Poor Baby

Oh! The neglect!

The neglect for this Blog!

The neglect for the Caddy!

We have had so much rain over the last few months. I've kept the Caddy covered and haven't driven much and haven't done much to it. When I have tried to fix stuff, then other stuff breaks so I am just barely treading water maintenance-wise.

For example, as I wrote previously, I had the brakes done. Unfortunately, a couple of weeks ago I noticed a bunch of smoke coming from the right-side front wheel. It looks like the brake has seized there - the pads are rubbing against the rotor.

Before that, I took the car for a vacuum and wash. After vacuuming, I try to put up the top for the wash. CRACK! Looks like one of the top bows has slipped out of its socket so I've really got to do the top adjustment I've been putting off (and putting off... and putting off...).

Woke up yesterday and noticed that the one of the wheels is flat... sigh.

Anyway, I am going to look through the shop manual this afternoon and see how hard it is to fix that front brake. And when I get around to doing that, I think I might as well replace the front axles. They don't really need to be replaced, but the replacement CV boots suck and I have to pretty much constantly check them and squirt grease in there.

That won't happen this weekend though - too much other stuff going on. And it won't happen over Thanksgiving either. The family will be out of town so it will be a good time to do some house maintenance - painting, redoing trim, throwing stuff out, etc.

Not a Garage, Part II

As I mentioned in a previous post, I haven't been working on the Eldorado much because I've been building a shed. Here is a photo:



This is actually the state it has been in for the last 6 or so weeks. It needs some finishing touches like door handles, second coat of paint, some trim work, etc., but it is a full functioning shed. By that, I mean it holds a bunch of crap!

I installed some shelves and pegboard in the shed last weekend to help me get things organized. I still need to build a lockable cabinet in there to hold some expensive tools. I was going to try and get around to that this upcoming weekend, but other obligations are creeping up.

I haven't driven the Caddy since the weekend I put the starter in. The car starts a lot quicker now, usually.

I had Caddy-appropriate errands to run last weekend, but things were hectic and I didn't have time to go through the checklist (oil, fluids, tire pressure, belts, etc.) before driving off, so I drove the truck.

So, what's a Caddy-appropriate errand? Grocery shopping, library, visiting friends, dinner, etc.

Not Caddy-appropriate? Going to the hardware/home improvement store for big things like shelves or lumber, getting landscape materials - those are jobs for the pickup. Also, driving in the rain is not Caddy-appropriate. I didn't buy a convertible to drive it with the top up.

Caddy-essential tasks? Cruisin' and lookin' good!

New Starter

I'm feeling pretty proud of myself this evening - I successfully replaced the starter on the Eldorado. Happily, the engine started right up after installing the new starter. I took the car for a quick spin and everything seems to be fine.

I did the work this afternoon and things went pretty smoothly. Only two hassles - first, the old starter (pictured above) didn't want to come out. A few whacks with a big hammer took care of that.

Second, the ring connector on one of the wires connecting to the starter came off, so I had to take a quick trip to the auto parts for a replacement. I also picked up some GOJO while there.

I live on a busy street so I parked my truck behind the Caddy and put some orange cones to the side to lessen the chance of somebody hitting the car. It would suck if somebody side-swiped the car. It would be really bad if I was under it when they did it.



Usually, I work on the Caddy in the driveway, but this is where the tow truck dropped it.

Here is another photo of the Eldorado while I was working on it.

Road Trip!

I took a quick trip up to Chattanooga, leaving on Friday, returning on Saturday. The Caddy drove great the whole time, doing about 70-75 mph on the 250 mile round-trip.

No pictures, though, it was such a quick trip I didn't feel like taking a camera... The Eldorado got about 12 mpg. That's a little less than I was hoping for - I'd be ecstatic if I got 15 mpg.

It was a sunny & hot drive both ways, but I applied sunscreen regularly so I didn't get burned (at least not sunburned, maybe a little wind-burned).

