a couple issues 86 caprice

i have an 86 caprice, 307\200r4, and i am having a few issues with it.

cruise....dead. not working at all.

ac.... compressors dead maybe just the clutch though or a bad bearing i don't know...

power locks .....not working

and i want to change the radio. i have a 2 knob Kenwood in there now but the panel lights died on it. i have a NICE Pioneer that i want to put in. NOW DO YOU GET THE RADIO OUT WITHOUT BREAKING EVERYTHING?????!!!!!!! i already broke the heater controls in my 85 parts car trying to figure that out.

also are there any COOL wheels that will fit this big whale of a car? i tried Camaro mags and they don't fit. i have smoothies on it now and i just don't like how they look. ideas???

 

Go to a tire store and see what they can get. It will give you ideas. Some like the same year Buick styled wheels on those cars and some like aftermarket alloys of some type. You can also browse around on the internet in places like Tire Rack and the like.

 

Although tbird's on it, if you can't get the info you seek here I'd suggest signing up over at the 9C1 forum.

http://www.9c1.net/forum/index.php

There are a couple of guys over there that know these cars really well. It's a small board with very little chatter so it's easy to get straight, knowledgeable answers.

Another place for b-body info is over at the Impala forum
http://www.impalassforum.com/vBulletin/
but it's up, it's down, and too much chaff to wheat ratio.

 

been there smoothies. thats bout it. hell most places i have been to say that my car cant have custom wheels. they show no listing for it.



First make sure there's no vacuum leaks. After that you need a wiring schematic to determine if you have voltage at the right time. It needs a speed sensor input. 99% of cruise controls will not function below 35 mph. Are the switches clean and functional? Sorry I'm not much help on this.

as far as i know there are no leaks and the switches are good. i might need to check into the speed sensor though as i have no idea.


Does the compressor clutch engage when you select a/c? If not, is there 12 vdc to the clutch? One wire easy to check. Unplug from the compressor, select a/c and check for 12vdc. You don't need the engine running for this test. Only the ignition key in the run possition. If the clutch does engage the problem is elsewere in the system. If it does not engage then check the fuse and determine why there is no voltage to the clutch.


compressor engages but makes an awful noise. i have it unplugged and running as an idler for the time being. hence why i think clutch or bearings.

Again, check the fuse. It would be very odd for all locks to not work at the same time unless there is no power to that system.

i can get them to unlock about 1\4 of the time but nothing else. faulty switch maybe?

I can't help on this. In general though a two knob radio is held in place via the knob shafts. If you remove the knobs and the bezel underneath the knobs, typically there's a nut holding the radio to the instrument panel on each knob shaft. Check that out as it may be so. If not????


its the mounting bezel i cant figure out. i need to remove it so i can mod it to fit my DIN Pioneer in. i have done many a stereo in my day, i just cant for the life of me figure this setup out.

 

i'll wander over and see what i can find. thanks

 

I want to know where you got that picture of me for your avatar. What's going on here!

 

www.jeffdunham.com its walter

 

That car rolls on 5x5 bolt pattern. So any Astro/Safari Van, 1/2 ton 2wd GM pickup, Full size GM B-Body Wagon or 1/2 ton GM Fullsized Van that have 5 bolt wheels will bolt right on.

If any tire shop tells you that no wheels can fit it, they should have their licenses pulled and be shut down for not having 1/10 of a clue about the business they are in. Its like walking into a Advance pats store and telling them you want a HEI distributer rotor for a GM. They will ask what year, make model of the car, what motor it has, what options it has. None of that horsesh*t makes a damn bit of difference. THEY ARE ALL THE EXACT SAME DAMN ROTOR! But those morons wouldn't know that, they have no idea what part does what unless their computer screens show them with a picture illustration.

 

As for the radio. if it came factory with the prehistoric dual dial knobbed junk that plays them ancient cassette thingamabobs, you will likely have to cut it open to fit a more up to date DIN head unit.

 

iknow that feeling. it took me arguing with a guy at advance to get me a freaking HEI module. i needed it to run the electronics on my Datsun and he kept telling me it wouldn't work since its a 4 cyl. seems to work just fine to me. its the same one thas in my 86.

not a factory unit. tape deck died on the OE radio so the PO put this one in but i just cant figure out how to pull the adapter plate out so i can mod it for the new radio.

 

Got a pic of the area around the radio? Typically it just clips on or has a few screws... Then the trim is off, and the radio is usually just bolted in.

 

here ya go..... click to enlarge

 

also, something else i have noticed in the last few days since its raining here now, the wipers on intermittent sometimes work right and sometimes just come up a few inches then go back down. on low and high they work just fine but the intermittent is screwy. thoughts on that one??? i hope its not the switch. its a PITA to deal with. unlike my marquis... i have swapped the switch on my Cherokee, same column.

 

I had allso problems whit intermittent. Sometimes those jam on. I take one wire off and now it's workin only low and high. But now at least those stop when I want.

Mayby circuit board is broken. I have heard same kind proplems and when motor or boar was chanced it fix the problem

 

well i figured out how to get teh radio out without breaking anything. not an easy job but doable. so now my Pioneer is hooked up and working nicely, BUT i still have to mod the adapter plate so it'll fit. nothing a little finesse cant take care of