New user from Houston

[Longroof79]

That's one of the cleanest G-body 442's that I've ever seen. I would keep it stock and original. It would help retain the resale value of the car. The interior is nice and new looking for a Texas car. No faded upholstery and deteriorating plastics.
Good luck with it..and don't ever put a Chevy engine in it.

Jack

 

[pmoore4321]

I noticed the ride was a little soft and thought the shocks were bad. I checked under the car and found the car is equipped with air shocks. Looks like a factory job the way the air lines are dressed and clipped to the body.

No G80 option on this car.

 

[dan2286]

I noticed the ride was a little soft and thought the shocks were bad. I checked under the car and found the car is equipped with air shocks. Looks like a factory job the way the air lines are dressed and clipped to the body.

No G80 option on this car.

It probably was factory installed. Look for a little valve to fill up the shocks behind the license plate, I think that is where they put them. It should look the same as a tire valve.

 

[pmoore4321]

Yeah, I traced the lines and they terminated near the gas filler. I charged them with air last night and it is still holding, so I guess they are still good.

I fixed the console courtesy light which was not completing circuit when the lid was open. I dismantled the pin switch and adjusted the spring and it works perfect now.

Also, the ignition/key reminder module had low volume which is common. There is a post that I followed on how to replace the foam ring inside the speaker and now that's fixed.

Everything works now except that dreaded power antenna. GMpartsdirect.com has replacement power antennas listed for $76.08. Anyone know if this is the correct one? Seems cheap to me. The one listed for a Buick on the same page is $250.

 

[84 W40]

welcome very clean car. That engine bay looks just like mine, I was lucky too having all the paper work from day one

 

[motorheadmike]

I'd seriously consider a blow-through turbo set up on that motor. The low compression 307 will take nicely to a little boost. You can box up everything you take off the car and put it back to stock if/when the time comes.

You didn't buy this car off eBay did you?

 

[pmoore4321]

I guess I am just going to keep it original after showing it to a couple of "enthusiasts" and the comments from this board. I will have to find me another street rod candidate.

I did do a few things to get it back working at 100%. I rebuilt the carb which certainly improved the idle and choke setting. Whoever did the prior rebuild obviously did not get the settings right. I made by own CCC tools and got it back into spec.

I fixed the console light switch which was not working due to dirty contacts.

I attempted a rebuild of the power antenna with the replacement cable and antenna section, but that was a waste of time. The was more broken in the old unit that just the cable. I ended up purchasing a replacement antenna from http://www.nos4gn.com. The shipping was fast and the replacement unit is really nice. One thing to note about the replacement antenna is that the whip seems to have more flex than the OEM. It's not a big deal, but a purist might notice. I could have just put my old whip in the new unit, but I did not want to crack open the new one.

I have one more thing to do and that is to fix the sticking glove compartment latch. It seems the latch does not want to "spring back" after opening. I tried oiling it, but I guess I am going to have to remove it a give it some white grease.

I forgot I also replaced the foam around the speaker of the door chime/belt reminder that is under the dash. The door chime had real low volume and I read that is a common problem. It's an easy fix.

That's pretty much it. The car drives perfect and gets good gas mileage if you can believe that. I was surprised at how many comments I get when I take it out.

Yes, I did buy this car on ebay!

 

[1ATony]

Welcome to the site. That's a great looking car. I'd leave that one alone,it's to nice.

 

[jae]

Very, very nice 442. Glad you fixed the antenna, was it a bear to replace it (taking the fender off and such).

I agree with everyone here, don't mod it - keep it the way it is. Know you're pretty much talked out of it but if you hit that "got street rod it" cross road again, I'd buy it from you so you could take the cash and get something else.

Seriously.

 

[pmoore4321]

Replacing the antenna is not that hard after you have done it once. Just ask me. I replaced it like four times! I put a repair kit in the first time and gave it a test off the car and it worked fine. Installed it, buttoned up the fender, turned the radio on, and guess what? No worky! I repeated this process several more times and something would always not work. I gave up on repairing the old unit and just got the replacement.

The screw that actually holds the antenna to the fender is a b***** to get in or out. You can get to it with a 10mm wrench, but there is very little room. It's really not hard, just time consuming.