Paint Class - Day 21

Today we also had a tool check - which consisted of checking for about 5 things, from our 20+ item list. If you didn't have an item you were sent home, I think one we got to the fifth item our teacher decided we has a critical mass of students, and didn't want to loose any more. My partner and I wet sanded with 600 grit sand paper and a sanding block the hood and deck lid of the BMW. well, he blocked the hood (that we put so many coats of primer on) with a long board and 180 grit first, then wet snaded it. I learned that the wet sanding should be done in an x pattern, and that it should be done to the point that none of the guidecoat shows any more (which eliminates low spots).

Paint Class - Day 20

Today we had a "tool check," which consisted of checking to make sure we had a pencil and paper. My partner and I applied primer to the hood and deck lid of the BMW, but the group next to us was stripping their car, and the little metal flakes got into the primer. so we had to pick all the crap out and re-apply the primer a few times. I learned that If there is an air bubble in the primer you should push it in with your finger, and then apply another coat. After we finished with the primer, we applied a guide coat, and left it to dry. Then I spent the rest of the day looking at what other groups were doing.

chrome on plastic?

This was an unsolicited post on one of the cadillac groups I belong to. This guy says he's an expert at chrome-plating plastic. Now everything in that whip can be shiney chrome. But his name is bandit, so maybe see if you can get some good feedback before you try anything too expensive.

http://www.lashopabandit.com/pages/chrome_plastique_plaque_en.php

New oil in the '95

Changed at 117040 miles. It was a quart low, so when I drained the oil, it didn't overflow my insufficiently-sized oil pan this time ;-)

I also changed the air filter, and I guess it's the first time I've done it since I had this car. Apparently, somewhere inbetween 1993 and 1995 Cadillac thought it would be a SUPER idea to add a little bracket that goes over the corner the air filter is on, so now a simple air filter change involves five bolts.

GM really sucks now.

Paint Class - Day 19

Today my partner Dan showed me how to apply a plastic filler (like bondo but made of different stuff) and sand it down to the right level. You use a tool called a cheesegrater, which looks just like a cheesgrater with no handles to shave off the excess plastic, and then sand down with 80 grit sandpaper and a longboard, and then 180 grit sandpaper with a longboard. Then we re-sprayed the corrosion protection to the area around the palstic where it had been sanded off. Then we were put on some one else project for a bit, because it was too cold to spray the primer. Then we cleaned for the last hour.

Paint Class - Day 18

Today I was stuck in the tool room checking out tools. We're only supposed to have to do it one week, but I think the two instructors have not compared notes well enough, becuase the guy who was doing it yesterday was not doing it today. SO... I'm sure I'll have to do it again. My partner on the BMW sprayed the hood and trunk with a black-tinted primer.

Paint Class - Day 17

Today we were assigned to specific cars in the shop. A second year student is assigned to the car, and a first-year student to help them. I was assigned to this 1991 BMW 3 series that had oxidation on the hood and a repair on the trunk. the last class had stripped the paint down to about the primer with a chemical stripper (my dads favorite stuff - airplane paint stripper). So today I used a grinder with 80 grit sandpaper to take it down to the metal, then I came back with a DA(Dual action) sander with 180 grit sandpaper to take the fine bits off. I was working on sanding the paint from the slats in the hood (by hand), when we had to pack up.

DeVille

Today, we (meaning my dad - since I knew that it had to be special ordered) looked for a wheel cylinder for the deVille. Doug and Dad had been moving cars around and trying to get them going, so when I got down there the deVille had been moved to where Dougs camaro used to be (not easily accessible, but not terrible). He said it started and ran, but it needed tranny fluid. So, I'll need to order a wheel cylinder so we can replace it at the next opportunity. The car is registered and insured so as soon as I can get it roadworthy, I'll bring it up to the house.

Paint Class - Day 16

Today is really the first day in the shop with the second teacher, and we spent the day cleaning the shop out (this time was much more thoughourg than the first time we did it.

Paint Class - Day 15

Today we wet sanded the primer we put on our fender Monday, and then put the fenders away. Then we buffed the paint on a car.

Painting Class - Day 14

Today we had a test, and watched a video about painting with different types of paint(1-stage, 2 satge and 3-stage paints).

Painting Class - Day 13

Today was a long day, When we came in, our freshly painted fenders all had been "keyed" or scratched with a key. And our project for the day was to feather out the damaged area, and prime. It took a long time with so many people in the class. we didn't get out until 10:40.

Car problems today

(to be edited later)

Today I hooked up the trickle charger to the 944 and after about an hour, it started up. I was going to let it run for the recommended 20 minutes to charge up the battery, but the gas light was on (I forgot that I needed to fill up last time I drove it). So I went down the street to the gas station to fill up. After the tank was full, guess what, the car wouldn't start.

