So i bought my cutlass last summer here in Ontario. Its completely stock and untouched. Its solid, and in pretty good shape. The people parked it because he thinks he rolled the cam in the stock 305 with only 91,000 original kms. Well now currently i am planning on moving to the west coast and considering driving it on the 4500km(2800mile) journey. Your opinions on the idea of simply replacing the camshaft and hittin the road? I'm weary of the beating it would put on it, in the 4-5 days of long hard driving and crap out on me. Im looking for cheapest options possible as most of my cash will be tied up in the move itself. I know lots of suggestions are gonna be put a 350 in it. But that's a $1500+ solution, vs a couple hundred for the new cam. So hit me with your ideas/suggestions please. Pictures of car in profile
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were to start ? does it run at all now ? tires ? brakes ? how long has it been sitting ? what the cost to ship it out ? is the body / frame rust free ?
could you sell it in Ontario and buy a clean rust free west coast car when you get there ?
that's a hell of a road trip in a 30 plus year old car
could you sell it in Ontario and buy a clean rust free west coast car when you get there ?
that's a hell of a road trip in a 30 plus year old car
i was going to include all those details in the post but didn't want to ramble and make it too long. I got it running. Rebuilt the quadrajet, it hums nicely except for the random misfire. Frame is rust free, body is pretty much the same. Small paint bubbling on rear wheel wells. Brakes are good, steering is good, transmission is decent, has TH350 and 2.29 gears out back. I put newer BFG's all around. It sat for about 3 years before i got it. Cost to ship as far as i can find is anywhere between $2000-$3000.
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This is a dammed if you do and dammed if you don't. I wouldn't have any problems driving it as long as I checked it out and everything was sound. You have had the car a year and should have a good feel for it. Don't know what you mean by a rolled cam(wiped??). I like the idea of selling it and buying a west coast car. If you moving yourself, tow it ! A little more info on your situation might help.
By rolled, i mean one of the lobes has been rounded. I havent torn it apart myself yet, but friends told me they were known for having particularly soft cams. The rest of the car i'm not overly concerned about, more so just the motor and possibly rear-end. Going through the mountains and all.
Where to start, lol! Ya shipping is crazy, l've looked into it myself, open trailer an they wanted $2600.
Even in BC it's hard to find a 30 plus year old car with a good frame because of the rain or in the north the snow, an knowone really cared about the g-body platform.
So sounds like you got a good base, so 2 choices, If you have a towing vehicle find a trailer/rent or check out cam.
The only major hill/mountain you have is on the Kokahala after leaving Kamloops an it goes on for ever but every mile or so flattens out before starting up again. The nature reserve just passed Calgary isn't to bad, alittle slow because it's the only 2 lane going threw an afew hair pin turns, so if your towing make sure the trailers got good brakes!!! The top of Georgia Bay is ok in the day but Alittle frustrating at night because of all the dam curves. So have good headlights.
Good luck it will make it, but check that cam, don't drive over the speed limit, well maybe on them straights 100 miles or so before Calgary, l always loose track of my speed threw there. My truck towing cost $1100 with car on trailer an $900 empty trailer, truck by itself cost $750, yes l've done the trip more than l can count, Family!
Even in BC it's hard to find a 30 plus year old car with a good frame because of the rain or in the north the snow, an knowone really cared about the g-body platform.
So sounds like you got a good base, so 2 choices, If you have a towing vehicle find a trailer/rent or check out cam.
The only major hill/mountain you have is on the Kokahala after leaving Kamloops an it goes on for ever but every mile or so flattens out before starting up again. The nature reserve just passed Calgary isn't to bad, alittle slow because it's the only 2 lane going threw an afew hair pin turns, so if your towing make sure the trailers got good brakes!!! The top of Georgia Bay is ok in the day but Alittle frustrating at night because of all the dam curves. So have good headlights.
Good luck it will make it, but check that cam, don't drive over the speed limit, well maybe on them straights 100 miles or so before Calgary, l always loose track of my speed threw there. My truck towing cost $1100 with car on trailer an $900 empty trailer, truck by itself cost $750, yes l've done the trip more than l can count, Family!
Do it, do it, do it, do it, do it... Verify that it actually is the cam, and if it is, swap a cam and lifters in it. Obviously replace the timing set while you are in there. Assuming that is the issue and you get it fixed....
Besides all the obvious things you should do before a roadtrip- Before you leave, I'd change the rear axle fluid, ATF and suck out most of the power steering fluid and put fresh fluid in. Change your coolant too. Also change the brake fluid that's in the reservoir. I'd go over all the brakes, make sure the slide pins move freely, the ears on the pads are lubed up, and the drums lubed up and are adjusted and operating correctly. Check underneath for any obviously loose suspension joints, u-joints etc. before you take off. Make sure you have a full tool set with you, a good flashlight, a spare tire, a good set of jumper cables, extra fluids of every type. Keep an extra v-belt in the car. Have lots of zip ties and duct tape. Make sure all of your lights are working and have a few extra bulbs on hand. Rain-X your windows and get new wipers. Make sure your tires are in good shape and properly inflated.
If everything checks out, I say go for it. I'm rooting for you. I love taking road trips in older cars. You get to know the car really well, and you develop a whole new appreciation for them. I say do it if you can.
Besides all the obvious things you should do before a roadtrip- Before you leave, I'd change the rear axle fluid, ATF and suck out most of the power steering fluid and put fresh fluid in. Change your coolant too. Also change the brake fluid that's in the reservoir. I'd go over all the brakes, make sure the slide pins move freely, the ears on the pads are lubed up, and the drums lubed up and are adjusted and operating correctly. Check underneath for any obviously loose suspension joints, u-joints etc. before you take off. Make sure you have a full tool set with you, a good flashlight, a spare tire, a good set of jumper cables, extra fluids of every type. Keep an extra v-belt in the car. Have lots of zip ties and duct tape. Make sure all of your lights are working and have a few extra bulbs on hand. Rain-X your windows and get new wipers. Make sure your tires are in good shape and properly inflated.
If everything checks out, I say go for it. I'm rooting for you. I love taking road trips in older cars. You get to know the car really well, and you develop a whole new appreciation for them. I say do it if you can.
I'm all about slapping a car together the night before and setting out on a cross country road trip, but the cam issues can be bigger than just a new cam and road trips aren't good places to break in new cams. I would go with a $500-700 350 from a car/truck that was hit hard in the rear, before swapping a new cam in a motor that has already wiped one.
Those are all great suggestions. I've gone through some of it but will keep going. But YEAH!! How many stories have you heard over the years of people just grabbing some piece of crap, loading it up and bombing across the country. Usually the ones they choose are just rust buckets that are barely holding together. My cutlass is again, in pretty great shape with a few exceptions. I dunno, maybe its a pipe dream, but people used to do it all the time. Or so they said they have haha We've all told a few tall stories in our lives.
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