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  1. After selling my '88 Black to 2 seater's son I was without a winter car. My original thought was just to drive the Red until January [it has "Collector" plates which are 11 month plates and cannot be used in January] and then park it as we winter in Texas staring in February. I could have waited a year as so far our winter has been very mild and we leave the 10 of January for an extended vacation to Asia to celebrate our upcoming 45th wedding anniversary. But I digress. I cannot drive the Red in the winter. It has been my all time favorite car and I refuse to chance driving it in snow/winter/salt especially with the liquid deicer they now spray on the roads. So the search was on. My mom owned a 2001 Supercharged Buick Regal. I drove it a couple of times and liked the ride. She no longer has the car, so I started looking for one and just picked up a 1999 Regal, red in color, light gray interior with a sun roof. There is no rust on the car which has 98,000 miles. I believe it was used a a summer car for the owners who wintered in a warmer state. It does not have the supercharger which is fine by me as I don't like the price difference on the gas price because of the miles I still drive in my business. I bought it in Detroit and drove it back to Wisconsin. That's about 500 miles and I got a good feel for the car. It is pretty comfortable, has good power, but does not have some of the creature comforts I expected. Has dual heat, but not heated seats. Cabin storage for "things" is not as much as I expected. However I bought the car for winter driving and it will fit the bill nicely.
    10 points
  2. No photos have been posted for a while so here goes. About every year my wife and I drive on a long gravel road that winds it's way for a mile or two through pasture fields and it dead ends at a little church where some of her relatives are buried. Hardly ever see a car on that road so we can just creep along and enjoy the beautiful scenery. We go so slow you could almost walk along beside the car. We took these photos at the end of last summer. We usually park behind the church near the graveyard and just stand there and take in the view. One of the most peaceful places I know of.
    9 points
  3. I personally think this forum is indispensible for the Reatta community. Although not possible to know, I would venture to guess that the number of views per day or per month is quite high. Ronnie, your effort is most appreciated.
    7 points
  4. I just happened to see this today 😄 "This is not parallel parking, Christine; this is magic!" Cagney and Lacey, season 7, episode 20. May 2, 1988
    7 points
  5. My 1990 Reatta with 87K miles needed new struts all around. The job seemed more complex than simply changing shocks on my 1950's classics. But thanks to the guides here on ROJ, I'm proud to say I did it successfully. Some shops gave breathtaking labor quotes, more than my budget is comfy with. So I read through the guides here on ROJ, took my time, with an excellent outcome. All 4 original struts on my Reatta were totally shot. They weren't leaking, but they weren't absorbing road shocks. The pistons just dropped into the bores. I assume every Reatta that still has the original 30+ year old struts either needs or will need new struts. I bought the previously unobtanium rears from ECRP, and Monroe front and new mounts from Rock. ECRP says Monroe will not do any more runs or our 71966 rears, so suffer the ECRP price and get 'em while you can. After following the guides on this site and finishing the strut job, I'm very impressed with the newly refreshed ride, and proud that I was able to do the job myself. I have an appointment at an alignment shop this week, mandatory after changing front struts. Here are some tips from replacing the front struts I will share. This $13 tool from Amazon made it easy to deal with the nut on top of the front strut mounts. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BKZXJ881?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details I ordered front strut dust cover bellows from 2 vendors that claimed their bellows were correct for Reatta, but the "bump stops" didn't fit. I modified the bump stop on the KYB bellows, and it functions perfectly to hold the bellows in position, while fitting into the upper spring seat plate. The supplied bump stop was too tall, interfering with the strut mount, and the inside diameter of the bump stop was too small to fit on the strut piston. My Dremel tool solved both problems. Description of 13 photos: 1. original strut - note the broken bellows. When the strut was unbolted from the strut mount, the rod sank into the bore...totally shot, but not leaking fluid 2. New KYB bellows inside diameter at gripping lip at top is larger than original. Can't use the original GM orange dust cover retainer/bump stop which requires smaller diameter sealing lip on the bellows 3. New KYB bellows with original orange GM dust cover retainer/bump stop, and the new bump stop included with KYB bellows. I cut the KYB bellows at top and bottom, and reamed out the inner diameter to match the GM original 4. New KYB bellows with original orange GM dust cover retainer/bump stop, and the new bump stop included with KYB bellows. I cut the KYB bellows at top and bottom, and reamed out the inner diameter to match the GM original 5. KYB bump stop with crown cut off, inserted into upper spring seat plate. Crown must be cut off so that strut mount fits correctly on top of spring seat plate 6. lower side of spring seat plate with KYB bump stop installed, cut shorter 7. KYB bellows pushed onto modified KYB bump stop, with a smear of JB Weld to permanently attach the bellows to the new bump stop 8. New front strut and strut mount with spring compressor 9. 24mm strut nut tool from Amazon 10. Strut nut tool with 50mm torx bit for original strut, and 10mm hex for the new strut 11. This inexpensive tool is much better than clamping the polished chrome rod with vice grips to keep it from turning 12. New strut assembly ready to install 13. New strut installed