Anyway, I stopped for gas about 20 miles from home and the darn car wouldn't start after I got done filling it up! Sounds like the starter to me.

Called AAA and they gave me a tow home. I tried to take some photos with my cellphone, but that piece of junk wouldn't save the pictures. (Don't get me started on my pos phone - it sucks and I'm surprised the battery didn't give out when I was calling AAA even though it claimed to have a full charge...) The driver was a real nice guy and gently dropped the car in front of the house.

Looks like a new starter will be about $40-50. Gotta look at the service manual to see how hard it will be to put in.

And, while the Caddy did die on me, it didn't die in Chattanooga or on the highway. I read a book in the shade while waiting on the tow. So, I'm not at all upset or disappointed with the car. We had a great time and got lots of looks and compliments on the trip.

Seat Belts

So, I'm heading home last night about 8:00, cruising on the downtown connector.

Blue lights in my rear view mirror. "Ah, this state trooper wants to get by me", I think, "he certainly can't want to pull me over". So I move over a lane. He follows me and hits his siren. "Crap!". I pull over.

The following thoughts go through my head in a matter of seconds:

• It must be speeding. I was speeding. But, I wasn't go faster than anybody else, slower than some. It's Atlanta, for crying out loud, everybody speeds. Can't be speeding.
• Something fell off the car. Hubcap? Muffler? I didn't hear anything, though.
• Ah, he must be curious about my awesome, awesome car. Yes! That's it.

Then I notice a second set of flashing lights behind the car that pulled me over. There are two state troopers on the shoulder behind me.

• DRUGS! They see me in this pimp-mobile and think I'm a drug dealer. Crap!

The officer approaches my vehicle. "Where's your seat belt?" he demands.

I gesture to the lap belt secured across my hips.

Trooper: "No shoulder belt?"
Me: "No sir, these cars didn't come with shoulder belts".
Trooper: "Let me see your driver's license". Examines my drivers license for about one second.
"Where you going?"
Me: "I'm going home". We've pulled over near the exit to my house.
Trooper, handing back driver's license: "Have a nice day".
Me: "Thank you, sir! Have a nice day!"

I had seen ads on TV about stepped up enforcement of seat belt laws, but never paid much attention because I always wear them. So this was definitely a surprise for me.

Maybe I need to get a bumper sticker that says "Vehicle not equipped with shoulder belts".

Not a Garage

Well, haven't been doing much with the Caddy because I am working on building a shed.



No, it's not a garage, but it will be housing spare parts and tools for the Eldorado.

I thought I'd get the shed finished this week, but things are taking longer than I expected. About four more weekends worth of work I think - roofing, building doors, siding, painting.

Been rainy the last few days, but got the Caddy out earlier this week to run some errands and just do some cruisin'.

Brakes

I broke down and took the Eldorado into the shop last week to have the brakes worked on. That squeal was driving me crazy and it doesn't look like I'm going to have time to work on them anytime soon.

So, $483.30 later, I have new brakes. Yay! $242 of that was labor, which is quite an incentive to do stuff myself. But, they got it done in one day - who knows how long it would have taken me?

Anyway, I got new brake pads and rotors on the front wheels,and new shoes on the rear brakes.

No more squeal!

The perfect example of a gas-guzzling land barge in the era of escalating fuel prices

Surfin' the 'net, found a couple of sites dealing with Eldorado history:

Last Great American Whale

Gas Guzzlers of the 70s

There isn't anything that says "pimp" quite like this car.

So, as you can see my current 8 mpg is a bit low. Some folks on Internet Cadillac enthusiast groups claim to get close to 20 mpg highway with these cars. Those cars are fastidiously maintained and well-tuned. I also assume they are driving with the top up and driving the speed limit (or the old 55 mph speed limit).

While my baby runs well, it is certainly not perfectly tuned; I don't drive it with the top up, and I drive fast - 70+++ mph.

