Bought an Oldie Today April 19, 2010, 02:56:16 am Yahoo Message Number: 111992Well after quite a few years of following this group, I became part owner of a 1985 22' Multi today. My In-laws have been wanting to join us on our camping trips and they are on a limited income so the wife and I kicked in a few $$$ to get them into it. I will be doing most of the work and will use it for all day sporting events for our kids and maybe local baseball games, maybe even a weekend trip just to see how the motor home life works since we have a 5th wheel. The previous owner really did not use it in the 2 years he had it and was not sure what all worked. The interior is in actually in pretty good shape and the outside was painted last year but unfortunately all Lazy Daze markings are gone. I want to add them back down the road. It needs a new fitting on the cold side on the back side of the shower valve and the swamp cooler and dash air don't work but the overhead A/C works. All other appliances seem to work fine. I plan to change all belts, hoses, vacuum lines, and have the radiator rodded out. I want to rebuild the carb as well since it has been sitting for a while and surged a little on the way home today. It was already tuned up and has new tires. The roof is not all that bad but I will redo all seems/seals and will remove all windows and put in new butyl seals. It also needs rubber on the fixed panes if it is available. Anyway, thanks for all the interesting topics over the years, I have learned enough to help me on what to look out for during the purchase.Ramon aka MrFixit[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #1 – April 19, 2010, 05:38:18 pm Yahoo Message Number: 111999HOORAY! Ramon, that sounds terrific and given your nickname, I'm sure you'll have things
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #2 – April 19, 2010, 09:15:54 pm Yahoo Message Number: 112000Good luck! You sound like you're going to tackle your project with gusto. Just so you know, the mothership has the LD "coat of arms" to reapply to your RV. They also have all the striping too.Happy trails,Jules, Sue, Leo, and Maxie too
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #3 – April 20, 2010, 01:31:06 am Yahoo Message Number: 112006Thanks everyone, I am going to try and document my repairs for the photo section or where ever Andy sees fit. I'll check with the factory on certain items.. I kind of passed it yesterday on the way home since we went through Pomona on I-10.Ramon
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #4 – April 20, 2010, 01:35:22 pm Yahoo Message Number: 112017Check, you might find it more cost effective to put
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #5 – April 21, 2010, 02:11:50 am Yahoo Message Number: 112033Hi Ed, Thanks for the words of wisdom. I have a friend that owns a radiator shop. I'll see what he want to do when I get it to him. I agree new is better but some of the new radiators I have purchased in the past have not lasted as long as the originals. I have rebuilt a few carbs in my day, not the quadrajet but others. I said surge a little but it was flat out cutting out at half throttle for about 10 miles of my 70 mile trip. The pedal kept sticking too. We went about 15 miles, stopped for lunch and when I got back on the freeway, I punched it to see what it had and it coughed spit and then it would not go over 45, then 35 mph. I had to continuously pump the pedal to keep it going at that speed. Once I exited the freeway, I expected it to stall when I came to the light. It kept running. It ran OK on the street and after a few minutes of stop and go, it seem to get to 50 easily so I got back on the freeway and no more problems the rest of the way home but I babied the throttle. Took the doghouse off when I got home, Broken carb spring, vacuum line off on the secondaries, and a dried up fig lodged in the linkage for the secondary. have not tried it since and I did put Lucas fuel cleaner in the tank before the ride home. Needless to say, I was happy to get it home without a tow. It had about a 100 miles put on it in the last 2 years.Please explain the exhaust manifold.. cracks? The thing sounds like it is going to low up at 60-65 mph because of the gearing. I am used to diesels where I cruise at 1700. It's definitely hitting 3rd gear but it sounds like it is turning too fast. I assume this is just how motorhomes are with 3 speeds and 4.XX, 5.XX rear ends? I need to call the factory about the rubber seals on the fixed portions of the windows unless you have some experience with it.Thanks Ramon
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #6 – April 21, 2010, 01:02:59 pm Yahoo Message Number: 112041I used a new radiator from a GM Delco parts supply house, maybe it's better quality than some off brands? Make sure it is the thick one for the heaviest G30 model. The exhaust manifolds would crack near the engine block, attributed to very hot conditions, maybe long uphills in the summer heat? You would hear a puft puft noise, especially at idle. Apparently a common motorhome problem, also occurs with the older Ford's too from what I read.Fuel filter or fuel pump may need some attention. The motor gets very noisy at expressway speed when the radiator fan clutch engages. If your fan clutch is locked up, it will make a racket and waste an immense amount of engine power. 65 mph was a happy max speed on the level, 75 downhill was the fastest I ever saw in 18 years, uphill, well, you were Never in the passing lane. If the fan clutch engaged going uphill, you lost 5 to 10 mph just like that.Ed
