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This week I learned all about Windshield washer pumps. There are 3 basic parts, Electro/Mechanical assembly, water cylinder and piston and nozzle gasket sections (these are my words for these sections).
The Electro/Mechanical assembly does not have any real user serviceable parts.
Just add grease and make sure it all works, else replace the whole pump assembly.
The water cylinder and piston section is also "Not" service friendly,
If the cylinder leaks, you will need to replace the whole pump assembly.
The Nozzle gasket assembly can be easily replaced and the parts are cheap.
A Nozzle and gasket set costs about $6.00 and is usually in stock at your local auto store (Advance Auto, AutoZone and O'Reilly Auto Parts).
The Washer Pump assembly will cost $50 - 133, depending on where you get it.
Opgi.com CH26136, $49.99
Fusickautomotiveproducts.com, WWP6872, $89.00
Yearone.com, WHP70, $132.99
Debugging the gasket leaks was actually quite simple.
I just used a Syringe to force water down the main supply hose into the input nozzle (The larger center nozzle is the water input from the fluid bottle).
Then look to see if the water comes out the two Spray-nozzles or elsewhere.
Both of my Cutlass were leaking in the nozzle gasket value section.
I replaced the gasket set on the 71 Cutlass with a new set from Advance-Auto for $5.99.
Unfortunately, when I ran the test the first time, I had the black dust-cover on the pump assembly and did not see I "also" had water pouring out the bottom of the "water cylinder and piston" area.
Since this section cannot be easily repaired, it looks like I will need to order a new washer pump assembly.
Last edited by Miles71; March 6th, 2017 at 06:51 AM.
Picture of my 1971 washer pump, cleaned and ready to be assembled.
The Replacement gasket kit uses "Black" colored parts.
Unfortunately, after re-assembly I discovered the pump had another leak at the water piston.
Nozzle Differences:
See the attached picture below.
On my 1970, the water nozzles were Horizontal, and pointed at the distributor when installed.
On the 1971, the water nozzles are Vertical and point to the center of the hood when installed.
The water cylinder and piston section is also "Not" service friendly,
If the cylinder leaks, you will need to replace the whole pump assembly...
Unfortunately, when I ran the test the first time, I had the black dust-cover on the pump assembly and did not see I "also" had water pouring out the bottom of the "water cylinder and piston" area.
Since this section cannot be easily repaired, it looks like I will need to order a new washer pump assembly.
Typically, a leak in this area will be caused by a dried out piston O-ring (analogous to piston rings in the engine), which should come with the repair kit.
Alternatively, it could be caused by a cracked cylinder, usually because some doofus put plain water in the system and then let it freeze.
Don't forget, these are a universal part used in every GM car made from the sixties through the eighties, so a junkyard is always an option for a piece that's cracked or broken.
None of the kits that I have seen come with the "piston O-ring" (analogous to piston rings in the engine)".
The BIG Ring in your picture is installed between the Square Plastic part
without the Nozzles and the top of the Piston-Cylinder (engine Head gasket).
Installing a Piston-O-Ring, will require extensive dis-assembly of the pump system.
The original factory color was called Sherwood Green.
The car was repainted 10-15 years ago, with same or similar color.
I have not tried to buff-out the paint.
Body tag,
ST 70 34257 G 69404 BDY
TR 997 48 48 PNT
03C
I paid about $3000 for the car, but that was before I found the additional frame damage.
Had I found all 3 bad spots, I may have walked away.
Fortunately, my Hurst shop has good frame guys and they were able to fix the problems for a reasonable amount.
I got very lucky.
This car still needs body work and full paint.
But the key parts are solid, such as the Engine and Interior.
The car also has an extensive service history, including over 90 Oil-change receipts.
Since this car is not a 442, it only has a fully restored value of about 15,000 (according to Hagerty).
If you are looking for a 1969, get dirty. You will need to check the frame end to end
and use a screwdriver and small hammer to find the bad spots.
The radiator shroud area was very rusty. So, I decided to clean it up a bit.
I used a wire drill brush on most areas. Followed by various sanding tools.
Most of the rusty was shallow surface rust.
The original tune-up sticker had to be sacrificed to a sanding wheel.
Shroud section painted with Gray Primer called "Rust Encapsulator".
The Shroud was easy to unbolt and remove.
The finish coating of paint was made with Rust-Oleum Satin black spray can.
