where to find a shop repair manual

[Guest bigblueboat]

so i have been looking into haynes and chilton for a teardown and rebuild manual for my 67 buick electra 225 convertible. i just cant seem to come across a cut and dry manual any ideas. im young and new at the classic car restore and fix up.

[Larry Schramm]

Ebay is the best place. They come up regularly.

Here is a link.

1967 buick service manual, eBay Motors, Collectibles. Great deals on eBay!

[Jim Rohn]

understand that you will need the "service" manual, "overhaul" manual" and the "body" manual

the service manual covers maint items, the overhaul covers rebuilding the engine trans, etc and the body manual covers everything from the cowl back pertaining to the body, electrical, seats, windows, etc.

[Larry Schramm]

The owners manual covers maintenance items. Everything else is covered in the service manual books that I put the link to. If you need the body information like how to take window regulators from the doors, etc, then also pick up the Fisher Body book also.

[Guest Art Griffin]

I have donated shop manuals to the AACA Library in Hershey several times over the years. They may very well have the books you are looking for.

[Larry Schramm]

I gave all of my Buick manuals, bulletins,etc about 25 years worth to the Buick Historical collection at the Sloan Museum in Flint. They have one I am sure, but for $30.00 I would buy one and have it shipped to the house and I only live 42 miles from the Sloan Museum in Flint. If you want, here is a link to the Sloan.

Sloan Museum

[poci1957]

Hello Bigblue, since you are just starting out just a note on the differences in the items above:

A FACTORY service manual was issued by Buick specifically for the 1967 models. This manual is specific to your car and it's mechanical features and was what dealers used for service.

FISHER BODY built GM bodies from the firewall back, and their manual was also issued to dealers and covers the body, top, interior and related. VERY useful and usually available at swap meets for $20 or less.

Both of these manuals are easy to find at swap meets or by mail order from literature dealers. Some Buick parts houses may have them too, originals or reprints may be available.

HAYNES & CHILTONS are more general manuals not issued by GM but by an outside company for sale in parts stores and such. Their data and photos are less complete, the factory manual is generally better. These are less commonly saved than factory manuals, if you can find one it should cost well under $20. Good luck! Todd

[Dave@Moon]

HAYNES & CHILTONS are more general manuals not issued by GM but by an outside company for sale in parts stores and such. Their data and photos are less complete, the factory manual is generally better. These are less commonly saved than factory manuals, if you can find one it should cost well under $20.

Haynes manuals for American cars are pretty rare before 1970, and I doubt there ever was one that covered Buick as far back as 1967. You will find shadetree mechanic type manuals from Chilton, Motor, and Clymer for Buicks of this era.

These should be commonly found for about $10 depending on make and rarity, less if they're really beat-up or soiled. Some makes' manuals sell for more than others for whatever reason. Chevy manuals are usually quite cheap, Buick manuals often cost more than most.

I buy every one of these books I can find for all my cars. They were written for the guy working on the car at home in his garage. The procedures are usually easier to follow, often simpler, and described in terms you can understand. They also avoid as much as possible referring to tools in specialized terms, i.e. you hear about using a 3-prong puller with 5/32 anchor pins instead of being told to use "tool 345.6778".

They definitely DO NOT substitute for factory manuals, but they are a big help none the less.

[poci1957]

I buy every one of these books I can find for all my cars.

They definitely DO NOT substitute for factory manuals, but they are a big help none the less.

Absolutely, on both counts!

Actually, what may be best here is a Motors manual, kind of like Chiltons but hardbound and made more for independent repair shops but not by the manufacturers. Each volume covered several years and most domestic cars, they should be easy to find. But they may cost almost as much as the factory manual, so if you can only buy one that is the one to get.

Edited January 28, 2010 by poci1957 (see edit history)

[Larry Schramm]

Here,

Buy both the GM Buick manual and Fisher Body manual for $29.95 or best offer.

Ebay item

1967 GM BUICK Chassis Service Manual & Body by Fisher : eBay Motors (item 160397305427 end time Feb-20-10 11:40:21 PST)

For a convertible, I would be sure to get the Fisher Manual also.

[Guest bigblueboat]

this a great help! thank you.

[rocketraider]

$30 for the pair is an unbelievably good deal.

I'm really partial to the factory-issued service publications, and I've amassed an Olds collection from 1950-1987 including chassis books, body books as well as all the Service Guilds and dealer tech bulletins I can find. They contain some invaluable information.

