update on the 89 Caprice - 529,000km's/329k miles

[caprice_2nv]

We put some hockey pucks and bolts through the frame and floor so i can get another winter out of it. If money gets really tight I may end up having to sell the mint condition 83 Caprice, that I paid $1500 for. I can probably make a small profit off it, that's why I held onto the 89. The floor is missing some pretty big pieces now though, and the frame will needs some patching if it's to make it through 2 more winters.

Oh ya, running Motomaster Formula 1 full synthetic 5w30 and an ac delco filter. Going to run it to spring, which will probably be about 15,000km's or so. It does use a little so it gets topped up regularly. I've been driving it to Toronto every couple weeks lately (just over 2 hours one way going 70mph the whole way), to visit a new girlfriend. It's a good thing she is not picky about what I drive.

 

[SLCraig]

almost 140kph in neutral

I know the old gearshifts you usually just have to find the drive gear.

That is awesome. My folks had a 77 Caprice when I was born. They had it a few more years after and I still remember it. It was a durable car, they loved it.

 

[caprice_2nv]

Ya my ex girlfriend didn't like the gearshift indicator. She had to say "park, reverse, neutral, overdrive" as she was pulling it through the gears. Me I just know where it is. She had to drive that car more than once when hers was broken and she hated it, mostly because the original windshield is badly pitted and makes it hard to see at night in the rain, with headlights coming at you. I'm used to it though.

 

[daman]

Yup them 305 TBI engines run for ever,my buddy parents have a low mileage(200,000)'89 also..great cars ride very smooth.

 

[CROWNVIC4LIFE]

Originally Posted By: SLCraig


That is awesome. My folks had a 77 Caprice when I was born. They had it a few more years after and I still remember it. It was a durable car, they loved it.


I had a 77 [305] Caprice...It was just as maintenance free as any of my Panthers....The Caprice and the Panthers are the best cars on earth when it comes to low maintenance...Just IMHO.

BTW the a/c in my Caprice could have easily cooled a 7 room house.

 

[eljefino]

We had a work S10 that was a delightful pile. It had the stretchy column shifter cable so we had to go in Park then down a millimeter for reverse.

We could also put it in drive then stretch the shifter up into neutral, so the mechanical key interlock allowed starting. We'd park on sand then jump in, turn the key, and floor the gas when it started in gear. Fun times.

Need pictures of the floor please.

 

[simple_gifts]

Your replacement is waiting 8)

 

[caprice_2nv]

If I remember right, my 89 will start in reverse. That is a nice looking 87 in that link, however way out of my price range. My 83 truly is rust free and only cost $1500, needed nothing for a safety. It only has 265,000km's on it (164k miles) which is nothing and it drives like its brand new. Everything except a/c still works (including power antenna).

The 83 also has much more space under the hood for maintenace since it doesn't have the air injection (pump and lines, etc) that the TBI 305 has. Changing the plugs was a pain in the [censored] on the 89. Speaking of which I recently pulled half the plugs on the 89 to check compression and it has 200, 150, 200, and 155 respectively on the drivers side (easiest to access). Not sure if 2 of them are low, or two are high. It is still the smoothest running engine at idle and has no blowby from the breather or exhaust.

 

[Falcon_LS]

Those are really tough cars, good to see they are still on the road. What's your maintenance schedule like?

We had a couple in the family as well, and my first car was a '80 Caprice Classic. It did have its annoyances; falling sunvisors, cracking dashboard pad, exterior door handles snapping off, pull staps coming off the doors, etc. but it kept on trucking regardless.

 

[caprice_2nv]

Here's some exterior pics I took this morning, before leaving for school.

The maintenance schedule from brand new to 400,000km's was conventional 5w30 every 3k miles, driven roughly 15k miles a year I think. No major repairs during that time.

From 400,000-490,000 it needed gas tank, exhaust, cat converter, rad, alternator, and starter.
It also had one trans fluid change, then pan gasket started leaking. At 490,000 it was run low on fluid for a week until it lost reverse and slipped in 1st and 2nd. I bought it and swapped the trans, and did a tune up and some fuel lines, etc. other minor repairs.

