Professur

Speaking as a fellow GWNer ... Quebec went to obligatory winter tires a few years back ... and it's the smartest thing they've ever done. I'll happily drive 4 season tires in winter on a small fwd car ... but the moment you put ABS on a vehicle, 4 seasons in snow is a deathwish. You have to recall, ABS works by turning your brakes off for a split second to allow your tires to regain grip. That split second becomes an eternity when the tires completely fail to find any. Personally, I recommend what I put on my old Transport. Toyo Observe GO-2 on a set of jobber rims for winter. That lets you go for a superior summer tread for the other three seasons instead of trying to make one tire fit all conditions.They all wear evenly since you're pretty well forced to rotate the tires very couple of seasons... and it doesn't really cost any more in the long run since you'll save money on gas during the summer, and be able to go with a harder compound that will wear better in the heat. Add to that, many garages will store your off season set for you so it doesn't even take any more space.

My bad, I moved them to the Olds album. Didn't realize that would change the URL as well. Links work now

Your boy must love shoveling that driveway.

http://s231.photobucket.com/user/Professur/media/1981%20Olds%20Custom%20Cruiser/P1020037_zps3d88510c.jpg.html outside of the filter. The black on the high peaks is from my dirty fingers http://s231.photobucket.com/user/Professur/media/1981%20Olds%20Custom%20Cruiser/P1020038_zps0e0eb25f.jpg.html Inside ... there's actually loose powder in there. I've never seen the like. IF that's what's floating in the bottom of my gas tank ... I'm seriously worried.

Paper. Couldn't do your blow test as I kinda got it pinched some while taking it out ... stupid place to put a thermostat anyhow. But when I tore it open ... it looks like someone sharpened a pencil with it. For what it's worth, I couldn't blow through the new one either ... there's a check valve at the ass end of it with a spring stronger than my lungs. Took it for a short drive, straight into construction naturally. Finally managed 45 seconds above 100k ... but when I test drove her saturday I managed to get her to bog even before that. Recalling that the problem started after I ran my gas tank down below 1/8th, the fuel filter had been my first suspect ....but now I'm worried about how much other crap is residing at the bottom. I think I'm gonna grab a few more filters for the glove box.

Only met him once .. but I was really hoping to see him again.

My bogging problem has been resolved with the installation of a new fuel filter. Had I followed my gut instinct and taken the time last sunday in Detroit to track down a parts store and get one then, I could have had a much more pleasant return drive. 15 minutes of labour total ... I'm terribly disappointed with myself.

Need to find me a woman then. Well, bog gone it ... bog's gone. Damn fuel filter, my first flammin guess. I knew I should have taken the time on Sunday.

Thanks guys. You have no idea how it feels to look up things like that and see Michigan phone numbers when I just left. Same thing happened last year with the copper alloy brake line. Can't find it here .. look it up online ... source was right up the street from where i slept. I've said before ... some people believe in God .. I don't. I know ... and he's an asshole with a twisted sense of humour. But he does make sure I do get home every time. I found those 2 rubber bits for the breather on the Dorman listing ... so I can eventually get them ordered here through a real parts shop. I could have given this jackass a John Doe and a 555 number, but I was already annoyed, and more than ready to walk away even before this. Like I said, I'd rather have my left testicle chewed off by a broken toothed rabid chipmunk than shop there. Dunno if I mentioned it ... we must have hit a timewarp somewhere along the 401. the drive from Grand Bend, Ont to home should take 10 hrs at 110kph. Done it several times. We should have pulled into the driveway barring issues at 5am. Somehow, barely managing 80kph, with more than a few stops ... we pulled in at 4:30.