Motor and Chilton Professional Trades Editions are good for the general hobbyist who collects more than one make of car and are often based on factory service procedures, taken word for word from the factory manuals.

Haynes are nearly useless IMHO. I own one, the one I got for the deceased K-Car, because for some reason it was difficult to find the 1987 Dodge factory service books. It came in handy for a couple of things, but was laid out quite haphazardly. Not easy to use at all.

[Larry Schramm]

Rocket raider I am partial to the factory manuals because among other reasons is how can an $20.00 book with maybe 150 pages from the aftermarket compete with a genuine factory book that may have 1000 pages or more?? I know the effort that has gone into the original factory manuals because I wrote some of the GM service manual sections early in my career with GM.

[poci1957]

I have found Haynes manuals very helpful for my newer cars, 1990s to the present. But I bought an older, circa 1980 edition for my 1979 Firebird and find it of little value, somewhat garbled in both layout and information. For an old car, 1970s and back at least, the factory manuals are the way, and $30 for the TWO Buick manuals is a bargan, I would jump on that deal. Todd

[Dave@Moon]

Rocket raider I am partial to the factory manuals because among other reasons is how can an $20.00 book with maybe 150 pages from the aftermarket compete with a genuine factory book that may have 1000 pages or more?? I know the effort that has gone into the original factory manuals because I wrote some of the GM service manual sections early in my career with GM.

So your the one!! :p:D

There is no substitute for the factory literature. (That's a sentence I use in my boilerplate for eBay auctions when I'm selling a factory manual.) However the small, simpler manuals often have BIG advantages over the factory book. For instance if all you need is the spark plug gap or coolent capacity, it can take 10-20 times more time to find it in a factory manual (even for a simple 1 volume chassis book like the 1967 Buick would have). Also, while I would agree the level of writing is highly variable, in general the aftermarket manuals are shorter and simpler and easier to follow in their instructions. They're also organized in a much more straightforward manner (almost always), and they (always) describe methods using tools the home mechanic would have on hand (avoiding procedures that require lifts and/or specialized shop equipment).

There is no way a Chilton or other book should be read as comprehensive care for any car. That's what the factory manual is for. The Chilton book will help, however, sometimes a great deal.

=================

Once again, I do not think Haynes ever made a manual that covers American cars before 1970, especially Buick. Haynes was originally a British publisher, and they have manuals for European cars that date back to 1945. However it wasn't until the 1970s that they infiltrated the American market, and then not really offering a wide range of books until the very late 1970s.

There are single-marque Chilton, Motor, and Clymer books from 1967. My experience has been that the Motor books are almost always the smallest/shortest/least helpful (unlike their big, multi-make books). Chilton books from that era can be just as cryptic, but are usually a little better. The Clymer books started off with a small (roughly 5x9") format, which were well done but brief. By the late 1960s they were making Haynes/Chilton sized books. Their coverage is spotty, usually only hitting the most popular cars. But I usually like their procedure write-ups the best.

Another really good book to find is the Intereurope series of manuals. These were (of course) only sold in Europe, but they also covered American cars that were commonly imported to Europe. It's not unheard of to find some pretty weird cars they covered. I once came accross an Intereurope manual for '65-'74 AMC Ambassadors!

If nothing else is available, the big books by Chilton & Motor multi-make books that cover all cars (split between domestic and import) are good to have. They are usually VERY cheap, because they're too heavy to mail economically and therefore don't sell on eBay much. Original 1967 or so era books aren't worth more than $10, and can often be found for $5. Earlier books are more.

Edited January 30, 2010 by Dave@Moon
can't type on this cheap keyboard!!!!! (see edit history)

[Larry Schramm]

Dave,

Yes I was one of those that put some of the GM Buick service manuals together in the 70's for about a year. For the amount of information, the original manuals cannot be beat. You are correct if you are just looking for a plug gap or something the smaller books are ok.

[Jim Rohn]

make him an offer, he will take less ...

[Ronabi]

Try this website www.faxonautoliterature.com

[Guest kurt a kalbach]

New to this site so please forgive the change in subject matter. Can anyone tell me where to find a Shop/technical manual for a 1936 ford truck? I have been everywhere...including Dearborn, MI...

[poci1957]

LeBaron Bonney Company - Antique Auto Upholstery appears to list manuals of every type

[Guest kurt a kalbach]

Poci,

THank you very much. I have been searching for months... You are a life saver..

[poci1957]

Great, happy to help, good luck, Todd