Our GS was dropped off this afternoon, came from CA to OK on a hauler. It was discussed on this forum so there's a thread on it about it, when it was for sale on eBay, so I won the auction.The condition was about as described and expected. I don't know that I got a great deal, but I'm comfortable with what I paid, and I like it. My wife really, really likes these cars, memories from years ago. I however, have not had a Buick in my driveway before so this will be a bit different. Once off the hauler, it was pretty rough starting, lots of coughing, stalling and dying. Maybe some crap in the bottom of the tank got sloshed around in the gas? She finally stayed running but sounded like there might be a miss. Per the PO (he had it about a week) the engine was freshened or rebuilt and has very few miles on it. I'm not exactly sure what was done to it. Pretty much no brakes, knew they needed work, but the rear reservoir of the MC was empty and the passenger rear tire was pretty wet on the inside from the fluid leaking. The rear lights were on and stayed on regardless, not sure what that is about, whether tail lights or brake lights. Drove it about a quarter mile to the house and backed her into the driveway. So I've got some things to go over and get fixed. - Fix the brakes. Drums all the way around on 14" wheels. Appears at least one wheel cylinder needs replaced but I'll know what's going on once I get all the wheels off. - Chase down the electrical hiccup, rear lights staying on and a turn signal not working. - Find out if I actually have a miss when it's running. Seemed to idle rough. - I've got shocks to install on the front and need to get the exhaust squared away. PO had bought the shocks and an X-pipe. He also cut off the tail pipes right at the glasspacks at the axle. Something about chrome tips I think. Any input/suggestions are appreciated. I've got some but not a lot of experience wrenching on cars. My biggest concern is the engine and the wire chasing - if it's much of a problem at all. Thanks.
Congratulations on your purchase. The 67 is a pretty simple car so fixing it is well within your grasp. There are several 67 owners on here and all are willing to share their experience with you. My recommendation is safe first, reliable second. Look over the entire brake system and let us know what you find, asking any questions you need to. There's not likely anything that at least one other person hasn't seen once or twice. Good luck!
Welcome to V8Buick and welcome to the 67 GS400 club! I am happy to share what I have learned thus far. So far, with lots help from the guys here, YouTube, and trial and error, I have successfully tackled most every aspect of my restoration.
Rare color and I really like it. I have 4 0- 67 GS 400's and I have found you may need the 4 barrel carb rebuilt and there are several folks on this web site who do that. Might also need points and plugs and they are not that expensive if you want to do it yourself or find a local mechcanic that understands the older engines and does not need a computer to diagnose a probabl. Good Luck and welcome to the Forum
Congratulations on the purchase of your GS400 and welcome to the '67 owners club. Please keep us posted on your progress and don't hesitate to ask questions. The VIN for your car is only 29 units apart from my '67 GS400. It's likely that our cars went down the assembly line less than an hour apart and probably crossed paths within the Kansas City assembly plant.
the rear lights being stuck on is probably the brake light switch out of adjustment. that's an easy fix. nice looking car. i like the color
Welcome to V8 Buick and the wonderful world of ‘67s. If memory serves this car had sat for some time. That plays hell on hydraulics. You will be better off if you just plan to replace the master cylinder, all wheel cylinders and brake hoses with new. That way you are starting with a clean system. Good luck and don’t hesitate to ask questions.
I would imagine several things to check out. As far as the brakes, that's the first big decision, keep drums or convert to disc. My wheel size may dictate some of that, or find a kit that will work, as mentioned above. I can get the rears squared away quicker, they're staying drum regardless. Thanks for all the inputs.
Well I have finally been able to work on the GS a little bit. I don't have garage space and the weather has not been cooperating much for working in the driveway. I rebuilt the rear brakes, new wheel cylinders, shoes, springs and drums. There was at least one broken spring on both sides as well as leaking fluid. I also pulled the fluid out of the MC front reservoir, it was kind of chocolatey. Bled the rears and fronts but still not quite where I think they need to be, so it'll be another go around at some point. Other than bleeding, I'm holding off on the fronts for now. If I get it road worthy I'll get them apart and look them over but for now, I need to get it to the tag agency, about 2 miles away. I started the car up again, rough start and also died several times. Finally got the car to idle but then it would die when dropped into gear. I’ve got a few things I’d like some input on. I found a coolant leak, up on top, right next to the distributor. The first coolant leak pic is for reference, the second one has arrows that point to where the coolant is seeping from and the circle is where it pools. Other than removing parts and correcting the problem, any suggestions on a temp fix of any kind? Once I get the car to idle and then not die when I put in gear, it chirps the tires every time I drop it into D or R. What would be the issue, just an adjustment? I would imagine a carb kit/adjustment at some point, maybe a fuel filter as well. I’ve got a few more questions but those are my showstoppers right now, not sure when I’ll get to any advice, the weather is dictating the effort If there's a better forum to put this kind of stuff into, feel free to let me know. Thanks.