He'll get over it. I remembered the timing light is in the shed at the cottage. The missus will bring it down whenever they finally decide to come back. Kids still aren't back at school yet. Well, it seems that while all that hose did need replacing, it wasn't the problem. Still bogging at 80k. Didn't risk any hillclimbs. Only place open to buy a gas filter was Canadian Tire .. the most detested of all stores and the one place that I'll shop at walmart to avoid. Every year they seem to move further and further from the car business. 3 years ago, the fuel filters were in the aisles .. now you have to ask some punk kid behind a counter. After correcting him twice about the car's year, and explaining to him that the filters weren't in the aisle, him taking me to the aisle to find it .. and it stil not being there ...twice for that too .. I pointed out that one of the two of us actually knew what they looked like and maybe he should check in the back ... he finally found one. Then ... he wants my name and phone number .. for the bill. I point out that I don't need to give that info to buy an oil filter, and he can damn well sell me the filter with out it. Nope. Effing git wouldn't sell it and I was damned if i was gonna indulge them with a fake so I walked out. Better stores are open monday ... and I've got another insulting letter to write to the CT management .. not that they seem to care much.

coz nobody likes a dirty cavity

One thing at a time, the obvious ones first. If I do everything at once, I won't know which one was the problem. Not even sure where my timing light is at the moment.

Have you ever read the Mission: Earth series? It's only about 4000 pages. A truly eye opening insight into the fields. http://www.amazon.com/Invaders-Plan-The-Mission-Volume/dp/1619861747

Over 15' of hose later ... I still haven't manage to replace every inch of hose in there... but I think I got all the worst. And some of it was uber-nasty. You know how rubber degrades either into hard and crumbly or gooey? I've got gooey and crumbly going at the same time. Unfortunately it seems that vac hose has become a rarity in the area. 5/32 or 7/32 ... no 3/16 to be found 'cept for clear windshield washer hose .... kinda gunshy about putting that stuff in so I stuffed 5/32 on where I could, and salvaged the best of the old 3/16 until my order comes in. The rotor and cap are definitely past their prime ... i gave the contacts a swipe with a bit of fine sandpaper, but they're gonna need changed out. I also capped that port you're hating on, Frosty. Also noticed that there was a distinct deficit in the prestone dept for some reason. I think the rad cap goes on that list too. All that still didn't make starting her any easier, but she did fire up with a lot of pumping, and stalled. Got her going and had to lean on the loud pedal for a few seconds ... then she definitely changed her tune and started idling more like her old self. Still haven't taken her for a run yet .. waiting for dark. There were at least 4 or 5 split ends on hoses, and the short bit leading to the hardline for the trans wasn't looking to good either. One check valve on the EGR circuit does't check anymore but it failed open. The rubber gromets on either end of the rocker cover breather tube are toast, and not a locally found item either .. but I think I've found them at inline tube. PCV valve is fine.

Actually, yeah, but it wasn't me said it.

The 3 cylinder turbo diesel is the workhorse of the european small car industry. Clean, small, and powerful. There's no sane reason to make it hard to own that when there's v8 diesels blowing coal dust everywhere.

Didn't touch any of the ignition pre-trip .. and nothing jumped out at me while doing the fluids checks every stop. A plug wire flopping back and forth and grounding when travelling uphill would definitely misbehave in a fitting manner. The th-250 and th-350 have identical pans .. the only difference from the outside is a band adjustment screw just behind the lines for the oil cooler. Word is that rebuilding the 250 isn't worth it, swap in a 350 or 200-4r and be done with it. It's lighter than the 350, but not enough to make it worth the strength it gives up. So if it's a 350, that's worth rebuilding .. if it's the 250, I rebuild the 200-4r instead and make the swap. But then ... even if it's the 350, I could swap in the 4 speed, take the 350 and rebuild it to go into the Parisienne in place of the 200c .... then spend some silly time trying to wake up that 305 in there. BTW, Frosty .... I drove past a 350 SBO I spotted in Toronto on the way home. Guy wanted $150. Will power .... Yeah, who believes that ... i couldn't stop with the crappy running ... but I have a feeling that there might be more cubic inches appearing under a hood or two in the near future.

I haven't checked anything yet, the weather being rather unpleasant and this being our first day home. I've been watching videos on rebuilding the carbs, doesn't look as tough as the tranny and i did that. The port you're talking about has a bit of hose with a round head screw stuffed in it, looked pretty well sealed .. but i managed to hit princess auto in london while we were there and picked up a vacuum guage and a compression tester so both of those will be applied. Getting the plugs out on this beast is actually fairly easy ... by going in through the tire wells. Plugs, cap wires and rotor, as well as a good carb rebuild kit are all on my shopping list, as is several dozen feet of vac hose. But you know me, I prefer to think a problem to death before acting on it. i know i've got a tranny that's in need of a rebuild already .. the tranny fluid isn't red at all .. doesn't smell burned yet tho. Still have to figure out if it's a 350 or a 250 in there ... can't get a look at whether that band adjustment screw is there or not. Then there's that 200-4r that I've got out in the shed .... just need to change the cross member a bit and I think the cable support on the carb is different too.

Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati

http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/story/23227106/proposal-would-raise-michigan-speed-limits-to-as-high-as-80-mph

For the record, I never travel through Mi without Frosty's phone number ... if only to have something to dial when I demand my one phone call. My problem got progressively worse to the point where any incline had me down to 60kph, sputtering, and stalling. A couple of times i had to run off the shoulder, and one time a soft shoulder to avoid getting a semi up the ass. Couldn't make it back above 100 without a down hill slope. Can anyone think of something that would affect a car mostly when going up hill? Stalled out completely on the incline of a bridge 50 miles from home ... fortunately that particular bridge is pretty new still and a toll so not a lot of people use it yet ... and it was deserted at 4am. But when I put her in park and turned the key, she fired right back up with authority. Put her into drive and managed to power up the grade in first, sputtering and farting when she switched to second .. but she made it over and got us home safe in the end. Half way along the road home I'd nearly convinced myself that the problem would be electrical. After all, there's only three systems that affect the entire engine .. fuel, low side of the distributor, and exhaust. I didn't ever catch the cat glowing in the dark ...

Word is the fire trucks we saw were heading to someone's caddy on fire just west of the loop.

Just a quick post to let you know we're still alive. Prof V2.0 drove yesterday .. From Warren up the 75, off on m-15 to see the gent with the uber-fast custom cruiser ... then she drove the rest of the way up the m-15 to the 69, out the border and all the way to Niagara Falls. Quite the achievement on a learner's permit. As for the gent with the dragster ... his rear interior is in lots better shape than mine so I reserved several panels along with his rear hatch. His has the hi-mounted tail light that mine lacks. Given how un-bright the tail lamps are on this boat, that little bit of extra insurance is well worth it. There's one other person that's interested in the complete interior .. I said I'll give him first crack, but only if he takes it all .. if he wants only pieces too, i'm up first. Regardless, I still want the rear hatch. He's not sure when he'll have the rest of the interior out, but the hatch won't be availible until he can get to NY to pick up the fibreglass replacement he found out there. Looks like I'll have occasion to make a run back to the area in the fall. He did have the wiper motor out on a bench and I picked it up for a song. Actually, he wanted less than I was prepared to give, so he threw in the rest of the wiper linkage and the wiper arms and a new set of blades. He's also got a set of crager wheels up for grabs in the 5x5 ... x10". My rims are crap .. but can I really put 10" rears on .. do they even make 10" winter tires? Oh, the temptation. BTW, his Cruiser ... bottom 12 second quarters. He's hoping the weight shedding will get him into the high 11s. 455 bored out, 11-1 compression, dual snorkle intake (pulled the hi-beams glass and snuck the intakes tubes there .. very slick) .. no computer, no NOS, no injection .. doing it all the old fashioned way. He started the engine and when he turned it off, all I could think was .. I need a cold shower and a cigarette now. Then i started thinking ... there's zero visible difference between the 307 olds and the 403 ..... BAD THOUGHTS ....BADBADBADBAD .... no one would ever have to know ... STOP STOP stop stop .... it's a quick swap ... surely there's a 403 lying in a scrap yard just itching to be saved .... *wimper* ...

Something else I forgot was to challenge you guys. I had one hubcap that I simply could not get to go on, no matter what. i was gonna offer $5 to the person who could do it .. clean slipped my mind.

I hated leaving so early, but the family was definitely showing signs the heat was affecting them. On the way back I pulled into the Walmart supercenter on 14th mile and Van dyke to let them see what they look like ... with half an hour in the AC they were back to themselves. I'm surprised given the quantity of liquids they drank, but it just goes to show you can't let your guard down on these things. I was great meeting up again even if only for a short time. But the family got to do the cruise from 12 mile up ... then enjoy the corner ... now they finally know what Woodward is.