The Chevy pick-up in Star Trek IV

[RobertB]

     All wheels/tires have been replaced on the truck, and that includes the spare.  However, it still does a front "shimmy" when I brake.  I took it to Hewitt Alignment for an inspection, and they say that the front brakes will have to be redone.  At the end of the month, I plan to take the truck into Pep Boys for that.
     Moisture has gotten into the gas tank.  How do I know?  Well, when I was running the truck low on fuel, that bad gas was being scraped off the bottom of the tank and made for rough idling and a smelly exhaust.  Fresh gasoline would just sit on top of the bad gas (water being heavier than gasoline).  I haven't decided whether I should try and keep running the truck over time, hoping the bad gas is all used up, or whether I should have the gas tank dropped and the bad gas drained out.  The truck will definitely need a new gas cap to prevent moisture from getting in.
     From LMCTruck.com, I order a couple of wheel caps, an owner's manual, a fender brace, and a glovebox screw.  $65!  That should arrive next week.  From Autozone, I ordered a pair of Gabriel Ultra rear shock absorbers, and those should come in on Saturday.

          Little by little,
          Robert Bernardo
          Fresno Commodore User Group - http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm
          Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network - http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan

[RobertB]

From LMCTruck.com, I order a couple of wheel caps, an owner's manual, a fender brace, and a glovebox screw.  $65!  That should arrive next week.  From Autozone, I ordered a pair of Gabriel Ultra rear shock absorbers...

Wheel caps and rear shock absorbers installed.  The caps were relatively easy, but installation of the shock absorbers was out of my league... too many rust-frozen nuts and bolts on the old mounts of the old shocks.  I brought it to the nearby tire shop where they doused the nuts/bolts with rust penetrant and got an impact wrench on them.  With the new rear shocks on, the truck doesn't have the forward-and-backward pitching anymore.  I'm so encouraged by the improved ride (and seemingly improved braking) that I will gather more points at Autozone so I can get a $20 discount for a pair of front shock absorbers.

          Little by little,
          Robert Bernardo
          April 27-28 Commodore Los Angeles Super Show - http://www.portcommodore.com/class
          June 8-9 Pacific Commodore Expo NW - http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex

[RobertB]

I'm so encouraged by the improved ride (and seemingly improved braking) that I will gather more points at Autozone so I can get a $20 discount for a pair of front shock absorbers.

I couldn't wait to gather points, so I went to Amazon.com, found the same shock absorbers (for a slightly cheaper price than the Autozone discounted ones), and ordered the shocks.  They should arrive by the 15th, and then I'll have them installed.

          Little by little,
          Robert Bernardo
          April 27-28 Commodore Los Angeles Super Show - http://www.portcommodore.com/class
          June 8-9 Pacific Commodore Expo NW - http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex

[RobertB]

     Until the broken fuel sending unit or gauge is replaced, it is a guesstimate of how much gas there is really in the truck.  Well, I always try to have $20 of gas in the tank.  The other weekend on a trip to the local dump, the truck ran out of gas!  How can that be?  Ah, somebody must have siphoned out the gas in the middle of the night.    So, my brother rescued me with a can of gas, and as soon as I got back, I put in another $10 worth.  I also put a locking gas cap on the filler pipe.  Thinking all was well, I parked the car and went back to Visalia.
     I returned to Stockton a few days ago and thought that I should run the truck and put in another $10.  Now the truck won't start!  It cranks, but it seems that no gas is getting to the carburetor.  The only reason I can think of is that when the truck ran dry, it sucked up all the crud at the bottom of the gas tank, and the crud clogged the fuel filter.  (Sigh)
     The weather is turning rainy now, and I can't work on the truck out in the open in the rain.  I'm leaving Stockton, and replacing the gas filter will have to wait until I return.

          Truly,
          Robert Bernardo
          April 27-28 Commodore Los Angeles Super Show - http://www.portcommodore.com/class
          June 8-9 Pacific Commodore Expo NW - http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex

[RobertB]

I took it to Hewitt Alignment for an inspection, and they say that the front brakes will have to be redone.  At the end of the month, I plan to take the truck into Pep Boys for that.