I, of course, had nothing with me... no phone, no jumper cables, not even my camera (two dog-in-cars went by while I was at the station). so, I bought some jumper cables and asked a few people who were filling up at the station to help me out, the first guy said he was in a rush and couldn't, the second guy said it was a company truck and he couldn't, the third guy (a young guy driving a 91 BMW) agreed, but didn't really look like he wanted to). So, we hooked the cars up and it didn't work. That guy and another guy who had just pulled up helped me push the car into a parking spot. And I walked home in my flip-flops. On the way, I was thinking about going to get a battery and swapping it out, but I decided to just call AAA. I renew in April, so I might as well use my last roadside assistance for the year now. Plus, it's such a pain to find stuff for this car, I didn't want to waste half my day looking for a battery.

I drove back to the gas station in the Cadillac, since I figured the AAA battery truck wouldn't take too long to arrive (it didn't - I pulled into the gas station and started filling up the Cadillac, and before the tank was full the AAA guy was there). The guy was really nice, we got into a conversation about cars and racing - he races a '67 Camaro. And we talked about my 944 and how cool it would be to put in some racing struts to replace to worn out struts that are in it right now (which is why I haven't been driving it).

He hooked up the jumper cables and battery to the car, and it still didn't turn over. He said he thought it was the starter, but I told him that there had not been any issues starting the car in the past, and usually a starter will give you a little warning before it gives out. So, he hooked up a second set of cables to the car. It started :-) I left the caddy at the gas station, and high-tailed it back home in the 944. I left the car running in the driveway while I pumped up the tires on my bike, hopefully it was enough time to keep the battery charged enough to start the car again.

Then I rode my bike to the gas station, put my bike in the Cadillac and came home. It can be such a pain in the ass to deal with the cars sometimes.

I'll need to bring the 944 to a Kragen or Autozone and have them test the battery to make sure it's OK.

Paint Class - Day 12

Tonight we went over our tests from Tuesday (I got a C - better than I was expecting). I Learned that PPG stands for Pittsburg Plate & Glass and purchased Ditzler a number of years (maybe decasdes at this point).

We also partnered up and took apart an accuspray gun to see if it needed any new parts. We ordered one part, a gasket, but neither my partner or I had the tools we needed to open the gun up (as did about 95% of the class), so who knows if we needed any other parts.

On Tuesday we will install the new parts, and see if the guns will spray.

Paint Class - Day 11

Today I went out and bought the remainder of my materials. $258 ouch. (+another $52)

In Class, a group of us who has missed the last couple of classes spent the first hour of class sanding our fenders, then we all went into the paint booth and sprayed some color on, and then clear coat. We were in class pretty late, I didn't get home until about 11pm.

I think tomorrow is just lecture, so we shouldn't be there so late.

Painting Class - Day 10

I've missed the last two days of class. I guess we sanded our fenders last thursday and painted them yesterday. But there are a lot of other students who apparently didn't get all their tools in time, so I won't be the only one trying to catch up.

Today was a test, I think I did better than the last one, but really not so great, it seems as though the tests include questions on topics we haven't talked about yet. This was followed by a lecture, and we went through catalogs of products and talked about what they did. We also talked about the grit of sandpaper, and sandpaper types.

Paint Class - Day 7

Today we went over the answers to the test we took on Monday, which apparently were not graded (at least mine didn't have a grade on it, but I got there 5 minutes late as usual). and over the parts of a pressured-fed paint gun, and accupaint, which would normally be used for primers and sealers. So they say you should have like 5 or 6 paint guns one for primer, one for light color paint, one for dark color paint, one for clear, one for other products. - Oh and I found out that I didn't miss anything after I left yesterday, they just cleaned.

Paint Class - Day 6

Today we watched an instructional video showing the process and steps of painting a car with new panels and blended panels. It's kind of a crappy old video, the information is still current (kind of - the instructor has to stop the tape a couple of time and say "you can't to that anymore"). Then we went down to the shop, where he asked us to bring our tools (none of which I had gathered/purchased). Those of us who were missing anything were sent home early, and told not to come back until we had the tools.

Painting Class - Day 5

Today we learned what the different types of paint guns are, and how to diagnose problems with paint guns that don't work.

Battery dead in 944

I haven't turned it over in a few weeks, so the battery had died.

