SAmadei

Sounds to me you should just keep the camera for your own enjoyment. They still sell film... including 35mm, but selection is suffering... I know several companies have discontinued film lines... like Kodak's Kodachrome. I imagine for the good stuff you'd have to go to a camera shop. Not being an camera aficionado, I've never walked into a camera shop.

Yeah, I thought nobody would be making reproduction backing plates. Turns out Dorman is making backing plates, but not one for the Celebrity. Maybe they will in the future... there are a LOT of A-bodies out there. It was a pleasant surprise to see that '78-'92 backing plates are make for GM RWD intermediates, at least. You are clearly in the realm of the pick-a-part. Hollander seems to list your rear brakes as part 1190B... the interchange is a bit confusing, vast and I'm unclear just how much actually interchanges beyond the drums... but it look like you have a pretty good chance of being able to get a backing plate from '84-'92 A-bodies (6000, Celebrity, Century, Ciera)... this likely extends to '96 for Century and Ciera, but my Hollander cuts off at 1990 and info into the '90s is incomplete. It also appears that GM used these brakes on early C/H-bodies (up to '93)... LeSabre, Electra, Park Avenue, Bonneville, 88, 98... and the '90-'93 U-vans... Silhouette, Lumina, Trans Sport... and finally some FWD Cadillacs from '85-93. I would take the backing plate with me and eye-ball the parts... hit the newer A-bods first, especially wagons. Unfortunately, the backing plate on my '83 Celebrity coupe uses the 100mm bolt circle (your wagon is 115), and so the baking plates are likely different. It looks like GM started using the 115 on wagons first, then across the board. I have cars with 45+ years of rust on them, and the backing plates were still thick enough to function fine. In fact, I don't think I've ever seen one rot out... surprising here in the land of salt, salt and more salt... so I feel you will find a useable one in the yards that will give you years of use. worst case scenario, start calling the yards in the south west.

They most definitely didn't. That was a typo from shuffling some text around. You didn't catch my funnier typo where I didn't know which FWD A-bodies had rear brakes. :-P

Converting Marie to front rear disc brakes would be a real PITA, most likely. I don't remember offhand which FWD A-bodies had rear disc brakes, but assuming we track that down, you would be needing to swap out everything from the backing plates outward, the master cylinder and the proportioning valve. You'd certainly be going the junkyard path to get the parts... and in the end you'd have a car with really hard to find parts (A-bodies were probably 95% drum, >5% disc) and barely better brakes. In the end, drum brakes are not that awful, especially in the rear. Thats why there are still cars being built with them... to every automotive writer's horror.

Still, its a dealer coping with a vehicle 27 years old. Dealers do not do well with older cars. I would guess that they looked up the parts in the GM inventory system and came up with a blank... because GM really does not have a source of parts for it if the OEM stuff is gone and GM didn't bother having more built... this is nothing new to us with lots of old cars. You can't usually get OEM sheetmetal for older cars from the dealership, for example, regardless of popularity, because once GM stops listing it, it don't exist... even if there are 20 companies that have licensed it to make reproductions. Take it to a good mechanic and find out exactly what parts you need. Most drum brake parts are heavy enough that it does not really rust out. I have to assume they are having trouble getting the "brake hardware kit"... the springs and retainers... they are small parts and break fairly easily once rust sets in. Only other brake parts that rust out are steel lines or the braking brake cable. Drums, shoes, backing plate, slave cylinder all generally don't rust away (unless the car is spending time at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean). My Autozone is listing... Drum 33.99 Shoes 16.99 All-in-one Hardware Kit 8.99 Adjusting screw assembly 9.99 Brake hose 9.99 Wheel Cylinder 10.99 Granted a few of those are special orders, but at least in NJ, special orders have been fast and no problem. The only things left at that point are the backing plate and parking brake line. Those could be somewhat hard to find. Backing plate would be a junkyard thing, IF your freakishly rotted out. Speaking of junkyard parts... unless we are talking about parts that are explicitly replaceable, like shoes or pads, you can always find some junkyard parts that are fine. Every car ages differently, and I've pulled delicate, pristine parts off cars that were so damaged I questioned why they even wasted space in the pick-a-part. Failing everything else, let me know if there are a few parts you need and I will steal them off my '83 Celebrity, as its unused and likely a future Hyundai.

