jonx4x4 Posted August 21, 2011 Report Share Posted August 21, 2011 I just bought my first W-Body last Monday. A 91 Regal Limited 3.8L with 161,XXXmi for $700. It has a few issues, but its worth fixing. -Silver paint on top is chipped and there is some mild surface rust. Thinking gray primer ought to make it look better. -Harmonic Balancer is toast, but I just picked a good used one up for $25 -A/C doesnt work, but I picked up a good used compressor for $25 -Headliner has no material, just foam. Found material for less than $35 shipped -Radio doesnt work. Got a few good head units laying around. Just gotta buy a dash kit -Temp. Gauge is reading low, and fan hasnt kicked on since Ive had it. Sending unit? -Check engine light is on, and is throwing a code 13 and 44. Thinking O2 sensor? I look forward to picking yall's brains for help in the near future! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMP Posted August 21, 2011 Report Share Posted August 21, 2011 Welcome to the site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Z34guy Posted August 22, 2011 Report Share Posted August 22, 2011 welcome. pics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel87 Posted August 22, 2011 Report Share Posted August 22, 2011 Welcome sir! Not too bad of a pick up for 7 hundo, some quick easy fixes it sounds like Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timm Posted August 22, 2011 Report Share Posted August 22, 2011 First off, welcome to the site! As far as a couple questions I may be able to shed some light on. -Silver paint on top is chipped and there is some mild surface rust. Thinking gray primer ought to make it look better. Be sure to get all the rust sanded off that you can! Use a good self-etching primer for bare metal with a standard primer over it. The only thing about leaving it in primer, is that primer tends to act as a sponge, and holds moisture, causing the surface to rust rather quickly unless top-coated. -Harmonic Balancer is toast, but I just picked a good used one up for $25 Sounds easy enough! Only problem I had on my series II 3.8 was getting the bolt off, some people go to a shop with insane impact guns to zip the bolt off, then just drive it home without the bolt. (not really as high of a risk as it sounds. It won't go anywhere) Or as I ended up having to do, wedge a breaker bar onto the engine cradle, and the other end on the nut, and kick the starter over a few times (after either disconnecting the injectors or spark plugs. You don't want it starting!) Not sure if it would be a good idea on such an old starter to put stress on it like that, but just leaving it out there as a last resort option! -A/C doesnt work, but I picked up a good used compressor for $25 Not to sound like mr. know it all or to come off as a jerk, but the compressor is often mis-diagnosed in an ac system, as the pcm won't actually turn it on unless there is pressure in the lines. If you don't have any freon in it, it won't engage the compressor. A good and easy test is to find the relay for the ac clutch, and jump the pins to see if the clutch will actually engage, if it does, chances are the compressor isn't the problem (unless it's making some very obvious growling, humming, squealing, or other strange noises). But either way, you might want to make sure there's no leaks in the system. (freon's expensive these days!) -Headliner has no material, just foam. Found material for less than $35 shipped Simple enough! 3M makes a great general purpose adhesive spray that works perfect for headliners, can usually be found at any auto parts store. Just be sure to read the can first, I believe one of their products isn't recommended for bare foam as it tends to melt the foam into a nasty goop...? -Temp. Gauge is reading low, and fan hasnt kicked on since Ive had it. Sending unit? Might want to try the thermostat and gasket first, probably cheaper, and it wouldn't hurt to flush the coolant anyways if you're planning on keeping the car for a while! -Check engine light is on, and is throwing a code 13 and 44. Thinking O2 sensor? Sounds right to me! But just in case the car ever sat for a while, might want to make sure no rodents decided to sink their little teeth into the wiring and cause you a huge headache. Should be very easy to spot if that is the case though. I look forward to picking yall's brains for help in the near future! Glad you found the fourm! Looking forward to any pics! -Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonx4x4 Posted August 22, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 22, 2011 Timm- Good point on the primer. I might shoot some duplicolor over it then. On the parts car, I used a little piece of metal I fabricated to bolt to the harmonic balancer and put a piece of pipe over the end of that, then used my 36" breaker bar with a piece of pipe on it. Worked great. Should be fine for my car. If not, I will probably drive it to the tire shop or something. When I bought the car, the guy told me straight up the compressor was locked-up. He said he drove it for years like that until the clutch bearing started going out. Then, he had the clutch bearing replaced, and thats how it is now. The wire is disconnected too. The whole cooling system seems to have been flushed recently as the coolant is nice and green. There is residue in the reservoir bottle that might indicate it had a head gasket failure in the past? I plan to look over the wiring a bit better first. There are some wires with butt-connectors on them between the engine and the firewall. Im gonna check there first. Thanks for the warm welcome guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Z34guy Posted August 22, 2011 Report Share Posted August 22, 2011 looks like it's sitting too low... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonx4x4 Posted August 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 23, 2011 looks like it's sitting too low... Guess I dont see it... Ill take more pics on the pavement. This is in my yard, and it is far from level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
94 olds vert Posted August 23, 2011 Report Share Posted August 23, 2011 Looks fine to me. For 700 dollars looks like a good car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Z34guy Posted August 23, 2011 Report Share Posted August 23, 2011 could just be that I'm used to larger rims. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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