Bushwack Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 Unlike the 1988 Reatta where the fabric/materials used on the seats changed during the course of the MY, were there any changes made (materials or design of...whatever) during manufacturing for each of the '89, 90 & 91 MY (I am not referring to tranny/engine changes from one model year to the next)?I ask because I recently saw a 1990 convertible that had the frame supports (like a solid triangle) in the engine bay at each corner (like a '91) and not the two bars/supports as does any of my 1990s. FWIW, the manufacturing label on the drivers door had the date & year of 4/90. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Corvanti Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 i would think the most recognizable difference under the hood would be the lack of a teves brake system on the '91. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KDirk Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 This has come up before (have not yet engaged the search function to find the previous thread on it) and someone (maybe Barney?) had stated (or at least presumed, as I don't know if this change was officially documented) that this was a running change related to remediating the cowl shake issues of the 'verts. Apparently one of a number of measures that were employed at different points in production. I have no information on VIN cutoffs or any such details, but I know this has been addressed here within the last 12-18 months. Seems plausible enough that it would have been a running change as they probably didn't know there was a problem until partway into production of the convertible in 1990. FWIW, my 1995 Deville has similar stamped heavy steel triangular plates bolted in the front corners of the engine bay, and not tubular reinforcements as on many late 80's/early 90's GM vehicles. From my experience these seem much better for torsional rigidity than the tubular cross members, though I don't notice any problems on either of my coupes.KDirk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wws944 Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 ... I ask because I recently saw a 1990 convertible that had the frame supports (like a solid triangle) in the engine bay at each corner (like a '91) and not the two bars/supports as does any of my 1990s. FWIW, the manufacturing label on the drivers door had the date & year of 4/90.Interesting. My convertible was built after that, and has the usual bars for bracing.Other '90 differences: One I know is that they installed a headlight relay sometime mid-'90 to take the heavy electrical load off the headlight switch. It is located on the left side of the interior drivers side fuse box.Speaking of the braces, the one on the drivers side on '88s is round with a foam cover. Sometime mid-'89 they switched to the flattened tube with no foam like the '90s, and '91 coupes, have. I've seen '89s both ways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 (edited) Just off the top:88 - around 17xx suede bolsters replaced by leather- around 25xx - black steering wheel center replaced by gold- around 3xxx sunroof option added- around 38xx Teves rubber return replaced by steel89 - larger hood ornament- console switches reduced to two, trunk and gas in glovebox- electric latch removed from glove box- engine fan logic changed- rke added- windshield washer logic changed- driveshaft changes splines- whole engine mount system changed & added shock90 - whole dash changed- multifunction stalk has wiper/washer added- window switch moved to door- midyear dot markings added to headlight switch (same time as headlight relay addition ?)- console change- a/c compressor connector change (89?)91 - cupholder added- "L" engine- "E" trans- Bosch ABS- braces go to trianglesalso many many many small changes to engine and trans - see TSBs Edited October 12, 2012 by padgett (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushwack Posted October 12, 2012 Author Share Posted October 12, 2012 Just off the top:88 - around 17xx suede bolsters replaced by leather- around 25xx - black steering wheel center replaced by gold- around 3xxx sunroof option added- around 38xx Teves rubber return replaced by steel89 - larger hood ornament- console switches reduced to two, trunk and gas in glovebox- electric latch removed from glove box- engine fan logic changed- rke added- windshield washer logic changed- driveshaft changes splines- whole engine mount system changed & added shock90 - whole dash changed- multifunction stalk has wiper/washer added- window switch moved to door- midyear dot markings added to headlight switch (same time as headlight relay addition ?)- console change- a/c compressor connector change (89?)91 - cupholder added- "L" engine- "E" trans- Bosch ABS- braces go to trianglesalso many many many small changes to engine and trans - see TSBsSo for 1990, the only change during the model year was an added relay for the headlights? If that's confirmed, then how are those support braces explained (unless added on by an owner)?Barney....could they have been a BTO request? Were the same brackets used on the Riviera (or possibly an Olds) during 1989 or 1990? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney Eaton Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 Very good summary Padgett. You said the whole dash changed in 1990 and that included the airbag steering wheel. The engine compartment braces for convertibles only changed between 1990 and 1991. I don't believe any 1990 models were made with the triangle brace and wws944 confirms that. It would be difficult to add them to a 1990 model. If you get a chance to compare a 1990 and 1991 convertible, you will notice that at least 3 of the mounting studs are welded to the fender and the triangle drops over the studs then nuts are installed. Another thing you will notice ....each stud will have body color paint on the end because the studs were installed before the fender was painted, so the studs are also painted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeanR Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 This topic came up earlier this year and someone mentioned a running change with the driver side mirror electrical plug. If you search for that thread, there's other items mentioned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 This topic came up earlier this year and someone mentioned a running change with the driver side mirror electrical plug. If you search for that thread, there's other items mentioned.The 88 and 89s had the two plug model. 90 And 91 have the later 1 plug model.Sent from my mobile device using Forum Runner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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