natman92 Posted June 18, 2020 Share Posted June 18, 2020 Hey there. I'm certainly glad there's an active forum for these cars! I just yesterday bought a 90 reatta convertible with a very interesting color I haven't seen before. The person I bought it from told me only 80 had this color option, (though I can't really find any info online to confirm this). Even though cosmetically it looks good, I'm a bit weary about mechanical problems. I had to drive it about 400 miles home, and it was mostly smooth sailing. The last 50 miles, though, I started to notice the transmission not acting all that well. The transition from 2nd to 3rd, and 3rd to 4th (or OD) felt very delayed. I pulled off to check the fluid level, and it looked fine. The fluid didn't exactly look red and clean, but nothing alarming. I made it all the way home, though 3rd was getting progressively sketchy. Under hard acceleration it seems to slip quite badly until I ease off the throttle and allow it to catch up. It seems to take off in 1st with no issue. 4th (or OD) is also fine at high speeds. I had no issue holding 75-80 on the interstate bits. I'm wondering if anyone here thinks this might just be a "rebuild time" thing, or if it might be something I can do myself. I know there's a kick down cable on the throttle that can be adjusted, as well as the vacuum modulator. Though the fact it's slowly shifting and 2nd/3rd are mainly acting up tells me it's not a simple thing... Also was curious if the oil pressure gauge/sensors on these are iffy? At idle (whether cold or hot), it sits just one click above the "red zone". It only climbs about 2 clicks under driving rpms. I'm not hearing any rod knock or valve ticking from oil starvation, so I'm hoping it's a sensor issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney Eaton Posted June 18, 2020 Share Posted June 18, 2020 Black with red (Buick literature called it red but everyone know it is burgundy, especially after they made Flame Red available in 1991) was made in smaller numbers than the two other interior options. There were 307 black convertibles made in 1990. 172 had tan interior, 80 had grey, and 55 had red interior. Of the 55, 25 had the standard seats and 30 had the optional 16 way. 54 of the Black/red convertibles had a black top.... 1 had a white top. I suspect most had red pinstripe but there are no records on the 1990 for pinstripe. The Reatta rarely has transmission problems.......but it is a used car and who know how it was treated. The first thing I would try is a fluid and filter change. Drop the pan and what you find there may tell you if you have normal wear or a potential problem. I am a big fan of auxiliary transmission coolers.......so unless you live in the far north, I suggest adding a auxiliary cooler...heat kills transmissions. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 19, 2020 Author Share Posted June 19, 2020 (edited) Interesting. Thanks Barney! This one has the red 16 way seats, so that's neat to know. Also has the black top, which is in superb condition. It's not exactly a low mileage example, so at 175k ish, I wouldn't be too shocked if it needed a rebuild. I'm planning to drop it by my transmission shop and see what they might think. However I'm going to nab an oil pressure gauge and see if that's alright first. I'm not exactly wanting to dump 2k into a possible trans rebuild if the engine is going to need a bottom end (or more) rebuild too. Edited June 19, 2020 by natman92 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dship Posted June 19, 2020 Share Posted June 19, 2020 (edited) Oil pressure sender on the 3800 V6 tend to fail often. Doesn't mean that the actual pressure is bad, just the sender. In my experience with these trans with any mileage over 100k (yours has 175k), it tends to mean its time for a rebuild (although engines tend to last forever). I'd do what Barney suggests...do a flush/filter change, drop the pan for inspection before proceeding further, and install a trans cooler. Edited June 19, 2020 by dship (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
handmedownreatta Posted June 19, 2020 Share Posted June 19, 2020 2 minutes ago, dship said: Oil pressure switches on the 3800 V6 tend to fail often. Doesn't mean that the actual pressure is bad, just the switch. In my experience with these trans with any mileage over 100k (yours has 175k), it tends to mean its time for a rebuild (although engines tend to last forever). I'd do what Barney suggests...do a flush/filter change, drop the pan for inspection before proceeding further, and install a trans cooler. the factory trans cooler system from a 1992 up?riviera will mostly bolt on and look stock. ' 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 19, 2020 Author Share Posted June 19, 2020 Thanks dship. It's probably well overdue if 100k is the average. These must have different internals than the 4t60E. I have a 93 Regal with that version and I'm still on the original drivetrain at 414k miles (I have no idea how it's managed to last that long). