Bramz fleet. The ever changing procession of mediocrity. Disaster time....

[Jim Bell]

24 and 5 please. For 2.6 weeks time!

[PhilA]

Those do sound nice. Succeeded by the "high value" v6, which was 3/4 of a Rover V8.

 

Gotta love GM.

[vulgalour]

Arch gap lols.

 

It's very blue isn't it?

[bramz7]

I think everything is blue or black. 

Even the digital display is blue!

 

I don't think this will be the only yank tank I own this year. I quite fancy a box shaped saloon now. Shame everything else is ££££, damn curiosity value and all that. 

[Lacquer Peel]

Something with the GM diesel next please.

 

Blue instruments are ahead of their time, that's a premium* feature of late 90s VWs.

[bramz7]

Not a bad idea, but I suspect I will end up with a broken STS or something. Good thing they're all broken or breaking.

[RobT]

That's the way to do impulse buys.  I wanna go in it!

[wuvvum]

The Cutlass I had was surprisingly good on fuel too, although that was the (nominally more primitive) 3.1 V6.  Same digital clocks too, and same interior build quality.  That also sounded nice when given some wellington.

[flat4alfa]

Those do sound nice. Succeeded by the "high value" v6, which was 3/4 of a Rover V8.

 

Gotta love GM.

 

Is that right though?  Buick 215/Rover V8 and the Fireball V6 developed from it were 90°

 

This GM V6 X-engine and the developed from it HV V6 were 60°

 

Either way it's the firing order on the lot that make them sound so meaty and far away from European efforts

ANOTHER reason to import a Pontac Aztek and paint it in AS colours.

[eddyramrod]

Sam, you know exactly where to bring that Olds!  I'm happy to take a PX on Huggy...   Don't peel that AACNW sticker off, it's part of the car's history.  I may even know a previous owner!

[flat4alfa]

I need to play catch up

 

So the AS fold has THREE Oldmobiles on the inventory, yes?

 

1) The ex-Wuvvum/PurpleBargeKen and now with BobTheBeard (still?) '91 Cutlass Sedan

2) Drum's '81 Delta 88 diesel

3) this '89 Cutlass Coupe of supremacy

 

Not forgetting the '50 Rocket 88 Coupe that Colc had for a bit this year.

 

 

 

[bramz7]

Ah yes the other Cutlass of the same era, I forgot about that!

 

Verdict in, other half likes it. Having this, the R11 and C5 seems sensible for now. I'll be in the market for a 156 come new year though!

 

Engine service light came on as well, o well.

[flat4alfa]

 I'll be in the market for a 156 come new year though!

 

You any good doing clutches?  I've a 2.4 derv Sportwagon here going spare

[bramz7]

Say what? Details please!

 

If it just needs a new clutch and is alright otherwise, and you don't mind holding it....might be knocking for it in a few weeks/month or two.

[lanciamatt]

I'm partial to a yank tank. I've had 2 both were 80s RWD cadillac Fleetwoods. One was bought by a film company and ended up in a swimming pool on mid summer murders lol.

[drum]

I need to play catch up

 

So the AS fold has THREE Oldmobiles on the inventory, yes?

 

1) The ex-Wuvvum/PurpleBargeKen and now with BobTheBeard (still?) '91 Cutlass Sedan

2) Drum's '81 Delta 88 diesel

3) this '89 Cutlass Coupe of supremacy

 

Not forgetting the '50 Rocket 88 Coupe that Colc had for a bit this year.

Autoshite

 

Section 5 - Big Shite

 

Subsection 5.1 - Yank Tank

 

Subsubsection 5.1.4 - Oldsmobile

 

'91 Cutlass Sedan

'89 Cutlass Coupe

'81 Delta 88

 

See also Section 9 - Wrong Hand Drive

And Section 14 - Waft barge

[flat4alfa]

I'm partial to a yank tank. I've had 2 both were 80s RWD cadillac Fleetwoods. One was bought by a film company and ended up in a swimming pool on mid summer murders lol.

