need as much help as possible!

[jacobc]

i just bought a 85 t-type its really rough but i fell in love with it. ive never owned a turbo buick and a completely clueless about them so i have a couple questions thanks ahead. can you swap out a 84-85 motor for the 86-87 setup? what would i need to do the swap a little easier? as of right now the car smokes off and on like i said before its really rough the previous owner cut wires and tried to make it a homemade dragster and really tore up the car. any help is very appreciated. thank you

 

[RIFF RAFF]

Yes

Short anwser .. 86-87 . Youll need a donor or alot of money . And thats if you got skills .. & tools. Welcome and happy hunting ..

 

[jacobc]

Thanks for the info. Any suggestions on just working with what I have? I know autozone can order a new block or is that the carb version?

 

[Casey Jensen]

How bad is it tore up? If you can get a different harness from a junkyard, drive it and see what it does. If it still smokes and uses oil and you are handy with wrences, rebuild yourself. Chances of finding a 86,87 donor car with complete harness and engine in good shape will either be very expensive or be like finding a needle in a haystack. The 86,87 engines are much quicker, but please keep the hot air cars alive as well. Good luck.

 

[jacobc]

Its pretty bad they used a clothes dryer vent as a cold air intake inside is ripped out cut wires and plugs hanging everywhere. I am willing to buy all new motor and parts as needed and keep the stock motor for another t type I bought but go with more an all out race setup

 

[StaticErosion]

If you have multiple turbo buicks, I'd recommend you get a scantool. There are some inexpensive options these days, but I don't know the names of them off the top of my head.

That will at least tell you what your sensors are seeing, and if they're all reporting with your modified harness.

 

[jacobc]

I will look into that thanks. The other t type is just a shell no motor trans or rear end

 

[b4black]

Burning oil could be as simple as a bad seal in the turbo. Does it smoke all the time, or is it worse after coming to a stop and then starting again?

 

[Casey Jensen]

Does your check engine light come on with key on? If not, I hope you are good at figuring out puzzles. If it does you have some hope. If it does get a scan tool or code reader and that might help.

 

[jacobc]

It has its moods some days its hard to start smokes and runs terrible. The next day it runs like a champ. Im really new to these cars so any help I can get is appreciated

 

[jacobc]

No check engine light or the bulb is burnt out?

 

[ngianop]

Get some type of scan tool (scanmaster, turbolink, etc.) or at least something where you can see trouble codes or sensor values. (a single wire as a jumper in the diagnostic link connector is one crude way of reading trouble codes) From there it's basic trouble-shooting. Check all the basics like filters, plugs and wires, vacuum lines, etc. After that, move on to sensors like the MAF, TPS, etc. Do searches on this site and gnttype.org for 'spring cleaning' info and other trouble-shooting help. Document your car's symptoms and come here with specifics. Someone will be able to help you. Since your car is basically an unknown quantity, perform a compression test and make sure the internals are OK. Let us know how it goes and good luck.

 

[RIFF RAFF]

Sounds like

it has its moods some days its hard to start smokes and runs terrible. The next day it runs like a champ. Im really new to these cars so any help i can get is appreciated

its brand new .. These cars have been doing that since the 80s

 

[RIFF RAFF]

Looks like the way gm

no check engine light or the bulb is burnt out?

fixed them by unpluging the light . They couldnt get it to shut off so the disarmed it . Sounds like a dealer fix .