This is not an 80s car, but it had to be shared...

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1978-chrysler-new-yorker/

That price is most realistic... thanks to the C8 release and COVID, there has been a real tanking.

In fact, as nice as this is, $15k is still a bit high... sad to say. If this was a 6spd manual, the tune would be different.

It's been nice here... sunny and pleasant... very SoCal! Upper 60s during the day, upper 50s at night.

Just getting some things done around the house... the job hunt has been slowed by COVID-19...

This just sold on BaT this week:

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1983-oldsmobile-custom-cruiser/

I think it's a good move... Le Man's in Sept was going to conflict with the reset IMSA series in a big way. Logistics and costs were going to make it tough. I will miss them being there, but there will be enough teams from Europe to make for a good show.

I am hopeful that Sebring goes off as planned...

fingers crossed

Sorry to hear your event was cancelled, Marcus... that super sux... I hate when something seriously looked forward too is cancelled like that.

I am not a convertible person... or, not enough to justify a C8 vert.. I will stick with the coupe.

Good read.

I agree with the limits of the C1... I have never driven on, chiefly, because when I tried to get into one, I simply don't fit. I have always had the wrong proportions... tall in the torso, short inseam (I am just at 6' tall, but with a 30" inseam!) and a bit too much of a belly... It makes for a poor fit on a good day... I haven't tried a restomod with PS and a small steering wheel.

The C4 limits were a bit kinder... that tall sill was a result of GM brains, thinking they were smarter than Dave McClellen, ordering him to remove the t-bar... and not giving him $$ to do it right. On my 92, remove the top, and the front and rear of the car no longer were one... they vibrated at a less than complementary frequency. It was kinda nauseating...

I can't speak for the C8. I can't wait to drive one, tho.

The radiator support is busted... again... I have the parts, what I have been lacking is motivation. So... This weekend, it comes apart!

finally.

My 92 was old... and had miles... but I never felt those lines were problematic.

As for replacement? I don't think the bumper needs to come off. The rubber is either localized to the sender area, or connects to a rubber line that is accessible... I would need to see the area again to confirm.

Removing the rear bumper is a pain, on a good day.

Marcus!!! How you doing??

It's been hot here... cool/cold on the east usually equates to hotter than hell here. It was in the triple digits not all that far from here. I have described it before, but being so close to the ocean does buy us some cooler air. However, we are on the wrong side of the hill and don't always get the cooling breezes... We can get hotter here than other areas. But still cooler than most!

The heat is supposed to go through until tonight and moderate back to normal over the next few days.

I need to get to work on my C6... but that will wait until the temps drop!

I think today will be an office day. sounds like a nice idea!

I installed a racetronix on my 92. Last pump I did. Worked very well.

Any update?

The more I think of this problem, the more I am convinced that the issue is with the harness around the coil and ICM.

Back some 15 years ago, a C4 regular on Corvette Forum had the exact same problem. His car would run great, then start to misfire. His was also a 1992/93 vintage.

After much analysis, it was found that the harness for the coil/ICM had failed and was intermittently losing connection, causing the coil to shut down for a moment, then turning back on. It was a needle in a haystack, to be honest.

The C41 is worrisome to me.

That is the signal that goes from the engine controller to the chassis controller...

I think I know what is happening... but I am not sure and it would take a laptop to track it with software to monitor and record things. This would also require a USB connector to allow for communications to work.

I think Tunercat is the software you want, I will have to confirm, it's been a while.

However, it sounds like to me the ECM is shutting down or failing. I like the idea of making sure everything is connected and clean. Make sure the grounds are clean and that the power block (behind the battery, against the fire wall) is clean and all connections are solid.

There are many places where things can be corroded, especially near and under the battery.

Do all that minor stuff and then remove the plate on the bottom of the engine controller. Take a sniff. Does it smell like burnt electronics? If not, that's a good thing. If so, could be bad.