Painting Class - Day 4

Well, the class is going alright. I was able to obtain a fender that was left from previous classes, so I don't have to find one. We have our first quiz on Monday. I don't really care about my grade, but I don't particuarily want to fail either...

engine block wine holder

While this isn't a caddy block, it would be cool to make one!
http://www.jag-lovers.org/include/iv3.php3?zx=SdADyw4IiM8ED8ZK%2FZfkxwPOCQCYmM8Czgc41s2j3L1HN6OXvET8PwvO2gpCvAwPi5jc98kfRd3dxDz4QPvS1Qw3CUz81dj998kfQdTHBkW8CxTZ1PdC9kk21doFMQo%2BMdrPBUD2QjzKyw4ExUk21pm8NQJMO6Od9wvMCTCdnsgCBxEEnp%2FPTNAS%2F5iZzgMPDwGWlsYEyTrwoQ%3D%3D

Fender

I have to find a practice fender for my painting class. The instructor suggested that we not use a panel that we want to use on a real car, as we will be practicing on the panel a lot. Maybe I can go to pick and pull, or MAYBE doug still has part of his jeep laying around that I can use...

Painting class

Tonight is the first day of the automotive painting class I signed up for. The class cost about $200, and I'm sure materials won't be cheap either, and it's a huge time commitment. So, if I'm not going to come out of the class with intimate knowledge of how to paint a car and make it look good, I may drop it.

FINALLY!!!!

Cadillac has finally decided to play around with the idea of making a CTS coupe. I don't know what they've been smoking the last few years, but I've been waiting to see when they would finally get around to this.

interesting are the engine options it rumored to have, the v-6 and a turbodiesel engine. Maybe you will be able to run this car off of biodiesel as well.

http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080114/FREE/974474836/1528/newsletter01

today I'm shopping for parts

Specifically, a new wheel cyclinder for the drum brakes on the '67 Convertible. it's the parts that the brakes lines go into at the wheel, and what creates the braking pressure to the pads. Here's what it looks like:



My brother is moving into the house where the convertible is being stored, and he'll be moving a few cars down there, so I thought I'd take advantage of the opportunity to have the 'vert towed up to my house, where I can work on it more easily. But I'd like to change the wheel cylinder out before that happens so the car will have an effective braking system (helpful for when you're moving them around).

New Cadillac Concept

I'm growing ever more dissapointed with the designs that Cadillac has been revealing. Here's the latest concept something called a Provoq, obviously an over-thought name to follow in the steps of the previous over-thought marketing names like the Evoq, but probably better than whatever they end up calling it real life. Lets see - what "hot" letters are left to form into a non-sensical attempt to appear more European?

This thing looks like a Saturn Vue meets a Nissan Murano(Um, hello- so NOT European inspired!). Cadillac is supposed to be the luxury GM car, where's the sexy, I-really-want-to-max-out-my-credit-to-buy-this-car aspect?

Things they got right: fuel economy with a hydrogen powered fuel cell. "green" gadgets partnering with Michelin to produce low-carbon emitting tires (it' not thourouly explained how they do this) and earth-friendly interior materials such as recycled carpets, and soy-based headliner wraps. It's the way of the future and there's nothing we can do about it but embrace it. Interior console design, while it's not super-awesome, they are on the right track with the lighting.

Here's the article from Jalopnik with all the details:http://jalopnik.com/341986/ces-cadillac-provoq-hydrogen-fuel-cell-concept-revealed

Jim's back and wants his space in the garage

Now that Jim is back from Sacramento, he wants his space in the garage back. I had to hook up the trickle charger to the '93 (which I had put in the garage with the '67when I was swapping wheels around a couple weeks ago). It involved taking down the extension cord that the Christmas lights were hooked up to is the freezing cold last night. Jim tried to move the '93 out of the garage yesterday when he got home from work but it wouldn't turn over, which I think is good, because I really don't want him driving it anyway...even if it is just to back it out of the garage. That car could stop functioning at any moment.

I really need to fix or get rid of this car...but I just can't deal with it until the summer.

Upholstery kits

leather kits you can order for your car:
http://autoupholsterykits.com/

Finally!

The tires I bought for the '95 Eldo are swapped onto non-leaky wheels!

I brought the car and my original wheels from the '93 (which are a little dinged up but don't leak) to the tire shop today. It was going to cost $96 to have the tires swapped, but I bitched about all the extra fees ($20 to fill the tires with nitrogen? WTF?) and got them to take the price down to $60, That was very nice of them, and will make me consider coming back to this shop the next time I need tires.

(photo to come)
Here's a shot of how badly one of the chrome wheels is destroyed. How does this even happen?

Automotive Painting

I just signed up for a class the local community college is hosting on Automotive painting. I figured I should Learn how to do it, since I personally have so many cars that need paint ('67 Vert, '67 Eldo, 944 and the '79 Deville) Plus, dad has two or three and Doug has a few himself.