Well, I guess that explains why I'm not getting 16 mpg...

Happy Birthday

Well, it's been over a year since I got the 'El Diablo', and it was built in April of 1971, so I think some (belated) birthday greetings are in order. Been delaying it, because I haven't had much to post about.

Still very happy to have bought this magnificent automobile. Still needs a lot of work...

But it is running well - I've been taking her out on weekends and to run errands in the evening, weather permitting. I couple of sounds have me concerned - one is a (no longer occasional) squeak that I've attributed (but not confirmed) to a sticky brake caliper. It was a lot louder and persistent this evening.

And, I've got to tighten up the belts. And look at the brakes, adjust the top. And it really needs to be painted.

Anyway, saw Pineapple Express on DVD and got a kick out of seeing the Cadillacs in that movie - they seem to be from the same era of Big Caddies that my car is from, though a little newer, perhaps mid-70's.

Also, my neighbor mentioned that Woody Allen drives an Eldorado in Annie Hall. I rented that, and sure enough, it is pretty funny seeing Woody try to get that massive car out of a parking space.

Casino also has some nice caddies, and I have been meaning to check out Soul Men for its Eldorado.

Wait a sec, I just found a website called Internet Movie Cars Database. I found this picture of the 71 Eldo from Soul Men. Oh yeah, I'm gonna be spending some time on this site...




Finally, driving home this evening, a guy leans out of his car window and tells me "Your car kicks ass!"

Yes it does. Yes it does.

zoom zoom

The weather forecast for the weekend was sunny & warm, so I really wanted to take the Caddy out.

Played hooky from work Friday afternoon in order to get the exhaust manifold back on. Long story short - baling wire.

While I was in there, I went ahead and put in new spark plugs and new ignition cables. I was hoping to get Kyra to help me with gapping the plugs, but she has been sick all week and wasn't in the mood to goof around with the Eldorado - or "El Diablo" as my brother calls it.

Anyway, cranked it up Saturday afternoon. Happily, the engine is quieter now with the new gaskets. Even Marcia said so, in a non-sarcastic manner, so it is not my imagination. So, the 6 or 8 weeks of pain was worth it. Somewhat.

Still not as quiet as I would like, though, but I am going to put off any more exhaust work for a while.

Okay, Kyra and I went cruising on Saturday afternoon. First to the car races at Turner Field, that's where the photo above is from. They have these events about once a month: http://www.southeastdrift.com/

Here is the obligatory photo of the Caddy:



Then to the auto parts place to get some power steering fluid. Then off to get some dinner and sweets for Kyra. Back home to pick up the dog, and off to the playground.

Today, I just went for a spin by myself. I always tell myself to take it easy and not go over 70 on the highway. But then something happens to my right foot and ZOOM. Car rides nice. There was a Porsche 911 zipping along too and we gave each other the car-guy nod of respect.

Snow

Well, I was gonna work on putting the exhaust manifold back on today, but it was snowing and cold.





Last weekend, I did manage to drill out and retap the holes. The holes on the number 6 cylinder are pretty ugly, but I think there are enough threads there to hold a bolt. Keeping my fingers crossed.

I did manage to fabricate the two bolts that the heat shield attaches to. I used JB Weld and the bond seems pretty sturdy. Again, keeping my fingers crossed...

Progress...

So, for the last couple of weekends I have been trying unsuccessfully to get those broken bolts out.

The last couple of weekends have seen me trying to get the bolts free by heating & cooling and soaking and soaking them with penetrating oil. And heating & cooling & soaking. And heating & cooling & soaking...

Anyway, the two that are sticking out ain't budging. I tried using an extractor to dislodge the one that broke off flat. That requires drilling a hole through the center of the bolt and twisting in the extractor. The extractor has left hand threads that are supposed to grab onto the bolt and twist the bolt out.

As you may have guessed, the extractor broke. Now, the extractor is made of really hard metal, and drilling that sucker out is a pain!