Take the controller and put it back, but don't put the cover on it. Get a can of air, like used on computers to clean dust off. Take the car for a drive, once it starts to misfire, pull over, flip over the controller, invert that can and spray the cold gas into the controller. If it starts running better, you have found the problem.

Other sources of this problem are a bad coil and/or ICM - Ignition Control Module. Also, a bad harness at the ICM will wreck havoc on things.

The ICM is on the right head. You can see the coil wire. This is the source of the spark.

If the engine controller seems ok, the next time it misfires, use the same spray on the coil/ICM. If things settle back down, there is the problem.

I am betting more on the coil/ICM vs the ECM.

If it is the ECM, unless things have changed, you will need to go used. 1992 and 1993 Corvettes share the same ECM. 1993 Camaro and Firebirds, with LT1, share it, too. And from my initial search, no love new... no one is remanufacturing these things.

Again, I would start with the ICM and coil. Depending on mileage, that would be a great starting point. I am guessing the car has over 100k, so yes, ICM and coil.

And don't be surprised it is the harness. They get greasy and rotten and stuff. It ain't pretty... Same goes for the harness to the opti itself.

touch base before buying anything. There are some upgrades you need to consider.

15 years on the same pump? damn. Impressive!

The stock pump should flow enough... they push at 100 psi and the fuel pressure regulator brings it down to 40 something at idle and rises with throttle. And adjustable FPR will help...

If you upgrade the pump, I recommend Racetronix. At some point, I would.

go up to 1/2"...

Forgot to mention... Keith and I are friends. We have never met in person, ironically enough, but we are fb friends, any number of email exchanges, and I have inspected a car for him. Somewhere deep in the bowels of my smartphone is Keith's phone number.

There was a special section in the Jan 2018 issue in honour of their 30th anniversary. Below is what I submitted and was ultimately published:


The most significant was when Keith Martin trusted me with inspecting an Alfa Duetto a couple of years back.

Making friends... Having had the privilege to meet and become friends with Donald Osborne.

The most fun was about five or six years ago. In honour of the Jaguar XKE and Ferrari GTO, readers were asked to send in memories of these cars. I sent in two, one was in SCM, the other in the Pebble Beach guide.

Within hours of the magazine landing, I was getting emails from friends everywhere. Commenting, congratulating, it was most cool... then about a year ago, a gentleman on Facebook messaged me and ask if I was the same Andy Bogus who wrote those pieces back all those years ago! This stuff has some staying power, don't you think?

Lastly, I think the best part is a sense of community. It has a feeling of being a family, no matter who you are, how vast or how small your collection might be, there is a "we are in this together" vibe. If nothing else, when posting on facebook, suggesting that Keith replace the engine in <fill in blank> with an LS1 has made more than one person spew coffee!!

Thank you all for the news, information and mostly, the fun.

Aloha!

It was hot yesterday... And when it breaks 85 or so in San Pedro, that's hella hot!

For you all who don't know the LA area, San Pedro is actually a suburb of LA City. If you send me mail to San Pedro or Los Angeles, we will get it. Same town, San Pedro is just a residue of the hostile takeover about 120 years ago! LA wanted control of the ever growing Port here... so a snagging they came...

However, SP is then close to the water. And being close to the colder Pacific means that it is cooler here. Sadly, our house is on the wrong side of the hill, blocking some of that cooler air... Alas, we do get hotter here... But 85 is pretty damned hot... considering that DTLA, about 20 miles north of us, was nearer to 100!

It's supposed to be below 80 today. And drop another 10 tomorrow. Should be partly cloudy and 70 for next week.

Today... Laundry... need to get started working on the C6... got tune up parts and need to fix the radiator support bracket. Get it into the back drive and jack it up.

Also need to research the code caused by a problem with the evap emissions. It could be as easy as a bad fuse or a screwed up harness caused buy the installation of the cat back. According to my research, that harness is exposed to the fatter pipes or something like that... I am out to check that stuff.

I hope to get it back there and jacked up today. Then I can start labour tomorrow!

Oh... need to bleed the brakes, too.

And continue the job hunt. Anyone wanna learn C# with me?

