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What did you do to your Reatta today? <ongoing thread>


SeanR

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Got the Reatta on my friends lift finally. Today we changed the power steering sensor old one was leaking. Also put side molding on drivers side (thank you Jim Finn). Changed out the dog bone motor mount. Finally new upper strut mount on pass side. Have been stocking up on needed parts more to do but a good start.

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A client of mine gave me a referral yesterday. So I called the guy [referral]. Turns out he owns a small business called "The Kaukauna Motor Car Company". At one time it used to be a small car dealership, but now this guy just does repairs. However he has a small display area and shows one of his three cars on a rotating basis.

 They are; Pontiac Grand Prix, Pontiac Fiero, and a Buick Reatta.

 He wanted to give me directions but I knew right away where he was as I had passed the place numerous times but never stopped in.

 Hopefully his Reatta will be on "display" when I get there on Monday...

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First post here. Today I got my '88's fitness certificate and emissions test pass. It's finally licensed and (almost) road ready. One of the new brake calipers my mechanic ordered was faulty so it looks like it will be a day or two longer before I get to drive it home. Early this morning I heard it running smoothly for the first time. The shop replaced the coil pack and ICM. Even with 150,000 miles on it, it's smooth and quiet. Now all I have to do on my own is to figure out how to get the dash to stay 'live'. It's a loose connection somewhere but now I have time to figure out which one and where it is. 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Had an upper radiator hose filure/rupture last night on my way home. Went about 3 miles with the red warning light on. Swapped out the hose this morning [had inventory from that Reata owner I knew in Indianapolis, otherwise where would I get a hose today?] and refilled the antifreeze. Also changed the oil. 

 Too much to do on Thanksgiving. Done now for today.

 Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

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My son actually got pulled by a cop a while ago because his license plate lights were "too bright" and the light was reflecting off the license plate and "blinding" the cop.  Sounds like a fishing expedition to me, especially since it was about 2am.  He was released with no action.

I know they are correct oem bulbs because I changed them when I swapped the lenses last year. 

I'm guessing today's license plates have a much more reflective coating on them than the ones in 1990 did or DOT would not have approved the bulbs and fixtures.

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  • 2 weeks later...

We are getting close to 50 degrees today so I thought I would clean the the heater core fins. When I got down the car ran real rough. Checked for spark [good] checked the wires, vaccum tubes, swapped out the fuel pump relay still ran rough.

 Then I get my spark tester and check the plug wires at the coil pack everything good. Called my mechanic buddy up and he told me to fire it up and when he heard it run said "Replace the Ignition Module". So down to the basement and there is one waiting for me. Grabbed it and back to the car and 10 minutes later we have it swapped out and we are ready to start the car.

 Hit the ignition and car fires up and runs as smooth as glass.

 Good to go.

 Now I have another reason to go back to Gibson's... 

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Decided to bypass Gibson's in regards to the ignition control module. Gibson's wants $25.00 for one [and I pull it] or I could go to a full service yard I sometimes deal with and pay $30.00 and it is waiting for me on the counter when I get there.

 This one is off a 2006 Pontiac and according to the book will work as it should. Also has a 6 month warranty. I will install it on Wednesday and then put the Magnavox back in parts storage to await interim use when I have my next failure. 

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Swapped out the mounting plate and out to install it. Weather is great, we could hit 50 degrees today, so I will wash the car as well.

 This has been a beautiful fall this year, probably the best I can ever remember [i am 59 next week].

 

Good to hear you are having nice weather. Looks like a great weekend coming up to drive the Reatta here. The rest of this week looks really nice.

  • 56° -- 43° Today
  • 61° -- 46° Tomorrow
  • 66° -- 55° Friday
  • 69° -- 50° Saturday
  • 71° -- 54° Sunday
Edited by Ronnie (see edit history)
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Heh, we are getting 60's in STL with a projected high of 72 Saturday. This in the second week of December no less. I need to slap a Delco iginiton on the scrub 88 as I think the Magnavox is exhibiting early signs of failure with uneven idle and periodic stalls. Of course, there are a half a dozen other things that could be causing that but the ICM needs replacement with a Delco setup anyway as I don't much care for the Magnavox with its lesser track record.