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted June 19, 2020 Share Posted June 19, 2020 Well the '90 has the 4T60 with many updates (no E, that was 91). Agree would just change trans fluid and filter & check for debris. Black/red is a great combo if you like black cars. Good time to change everything and flush the brake system. (Dot 3 only). The GM oil pressure sensors fail so often that I just kept a spare around, is easy to swap one. Make sure you get one for the "C" engine and not the "L" 3800, is calibrated differently. BTW can read the sensed oil pressure using the built-in diagnostics. Is BD71. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 19, 2020 Author Share Posted June 19, 2020 Yes, I was just reading about the Teves system. I had no idea these weren't the standard vacuum style brake systems... Geeze. The more I'm reading about these quirky cars, the more that "buyer's remorse" is settling in. It's my fault for not reading more about them and impulse buying. My regal has also spoiled me, and I had assumed these were identical in their reliability and maintenance to be a nice little beater convertible. There's several little odds and ends it needs too that are probably going to nickle and dime me to death. I might try to drop the pan and check out the fluid/filter once I confirm the oil pressure is good. If I've actually got low pressure, along with this trans issue, I'm likely going to resell it (but actually mention the issues to the buyer, unlike the person I got it from). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buicknutty Posted June 19, 2020 Share Posted June 19, 2020 One needs to love these cars. The hard core stuff is reliable, but GM put everything they had in them, as befits a top of the line car. The Teves system mainly needs regular fluid changes, which are often not done as the car ages. Anyway, check your oil pressure, it might be good, and its' only the sender, then take it from there. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted June 19, 2020 Share Posted June 19, 2020 Where are you ? May be a fanatic close but doesn't look like Florida. Yes it is quirky but the drivetrain was used in millions of cars (a few here have even tossed in a L67) and near everything else was in the Riviera.. Look at Ronny's site and get a service manual. Most respond well to basic tools. Can guarantee whatever goes rong someone has already written the procedure to fix. I've had mine since 2001 and have no desire to sell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted June 19, 2020 Share Posted June 19, 2020 (edited) 23 minutes ago, natman92 said: I might try to drop the pan and check out the fluid/filter once I confirm the oil pressure is good. The good news is the oil pressure sending unit is easy to change and it's relatively inexpensive. You can change it without even crawling under the car from the passenger side. Be sure you get the correct sender and not an oil pressure switch. You might want to check out my website. It has a lot of How-to guides written by members of the forum. The How-to guides were written with new Reatta owners in mind. Edited June 19, 2020 by Ronnie (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 19, 2020 Author Share Posted June 19, 2020 (edited) I'm crossing my fingers that it's the sending unit. After I stopped for gas on the 400 mile journey and fired her up, the gauge maxed out and was blinking all over the place until it finally settled back to its 2 bar reading. It even dipped as low as 1 into the red zone when I put it in drive and the rpm's briefly dropped. I'm not hearing any knocks or starved valves, so fingers crossed. Also, dumb question, but is there a difference between a "switch" and "sender"? You mentioned not to get a switch, but that image you posted looks like what Advance Auto specifies as a "switch". https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/bwd-engine-oil-pressure-switch-s4151/18970294-P?searchTerm=oil pressure Just want to make sure I'm not getting the wrong thing. Also, I appreciate everyone's help! That website looks very handy for sure. Edit: It also seems to think the oil level is randomly low when there's clearly enough reading on the dipstick. Don't know if wonky pressure sensor and that are connected with one another... Edited June 19, 2020 by natman92 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney Eaton Posted June 19, 2020 Share Posted June 19, 2020 (edited) When you buy a vehicle with 175K miles, you should expect to spend some $$ on repairs that the previous owner needed done but sold it instead. Do as much yourself as you can instead of putting $$ in some incompetent mechanics pocket. Taking a vehicle to a transmission shop is like signing you life away....they are transmission shops because they like to replace transmissions. Edited