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #7 – April 21, 2010, 01:55:37 pm Yahoo Message Number: 112042"I want to rebuild the carb as well since it has been sitting for a while and surged a little on the way home today."Ramon We owned and 1983 LD for years. Here are a few things you might want to know and check. The Q-Jet carb suffers from a few ailments. The plastic floats will get saturated and sink. Have them replaced with brass floats. Float bowl leaks are very common. You know you have this problem when you need to crank the engine for a long time before it starts. There were kits and epoxy fixes available in the past. Adding a supplemental electric fuel pump can help by priming the float bowl and can be used when vapor lock occurs. Carb rebuild kits for these carbs are becoming very scarce. If you find a kit, get two. Q-Jets are one of the more difficult carbs to properly rebuild and set up. Unless you have experience working on this style of carb, save yourself a lot of frustration by finding an old pro and having it rebuilt. I finally gave up and replaced ours with an Edlebrock Q-Jet replacement. It was a great carb and had the ability to easily to be calibrated when purchased with a tuning kit. The distributor's center shaft can freeze up, eliminating the centrifugal advance mechanism. Usually a little oil will free it up but severe cases will require removal and disassembly of the distributor. Once freed, oil the center shaft occasionally.The front suspension's idler arm is very prone to wearing out. If your LD has the 63-amp alternator, you will want to upgrade it to a bigger unit for better on-the-road charging.Just about every front window, on older LDs, leaks or will leak. Make resealing this window a top priority. The older PEX pipe and fittings become brittle with age. Make sure to carry an assortment of repair fittings. Much of the coach's 12-volt electrical had poor connection, especially in the high-amperage charging wires (isolator, battery terminals, converter, etc). I ended up rewiring much of the coach battery's charging system. Use a voltmeter and check all wires and connections for voltage drop.Have funLarry
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #8 – April 22, 2010, 02:53:23 am Yahoo Message Number: 112051Larry and Ed, Thanks for the excellent tips. There seems to be a few rebuild kits out there and I have found some threads where they say how troublesome the carb can be. Your input on floats and such are greatly appreciated. By nature, I try to fix whatever I can. Part of this rebuild is to teach my father-in-law and my son. If we fail on the rebuild, I will be the first to say so here. No doubt a new carb is the way to go but we also want to try and do this on somewhat of a budget. I will research it a little more before I make my final decision. First priority is resealing all the windows and roof. There is some bunk damage that we will repair later. Also some electrolysis in line with the cabover marker lights.. thank God no where else on the coach. I already talked to the factory (Todd?) and some panels are available. Receipts supplied with the coach say the idler arm was replaced but I will check the entire suspension as it did wander a little on the freeway. I'll check out the alternator and the Delco Tip on the radiator has been noted. As for the pex fittings, you are right. The pump kept cycling so I knew I had a leak. Broken fitting at the cold shower inlet. The hot had already been replaced I have experience with the carter auxiliary fuel pump. My buddy put one on his old southwind and it was the definitely a cure for the vapor lock when climbing the hills. The 1/2" line from tank/pump to carb, routed away from the exhaust helped too. I plan on writing down my repairs along with photos, kind of a "how to" that others can learn from in the future if they choose to go the old school route. Everyone here has been really supportive and I really appreciate it. This is what makes this group and vehicle amazing. Ramon 1 Likes
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #9 – May 04, 2010, 06:27:21 pm Yahoo Message Number: 112352As a follow up to the quadrajet, after crawling around over the weekend, I discovered that the MH already has a pusher pump on it at the tank with an inline filter and a frame mount regulator under the passenger. A wire hanging down under the dash once hooked up now operates the pump. I decided to take the carb out last night and here it what I found. Keep in mind I know the proper way to remove the fuel line when it has a filter inline with it at the carb. Check out smack dab in the middle of the photo. http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/oIIeK-jTmisAcJe3MXmJyXUZ3el1tLb2VeQpNV_gLJM?feat=directlinkMore photos here. http://picasaweb.google.com/mrfixit454/Pollack198522ftMultiplan?authkey=Gv1sRgCNDB4qituenZygE&feat=directlinkOrdered a rebuild kit today. Located a brass float too.Ramon