    7 points
  6. My daughter fusses at me for not recycling plastid water bottles and cardboard. She says if my generation had done more to keep the environment clean it wouldn't be in such bad shape now., implying that my generation did nothing to stop pollution of the environment Later on I found the following and emailed it to her. She hasn't mentioned recycling to me since. The older people here will understand the moral of the story. --------------------------------------------------- This Green Thing Checking out at the store, the young cashier suggested to the much older lady that she should bring her own grocery bags, because plastic bags are not good for the environment, The woman apologized to the young girl and explained, "We didn't have this 'green thing' back in my earlier days." The young clerk responded, "That's our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment for future generations." The older lady said that she was right our generation didn't have the "green thing" in its day. The older lady went on to explain: Back then, we returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled. But we didn't have the "green thing" back in our day. Grocery stores bagged our groceries in brown paper bags that we reused for numerous things. Most memorable besides household garbage bags was the use of brown paper bags as book covers for our school books. This was to ensure that public property (the books provided for our use by the school) was not defaced by our scribblings. Then we were able to personalize our books on the brown paper bags. But, too bad we didn't do the "green thing" back then. We walked up stairs because we didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks. But she was right. We didn't have the "green thing" in our day. Back then we washed the baby's diapers because we didn't have the throw away kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy-gobbling machine burning up 220 volts. Wind and solar power really did dry our clothes back in our early days. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that young lady is right; we didn't have the "green thing" back in our day. Back then we had one TV, or radio, in the house -- not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana. In the kitchen we blended and stirred by hand because we didn't have electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used wadded up old newspapers to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap. Back then, we didn't fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity. But she's right; we didn't have the "green thing" back then. We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blade in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull. But we didn't have the "green thing" back then. Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service in the family's $45,000 SUV or van, which cost what a whole house did before the "green thing." We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 23,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest burger joint. But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn't have the "green thing" back then? Please forward this on to another selfish old person who needs a lesson in conservation.
    7 points
  7. Stopped in at a little car show in New Mexico today
    7 points
  8. 15 Reattas altogether, which really turned some heads. My car was the only ‘88 and got a lot of attention as I had left the windows down so people could poke their heads in to marvel at the touchscreen setup.
    7 points
  9. Here is my triple Blue 89' Sapphire Firemist
    7 points
  10. I have noticed my engine making a rattling noise lately and getting louder. I thought it was the timing chain rapping against something. I pulled the serpentine belt off and started jiggling all the pulleys. Lo and behold the water pump had lots of movement and rattled when moved around. Funny thing was, I had changed this pump before, roughly 10 years and 10k miles ago, It was a ACDelco unit. Also, it was not seeping out the weep hole. Installed another supposed Delco unit, rattling noise is gone. I guess I should be glad it lasted 10 years, even with the little miles put on it.
    6 points
  11. After driving the Regal for about 3 weeks and a bit over 1000 miles I have had to do some "fine tuning". Started with an Idle Air Control, Then on to a Mass Air Flow sensor. Then yesterday I stopped in at Gibson's a local You Pick yard to get a back up battery. [This was after lunch with 2 Seater] Came out to the car and it wouldn't start. It would grind but not start. So I first checked fuel pressure, that was good. Then said to myself " Either Ignition Module or Crank Sensor". The obvious easy answer was to start with the ignition module. I know I was at Gibson's but I had a back up in the car [always carry extra parts and tools]. Had it swapped out in about 15 minutes. Hit the key and it started. I decided that I needed to do a tune up and checked my inventory of Reatta replacement parts. The Regal is a Series 2 so I knew the Delco upgrade I had done on the Reatta would give me pretty much what I needed. I checked online for spark plug wire length and plug number and checked what I had in inventory. Sure enough I had a wire set that was close in lengths and the correct number plugs [#14]. Called up Kendall [my mechanic friend] and invited myself over for a tune up party. Plugs and wires and clean up the plate under the ignition module. About an hour later the old original plug wires [in poor shape] and the old plugs [badly worn] were out and the new ones were in. Drive home was much better as the acceleration was noticeably improved.
