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Original craigslist ad: Price is right! When I showed up to look at the car, the guy said he would take $200. Even better! The transmission was mostly dry from a leak, so my brother and I dragged it back to my house. Upon arrival: (As always, click for a larger image)      Preliminary analysis: rough but serviceable. I dug in to it a little more this morning. THE GOOD -Engine runs well -Nearly new tires -Tie rod ends recently replaced -Front brakes in excellent condition -Suspension feels tight, not in need of attention -Third seat -3.3 -Four speed -Air conditioning works well -Local car, little to no rust THE BAD -Car has been sitting for some time, so it needs fresh gas and oil -CTSY fuse keeps popping, even a 30 amp, so I don't have radio, interior lights or horn -Rear brakes are in need of attention --Left rear is adjusted far too tightly, and broken to boot. The "W" retainer spring fell apart when I pulled the drum -Ball joints appear to be original -Steering is quite heavy, despite a full PS reservoir -Driver's seat and armrest console are a mess -Driver's door is a disaster: doesn't close properly, outside handle is broken, the upper hinge has been torn off the door and will need to be welded or the door replaced entirely, door panel was in the back of the car -Driver's window held up by a plank of wood -Passenger window motor dead, window stuck 3/4 up -Shift indicator not lined up at all, stuck on 1 -Little bit of cosmetic impact damage over RR wheel, left side of tailgate -Needs new struts for tailgate glass and hatch THE UGLY -Transmission leak is coming from between the engine and bellhousing, which is probably either the torque converter seal or input shaft seal. -Transmission seems to be toasted regardless The leak:  Dirty 3300.  Quarter panel:  Tailgate:  Some kind of antenna?  Local car.  Custom badges.  Full gauge cluster.  Torn hinge:   SPID:  Little storage cubby on driver's side. I wonder if there's anything in there.  RED ALERT RED ALERT ALL HANDS TO BATTLE STATIONS ENEMY SIGHTED  After putting three quarts of fluid into the transmission, it started working. I drove it around the block, and found that it's basically on its last legs. I'm gonna dump in some stop leak, because at this point it can't hurt. If it works, great. If not, oh well, time for a transmission.
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Aug 23, 2015 20:43
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| # ? Apr 19, 2024 03:02 |
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You must really, really like that specific body style. It seems to me at the end of the day, something like a roadmaster would be cheaper to restore/maintain, and be more valuable once complete.
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Aug 23, 2015 21:09
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Powershift posted:You must really, really like that specific body style. It seems to me at the end of the day, something like a roadmaster would be cheaper to restore/maintain, and be more valuable once complete. I do, but I challenge anyone to find a $200 Roadmaster wagon in running, driving condition.
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Aug 23, 2015 23:50
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I wouldn't call that one "driving" condition.
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Aug 24, 2015 02:09
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I would, but probably not for long. Edit: I approve of this project.
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Aug 24, 2015 06:59
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There is a good chance the courtesy fuse keeps popping because of a metal object in the cigarette lighter.
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Aug 24, 2015 12:35
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Man, it's gotta be worth more than that in scrap alone. I'd call it a good deal.
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Aug 24, 2015 14:18
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So what are your plans? Keeping it as another driver or flipping it? Junkyard transmission I assume?
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Aug 24, 2015 14:22
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All my friends in high school had these cars. They ran for forever and I put many an intake gasket and W brake spring on these things. Such a comfortable ride and a perfect beater car.
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Aug 24, 2015 16:22
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The iron duke version requires less maintenance.
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Aug 24, 2015 16:28
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PBCrunch posted:There is a good chance the courtesy fuse keeps popping because of a metal object in the cigarette lighter. I checked that. I didn't see anything in there. I will look again though. CornHolio posted:Man, it's gotta be worth more than that in scrap alone. I'd call it a good deal. Absolutely. That's why I got it. Even if the transmission is pooched, everything else is worth the price I paid. The tires, the engine, the suspension. At worst, it can be a parts car for my other two Centurys. slidebite posted:So what are your plans? Keeping it as another driver or flipping it? Junkyard transmission I assume? Kinda playing it by ear with this one. I'll wait and see what a can of stop leak does for the transmission leak. If it does nothing, it'll be an interim parts car. It's mechanically identical to my yellow '92 sedan, which desperately needs front hubs, and it's a wagon, so wagon-specific stuff can be used for my white '96 wagon. If it works, I may just pull the driver's door off the '92 and slap it on. SouthsideSaint posted:All my friends in high school had these cars. They ran for forever and I put many an intake gasket and W brake spring on these things. Such a comfortable ride and a perfect beater car. Best part is, the Buick 3.3 doesn't have the intake gasket problem that the Chevy 3100 does! Elephanthead posted:The iron duke version requires less maintenance. This is true. I am well aware of the cockroach status of the Duke. But four cylinder wagons are like hen's teeth.
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Aug 24, 2015 18:02
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A lot of my friends had luminas with intake leaks. But everyone who had granys buick only had me doing brakes every few months. Those things brakes do not do well with teenage driving. Truthfully no brakes hold up to dumb teenagers.
