Frosty

Why am I not surprised?

True....Hollywood has also given us Power Rangers and Howard the Duck. The fact that Howard even made a cameo in Guardians of the Galaxy is mind boggling. Bad is still bad.

Yeah, Pro has the Yugo project.....finding one - that is not already in a scrap yard !

Well lookie what GE has gone and done to his car now! It's about time!

Well that makes us even buddy for that last trip we did in the Challenger !!!!

It will buff out eventually.

I knew the nuclear option would work. Admit it, you didn't want to be forced to watch reruns of third rate DIY car shows! Nice work pal. The single serpentine belt system looks like it belongs there. What? No cruise control? Did you order a radiator overflow catch can from Speedway Motors like I suggested? I sent you the pictures from Lucy.

I invoked the nuclear option and told Mrs. notallthere after I got out of work today. Now it should be "Great Balls of Fire" to get some new pictures posted.

Ok mister cheap thrill....you've been doing stuff all winter on that car and you've not posted any new pictures in awhile. You gave markpetersonii hell (and deservedly so) about the Elco. Don't force me to go to the nuclear option and go to the missus to get you to post some pictures of what you've been up to. I am serious about making you watch Stacey David episodes and force you to ride in/push Pro's Yugo until you comply.

It never will. You will also notice that there are no Pontiac arrowheads anymore. It just says Trans Am.

True but it would sell like hot cakes after nearly a decade without anything new. I agree with you though, I doubt Pontiac will return.

One of the reasons the feds spared GMC during GM's bankruptcy was the fact that the cost to produce a GMC from a Chevy truck versus the profit a GMC made was nearly nothing. So producing a Trans Am/Firebird out of a Camaro, one would think would also hold true. However, GM has remained steadfast in not bringing back the Firebird/Trans Am. I wish they could see the folly in that decision but they seem to be too happy making money with fewer divisions to feed these days. Also, I am not 100% certain on this, but I don't know if GM can produce the "Trans Am" legally in name right now either. I think Trans Am Depot now owns the naming rights from the SCCA to produce Trans Am named cars. Similarly I read that GM had let the "Judge" trademark/service mark lapse and it was also picked up by Trans Am Depot.

Got any spleen or kidney padding for her son? I think your future sex life depends on it. Depends and lots of bleach would be good things to have as well.

I'd rather see pics of the El Camino. I am still want to keep my lunch down.

Interesting idea. GM execs tried to pitch Pontiac as niche, RWD, performance brand prior to GM pulling the plug on Pontiac. I don't think GM has the stones to bring Pontiac back, especially with them selling off Opel and stopping manufacturing of Holdens in Australia. They seem to be selling off / out right now. I'd love to see Pontiac return but I don't see Mary Barra with the guts to do it.

You should have seen what he did when I was in the car with him and a squirrel jumped out in front of us! It was much worse than 'Up'!

DrJoes, how much of the radiator is covered by your cooling fans? I see you don't have any sort of radiator shroud. I suspect that is due, in part, because of the Pontiac engine is so close to the radiator and the fans. I am wondering if the lack of a shroud is reducing the effectiveness of the cooling fans, and perhaps you need large diameter fans to cover more surface area of the radiator. Also on my Pontiac I run the Mr Gasket wide mouth thermostat to increase coolant flow.

Sorry it took awhile for me to get back to you. I suspect you are right that the bushing are the original. So I would recommend replacing them since time, UV, and road grime/chemical exposure are their natural enemies. I checked online, and OPGI carries a rear sway bar kit for you '63 Catalina for $225 plus shipping and handling. Well worth the money in my opinion. The reason they box the control arms is for strength. The stock lower control arms are mearly U-channel. So the control arms are boxed or gusseted for strength to handle the side to side the sway bar is trying to dampen. Monroe is still a top quality gas shock. Nothing wrong with them.

There is no circuit breaker that I am aware of for the thermal expansion valve. To the best of my knowledge this is fair mechanical in nature and it either works or it doesn't. I suppose it is possible for it to have a sensor but no switch. There is a switch on the compressor but I think you already knew that.

They ARE right! You are nuts! So is GE!

Typically once a system has been opened, it is common practice to replace the drier/accumulator with a fresh one. Fresh new seals are a good idea to replace the old ones if the are bad, or at the very least, A/C lubricate should be added to an empty system to help re-seal them from the inside. A compressor can go bad from use or just sitting, so it should be tested and replaced if necessary. Everything else should be okay for the most part unless there is some other corrosion or damage to the system.

I totally agree with Pro on this one. An exhaust/muffler shop should be able to fix it cheaper. I am not too kean on a temporary fix to the exhaust. You don't want to run the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. So if it turns out to be the exhaust problem, get it fixed permanently as quickly as you can afford to. It is still a good idea to let your mechanic friend check out the car. He may find other issues lurking around as well.

Honestly, as Pro's article states, it depends on the state of your system. I'd rather have the A/C shop tell me what I need. They might even be able to order the necessary parts.

Find yourself an A/C speciality shop and cut out the middle man and talk to someone who truly knows what they are doing. Since the 68-72 Lemans/Tempest/GTOs are so popular with the aftermarket, a lot of these A/C parts are reproduced. Many of these parts should work on your Colonnade style '73 Lemans. A company called Classic Auto Air advertises that they have original A/C parts. You might try contacting them for the parts you need. www.coolmyhotcar.com 1-866-390-7676 Conversion from R12 to R134 is a personal choice, in my opinion. Now, not knowing what Canadian law states on this sort of thing, I am shooting from the hip. However, R12 is bad for the ozone long term but you can still get it, but it is not cheap anymore (around $35 per 12 oz can and up on eBay). R134a is now the refrigerant gas of choice. So if your system is already empty, it may be cheaper to fill it with R134a. BTW - my first Pontiac was a '73 Lemans Sport Coupe. Be sure to post some pictures of your ride when you get a chance.

First thing that comes to mind is a blown exhaust manifold gasket or a hole in your exhaust system, either in one of the pipes or within the muffler casing.