    6 points
  12. Today is my 67th Birthday. 15 years ago I bought the Red as a birthday present to myself. We've been through a lot of parts together and a repaint and I still wouldn't give it up. My plan is to drive it 2 more weeks and then park it until spring. My license plate is an 11 month plate meaning I can't legally drive it in January. That's okay as my wife an I are taking a 3 week vacation to Viet Nam so most of January we''ll be gone anyway. Then February off to Texas for the balance of the winter so I really don't need a second car for me. Maybe next year I'll get a second car as I really don't want the Red to be a winter car. Besides I spent a bit of time replacing light bulbs [cornering lamp, license plate bulb, and one of the high up brake lights], the leak on the Master Cylinder and finally different ABS sensor leads on the front. Baumgharts [My car repair center] did both lower ball joints, both axle shafts and then a tire rotation and alignment. Car runs really good now and is real joy to drive...
    6 points
  13. Not a posed photo. My two boys were over this morning and parked side by side so I pulled mine up so the nose was visible in the photo. Left to right, 88, 89 and 90. The 88 & 89 came through Daves89.
    6 points
  14. So I was driving down Midway Road in Menasha [for the benefit of 2seater] when a guy pulled up next to me and gave me a "thumbs up" on my Reatta. I wave d back and shortly pulled into a vacant store's parking lot to do some paperwork. As I was sitting there the guy circled back and said that he wasn't stalking me but wanted to let me know that his grandfather had a Reatta years back and he always liked them. I asked him if it was a 1990 or newer one and he wasn't sure so I showed him some of the features of the touch screen. He was really impressed, so hope I made another friend today...
    6 points
  15. I've always felt that the price drop from what I paid for the car originally to what I sold it for was the difference in enjoying it while I owned it.
    6 points
  16. Two of the more interesting pics of my '91 Reatta are when I was having it repainted right after purchase in 2013:
    6 points
  17. My problem has been solved thanks to Rogold's suggestion. Bear with me for the following explanation. The photo in the previous post showed the brake reservoir after I pumped the brakes 25 times with the key on and engine running. That photo shows the fluid level right on the full mark. Following Ronnie's comments, I again pumped the brakes 25 times with the key off. The fluid level rose to the top of the reservoir. I did the pumping method 2 or 3 times since the recent repair, and each time I evacuated an excess amount of brake fluid from the reservoir. (I told the mechanic not to overfill and to use the pumping method - he says he followed my instructions.) However, I suctioned the excess fluid from the reservoir. The current level is as is seen in the photo below - probably in inch or so below the full mark. In the photo is also the the bottle used to contain the excess fluid - a combined 7 1/2 ounces. I suctioned 2-3 ounces of excess fluid each time I used the pumping method down to the full mark so as not to be overfilled. The other photo is looking straight down into the fluid reservoir. The circular object surrounded by a black ring apparently is the float mentioned by Rogold. I used a flashlight and a drinking straw to probe the float in an up and down motion. The probing dislodged the shiny object propped up in front of the bottle with the excess fluid contained therein. It looks like a piece of aluminum foil that covers the opening of a new can of brake fluid. Removing the aluminum foil, and starting the engine, the ABS yellow and the Red Warning light both disappeared! Problem solved! Thanks to all for your help!
    6 points
  18. July of 2022 front yard Minnesota 1990 Buick Reatta 1989 Buick Regal custom
    6 points
  19. Reatta’s @ 2022 BCA Nationals; Lisle, IL.
    6 points
  20. Just drove my newly acquired 91 very in Florida and drove home 900 miles to PA. I tried to stick to 65 given my unfamiliarity with the mechanicals but it ran flawlessly and I averaged 30 mpg!
    6 points
  21. Another Reatta sighting. I was in Oshkosh tonight having supper with my sister and Brother in Law. When I was driving out of the parking lot I had to wait for a car to turn to the lot I was in. He was eyeballing me all the way in while I kept thinking "Hurry up dummy so I can get out on the road and get home". So he gets in and I quickly pull out only to have the car coming down the road heading the same way I am be a white Reatta. He wave as he went by, I flashed my lights at him in acknowledgement. Never saw the car before but it does have one burned out bulb in the taillight. And here I thought I was the only guy driving a Reatta in Wisconsin winters...
    6 points
  22. From my grandchildren 👍
    6 points
  23. Today marks the 80th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Many of you know that my dad was a Pearl Harbor survivor, Battleship USS Oklahoma. I read in the news today that another USS Oklahoma survivor is attending the ceremony today at the USS Arizona memorial...he's 101 years old. My mother's only brother served under Patton's 3rd army and was killed in Belgium during the Battle of the Bulge. While reading topics in the "other forum" I find out that Ronnie's dad also served under Patton's 3rd and was in Belgium. Let us not forget those who served our country in time of war.
