1964 LeSabre what to do?!?!

[Buttons]

My family has been in possesion of an old 1964 LeSabre with a wildcat engine in it for many years. It has sat in the driveway for at least 10. I want to get this car up and running again as efficiently as possible. What do I need and how much would I be looking at in expenditures? Also what would it take to make it fast?

[Guest brh]

Well lets cover one base at a time. If the car has been sitting all this time the first thing is to see if she will run. Your expenses will be directly proportional to how much time you are going to put in it. For an engine sitting that length of time, pull the plugs and squirt some oil in each cyl. Purchase a good fire extiguisher and keep it handy. Pull the coil wire, and remove the gas line to the carb, put it into a gas can. Drain oil and replace filter, fill to specs. Crank the engine until the idiot light goes out. Do not grind the starter. Drain all gas out and fill with new, you may have to have the carb rebuilt and the tank cleaned. Replace plugs and put coil wire back on. See if she starts. As you can see there is a lot to go through but if you view each system on its own you can get the car back to "road worthy condition". Its a long road and I don't know what you want to accomplish. If you want to go fast you may want to replace the engine, therefore going through all of this is not necessary. Give us a direction and we will all be happy to get another Buick back on the road.

[Buttons]

My very first priority right now is to get the buick moved to where I am living presently, then I would like to get everything under the hood to look and run like new (or as close as possible). I will confront the public appearance part later after I have straightened out the actual mechanics. Only trouble is I don't know the mechanics involved or the tools I need. I dont know how plausible it is to make a LeSabre go fast, but either way it comes second to fixing the entire vehicle, and the original engine as a part of that. So what I really wanted to know is what I need to check for, how to do so, and how to fix it. I really appreciate your helpful information, and I am going to apply it hopefully when I go to get it this weekend. I will in fact go and buy what I can in the way of oil and the oil filter. Exactly what else will I need to do this? (and yes I am <span style="font-weight: bold">VERY</span> new to this, but that does not mean that I'm not determined to go all the way with this.) Thank you yet again for the information, and your very kind advice. -Buttons

[JohnD1956]

Great information from Bruce, but a few more things. 10 years outside (in what climate?) may result in need for further inspection before trying to even turn it over.

I would check the oil dipstick to see if there is evidence of water in the oil. This would be readily evident. No so obvious would be checking the radiator for evidence of oil in the water. You could have black engine oil or red transmission fluid, but hopefully you just have antifreeze. Bring a clean wooden paint stirrer and dip that into the radiator top. When you pull it out, any of the three situations will also be readilly evident.

Also buy a can of power steering fluid. after ten years, the steering seals may have dried out and leaked. No point in cranking anything over with a dry powersteering pump. If it did leak, don't panic. It may reseal itself with some regular weekly use. Avoid any tranny sealer or power steering fluid sealer till it is absolutely necessary to use the same. These usually work by breaking down the seals causing them to swell up and eventually fail again. Mostly some regular use will cause these to reseat and you'll be okay.

Get a battery known to be good. I would try a junkyard and note you need a top post battery, no side mounts. No point buying a new battery till you know things are okay. Also buy a terminal post cleaner. Just get a cheap one, but the battery terminals ( and the battery cables) should be cleaned before trying to crank it over.

Bring a wire brush and a feeler guage for the plugs. When you pull them to put the oil in the cylinders, brush the gap area and regap before re-installation. Clean plugs will fire hotter and better. By the way, you'll need a "slim walled 13/16th deep socket to get those plugs out. The Buicks were kinda tight in this area. Standard spark plug sockets sometimes do not fit in deep enough to get to the base of the plug. I personally would just buy a set of new plugs especially if you intend to keep the engine.

Bring starting fluid. But don't use it unless absolutely necessary. After this amount of time, the choke may not work and the fuel pump could be weak or deteriorated inside. If you are serious about this car, then I would disconnect the fuel pump lines from the pump. I'm talking about the supply side. The gas in the car has to be questionable, and there is no point in pumping that into the carb.

After you follow Bruces advise, then I would prime the carb with fresh fuel before trying to start it. If it doesn't start then you try a shot of the starting fluid. But take the time to try these steps first. I think you're really better off without the starting fluid, unless absolutely necessary.

I don't know how far you plan to drive the car once it's running. So here a few more things to check ( while the oil is in the cylinders and before you try to start it). Check to see if you have sufficient brake fluid. Bring a small can of Dot 3 type with you. Make sure you have some water jugs incase of external leakage. If you're not going far, try not to move or disturb any heater hoses. Dryrot and calcification may cause them to be brittle and break.