The compact pickups have sold more, but have had serious profitability issues. The number 1 reason the El Camino and Caballero disappeared after 1988 was because of the G-body demise. There was no easy platform for it to move to... but now EVERY El Camino fan knows (due to the internet) that GM builds Utes galore in Australia. In any case, why can't you have both? I don't think anyone is suggesting that the El Camino replace the Colorado. The Ute is already being built... and can be federalized easily as a Chevy... bring it back and kick some ass. GM could have done this for over a decade, but has instead screwed around with stuff like the SSR... then does a bait and switch on the G8ST. GM is psychotic. Just like anything else, GM is waiting until the 11th hour to put out the best (GNX, Fiero, Typhoon, Syclone, Impala SS, GTO, G8)... what is GM waiting to bring the Ute over for? The outlawing of V8s? GM has some of the best RWD cars being made and will not bring them to the good people of the US.

The Axle ratio is basically the difference in the diameter between the transmission output gear and the differential's ring gear. You can have your choice of ratios, but only one at time is possible. To make it 2-speed you need to introduce a shaft in between the two. The transmission output carries two gears which permanently engages two free spinning gears on the shaft. A set of dog gears slide up and down the shaft so you can select between the two. This intermediate shaft then drives the differential ring gear at a fixed ratio. Basically, it's a 2-speed manual transmission where one of the shaft is the transmission output, the other is the intemediate shaft and the differential is still the differential. You can do this or you can introduce a planetary set with clutch packs. Either way you need to put something between the transmission output shaft and the differential ring gear if you what more than a single fixed ratio. Ah... I was thinking in terms of a conventional RWD drivetrain, and I thought you meant you needed a second shaft externally in addition to the driveshaft. I agree that it is basically a 2 speed manual transmission, but I was trying to think in terms of a CVT, as applied to a differential... controlled electronically. Again, probably not something worth the effort.

Only 123K... only $2495! Link: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1989-CADILLAC-DeVILLE-RAT-ROD-THE-RATILLAC-HOT-ROD-/320697656012?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item4aab11e2cc#v4-34 I am so embarrassed as this is within a few miles of me. Thankfully, I have not seen it in person. I'd have to punch them. Forgot to add... check out the sweet fender skirts.

It does make me question why its 2011 and we don't have CVDs... Continuously Variable Differentials. Or at least a two speed diff, that could provide added economy or performance. Obviously weight is a factor and 6,8,14 speed transmissions negate some of the benefit. Because that means adding a shaft to the transmission and it takes up a lot of room. Why do you need an extra shaft between the diff and transmission? Is this how the big truck multispeed diffs work?

I don't know Latin, but knowing French, Italian and Spanish, I'm concerned with "ad". That generally means "to/at", not "without". I'd bet it would be: sine. My Latin is not acceptable... but just a few comments... I think his translation of 'without end' is coming from 'infinitum', not 'ad infinitum'... if you subbed in the 'sine', you'd have to remove the 'in'.... 'sine finitum'. But I am awful at this.

This is why GM should dust off the Hummer Hx Concept, rebody it for GMC, and put it into production ASAP. I agree with both of these ideas, as it gets unique product into the Buick-GMC showrooms. One thought about Hummer and its existence... I wonder if without Hummer becoming the poster child of gas guzzlers if the public would have focused on GMC? Hummer may have dove in front of the bullet there for GMC.

Oh wow... Yeah, its that bad. You probably didn't notice since these scams started out with higher dollar autos, like BMWs and Audis. But now that they are filtering down to 10 year old GMC pickups, you'll see (and recognize) these much more often. Maybe this is an opportunity to write a C&G article exposing the techniques of these scams.

LOL, I didn't notice this was written for C&G... It otherwise read like news from the big publishers... which is good. I would not have been so snarky had I realized this didn't get piped through an editor making big bucks. Your articles have been very good, and it shows when I critique them like the big bucks writers. :-P Keep up the good work.

Interesting. So from a performance standpoint, how does it change the car's driving characteristics? Generally, it hurts it, unless the engine has a ton of grunt.

It does make me question why its 2011 and we don't have CVDs... Continuously Variable Differentials. Or at least a two speed diff, that could provide added economy or performance. Obviously weight is a factor and 6,8,14 speed transmissions negate some of the benefit.

I agree with z28. When looking for cars recently, there were tons of these BS ads... and usually the crux is that they are overseas or something and need to sell the car remotely and want you to ship them money to an escrow 3rd party (them). A fool (who does not visit the vehicle and witness a title) and their money is soon parted. I think I saw this ad in the NYC CL recently. Its probably all over CL nationwide. Trouble is, some deals are almost real seeming... so they would at least get an email inquiry from me. But considering this ad has all the copy in the photo, I'm sure it was listed by a bot and the seller is a fairly sophisticated scammer.

