Hey everyone!, were new to the forum here, and have a couple of questions regarding our pending 1989 RS 305CI V8:

1) There is a really irritating squeak coming from the B-pillar area, has anyone else had this happen, or know how to fix it?
2) How much would you think a repaint would cost?
3) The car pulls slightly to the left when braking, what could this be?
4) Can you fix the gauges from jumping around?
5) Is there any advice you have for us?
6) As normal with older cars, which annoys me, is the amount of steering play, can this be adjusted or fixed?
7) anyone have any suggestions for an exhaust system? the one in it now is just too quiet for my taste, and please no raspy sounding exhaust, more of a deep, classy rumble, and with a nice roar at higher RPMS

Thank sooooo much for any help!, it'll be my brothers and my car, (he's 16, im 15) i'm great with cars, but any help would be great!, thanks a lot!!!!

 

1. It's an old car. Squeaks and rattles happen. If you're really irritated by it, you can track it down and perhaps some WD-40 would help, but just like when you get old, things are gonna make noises they didn't used to.

2. Depends where you go, and how good of a job you want to get. Shop around your area and get different quotes, and use google and such to find out opinions on quality of work at the places you go. I would be wary of anything costing less than $2000, and I would expect at least $4000 for a very good job of it, but then, I've never repainted a car so I don't know how accurate those would be.

3. Brakes? :v Check the calipers, the pads, the rotors, see what sort of condition they're in, if they need to be replaced and such, make sure to replace both left and right brakes at the same time, front or rear.

4. I'll let someone else answer this. I'd like to know myself, 'cause my tach does exactly that when I get on it.

5. Offhand, the biggest thing I can think of is coming up and down ramps, into and out of parking lots and such. If you're not careful, you'll scrape the nose over and over again. My tactic is to pull up beside the ramp going up, halfway, and turn really sharply. Going down takes a bit more practice, but again the idea is to get at least one wheel off the ramp first, before the nose gets too close to the ground. Master this before you paint the car, or you will regret it.

6. Of course, have the wheels aligned and balanced, and that will help, for starters. If it's still too much for comfort, there are other things you can do as well. Someone else would know more than me there.

7. I personally love the stock exhaust and want to tell you to keep it exactly as it is, no changes. But, check around on Youtube, watch a few videos, see what you like. Best way to know is to hear it for yourself, right?

 

Saint Ebony, ya, i guess that the rattles could be normal, but the guy that has owned it since new, says its been doing it for the past 15 years, and he's never found the source. Thanks for the advice on the speed bumps and such, i'll be sure to remember that. As for the gauges, the tach works fine, its the speedo that bugs me, i'm a pretty big gear head, so those little things bother me. ya, i'll see what i can do about the annoying steering play, the front tires are pretty bald and when we get new tire and such, i'll see what we can do. And the exhaust isn't stock, the owner had a new exhaust put in, but neglected to tell his mechanic he didn't want it that quiet, i planned on looking at youtube, i just want to know if anyone has any preferences, and thanks for replying!!!!

 

3) Most of the time, pulling during braking is a sign of a brake calipur binding or not releasing. The only time thats not the case is when there is play in the steering. (6) The 3rd gens should have very tight steering, if you have play you could have a bad ball joint or tie rod. You could have issues with the steering box or its mount.

4) is most likely a dash ground wire.

7)Flow master cat back system has a nice sound with the 305.

The play in the steering and the brake issue should be looked at by a pro. If the car has not been well maintained it could need a lot of work in the suspention/brakes areas.

 

4. Sometimes just greasing the needle and cleaning it will prevent it from jumping around so much. Usually it's just because it's old and worn. Is the needle just bobbing a little or are they actually moving significant amounts that make them unreadable at times?

6. If there is a lot of steering play you might want to check the suspension and see if it needs to be replaced.

7. I had a Flowmaster on my 305 for a little while until I upgraded to the 350. Great low end rumble. If you step on it the engine roars and I think it just sounds great overall. I'm always receiving compliments on it. I have the 3" Flowmaster Exhaust catback system with an 80 Series muffler and Magnaflow 3" High flow cat. Amazing set-up if you ask me. It doesn't sound hollow or tinny, just a deep, rich rumble.

Just some basics... When you get the car I would replace the brakes based on the pulling problem. A simple tune-up is always nice when buying an older car with higher mileage. And that's about all I can think of.

Good luck!

 

Hey, thanks for the help on the exhaust, i was already thinking about a Flowmaster 80 series. As for the jumpy needles, the speedo is just jittering up/down about 5mph, which is annoying because i want a nice constant reading. And ya, we have an idea that one of the brake pistons has just locked up and needs to be looked at. Thanks for the help!, i'll post something when we get all that taken care of, maybe to pics to go along!