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #10 – May 04, 2010, 06:38:17 pm Yahoo Message Number: 112353Quote "As a follow up to the quadrajet, after crawling around over the weekend, I discovered that the MH already has a pusher pump on it at the tank with an inline filter and a frame mount regulator under the passenger. A wire hanging down under the dash once hooked up now operates the pump. I decided to take the carb out last night and here it what I found. Keep in mind I know the proper way to remove the fuel line when it has a filter inline with it at the carb. Check out smack dab in the middle of the photo. http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/oIIeK-jTmisAcJe3MXmJyXUZ3el1tLb2VeQpNV_gLJM?feat=directlinkMore photos here. http://picasaweb.google.com/mrfixit454/Pollack198522ftMultiplan?authkey=Gv1sRgCNDB4qituenZygE&feat=directlinkOrdered a rebuild kit today. Located a brass float too."Ramon Ramon, that engine looks like it's been rode hard and put away wet.Chris
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #11 – May 04, 2010, 09:11:22 pm Yahoo Message Number: 112357"Check out smack dab in the middle of the photo."Ramon Looks like someone got a little heavy handed while tightening the fuel inlet line. Chop off the end of the metal fuel line and use one of these, http://tinyurl.com/2d282lw> a piece of 3/8" fuel line and a couple of hose clamps to replace the damaged line. Some Q-Jets have a small filter inside the inlet fitting. Make sure to change it if yours has one. I used 1983 LD's electric pusher pump only as a backup or when vapor locking became a problem. The mechanical pump is more than adequate for normal usageAh, old memories...have fun!Larry
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #12 – May 05, 2010, 12:37:21 am Yahoo Message Number: 112366Thanks guys, you are the 3rd person now to recommend that fitting/fix. My respected engineer/mechanic friend at work, my parts place guy (one I have dealt with for 20+ years) and you guys. I really wanted to change out the line for new but I may try this first. I thought about putting the pusher pump on a switch for the hills like you say. I bet previous owner(s) had problems and added the pump expecting it to fix it (the kink problem). I assume the pusher is a pass through, I am going to check pressure with and without the pusher and I may just change the mechanical for the heck of it. My parts guy said to dump the internal filter in the carb since I have a much larger filter near the tank. Apparently he has had issues with this little filter clogging before but I am not sure I want to lose the check-valve in it quite yet. Plus if I have a filter at the tank, the carb one might not get so clogged with debris. Yes it looks a little weathered but I hope the next pix you see will show it in much better shape. Thanks for the tips once again. Ramon
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #13 – May 07, 2010, 08:58:58 am Yahoo Message Number: 112408Quote My parts guy said to dump the internal filter in the carb since I have a much larger filter near the tank. Apparently he has had issues with this little filter clogging before but I am not sure I want to lose the check-valve in it quite yet. Plus if I have a filter at the tank, the carb one might not get so clogged with debris. Ramon I would say your parts guy gave you bad advice, if it gets clogged then it is catching what would go to your jets and, I would rather have the clogged filter. In fact I had one so clogged on a 1983 GMG Jimmy that it barely limped into Indianapolis on a trip from Missouri to Pa. I was lucky and found a place that replaced it for me. I didn't know about it at the time. Since then I would carry a spare as they are quite cheap. As a side note I just bought a 1984 Champion Transtar and am considering adding Fuel injection as it's pretty simple to do and I have really came to enjoy the non hassle of Fuel Injected engines. I have a 2003 R Vision Class A up for sale with 8000 miles on it if anyone is interested. Only a 25 footer..Garry[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #14 – May 24, 2010, 02:02:05 am Yahoo Message Number: 112835OK.. Thought I would bring you up to date with the 85 multiplan and the Quadrajet rebuild.First off we think we might have a name for the RV. A bunch of family and friends were over and one of our relatives said they would like to borrow it some weekend. When they were leaving I told them to take a good look inside "Casa Blanca" and everyone started laughing. The motorhome is pure white; stripes are all gone. I would like to put them back some day. So we are testing the waters with Casa Blanca.Rebuilding the carb was not too difficult but did take quite a bit of time because I wanted to clean it up plus the learning curve. If I had it do this again, I could do it much faster since I understand the inner workings now. The shop manual and internet were a must for this. I could have cleaned it up better as I did not want to put too much time into a carb I might have to replace. Larry.. why did you ultimately give up and