Grandpa Car: 1979 Cutlass Thread

[DRIVEN]

Finally got around to tearing it out and breaking down the pump and valvebody. The pressure relief valve was seized in my reman pump. Looks like it had some moisture in it while it sat on the shelf. Cleaned everything up and found no problems with the valvebody at all. There was one 3/4" tear in one of the separator plate gaskets. Put it all together and stuffed it back in the car. It's about 50% better. Still shifts too hard and late under light throttle. If I do a WOT run while manually shifting 1-2-3-4 it's perfect. It still acts like the pressure is too high all the time but I haven't hooked up the gauge yet (hose still split) to verify. I'm pretty burnt out on it right now. Probably should just take a break for a few days while I make some money.

 

[oldmansmonte]

Here is the formal introduction of my car and a little background to go along with it. It was purchased new by my grandfather in early 1980. Apparently it sat on the lot for a while. This was his "good" car that got the single spot in his one car garage. It was used primarily for long trips. He has always taken excellent care of his vehicles with a tendency to over-maintain. Now in his late eighties, he drives very little. Since my grandma's passing 6 years ago the car has seen very little use. I planted the seed several years ago that i would like to buy it when/if he decides to sell. He lives about 250 miles away so I don't get to see him as often as I'd like to. Last summer, at a family reunion, the subject of Cutlass came up. As (bad) luck would have it, my car burned a valve just a few miles from the event. I followed him the 30 miles to his home and we struck a deal. I ended up paying about twice what I wanted to but he need the money more than the car and, under the circumstances, I didn't mind. We checked the fluids and fired it up. I then made the uneventful 250 mile trip home.

This car is ridiculously clean! It has 156K. There has never been a speck of rust. He had it repainted about 3 years ago. Thanks to plastic mats, there isn't a single stain or smudge in the original carpet. The trunk is flawless and the spare has never been mounted. It came with brand new tires, a set of mounted studs, and a new battery. The oil-change record revealed less than 200 miles driven in the previous 3 years.
It has a 305, TH200, 2.29 open gears, aluminum hood, bumper supports and drums. For a Supreme Brougham, it has very few options.
Over the last year I have collected a limited-slip, 3.42s, 200-4R, F41 sway bars and steering box, Monte Carlo firewall braces. My plans for the car are to add some of the things that could have been options, but didn't come on this car. The engine will probably remain stock with a set of wheels, lower stance, and tinted windows being the only visual changes.

Car is so bad *ss. I know you put new rims on it, but those hub-caps are money. I would have just put some raised WL 205/65/14's on and kept the caps but thats just me. I'm nuts.

 

[DRIVEN]

Thanks. I'm always surprised when I get comments on those. I just never really liked them. Sold the steel wheels and tires but I did keep the caps. I still have another set of snow tires I can use them on.

 

[DRIVEN]

Spent some time at the yard yesterday pulling another 200-4r. Transmission #2 had a 30 day warranty and I was on day 28. So here's #3. It came out of an '86 Cutlass and looks really greasy but it's actually a coat of black paint. Probably safe to assume it was rebuilt in the past but at this point it really doesn't matter. Pulled the pan and it had the usual residue and neglected orange-ish fluid. When I get some time I'll throw in a new filter, install it and cross my fingers.

 

[DRIVEN]

Got transmission #3 installed. Left it completely stock and unmodified with it's matching used torque converter. All I did was drain as much fluid as possible and put in a new filter. I didn't even change the adjustment on the TV cable (it was dead-on). Fired it up and topped off the fluid then ran it through the gears on the hoist. Once I had positive engagement and positive shifts I dropped it on the ground and went for a drive. This thing shifts so nice! Put a few miles on it and brought it home to give it a bath. Next step is to try to exchange the reman pump for another unit. After seeing the stuck valve, I'm suspecting that further moisture contamination is causing the slide to hang up. Then I'll throw #1 back in and try it one more time.

On a side note; Once I cleaned the rebuild paint off the tag on #3, I found that it was also a KC. The ink stamp on the valve body confirmed this. There was a lot of debris in the pan though. Hope it lives. Maybe I'll wash the bike up too and go for a ride 😀 .

 

[DRIVEN]

Put a few more problem free miles of in-town driving and am pleasantly surprised. Still shifting really nice. Pulled the defective rebuilt pump from trans #1 and took it back to the transmission parts supplier. Their "pump guy" is off for the week so I will get a call once he has a good unit for me.

 

[DRIVEN]

So since I hadn't gotten a call from the transmission supply place (after 2 weeks), I dropped in on my way back from the machine shop today. They had no idea what I was talking about . After getting the right guy I found out that nothing had been done AND they sent my core money to a random shop . They STILL didn't have a good pump on the shelf so now I get to make yet ANOTHER (my 4th) 2 hour round trip tomorrow when it's ready . I'm starting to think transmission guys kinda suck.

 

[DRIVEN]

Wow! It's been a month already and I finally got around to swapping transmission #1 back in. The current configuration is new converter, reman pump, KC valvebody. It's about 80% better now. Still has a pretty firm/late shift but MUCH better than before. Looks like the defective reman pump was to blame for most of it. I'm not completely confident in the current cable either. Acts like it's stretched or something. I might pick up a new one just to see if there's much difference. Sad transmission #3 out on the floor...yet again.

Super custom lockup switch:

Soon to be replaced by this switch along with an indicator light:

Planning on taking it out to the PIR/Beaches cruise tomorrow if I can. I have ASE testing all afternoon so I'm not sure if I'll actually make it but I'll post up some pics if I do.

 

[DRIVEN]

As promised:

Just a little proof that I was actually there. I wish I could have found a good vantage point to shoot the whole field. Had to be over 1000 cars.

Some of the other stuff that caught my eye:
Stunning '36 Phaeton. Perfect bodywork under the black paint. Really well done leather/ostrich interior with a welcomed lack of billet. Nicely detailed SBF with IDA style fuel injection. This was too nice to be driven so I would suspect it was trailered to the parking lot and driven through the gate.

I love a well done '36 pickup.

And a really clean '35 (with a '36 hood). Not flashy but just about perfect in execution.

A shot of a '50 Olds steering wheel. I ran one in my old '36 Chevy pickup. Always thought they were really cool.

Some handmade miniatures in the back of a truck.

Too bad about the rolling stock on this one. Otherwise the nicest muscle Cutlass at the show. Rocket Racing heads on a 455.

Wednesday is test and tune night so there's a cool soundtrack for the show. Caught this shot of a Malibu taking a Chevelle next door.

My car ran great as usual. And, as usual, didn't get much attention at the show. I did catch a few guys trying not to get caught taking a closer look. Almost like they didn't want their buddies to see them checking it out. Great, my car's like a cute fat chick :lol: .

 

[Oldsmoletick]

My car ran great as usual. And, as usual, didn't get much attention at the show. I did catch a few guys trying not to get caught taking a closer look. Almost like they didn't want their buddies to see them checking it out. Great, my car's like a cute fat chick :lol: .

:lol: I've seen this happen numerous times while at cruise ins with any of my cars, thanks for the analogy, hahahaha. Nice pics, looks like there was a little bit of everything there.