Thoughts and feedback

[nmacarthur]

Hey all. I have been bitten by the bug to get another hearse. It also helps that my regular car is totalled On the upside, I have found a hearse that I really like:


Shot with DSC-S650 at 2007-07-10


This coach is over at CW Coach. I've talked with them and I understand this vehicle is in excellent condition. I am waiting to get the specs on this via email. Is there anything I should be aware of regarding maintenance or any potential problems for this year/make/model?

[mdeanr]

what year is the car?

[nmacarthur]

Vehicle info

It's a 1980 S/S Caddy.

[LMS]

What engine is in it?

It looks nice, hopefully the previous owner kept it up.
If you get it I would have it checked out before I started driving it as a daily.

[StrayCat]

It's either got a 4100 in it or a 6.0L (368). My wifes Superior is an 84, basically the same car, here are the pros and cons....

Pros:
they tend to be in great shape, and most with very low milliage.
The parts are relatively inexpesive, and are regular " chain store" stock items.
Cons:
Extremely shitty gas milliage. They have VERY low speed rear ends in them, so they are extremely slow and use a fuckton of gas. My 72 M&M was better on gas than this thing is. The other bad part about this, is you can have the car floored, and will be moving at about the same " normal" take off rate as a deisel truck, but you still hear your motor whinning out like you should be doing 65 mph, and you look down and are doing 15.

Don't get me wrong, Casey loves her car. Just thought I would share first hand experience.

[mdeanr]

as long as it's not a 4.1 4100 you should be fine, but i would have everything checked out first. as just a get around car it should be ok....but like billy says it's not a power house. good luck nicole.

[nmacarthur]

Good stuff! Thank you for the information. I was thinking that perhaps with the engine, perhaps some things can be switched out to help increase the efficiency? Upgrade in muffler, intake manifold, air filter - whatever could be done to help the engine breath better and get mileage. I'm not worried about having a race heck, that's what I'm hoping my '53 Chrysler with it's rebuilt hemi will do .

[mdeanr]

hehe i hear you. let us know how things go.

[nmacarthur]

Engine bay pics

Some more pics:


Shot with DSC-S650 at 2007-07-11

6.0 liter

Shot with DSC-S650 at 2007-07-11


Shot with DSC-S650 at 2007-07-11

[nmacarthur]

And more pics


Shot with DSC-S650 at 2007-07-11


Shot with DSC-S650 at 2007-07-11

[mdeanr]

nice car

[EternalCombustion]

I noticed that CW doesn't list a price for this car. Is he wanting a resonable amount for it? The reason I ask is, just yesterday our local (charleston, wv) trade paper came out with an ad for a '87 S&S victoria described as Immaculate with 50k miles. He is asking $5000 obo. If this is something you think you might be interested in, I can go check it out and take some pictures for you.

[LMS]

6.0 liter is good, I would have said pass if it were the 4100.

Take the car for a good test drive and if it is what you want get it.
But still have it gone through before you start driving it daily.

[Zachary]

I would recommend a compression check as well. Man, I am glad I bought that guage and (with the advice of people on the board) learned how to use it!

[EternalCombustion]

Well, a friend of mine went and looked at the '87 S&S victoria in my area. He said it was a beautiful car. Dark grey with burgundy interior, endloader with extended table. However, it is the 4100 engine and it is front wheel drive. Like I said before, I don't know how much CW wants for the '80. It usually seems that he wants a fair amount for the ones that he doesn't advertise the price. It may well be cheaper than what this guy wants for the '87 (though I'm sure he could be talked down). But, with the '80 having the better engine and I'm sure it is rear wheel drive, the '80 would be the more diserable of the two, for me anyway.