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Aug 24, 2015 18:09
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Left Ventricle posted:At worst, it can be a parts car for my other two Centurys. And here we see the depth of the patient's madness.
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Aug 24, 2015 18:29
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CornHolio posted:And here we see the depth of the patient's madness. 
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Aug 24, 2015 19:15
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It truly is threads like this one that make AI what it is. Of all the cars to stockpile, this seems to me to be one of the least likely. So does the 3100 suffer because of a design departure from the 3.3, or is the difference in reliability related more to owner habits (Buick drivers being older, and more likely to have their car serviced by qualified professionals)?
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Aug 24, 2015 20:05
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PBCrunch posted:So does the 3100 suffer because of a design departure from the 3.3, or is the difference in reliability related more to owner habits (Buick drivers being older, and more likely to have their car serviced by qualified professionals)? Little from column A, little from column B. The 3.3 is a smaller displacement version of the 3.8, which is a Buick design dating form the late 60s. The 3100 and its derivatives are based on the old 2.8, a Chevy design. The 3100/3400 have nylon intake manifold gaskets, which get eaten away by Dexcool coolant. Later 3.8s went to the same sort of design and had the same leaking gasket, but this early one does not. EDIT: After a discussion with my wife and MIL (who fronted the $200 to buy the wagon) it has been decided that an effort will be made to make the wagon into a decent car, mostly based on the fact that the air conditioning went out on the yellow sedan a couple days ago. So the driver's door will be swapped from the yellow sedan to the woody wagon, stop leak will be dumped into the transmission, and if it doesn't help, the trans from the yellow sedan will be swapped into the woody wagon. The front seats from the white wagon will also be swapped into the woody, since they're in decent shape. Left Ventricle fucked around with this message at 20:55 on Aug 24, 2015 |
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Aug 24, 2015 20:31
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Left Ventricle posted:The 3.3 is a smaller displacement version of the 3.8, which is a Buick design dating form the late 60s. Does that mean that a supercharged late 3800 just plugs right in? 
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Aug 24, 2015 20:58
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I love your shitrod projects. I wish I could turn over cars this quickly.
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Aug 24, 2015 21:02
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Raluek posted:Does that mean that a supercharged late 3800 just plugs right in? 
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Aug 24, 2015 21:07
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Holy poo poo
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Aug 24, 2015 21:07
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We had one of these when I was a teenager. Blue with woodgrain buick century wagon. Had no heat ever. I eventually rolled it avoiding a deer in the road. My dad filled the fluids back up and drove it home with a crushed roof/windshield from the tow yard.
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Aug 24, 2015 21:08
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ahahaha this is the best loving thing.  I saw this thread and thought it was about your first century wagon, because I didn't even know you had two yet. Took like half a dozen posts to realize this was in fact a newly procured beater wagon. Now I don't feel quite as bad about owning three comanches 
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Aug 24, 2015 21:20
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you are a HOA's worst nightmare
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Aug 24, 2015 21:32
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I don't feel so bad about owning Fords (and a SAAB) now.  poo poo keep them pristine, but don't fix the paint. You'll probably be the single vendor available for Clerks 4.
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Aug 24, 2015 21:38
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This is a picture of a situation that just should not exist. And I love you for it.
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Aug 24, 2015 22:11
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That's like half of the running Centuries in the country right now. All in one glorious picture. The fact that one was stolen and recovered within the past year is just the cherry on top.
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Aug 24, 2015 22:22
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EVERYWHERE 
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I assumed the 3.3 was yet another displacement variation of the 60* GM V-6 (which to my knowledge has been sold as 2.8, 3.1, 3100, 3400, 3500, and 3900). It makes sense that a variation of the nearly-indestructible 3800 would be a lot better than a 3100.
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Aug 24, 2015 22:44
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My folks bought one of these e: to be fair, all I remember is that it was some kind of Buick station wagon and it was brown
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Aug 24, 2015 23:18
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Frankenstein possibilities: 3.3: 3.7" 93.98mm bore, 3.16" 80.26mm stroke 3.8: 3.8" 96.5mm bore, 3.4" 86.4mm stroke 3.0: 3.8" 96.5mm bore, 2.66" 67.56mm stroke 3.3 bore + 3.8 stroke = 3.6L 3.8 bore + 3.3 stroke = 3.5L 3.3 bore + 3.0 stroke = 2.8L Heads on a '93 are shared with the L27 Series I (TPI) 3.8. That means I could use these 1.8 ratio rocker arms.
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Aug 24, 2015 23:59
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AI Thread of the Century, right here.
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Aug 25, 2015 19:01
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That might be the best pun I have ever seen on here. 