replace yours? As you will see in the pix, 3 of the bowl vent tubes had fallen out into the carb. One of the primary metering rods was bent and there was plenty of crud in the bottom of the bowl. The float seemed OK but on the recommendations from this great group, I put in the brass one. Had to wait 2 weeks since it came from Canada.Upon assembly and before I installed the cover, I put fuel in the bowl and let is sit for several days to see if there were any leaks underneath. We found none and since we have the electric pump, we should be set. I adjusted the float per the directions and left the rest of the adjustments alone since they seemed to be OK per the carb directions. I cut off the twisted fuel line and installed a rubber section near the carb. I replaced 90% of the vacuum hoses which were all cracked or had tunred to a gummy goo. I checked the advance on the distributer which was OK, cleaned out the EGR and put a new gasket on it. Someone had put the EGR standoff plate in wrong, essentially blocking the flow off, perhaps intentional. I don't want any smog problems since we are in CA so trying to make it as stock as I can.Have only started this motorhome a few times but man, when I turned the key today after weeks of hard work, she fired right over. Held a good high idle on the choke and over all warmed up real nice. Before she was running real rich but today I quickly noticed the exhaust smell was different and a lot les of it. A quick test drive and I was really impressed. The power in now there, especially when I step on it. Don't think the secondaries were working correctly before. There is a tiny hesitation at take off that I have directions on how to trouble shoot. I have a few more lines to replace and some more engine compartment clean-up and then off to hoses belts and fluids and lube. Have a few rubber portions of the fuel lines to change out too.I want to thank everyone for the help here as your suggestions were greatly appreciated and put to good use. I'll try and keep the next update much shorter!Before Rebuild http://picasaweb.google.com/mrfixit454/CarbRebuldBeforeShots?authkey=Gv1\ sRgCOvSiobOhKzYLA&feat=directlinkAfter Rebuild http://picasaweb.google.com/mrfixit454/CarbRebuildAfter?authkey=Gv1sRgCL\ rz0cPhtdLVRg&feat=directlinkCasa Blanca http://picasaweb.google.com/mrfixit454/Pollack198522ftMultiplan?authkey=\ Gv1sRgCNDB4qituenZygE&feat=directlinkRamon[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #15 – May 24, 2010, 12:42:15 pm Yahoo Message Number: 112846"When they were leaving I told them to take a good look inside "Casa Blanca" and everyone started laughing. The motorhome is pure white; stripes are all gone."Ramon Any idea how long ago your LD was painted. We ran into an all white LD at Jalama Beach a few years ago. We called it the 'stealth LD'. Wonder if it is the same? Congratulations on the Q-Jet rebuild. If you can handle a Q-Jet, just about any other carb will be simple. Too bad the career of carburetor re-builder has gone the way of the buggy whip manufacturer . I had to replace the Q-Jet on our 1983 LD because it would not run right due to worn throttle bushings. The loose bushings allowed air to enter where it shouldn't be entering, changing the mixture. The replacement Edlebrock carburetor came with a calibrating kit that allowed tuning the carb so that is was spot on. It was also made to be easily worked on.Larry
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #16 – May 25, 2010, 05:18:32 am Yahoo Message Number: 112853Wow, Casa Blanca looks just like The Beagle inside (my 1985 multiplan)Welcome and I'll be following your adventures....!Francine
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #17 – May 25, 2010, 06:20:57 pm Yahoo Message Number: 112860I have a "Stealth LD" as well. Previous owner painted it white on top with a coppery/goldish two tone below the belt line. I think it looks great but I kind of wish I had the striping - saw 2 LD's heading north on I5 on my way down to Laguna Seca last weekend but I doubt they noticed me going the other way...
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #18 – May 26, 2010, 02:20:19 am Yahoo Message Number: 112878QuoteAny idea how long ago your LD was painted. We ran into an all white LD at Jalama Beach a few years ago. We called it the 'stealth LD'. Wonder if it is the same? Larry, Thanks for the kudos.... The throttle shafts seemed ok by my engineering judgment I guess. I had a feeling that was why you changed yours out. Will take a short few runs in the area then we are taking it to Yosemite This July. There are a few guys on ebay that will rebuild a quadrajet and part of their rebuild is the bushing inserts as well as flow check. If I wanted to stay pure LD I could go that route. I remember changing 64 VW card years back to a new weber and I was amazed at how much smoother the car ran. Did you get the same experience going to the Edlebrock? Previous owner gave me a few receipts and there is a body shop one for $1200 back in November of 2007 right when he bought it. Said he took it out once and then it sat the rest of the time so it is possible maybe one in the same. In my previous post there is some pictures of it on my third link.