 

 click me

[Angrydicky]

Caliper pistons don't exactly wear as such, but what happens is the hard chrome surface flakes off and corrosion sets in. That's what has happened here, that corrosion causing it to jam.

Bigg Red will do a repair kit and piston(s) for it, easy enough to rebuild if you can get the old piston(s) out.

[lanciamatt]

That's the car in question.

[bramz7]

Couple of bits of news today:

 

C5 demolished 280 miles of driving today in less than half a tank, with two dubious front tyres. Not bad at all. Not the best seats for long distance stuff but not crippling. 

A bit of a whine picked up in neutral and first when revved though. Not a vast worry as I don't plan on spending anything on it, other than replacement tyres.

605 is still parked at work, whoops.

 

The Oldsmobile now won't start! I think the battery just doesn't have enough in it to get it turning properly, so there is no doubt a drain somewhere. Hopefully at least...that's the easiest diagnosis for non starting. 

[barrett]

Argh! You could have come over and swapped wheels with our dead one, which had great tyres on! Too late now!

 

Edit - call Bridges at Pease Pottage next week perhaps?

[bramz7]

Okay. The Olds is being a cranky old bastard and won't start.

 

Battery voltage is ok. I hooked it up to the C5 for like 10 mins and it still didn't fire. Turns fine, I can smell fuel and the drive belt is intact. 

I am assuming something has clagged up the spark plugs, as it does run pretty rich, and I have a feeling the engine is overfueling.

 

BAHHHHHH.

 

The plugs aren't obviously placed, so I suspect what with it being FWD and transversely laid out, the front three are easy and the other three will require knuckle scraping on whatever the bulkhead has attached to it. 

 

 

Or am I missing something obvious?

[PhilA]

Try cranking it over full throttle for a while, that'll cut the injectors. It may have just flooded itself.

 

These so seem prone to running rich, the sensors are getting on in age a bit. Positive side is they are cheap and fairly readily available here, and likely shared with Opel/Vauxhall of the same era.

 

It might keep a table in memory, if that was lost by changing the battery then it might be working on the actual sensor values- eg overfueling hugely because it "thinks" it's Arctic temperatures outside. Are these OBD2 or still the old GM diagnostics system?

 

Phil

[bramz7]

I have noticed that the trip computer has also reset itself...I haven't touched the battery at all recently. I know the previous owner replaced it but it started fine at his, and then fine again when I got back in it an hour and a half after getting home. 

[Wingz123]

horrendous!!!

+1

 

Immobiliser problem?

[bramz7]

Pretty sure this is a base Cutlass so has nothing in the way of any fancy bits on it, it doesn't even have central locking FFS. Interestingly a trip computer reset usually means a duff battery in other cars, so I will try slinging one on and seeing if that makes a difference...

[bramz7]

On a scale of one to ten, how much worse has it just got?

 

 

the bonnet release cable has snapped.

 

I managed to get underneath and wiggle something to get it to pop open, which helped, but the battery is so infuriatingly obstructed by everything. 

 

This car is the beginning of something incredibly painful isn't it?

[eddyramrod]

the bonnet release cable has snapped.

Same thing happened to my 1980 Buick.  I rigged up a replacement under a front wheelarch, because the "new" cable (from my random spares stock) was rather too short to reach the cabin.

[bramz7]

Battery swapped with something else, still nothing. Spark plugs behind engine mount. Fuelling like no tomorrow when turning, no spark or something. Kicked the front wing in anger and shit loads of (presumably inner wing) rot fell out. Looks like there is mayo on the coolant cap, or at least brown sediment floating in it. Radiator looks shot to shit too.

 

Well, this was a fucking dumb purchase and I should have not got the train like i had a gut feeling to.

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/283111328408

 

Anyone wanna offer me £175 for it and you can have it. I am sick of broken crap outside my house, I need it gone within a week so I can get the insurance money back too. 

[Wingz123]

Weird....this sounds like a ‘leave it for a day and it’ll start next time you go up to it’ situation....I’ve had plenty of em lol!