The brakes will have to wait.  I just spent several hundred dollars getting the truck to pass the smog check!  A month ago I brought it in, and it failed.  Hydrocarbons and nitrous oxides were too high, and the evaporative emissions system was leaking.  Advice from the smog test shop - replace the 40-year old rubber hoses on the evap. system and get a tune-up.  O.K., I removed the old spark plugs, and whoever put them in before me didn't do a good job.  The old plugs had a gap ranging from .035 to .043, with most of them around .035.  Factory spec should be .045.  I changed the spark plugs for Autolite Platinums, making sure they were at .045.  Then I brought the truck to Stockton AutoCare where they replaced the evap. emission hose at the gas tank and installed a new distributor cap, distributor rotor, and coil for me (I couldn't do that last part, because Chevy 350 V-8's have their distributor way in the back of the block.  A big pain, literally, to change!).  With the new parts, I brought the truck back to the test station, and it passed the test with flying colors!
     Whew!  Stockton AutoCare thought that catalytic converters would have to be installed to lower the emissions (the truck did not originally have them).  That would have been an extra $500!

          Truly,
          Robert Bernardo
          June 8-9 Pacific Commodore Expo NW - http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex
          August 10-11 Commodore Vegas Expo v15 - http://www.portcommodore.com/commvex

[RobertB]

I took it to Hewitt Alignment for an inspection, and they say that the front brakes will have to be redone.  At the end of the month, I plan to take the truck into Pep Boys for that.

Well, it took longer than the end of the month, but I finally had the front brakes rebuilt!  Back in 2015, I had the rear brakes done at Pep Boys and I thought they could repair the truck again.  Wrong!  When I brought the truck in and had it inspected, the service manager started making excuses, like parts were not in their catalog, they'd have to tie up a bay waiting days for parts, the parts they would get were not assured to fit and would have to be returned, thus using up more time.  In other words, he refused to work on the truck!
     So, I went to Stockton Autocare.  They had the truck ready in one day!!!  Both front calipers replaced (the original left one was frozen), new pads installed, rotors reground, and the left front brake hose replaced (the original was plugged).  Two hours of labor at $85 per hour.  $208 in parts.  What was difficult about that, Pep Boys?!
     Power brake booster still needs to be replaced; the original has power braking on the first brake press but loses power with an immediate, consecutive brake press.  (Vacuum has to build up.)  With flood insurance to pay in November and property tax to pay in December, I've delayed the $300 fix for that until January.

          Truly,
          Robert Bernardo
          Fresno Commodore User Group
          http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm

P.S. When the 1990 Crown Vic had its fuel pump fail just outside of Stockton, I had it towed into Pep Boys,  Again the service manager starting making excuses, saying that his store was just a training facility, that the mechanics wouldn't be able to diagnose, etc..  That did it.  I told him that I'm never coming to Pep Boys again, brought my car to Stockton Autocare, and had the fuel pump repaired in a day.

[RobertB]

     Just received a new dash panel to go around the instrumentation on the Chevy truck.  The old panel was cracked and dull.  The new one is wood-grain!  Hey, it was the same expensive price as the a replacement black one, and I thought a little more bling would be appropriate to the dull truck interior.  The new one gives a more upscale impression.
    The clear plastic that covers the instruments is still dull, but a new, more transparent plastic will be ordered in a few days.  (Right now, with the dull one, you can't even read the speedometer at night with the lights on.)

         Truly,
         Robert Bernardo
         June 8-9 Pacific Commodore Expo NW - http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex
         August 10-11 Commodore Vegas Expo v15 - http://www.portcommodore.com/commvex

[RobertB]

All wheels/tires have been replaced on the truck, and that includes the spare.

Sadness!  I was driving the Chevy at 10:30 p.m. just to warm up the engine and keep it up to snuff.  I was headed south on south El Dorado Street which is on the outskirts of Stockton.  The middle of nowhere!  I then heard a loud whoosh of air and felt the truck slowing down and start shaking.  Uh-oh, flat tire?!  I pulled over under the street light of one of the few houses on the street.  Too dark to see exactly but the right rear tire looked like a goner.  I was without my cell phone, and so, I made the 3-mile walk back to my parents' house, walking fast just in case any strangers/homeless people jumped out of the dark at me.  I made it back home with only one guy walking through the park near the house saying, "Do you have any matches? Cigarettes?" Still walking fast, I replied brusquely, "No matches. No cigarettes."
     The next day I drove over to the Chevy by using my mother's Buick.  There was a huge sidewall split on the right rear Sears tire.  And the tire hadn't even had 150 miles on it.  There was no warranty on the tire.  I had the truck towed back to my parents' house and removed the wheel that night, brought it over to WalMart the next day, and had them install a no-name Dexteros tire.  $127 but this time with a road hazard warranty.  I put that on the truck that night.
     The question is will the other Sears tire on the left rear fail, too?