June 19, 2020 by Barney Eaton (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 19, 2020 Author Share Posted June 19, 2020 4 minutes ago, Barney Eaton said: When you buy a vehicle with 175K miles, you should expect to spend some $$ on repairs that the previous owner needed done but sold it instead. Do as much yourself as you can instead of putting $$ in some incompetent mechanics pocket. That's my intention. I knew that getting into it would require a bit of money and love. It's a 30 year old car, and know it's not a showroom model anymore. Regardless, I can only do so much myself, and if worst case scenario it ends up requiring a full trans and engine rebuild, I have to throw the towel in at that stage. My first task is verifying if the oil pressure is okay. If it's within the right parameters, I'll then check out the transmission fluid/filter condition. Out of curiosity, I called a transmission shop earlier, and they quoted about 2k if it required a full rebuild. Though he said it may not actually need that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted June 19, 2020 Share Posted June 19, 2020 23 minutes ago, natman92 said: Also, dumb question, but is there a difference between a "switch" and "sender"? You mentioned not to get a switch, but that image you posted looks like what Advance Auto specifies as a "switch". An oil pressure switch has a set pressure that just turns on an idiot light when the pressure is too low. A sender sends a variable signal to display oil pressure on a gauge. They look completely different. The Advance part you linked to appears to be the correct part. I don't know they they call it a switch. When you change the sender be sure you don't try to tighten it using the black part or it will break. Turn it by the metal part on the bottom. 32 minutes ago, natman92 said: After I stopped for gas on the 400 mile journey and fired her up, the gauge maxed out and was blinking all over the place until it finally settled back to its 2 bar reading. It's common for a bad sender to max out when it fails so I'm certain your oil pressure problem is the sender. 32 minutes ago, natman92 said: Edit: It also seems to think the oil level is randomly low when there's clearly enough reading on the dipstick. Don't know if wonky pressure sensor and that are connected with one another... That problem might go away when you change the pressure sender. If it doesn't there is an oil level sensor in the oil pan that might be going bad or it could just be a bad connection. Another easy fix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted June 19, 2020 Share Posted June 19, 2020 14 minutes ago, natman92 said: I'll then check out the transmission fluid/filter condition. Out of curiosity, I called a transmission shop earlier, and they quoted about 2k if it required a full rebuild. Though he said it may not actually need that. Hopefully you won't need a transmission rebuild immediately. When you change the oil and filter look for metal or other parts in the pan. That will tell you a lot about the condition of the transmission. If everything looks good I suggest you put a new modulator valve on the transmission. Easy job and not expensive. The modulator is what determines how hard the transmission shifts. You can buy modulator valves that can be adjusted at most auto parts stores. Adjusting it to shift a little harder might help your slipping problem if it hasn't got too bad. Otherwise you are looking at needing some internal repairs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 19, 2020 Author Share Posted June 19, 2020 10 minutes ago, Ronnie said: Hopefully you won't need a transmission rebuild immediately. When you change the oil and filter look for metal or other parts in the pan. That will tell you a lot about the condition of the transmission. If everything looks good I suggest you put a new modulator valve on the transmission. Easy job and not expensive. The modulator is what determines how hard the transmission shifts. You can buy modulator valves that can be adjusted at most auto parts stores. Adjusting it to shift a little harder might help your slipping problem if it hasn't got too bad. Otherwise you are looking at needing some internal repairs. I'm probably going to just change that modulator out anyway. Looking at pictures, I can tell it's the original one and not the smaller, newer style. Heck, that might be the issue there... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted June 19, 2020 Share Posted June 19, 2020 Difference is that an oil pressure switch has two terminals. The gauge and switch combo has four teminals. Is an interlock with the fuel pump so if lose oil pressure, the switch part opens and the engine shuts down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Y-JobFan Posted June 19, 2020 Share Posted June 19, 2020 4 hours ago, Barney Eaton said: When you buy a vehicle with 175K miles, you should expect to spend some $$ on repairs that the previous owner needed done but sold it instead. Do as much yourself as you can instead of putting $$ in some incompetent mechanics pocket. Taking a vehicle to a transmission shop is like signing you life away....they are transmission shops because they like to replace transmissions. I was thinking the same thing, you can’t expect a 175k mile 30 year old car not to have some issues unless it was owned by someone that was fanatic about maintenance. I have never found the Reatta to be “quirky” most everything was state of the art when new but nothing other than maybe the CRT in the 88/89 could be considered out of the norm, the Teves system was used by high end cars at the time and that was a standard of the world for good brakes, and any issues now is usually caused poor maintenance on the system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 19, 2020 Author Share Posted June 19, 2020 Alright, so I went and grabbed an oil pressure tester just now, and am not getting great readings. Pretty sure my pressure sender was actually telling the truth. Cold idle I'm sitting at around 8-10 psi. If I get the rpms to about 2k or so, it'll climb to 30-35, which matches what my gauges were telling me. I've heard there is an oil pressure relief valve somewhere on these engines. I wonder if that might be the culprit... Really hoping so, because beyond that, I'm pretty sure it's bad news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted June 20, 2020 Share Posted June 20, 2020 That doesn't sound good. The service manual says oil pressure should be 40 psi with 5w-30 oil @1850 RPM when the engine is at operating temperature. I could probably live with the 35 psi but 8-10 psi at idle would worry me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 20, 2020 Author Share Posted June 20, 2020 1 hour ago, Ronnie said: That doesn't sound good. The service manual says oil pressure should be 40 psi with 5w-30 oil @1850 RPM when the engine is at operating temperature. I could probably live with the 35 psi but 8-10 psi at idle would worry me. Yes, and I'm beginning to hear a deep knock just at idle. It's not loud, but I can feel it in the gas pedal, so I'm not going to start it anymore until I can figure out what's up. Gonna have to drop BOTH pans and inspect for damage. It's so strange, because I can tell a lot of components have been taken care of. The brake system looks to have been redone at some point after I inspected it further. The brake fluid inside looked very clean too (including ALL other fluids in the car). The entire cooling system has been gone over, including rad and water pump.There's no gaskets I can see leaking, other than some mild seepage at the valve covers. Definitely doesn't leave any puddles. Cosmetically it's also in great condition, with a bunch of spare parts from a donor reatta in the trunk, including a digital cluster, rad fan, and some brake components. The last owner must've driven the absolute snot out of it or something, because it looks like he took meticulous care of it. At least way more than I do with my regal, which has made it over twice the mileage without any major repair or rebuild needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 20, 2020 Author Share Posted June 20, 2020 Also, Ronnie, I just noticed your location. I'm in east TN too, just up from Knoxville! Heck, if you're willing, I might pay you come by and look over this girl. Would love to get it actually road worthy, and you definitely know more than me on these. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted June 20, 2020 Share Posted June 20, 2020 The relief valve is in the oil filter housing. AFAIR four bolts and it's off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted June 20, 2020 Share Posted June 20, 2020 (edited) 1 hour ago, natman92 said: Yes, and I'm beginning to hear a deep knock just at idle. It's not loud, but I can feel it in the gas pedal, so I'm not going to start it anymore until I can figure out what's up. A sound like that at idle makes me think you might have a main bearing that is bad. I would describe a main bearing sound as being like a deep thud at idle where a rod bearing knocking would sound a lot like bumping two wooden blocks together when the engine is about 2000 RPM and you vary it up and down a few hundred RPM. On a Reatta it is pretty easy to pull the oil pan off and have a look. 1 hour ago, natman92 said: Ronnie, I just noticed your location. I'm in east TN too, just up from Knoxville! Heck, if you're willing, I might pay you come by and look over this girl. If you are hearing a knock there isn't much I could do for you other than giving you my opinion... which is what I just did based on what you said you are hearing. The pan is going to have to come off if it's knocking. Due to health issues and age I rarely do anything that requires crawling around under the car anymore even on my own cars. Where in the