If I can get Doug to do the body work on the '67 Vert, I may be able to get that car finished before the Cadillac-LaSalle Club's Las Vegas Grand National in the Summer of '09.

Need some rain-x

It's finally started to be winter here in California, and I'm realizing that I need to apply some Rain-x to the windsheild of the 944. The wipers work well enough, but you never know when they'll stop working, and having the rain-x on there with the wipers makes it a lot easier to see. I may have to use an entire bottle on the hatch window...

Speaking of the hatch window. I'm also wondering how much it would cost to put in a rear wiper. I already have the correct glass with the hole in it to mount one. but am not sure if I have the proper wiring or if it would need to be routed in. I'll have to do some research on it...

Sick this weekend - didn't do much

I did put the new registration sticker on the 944.

944 spider problem

Today when I left work, the 944 didn't want to start. It seemed like a battery problem, since it just clicked, with no attempt to start. the lights and radio were working with no problems, so I thought maybe there was corrosion on the cables or a bad connection. I tried to wiggle the negative cable but it was on securly and wouldn't budge, the I lifted the cap of the positive cable, and saw a little spider buliding a cocoon type web (most likely planning to lay some eggs there) on my postive battery cable. I shooed the spider away and scraped the web off the battery, then the car started right up.

Not much going on over the weekend

I hung the Christmas lights. Now the cars look pretty at night.

944 Passed smog!

Yay! I'm late in registering it, so it's costing me $70 instead of $54, but I'm very happy that I don't have to fork out a couple hundred for any smog-related issues...

Cadillac Club board meeting

A new member came out to the board meeting today and drove his 1937 Cadillac.

Ugh! Chip in the Windshield

I didn't even see or hear this one happen, it's on the passenger side just on the other side of the rearview mirror, so I can't see it from where I sit. Jim pointed it out to me when we went to get hot dogs...

Cleaned out the garage

I intended to work on the '67 eldo, but the garage was such a mess, I couldn't focus on the car...SO i cleaned the garage instead. I also re-arranged the cars a little, so the '67 eldo is in the garage for now.

Modulator arrived today

I was shocked out of sleep by a door bell ring, and what was there when I answered it? Two packages from Rock Auto! The Modulator, and an oil filter for the 944.

took the cadillac in to work today

Before I left I checked the oil and it was more than a quart low! I think my oil leak is getting worse... or maybe it was the trip to LA that burned so much of it off...

Ordered Modulator!

Maybe it will be here before the end of the week. Every time I look up this part or talk about it, I think of Marvin the Martian, and the way he says "Mod-u-la-tor"

Smog Check

I need to get a smog check done for the 944. I hope it passes! When I bought it, the guy I purchased it from did the smog check, and one of the numbers was very close to the max then. I'm hoping that stays the same, but am also fully expecting to have to get a new O2 sensor or some other smoggy part.

Changed Oil in Porsche!

Finally! I bought a couple of shorter 2-ton jackstands($20 at Kragen), and changed the oil. I was at about 5k miles since the last change (which is actually under the recommended oil change frequency for this car, but I want to keep changing the oil every 3k).

It's still difficult to change the oil even with these shorter jackstands, but at least I can get under the side of the car to reach the drain plug with the lower jacks (I did need to get Jim to help me loosen the plug - why do these guys at the shops always over-tighten everything?). I'm thinking maybe the drive-up ramp lifts might be a better way to go with this car... Also, the oil filter is angled so you lift it from the top of the engine. This makes no sense to me, there's no way to keep all the oil from spilling out over everything.

But, the drain pan I had (that had overflowed when I changed the oil in the Cadillac)worked perfectly for the 944. Just the right size for the oil pan and oil from the filter.

no tires this weekend

didn't pick up the other two wheels this weekend, but mom said she'd drop them off when she drives down this way on Friday.

Tire Swapping

I needed to drive down to LA for a wedding today, so I took one of the old wheels that I just brought down from my parents house (the one that still had functional rubber), and one of the wheels off of the '93 Eldo, and put them on the '95 Eldo. We did this last night at 11:30 p.m.



Not wanting the car to look even junkier than it already does, I swapped the wheels around on the 95 so that the two chrome wheels were on the drivers side, and the two matte aluminum wheels were on the passenger side, so at least each side of the car looked like it had matching wheels. This may not be the best option for tire wear, but it sure save on embarrasment.

Oh - two of these wheels that the tire shop installed were almost impossible to get off the car, I had to stand on the wrench to get the lugnuts off. Someone didn't set the tourque on the air wrench to the right setting... It shouldn't take 155 lbs to loosen the lugnut!