If you're serious about restoring this car, [color:\\"red\\"] tow it home. It will be much cheaper to rent a U haul truck and trailer than to pay off all the legal fees and damages if this thing craps out on you in the middle of your trip.

Then you also won't have to buy so much stuff and remember to bring it all with you, plus you won't be pressed for time and tempted to take a shortcut.

John D

[Buttons]

Well I was not planning on driving the car to my location but using a flatbed truck. It is midwest, St. Louie to be exact. Missouri can be a little humid. All four tires are flat as a side note and another reason I don't plan on driving it just yet. I may have made that mistake though. Do I need to check all of this before towing it?

[Gene Brink]

Not necessary to do anything if you are going to flatbed it but so you can jump right in I'd suggest you pull the plugs and put some oil in each cylinder so it can be soaking things while you truck it home. That way it will be ready for you to "jump in" as you say. Good luck.

[Buttons]

Thank you much I will start my new hobby soon and hopefully i wont somehow manage to blow myself up!

soon i'll be asking how much i'll end up spending on this car, not yet though...... thanks once more.

[imported_48Rdmstr68Skylrk]

Hey, good luck bringing the car home. Keep us informed on how things went for you. Us old guys were once in your shoes, not sure what to do and the like. But you seem to be doing things right. You just have to get your head under the hood and "just do it". Before you drive it, be sure to check the brake lines under the car, especially the rubber flex lines at each wheel. Good luck.

[Guest trevor ward]

Hi Buttons.....

Nice to see another '64 owner come on board

Hope the tow home goes OK, and i wonder what sort of

body you have on her??? hardtop?? pillar??

and what size motor have you got under the hood???

Also i wonder if you are able to post any pics???

we all look forward to more posts on the progress

TREVOR.... '64 le Sabre.....

[Buttons]

I have pictures on my computer and I was actually trying to post one of underhood conditions, but the file size is too big. I dont exactly know what kind of body a pillar is but to the best of my memory it is a hardtop. I know that this car is a boat but is there a fairly easy way to make it faster? Even though its not first on my priority list it could be some handy info....

-Thanks for all the support! I'll post again once i've moved it and tell you how it all goes. -Buttons

[Centurion]

Buttons, you may be surprised by the performance of the old LeSabre. Be careful not to assume that the Buick is a slouch. Just because these cars were large doesn't mean that they can't perform! Once the car is running well and you can provide us with additional information, we can provide some input on performance enhancements if that's the direction you want to take.

[Smartin]

What part of St. Louis are you in??

[Buttons]

Well at first I was of the impression that it would be fast, and then a friend of mine said they were boats and would need almost 900 horses not to be a joke. I said I was going to fix it up anyways and then see what can be made of it besides the classic car shows. I'm glad to know that it's not out of reach to get this thing going. I live in Ballwin MO. right now, but Bessie (LeSabre) is being towed to my place tomorrow all the way from my grandparents in Bellfountain neighbors. Perhaps you could lend me a hint as to where all the Buick guys are around here and where the common meeting places are Smartin. All the car fanatics that I know of are VW fans and Hondas. I thought I was the only guy around driving an american car for a while, and I thought I'd be the only guy that would try to get serious about them as well. -Buttons

[Smartin]

Button, join the BCA!! The local chapter page is here:

www.gatewaybca.org

there aren't too many big events this year left, but there is a show tomorrow on Main St. in St. Charles - Oktoberfest show. I, and some other Buick club members will be there!!

If you decide to come out, we'd love to meet ya.

Here's my cell if you want to meet up.

314-713-1262

[Buttons]

I got it over here finally... I set to work replacing the flat(dry rot) with a spare (soon to be) and I also went ahead and changed the Oil. I'm planning on getting the old gas out but I dont know the best way. The engine is a 310 wildcat for sure now, and i dont know what that means in the ways of performance (if you could tell me it would be appreciated). Ive got the carb. exposed. What do I try next to get the thing to run?

[Smartin]

The 310 is actually the "torque" spec on the motor, not the cubic inches. It's a 300ci motor.

