BUILD Quarter Life Crisis. It's a thing. v.GN

[v6buicks]

I noticed right at the end of this video that my oil cooler adapter seal was leaking oil really bad. Of course this was three minutes after the parts store closed too.

This morning I swapped the oring with a much thicker one. That did the trick. I decided to try starting the car with the belt off to see if the chirping noise would go away.

That's a no. I'm going to take the converter shield off next. It kinda sounds like it could be rubbing the flex plate.

 

[v6buicks]

Suddenly the engine won't run at all anymore. I first thought the voltage was getting too low again, but it would crank pretty strong with the jump pack. It just couldn't quite light off. Then I noticed that the hesitations were actually registering on the boost gauge. This told me I should be looking at something timing related.

I believe I found the smoking gun. Looks like the chirping and rough running are related.

That's the balancer tone wheel contacting the crank sensor which I never really adjusted.... I miss 3800s right now, but at least I found something. I'm going to order a new sensor since this one is probably trashed.

 

[v6buicks]

Shit.

I spaced the crank sensor out and started the car. It runs better, but not amazing. My volt light is sorta on like old cars do when their alternator is taking a shit. It's as if I don't have enough time and money tied into this one. I'm also really disappointed to see that I still have some ugly leaks. Both are a bit more heart breaking than the last.

One leak is my Bowling Green Customs 3" downpipe gasket which I'm not very surprised to see. This part has been obsolete for about 20 years. Somebody managed to figure out in the mid-2000s that it's an old Ford big rig exhaust gasket (part number C3TZ-5C211-A). However, this hasn't been made in a very long time either. I tried cross-referencing without any luck. The other issue with it is that the bolts holding it together have spacers which limit the crush on the gasket. I suppose I could spray the existing gasket and remove the spacers? I don't want to do any damage to the pipe though. At that point, it's new down pipe and cut turbo shield time.

That sucks but it's manageable in terms of labor. What's less manageable is pulling the turbo off to replace the cereal box drain gasket. That didn't work at all.

 

[Turbocharged400sbc]

Talk to a local machine shop and have you machine one out of copper

 

[Turbocharged400sbc]

Also don't forget that copper RTV does build-up over time....works good on warped vbands.... so you might want To try Is applying a thin coat and letting it fully cure before assembly

 

[v6buicks]

I like the idea of having a new one custom made, but the RTV film will be a lot easier. I'm gonna try that.

 

[v6buicks]

I did some serious investigating. Walker doesn't have anything even close in their catalog.

But I was able to find alternate part numbers including the NSN. Damn.

In other words, good friggen luck trying to find a new one. I feel like it would be wise to try getting a new one made before gooping mine full of RTV or at least taking some very good measurements. On the other hand, if it's going to cause me this much trouble it may be time to cut my losses.

Then there's the turbo drain debate. If I have to do this again, I'm replacing the tube. I can get a new stock one for $80 and learn from the mistakes I made last time, or I can ditch that pain in the ass for an $120-140 AN kit. In the end I chose to get a stock tube and gasket. The only reason I looked into AN was because I assumed they would be a lot easier to install. However, I've read a lot people also saying that they never fit right and end up being just as much work if not more than a stock corrugated tube. Plus, the -10 AN hose and fittings are smaller than the stock tube diameter with less of a downward slope. I call bullshit on the people who claim that this will cause any real problems, but I still want a true upgrade if I'm going to change something. The final nail in the coffin was learning that stock tube installations are infinitely easier when the turbo is studded rather than trying to hold the turbo with one hand and start threading bolts with the other. I should have thought of that trick the first time, but excitement was very much clouding my judgement that day. Stock tube and gasket are incoming.

EDIT: Oh yeah. I forgot that the volt light is sorta kinda on with the engine running too. I must have botched my alternator rebuild in some way or another. I'll have to properly diagnose and figure that one out later.

 

[v6buicks]

Seriously fuck me and fuck this car right in the ass.

Why? Especially why now?

Third failed master cylinder in 6 years.

 

[v6buicks]

A new master cylinder is on the way from Raybestos. It has a lifetime warranty and appears to come from the same shitty factory as AC Delcos. I even paid a couple extra bucks for it because I hate Delco that much.

Last night I did some drywall mudding in the baby's room, so I had some garage time while I waited for that to dry.

I hate that I'm here again, but I found that that the cardboard gasket was a mistake in other ways too. Big oof.

This is insanely bad. I shouldn't have done it, and I know I won't be doing it again. I'm not putting another gasket between the header and turbo either. Old one came off and a THIN skim of RTV will replace it.

That was all I was able to get to. I had to dump about 10 gallons of waste oil off at the store so I could do another oil change and tire rotation on the Volvo. Life is getting busy, but I hope to finish mudding that wall tonight, install the crank sensor that came in yesterday, and get the turbo back on with a studded flange (bolts are a PITA) and new drain tube.

Here's the gasket that's causing me issues again along with one of the bolts that doesn't clamp it down. I'm not really sure what the point of the shoulders are other than maybe limiting the crush so that you don't mess up the flare on the pipe? I'm taking the gasket to a muffler shop as my last ditch effort to replace it. I don't expect them to pull through though so I'm going to spec new bolts without shoulders.

 

[sktchy3.8]

Fwiw I copper rtv all my hotside connections, one like that, a flat one, and then a thin layer on either side of the turbo gasket. I'm not sure how it'll do long term but I haven't had any issues thus far.

 

[v6buicks]

An exhaust shop hooked me up with a solid plan for the exhaust.

New drain tube in. This looks a lot nicer in terms of flow.

I studded the turbo to make installation a billion times easier.

The turbo is back on the car without a flange gasket this time. I smeared a thin layer of red RTV on it instead. I don't feel great about it given the horrible surface on my turbo. (see above) but RTV is more than the factory did.

Reconnecting the downpipe went a little differently this time. It was a huge pain to line up since it was still connected to the rest of the exhaust, but the bolts felt like they got a lot tighter this time. If it still leaks, I'll try throwing the bigger springs in, but I think I'm good.

The alternator took a ride to work with me. I haven't decided if I'm going to dig in and try to fix it this weekend because my nuts to secure the drain tube are in the mail or if I'm going to send it to the local auto electric shop to have them deal with it since I really don't have the time nor patience.

 

[Mr_Roboto]

Are those donuts pure lead? If so can you make a drawing of it before you pop it back in?

 

[v6buicks]

Are those donuts pure lead? If so can you make a drawing of it before you pop it back in?

I have no idea. Probably. It's already back in there though.

I'm not gonna lie. My confidence in the seal between the turbo and the header is getting really weak. That flange on the turbo side looks so messed up. I don't think my RTV layer was thick enough to make up for those pits over such a thin area. I guess we'll find out. If not, I'll be buying yet another gasket and doing this entire job over again. I'm sure that's when I'll break a stud or something time consuming like that. I am burned TF out.

 

[Mr_Roboto]

Hope it works out for you. If you have to pop it at least grab some measurements and if possible angles off that donut next time. Thinking about this, if I got a couple chunks of aluminum it probably wouldn't be super hard to make a mold for one in the lathe truthfully. May not be as pretty but a 2 piece bullet mold style mold would be easy enough to make.

 

[v6buicks]

I slammed everything back together and made another attempt at rebuilding the alternator. The only thing I changed was pressing the rear bearing in a little further. That shouldn't have made any difference at all in terms of charging though. Bust. Battery light is still on. I have 11.7V at both the alternator and battery. I probably fried something while I was soldering in the new brush assembly.

The car ran a million times better though. I'm willing to say it ran better than it ever has. Super responsive, smooth idle, no goofy sounds.... except one. The downpipe was still shooting water out of the bottom of the downpipe. At least the oil drain leak was fixed? I decided to try those bigger springs, and waddya know? It sealed!

...but

I belted out a nice "SHIT!" immediately after, but cropped it out for youtube.
My turbo in fact did NOT seal against the header. I immediately bought a new Remflex gasket. Although my buddy seems to be happy with his copper gasket, I'm not sure that's even enough to seal up these pits.

I'm trying not to get overwhelmed AGAIN, but this progress is not going as quickly as I need it to. In fact, I might later claim that there was no progress at all. The turbo will most likely need to be removed from the drain to throw that gasket in there, and who knows if it will seal a second time. As for the alternator, I don't think I have the energy to mess with that anymore. I'm very tempted to drop it off somewhere and play with the turbo and master cylinder while I wait. The ugly reality is that Nationals is in three weeks but I have much less time to get this thing done if my wife is going to drive it down to Bowling Green by herself. I'd say it needs at least a week of trouble-free daily commutes to work. Tick tock MF!

 

[Shawn1112]

I slammed everything back together and made another attempt at rebuilding the alternator. The only thing I changed was pressing the rear bearing in a little further. That shouldn't have made any difference at all in terms of charging though. Bust. Battery light is still on. I have 11.7V at both the alternator and battery. I probably fried something while I was soldering in the new brush assembly.

The car ran a million times better though. I'm willing to say it ran better than it ever has. Super responsive, smooth idle, no goofy sounds.... except one. The downpipe was still shooting water out of the bottom of the downpipe. At least the oil drain leak was fixed? I decided to try those bigger springs, and waddya know? It sealed!

...but

my turbo in fact did NOT seal against the header. I immediately bought a new remflex gasket. Although my buddy seems to be happy with his copper gasket, I'm not sure that's even enough to seal up these pits.