That's my next few days.

Wow. I feel almost famous!

I have been on streak with that column... I think it's 5 or 6 straight issues I have been in that section!

Well... It's hot here in SoCal... a mini early heat wave is hitting today. Could hit 90!!!

It breaks tomorrow.

Had some ceiling lights installed on Wednesday. I picked up a new fixture for the kitchen and 2 for the family room. All LED. The kitchen light is SUPER bright... I expect planes to land... the family room lights are a bit more subdude. I suspect it's as much the size of the room and the colour. The kitchen is WHITE!!! The FR is a light tan... so less reflective.

Still sheltering, still job searching.

Hope everyone is healthy!!

I know what you mean... according to my agent, if I had left a window open, that's covered... go figure.

Still in the early stages. should know more tomorrow!

Have fun with the solar. It will be amazing when you see the first bill, tho.

Typical day in SoCal... mostly sunny, mid 60's... supposed to turn cloudy as the day progresses. No rain, thankfully!

The addition to our house is a slab, whereas the rest of the house is on an elevated foundation. The slab either has settled or was poured lower than the soil level on the west side. There is a fire place and this inset space between the fireplace and the main house, where the addition joins.

That area is prone to collecting water and it's gotten to the point where previously bad attempts to fix this have started to really fail... the problem? LEAKS! That nook between the fireplace and the main house is a leak point. I noticed this last year and it has since gotten worse. The heavier the rain, the greater the problem. It has reached critical mass now... it leaked into the addition - the family room - about 12' into the room! Boxes sitting on the carpet were soaked.

I have a claim starting with out home owners, but water/flood/leak problems are sooooo hard to claim on. It really annoys me, because we do not live in a flood plain, why should I need special insurance for a rain caused leak? My agent agrees, it's making the underwriters agree. Sigh.

That all sounds good! I hope it keeps up the good service!!!

It's interesting... everyone seems to have owned that one car that gets into situations... wrecks, tickets... whatever.

Mine was my first Prelude. A 1992 Prelude Si. I bought it new in September 1992. Over the 18 months I owned it, I caught 2 tickets and 1 accident... and then the final accident, not my fault cause I wasn't in the car!! My niece drove it into a tree. The cars death came in March 1994. My niece was fine, thankfully.

I wasn't too badly hurt on that, financially. I bought the car for $17,300. It was dealer demo, so I was able to knock off money because of mileage and the fact they already ate the floorplanning expense!

When it was totaled, thanks to me making extra principle payments, the loan was down to $12,995. State Farm was my insurance company and they covered the claim, and paid me $16,995! I drove the thing for 25k miles and 18 months for $300!!

My niece covered the deductible.

I respect your decision. I truly do.

I preached to folks about being responsible regarding performance and emissions. Got into a lot of arguments, mostly from people who were more concerned with that extra 5hp vs being marginally good team playing citizens.

My contention was simple... and this issue is still rampant in FL and TX and other states without testing... These morons go out, buy some expensive car, then start gutting the emissions controls due to some preconceived notion that they are being robbed of hundreds of horsepower and they don't want the man telling them what they can and cannot do.

Well, what I tried to tell them is that on one magical day, the state in question was going to get nailed by the EPA and it will require smog testing... where will you be then?

I prefer some flexibility in the laws. CA is sooo anal... and I don't like that either. However, I will say that the CA laws have done wonders to clean the air out here... most people don't understand why it was so important in the LA Basin. Because it IS a basin with some 13 million people stuffed into it! And their cars! There are mountains to the north, east and west. The only real passage out is on the 10 freeway near the California Speedway in Fontana!

Add in the natural wall of air that is the cold Pacific Ocean - an inversion layer that keeps the smog inland. In short, there is little that allows the air to easily evacuate. Florida, for example, has constant natural trades to clear the air... not CA. We get stuck...

But a few years back, West Palm Beach County FL did have to smog check. In time, other cities in FL will be mandated and those arrogant dumbasses will be stuck with undoing thousands of dollars worth of mods and getting all pissy about it! Trust me, adding a Borla and skip shift will make a C6 one helluva car without the need of cutting off cats and adding headers and such.