Saggy rear end

The rear end on the '95 Cad is sagging a lot, I suspect that the shocks were either swapped out for the kind you have to fill with compressed air every once in a while, or the fuse for the shocks has gone out... I will do a fuse check as soon as I can get around to it.

I took two of the spare wheels I have home this weekend, which is the number of cadillac wheels you can fit in a honda accord trunk. We're probaly going back up this weekend, so I will grab the other two then.

Why won't anyone change the oil in the 944?

This is getting ridiculous. 8 places that "specialize" in oil changes refuse to do it. WHY?! The place today tried to tell me that the engine needs to be turned over in a special way when the oil is changed. ugh...One a few weeks ago said they didn't have the tools need to change the oil in it. I refuse to go to a Porsche dealer and pay $120 bucks for an oil change!!! I'll probably break down and buy the shorter jack stands so I can do it myself at home.

'95 cad wheels

I think I'm going to grab my spare set of cadillac wheels from my parents house when I go visit this weekend...then I can have the tire shop switch over all the tires when I get the flat repaired. No more leaky tire...

Cadillac meet today

I went to a Cadillac meet today with the Bay Area chapter of the CML. Except I didn't get to drive a Cadillac. We BBQ'd and ate pie, and looked at each others cars. It was a beautiful day and great fun.

so busy...

Work this week is very busy I've had homework every night. so nothing has been done on any of the cars. I haven't even brought the flat into the tire shop for repair yet.

I was thinking that it would be a good idea to bring the 944 into the shop and have the struts and alignment done, but I'll also have to get new tires, and I'm not 100% sure the rear drivers side wheel lock will come off...

More Flat tires

This time a different tire went flat while I was at work...

Plan for this weekend

I have found myself with a free Sunday for once.

Here's a list of stuff that needs to be done that I currently have the parts for in the garage:

Change front brakes on 944
replace headlight on 944
install antenna on 944
re-connect ipod plug in 944
Change oil in 944
Change front brakes on '67 Eldo
Change oil on '95 Eldo

Here's a list of other things that I need to get parts to do:

Check rear brakes on '95 Eldo (well, I MAY need to get parts for this...)
Fix '67 Eldo (need vacuum modluator?)

Cadillac North-South Show

I went to a Cadillac show this weekend in San Luis Obispo, CA. There's nothing better then looking at beautiful working Cadillacs to motive you to finish yours...

There was a gorgeous 1930 v-16 Cadillac at the show, and many 60's including 3 '67-'68 Eldorado's!

I got some good info on possible solutions to my vacuum leak, including the difference between the two vacuum modulators that are available in parts stores. Turns out I want the more expensive brass one which is what the original came with.

The smaller modulator leaves off a feature (that I can't remember what it was exactly...) that you don't NEED to run the car, but why would you buy a part that reduces what the car does?

Going to SLO this weekend

in the '95 eldo with the leaky tire...

Dirty Dirty Cars

I need to do a mass car washing... all the cars a filthy, with the exception of the 67 Eldo which has been under a car cover the last few months. though I wouldn't be surprised if it wasn't clean under there, every time the gardeners come by they use leaf blowers to "clean" the yard, and in the process blow the cover off the car (last time this was evidenced by the fact that the car cover was stretched over the antenna instead of having the antenna go through the small hole I put in the car cover). It really drives me crazy that there are people coming to the house every other week who are touching my cars.

67 Eldo vacuum modulator

I think I'll just order a new vaccuum modulator for the transmission, that seems to be the most likely thing that has gone wrong with the shifting on the '67.

the only thing is that there are two different ones available...one is big and brass and expensive $50, and the other is small and some kind of silver colored metal, and cheap $20, I can't imaging that both of these parts work properly, so I'll have to do some research...

hmmm. Updates...

The tire in the '95 is still not holding air. It loses about 4-5lbs of air a day, which means it need to fill it every day. It's a pain in the ass. I was thinking of swaping out the wheels for the spare set I have, they are not shiney chrome, but they don't leak...but then If they DO leak, I'll know it's the tires not the wheels...

Free Air Compressor

Doug found a guy through his work we was giving away an air compressor for free (because it had a hole in it) Doug took it, welded it up and gave it to me! He dropped it at the house while I was out at a cadillac event today...

Bastard!

So Last night, I got home from work and went to go hook the trickle charger up to the battery of the 95 eldo, and just as a lark, I tried to start it before I hooked it up, and broooom! It stated right up. Stupid Car.

My theory is that it wanted some garage time.

double RRRRR.

