1983 Monte Carlo SS...not started in 15 years.

[thesoccersix]

Just got news that my father wants to rid himself of a 1983 Monte carlo SS that he bought new in 1983. Beauty of a car and the kicker is...it only has 1,326 miles on it. it is practically show room. The problem is that he hasn't registered or even started it in 15 years. I know I need new tires (dry rot) and a whole in depth tune up before even attempting to crank her. Any other tips or suggestions... I don't want to seize the engine (as my mechanic father suggested will probably happen) He got his 66 Shelby Cobra now and could care less about the SS. But I have loved it since I was 13. Any suggestions are appreciated.

[monty120]

u have alot of work ahead of you. First of course a tune -up, you want to pull the carb off and empty the sludge out, but after 15 years it probably will be a white powder now, clean this out. Then turn the fan blade, it it turns easily the motor isn't ceased up, if it is ceased pull out the spark plugs and spray wd 40 or liquid wrench into the cylinders. What usuallly happens is there will be minimal rust in the cylinders allowing it to not turn over. Next either drop the gas tank of cyphin out all the gas, good gas is a must to start a car like this thats been sitting. To be on the safe side I would also change all the gaskets, intake, head, valve cover, etc. You said its a S/S so its a v8, and it shouldm't take more than a few hours to complete, plus it gives you back some lost horsepower. Now you may attempt to start it, ever when it does start, you wont have brakes, so replace them and the brake lines, master cylinder beffore taking it on the road. good luck w/ the s/s.

[MagicRat]

Consider selling it on Ebay. Such a car is of course, very rare, and might just be the lowest mileage car of its kind. Even relatively ordinary cars command high prices because the low mileage makes them so rare, especially if it has all the original parts, (tires etc) on it.

[RandomTask]

I agree with most of that monte, but I had an '81 monte carlo. To my memory it was a clutch fan. It will move if the engine is siezed or not. You don't necessarily have to replace all the seals, but more than likely they will be dry rotted leading to leaks really quickly. (so replacing them now may also keep your engine bay clean, keeping the value of the car up) If you were looking for reliable transportation, i would suggest selling it on account of what magicrat posted. That truely is a rarity of a car.

[curtis73]

I agree with Monty120 on some of his points but disagree on others.

The huge issue is this. Normally cars start and run after sitting overnight or maybe after a few weeks. At this point there is still an appreciable amount of oil left on internal parts to lubricate them on startup. An engine that has been sitting for more than 3-4 months may be lacking that skim of oil.

1) I agree with Monty on cleaning out the carb, but for the most part it should run with a proper mix regardless of sludge. If it demonstrates poor drivability, then I'd tear it apart. In general, the varnish that is created by dried gasoline is dissolved by gasoline, so running it will clean out "most" of the sludge. If, after running it for a few days, it still runs poorly, I suggest pulling the carb for cleaning.

2) Before starting, cranking, or even turning the crank by hand... THIS IS IMPORTANT... Trust me, you'll thank me and yourself for doing this step. After changing the oil and filter, pull the distributor, insert an oil pump priming tool on a drill, and spin the oil pump for at least 5 minutes. As I said above, the oil clings to parts in engines that sit for a couple weeks, but after that long, the oil is GONE from internal parts. Pumping fresh oil back to internal parts before they spin is vital to their life.

3) As if I couldn't stress this point enough... Use a proper priming tool, not just a shaft designed to turn the pump. Proper pump priming tools include a disc to seal off the lower end from the top end, and they cost $17 from your local performance parts dealer. It seems trivial, but its necessary. The reason is that the ones WITH the disc properly pressurize oil in the top end of the engine WHICH IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART. The single most sensitive part to startup abrasion is the cam. Flat tappet cams (like your engine has) have hardened lobes, but only the surface 0.003" is hardened. Without oil, they can easily become scored and its all over. If they get scored it will require a new cam and lifters, and maybe some other stuff while your in there.

4) As if I could stress it any more... Oil drains out of lifters, too. The chatter they create can exacerbate the cam lobe scoring problem, not to mention destroy the lifters themselves. At that point, if the lifters need to be replaced, the cam needs to be replaced since they wear together as a pair.

I know it sounds like a huge list, but it all boils down to that oil priming thing. My A#1 passion in life is finding classics with low mileage hiding in barns. I deal with this about once a month. Allow me to relate a short story to you to bring this home. My most recent purchase was a 1973 impala station wagon with 58,000 original miles. It hadn't been run for 7 years. I bought it and told the guy to just let it sit until I got there. When I got there, he wanted to surprise me and have it running. While I appreciated his gesture, it wasn't 600 miles before the valves started ticking and several cam lobes were wiped. I ended up spending several hundred dollars on a new cam, lifters, and many hours of labor tearing down the top of the engine to fix it properly.

Many people live with valve ticks just deal with it, but what they don't realize is that the tick is often from a scored cam lobe. That scored lobe is sending metal filings into the engine and destroying other internal components.

Here's my prescription:
1) Prime the oil pump for 5 minutes
2) Buy a new battery and install it
3) Check the belts and hoses... for the most part they'll be fine for starting and running for a while, but not for long term use.
4) Pull the air cleaner to check for mice nests. Ask me how I know. I destroyed three pistons with dog food nuggets when I started an old Pontiac 389.
5) Have a squirt bottle of gasoline available. Squirt a couple shots down the carb thoats before cranking. You want the engine to fire and run ASAP. Cranking speeds don't develop oil pressure very well, so you want to get it running. Don't be shocked if it fires but doesn't run. The fuel pump works with diaphragms that may be dry rotted. New ones are $13 and easy to replace; two bolts and a gasket.
6) Once its running, allow it to run at fast idle for several minutes. Many engine parts (including the cam and pistons) rely on lubrication from oil thrown off the crankshaft. Idle speeds don't throw enough oil to the pistons and cam, so until its run-in, leave it on fast idle.

The one thing with which I strongly disagree with Monty120 is the WD40 in the cylinders. It is WAY too thin to lubricate cylinders and contains solvents which wash away any lubricants left. You effectively remove any good lubrication and replace it with inadequate lube. Plus, if your pistons are seized to the point where they need WD40 to move them, the engine is toast. Rust is not something that movement of the pistons will cure. Machine work is what cures that

Finally, you will find that many of your seals will leak. It is not a big issue. Run it for a while and find which ones are leaking. Most likely the valve covers and rear main seal will leak. The valve cover seals are easy to replace, but the rear main is a waste of time. Buy a product called "restore" and add it to your oil change. It is not the best at sealing leaks, but its the only one that doesn't include additives that are bad for the engine. I could go into detail on it, but that's another five pages

Sincerely,
Curtis

[RandomTask]

Excellent post curtis...

[curtis73]

Thanks. I love your tagline.... rather be blown