Knoxville area are you located? I live in Kingston. Edited June 20, 2020 by Ronnie (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 20, 2020 Author Share Posted June 20, 2020 20 minutes ago, Ronnie said: A sound like that at idle makes me think you might have a main bearing that is bad. I would describe a main bearing sound as being like a deep thud at idle where a rod bearing knocking would sound a lot like bumping two wooden blocks together when the engine is about 2000 RPM and you vary it up and down a few hundred RPM. On a Reatta it is pretty easy to pull the oil pan off and have a look. Yes, I'm planning to take that and the trans pan off this upcoming monday to have a look inside. It's definitely a deep thud sound only at idle. Doesn't pop up at higher RPMs, nor do I hear any valve/top end ticking. 22 minutes ago, Ronnie said: If you are hearing a knock there isn't much I could do for you other than giving you my opinion... which is what I just did based on what you said you are hearing. The pan is going to have to come off if it's knocking. Due to health issues and age I rarely do anything that requires crawling around under the car anymore even on my own cars. Where in the Knoxville area are you located? I live in Kingston. Ah, I was up in Kingston just last week. I'm just east of the city, Strawberry Plains area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted June 20, 2020 Share Posted June 20, 2020 BTW a bad balancer can have a knock at idle... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted June 20, 2020 Share Posted June 20, 2020 10 minutes ago, padgett said: BTW a bad balancer can have a knock at idle... Good point.The balancer can make a knocking noise when it goes bad but I have never heard of it causing oil pressure problems. It would be a good idea to remove the drive belt to see if the sound changes or goes away before pulling the oil pan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 27, 2020 Author Share Posted June 27, 2020 Hey, back again. So I finally had a good chance today to check the oil pressure relief valve, and it seemed to operate as it should. The piston wasn't stuck, and there was plenty of "spring" left in the spring. The harmonic balancer also looked fine, so I decided to drop the oil pan. Unfortunately it's not looking all that good. I actually took a short 2 minute video so you can see everything. There seems to be play in the some of the connecting rods and gunk in the bottom of the pan, so I have a feeling I'm going to need a rebuild on the bottom end now... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted June 27, 2020 Share Posted June 27, 2020 Well the crank is probably well polished so I'd just replace the rod and main bearings unless you see some other leaks. Can do it without dropping the crank just plastigauge some journals to see what size bearings you need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted June 27, 2020 Share Posted June 27, 2020 I noticed in your video that you said this is the first time you've had an oil pan off. You might want to get the opinion of someone with more experience before deciding to remove rod caps or dig in any deeper. You might save yourself some headaches and money in the long run even if you have to pay someone to do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 27, 2020 Author Share Posted June 27, 2020 12 minutes ago, Ronnie said: I noticed in your video that you said this is the first time you've had an oil pan off. You might want to get the opinion of someone with more experience before deciding to remove rod caps or dig in any deeper. You might save yourself some headaches and money in the long run even if you have to pay someone to do that. Yes, I considered just doing that. I've done head/intake gaskets and a bunch of top end engine work, but never really messed with bottom end repairs before. Also throwing around the idea of just having a reman long block swapped in. I'd have some peace of mind if I know the whole block is redone. I can have a shop do these bearings, but there's still almost 200k miles worth of wear on the rest of the engine. I'll call some of my mechanics this upcoming monday and see what they'll quote me on the bearings. If it's cheap enough I'll try that and see how far I can get. However if it's up there in cost and I can just spend a bit extra and get an entire refreshed engine, I might as well just go that route. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Y-JobFan Posted June 27, 2020 Share Posted June 27, 2020 To me that’s throwing good money away, for what it’s gonna cost you to repair that engine you’re still gonna have a basically worn out Reatta, I have had a couple high mileage ones and low mileage ones and you would be amazed at the difference in driving one versus the other and both the high mileage ones had had excellent care and service. It sounds like maybe you should cut your losses and sell that one and take the money that you’re going to dump into it and buy a nicer one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney Eaton Posted June 27, 2020 Share Posted June 27, 2020 Side play is not a big issue. There is no way of inspecting the crank without removing the caps.... since you have the pan off, you might pull one just to see the condition of the surface, but that will only be one of 6. I think I would reinstall the pan and run heavier oil. I did not see where you gave us the mileage on the car......... I am also a big fan of synthetic oil, that might make it last longer if there is actually some slop in the rods. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted June 27, 2020 Share Posted June 27, 2020 (edited) I'd run a magnet through the pan and see what sticks. Also as I mentions, plastigauge a few journals. Flywheel end is furthest from the il pump. And the cam bearings get oil first and can wear out. Don't think 88 but some 89 3800s had weak cams. Finally for a worn engine I'd consider 10w-40 or even 10w-50 in a synthetic but that is a kludge and mainly to see if it makes a difference. I didn't see anything really bad in the video but need to look at some bearing surfaces. While condition is everything" what wears is the driveline , suspension, AC, and interior. For the rest you seem to have a very nice car & cosmetics are good. Any rust around the wheelwells ? (I always check underneath a car more than on top. Suspension bushings , tie rods, and wheel bearings can make all the difference but unlike some cars most parts for the Reatta are both common and inexpensive. Even the windshield appears available (of course in Florida if you have comprehensive, a broken windshield is a freebie). Realize that my situation is different, can fix or repair anything (though do farm out some things. Final note: if you do go "rebuilt" then make sure an engine or trans has all of the TSBs to 1990 pulled. There were a lot and particularly for the trans. Best were the F7 (44T4/4T60 for Caddy) and the 4T60 for the '90 turbo Grand Prix had "more". Edited June 27, 2020 by padgett (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natman92 Posted June 28, 2020 Author Share Posted June 28, 2020 15 hours ago, Barney Eaton said: I think I would reinstall the pan and run heavier oil. I did not see where you gave us the mileage on the car. I did an oil change and ran 10w40 for a day or two prior to dropping the pan. I also put in some Lucas oil stabilizer, but it didn't seem to have any effect on the pressure. The car/engine has nearly 200k on it. 16 hours ago, Y-JobFan said: To me that’s throwing good money away, for what it’s gonna cost you to repair that engine you’re still gonna have a basically worn out Reatta I'm able to get a reman longblock for about 1500, and a trans for roughly the same cost, and even cheaper at some other shops. I know a friend who is able to pull engines, and if I can work with them to just completely redo the drivetrain, I can have a fully "refreshed" Reatta for under 5k. I don't think I'm going to find a better deal even buying a pampered example. Cosmetically, mine is in great condition, as well as the body (no rust I can find). The top is brand spanking new, and the paint is spotless (save for some light fade on the trunk lid). It's just the drivetrain that unfortunately took a complete nosedive... 15 hours ago, padgett said: Also as I mentions, plastigauge a few journals. Flywheel end is furthest from the il pump. And the cam bearings get oil first and can wear out. Don't think 88 but some 89 3800s had weak cams. Finally for a worn engine I'd consider 10w-40 or even 10w-50 in a synthetic but that is a kludge and mainly to see if it makes a difference. I didn't see anything really bad in the video but need to look at some bearing surfaces. I've done some more reading and might do that. If not, I'll have a more knowledgeable friend check the tolerances of those crank journals. If I can get away with swapping the bearings and keeping the crank if it's in good shape, I'm happy to go that route and save the money if the engine can be saved. If not, I'll likely just get an entire reman unit and play it safe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney Eaton Posted June 28, 2020 Share Posted June 28, 2020 Now that we know the engine has 200K.........the answers may be different. I would install the pan, fresh oil and drive the car......... learn if there are any other problems that need $$ before doing anything with the engine. Seems you like the car........and are faced with maybe $3000 for a engine and transmission. I would take the $3000 and what you can sell this car for and look for a lower mileage Reatta.........there are some real deals out there. 