This morning I checked the tire level on the problem wheel on the 95 Eldo, and the air was low...20 PSI (should be 35 PSI). This sucks because it means the leak was not fixed. It may be leaking slower, but it hasn't stopped. I pulled it into the garage, and filled the tire, then filled the tire in the '93 Eldo since it was right there, and it was also low (most likely from sitting for a year more than anything else...).

Here's what makes it a double-rrrrr...I went to leave and all the car did was Click, Click, Click. The battery had died in the '95! What the Hell, I JUST started it, and it has not shown any signs of battery drain in the past. I checked the on-dash display, and it was showing 11 Amps, but I think It needs at least 12 to turn over. I only have a trickle charger which takes like, an hour to charge the battery up one amp, so I drove the 944 to work today.

I'm thinking now that I must not have let it run long enough the two times I started it this morning (once when Jim left for work and my car was in the way, and once to put it in the garage to fill the tire. I hope the battery didn't decide to kick the bucket right then. When I get home I will put the trickle charger on it and try starting it up tomorrow...

67 eldo shift problem

Ok, so I finally read up about the problem I'm having with the '67 cadillac not shifting from 1st to second unless it's at full throttle... the possible causes include:

-bad vaccuum hose from tranny
-bad vaccuum modulator on tranny
-bad Transmission downshift switch
-bad solenoids
-bad control valve assembly
-bad case assmebly

well now, doesn't that narrow it down...

'57 sevilles

I went to look at a pair of '57 sevilles today. As much as I have the desire to save them, I really can't take another project on. I must work on the one's I already have...

Changed Oil in 95

We got out early from work yesterday, so I got home before Jim and took the opportunity to actually get into the garage. I changed the oil in the '95 Eldo at 110,000 miles.

The engine holds 7 quarts plus maybe another .5 for the filter, but the new (meaning I bought it a year ago and this is the first time I've actually used it) 7.5 quart oil pan I had did not hold all the oil, so I made a mess in the garage.

I don't think it's really a 7.5 quart oil pan. plus it sucks with pouring, I must find a better oil pan.

rumble burnout cadillac -60 cab 502

Wow! awesome! :-D

Got the Tire back

I called the tire shop this morning, as it had become obvious that they had forgotten about me. They said yes your tire is ready...so I went in before work and had them put it on. I drove it to work today, but I'll be watching it closely.

time for brakes

Today on the drive home, the 944 sounded like the brake indicators were indicating. I think I already bought new pads for it, so I'll do the brakes soon...I think I need to pick up some lower profile jack stands though, the one's I have are for cadillac-sized cars, and the 944 looks like it's floating in the sky when its on them...

Registration Time

The registration is due for the '67 convertible, and the 944 (which I have to get smogged...) both are only 50-60 bucks, but the smog will cost...

Flat tire

I brought the car back to where I got the new tires, and they said the wheel was causing the leak, and proceeded to try to sell me new wheels, after explaingin to them that I do not want new wheels, and even if I were to need to purchase new ones, I'd get the appropriate wheels for the car, they said they would try to put a temporay fix on the wheel grinding the leaking area down, and putting an sealant on the area, to keep it from leaking for the short term. They put the spare on the car, and kept the problem wheel, I am expecting a call Monday to let me know when it's ready. My dad thinks they scratched the chrome on the wheel when they put the new tires on, causing the leak. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt, but I will probably not come back for tires again.

New Plan

The new plan is to get the convertible running for the 2009 CLC Grand National in Las Vegas.

First chance I get, I will finish the rear brakes, and change all the fluids. Oil, transmission, power steering, brake, coolant. and check the compression on the engine.

another un-Cadillac

Lotus Eclat
This one's half the price of the Lancia posted on June 20th, and double the horsepower...still a 4 cylinder so good gas mileage... and fun!

Air compressor search

I don't have an air compressor at home, and since I'm having these problems with the tire, it seems like a good time to buy one. I looked through all the parts store ads for any that might be one sale, but there were none. In fact, Pep boys was the only place that even had any in stock...but of course, they didn't have the one I wanted.

I went to Sears, they only had the giant shop sized one in the tool department, and when I asked if they had the smaller kind, the guy said " no we don't carry those" when in fact they do, they were just out in the Auto Center. I ended up buying one here for $50 (well, it was on sale for $44 or something like that). Which I think is a ridiculous price.

67 eldo battery

There's a little corrosion on the battery...it looks like coral.

944 dipstick

I went to check the oil in the 944 this morning, and the entire tube that the dipstick goes into pulled out! Maybe that's where my oil leak is coming from...one can only hope.

Car Chase...

This is not really Cadillac related, but it was kind of exciting, so I'll share it. Jim and I pulled into a gas station, and while we were sitting there finishing our conversation this junky old Grand National come racing into the station, and I swear I thought it was going to hit us head on he swerved around us, but luckily there was no one else parked at the pumps or there would have been damage for sure. As he books it past us, four cop cars in hot pursuit followed him through the station out to the other street.