 

[daman]

Ahh [censored] she's good for another 100,000 miles!

 

[eljefino]

You can pass safety inspection with holes in the floor? Do you have to do it annually or just when you buy a car?

My state makes you put a car on the lift once a year to check for rust here there and everywhere.

 

[addyguy]

Thanks for the update - like seeing these updates on old beaters!

One thing that is 'nice' is the floor area is large on those cars - lots of metal and room to work with. My buddy's brother years ago got a 1977 Firebird V-6 out of a field (seriously), with swiss cheese for a floor. He used tin sheets and LOTS of roofing tar to patch and 'seal up' the floor. Drove it that way for two more years, never had a problem, was perfectly solid. You don't have to spend a lot, or do anything fancy, to fix the floor on an old car like this.

If you can avoid it, I wouldn't sell the 1983 - these cars get harder to find every year, considering this body style hasn't been made for 20 years now!!!

 

[bigmike]

We commonly refer to those rides as "Westside specials" around here. Cars like that get bought up quick and last forever, but we don't have the rust issues.

 

[caprice_2nv]

Safety is only required when you buy the car, which was a few years ago now. It sat for close to a year before i started driving it, cause I still had my old one. I did have to pass the emissions test again this year though, which was a little bit tricky. It took 3 tries, had to swap a different catalyst on it and adjust the timing.

There are no exhaust leaks on the car, making the lack of flooring only a minor inconvenience. The carpet is so thick you barely even feel a draft on the coldest days. The heater is good, and the car is reliable and starts up no problem on the coldest days. I could patch up the floors, and I could also weld the frame in the bad sections and replace the rest of the body mounts, but then I'd still left with a rusty body with terrible paint after putting all that time and money into it.

 

[addyguy]

Just how much of the floor is missing???

If it THAT bad, I'd stop driving it, just for fear of a good hard bump causing something to break!

If it just has holes, but the 'structure' is sound, you can work with that - but this sounds like it's bordering downright dangerous - frame needs welding, and the body mounts are gone! EEEP!

 

[caprice_2nv]

Well there is still plenty enough floor to hold the seats and carpet up, lol. and I'm a pretty light guy. They have a full box frame pretty well, so its not really part of the structure.

It is rough but not to the point of collapsing yet. I personally have seen lots of customers driving around with loose ball joints and tie rods, that could fall out, cause they can't afford to fix them yet. Random loss of steering control is not a good thing. This is much less risky than that.

I have good brakes and all tight front end components, and good winter tires.

 

[addyguy]

Agreed - if it is holding together fine and is safe, just make sure too much water doesn't get in, and drive on!

Can you give some more details on what you did do - you added 'pucks'....?

 

[caprice_2nv]

We drilled a hole through the trunk floor and the frame, one on each side, and through a pair of hockey pucks that were on sale . Then we put a long piece of big threaded rod cut to size through each hole and through the puck, and put each together with big washers and nuts, tightened the whole assmebly together.

No more noises from the back of the car going over bumps, and it feels a lot tighter. The top of the frame is still solid, took a lot of effort to get through the metal even with the huge drill.

The car still drives a lot better than the new one, cause it has the F41 front and rear sway bars, and stiffer shocks, and wider tires. It's still actually kind of fun to drive.

 

[eljefino]

Originally Posted By: caprice_2nv
Safety is only required when you buy the car, which was a few years ago now.


Interesting. So if there's no way it can pass now, you are the only person on the entire planet legally allowed to own and drive it. So its value is all in your head-- because you'd only be able to get small money for parting it out.

I LOL at your hockey pucks... one time on my sonoma it came to my attention my cab mount washers were shot, so I pulled the bolts and had a couple scrap metal electrical switch boxes that dismantled into some 4x7 cm plates. Drilled holes in those, pulled the bolts (not rusted in!) and reinforced everything so if I got in a wreck the cab would stay with the frame.