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Tech / General EngineIs your car making a strange sound or won't start? Thinking of adding power with a new combination? Need other technical information or engine specific advice? Don't see another board for your problem? Post it here!
I bought a sketchy, ragged to pieces Camaro. 1984 z28 305 HO 5spd. Fun car but it has some pressing issues. Most pressing, as well as distressing, is a smoking issue.
Craigslist seller claims the "break-in" oil is still in the motor from the rebuild he did about 2 years ago. I'm a naturally trusting person and took him for his word. Problem is... car is blowing blue oil smoke like Joe Dirt. Oil pressure gauge spikes to off the gauge at anything above idle. It also just goes all over the place. I'm guessing the gauge is broken...
The hopeful trusting me thinks the piston rings haven't seated from the rebuild.... or maybe the old exhaust manifold that's still in there is coated in pre-rebuild oil. Guy said he didn't drive it much at all after he rebuilt it.... just stuck it in storage. I've read it can take some time miles to get that smoke to clear up after a rebuild...
Moving on... second priority is the windows... Stuck in the up position and interior is in pieces... no buttons. I found the window toggle button floating disconnected in the center console and hooked it up to the connecting wires in front of center console... no luck. Gonna stick some fuses in the fuse box and see if that's it. Anybody know what fuse?
I've also considered just cutting the wires coming off window electric motor and sticking one to power, one to ground, see if I can move the window. Blue and black wire. Any thoughts?
So those two questions... and... well crap I'll just make a list:
thermostat is dead,
dash lights are dead,
interior is ROUGH,
windshield shattered,
side mirrors shattered,
door handles broken/hardly work
old crusty purple tint and residue on widows,
no radio,
no speakers,
dash is nice looking but not screwed down,
rear end whines when I give it just enough gas to maintain a constant speed,
rear tire - one lug is stripped and nut won't thread on,
hood is not original and doesn't like to close,
paint peeling,
leaks from window rubber,
"Rebuilt" motor blows smoke like crazy,
super loud single pipe exhaust
Windows stuck in up position
Stalls and stutters sometimes during heavy acceleration
I'm thinking a PO had a mean X-GF that took a bat to the car or something.
On the upside it has a cool flick-switch starter switch and it seems to run pretty well most of the time besides the smoke. Has a shiny air filter housing and other engine parts. There seem to be new welds on the motor mounts (does that mean the motor might have actually been removed?)
Will post pics. Apologies for the long post. New to the forum and in need of advice/input. I've always wanted an old crusty muscle car... always thought the 3rd gens were cool... scored with a stick shift carburated old school war horse!
Any thoughts/advice on anything above appreciated. Thanks!
I wonder if it just has too much oil, I've had this happen with lawnmowers (never on a car tho, I'm too careful with my baby ) and that's why the gauge is pegging? Sounds like ur starting one heck of a project, let's see some pics
Hot rod! Junk hood Motor Trashed interior Motor welds. Look fresh
More good news! Gear oil was found on the garage floor. Smelly gear oil. Probably from the transmission
There's still plenty of these cars without rust here in the Northwest and other places. Shipping a car isn't expensive. It's done all the time. Mine sat in a field for 11 years. Rust isn't even on my radar - except the t-top cross bar. Under that it was pristine. Stainless cross bar fixed that right up.
Nice car, it makes me feel great knowing a "crusty Camaro" has better paint than my car
Lol. My bad dude. It takes more than paint to make a car crusty, though. Horrible prolonged neglect.
Main reasons I say its crusty.... clouds of smoke behind it... interior had cig butts, trash, and what might have been a used condom in there, and today... well.. the power steering went out while I was going down the road
Oil change, righto. Gotta get some ramps, wheel stops, and a jack stand. Maybe within the week
Time... I'll have a decent amount... especially December through March. Minimum 3-4 hours a week once I get going. Up to 10-15hrs a week. I work slowly though.
Think my immediate plans right now are to get the windows working... change the oil.. fix the power steering, and order a windshield. Also get that stripped thread on the rear tire. Gonna check the wiring on the power steering first. Bet it shorted out.
Oil isn't overfilled, dipstick read short when I got back from the buy. Added a quart of 10w-30 and it set it right. Probably run a half tank of gas through it and it hasn't gone down noticeably.
I'll pull the floorboards and post some more pics.
Main concern is the smoke. This thread will hopefully be slow and steady, but I'll keep ya'll updated. Will post pics when I start tinkering with the motor. Nothing drastic yet.
Haha don't worry about it man, my car came repainted 1" thick with grime and the interior replaced with a rat motel (had just the smell and look, no rats thankfully ). PO was also nice enough to leave his extensive beer can collection under the front seat, i lucked out cuz one came with a free BellSouth can cozy!!
can't wait to see the progress you make, best of luck
Do date I've found three dead, desiccated mice in mine. One of them, just the skull fell out from under the drivers side of the dash....
Things are better now with a rust-oleum roller job and a LOT of time, money, and labor.
This is 2 years worth of evenings and weekends. And it's not done - not even close.
08-13-2017, 12:50 AM
I'm a naturally trusting person and took him for his word. Problem is... car is blowing blue oil smoke like Joe Dirt. Oil pressure gauge spikes to off the gauge at anything above idle. It also just goes all over the place. I'm guessing the gauge is broken...
) and that's why the gauge is pegging? Sounds like ur starting one heck of a project, let's see some pics 
). PO was also nice enough to leave his extensive beer can collection under the front seat, i lucked out cuz one came with a free BellSouth can cozy!! 
