Another car thread......

[eddiek]

With the uncertainty of the economy, I decided to safeguard myself and my son a little bit.  Been paying for two years on my truck, a 2002 Chevrolet HD2500 4x4, that gets about 12mpg on the highway.
I work on a drilling rig up here in the eastern Texas Panhandle, and they are stacking rigs left and right.  Mine is supposedly "safe", as the company we are drilling for is thrilled because we get the holes drilled ahead of the curve, under cost, and on time.  But.......stranger things have happened, so I am gonna get rid of the truck and picked up two cars yesterday that should help alleviate my fuel costs and, most importantly, are paid for 100%.  Should they put our rig in the grass, I don't want to have to worry about how I am gonna make the truck payments....and I honestly don't "need" the truck anymore.  Picked up an old '90 GMC 4x4 last year, put a newer engine in it, rebuild the suspension, and have been using it to go back and forth to work every since.....and it gets 18-20mpg on the highway to boot!
I got a 1997 Monte Carlo LS and a 1999 Monte Carlo Z/34 for $750.......the owner, a young man, said in the original craigslist ad that the Z/34 needed an engine.  After looking the car over, I said to myself "this guy doesn't know alot about cars"....he claimed the engine was locked up but his story of how he came to that conclusion made me believe the starter had gone bad, not the engine.  I then talked him and his dad into throwing the '97 in for an additional $250 over the original asking price of $500 for the Z/34.
Turns out the engine is good in the Z/34, just gonna have to dig the old starter nose out of the flywheel/torque converter area......couldn't find it, will try turning the engine backwards and forwards to get it to fall down where I can remove it.
The '97 has way more miles, but sounds good idling......had to get one tire fixed today, will get the last one fixed Monday, in the meantime, we are gonna haul them home tomorrow morning and I will have a closer look-see at what each car will need to be totally roadworthy.
Anyone had one of these cars, the 5th generation Monte Carlos?  I've read and heard that they get good gas mileage, in the mid to upper 20's, with low 30's not unheard of in the 3.1L powered cars.
Here are some pics of the cars.........a fender and some bodywork to be done to the Z/34, but I think I got one heckuva deal....tell me what you think.

http://s266.photobucket.com/albums/ii276/airboss32/Project%20cars/

[Cougar68]

I have a '96 Monte Carlo with the 3.1 engine in it.  She's at 160k right now and running like a champ.  I used to hate the car, but it's grown on me in the same way Top Gear fell in love with their Toyota.  I've tried to kill, I truly have, but she just doesn't give in! 

Things to watch out for, the center console hatch will break if it isn't already broken.  Horrible hinge design by Chevy.  Mine was gone at 30k but you'd be suprised how fast you get used to it.  Also the lights for the presets on the stereo will fail as well, again no biggie.  The only real gotcha is specifically for the 3.1.  Chevy had a HORRID gasket design coupled with their switch to a Dexron II antifreeze.  Dexron II had a nasty habit of eating away the intake manifold gasket causing antifreeze to either leak out of the engine, or into the crankcase.  I had to replace mine when I picked up water in the oil.  My sister has a '99 Malibu with the 3.1 and I just did her's last week after finding antifreeze all over the transmission.  If you're handy with tools it's a job that can be done in a day's time with a fair amount of frustration and knuckle scraping. 

Other than these things I can't say anything bad about the car.  Of course now that I've praised it she won't start in the morning...

[Cougar68]

Last thing, is the Z34 the 3.8 engine?  IMO Chevy's 3.8 ranks up there with the all time greats for reliability

[eddiek]

Yep, the Z/34 has the 3800 series engine in it..........and from my experience, those engines are all but bulletproof.

[Cougar68]

My mother purchased a Bonneville years back with the 3.8 in it.  At 270,000 miles she sold it because the engine mounts had torn loose.  Never burned a lick of oil either.

[CJ]

I had a 95 Z-34, which had the 3.4 liter chevy engine in it.  It had plenty of power and ran pretty smoothly until it finally died.  The timing belt went (the 3.4 that was in it was a dual overhead cam engine).  the switch to the 3800 series engine sounds like a great move!  Enjoy your car.  I'd still drive something like that if I didn't live in the smogged state of California where we're all forced to either drive new cars or ride old bikes.

[DiabloTX]

3.8 is actually a Buick engine.

I spoke to a GM engine designer back at the Dallas Nationals about 10 years ago and he told me that engine was one of the greats GM ever came out with.  It has a lot of potential, as can be seen in the GNX and other cars.

[Cougar68]

I would love to build one of the '30's Ford Victoria kit cars and stick the 3.8 in it.  Air conditioning, prob high 20's to low 30's in mileage and a beautiful ride. 

[eddiek]

UPDATE:

Got the black one up and running....runs very well for a naturally aspirated V6.  Last car I had with this engine was a 1994 Bonneville and it would move on down the road for a 4 door car.....this thing pulls a lot harder than the Bonnie did, so far so good.  I am thinking I may have a vacuum leak on the intake, will change those gaskets when I get off work next Wednesday.
The '97 has me puzzled....put a good battery in, cranked her over......no spark.....checked all fuses and relays......all tested good....then I noticed, or rather it dawned on me, that the "CHECK ENGINE SOON" light didn't flash on when I turned the key to "ON"....am thinking the PCM may be dead, which in itself isn't all that bad, only $50 at the local salvage yard......but if I have to take it to the local dealership after I replace the PCM to have the replacement flashed.......it's only $75, but the hassle of loading the car up on a trailer and hauling it over there.....kinda ticks me off.   Not sure what route I am gonna take with the 3100 series engine....the car has 246,000 miles on it, so I have been reading up on what engines or replacements would be good.  Gonna probably replace the wheel bearings all the way around, will definitely put new belts, hoses, wiper blades, etc on........
The trend nowadays, unless you are determined to keep a 3100 series engine under the hood, seems to be to swap in a 3400 or 3500 V6.....supposed to be a bit more power due to better heads..dunno if that will be what I do.  With so many miles on the car, I think it is on borrowed time and eventually will need another engine.....time will tell what I do........for now, gonna enjoy it, use it to get me back and forth to work as much as I can, and just have fun teaching my son new stuff about cars....and learn a bit more myself as we go.