I do wish that the CA legislature would get off their asses and revise the exemption year... currently, is is 1975+ that must be tested. They are debating/discussing bringing that up to 1983. It would make it much easier for collectors who won't have to worry about the few cars that are worth collecting... vintage Ferrari come to mind.

Also would open up a lot of cars for modification!

If I want ultimate performance, I would build a track car. I don't see the need for that much on the street. If you can afford to mess with a Vette, just spend the $$ and buy the Z06 or ZR1! Get all the power with a damned warranty and EPA blessings... jeez...

yea, what Matthew said!

I am so damned creative.

Quote:

I am surprised Ohio even cares. Isn't there a point where they stop testing older cars? Most states it's at 25 years.

I wish CA would accept something a little more realistic than 1975!!! There has been a push to 1983 in recent months. Mostly, because there are not that many cars left in the state from 1975! And those older ones are now collectables that don't get much drive time anyway.

What it would do is open up the modification industry! Think what a 79 Corvette would be worth if you could drop in an LSx without emission concerns!

Sweet. You have to realize that buying a used part means 30 year old plastic... and how long will THAT hold up!?!?

Kinda scary, really. The C4 is nearly 40 years old!

Kind grey and dreary here today. No rain in the forecast! Most likely, no rain until about November!!

Still trying to find work... I don't know about the unemployment system. I am having trouble finding work that fits me. I don't have a lot of web experience, if any, really. sniff. In time, something will appear.

Otherwise, we have our health! No one has shown signs of COVID-19, so that is all great!

How is the Subaru treating you all? It's been a few months now.

I have always like Subaru... just never owned one. Primarily, the dealer in Dover was crap... anything more than an oil change about did them in.

Quote:

I remember seeing these in the dealerships back in the day.

They had two problems for collectibility...

1. RUST. Japanese cars of this era were prone to rusting. They came over on musty salty ships, getting inundated with salty air and moisture. The only ones that survived were the ones that were washed out and lived in the Southwest!

2. Electrical glitches. My sister-in-laws (Roy's wife) brother had a 300ZX of about this vintage. The car was in the shop for all sorts of electrical issues. I remember specifically that the stereo was replaced at least once in his 2-3 year ownership.

They did sell a number, but most were viewed as lux transportation, not anything "special" so they got driven into the ground, the engines salvaged to support early Z-cars and the rest rotted away.

Interesting... I woulda sworn the Cougar had a turbo. Thanks for clarifying that!

I had friends with the Turbo T-Birds... pretty quick, too!

My late brother, Roy, had a 1986 T-Bird with the 3.8 litre V6. It was silver with red velour... Auto, A/C, Power stuff, AM/FM/Tape. Nice car. Drove SO well and was super reliable.

He was told by a mechanic to unload it as it neared 100k miles... it was because it was going to break down and become expensive to keep on the road. He followed the advise. I was never convinced the mechanic was right, but I didn't have whatever insight he had. Roy traded it in for a 1987 Buick Regal with only 19k original miles on it! A local magistrate bought it for his wife who barely drove it! The Regal served well for a year or 2 (he got a great deal on it) and he traded that in for a 1992 LeSabre.

His thinking was that the Regal would be a good gap fill. And when he traded it 18 months later, it would have "normal" miles on it. I donno if that worked out, it's been a long time.

Sadly, I doubt if it did. Roy never did have good luck with car deals.... Poor guy... he was an on the road salesman for a car parts company based in Philly. His territory was all over the DelMarVa peninsula. As such, he put some 25-30k miles a year on a car. That Regal was bought in 1990, IIRC. 19k miles on a 3-YO car was great. When he traded it in 1992, it had 49k miles or so on it. As such, a 5 year old car with 49k miles was great! I just donno if he got the deal he shoulda gotten.

More cool 80's cars, J3!

