Newbie buying a 90's Roadmaster ?

I see the electrics value in having all that room in front of the engine, and they're a lot more quiet!
This from the 9c1 site:

 

Well, Vic...I don't answer a barrage of questions like you have asked. Different strokes for different folks. Hard to know your personal likes and dislikes. Some of the things you mention are overkill to me and some aren't. 200OZ answered you anyway. Since I have a 96 Cappy, I would suggest that you drive the car in stock form for awhile until you get all the mechanical items fixed, the car running properly and the cosmetics to your liking. Don't rush into mods right away. You will find things as you drive it. For example, I can almost guarantee that the posi is no longer working. Might be, but I doubt it....if it is working it will likely be going out soon. It is a cheap version by Auburn that is non-repairable. Well....it IS repairable but not at all cost efficient. You can get a new unit for the same money or cheaper. I would recommend the Detroit Tru-Trac if you need a posi. Gears are your choice. When you drive it for awhile you may like it so much that you won't want to spend big bucks on mods. I mean, hey...if you really like to spend money and want the car to go like hell....I would recommend heads and cam from Advanced Induction. Around $3500 but they DO make it go! Clear Image long tube Tri-Y headers are the ONLY ones made specifically for our cars and the ONLY ones that will not do a melt down on the AC lines. Done right...they will go off at between $1000 and $1500. See what's happening here? Gets expensive real fast. That's why I backed off and settled for a little more snort for a lot less money. If you are a speed demon then it may very well be a better idea to just swap in an LS engine of your choice. If you have BIG money you can get the LS9, with 638 HP right out of the wrapper, and drop that in there....with some serious accessory and wiring work. You can do little things to make your LT1 run better, more efficiently and quicker but you will never get it to blow off everything on the street like the old days. Too many fast cars out there right from Detroit and elsewhere. And...keep one thing in mind...the 96 is an OBDII engine so anything you do with gears, fans, tranny etc ... you will need to reflash your PCM. Around $175 a pop for the right guys to do it. IF you get this car....drive it, have fun with it, fix things as they come up and then make your decisions. You can learn a LOT over at impalassforum and lstech but keep in mind....there are about 4 or 5 guys there that REALLY know their stuff. You will have to find them and filter out the rest of the bs.

 

Paying the dealership for once?

Great idea Mike, I priced the remanufactured parts prices at the local Lakeland Napa parts store and their cheapest one comes in at $220 plus tax not counting the extras on installation plus labor - not cheap. So if the dealership isn't too much more it might not be so crazy? Plus they do them possibly quicker as they know these cars whereas the smaller shops might be more used to imports?

Thx for the advice.

Vic

 

Loads of questions and heaps of answers

I'm bookmarking that link.

This shouldn't hurt the buttery ride, but will stabilize the car in corners?

That's the ratio I got in the "towing" (aka pursuit) Aero Crown Vic.

I'm going to want to do this swap. I'll be checking out the Impala forum for sources and tips on this mod - if there's one worth doing, I'd venture this is it.

Just to get more ATF fluid or does it have internal fins to cool it better?

Not really, but Vermont hills sure wind a lot including hairpins. By the way this wagon doesn't have variable steering, is that worth changing?

Is it an engine which "under-breathes" like the DOCH Intech I'm swapping into the Ford? That one gains a lot of HP and Torque by better intake and exhaust.

I'll check out the Impala forum too. A fellow who put a Crown Vic pursuit steering box in his Lincoln Town Car told me it made it lose its smooth steering feel, I guess this would also be a win/lose modification?

I didn't target a fresh low-miles engine to go out and pull it!

1. Will be done before the trip.

2. 15 inchers give better acceleration so for now they're keepers. I could always put on larger truck rims like that other guy.

3. Sway bar is a must, will look into it upon my return.

4. I didn't like the Bilsteins in that messed up Roady, but he also had put in heavy duty springs and rigid truck tires. I guess that Air Lift Bags would give it that ride I like in my old Vic, which is better yet than in a 98+ Town Car.

5. I went K&N for the DOHC intake on the Mutant Marauder, mostly because it was a crate engine needing dressing up, but also because it really needed as good breathing as possible. This car may not be so suffocated, and I'd love to mod it within a budget, and thus I appreciate your "bang for the buck" suggestions. So the Home Depot Intake is on order.

6. Is this one of those Kick-down buttons below the accelerator pedal like in the early Mercedes, or are we talking about converting it to a 5-speed? I want an AUTO ! ! !


Thanks for all the helpful suggestions, and although I'm making it a priority to get to Wagonfest, it probably won't be very different by then.

Now, to get on with that trip...

Vic

 

Hi Madbiker,

That's good to know. If I can limp it home with its current compressor I may tackle that myself. But on the road in a hot Florida sun with a bunch of teens and it may not be possible to do things the frugal way.

