Hello!

My father has past away and i am now the owner of a 1975 Camaro automatic.

I have to move the car.

I cant turn the ignition key, it is stuck,
can someone help me figure out why?




Best regards total noob:-)

 

Will it come out? Are you sure that's the right key,the rectangular key should be the ignition key and the oval the trunk.

 

You were absolutly right, i used the wrong key:-)!

I checked transmission and engine oil before starting it.

Is there something else that is important to check before drivning it?

Thank you!

 

How long has it been since it was driven much? If it's been sitting for a number of years the brakes should be gone through,brake fluid replaced and any rubber parts replaced.
How old are the tires? If they are old and been sitting for years they should be replaced regardless of how much tread they have.
Might not hurt to make sure the read end has fluid,if not changing it at least top it off to be sure it's not too low.
Gas can be an issue if it's been sitting,if it's got old fuel ( you can tell by the smell) I'd drain the tank and get fresh fuel in there and replace any filters including the one on the carb. Much of this depends on how long it's been since it was running.

 

It has been standing inside for 4-5 years but i think he has started it ewery now and then. Not sure how often.

There was almost no fuel in the tank so I filled in 20 liters before starting it yesterday.

The tires are old, maybe 10-15 years, but in good condition as far as the eye can see..

The car has to be moved from his garage during september. New storage is 33 kilometers away.

Not sure i will keep the car after the winter, most likely i Will try to sell it in spring.

There is also some white smoke coming out from One of the exhaust pipes after the car is turned off.

I understand that the car needs some love and caring in order to be in a good condition. But i realt need to move it soon.

Do you think i can drive it carefully these 33km whitout changing all the parts you mentioned, or should i use a towing truck??

Thank you for the last answer, i realy apriciate it!

 

Well if the brakes seem to be working and the tires are holding air it would probably be ok to drive it that far albeit carefully,I wouldn't want to get up to freeway speeds on tires that old or trust the brakes to not fail in a sudden panic type stop though. If you are going to park it again for winter I'd suggest putting some Stabil in the gas before you drive it over and park it so it gets through the whole system. I'd imagine the white smoke is probably condensation burning off from the exhaust system and will likely stop after she gets good and hot for a while. Hopefully that's all it is and not something like a head gasket going bad.

 

Started the car and got in the reverse gear so backed it out and let the engine get warm. Washed the car lightly cause it was so dusty all over.

Could not get the gearing into drive after that, had to push the car inside.

The oil stick for the gearbox showed 1-1.5cm oil at the bottom when cold but nothing at all when the car had been warm.

Do you think it was because of to Little gearingoil it would not Shift into drive?

 

Could be,the auto-trans fluid level needs to be checked with the car warm and running not cold like the engine oil.
It's best to put it in each forward gear for a few seconds before checking it too.
Your car has been sitting a long while,I'd put it in drive after putting it in each gear for a few and then let it idle in drive for a while like a minute or two and see if it doesn't start trying to go into gear then put it in park and check the fluid level.
Don't overfill it,just put in a pint at a time and repeat the process,hopefully she'll come back to life.
Nice looking car by the way!
https://www.yourmechanic.com/article...c-transmission

 

I followed your advise and after filling 2 liters of dexron gear oil it came alive and could shift in all gears.

Took it for a short drive.

The oilstick still only shows à Little oil at the bottom. Before i filled it was completley dry when warm. Need to Byy more oil and fill in some more i guess?

Is it normal that you need to fill this much oil in the gearinbox..?

 

I hope you meant auto trans fluid and not actually gear oil because they are very different products,at any rate it seems it was indeed pretty low and could probably use a little more but I'd start with maybe half a bottle after another little drive around to warm it up good and then re-check it (with the engine running) before adding any more.
Glad to hear she came alive,great news!