I'd try to tighten the bolts holding the timing cover to the engine first. those are the ones with the 1/2 heads. it sounds like the choke isn't working properly or the carb tune is way off. i wouldn't try to evaluate the engine until you have it up to full operating temperature. that takes forever idling in the driveway. especially on a cold day. take it around the block a few times and see if it starts to behave.
If it's chirping the tires, your idle might be too high. Also check your Trans fluid. Btw nice buy. Almost bid on that one. Devin
Welcome to V8,As to the leakage by the timing cover,do not tighten the bolts.What you should do is take them out,clean off any old silicone that's there and put fresh silicone on them and the tighten them.This will most likely stop the leaking.Bruno.
From the looks of my QJet, I think a big part of the problem is the choke and the linkage. From what I ciphered from the numbers, 7044214, I have a 1974 Chevy auto carb with a mfg date of 11 Dec 73 (3453). For full disclosure here, I've never worked on a carb, any carb, for either adjustment or rebuild. I have a book by Cliff Ruggles about the QJet I'm trying to get info out of, it'll just take some time. Once I got some more info here and a few other places, I went out to look it over (cold engine). It looks like I have a divorced choke setup and it also looks like someone rebuilt the carb a little over a year ago. When I pulled off the air cleaner, the primary flap was open, which it should have been but stayed that way even after I moved the throttle linkage. My understanding is the primaries should close at this point, correct? The choke linkage was not connected to anything so there wasn’t anything attached to move the flaps open or closed, they just stayed open. I connected the linkage, temporarily anyway as I don’t have any kind of clip handy. This will now move the primary flaps (correct word?) somewhat closed – see the pic. Right now, this is as far closed as they’ll go. They eventually worked their way to almost fully open as the car warmed up. After shutting off the car and letting it get cold, the primaries were back to the closed position. The car started better and idled better, although maybe too high and rich, lots of fuel smell. I’d like to know what the piece is I have circled in one of my pics, it looks like it’s tied into the choke. I didn’t try putting it into gear yet, wanted to make sure the carb was at least hooked up like it should be. That’s where I am right now, a little at a time I guess. Thanks for all the inputs so far, carb, car and otherwise.
I believe that is your fast idle step for cold starts. I'm not completely certain but maybe one of the others can help.
Well it's been a fairly busy 3 months or so. I've been working other projects and haven't had time to get to the GS. I did get the car tagged but the brakes are still an issue, I need to get the fronts tore down and looked at and the carb still needs attention. And the coolant leak....... I would like some input/opinion on wheel size. 14" or 15"? I'm not worried about originality or an all stock car, at least not with tires and wheels. I have 14" rally wheels and have a set of new tires to go on the car (it needs tires, new ones are in the trunk). The car has drums and I want disc brakes on the front but converting to disc with a 14" wheel has a limited selection of conversion kits from what I've been able to research. 15" wheels provide a few more options. I'm in the market for a kit, I kind of just went through a piece meal swap on a truck and would prefer not to patch together parts from different years that would work/fit. Too many unknowns for me. Right now, it would be a bit cheaper to get the drums working good and mount the 14" tires but if I'm going with a disc swap, it seems like that may be a wasted step, unless I'm keeping the 14" wheels... Thoughts? Thanks.
It all depends on which 14" wheels you have. If they're the original '67 wheels, they'll not work with discs. 14's from later years had a different offset and will work with disc brakes. This chart may help you determine which wheels you have. Official Guide to Rally Wheels Chart................http://www.v8buick.com/index.php?threads/official-guide-to-rally-wheels-chart.196455/
Honestly, I'd forego 15's and go straight to 16"-18" retro style wheels. I'll take a lot of flack from other members here for this, but hear me out. There are few decent tire choices for 14", so keep the original wheels with whatever you find, just for originality, car shows, etc. If you're going to get another set of wheels, I strongly suggest larger than 15" due to a lack of good performance compound tires in 15", other than race compounds i.e drag radials, slicks, or road race tires (none of which I can find in wider than 225...). When I swap out my 15" ralleys with BFG Radial TA's (245 front, 265 rear) for my 18" Torque Thrust wheels and (relatively) cheap Sumitomo HTRZ (235 front 255 rear) tires, the difference in handling, braking, and traction is night & day. The old 15" tires, although slightly wider, just cannot match the newer 18" ones, in any type of driving condition. To me, it's a safety issue. I want the best braking, handling, and traction I can get with my old Buick, and a modern wheel & tire combination simply cannot be matched with 14 or 15 inch street tires. To try to hook, panic stop, and turn with OE size wheels and old technology tires, which is what we get courtesy of tire manufacturers these days in 14 & 15" sizes, is truly terrifying to me with a relatively high horsepower car. Even with a less powerful car, the benefits outweigh the liabilities with larger wheel sizes. You probably want to upgrade to front disk brakes for the same reason, the old drum brakes just aren't cutting it with your comfort level, based on what kinds of cars we are used to driving these days.