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #19 – May 26, 2010, 12:01:13 pm Yahoo Message Number: 112884In my experience, even though a throttle shaft might feel ok, that doesn't necessarily mean you don't have leakage. On turbocharged cars (this is where the bulk of my automotive tuning experience lies) this is an often neglected area which creates boost leaks under pressure, and will become a maddening vaccuum leak in the future. I think the Q-Jet is an oft maligned carburetor, and gets replaced prematurely because of a some OEM design flaws which can easily be overcome during a carb rebuild. For my money and effort, I would put fuel injection on it... (I guess I'm lucky and know how to do that kind of stuff - plus not full-timing in my LD makes it possible to do longer term projects) Realistically a TBI or TPI swap is pretty easy and cheap since lots of Hot Rodders just about give that stuff away when they're upgrading fuel systems! I love to BS about all manner of things performance related! More fun when relating it to our LD's - I was thinking about all manner of upgrades when I was chuggin up the Siskyous at 40mph last week. -Ken L05 350 power (read: under powered)Quote Any idea how long ago your LD was painted. We ran into an all white LD at Jalama Beach a few years ago. We called it the 'stealth LD'. Wonder if it is the same?Larry, Thanks for the kudos.... The throttle shafts seemed ok by my engineering judgment I guess. I had a feeling that was why you changed yours out. Will take a short few runs in the area then we are taking it to Yosemite This July. There are a few guys on ebay that will rebuild a quadrajet and part of their rebuild is the bushing inserts as well as flow check. If I wanted to stay pure LD I could go that route. I remember changing 64 VW card years back to a new weber and I was amazed at how much smoother the car ran. Did you get the same experience going to the Edlebrock? Previous owner gave me a few receipts and there is a body shop one for $1200 back in November of 2007 right when he bought it. Said he took it out once and then it sat the rest of the time so it is possible maybe one in the same. In my previous post there is some pictures of it on my third link.
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #20 – May 26, 2010, 12:36:42 pm Yahoo Message Number: 112886On Wed, 26 May 2010 15:59:56 -0000, "Ken" wrote:QuoteI love to BS about all manner of things performance related! More fun when relating it to our LD's - I was thinking about all manner of upgrades when I was chuggin up the Siskyous at 40mph last week OK, how's about how to replace the V10 with the engine for a Veyron? [1001hp] That should get you up the Siskyous in quick time. Along with the installation guide, please advise where I can get the several hundred thousand for the engine. Many thanks!Cheers, Don
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #21 – May 26, 2010, 01:09:39 pm Yahoo Message Number: 112889I guess if we're going to swap
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #22 – May 27, 2010, 12:36:56 am Yahoo Message Number: 112915Quote In my experience, even though a throttle shaft might feel ok, that doesn't necessarily mean you don't have leakage. I think the Q-Jet is an oft maligned carburetor, and gets replaced prematurely because of a some OEM design flaws which can easily be overcome during a carb rebuild. Ken, I could not agree more with you. Let me rephrase... there was not much if any movement that would indicate an excessively worn shaft. I have seen some pretty bad ones and the erratic idles they produce. If I do have a little leakage, it is not causing any problems at the moment and we don't plan on puting more than 3k miles a year on it. My goal was to rebuild what I had myself, see how it runs, if I had problems I would have it professionally done or just buy a new/replacement. I had fun rebuilding this one and learned a lot from it. There is a ton of literature on the web about the quadrajet plus I have an co-worker that swears by the Qjet. You find me a FI kit that is California smog legal and I will consider it.Ramon
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #23 – May 27, 2010, 01:37:58 am Yahoo Message Number: 112916QuoteFor my money and effort, I would put fuel injection on it... (I guess I'm lucky and know how to do that kind of stuff - plus not full-timing in my LD makes it possible to do longer term projects) Realistically a TBI or TPI swap is pretty easy and cheap since lots of Hot Rodders just about give that stuff away when they're upgrading fuel systems! In CA, there is no EFI replacement that is CARB-approved for the small-block Chevy. The only upgrade that will pass CARB is to install a complete system from a later-model Chevy van using EFI, and all emissions from the source year must be met. Substituting a 454cid block does open some aftermarket options. Whatever you do, it will be pricey and difficult - hardly worth it for the results.Steve
Re: Bought an Oldie Today Reply #24 – May 27, 2010, 02:48:38 am Yahoo Message Number: 112918I forget about the stupid CA visual inspections. So unless things have changed since I was growing up there, to be completely compliant, emissions equipment should match the motor - so according to their rules, swapping a complete TBI or TPI fuel injection setup onto a carbureted long block would be illegal (even though it would run cleaner and emit less pollutants)... So to actually be aligned to the stupid CA Bureau of Automotive Repairs rules, an entire engine swap would have to be performed - and then you get to jump through all the hoops of having your non-standard vehicle waivered or whatever you need to do.So glad all Washington requires is a sniffer test.
Topic: Bought an Oldie Today (Read 9 times)
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