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1983-oldsmobile-cutlass-2/

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1983-pontiac-firebird-5/

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1989-dodge-lancer/

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1980-mercury-zephyr-wagon/

one of the best from that era, and a personal fave:
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1988-bmw-m6-70/

There are more... but this is enough! Enjoy!

It's been kinda busy.... all things being equal!

California is in a more coordinated lock down, due to COVID-19. Which means more home time than before. There doesn't seem to be a rule against going out, but masks are required. I think that's only required to actually go into a store or business. I don't think it's required to go out or drive. If you want to go in the supermarket, mask up!

Did our taxes yesterday... Watched way too much TV... Did some software side work...

Did learn that they are increasing unemployment by some $600 a week!! That starts now. Whew, a huge help. Considering the unemployment rate is now 20%.

Now... that is a bad number, but it will drop by half once the economy opens back up. I just hope and pray that I am one of the half that gets hired.

And on a happier note, I celebrated the third anniversary of buying my 2006 Coupe! It's very yellow.

Wasn't the turbo 2.3l I-4 available? I know in the TBird that motor had a 5spd option.

It was the same used in the SVO Mustang...175hp! Pretty beefy back then... but with some mods, 300-325 was easily attained!

The next gen TBird/Cougar had a supercharged V6 with a 5spd available. It was a nice motor, but had head gasket issues.

I honestly don't think it's an issue.

Air intakes are restricted by the size of the MAF or the throttle body, more than the filter housing. I would consider a K&N filter, tho... but that's because they do a great job and are reusable.

In short, I wouldn't worry about it. The air intake biz is based on bad bench racing concepts and good marketing. Short of very high power applications - think 800hp - the factory intake should be more than upto the job.

You will get more power from reconfiguring the OEM exhaust than anything else. The L98 single cat system is a real pig... replace that with a dual system, with dual performance cats and an xpipe, is worth 50hp. Add headers, add another 20+hp. Do that to a 383 and the upgrade will be insane.

Please note, none of what I said is smog legal in CA. Sad.

J3 - do you subscribe to Bring-A-Trailer?

Check this out:

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1987 ... l&utm_campaign=2020-04-05

Letty - thanks. I really appreciate the concern and wishes. It means a lot!!!

As for the on-demand heater... I am not sure it's the right choice for areas with winter... They work here, because winter means a low of 45F... that's not cold! Just seriously chilly. They have advantages... mostly the lack of a pilot light and compact size. I am just not sure how they would work in your winter. When that water comes out the tap at less than 50F, it will take more than a quick pass over heat to make it hot.

The windows will do wonders. We got them from Home Depot a few years ago. Had the windows in the kitchen replaced, along with the window in the livingroom. They are well worth it. Killed off a number of drafts in the kitchen and livingroom, but also are easier to open!

They totaled about $5k for all of them, installed. A total of 8 windows were installed, of various sizes. We also had insulation blown into the attic. That did a lot towards keeping the heat down in the summer. I want to do attic fans to move the air out, at some point.

I am looking forward to normalcy... the shelter isn't the problem... the lack of a job is the problem...

Ohh! Belated Happy Birthday to Ultrawoman!!! I sure hope her college class went great!!!!

Gris - hope your wife continues to get better!!!

We are staring at more rain... which is great!!!

Oh, well... back to my window on the world... I mean my TV! I am going out later to get new tires on my Vette, tho.

Our house came with solar electric and hot water.

They were installed by the prior owner about 20 years ago.

There are two arrays on the garage roof, with two inverters. I don't remember the output at this time. I would have to check the inverter ratings. What I do know, they were saving us about $75 a month on our electric bill.

As for the hot water, our summer gas bill would drop down to about $7.00 a month. During the winter it still saved us some $30 a month, IIRC... The solar hot water has an array on top of the house, with a 75 gallon storage tank in the basement. There is a pump with thermistors that test the temp in the tank and in the array. When the temps change, the water is swapped from the tank to the array and back again to maintain temps.

