of the radiator. The effect was next to nil to my own surprise, even in idle. This made me sceptical about the idea in general. I had much better experience with my Roadmaster, where I stayed all original, but cleaned the engine, looked after ignition and carb adjustments and renewed the radiator core. You will find plenty of old threads on overheating issues with many useful tips and hints in this forum. Good luck, Christian

Chris, if you mean bulb sockets, you will find them at Bob´s Automobilia. If it is more the fixture for the sockets, you might have to improvise or ask Dave Tacheny if he has old ones. I don´t have his phone number but I am sure, someone has. Christian

After your hints I did some research in Germany and found several shops who can to that. Indeed this seems to be the state of the art method to facelift old leaf springs. (see picture) The picture came from a job where someone wanted his car to be lower. That´s why he hammered on the outside of the arch. According to their statements it is important that after re-arching the leafs, there is no gap between the leafs. It seems that it takes some experience to doing it in a way that afterwards both springs have the same arch and tension. A good shop also has some UV-lights to detect cracks etc. This is what I will try before spoiling it with my own (lacking) skills. Thanks for your advice, Christian

Hi there, my 37 Roadmaster hangs a bit low on the rear end. Even with no passengers and no luggage on board, the leaf springs are straight flat. Is there a way to rejuvenate my old ones, or to add or excahnge single leafs, or do you know any reasonably priced sources to buy complete new sets? Any tips are welcome. Cheers

I hope my oil hasn´t been as old as some steam machines:). I took the cover off, drained all the old greyish black oil and put a strong magnet to it. First it looked like quite a bit of metal was sticking to it, but when I dissolved the thick rear axle oil with paintbrush cleaner, not much (actually nothing) metallic was left. I inspected the interior, but couldn´t see much bad stuff. See photos. The wear on the teeth seemed to be even and unspectacular. But maybe someone with more experience like me should comment on the photos (sorry for the bad quality, made with my phone).

Do you take the same oil for the gearbox and the rear axle? What is the difference between 80W-90 non EP and Hypoid oil? Christian

yes, its the 37 Roadmaster. I haven´t changed the oil since I took the car from Canada to Germany in 2007, so I don´t know realy. Only when I checked it, it seemed to be amber and now it is greyish black. Maybe through the long drive in summer heat, some sediments and old muck got stirred up. The best might be to take the cover of and have a look inside.

when I returned today from a longer spin through the mountains and did my routine check, I discovered that the rear axle oil turned greyish black. Unless my memory plays tricks on me I thought that the oil was always amber. Metal abrasions in the oil? Could point to serious trouble coming up. There is no noise from the axle, nothing that would have caught my attention. What would you recommend to do - or should I just go on until the rear axle differential breakes? Christian

This all reads like a deja vu of what I went through with my notoriously overheating 80C. I tried almost everything listed. The ultimate solution which I would also recommend here was a new rad core, cleaned out engine block and a check on the thermostat (both). You find high performance rad cores that have a much better cooling efficiency and look exactly like the original ones. One hour uphill at 45mph in 90 deg F outside, not even close to 190 water temp now. Before I would have had to pull over with a steaming rad after 15mins. These cars were built to stand high temps when in good order. Any bandade like bending fan blades or bigger fans might just postpone upcoming trouble.

Finally the original radio on my 37 Roadmaster works again - just to find out that I only catch 1 sender during daytime and some more at night. AM doesnt seem to be popular anymore. So how can I use my Ipod feeding a signal to my radio - here is an idea: Did anybody come across an AM transmitter that you can use with an Ipod just to simulate a radio station? Should be a very simple circuit. There are plenty for FM, but I haven´t found any working on 6V an AM transmission. Would there be more interested party in case I find an old radio buff who can build that effectively? Christian

Having had my share of experience with overheating on two 37 Buicks, I can confirm that the by far best remedy was a re-cored radiator. I opted for a high performance grid that looked pretty much like the original. I also put a "high performance" electrical fan into the other car, but the temperature couldn´t care less. Doesn´t seem to be worth the hassle. Good luck, Christian

For farenheit it would be a rather low opening temperature. Thermostats typically open at 80 Celsius which is 178 Farenheit. Christian

There can be so many reasons for overheating. I have never heared about a slipping fanbelt being one of them. There is some routine work that may help: Check ignition timing (also vacuum advance and high rev advance), get your carbs checked and adjust the idle to 5% CO. There are two thermostates in the cooling system, one is a short cut for cold engine, the other one is the well known thermostat. Sometimes the short cut thermostat is stuck, many replace them with a coin. The downside is that the engine takes longer to warm up, on the upside there is less risk of overheating. Pull one of the freeze plugs and look inside if there is a lot of mud or other stuff. I once even used an acid to flush the whole cooling system and dissolve residues (didn´t help much, but was a bloody mess). These old engines hardly overheat in any situation, if things are right. So overheating points to some things that need be taken care of. (at least this is my humble opinion). Christian

After frequent overheating issues I had my 320 completely overhauled (based on an engine set from Kanters), but also did overhaul the water pump and the radiator (new core on old frame). This was the first time when the engine did not overheat anymore, not even going uphill at 40mph and 90 degrees outside temperature. So either your engine generates too much friction - then take it slowly and exchange the oil frequenty, check for metal abrasions in the oil, until the effect goes back, or you still might have an issue with your cooling system. Good luck, Christian

I got a complete system from Waldrons. It fit perfectly, but was louder und very unlike Buick. So I checked with them and they exchanged the muffler against a "silent" one. Be aware that they seem to have two types of mufflers for those who want their environment to take notice of the car and those who prefer the silent humm.