70K coupes for $5000 Do a little research......if you live in the rust belt, look for a car that has lived in the south and has never seen salt. The other good option is a low mileage used engine. There have been hundreds of thousands of the 3800 made between 1988 and 1990.....a little research and you could probably find a 50-80K engine for $400 or less, there would be labor to install. You could go with a later series II engine but some electrical changes would be necessary.......and if you were going that route, do the 3800 supercharged conversion and have a super upgrade 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted June 28, 2020 Share Posted June 28, 2020 (edited) 9 hours ago, natman92 said: I'm able to get a reman longblock for about 1500, and a trans for roughly the same cost, and even cheaper at some other shops. I know a friend who is able to pull engines, and if I can work with them to just completely redo the drivetrain, I can have a fully "refreshed" Reatta for under 5k. I don't think I'm going to find a better deal even buying a pampered example. Cosmetically, mine is in great condition, as well as the body (no rust I can find). The top is brand spanking new, and the paint is spotless (save for some light fade on the trunk lid). It's just the drivetrain that unfortunately took a complete nosedive... I'm going to be honest with you. I would not for a minute consider spending that kind of money on a 200,000 mile Reatta no matter how nice it is. Spending $1000 for a used engine and transmission purchased as a unit makes a lot more sense. Just drop it in and go. As Barney said, good 3800 engines are plentiful and so are transmissions. If you find that you don't need a transmission you could just pull the engine out and put a crankshaft kit in it that includes a reman crankshaft and the proper bearings. If at all possible that is the way I would go if it was my car. For about 250-300 bucks, including gaskets and timing chain, you could be back in business. Labor would be extra if you can't do the work yourself but that is still pretty cheap. You can try replacing just the crankshaft bearing but the odds of the journals being in good condition are pretty slim if you have driven around with a rod knocking. Or a knocking main bearing for that matter. Put new bearings on a rough crank and they won't last 500 miles before you will hear the knock again. No matter which route you go the car won't be worth much more that it was before it started knocking. That is just the way it is with owning a high mileage Reatta. (Ask me how I know). As every one that has been here for a long time knows, if you put a lot of money in a high mileage Reatta you are going to have to drive that money out of it. Don't expect to recoup the $3000 you put into a 200k Reatta if you decide to sell no matter how nice it is. People spending that kind of money are going to be looking for a low mileage car. As far as being "refreshed"... at 200k there are so many other things that can go wrong that it can keep you busy working on it even if you have a new engine and tranny so don't let a new engine give you a false sense of security. I'm a mechanic/machinist and I try to keep my Reatta in good condition but I still carry a large toolset and a lot of spare parts in my car just in case. Edited June 28, 2020 by Ronnie (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2seater Posted June 28, 2020 Share Posted June 28, 2020 You mentioned doing top end stuff, gaskets and things like that, but was the front of the engine opened up for things like a timing chain set, cam magnet, water pump etc.,.? I know Padgett has mentioned having an engine spit a cam bearing out, and while I have not had that happen, I did have a front cam bearing worn excessively from a failure of the chain tensioner. It was a replacement tensioner that wore through on one side causing the chain to run with a twist causing wear and falling oil pressure. The first place the oil goes is to to front cam bearing where it splits into the two oil galleries for the lifters and bearing passages. I agree with all the previous observations regarding the pan and oil etc. the only thing I would add is the oil didn’t look too pristine for a recent oil change. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted June 28, 2020 Share Posted June 28, 2020 Was a 90 Bonnie I had that spit the cam bearing and oil pressure went to zilch. Bought a "low milage" long block for $450 and rebuilt it in the garage (when I did the bit about opening up the exhaust manifold outlet) - at one time most of my cars had 3800s - ran great for about 50K miles until sold (and zero rust). At the time cam bearing were not available, may be now. Have had a spare 88 3800/transaxle in the back garage, know within about 5 feet where it is. It is good to have spares. If that is all that is wrong with it, it is a simple job with a helper (hard for one person to pull the hood). Helps to have about 4 feet of extensions for the one transaxle bolt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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