    6 points
  24. My daughter took this photo while on vacation in Baltimore this past weekend. I think it is cool. When I first looked it I really thought there was a hole in the brick wall of the building but there isn't.
    6 points
  25. A Memorial to 9/11 in Kingston, TN where I live,,, and the rest of the story. You all may already be tired of being bombarded with all the stories on TV today about 9/11 but I'm going to tell you about a memorial made of a 9900 pound steel I-beam that came from the World Trade Center and how it came to be in our small town of 5000 people. The memorial is in a small park across the lake from my house on TVA property. I can see it when I sit on my front porch. Every year on 9/11 a lot of people go to that park to look at the memorial and reflect on what happened on September 11, 2001. Today when I went there I was lucky enough to be there at the same time as a gentleman who helped erect that memorial. He told me the story of how Kingston was able to get a piece of the World Trade Center steel shipped all the way here from New York and turned into a 9/11 memorial. He told me Andrew Benson, the man who's picture is on the bronze plaque at the top of the memorial, worked at TVA's Kingston Power plant. Mr. Benson's father was a fireman in New York and had died as a result of the 9/11 attack so Mr. Benson started talking with TVA and other government officials about establishing a 9/11 memorial at the park for our area. Once TVA agreed to allow the memorial to be erected at the park on their property the ball started rolling to get the I-beam shipped here. Shipping costs were covered by TVA employee donations. He said our state representatives got on board with the project and made arrangements to obtain the I-beam from the World Trade Center. East Tennessee had already donated a brand new fire truck to the city of New York so our officials already had contacts there. He said the day the I-beam arrived on the flat bed truck, it and another I-beam just like it destined for another town in TN had been draped with huge American flags. The truck was escorted through TN by about fifty members of a Veterans Motorcycle club. All with American flags attached to their bikes. He said it brought tears to his eyes to see so many people there to honor a symbol of the tragedy our country had been through back on 9/11/2001. TVA employees supplied the labor and materials to build a base the 9900 pound I-beam sits on and to pour the concrete in the shape of a star around it. One man from each union craft took part in building the memorial. TVA supplied the machinery to build it and set it in place. Originally Mr. Benson's photo wasn't on the memorial. Only the plaque in the center of the I-beam was intended to be there. Sadly three weeks after this memorial was dedicated in a huge ceremony attended by fire departments from all over East TN, Mr. Benson was killed when he was working under his car. The jack slipped and he was crushed. The employees at TVA thought it was fitting to add a plaque with Mr. Benson's photo to honor him for all the hard work he had done to get the memorial erected. I will think of this story every time I look across the lake at this memorial. The I-beam and memorial look small in my photos but it is huge. The words on the bottom of the plaque says it all. "NEVER FORGET"
    6 points
  26. @Bertimus, nice pics. I almost bought a black one but someone scooped it up out from under me. That said, I am glad I got my red one :) I just submitted these photos of mine for a RockAuto magnet :) I will let you folks know if they pick it.
    6 points
  27. For some reason I did not know that Ronnie had a forum along with his other great information on Reattas. I am a regular on the AACA forum.... most of the time at the Reatta site but also look at other Buick post. I am the BCA technical advisor for Reattas........doesn't mean I know everything about Reattas but probably know someone that does. My only Reatta for about the last 9 years is a 1991 Black/red coupe with CD and 16 way seats, it has around 28K miles.
    6 points
  28. ‘91 Reatta Convertible Bright Red with Red Interior and black top beside the ‘91 Reatta parts car
    6 points
  29. I'm going to do it. If I get time I'm going to apply for the card with the Reatta photo on it today. I think it takes a couple of weeks to receive the card. I hope it looks as good when I get it as it does in the preview I posted earlier.
    6 points
  30. I'm starting the video where the Reatta review really begins. If you start the video from the beginning it has comments about the Pontiac Fiero and the Cadillac Allante too.
    6 points
  31. 6 points
  32. Hope you have a great one!
    6 points
  33. Memorial Day weekend outing. Thanks to those who served 🇺🇲
    6 points
  34. Gentlemen, start your engines! Quoting Scotty Kilmer Guys (especially Ronnie,) after weeks of agony, imagining I had destroyed the electronics and dreading tearing out the BCM or more, sending it all in for repair and dealing the whole process, including the cost, after checking the fusible links and finding nothing, I decided to start again at the beginning by retesting the fuses next to the console and low and behold....... I found I had missed a very important fuse, the CPS (central power supply!) Seeing it was blown, I inserted a replacement fuse and heard a series of clicks followed by the interior lights coming on. Got my keys and, praying the the car gods, turned the key in the ignition and bam, the main display lit up and soon after the CRT! You can't imagine my response, had to play Beethoven's Ode to Joy to celebrate! So, many thanks once again for all your support and suggestions gentlemen. Now I can see by the car's self diagnosis that I have an electrical problem in engine control causing the rough running, my next challenge.