The next step is the standard gas hot water tank. The only gas used is the pilot. Once the tank gets hot, the water flow from the solar to the gas powered tank, and that water is more than hot enough - and I mean hella hot - to keep the gas heater from firing again!!

This renders the gas heater more or less a long term backup if the weather gets gnarly.

The downside, the solar hot water is DOA right now. I need to get someone in to fix it... just finding someone with reach to get to the peak of the roof - and it's really high!! Tommy - you have seen that peak! Apparently, some critters chewed through the wire to the thermistor on top of the roof... and the pump controller died or the thermistor died... not sure which.

Our electric system is aging... and at some point, I would like to upgrade it. However, that is not today. I like the discount it offers, but the technology has changed SO much in the last 20 years, that what was good then is merely tolerable today.

One thing, Tommy, make sure the installers are actually good. Our realtor had solar installed on their house a few years back. There was a nasty storm with some stiff winds... ripped the panels right off the roof, destroying the panels and the roof. Might have even shorted out the inverters... don't remember for sure. IIRC, $100k in damages!! The rain did water damage, too, I think. Either way, they screwed up big time. This was also a common problem here 4-6 years ago. So many fly-by-night operations came up and caused a ton of issues.

Knowing the cost of electricity in FL, I would not hesitate doing it. Just be damned sure the panels are hurricane proof!!!

After things settle, I am going to look into a Tesla battery wall. The solar would recharge it and it runs the entire house. It is more expensive than a generator, but we would not need a huge propane tank or have to by 500 gallons of the gas at a time, either. Less space, less complexity and a full house backup when the power goes out!

I need to do more research... the Tesla is about 2x the cost of a full house propane generator (Gencom).

One other thought... windmills...

John - The Linc - The Eagles football stadium has windmills. The stadium, IIRC, is 100% powered by those windmills. 1 or 2 windmills would generate a ton of wattage.

Random thoughts....

The Ferrari... I LOVE the GTB over the GTS. I like the clean lines of the hardtop roof. It just rocks. I would own one in a second.

The Buick is nice, too. KPotter had the Olds version, and they were nice cars. Rode well, drove well and actually got good MPG.

The Firenza? Burn it. Hate those J-Cars of that era... sorry...

The 928 has always been a favourite of mine. I do prefer the later GTS versions with a bit more engine, but the 80s editions are sweet! And the look is so modern and sleek. Looks new and fresh today. I know it was hated by the 911 snobs back then, but the shape has aged so very well. I am glad they are finally being accepted by the collectors market.

Thanks for the updates!!!

See you in November, Charley!!!!

Late check-in... Bastet44 sells her baked goods at a local farmers market... 0600 to 1500! Long assed day!

The farmers market is considered essential and as long as you sell food/produce, they are exempt!

Now it's raining... seriously raining.

Did you watch the Sebring race Saturday? It was impressive!!!

It's been grey and rainy around here for the last week. Makes staying inside much easier, really... and it's been chilly cool - 50-55F, which is much lower than norm, add in the rain, and if feels like November in Delaware.

Otherwise, all is good here. We are healthy and avoiding people. The downside, the job hunt has been slowed massively.

And they have set up a mini-NASCAR series, too. Quite a number of cup drivers are going to be in it.

https://www.imsa.com/news/2020/03/18/g ... sa-sebring-supersaturday/

Beats nothing, eh?

morning gang... just hanging in!

My only plan is to head out and fill the tank in my Vette... just to have it done.

I did the DNA testing through Ancestry.com... learned I was 13% (or was that 11?) Irish... Shocked me... Mom said we were Scottish...

Oh, 54% Eastern European... Dad was Polish/Russian, depending on the boarder on the day his folks came to the USA.

The extra 4% validates the eastern Euro Jewish component in Mom's family.

And 20% Nordic...

To you all - keep diligent and healthy!!!

You are my friends and I want you all to stay that way! Extended family is seriously included!! Love and health to all!!

As for us, we are good. Here in LA, we are not limited to products or supplies yet - the local markets are still getting products and things are still in production.

I hope this blows over quickly... very quickly.