low mileage 85 Eldo Biarritz

[Dosmo]

In 1985, my Uncle Joe bought an 85 Eldo Biarritz demo with 5000 miles on it. He drove it very little, got sick, passed away in 1992, leaving it to my mother. She drove it sparingly also, until she got sick in 2000, and couldn't drive it anymore. Her caregiver drove her around in it until August 2001 when it was parked in my driveway with 26,000 actual miles on it.

May 2006, I decide to resurrect the car and make it my daily driver. My local mechanic checked the car and advised me not to change the tranny fluid or the radiator coolant. His reasoning was, sometimes you open a can of worms when you do that. He said the color on both fluids still looked as new, and he advised against changing it, so I didn't. I did have considerable work done to the brakes (new rear calipers, ouch), and had the belts replaced, he said the the hoses seemed good also.

So, I'd like to hear from some of you Caddy guys - did I mess up by not changing the fluids? I've been driving the car since May and some 1800 or so miles later, everything seems cool, but I'm so leary of driving around a 22 year old car with the original tranny fluid and rad. coolant.

By the way, I can't believe the gas mileage this thing gets - averaging over 21 MPG. Of course, the A/C no longer blows cold air, so that could be a factor in the gas mileage.

Thanks, guys

Al

[Guest BJM]

The mechanic has a point there but I would go ahead and have both systems professionally flushed. Of course, this "assumes" there was NO maintenance ever done to either system.

The key I think - and others may dispute - is the low mileage. If your car had 50,000 miles plus, was 26 years old and never had these systems changed then I would recommend 'gentle' replacments of the fluids. By that I mean drain the coolant as much as possible - no power flush, and refill. Same with the transmission.

That's an automatic overdrive prone to failure. Virtually every 79 to 85 Riviera/Toronado/Eldorado with overdrive has had their transmission replaced. So I would have the transmission pan dropped, replace the filter, and fill. The added "new" fluid will mix with the old and not "shock" the system.

Also I would purchase and put in series an automatic transmission cooler. These kits are purchased at NAPA for instance and a mechanic can install in about an hour. This will greatly extend the life and performance of your transmission.

After 6 months of driving with a partial coolant drain (no power flush/no chemical flush) i would go for a more comprehensive flush. At this time, replace the coolant hoses, replace the heater hoses if not already done. I had a 77 Oldsmobile that blew a heater hose after a power flush. My coolant was gross - so there is merit to the idea of not wanting to wake the dead, so to speak. But in the end, clean fresh coolant and trans fluid greatly outweigh the negatives.

The key as stated is the low original mileage. The reason a lot of mechanics say don't flush the transmission is because of varnish and build up inside - seals dry out, etc. You flush the tranny and now there might be gaps for leaks. But a good transmission shop that power flushes the transmission will add back a seal conditioner in their return (fresh) fluid. Also, modern transmission fluids are slightly better then 1985 fluids.

So that is my recommendation. Go careful and lsow but have the services done for peace of mind and replace hoses with the coolant flush.

Jake

ASE Master Technician with L1 certification

Mazda master Technician

Subaru Certified

[Dosmo]

Thanks for the input. Your comments make a lot of sense. I really was inclined to change the coolant & tranny fluid, but the mechanic talked me out of it. I'm going to go ahead and change the stuff pretty soon.

Thanks

Al