After sitting for over 10 years, I guarantee a carb rebuild is in its near future. All rubber hoses and lines will need to be replaced. Flush the cooling system. Remove the spark plugs and check the condition of them. Replace them, too. Squirt some penetrating oil in the cylinders while the spark plugs are out. Try to get a look inside the cylinders with a flashlight. If the walls are really rusty, you're outta luck. And if you try to start the motor with rusted cylinders, you're going to trash it. Either that, or it's seized. Hopefully it's neither, and you can turn the engine over without scoring the cylinder walls.

Replace all the easy tune up stuff - plugs, wires, filters, belts, distributor cap, rotor, points...

[Guest brh]

That little 300 will probably surprise you. In 65 Buick offered 2 versions of the 300 a 2barrel and 4 barrel high compression I think they did the same in 64. I got surprised on my Skylark as I thought this engine would be a real dog. Boy was I wrong. I have the "355" which is the high performance along with a limited slip differential. At about 40mph if ya put it to the wood, there is not much that keeps up. On the brakes, make sure you replace the small metal lines too, mine blew but the rubber held just fine.

[Buttons]

Okay here is what I've done so far... I replaced the flat with a spare, Did some grinding to eliminate rust and then primed, I am having difficulty removing the chrome, I want to re-chrome that eventually how do i get them off?

Under the hood so far I have replaced the battery, changed out spark plugs, oiled the cylinders, and put in new ones. Ive also put in new boots for the plugs. I have added a new rotor and Im having a heck of a time trying to put a new distributor cap on, What is the tactic here? (after putting in a couple new plugs I sprayed some carb cleaner and some starter fluid into the carburator and tried to start it and it went for a second or two i tired after but it wont work. im replacing gas and oil, gas is still being siphoned was that a bad idea?)

[Guest brh]

First of all you are doing fine for this being your first project. This is only a suggestion. You will find it much easier and less over whelming if you take it one step at a time. First order of business should be the engine. Oil will foul the plugs and in some cases keep the car from starting. Pull the plugs again and clean em. Don't go crazy with the starting fluid as you will wash all the oil off the cylinders. Feeding the fuel pump from a can of gas is a way of eliminating some problems but keep in mind the fuel pump and carb probably need to be rebuilt or replaced. Your first order of business is to see if that engine runs. Don't use carb cleaner, just deal with starting fluid and gas for the fuel system. So far you are doing great, it cranks and ya got her to fire up...sounds encouraging.

[Buttons]

Okay then.... heres what is going on so far. I got the engine to run about 3 times or so. The oil light still comes on (how long does it Take before the oil has made all of its rounds?) I got the new distributor cap halfway on with much work and distress. After letting the engine idle a bit I let her move down the driveway a bit. I put accelerated a bit and the engine quit on me. I think there is a carbeurator problem. I am going to have to Rebuild the Carb. I dont know whats the better Idea in this case, should I try and Rebuild the Carb, or just go out there and buy what I need To put a 4 barrel on it ? How do I post pictures I just took a ton of them? thanks -Buttons

[Guest brh]

Does the oil light eventually go out? If the engine is idling too low its normal for the oil light and alt light to stay on. Are the lifters making noise ? While you are still checking this engine you may want to put a gage on it to determine how much oil pressure is getting to the engine. On mine all I need to do is crank it (using the starter) and when the light goes out then I hit the choke and fire her up. Again, stick with determining if the engine needs a rebuild. If that oil light stays on all the time you have a real big problem. Thats a normal carb problem if you hit the gas and it dies. Stick with seeing if this engine is good.

[Buttons]

How do I determine if the engine needs a rebuild? I'm also consisdering carb problems here... But I dont know that much about cars to understand what most consider the basics. I want to learn and thats why i have the car and also why I am here. So... what do i need to do then and how... thanks for your patience

-Buttons

[Guest brh]

One of the best methods of determining what kind of shape your engine is in is to have a "cyl leak down" test done. What is done is instead of a spark plug a fitting is installed on the cyl and air is pumped in that cyl. Note the piston must be at top dead center for each test. If air is escaping it is determined where and this indicates some possible problems. As an example, bubbles in the radiator indicate a blown head gasket, air hissing out of the exhaust or out of the carb indicates a valve problem, air hissing out of the crankcase indicates a ring problem. If you don't have oil pressure thats another issue, a very serious one.

[Buttons]

Should this come Before or after I replace wiring and tubing and do a carb rebuild? or does it make little difference? Thanks -Buttons

[Guest brh]

Oil pressure first. Then a cyl leak down test. For the test it is not necessary to have the engine fully tuned. As long as it rotates thats all thats needed. Before is the short answer.