This car will never be a prize-winning show car.
However, it will be a nice looking daily driver or sleeper.
The piston gasket was bad on both of my Cutlass washer pumps.
The piston gasket is too hard to replace and I am not aware of any repair kits that contain the piston gasket.
I ordered a new pump for approximately $50.00 from a reseller.
About 4 weeks later the pump arrived (Made-in-Taiwan).
The new pump was virtually identical to the original pump.
I did have to drill-out the lower alignment hole to get the two alignments pins to fit "Red circle".
The original Factory pump, already had the lower alignment hole "elongated", "Blue circle".
The first pump is installed and works good.
The new cover was also a very close copy, including the part number.
Restoring 1970 CS on a limited budget. Part 2.
May 23, 2017
I have been learning a lot about 2-BBL carburetors.
The carburetor on my 1970 Cutlass, is from a 1973 Oldsmobile.
The previous owner broke the fuel filter and had to replace the whole carburetor.
Unfortunately, he threw away the original carburetor.
The reason for the rebuilds is because I was having issues with starting the car on cold mornings.
The engine would start right up, and then stall after 5-10 seconds.
It would take 2-4 tries, to get the engine to actually stay running on a cold morning.
This 5-10 second stall, is usually caused by poorly adjusted choke temperature spring or wrong size jets.
I decided to do a full rebuild and start with a clean slate.
The first mistake I made, was I forgot to test the "Vacuum Choke Pull-off", before removing the carburetor.
You should always check these items for pressure leaks. However, this "VCP" fooled me, because it has a factory built-in leak.
Wow, I never knew about that type. My guess is, that built in Vent hole is designed to make the VCP, move slower and require a higher vacuum than a normal VCP.
I did take plenty of pictures, but should have taken more of the placement of the choke related linkage.
This carb has been opened a few times. Most of the 8 screws were loses and missing the locking washers.
The gaskets were wet and deteriorating.
Overall, the insides were in good shape.
I replaced the typical stuff, accelerator pump, gaskets, ball valves, etc.
All the parts I removed were cleaned and in some cases painted.
Before I removed the two "Idle Mixture" screws, I gently cranked them in until "Lightly Seated".
I counted the turns for each screw and took notes. That way, I would know approximately where to put them later. Of course, the two screws were about a Half-Turn different, which is wrong.
The number of turns should be identical.
I also took a picture of the location of the temperature chock setting.
I printed off a few of the Digital pictures and reassembled the carb.
The first time I started the car, the fuel overflowed instantly.
I had used a Paper ruler included with the gasket kit to set the Open and closed float positions.
I did not like the look of the float when it was in the closed position.
During my second try, I used a digital set of calipers. This time I set the float closed position 2 millimeters more closed than the specifications. Millimeters is much easier on the brain than thirty-seconds of an inch.
The car started right up after the second rebuild, and there was NO flooding.
I retuned the mixture screws and made a few adjustments to the Choke Spring and VCP.
Now the car starts much better on cold mornings. The acceleration from Idle to full throttle is smooth.
There is no bogging.
I did discover that my Main jets are too small, and the mixture is "Lean".
I tried the old Lean test, by setting the Idle RPM to 1,700, (Engine hot, Park, Emergency Brake on, Wheels blocked).
When I manually closed the "Choke Plate", from wide open to closed, the RPM increased to 2,200.
That means its Lean. My existing Jets are size 53. I plan on ordering a new set of jets, most likely Size 54.
Owner #2, used some type of thread sealer on the fuel line fittings.
Since I did not want to snap off the fuel filter from the aluminum cover, I decided to just cut the pipe.
I did try to remove the fitting with the required 5/8" and 1" Flair Wrenches, without any luck.
It is cheaper to replace the fuel line, than the carburetor.
Warm up the engine.
Secure the car.
You will need a Tachometer, digital is preferred.
Disconnect the Vacuum Choke Pull-off, and plug up the vacuum hose.
Tie a string to the choke linkage.
Install the Air breather assembly and connect all vacuum hoses.
Set the Idle speed to 1700 RPM.
Then Pull the string to close the choke plate.
If the RPM goes up, its too lean.
If the RPM goes down, it maybe OK.
I was curious, if the installation of the Air breather assembly had any noticeable differences when it was installed. I did not notice any real changes.
March 6th, 2017, 06:47 AM
