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New member from WV.......hello!
Posted: Sun Dec 19, 2010 3:59 am
by EnvyGreen
Greetings folks! I've been a long time owner of Bonnevilles - have owned four of them - '89 SE, '96 SE, and (2) '97 SE's. I have to say, the '89 was my favorite. Bought it with 75,000 miles on it, and sold it still running great(minus the locked-up a/c compressor, and drooping headliner), with 259,000 miles on it. The newer ones, don't handle as well through the turns - really twisty roads to and from work. Anyhow, just wanted to say "Hello".
Re: New member from WV.......hello!
Posted: Sun Dec 19, 2010 4:22 am
by viper8907
Welcome! Once you experience the 2000+ Bonneville you might change your mind about how they handle
Re: New member from WV.......hello!
Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2010 3:44 pm
by Jrs3800
The 89 SE might have had an F41 Suspension, a lot of the 89's did.... Made them a lot of fun to drive...
If the 96 and the 2 97's were FE1 then that would explain it...
The difference between the 92-99 FE2 and F41, and the 00-05 FE2 is almost a toss up in terms of handling... The 00+ sits a tad lower, but the 92-99 seems more nimble( FE2 - F41 ) where as the 00+ seems like it has a bit of a fat A$$...
I like my 03 SLE, But something just feels better about the 92-99 with F41....
Welcome to the forum fellow WV Mountaineer
Re: New member from WV.......hello!
Posted: Sun Jan 02, 2011 11:32 pm
by EnvyGreen
Thanks for the 'Welcome". If memory serves me right, the '89 was an FE3 car and it tracked like it was on rails...even at speed, very little roll in the twisties
The higher center of gravity of the 97's and '99, along with them all having the FE1 suspension, gave up alot in the handling dept.
Re: New member from WV.......hello!
Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 8:44 am
by Jrs3800
No FE3 used on the 89 Bonnevilles... It was FE1, FE2( Most SSE's ) or F41( Firm Ride & Handling )... We like the F41, it sure does make a Bonneville more fun to drive...lol
Re: New member from WV.......hello!
Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 4:37 pm
by EnvyGreen
F41 it was then. I had an '87 Grand Am SE V6 before the '89 Bonneville, so that is where my recollection of the FE3 must be from. That car was a blast to drive too. Wish I could have kept all the vehicles I've had.......except the Mercury Lynx - couldn't get out of it's own way.
Thanks for the clarification!
Re: New member from WV.......hello!
Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 10:24 pm
by Jrs3800
The 86-87 SE with a certain happy package and the 3.0 HO was a lot of fun to drive....LOL... That little Buick V6 was stout for what GM rated it for... I think they lied... The stock cam was .489
Re: New member from WV.......hello!
Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 10:35 pm
by sm in Georgia
WELCOME!!
Re: New member from WV.......hello!
Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 12:08 am
by EnvyGreen
sm in Georgia wrote:WELCOME!!
Thanks!
Jrs3800 wrote:The 86-87 SE with a certain happy package and the 3.0 HO was a lot of fun to drive....LOL... That little Buick V6 was stout for what GM rated it for... I think they lied... The stock cam was .489
Buick new their stuff with the V6's from the late 80's on. The earlier stuff......not so much. The 229 and 231's. from which the 3.8, then 3800's were derived, were not well designed.
I was not aware they were pushing that kind of lift on the cams. Torquey engines for sure, and a blast to drive.
Re: New member from WV.......hello!
Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 8:31 am
by Jrs3800
Funny thing is that the little 3.0 shared the same Bore as the big brother 3.8... But the 3.0 had a tight winding 2.66" stroke, 9.0:1 compression a Bumpy little cam( ever notice they never could idle just right )...
And the funny part is that the 3.0 was also used to move the 86-87 Olds and Buick H Bodies as well... Little 3.0 moving a full size car and doing it with a 4 Speed Auto...
GM said 125 Hp and 150 Ft Lbs... Somehow I have a really hard time believing that...lol
Buddy used to smoke the 205 55 16 tires he had on it on command... Freaky little car...