85 Deville is buzzing

[lealeigh]

I have a sweet old deville that has a nearly perfect interior and pretty good exterior, but the drive chain has seen better days. The air shocks are shot and its not worth it to plow hundreds into them (front and back) to fix. I believe the buzzing is coming from the pump and it always seems to be on. Can I have my brother shut it off without any consequences to the rest of the ride? I've been told she might have about 6 months left, but I'm thinking a little more. The "car is leveling" light only comes on once in a great while now, where it used to come on everyday multiple times. I take it easy with her, but I have about a 65 mile round trip to work, mostly highway, so she really gets a workout. There's nearly 150,000 miles on the engine and we change the oil with a mixture of 20/40 and 20/50 and it seems to be doing the trick for now. (I bought her in 2003 and put 100,00 miles on since then.)
So, can we switch off what we think might be the air pump so the buzzing will stop without causing other problems? Drive-up windows sometimes ask me to turn the car off or speak louder when ordering!
Thanks for any advice you can give me!

[caddydaddy]

So the leveling compressor is making a lot of noise? If so, then yes, I'd unplug it if you don't want it to keep running. I'd also plug the lines, or hook up a regular air inlet, so you can add air to the shocks manually.

[lealeigh]

Thanks Caddydaddy!
Just talked to my brother and he's stopping over later today to unplug the compressor. From what I was told by a mechanic, the shocks don't have air in them anymore so I don't think we'll be adding air manually (I'm thinking pin holes maybe?) Seems I've been told I'm "riding on the spring" - yet another reason that he said my baby doesn't have much time left.

Now, my next question is...should we still plug up the lines after unplugging the compressor if there's no air in the shocks (or if they don't/can't hold air)?

[caddydaddy]

If the shocks have no air, and won't hold air, then it won't do any good to plug up the lines. Your Deville will just ride low, and be putting more pressure on the springs, so those will fail early. Also, don't add any extra weight to the trunk, or try and fit 4 linebackers in the backseat. It will cause the car to be unstable and potentially dangerous to drive.
I have some sources for new passive shocks, ones that don't use air, but if you aren't planning on keeping the car much longer, that doesn't apply!

Good luck!

[HAWG]

are you sure it is not the vacuum pump under the left fender making all the noise

[caddydaddy]

Originally Posted by HAWG

are you sure it is not the vacuum pump under the left fender making all the noise

Why would a Cadillac have a vacuum pump?

[HAWG]

1985-87 devilles with a 4.1 had a vacuum pump part number 22062562 mounted under the left fender. We replaced a lot of them back then for buzzing noises.

[caddydaddy]

Interesting! So why did a gas engine need a vacuum pump? Usually you only see those on diesels.

[maxwedge]

Small intake manifold capacity and power brake/accessory vacuum demand, caddydaddy is correct on the pump issue I was with Cadillac for 25 years, lots of these pumps were replaced.

[lealeigh]

Hi guys - brother was on vacation and my computer was challenging.
Have some additional info that maybe you can use to help me figure out just what's buzzing.
After reading about the vacuum pump I realized that the buzzing is indeed coming from under the left front fender! When my brother was checking out my front driver's side blinker last year, he was messing around and unhooked something and the buzzing stopped. He said I didn't need it, but, being the chicken that I am, and driving 35 miles one way to work on a particially lonely stretch of road, I made him hook it back up in case something failed when I least expected it.
Today I noticed two more things - when I turn the key on, but not the engine, the buzzing comes on right away. Also, when I raise or lower the electric window, the buzzing slows.
Does any of this help in figuring out if its the vacuum pump or the compressor? If it's the vacuum pump, would there be any problems if it was unhooked? Is it expensive to replace? Is it easy to replace?
Thanks very much for any and all help!

[maxwedge]

As mentioned before this is the auxiliary vacuum pump, this is necessary for repeated brake stops for the power brake booster,.

[lealeigh]

Thanks Maxwedge - I'll let my brother know - maybe between him and my nephew they can replace, it depending on the cost.
Appreciate the help!