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Aug 25, 2015 19:19
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Left Ventricle posted:Little from column A, little from column B. The 3.3 is a smaller displacement version of the 3.8, which is a Buick design dating form the late 60s. Important: Does it make the same clickity click noise when you're on the gas as the 3800? It's like a tiny tap dancer going buck wild in your engine bay. Easily one of the happiest engine noises I've heard
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Aug 30, 2015 07:42
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I really want a Century T-Type coupe I had a 86 Century Limited with the computer controlled 2bbl carb 2.8L man that engine sucked. The 3800 or even the Iron Duke was better even though it had no power. I hate 90+ A bodies with the stupid door mounted belts, dumb design.
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Aug 30, 2015 19:06
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8ender posted:Important: Does it make the same clickity click noise when you're on the gas as the 3800? It's like a tiny tap dancer going buck wild in your engine bay. Easily one of the happiest engine noises I've heard Not that I've noticed. I'll check next time I drive it. That won't be for some time though. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pU3EokaSnnc I had momentary plans of swapping the front hubs from the gold wagon to the yellow sedan, but then this happened. I don't want to take any chances of anything breaking and leaving me stranded, so the yellow sedan is parked. The white wagon will be pressed back into service, and when money comes in again, the gold wagon will be properly registered, the door will be swapped from the yellow sedan, and at a later date so will the transmission.
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Aug 30, 2015 19:32
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That sounds like the rubber in the harmonic balancer. Even more so when the camera goes down and you can see the crank pulley doing the worn rubber dance. Also the valve covers are cheap to buy and easy to do. Just take them off and give all the valves and lifters a check. But old GM harmonic balancers are notorious for making that noise.
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Aug 30, 2015 20:44
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SouthsideSaint posted:That sounds like the rubber in the harmonic balancer. Even more so when the camera goes down and you can see the crank pulley doing the worn rubber dance. Also the valve covers are cheap to buy and easy to do. Just take them off and give all the valves and lifters a check. But old GM harmonic balancers are notorious for making that noise. The folks over at a-body.net seem to agree with you. That's a good reason to park it, yeah? Especially since I have no money for parts of any kind right now. PBCrunch posted:I assumed the 3.3 was yet another displacement variation of the 60* GM V-6 (which to my knowledge has been sold as 2.8, 3.1, 3100, 3400, 3500, and 3900). It makes sense that a variation of the nearly-indestructible 3800 would be a lot better than a 3100. Honestly, the 3100 in my white wagon hasn't been that bad. Yeah, it popped its head gaskets a few days after I bought it, but that was due to a stuck thermostat. 40k miles later it runs amazing. Listening to it, you couldn't tell it has 170k on it. I eventually want to get a 3500 put in it. An extra 40 hp should be fun.  KennyLoggins posted:I really want a Century T-Type coupe  Your pic is actually a Century GS. Nerd moment: Only a little over a thousand of them were made in 1986, and they were the only A-body cars to get 15 in wheels from the factory. All others had 14s (or some early ones had 13s!).KennyLoggins posted:I hate 90+ A bodies with the stupid door mounted belts, dumb design. I share your opinion, but the problem is the Century and Cutlass Ciera were made for much longer than the Celebrity and 6000, so there are just more of them still out there, so your options for pillar-mounted belts are slim. Over the years of having owned these cars though, I've grown accustomed to the door belts. And just to show you all the true depths of my madness, here is a list of A-body cars I've owned. Included is the U-body vans that are largely based on them. -1984 Pontiac 6000 (carb 2.8) -1990 Oldsmobile Silhouette (TBI 3.1) -1990 Pontiac 6000 (Iron Duke) -1989 Chevrolet Celebrity wagon (MFI 2.8) -1992 Buick Century (Buick 3.3) -1995 Pontiac Trans Sport (Buick 3.8) -1996 Buick Century wagon (Chevy 3100) -1992 Buick Century (Buick 3.3) -1993 Buick Century wagon (Buick 3.3)
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Aug 31, 2015 00:30
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Honda did the door mounted belts too, though mostly on coupes. My 88 Accord DX coupe had them. Think some Civics got them too. They weren't meant to be disconnected to get in/out - the release was labeled "Emergency Release". It was a way to get around airbags for awhile, as they were  passive restraints . Same reason electric seatbelts were seen on so many late 80s/early 90s cars, they satisfied the passive restraint requirement at the time.
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Aug 31, 2015 02:15
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Left Ventricle posted:The folks over at a-body.net seem to agree with you. That's a good reason to park it, yeah? Especially since I have no money for parts of any kind right now. Its a pretty cheap part. I would recommend a new belt or not driving it. Because I don't know if you noticed but in the video you can watch the belt slide across the other pulley. This uneven wear helps give the belt an early death.
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Aug 31, 2015 03:13
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I remember stumbling upon Stileproject as a youth and seeing some of the things on there and thinking "Holy poo poo, that's actually someone's fetish?" I am reliving that experience through this thread. Shine on, you crazy diamond.
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Aug 31, 2015 03:56
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I love it when people pick cars like this for a project car. My personal project car is an 89 Buick Skyhawk Custom wagon, so I understand the strange brand of crazy involved in something like this.
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Aug 31, 2015 22:46
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