|
May 8, 2004 (Submitted by: Jose)
Today we did a little bit or work at Glenn's shop. We did a transmission service and washed the car. Both went by quickly. The tranny still needs major work however. Although it seems to be shifting a bit easier, it is still slipping.
May 5, 2004 (Submitted by: Jose)
Today, we installed the new neutral safety switch and removed the old bypass wire. She started up just fine. We also looked into the fender marker lights issue and the backuplights issue. It appears that the backup lights work, if the car is in reverse and the shifter is pushed up. If it is allowed to be in the "home" neutral position, they do not come on. This should be an easy fix as just some kind of adjustment is needed. The side marker lights are a different issue. The back ones work fine. One needs a new bulb, and the other just needed to be regrounded. (These lights ground to the frame of the car and last time it was painted, someone was careless and did not make a good path to ground.) The front lights , however, being exposed are in really bad shape. We need to order new ones, as they have disentegrated.
We plan, to take the car, this Saturday to Glenn's work and clean it up a bit, as well as change the tranny fluid. With any luck we should make a lot of progress.
May 4, 2004
Finding the neutral safety switch is proving to be very difficult. It almost seems the tranny on this car is after market. Will investigate if this is true. Glenn has been working hard on finding a new switch and thinks he may have found a lead. He needs to take the current one in, however. So, tonight, we removed the switch and plugged the tranny hole.
While removing the switch, we noticed that the tranny fluid is no longer tranny fluid. Although it has the smell of tranny fluid, it no longer has the "feel" or look. It is very dark and dirty. A tranny expert thinks we will need to rebuild the transmission.
April 28, 2003
Today we replaced the ignition switch but continued to have the same problems, which plagued us last night and the day before that. The car ran while holding the key in the "start" position, but failed to run when in the "on" position. The intermittent power problem was also back. After a bit of work, we decided to take the molex bulk head connector out of the fire wall, route it under the dash into the passenger compartment and look for bad wires. With this improved view, we found a number of corroded and loose connections. After tightening and cleaning them up and after a couple of "trouble shooting" sessions for a bad horn connections, amongst others we finally started to make some progress.
After placing the molex connector back into the firewall, and ensuring all was tight, we attempted to again start the car. VIOLA! IT WORKED!
The car ran and started as it did, early last week. Note: we are still bypassing the neutral safety switch. We also found that the alternator is now charging as it should and gas gauge works! (explain this one to me)
Oh, we also put the old ignition back in. I will keep the new one as a spare. Overall, today was an excellent day for progress.
April 27, 2004
Today we trouble shooted the power problem and found that it was due to corrosion on the molex connector which goes through the fire wall. A bit of battery cleaner fixed it right up and power was restored. This connector is going bad, however, and is somewhat loose. I hope it doesn't prove to be a problem but it may become one. The main power connector is the middle of the three black molex connectors. If it is loose, the car has no power. Tapping it fixes the problem. Not very good, but for now and easy "rapid" fix.
We also troubleshooted the starter problem. Found the problem to be the "neutral safety" switch. (This switch prevents the car from being started while in gear.) No one seems to have this switch right now, so to bypass it, we have taken the starter relay terminal directly to ground. Not the smartest idea but it does work. Need to fix this ASAP.
Our newest problem is now the ignition. The car starts but does not stay running. The only way to keep it running, is to hold the key in the "start" position. I hope to fix this problem later this week.
We also fixed the radio power problem. Gerry found that the face plate connection was loose. A few tweaks on some clips tightened it up and now it powers fine. The back light does not work, however, unless one pushes down on the face plate. Cheap POS Radio Shack radio.
April 26, 2004
After Gerry used the car today and drove it home, he claimed it wasn't starting. We found that turning the key does nothing. Engine does not turn over. Starter does not spin. The battery is healthy, however. After a bit of troubleshooting, we found nothing and created yet a new problem. No power to any of the car. No brake lights, no interior lights, no head lights. A quick look turned up nothing obvious. Had to stop looking, however as it was getting late. Hope to find power problem ASAP and then trouble shoot starting issue.
April 22, 2004
Replaced the master cylinder, brake booster, alternator and voltage regulator. Bled the brakes. We had to cut a slightly larger hole in firewall to allow the brake booster boot to properly fit. Car road tested okay. It needs a lot of work though.
|
|