KDirk

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Got the swap done and took it for a drive. All is good, however for a week or so I will carry the Magnavox in my trunk as a ready spare. I am driving 200 miles or more when I go out on appointments and want to be sure this Delco unit is a "keeper" before I put the Magnavox in back stock.

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  • 2 weeks later...

 Tomorrow [Christmas Day] while waiting for the kids to show up I waill swap another Delco unit in to be sure that I have yet another tested unit ready to go.

 

 BTW you know you are getting old [turned 59 last week] when some of my clients are younger then my Reatta!

 Which I use as "daily work cars" for sales appointments...

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Don't know why I waited so long, but this morning before shoveling out my driveway of 13" of snow, changed the oil and put on my snow tires. I usually don't procrastinate but I did today. Should have done it yesterday when the weather was nicer 35-40 degrees.

 Saw a lot of cars stuck, but I went through it all!

 Reattas are great snow cars!

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Thinkng I should get some snow tires. What brand/type are you running Dave? I have a crappy set of 15" stock rims I could put some on and run them on the scrub 88 for the winter. Of course, I still need to get it running right (another story).

Did some interior cleaning on the good 88 today, was looking a bit shabby. Next is to get it in for detailing and use the gift certificates I got for Christmas.

KDirk

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I am using General Altimax however on my next set I may go with Blizzeks. My wife had a set on her Chrysler 300 and they really were great in the snow. I believe they wear faster then the Generals. My wife didn't like them because they were loud, so I bought her new all season tires and then sold the Blizzeks to my neighbor who loves them.

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It has been ininteresting week in regards to Reattas this week. My Pewter Reatta arrived Monday via USPS. I thought it was quick service coming from New Jersy to Wisconsin as I bought it last Thursday and it was shipped on Friday. While the PO did a good job wrapping it the box he put the car and the base in was too large and there was room for the two pieces to "knock" against each other. The base was fine, but the car while not having the finish damaged the roof was pushed down in front and a little askew to one side. It was hardly noticeable but I knew it was there. My wife advised leaving it alone but what does she know?

 So the adventure begins.

 I went over to where my buddy works as a machinist and showed him the issue I was having. He works with metal all the time and thought he could repair it easily as Pewter is a soft metal and redoing the roof should be fairly easy. So on his free time he cut some small wood strips to lay in the roof [car was upside down] and he used the wood strips to manipulate the metal back to "true". To protect the finish he taped both the hood and trunk lids.

 Everything went as planned except that because the metal is so soft the wood strips still marred the finish [on the hood, the trunk was fine] through the tape. He stopped, called me, explained what had happened and said that if I was OK with this he would try redoing the finish.

 As I had approached him to do this, [he didn't volunteer, who would] I told him to go ahead and don't worry about the consequences. So he tried a finely machined round shaft, using it like a roller pin [like one would use rolling out flour]. I am looking at it now within 18" and the Pewter "texture" is the same as the rest of the car and all the detail is still there [the Reatta emblem, cut out for the headlight, and the lines that go from the front of the hood to the back]. The damage must have been in the center area on the hood near to the dash.

 At any rate the car once again looks great and the roof is back in line with the rest of the car.

Edited by DAVES89 (see edit history)
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When I dropped off the car for him to work on I also had an issue with one of my back up headlight motors. The "Crank" was all stripped out and would just spin freely on the motor shaft. So keeping with my idea of always being ready when a failure might occur, I tried removing the nut from the shaft. I was holding the motor with my left hand and using a 1/4" drive socket but still twisted off the nut. So I asked him if he could drill out the shaft and then tap it so I could use a bolt. 

 This he did. I now am using a 6mm bolt [10mm head] which makes everything still uniform [because the nuts on the motor shaft holding down the crank are also 10mm] using the same wrench.