Was this article written in the future and dropped into a wormhole? Correct me if I'm wrong, but the Volt is scheduled to have 10K made the first year... and looking at the sales/production so far... 2000... looks to be missing that mark. By the time 2014 comes around or the rebate expires, there may not be 200K Volts out there. I'm not knocking the Volt's sales or potential, just KBB's presumptuousness/grammar.

Mine is not a Boss Hoss. The Boss Hoss had no hood and an oversized engine. The Mustang Stocker had a hood with a power dome... and a stars and ribbon motif. I still have it somewhere, but in poor shape. It was one of my earliest cars. Never actually had a Boss Hoss in my collection.

It involves two things. Using your throttle to steer though a curve and not having to fight wheel spin (or traction control killing your power) if you hit the accelerator a little too hard. Its not about being in the performance crowd... the FWD/RWD difference is apparent to a knowledgeable driver. Driving my clapped out 307 Buick Estate wagon was more fun that driving nearly any FWD car... that car was slow and couch-like, yet the driving dynamic was still there. It was virtually impossible to get wheelspin... something even the weakest FWD car will do, due to the laws of physics. When I hit the go button, I want traction, not noise. Going around a corner, under power, in a modern 300hp FWD car is somewhat terrifying, as the front wheels fight each other... it feels like traction loss will send you right into the trees. Luxury car interiors? I hardly notice them unless they are physically stripped out. When I took the rental DTS up into the Cascade mountains for some spirited driving, passing BMWs and Audis on the way, I was very concerned about the drive wheels... as I didn't want to see my interior.

You both like being snide. Question is, where would the snide be if this was a chromed out Challenger?

I generally like it. Of course, I've wanted a completely chromed car since I got the chrome HW Mustang Stocker in 1974. So its another vinyl wrap. Considering Mylar looks like chrome, I'm surprised this hasn't happened before. LOL, I'd like to check out the cost, but the 3Dfolie.com website site doesn't bother with an English translation... it just dumps you on Google Translate. I can imagine its probably $7K- $10K minimum. I would imagine its possible, due to its reflective nature, that this vinyl lasts longer than the 4-5 years other wraps are supposed to get. I imagine if this catches on, the cops will have yet another "crackdown on fun", since the federal anti-glare laws don't allow much chrome application anymore. Of course, I've never been bothered by glare issues... after all, even shiny paint can be fairly glaring. Nothing like the ridiculously bright headlights we have out there. The wrapped Audi does little for me. Either do the gold wraps... though I'd like to see a Camaro wrapper in gold. I do like 67Imp's Black chrome idea.

Its kind of a mashed up sentence that sounds like he was typing one sentence and then typed another... like he skipped a thought... typical of people who think faster than they can ever type. Or he reversed his clauses at the end. Taking the sentence at face value with the double negative, it sounds like no on the El Camino... yes on a GMC... and this is not likely, IMHO. Gotta proofread your tweets.

I understand... don't shoot the messenger... I'd also doubt it because El Caminos simply didn't sell in massive numbers early on... so there is little reason for Pontiac to desire a version... especially when they had their hands full with the GTO, Banshee and Firebird in the '66 era. The Grand Am-based Elky made more sense since the El Camino was coming off its best years.

Yeah, I'd dispute it in a heartbeat. The taillights are on the '66 GP "Camino" are stolen from a '71 Vega wagon. Speaking of Vega wagons... I'm surprised that I can't recall an El Vega conversion...

LOL... I had pics but they were all from 10 years ago... and I can't find them. The poor thing is absolutely buried in the backyard... and last summer there was a something angry, flying and pointy nesting in under whats left of the hood... so I've been staying away. There is this (awful) photo, posted by the past owner... Here at the top of the page. You can see that the paint is a bit faded in spots... and you can see the only rust the thing had at the time... a small hold in the rear quarter. You can also see the V-shaped rear window... a nice feature on these that to the best of my knowledge, the Bonneville coupe did not have. Not sure if the Bonneville hardtop had that or not. Considering the '99 Bonneville needs a tranny, the '95 Caprice needs finishing, the '76 Blazer needs to start, the '89 Van needs to stop overheating... well... THEN the Catalina might be pulled out to get MIG "practice"... 8-0 ...to see if I can patch the frame horns up enough to put a front bumper and radiator support on it. 8-0