Vic

 

Hi Silverfox,

I apologize for using dated vernacular - my nephew tells me that the Gen Y's can't understand me. Mike is right, 86 meant remove, it is a word often used in the restaurant business for cancelling an order with the cook.

Vic

 

Best deal around but you have to specify the car because of the ABS reluctor.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/e...0082083766&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK:MEWAX:IT

 

Hi Mike,

Thanks for cleaning up the mess I made by hastily posting without proof reading the jargon. I pretty much cut and pasted what others has said, using their original terms, so I didn't know how familiar folks were with that way of saying things.

Happy 4th, took the kids to a Demolition Derby and thank God this year there wasn't a GM Longroof (seen 'em in the past}.

Vic

 

More words of wisdom... from Silverfox !

Hi Silverfox,

Sorry it WAS a barrage of questions. The reason for so many so soon is not because I need some kind of instant crash course in everything Cappy, but because I don't know what will be broken in this car. So I figured that it would be smarter to know what parts to replace the broken ones with - in a sense using the repairs as an opportunity to improve the car.

This is what I plan to do, and if I like the car As-Is then it's staying stock. The only mods I made to the mustang was an intake spacer and a tune. There are plenty of mods out there, but I can't figure that they're worth doing for my use (other than trading the Tremec for a 6-speed - hate that truck tranny). For small Vermont roads it's got plenty of get-go and corners well enough at the speeds these roads make you keep. I do go quite fast once in a while, but am very conscious of side roads and hidden driveways that are sprinkled about: you've got to know where you are here to really move.

Thanks Silverfox, you just did what I hoped, despite the barrage format: translate a repair into a mod.
If the Posi is dead, I'll refuse a stock replacement by Auburn and get a Tru-Trac.

Sure hope so, a few thousand miles by weekend should let me get a feel for it.

No way I've got that kind of money to throw at a car. Those heads are way more than my complete crate engine, although granted it was a fire sale from Karkraft when they were put out of business. I'm seeking reasonable mods, at least ones which give a lot for what you put into them.

The tune price ($550 the first pop in my case) for the Mutant Marauder is nasty, and that is why I am doing so many mods BEFORE that tune, so that it won't be a recurring nightmare. I don't need to go faster than anyone. But I enjoy an engine that sounds happy. Some of you will know what I mean.

Thanks for mentioning LSTech which I had never seen before.

Vic

 

Leather interior

The reason I'm posting this is to share the source with others and find out if anyone has heard of it. Also, it is in case I really don't like the fabric seats. It's not that I have anything against fabric, but I don't care much for synthetic fibers which feel like an extension of the foam rubber cushions more than a proper cover. I have yet to try these, so I'll 'can it' for now, and maybe they'll be nicer than expected.

Here's a link I found where they propose to convert your fabric seat covers to leather.

http://www.leatherseats.com/vehicle_search.asp?manufacturerSelect=4&modelSelect=55&yearSelect=1996

They sell custom leather covers that replace fabric or vinyl, but I prefer the idea of using the original covers. Does GM still make them, and are they really steep? Here a set is $700. The other option would be scouting junkyard websites for a wrecked wagon with grey leather... maybe.

Vic

 

Look for some nice ones from a Roadie.

 

Yup, figured as much.

Vic

 

Check the parts for sale section of impss. They are for sale all the time. Especially grey, it seems.

 

Vic,

The sway bars may affect the ride a very little bit, but will corner much flatter.

The Silverado pan just holds more fluid.

I wouldn't bother with the p/s cooler, and no don't switch it to variable power steering either.

I don't know how restrictive the stock intake plumbing is on the B body's, but I think most of us do this mod to clean up the engine compartment. I'm not a big fan of K&N filters, they are less restrictive, but at what price? You can see daylight when looking through them with out the oil on the filter media. Most guys will replace the "home plate" silencer with a hockey puck, and "first base" silencer with the K&N set up or a Home Depot or Lowe's sourced 3" pvc pipe, a few different elbows, and a rubber coupling. If using the stock air box "filter housing" most of us drill out or "swiss cheese" the bottom of the air box to allow more air to get to the filter. I think it's fun to figure out your own set up with the pvc. Here is some of the set ups I have played with.








The steering box shouldn't make that much of a difference in it's smooth feeling, but I honestly don't know about that.

I hear that Lloyd Elliott is the guy to go to for the LT1s. This is on the Impala SS forum (ISSF).
http://www.impalassforum.com/vBulletin/showthread.php?t=245694

As far as the floor shifter I was talking about, It's just a center floor console mounter floor shifter, no performance increase just cosmetic and more fun. Here is a link to the floor shifter and rear Panther sway bar install on this forum.
http://www.stationwagonforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9460

Mike

 

You'd get a lot of argument comparing LE to AI over there at impss, 200OZ. Just sayin'.