    6 points
  35. Cberry1962 was kind enough to send me all his father's photos. the must be about a hundred of them. Cberry1962 has already post the ones that most people would be interested in. Most of the ones that haven't already been posted are of views of pieces of the car as they were being developed. I intend to post some more of the photos when I get time to scan them into my computer so they can be posted here.
    6 points
  36. Bought my baby some new heels ? Cooper Cobras? Salutations from San Diego!
    6 points
  37. Used the Bright Aluminum wheel kit from dipyourcar.com. Closest I could find to the original without getting too creative... or shelling bucks out for those remans. Sanded them down, ground and glazed the curb rash and popped out the emblems. Repainted the bumpers too, as they were crumbling apart the day I bought it. Been a project.
    5 points
  38. We’ve been receiving messages and emails from a lot of you regarding our rear shock project. I owe you all some correspondence, so here’s what I know so far. Firstly, this info may change as I haven’t been able to get up with our sales rep at Monroe all week. They have gone radio silent all week. Secondly, we had to place an order for a minimum 1000 rear shocks in order for Monroe to produce the 71966 shock for us. We committed to that back in April. We were told Monroe would tool up and make them for us with that minimum order and only that minimum would be made. They assured us they had zero interest in holding inventory for what they referred to as an obsolete part number for them. They would produce them, but we had to buy them all. However, it appears that Monroe has been selling OUR order off the top of our pallets in their facility to everyone at well below our wholesale price without requiring the minimum order they required from us. Essentially destroying this project for us. Our order was even shorted with only 976 units or less reportedly coming. If you ordered shocks from anyone and the packing list says 71966-ST, you can thank us for that. That was our special part number for the order. Monroe has been stealing out units off our order and selling direct for well under our wholesale pricing. Monroe has continuously lied straight to our faces saying “we don’t fulfill direct for any retailers”, and that they’ve shipped our order. We still have yet to receive our order despite reportedly shipping from Monroe on Monday. Please bear with us while we try to get to the bottom of this. We have thousands of dollars tied up in this project and are committed to finding a resolution. Our intention is to renegotiate price with Monroe on what is left of our order (given how they’ve screwed us) and still fulfill all orders and offer folks a refund or store credit for the difference. Please stay tuned for more info, and we sincerely appreciate your patience in this matter. We are a small family run business who has been screwed by corporate America big time on this project and we are working to do our best for our loyal customers. regards, Marck Barker EastCoastReattaParts.com
    5 points
  39. First set of struts are done and I have four more sets that will be completed within the next week. I will let each of these sets go for $275 per pair, plus shipping. PM me if you are interested in purchasing. I will ask for a release of liability as these are modified to fill a need where no replacements exist. As mentioned earlier in this thread, these are new, Monroe brand gas charged struts. They started life as rear struts for the 1990 Regal, which are the same base strut as the Reatta but with different mounting brackets and missing the pinch bolt dent and sway bar adapter. All of the Regal brackets were removed, the pinch bolt dimple added, the struts painted satin black (where the brackets were removed, there was no paint). Each strut will include an A&A clamp on mount for the sway bar as shown.
    5 points
  40. I wasn't getting notified of these responses, sorry! Thanks for the advice everyone. This is actually my first project car; I have some auto tech education under my belt but not much practice since it's always been more of a hobby/interest. I'm hoping to work on it this week, so this definitely gives me some leads. Would be nice if it was just a fuse! But yes I always unlock with the key (I have a box of fobs, actually, but I'm in no hurry to mess with them haha.) And my Reatta for anyone wondering:
    5 points
  41. Daves89 and I had lunch today and we solved all the most pressing issues of the day so everyone else can get a good nights rest to take care of tomorrows problems in turn🙄
    5 points
  42. Met up with 2seater yesterday for lunch. We attracted a bit of attention with our two Reattas parked side by side. We ate a "Chedder's" a chain restaurant somewhat like a Perkins. We had a two hour lunch talking about Reattas, my two mechanic buddies [Kendall and Bob and how lucky I am to have them as both friends and help mates] and exchanging ideas about our cars. I had a great time.
    5 points
  43. Our Memorial Day pictures. Humbled to live in this great country and to have a rare, little known vehicle.
    5 points
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