I am a professional technician and have access to the factory GM site I can get things like wireing diagrams, diagnostic flow charts all that stuff. Just thought it might be able to help some people

 

Ok so i have a 96 3.8 V6 with 133k on it and its going down hill. I am wondering whether or not i should sell it and get something new or fix it up and keep it. Things i know that need done are
1. suspension- squeaks all the time and the shocks are pretty much non existent probably needs completely re done
2. Vacuum leak- everytime i accelerate you hear this loud whistling noise which we are not sure where it is coming from but think it might be the break booster
3. Exhaust rattle im pretty sure I can fix this myself but just throwing it in there
4. My antifreeze looks awful...its getting brown with chunks in it... need radiator flushed but is there a bigger problem
5. will need new window motors before too long which i could do myself but i know the motors are expensive
6. sometimes when accelerating i get a weird noise from the rear of the car not sure if its the rear end gear or whether its part of the exhaust rattle

Is there anyway you could give a rough estimate on how much these things would cost?

 

Most of the problems your having are no big deal

1 suspension- It's pretty easy to replace shocks so that's not a big deal I can't imagine a shop charging more then maybe 2 hours to do all 4 at most as for the noise it's impossible for me to know exactly what it is without seeing it but most shops will charge about 100 for a diag unless it's something obvious then it would be less

2 There is a very easy way to find a vacuum leak. Get a can of break clean and spray it where you think the leak is at with the engine running. If the RPM's go up then there is the leak. It's easy to replace a booster you should be able to do it yourself

3 Exhuast rattle. muffler shop can probably fix it for 50-100$

4 coolant. If your coolant is so bad there are chunks in it then getting it flushed can be risky. The way a flush works is you put in a can of cleaner and run the engine to operating temp to get t-stat open. The cleaner breaks down deposits and rust and what not but in a system with very old nasty coolant it can break off large chucks and clog things up. It COULD cuase more harm then good. When I do flushes on older cars I either don't use the cleaner or just do a drain and fill. For a flush at a shop it should cost 100-150$. A drain and fill you can do yourself.

5. Window motors. This is not hard but I believe they are rivited in so you will need to drill them out. I'll be doing mine soon I would suggest if your doing the motors you might as well do the regulators too since you'll already be in there

6 rear end. Impossible to know what the noise is without seeing the car but assuming the worst. Let's say the whole rear end is shot. The best bet there would be to get a new rear end from a junk yard or craigslist your self and have a shop put it in. You should be able to find a shop to do that for 300-400$

 

yes the motors and everything are riveted....already changed the driver side regulator about a year ago. but the window motors can definitely wait.

coolant.. yeah I am going to just drain it and put new in I think its just really old

exhaust rattle my dad says he knows what is causing it

Suspension- I'm going to get an estimate on all the suspension work from a couple of different shops this week

vacuum leak- so if there is a vacuum leak around the booster I will have to change the whole thing out? I know someone who could definitely do this for me if I can't figure it out

One more question it seems like every month or so i have to add a quart of oil and it seems like there is an EXTREMELY small leak around the pan
any ideas on this?

Thanks for all your help!

 

If the vacuum leak is inside the booster then yeah you will need to replace it but who knows it might just be a hose. The oil leak is probably just a oil pan gasket that's a easy fix although it could also be the main seals. If there is oil where the pan meets the block then it's just a pan gasket if the oil is only at the front or rear then it could be the main seals if it's the rear main then it's a pretty expensive fix

 

Hello,
I need diagrams of the headlamp assembly and inside door assembly for a 1975 camaro. my car is in mexico and i'm trying to get the garage to tell me what the car needs to be driven accross the border to San Diego. He mentioned the windows are loose inside the doors and that he needs the rings that hold the headlamps in place.
i haven't had any luck finding this stuff and are thinking f maybe just buying a whole car for parts but feel like it would be overkill. my car is 75 % done and i'm at the point where i know only i will take the care and time to finish this project once and for all. thanx in advance for your advise and help

 

I'll do my best to find you something in a little bit. The GM site does not go back that far but I might be able to find you something some where.

 

Ok I found it for you

 

thanx a million.

 

do you have acces to window guides , stops, etc. diagrams for the same car?1975 camaro. my cell is 619 779 6048. e mail is pepeatnp@msn.com. i could not find a way to see the headlamp diagram in a larger size, but it still solved my questions even at that size. thanx again for your help. also, where would you advise to seek parts such as the window stabilizing hardware?