This is the thread where I will put all the progress/ work on my newly acquired Fleetwood.
It's a 1981 Fleetwood with a 6.0 DFI with cylinder deactivation. It has a solid body, but as with any car of this age, needs tweaking on several fronts.
The first step was to replace the battery; the one in the car did not hold its charge for more than 5 minutes.
Then, an easy gain was with the trunk pulldown motor, which was broken and missing its switch on the car - I had already bought one for another project, and it fits the Fleetwood perfectly. It operates very nicely, I have always been a fan of trunk pulldowns.
If the pedal doesn't come back up try the lubrication trick you did on the window, also theres a manuel lever, don't force it because its not all that strong.
The little release black lever is just to the right of the pedal. Be careful, It will pop up and slap your wrist. That vacuum diaphram mounted up high above the park brake pedal is common to leak. It can affect climate control operation. You can pull the small vacuum hose off it and plug the hose till you're ready to stand on your head under the dash to replace it! A common issue with this engine is the belt arrangement. The alt. belt only wraps around the water pump. So, if the smog pump belt is loose/worn out, the alternator will slip on the w/pump pulley and slowly discharge the battery. The 82 thru 85 4100's had the same issue and I think the 425 engine in the 79 and 80's as well. A poor design IMO.
I'm always backing out of the garage / driveway with my STS and the parking brake (with no auto release) is grabbing the rear brakes so hard, I wore the pads out before the front ones! :mad2:
If the parking brake mechanism is working on the inside and the car will move Id try driving it slowly without backing up. It could be the cables have frozen, but more likely the brakes have a lot of rust from sitting.
We're talking about brakes! So... pull the wheels and inspect them before you drive anywhere! Rust doesn't go away by driving! Welcome to old cars with hydraulic issues.
We're talking about brakes! So... pull the wheels and inspect them before you drive anywhere! Rust doesn't go away by driving! Welcome to old cars with hydraulic issues.
A common failure of parking brake components on this line of cars is the emergency brake cable sheath.
They collapse. The common failure spot is right where the rear cable clips onto the rear axle cover bracket on the top side of the differential cover. The cable will be fat there or nearby.
Symptom is emergency brake won't hold car and emergency brake pedal has no resistance when pressed plus does not spring back when released.
Very common problem. Many parts houses sell the rear cables.
If the rear brake service history is unknown it's probably time to replace everything back there anyway.
Always check axle bearing side clearances when doing brakes on these. Also look for gear oil leaking past the axle bearing seals onto the backing plates. That means the axle bearings could be sloppy and will wear the rear brake linings prematurely plus cause crummy brake pedal feel.
I looked into the ECC and the MPG sentinel (Econominder or FDC), which are both not displaying anything. The ECC fuses are both OK in the fuse block. Removed most of the connections from ECC and FDC and also the radio. This, for some surrealistic reason, triggered the wipers to work again (but intermittently only).
Someone sure dicked around with this car's electricals! I knew it was going to be tough sledding as soon as you mentioned the tape over the check engine light. :/
Had the same problem. ECC control head and fuel data display weren't working. A new ECC control head and both worked again. The fuel data display is controlled by the ECC control head.
Bought both a "new" 1981 ECC head and a "new" 1981 "fuel data" display on eBay. These beasts are expensive... but even if I end up finding it's not the ECC or FDC but rather some other wiring gremlin, I will have these standby in my personal "store" for any future issue.
Weather is better today. Maybe I'll have a chance to look into the rear brakes after work.
Yes. I can relate, I have a master in Philosophy and the right words and grammar are important - but mmmh I have corrected that typo/error? Unless I don't see it then, we can blame Jack. Jack Daniel's.
So remember, this is a build thread and it will be... verbose.
So as weather permits, I checked the rear brakes.
Findings:
* The good:
Was able to remove the rear drums not as they were NOT that stuck;
* The mmmh not so good:
Driver side bleeding nipple gone;
Rear brake bands not too good;
Rear drums not too good;
Parking brakes cable f***** up - to be replaced;
Rusted rear rims - to be sanded and re-painted;
* The worrying stuff:
Gas smell near the gas tank;
If the rear brakes not stuck, then what is stuck? Front brakes? Slipping transmission that gives the impression the car won't move?
* The bad:
Not yet.
Need to buy : rear brake cylinders, rear drums, rear brake pads, rear brake cables.
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