 All 3 of my back up motors have been rebuilt with new rollers and I have an equal amount of cranks to use as well.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Just got back from my Buddy's house from doing front brakes. Thought it would just be a "pad swap". [Had the pads in back stock/close out from Rock Auto] Turns out the plunger on both calipers that push the pads in were bad. They retracted very hard back into the housing. And because of that the rotors were bad. So off to O'Reilly's for calipers and rotors back to my house for front brake lines [also bought from Rock Auto close outs] and 45 minutes later brakes were done. 

 Glad I was at my buddy's garage as it is heated and another hand is always helpful/appreciated.

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  • 2 weeks later...

My Truck-Lite LED lights started to flicker and I thought I would check out the relays in the aftermarket harness. Turns out the low beam side relay was bad so I decided to just swap out both of them. Hopefully that will fix the flicker. Only hard part of the deal was standing out in the cold on an overcast day swapping parts.

 I wish spring was here...

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Sun was out and close to 40. So I washed the Black. Sure felt like spring, however Tuesday we are going to get snow and lots of it. Somewhere between 7-12" depending on how it tracks. I have appointments on Monday, but no more until Thursday so it should look good until I head out then.

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Had great weather here yesterday so I began to tackle the job of swapping out the rear end assembly from my 88. When I drove over bumps or holes in the road it made a loud clunking noise. I thought it was the rear struts. Turns out the noise was the strut top bouncing off of the inner fender. I got the old unit out and it had rotted so bad at the mounting area on the drivers side that it was not being held in place at all. It was beginning to show some signs of rot on the passenger side also. Now I need warmer weather (as my garage is not heated) so I can swap out my newer brakes and clean up the replacement assembly so I can start going back together. I will also clean up the undercarriage whilst I have it wide open. I will also be replacing the gas tank straps. It looks like the previous owner has already made a repair to the strap by doubling up and bolting another strip of metal onto the strap.

Edited by fordrodsteven (see edit history)
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Had a strong gas fume odor that we were having a very dificult time finding. Finally found that the Fuel Tank Vapor Line was pulling off of the fitting of the Carbon Canister under the hood up front in the corner on the driver's side [difficult to see in that is under several parts]. Renewed the end of the Line and rerouted it to ensure it would not pull off. No fumes!

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  • 2 weeks later...

About 2 months ago I had the lower hose burst on my Black. However I still had a bit of a leak and borrowed my buddy's pressure tester. Turns out I also had a gasket leak on the side tank. So yesterday  swapped out the radiator and now no leaks. Looks good.

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  • 1 month later...

Got totally anal yesterday. Don't know what to call these, but when the trunk lid is raised the drip channel ( where my trunk lid seal runs)  was full of mung. Got out a toothbrush, sprayed degreaser along the channel and scrubbed away. No rust at all, but now I feel the need to clear coat the freshened channel. All of this because, I am in the process of polishing rear bumper and spotting in some top coat on flakey areas of the panels. I recently discovered how to use top coat blender and the results are nice. That is definitely obsessive behavior. ;)

 

BTW, the bumper polishing is turning out well.

1. Took the anodizing off with a DA and #600 paper.

2. Hand sanded with 800/1000/1200/1500

3. Used an angle head die grinder with a small diameter buff wheel attached and white   rouge.

4. Hand polished with Wenol polish

5. It will be clear coated today.

6.Probably need to gloss paint the bumper black trim.

 

Didn't even remove the bumper

 

 

Edited by waltmail (see edit history)
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Installed my modified '89 salvage yard engine for the second time. This time around the block was decked .020" and in conjunction with the previously installed L27 pistons, piston to head clearance reduced to .035" for a true 9.54:1 compression ratio. Experimental Singh grooves in the heads and piston offset reversed. Aluminum L27 TPI intake manifold, modified to include an EGR system. This still includes the low boost turbocharger fed from the front manifold only.

 

This engine was previously rebuilt/modified in the early 2000's. The reason it was pulled after 38k miles due to dropping oil pressure. I found the Cloyes replacement timing chain and the new style chain damper were a poor combination. The chain design is not as even on the top surface as the stock Morse chain and the new style damper is relieved underneath so as soon as the chain wears into it, the chain tilts/twists placing additional tension on the front cam bearing. JMO

 

DSC01159.JPG

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