          There's always something,
          Robert Bernardo
          Fresno Commodore User Group - http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm
          Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network - http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan

[RobertB]

     No repairs on the Chevy truck currently, because all monies are going to a rebuilt engine for the 1988 Mercury Colony Park station wagon!

          Truly,
          Robert Bernardo
          Fresno Commodore User Group - http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm
          Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network - http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan

[RobertB]

Power brake booster still needs to be replaced; the original has power braking on the first brake press but loses power with an immediate, consecutive brake press.

The brake booster was replaced a few months ago, and now when I step on the pedal hard, the truck locks it brakes... just the way it's supposed to. 
     Right now the truck is in Stockton Autocare for more work to get it ready for the freeway.  The fuel sending unit is being replaced so I can have a working gas gauge, right rear inner fender brace support is being tack-welded on (so the brace can be attached), u-joints being inspected and replaced if necessary, cigarette lighter socket (power outlet) being fixed, and mysterious banging sound under the cab (when I turn at slow speeds) being investigated.

          Truly,
          Robert Bernardo
          Fresno Commodore User Group
          http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm
          Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network
          http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan

[RobertB]

...u-joints being inspected and replaced if necessary...

The two in-line driveshafts were checked, and out of 3 universal joints, one was questionable, and the center carrier bearing between the driveshafts needed to be replaced.  So, to be safe, all u-joints and that bearing will be replaced.
     Last week I received a new, 4-row, shiny aluminum radiator from BrothersTrucks.com.  What a thing of beauty (in a machine sense)!  As soon as I can get some time, I'll dig under the hood, haul out the old, 3-row radiator, and install the new one along with a new thermostat.

          Truly,
          Robert Bernardo
          Fresno Commodore User Group
          http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm
          Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network
          http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan

[RobertB]

So, to be safe, all u-joints and that bearing will be replaced.

That was a big $770 for all the repairs in May.  Now a pause in the truck spending until late June. 

          Truly,
          Robert Bernardo
          Fresno Commodore User Group
          http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm
          Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network
          http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan

[RobertB]

...I'll dig under the hood, haul out the old, 3-row radiator, and install the new one along with a new thermostat.

I started small... that is, I started with installing the thermostat.  I thought it was going to be a quick job.  Wrong!  The thermostat housing has been bolted to the block for 41 years, and the bolts did not want to budge!  I finally got a 25-inch breaker bar and began with the left bolt.  After a lot of pushing, the bolt finally gave, and I got it out.  The right bolt was a different matter.  Attached to that bolt was a bracket with a housing that had vacuum and electrical lines going into it.  When I connected the breaker bar to that bolt and started turning, the bracket started turning, too.  So much so that the housing would make contact with the carburetor.  I heard cracking noises; those were coming from the plastic housing!  Not good!  In order to prevent the bracket/housing from moving, I had to wedge a crowbar between it and the cast iron intake manifold.  So, when I would turn counter-clockwise on the bolt, I had to also pull on the crowbar so that the bracket wouldn't move!   After several tries, the bolt started moving ever slowly.  Patience was the key.  Turn the bolt, pull the crowbar.  Repeat.  Thank goodness the breaker bar gave me the leverage.  Finally in the last threads of the bolt, I got a socket wrench onto it and got the rest of it removed relatively easy.
    I examined the bolt.  It was not a bolt but a stud!  The stud had gone through the bracket and had a nut attached.  I had been wrenching on a nut that wouldn't give.  I disassembled the nut from the stud, and the bracket/housing was free.
    The bracket/housing was damaged.  The plastic nipples for the vacuum hoses had sheared off cleanly.  Maybe I could reglue them together temporarily.  For that, I bought some silicone gasket maker (silicone caulking).  I cleaned off the area to be glued together (even after that, it was not perfectly clean), and I applied the silicone.  I held everything together with masking tape so that pressure was applied to the connection as the silicone dried.  It took 24 hours for the silicone to cure to full strength.
    In the meantime, I looked on-line to find a new unit, thinking that the temporary fix was just that... temporary.  But what was this unit called!  I looked under carburetion.  No.  I looked under pollution controls.  No.  I consulted smog control diagrams on Google.  I looked at top-of-the-engine photos on Google.  Finally, I spotted the unit!  It was called a TCS solenoid!  Throttle-controlled spark solenoid.  No regular automotive parts outlet carried it.  Howver, it was new and shiny on eBay.  I've ordered it.  $75!
    I've reassembled everything for the time being as I await the new TCS solenoid.  The new thermostat was inserted, the thermostat housing cleaned of the old gasket, new gasket mounted with gasket sealent, the housing mounted on top, left bolt torqued to 30 foot-pounds, right stud inserted and torqued to 30 foot-pounds, the old , silicone-glued TCS remounted along with a new nut and lock washer torqued to a few foot-pounds (so that it can be removed easily without the stud moving out with it), and vacuum hoses and electrical connection reattached to the TCS solenoid.
    I also got a new, upper radiator hose (the old one looked tatty at one end).  I refilled the cooling system.  Now it's off for a drive to test out the new thermostat!  