Okay, so I get fed up trying to unscrew the bolts and decided to just drill them out. After some trial and error, I found the best tool for that is a Dremel with a bit for cutting tile. It is a rough bit and is good at grinding the bolts out of the holes.

After that, I used a tap to clean out the threads on all the holes, starting with the ones the bolts actually came out of. One of those had threads that were crushed for some reason, but I think I have got it tapped so it will hold a bolt.

Then I managed to break the tap on one of holes with the stick bolt. Drilling that out sucked - took me most of the afternoon today, and that hole is pretty ugly now.

So, next weekend I am going to work on cleaning up the holes that had the stuck bolts. I'll see if I can retap them, but I think I'll probably have to install an insert to restore the threads.

Arrgh!

Quick note here - allocated some time this afternoon to pull off the exhaust manifolds in order to replace the gaskets.

The right side manifold came off easily - yay!

The left side - not so much.

Managed to break off three bolts; two of them are special - they have an extension that the heat shroud attaches to. One of the bolts broke clean off, the other two have part protruding, but they are good and stuck:



So, no driving until I figure out how to get those bolts out.

On the bright side, Kyra and I didn't have any trouble replacing the windshield fluid reservoir or the PCV valve & grommet.

Happy New Year!

I spent a bit of time right around New Year's cleaning the Eldorado - touching up flaking paint, cleaning the interior and washing & waxing the car.

The wash & wax was long overdue - the car definitely looks a lot better. Unfortunately, the only way the paint on the hood is ever going to look good is by repainting the entire car. The sides of the car shined up a little better than I expected.

What else? I put a clear vinyl window in the top and cemented it in place with contact cement. That seems to work pretty well, though there is one small leak that I'll have to work on patching. I prefer to leave the car cover off, if possible, as leaves and moisture tends to get trapped under there and make the finish look really cruddy.

I really have to schedule a weekend to take a good look and adjust the top. It is not opening and closing very smoothly at all. Since I have the manual, I'm hoping it won't be too hard to figure out, but I plan on it being time-consuming to make all the adjustments correctly.

I also washed & waxed my truck, and that came out really nice!

What did I leave out? Marcia's Bug! Yeah, the rain arrived so I couldn't do her car, thus giving her another reason to hate the Eldorado.

A side note regarding her Beetle - feeling cocky after replacing the springs, shocks, water & smog pumps and belts on the Caddy, and replacing the rear view mirror on the Dakota (got clipped when somebody drove by too close and too fast), I decided that replacing her burnt-out headlight bulb would be a cinch.

WRONG! Oi, what a pain. I searched the internet on how to do this and what I found is that some of the Beetles' light assemblies are easy to take apart and some are very hard. Guess which one Marcia's is. SNAP!!! "Did this just break off!? Oops!"

Oh well, the guys at the local shop got things pulled apart and back together okay and didn't charge Marcia for the work, but it is another in her growing list of resentments about the Caddy.

But damn, I look good in that car, and that can't be bad, can it?

And finally, I took the car to a body shop to see how much repainting the beast would cost. The guy I talked to was not interested in working on the Caddy - he had enough business and dealing with all the chrome is a pain - if you take it off then it bends really easy and won't fit back on. He did give some advice though. He thought it would cost about $3k to get a decent paint job, but he said I should take it to a place that specializes in restoring classic cars and spend about $8-10 thousand for a good paint job, then about another $5-10 grand for the interior.

Which is a nice thought, but it ain't gonna happen anytime soon unless I win the lottery. I guess I could take it to Maaco and get a crap job for $1000. Another option is to paint it myself, this would be cheaper, though time-consuming. It would be nice if I had a garage so I could set it up as a paint shop.

So, it looks like the goal for the next year is to keep the Eldorado running, keep it looking as good as possible, and enjoy driving it when I can.

Happy New Year!

Here are three photos after I waxed the car: