1977 Cadillac DeVille

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ said:

Things were getting strangely grumbly at low speed, which eventually I narrowed down to rear axle bearings.

This thing has the biggest pinion gear I've ever seen, I guess because the axle ratio is like 2:1

C-clips are a bit worn but not alarming so I reused them.

Obligatory "you can see through the axle" shot:

And back together with some fresh Timken bearings and driving.  I should probably do the same on the front hubs in case those bearings are equally ancient.

Did you get a factory service manual?  They usually have some good wiring diagrams in them.

I'm wishing you a belated Happy Birthday.....cuz I missed the chance to post a thread two days ago .....hope the cake/ice cream was memorable.....did you blow out all the candles?    Oh and this BOAT ROCKS!!!!!

In reply to Stampie :

Still lacking a service manual, but honestly at this point I've pretty much decided things are good enough.  Despite some lingering "character" in the climate control wiring it's functional enough for what we need.

Failed to take any pictures of todays Cadillac work so here's the aftermath:

All the balljoints and bearings in the front suspension are now fresh- I always forget how truly hateful the riveted/pressed old style balljoints are.  Sometimes they don't make 'em like they used to for a good reason.

It turns out that dogs don't really appreciate the ultra squishy and slippery back seat- more stable and level footing is required.  So we removed the rear seat cushion and got to work on the puppy platform:

This is all scrap wood that was laying around:

In order to level the floor underneath,  we wedged a bunch of strategically folded old towels and topped it off with a comforter:

Then ziptied a blanket over the plywood for some protection from sharp edges:

And look at that, a nice level surface for dog beds and crates.  We'll fill the footwells with other stuff as well, since they're still accessible for storage:

Yesterday was "the whole damn northeast is flooding" day and I drove the Cadillac to work- they call them boats but I don't think this is what anyone had in mind:

Eventually I drenched the alternator, but still made it home while having to choose whether I wanted headlights, wipers, or defroster since it could only run one at a time without draining the battery.  I ordered an upgraded alternator, it earned it for sure.

Nice back set mod.  And they still have their own ashtrays in each door!

The ancient space saving inflate-a-spare was cool, but there's no way I would trust it to function so I swapped it for a more traditional spare tire.  The canned tire repair will still be plan A:

Look at this crazy thing- no belts or fibers as far as I can tell, it was all coiled up on the rim and pretty difficult to remove.  You were supposed to inflate it with a co2 cartridge I think:

I also changed the headlights out for some LEDs- yeah they look silly, but this thing needs more light output badly:

That's even weirder than the weird spare tire the Pirsche came with (which I also replaced with a full size). It's kind of funny that in a car as huge as that one they felt the need to try to save space with a compact spare. I mean I imagine you can probably fit eight full-size tires in the trunk.

I have been resisting LED headlights on my wagon. They do look odd; not sure the output quality is worth the styling compromise.

Let us know how these work out. What the pattern looks like on the pavement, how offensive you think they are to oncoming drivers, and what brand they are, please.

And any RFI issues. My last set of LED headlights, purchased from a reputable vendor trying to avoid cheap garbage, messed with enough radio signal and had so much light scatter that I threw them in the trash.

In reply to gumby :

Will do, they are "turbo sII" and I bought them because they look the closest to being a knockoff of the ultra expensive Phillips ones. If nothing else, they reduce the current draw enough that I can add driving lights if needed. 

Oncoming view, lowbeam:

Highbeam:

Driver's view, lowbeam:

Highbeam:

They're ok, certainly better from the driver's seat than the sealed beams.  The light doesn't throw crazy far, but again better than the sealed beams and has the typical LED feature of lighting up anything reflective no matter the distance.   RFI still needs to be tested, I can check again once I install the new alternator. 

I think for $60 these are a decent way to get more light and less current draw, we'll see if other drivers are bothered by them but the low pattern does have a halfway decent cutoff.  If a lot of people seem annoyed I'll tint the lowbeams yellow. 

Thanks for the follow up. One of my new sealed beams isn't sealed and has moisture on the inside of the lens. As we head back into night season, I am leaning toward taking the LED plunge. Struggling with my vanity...

In reply to gumby :

I think the Nighthawk and Phillips options are both closer to normal looking, but at like $350 across all 4 lights I wasn't about to put them on this car.

Packing a bit- STPR is next weekend and shortly thereafter this thing will set sail.

There is a remarkable amount of trunk space remaining even with spares, tools, camping gear for two,  and a pair of folding chairs:

We're off!  I'm planning to unplug a bit while we're on the road, so I'll check in in a week or two. 

Nice.  This makes me want a boxy Caprice wagon even more.  Or the backup plan, a Grand Marquis.  The MGM would be newer and presumably more reliable, but on the other hand, the Caprice would be older and less reliable.  It's a tough call.

Safe travels guys, have fun

Trip going well so far, but we stopped for gas in South Dakota and the fuel was boiling. The exhaust is not touching the tank or anything, does anyone with more old car knowledge than us know what is going on or how dangerous this is? Thanks.

In reply to ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ :

I've never heard of that.  Like the tank was hot?  Quick search shows the boiling temp of gasoline to be 225F.  My first thought is somehow it was air bubbling either from the return line or the vent/vapor trap stuff.

In reply to ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ :

Elevation changes.  You're probably off gassing out of the filler neck?  Gasoline is more volatile at higher altitudes

That happened to us on our trip out West in our motorhome.

Edit to add picture:

This bag of chips was purchased at around 2,000 foot elevation and pic taken at around 4,500 feet.  Expansion.

Thanks for confirming it's probably not about to explode just because there's some extra pressure guys. 

Bonus photo for your assistance:

I replied to Sara's email with my lack of concern, but also forgot about the relationship of vapor pressure and altitude. Fear not, but be prepared for the lack of go as you climb further.

Vapor lock used to be a real thing on big GM cars.  As long as there is no spark to accompany, the vaporization of the fuel by itself is not a hazard.  An annoyance but not a "get you on the news" event.

8,245 miles later we're back home!

The Cadillac did great- it burned a little oil and a lot of gas, but other than some tire wear and a new crack in the windshield it's in pretty much the same shape as when we left.  Biggest scare was pushing some trans fluid out when we tried to hold 80mph over Donner Pass, after a cooldown and top up it was fine. 

I'll do a trip write up next week.