         That took a long time,
         Robert Bernardo
         Fresno Commodore User Group
         http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm
         Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network
         http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan

[RobertB]

...I received a new, 4-row, shiny aluminum radiator from BrothersTrucks.com.  What a thing of beauty (in a machine sense)!

Installing the new radiator was not easy.  Everything was going smoothly in the removal of the 41-year old original radiator until I got to the automatic transmission fittings.  The steel nuts which were screwed into the radiator tank were frozen.  Even after squirting them with WD-40, I couldn't budge them.  I couldn't get enough leverage on the nuts to remove them with a regular, open-end wrench.  I finally had to resort to vice-grips and brute force.  The nuts groaned noisily under the pressure, but they finally started turning.  Whew... no damage to the transmission lines.  I got the nuts removed, moved the lines out of the way, and pulled out the old radiator.  I slid the new, oversize radiator into its location.  The rubber, mounting pads, which were meant for the narrower, old radiator, were now not large enough to stretch over the new radiator.  But they'll have to do.  The radiator mounting panel had to have a piece cut out of it in order to accommodate the filler neck of the new radiator.  The problem again was the nuts on the old transmission lines.  They did not want to screw easily into the new radiator.  I had to be careful to thread them in, i.e., I didn't want to cross-thread them.  Even when I thought they were in, it took a few forceful tries on the vice-grips to tighten them enough so they wouldn't leak any trans fluid.  But they finally were in.
    The new radiator works well.  The big test is when I have Vintage Air a.c. installed next year.  Then I'll see how well the radiator deals with the increased heat load during a California hot summer.

         Truly,
         Robert Bernardo
         Fresno Commodore User Group
         http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm
         Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network
         http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan

[RobertB]

     Aw, in its first big test of freeway driving, the Chevy C30 failed!  I was to drive the truck from Stockton to Lodi round-trip, a distance of 31 miles.  I prepped the truck for any eventuality, carrying jumper cables, a floor jack, etc..  I checked and then inflated all the tires to their proper pressure.  My friend in Lodi was warned that he might have to rescue me if the truck didn't make it.
    I jumped in the truck and started it.  The engine ran smoothly.  So far, so good.  I headed off to the freeway on-ramp about 2 miles away.  There was a stop light that had turned red at the intersection just before the ramp.  I waited at the light, and when it turned green, I stomped on the accelerator to climb up the ramp.  Huge amount of off-and-on hesitation in the acceleration!  So much so, that I was being jerked back and forth in the truck seat.  O.K., this is not the way the truck is supposed to accelerate.  I aimed for the nearest off-ramp, got onto it, and drove back onto city streets.  I went back home and had to call my friend that I would not be visiting.  Diagnosis off the top of my head... fuel filter clogging (a problem which the truck has had in the past).  Because it was Jan. 1, none of the auto stores were open.  I'd have to wait until the next day in order to buy a filter, and hopefully it won't be raining down on me when I install that filter.
    My Lodi friend will be out of town for awhile.  Next opportunity to test drive the truck to Lodi... this Sunday when my friend returns.

         Happy New Year!
         Robert Bernardo
         Fresno Commodore User Group
         http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm
         Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network
         http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan

P.S. A while later on a road leading out of the city, I was able to get the truck up to 55 mph without any troubles.  However, in this short drive, I did not stomp hard on the accelerator but just slowly pushed slowly and had the truck gather speed gradually.