Wow
CutlassBass
09-29-2005, 09:48 PM
Took my car to a mechanic that i trust. It's a 1989 Cutlass Supreme SL. I bought the car with 61,000 miles on it. Not knowing all the problems these cars had and how much money the car needs put into. I bought the car for 425 dollars. It needs all front brakes, back brakes, rear struts, tie rods, i was also having a problem with the car stalling while driving down the road. My mechanic cleaned out the throttle body. It's running better now but he said it could a fuel injector. I was reading some more on these cars and it was only made for one year due to all the problems they had. I really don't wanna throw all this money into the car but i have no choice since i cant afford to go out and buy another car. Any other common problems with these cars?!?!? I figured i would have to stick a thousand in it and it would be a pretty decent car needs a few other things like spark plug wires and plugs. But my mechanic told me the car must have sat for while cause there is alot alot of rust. Anyone have any suggestions or things to look for too i dont wanna stick all that money and have million more issues come up. Cause ive read these things have tons of problems anyone know some of the common problems!? Any help would be nice.
ctesla
09-29-2005, 10:59 PM
Took my car to a mechanic that i trust. It's a 1989 Cutlass Supreme SL. I bought the car with 61,000 miles on it. Not knowing all the problems these cars had and how much money the car needs put into. I bought the car for 425 dollars. It needs all front brakes, back brakes, rear struts, tie rods, i was also having a problem with the car stalling while driving down the road. My mechanic cleaned out the throttle body. It's running better now but he said it could a fuel injector. I was reading some more on these cars and it was only made for one year due to all the problems they had. I really don't wanna throw all this money into the car but i have no choice since i cant afford to go out and buy another car. Any other common problems with these cars?!?!? I figured i would have to stick a thousand in it and it would be a pretty decent car needs a few other things like spark plug wires and plugs. But my mechanic told me the car must have sat for while cause there is alot alot of rust. Anyone have any suggestions or things to look for too i dont wanna stick all that money and have million more issues come up. Cause ive read these things have tons of problems anyone know some of the common problems!? Any help would be nice.
http://www.carsurvey.org/review_29103.html
...for every possible bad story; a great one.
do your driveability maintenance first, and then paycheck here, extra money a month from now, do your mileage services... not all at once.
if it lasts a year, that car MORE than paid for itself.
change oil, air filter, fuel filter... put a quarter tank of premium, and maybe an ounce of acetone in the tank, and run it, stop and go highway, hard, mellow...
shifting ok? trans fluid look red? just add Lucas trans conditioner, or maybe a little Trans-X, and do the trans service after winter.
does it need tires? bad? if you live or operate this car in a snow environment, get four good ones, but if you live in the south, get two for the front, and in four to eight months, get two more matching, and swap them into the front, moving the others to the rear.
rear struts at 61K??? (maybe get the struts, just at a later date)nobody even did that for a new car; empty the trunk of what you don't need, and save your money and get good brakes.
back brakes are only 30% of stopping power (they are mostly for holding, e-brake, etc.), so change the fronts first, and work the rear into the budget before you hear wailing coming out of the drums; or is it disc?
are the tie rods (and any other suspension/steering component) greasable? do they have zerks (grease fittings)? if so, try lubing the chassis before buying new components.
does your check engine light illuminate when ignition is turned on, prior to starting? if so, the light works, and if it isn't on, your OBD1 is telling you no big emission problems, and probably not an injector, it just sat (you said so yourself)... so run it. get the cobwebs out, and see how she does. if driveability worsens, could have issues; but if she starts running (or stays running) fine or better--- DANG FOUR HUNDRED BUCKS! buys alot these days.
the plugs and wires are a good choice, get decent both. don't spend five or six bucks on plugs... it isn't a racecar. it is running now, and odds are grandpa didn't put them in it ten years ago. a good AC Delco or Autolite, or even a base platinum will be fine. any good custom fit wireset will probably be better than whats in there. get a lifetime one rather than the inexpensive ones. not for the warranty, but the lifetimes are ALMOST never carbon/graphite, but solid wires.
did the vehicle come with records/reciepts? what kind of maintenance was already done? if you don't know, just start with the 60K mileage, and maintain it! address other issues as they arise.
search the web for other sites, forums, and/or clubs concerning your specific vehicle, and don't think of it as a burden... yet(just kidding)
...at least it's a GM, so it is still less expensive than other domestic and imports combined.
hope this helps,
chris
nrt racing
http://www.carsurvey.org/review_29103.html
...for every possible bad story; a great one.
do your driveability maintenance first, and then paycheck here, extra money a month from now, do your mileage services... not all at once.
if it lasts a year, that car MORE than paid for itself.
change oil, air filter, fuel filter... put a quarter tank of premium, and maybe an ounce of acetone in the tank, and run it, stop and go highway, hard, mellow...
shifting ok? trans fluid look red? just add Lucas trans conditioner, or maybe a little Trans-X, and do the trans service after winter.
does it need tires? bad? if you live or operate this car in a snow environment, get four good ones, but if you live in the south, get two for the front, and in four to eight months, get two more matching, and swap them into the front, moving the others to the rear.
rear struts at 61K??? (maybe get the struts, just at a later date)nobody even did that for a new car; empty the trunk of what you don't need, and save your money and get good brakes.
back brakes are only 30% of stopping power (they are mostly for holding, e-brake, etc.), so change the fronts first, and work the rear into the budget before you hear wailing coming out of the drums; or is it disc?
are the tie rods (and any other suspension/steering component) greasable? do they have zerks (grease fittings)? if so, try lubing the chassis before buying new components.
does your check engine light illuminate when ignition is turned on, prior to starting? if so, the light works, and if it isn't on, your OBD1 is telling you no big emission problems, and probably not an injector, it just sat (you said so yourself)... so run it. get the cobwebs out, and see how she does. if driveability worsens, could have issues; but if she starts running (or stays running) fine or better--- DANG FOUR HUNDRED BUCKS! buys alot these days.
the plugs and wires are a good choice, get decent both. don't spend five or six bucks on plugs... it isn't a racecar. it is running now, and odds are grandpa didn't put them in it ten years ago. a good AC Delco or Autolite, or even a base platinum will be fine. any good custom fit wireset will probably be better than whats in there. get a lifetime one rather than the inexpensive ones. not for the warranty, but the lifetimes are ALMOST never carbon/graphite, but solid wires.
did the vehicle come with records/reciepts? what kind of maintenance was already done? if you don't know, just start with the 60K mileage, and maintain it! address other issues as they arise.
search the web for other sites, forums, and/or clubs concerning your specific vehicle, and don't think of it as a burden... yet(just kidding)
...at least it's a GM, so it is still less expensive than other domestic and imports combined.
hope this helps,
chris
nrt racing
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