We were talking about how crazy that was, when we see the helicopter come out and start heading toward us, then the car goes by us again coming from a completely different direction, and this time he's got 6 cop cars in hot pursuit, and three more going the other way to cut him off from the other direction.

Flat tire this morning

the front tire was looking a little low on the road trip once, and then it semed to be fine, but this morning, I noticed the tire was almost flat. I drove it to the gas station down the street to re-fill the air, and went back home to switch cars, since I don't work all that close to where I live, I didn't want to have to use a AAA lifline for a flat. I'll look and see if the tire has lost air again and bring it in to the tire shop for a repair.

Back from the trip

Well the 95 eldo made it across the country and back. 7,169 miles in 14.5 days

Got a part for the '67

While in Phoenix, AZ I made a stop at Arizona Vintage Parts, which is a cadillac-only junkyard. I was able to pick up a new dash bezel for the '67 eldo!

Tire with low air

tire had lost some air, stopped at a filling station and pumped it up a bit. Luckily I had a tire pressure reader that my dad gave me a few weeks ago, because there wasn't one on the air pump.

Oil Change

Today an oil change at 106k miles.

Arrived at Cadillac Show

Darla the car and I pulled up to the host hotel today at 5 til 4pm, just in time for me to hop out of the car in the driveway hand Darla the keys and run up the stairs the the seminar I had signed up for on air ride suspension.

Name for the Cadillac

Chicken. More explaination to follow.

Car Falling apart

Today a piece of the door trip on the passenger side fell off on Interstate 70.

Cadillac in Colorado

This morning I left the hotel room and thought "awww... some bird took a huge crap on my car..." but no, it turned out to be a bird crap shaped moth.

Car Trip coming up!

I leave this Thursday for my trip across the country. I'm mostly prepared for the trip out though there are a few options that haven't been decided yet. We'll have to see how long it actually takes us to drive the routes.

First Place for the '95!

I brought My '95 Eldo to our local CLC club's annual judged show. and won 1st place for my class, admittedly there were only two of us in the class, and I tied for first with the other person (I should have voted for myself...). But still, it's my first ribbon all the years I've been coming to this show.

Stupid car covers

I have a car cover for the 944 that won't stay on the car. I think it's because the tree that used to be next to the car was cut down and now there is no shelter from the wind. I tried tying it but it just twists around the car. maybe I can put some velcro on the bottom of the car to make it stay.

Washed cars

Today I washed three cars at once, and bought a cheap cover to put over the '67 eldo (I already have one for the 944, came with the car...) The covers should keep them pretty clean unless it rains...

A while back our landlord cut down the Pine tree (well the half a pine tree) that was covering our driveway. Now that the source of the sap has been eliminated, I can get to work on scraping the sap off of the 944 and the 67 eldo. It takes forever!

$50 dollar paint job?

this guys painted his corvair in his driveway for $50

read more on how here:

http://www.rickwrench.com/50dollarpaint.html

It's tempting to try something like this on one of my cars just so it will look nicer for the short-term.

No Updates

The tires are great, I was amazed the first day driving on the how quiet they are!

I'm not sure what my car plan is right now, I'm gearing up for my trip to Savannah. So far, my friend Darla is driving out with me to Savannah, and no one is joining me on the way back. Maybe because I'll be driving through the desert in August.

V-12 Cadillacs that never were...

from Jalopnik...

http://jalopnik.com/cars/retro-concept/continued-caddy-concepts-v12s-that-n=ever-were-274571.php

New Tires

New tires for the 95 eldo!

Pirellis even...

Blah, Spiders...

Ugh, I was looking for the vacuum hose to the transmission in the 1967 eldo, and found a Giant Black Widow instead. Jim killed it. Well, he tried to kill it and then actually killed it. The thing outran the first spray of Raid. Then I turned the engine on to flush it out, and a second third and fourth spray of raid finally took it down.

Blech! Black Widows are gross!

Almost a blowout

Well I knew I needed new tires, but I didn't know one would literally melt. I came close to having a blowout last night.

My passenger side tire developed a wobble while Jim and I were on our way to a party last night. I thought I had a flat, and pulled to the side of the freeway, we looked at all the tires and they were all fine, so I drove slowly to the next exit. It felt as if there was something wrong with the driver's side, but when I looked at the passenger side it was wobbling severely. It had developed a huge bubble, and was distorted and melty.

We put the spare on (luckily there was a spare!), and went to the party. So now I must buy tires.

'95 on the road?

