A few quirks with '95 N/A
Posted: Sun Aug 22, 2010 5:54 pm
My sister has a 1995 Bonneville with a 3800SII N/A. Not sure what trim, but the thing is freaking loaded. She loves the car, but it's the quirkiest car i've ever seen.
First, whenever it wants, it won't start. When it's been sitting for a short period of time (half hour to 4 hours or so) sometimes it just won't go. Turn the key on, everything works, radio comes on, dash lights come on, everything works. Turn the key and it'll crank all day long. But here's the quirky part: once you crank it, if you wait 15 minutes, and try again, it'll start up just fine like nothing was ever wrong. I think i've got this pinpointed to the tranny range selector (scan tool reads the gears horribly wrong, and my sister said once it started up after she put it in neutral and rolled it out the driveway), but i haven't been able to get it to refuse to start so i could test this theory
Second, the power door locks just quit working. Both sides and the remote, none of them do anything. But the trunk remote button works still. I figured fuse, so i took my test light and went over all of them and found nothing out of the ordinary :( the diagram on the fuse box door has disappeared though...could someone take a picture of theirs and post it so i can see what fuse is what?
Those are the biggest things right now - all the rest are insignificant quirks :p like i say, my sister loves her car. It's sooo comfortable, and it has balls. It just takes some getting used to, considering she stepped up from a 94 Tracer wagon 4cyl auto which ate head gaskets 3 times a year, and cracked three heads within two years. Also needed tuneups once a month or it would get 8mpg
horrible car. And it only had 50k miles on it, maintained perfectly.
My other concern is longevity of parts. The car has 175k miles on it. We bought it from a dealer; an older couple had bought it new in 1995 and got rid of it to get something newer last year. Seems well maintained..no pops or rattles or squeals. When it isn't being its clever self, it starts up first try every time. Doesn't burn any noticeable oil, and has only needed the intake redone, and a valve cover gasket. How much life to these transmissions usually get? We own an 03 Grand Prix with the same motor with 150k on it, tranny is strong. How long do they typically last? And are they expensive/difficult to replace? Are there any other parts that you'd expect are on their way?
Thanks guys!
First, whenever it wants, it won't start. When it's been sitting for a short period of time (half hour to 4 hours or so) sometimes it just won't go. Turn the key on, everything works, radio comes on, dash lights come on, everything works. Turn the key and it'll crank all day long. But here's the quirky part: once you crank it, if you wait 15 minutes, and try again, it'll start up just fine like nothing was ever wrong. I think i've got this pinpointed to the tranny range selector (scan tool reads the gears horribly wrong, and my sister said once it started up after she put it in neutral and rolled it out the driveway), but i haven't been able to get it to refuse to start so i could test this theory
Second, the power door locks just quit working. Both sides and the remote, none of them do anything. But the trunk remote button works still. I figured fuse, so i took my test light and went over all of them and found nothing out of the ordinary :( the diagram on the fuse box door has disappeared though...could someone take a picture of theirs and post it so i can see what fuse is what?
Those are the biggest things right now - all the rest are insignificant quirks :p like i say, my sister loves her car. It's sooo comfortable, and it has balls. It just takes some getting used to, considering she stepped up from a 94 Tracer wagon 4cyl auto which ate head gaskets 3 times a year, and cracked three heads within two years. Also needed tuneups once a month or it would get 8mpg
horrible car. And it only had 50k miles on it, maintained perfectly.My other concern is longevity of parts. The car has 175k miles on it. We bought it from a dealer; an older couple had bought it new in 1995 and got rid of it to get something newer last year. Seems well maintained..no pops or rattles or squeals. When it isn't being its clever self, it starts up first try every time. Doesn't burn any noticeable oil, and has only needed the intake redone, and a valve cover gasket. How much life to these transmissions usually get? We own an 03 Grand Prix with the same motor with 150k on it, tranny is strong. How long do they typically last? And are they expensive/difficult to replace? Are there any other parts that you'd expect are on their way?
Thanks guys!
, checking the battery cables and ground connections should always be the first thing checked on these cars!