I'm trying not to get overwhelmed AGAIN, but this progress is not going as quickly as I need it to. In fact, I might later claim that there was no progress at all. The turbo will most likely need to be removed from the drain to throw that gasket in there, and who knows if it will seal a second time. As for the alternator, I don't think I have the energy to mess with that anymore. I'm very tempted to drop it off somewhere and play with the turbo and master cylinder while I wait. The ugly reality is that Nationals is in three weeks but I have much less time to get this thing done if my wife is going to drive it down to Bowling Green by herself. I'd say it needs at least a week of trouble-free daily commutes to work. Tick tock MF!

I have an alternator in my garage thats brand new. If it will fit your car, pay the shipping and its yours.
Id have to see your bracket though, I can send pics later today when I get home. Pretty sure it fits a Caprice, but a lot of them fit other GM's as well

 

[v6buicks]

I have an alternator in my garage thats brand new. If it will fit your car, pay the shipping and its yours.
Id have to see your bracket though, I can send pics later today when I get home. Pretty sure it fits a Caprice, but a lot of them fit other GM's as well

Thanks man. I appreciate that! About what year Caprice? LT1 alternators are a popular upgrade for these because of being readily available and a close enough fit. I think there's a slight wiring difference and maybe some trimming involved, but it's nothing I can't handle. I really wanted to keep the original alternator alive because it's turbo Buick specific, but I don't want it to be a huge hassle either.

 

[Shawn1112]

Thanks man. I appreciate that! About what year Caprice? LT1 alternators are a popular upgrade for these because of being readily available and a close enough fit. I think there's a slight wiring difference and maybe some trimming involved, but it's nothing I can't handle. I really wanted to keep the original alternator alive because it's turbo Buick specific, but I don't want it to be a huge hassle either.

87-90 I believe but they might even fit the LT1. The wiring is no big deal, as that can be changed.
Maybe you can take the guts out of the case and make them fit in your case if you want to keep the OG alternator.

 

[v6buicks]

I caved and bought a brand new alternator because I really don't have time to be fumbling around with this damn car anymore. It may not look exactly right, but I don't really care anymore.

I also found out that I actually fixed nothing yesterday.

The turbo came off again, and the nuts holding the drain flange to the turbo were wet. The paper gasket was completely saturated. I guess this is a problem that I just get to live with. I'm convinced that there's no way to make the rear nut any tighter because Buick put every fucking water passage and sensor in the same fucking spot under turbo. WTF. New gasket, new turbo with fresh surface, new drain tube. I don't know how else to satisfy it.

I give up. Oiled up gasket is going back on, and cranked just as tight as before.

I can't keep oil or exhaust where it belongs and I can't generate power, let's see if I can screw up these brakes.

Master is bench bled and awaiting installation. So far, I do not notice any leaks but it always waits until it's on the car.

Old master is out. Time for paint. The old fluid looked surprisingly gross.

It's not fair at all that I'll once again have to stare at a brake fluid stain for the remainder of this newly remanned booster's life. But oh well. Luckily it's not very noticeable on normal light.

This isn't going as planned but I made myself feel better by buying a little present for the Camaro. Hopefully that's just the motivation I need to kick this pile of shit out on to the street and get the garage cleaned up.

 

[sktchy3.8]

Is there anyway you can do a rubber gasket material? Cut it out of a piece of inner tube maybe? That's what I did on the return side of my turbo where the flange bolts up and it worked out pretty well. Get an old tube from a tire shops junk pile and an exacto knife and use the paper gasket for a stencil?

 

[Mr_Roboto]

With the masters I'm surprised you haven't tried a rebuild kit yet vs a pre-assembled one. Wow on the shit luck of that deal.

 

[v6buicks]

With the masters I'm surprised you haven't tried a rebuild kit yet vs a pre-assembled one. Wow on the shit luck of that deal.

I already completely rebuilt it with an AC Delco high amp kit just a few years ago, so all the guts are pretty new. I stripped one of the case holes anyway.

I'm still going to play with this one some more. I still have that chrome kit, so I'll probably try throwing all the 200A guts into the chrome case with a new regulator, test it, and sell it for a premium.

 

[v6buicks]

Is there anyway you can do a rubber gasket material? Cut it out of a piece of inner tube maybe? That's what I did on the return side of my turbo where the flange bolts up and it worked out pretty well. Get an old tube from a tire shops junk pile and an exacto knife and use the paper gasket for a stencil?

Not a bad idea. I just think the paper is failing because of my inabilities. I was only able to get them tight with a 1/4" ratchet, so they came off with very little effort. I need to find a way to get the rear one tighter. The front is accessible with a 3/8" ratchet if you use an extension.

 

[Turbocharged400sbc]

Braided Teflon AN is sweet....line stays on turbo....removed at midpoint union

 

[v6buicks]

Braided Teflon AN is sweet....line stays on turbo....removed at midpoint union

I wish that was the case for the GN, but the length is so damn short that there's not enough room to put a union. You can't disconnect the block side without removing coolant hoses either. Ridiculous.

It almost seems worth plugging the block and finding a place to weld a bung on the oil pan. lol