I pushed the Fuel line back onto the filter as hard as I could, but there is no snapping into place or latch that I can see. It seems to be holding gas again, So I drove it to work.

The gas tank was on empty (and was pretty much there when all this happened), so I stopped and got a few gallons, enough to get me to work, and to test it out in case it decided to leak again(I don't need to be responsible for a 20 gal fuel leak in Berkeley, they'd probably put me in jail for life). When I got to work it was still not leaking, so I'm thinking this problem is fixed. I'll continue to watch it carefully.

un-cadillac

this is so the opposite of a cadillac, but I love it! I would totally buy it if it was more like $6000.

1976 Lancia Scorpion 53k miles very original, runs perfectly! - $12000 (redwood city)
Reply to: sale-352879426@craigslist.org
Date: 2007-06-15, 11:41AM PDT

Rare 1976 Lancia Scorpion, in the UK and Continent called a Monte Carlo: Mid engine 1800cc Twin Cam, 5 Speed, all Disc brakes, original paint, runs like a watch, passes SMOG, and is very original. Only some 1700 of 7000 produced were imported to the US over a two year span, and many sadly have died a rusty death.

This little Lancia screams Italian all the way, Pininfarina (of Ferrari) design, retro color, funky roll up top ala a Topolino, classic arms extended Alfa Romeo driving position and all the right sounds from the Fiat derived overhead cam 4 cylinder with headers. Try to find another non-rusty Scorpion, much less one with 53k miles that is mechanically excellent. This litle car drives perfectly. Recently SMOGed, passed perfectly.

By the way, new brake calipers, rotors, pads, master cylinder, soft brake lines, new tires, new clutch master cylinder, new throttle cable, rebuilt front struts, new shift bushings, new hoses radiator, heater et all, re-core radiator, new fan sender switch, new shift bushings, new belts, re-built air pump, new Cat, new battery, new plugs, points, oil changed with filter.

Everything works except the old AC. Top, top straps, top hinged panel, latches all work smoothly, interior all superb, no cracks or tears in dash or door panels, carpet in car the trunk mat superb and original, no stains tears wear spots. Seats recovered.

Engine bay and engine are tidy and very correct: no leaks. It runs beautifully, idles nicely, pulls strong to 6500RPM, no smoke on acceleration or deceleration and 55 LBS of oil pressure. Trans and linkage shifts smoothly. So. Cal and AZ car.




http://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/car/352879426.html

No Leak?

This morning as I was running out the door to go to work, I started the '95 Cadillac to see if pushing the line back onto the filter solved the gas leak. I started it and shut it off immediately in case there was a leak, but nothing came out, so I started it again and let it run a little, still no gas leaking out!

I still drove the 944 to work today though, because I'm concerned that there is no snap or other secure way the line stays on the filter. I wonder if this is correct?

Broken Fuel line?

Ugh...On my way home last night from Sears, I was driving the 1995 Eldorado, When a small car that I was following a little too closely ran over two pieces of wood, flinging one up into the front bumper of my car, and the other under the body of my car.

I thought "crap that sounded bad, it probably poked a hole in the bumper..." when I pulled into our driveway, about a mile from where the wood hit the car, Jim said he smelled gas. When I opened the door, the scent of gas hit me in the face. and there was gas dripping out from under the car like crazy. When I shut the car off it stopped, and luckily I did not have a full tank of gas, otherwise our driveway would be extremely flammable today, and I would be out the $60 it takes to fill up the tank.

After inspection, the first piece of wood left a nice scar on the bumper (fortunately, it looks like it can be buffed out). The second one that went under the car, and seems to have broken (or at least disconnected) the fuel line from what looks like the fuel filter(?). I moved the car in the spot reserved for cars that are not running and took the 944 to work today. When I moved it the gas started leaking again.

Plan for this week

I need to tackle the '67 eldo and get it into a running status again.

Things to do:
-locate the vacuum hose that is causing the tranny to not shift
-replace the bolt that is causing the exhaust leak
-replace the front brake pads
-change the oil

New Spark Plugs!

New Spark Plugs are in the 1995 Eldo. Did them today with Dad. The old ones were pretty fouled. and a couple of them had some oil leakage (not a good sign). The engine is aluminum so an anti-cease compound needs to be applied to the spark plugs where they screw into the block so they don't weld themsleves in.

Since the new dog bone mounts went in, it's become pretty obvious that I have a serious shimmy. I'm hoping it's just these mismatched and old tires, which I plan to replace next week. if not that, maybe it's the wheel, which I could swap with the other wheels I had from the '93 Eldo. if it's neither of those things, then there is something wrong with the suspention, which will cost some serious $$$.