I just had it delivered today. It looks nice in my opinion. It isn't 100% perfect but it won't take very much to make it even better. I noticed that it is running hot though.. rad fluid was coming from under the cap and the engine was steaming a bit after running it for a little bit. The tranny shifts very smooth. I will post some pictures here soon. The car is full of spare parts along with the stuff for the headliner and rest of the interior. Even has the protecto plate. Should be a fun car to work on and drive...if I can keep it from overheating.

Picts to follow and more info!

 

Congrats! We will be waiting for the pics!

 

Good Deal and sounds like your happy with the purchase!
WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF STARFIRE
Steve

 

Cool, pics are a must!!!

 

Ok I took a few pictures but the bugs were REALLY getting to me. I will take all the spare parts out of it tomorrow, clean it up, and take more pictures. The car came with a LOT of extra stuff.. and also a lot of orig stuff like protecto plate, build sheet, orig manuals, and a ton of reciepts of work that had been done (added up cost as much as I paied for the car).

Things I noticed:
It runs quite hot...I am not sure why yet and I hope it isn't anything serious. It sounds good, even with the single exhaust. The windows all roll up and down. The lights do work. I still need to look at the wiring since the wipers don't work, radio, clock, and lights by your feet on the console work, but are very weak. Tach does work, which is nice. There are a few small dings, but not a big deal..some sanding marks on the hood as well. The pass door and fender need some alignment work. Needs a headliner, but I knew that and it came with the material. The crack that I mentioned in the paint by the quarter windows isn't very bad at all. Some of the stainless moulding down the side is dented up from years of car doors hitting it, but that is typical too. The paint job isn't bad and is acceptable to me. Could be better of course but I didn't want a show car.
I wanted something to drive around and take to little car shows with my wife. This car should work just fine once I fix it up a bit. I wasn't expecting a perfect car and I think the red/white combo actually looks pretty cool. Let me know what you guys think.

 

I forgot to add that all the brakes were redone with new master cylinder/booster. It stops quite good.. better than our 08 Subaru. I need to figure out how to work the heater and summer venti controls too. Once I clean it up I will definately take more pictures. This is prob the best old car I have owned up to this point lol

 

Looks like a really nice car. Color combo is cool, I love red interiors.

Thoughts on overheating: When it cools off, I guess you'll have to check the basics like stuck thermostat or a bad radiator cap (make sure the rubber seal inside the cap isn't cracked - that would allow antifreeze to bubble out) A clogged radiator (open the cap - when it's cool! and look at the fins inside.) Are they full of corrosion? If so, that could be your problem. If not, leave the cap off and start her up. Make sure the thermostat opens (the upper radiator hose will get hot and the coolant should flow through as a good stream, not trickeling) If not, the thermostat could be stuck or the water pump could be bad.

Hopefully it's something simple. No matter what, I would change the antifreeze out and put a 50/50 mix in it since there's no telling how old it is, or if the last person put the correct mixture in.

If you have a I/R thermometer, that would also aid in diagnosis to see how hot she actually is running.

Let us know what you find out.

 

I was thinking those same ideas... I hope it isn't the water pump. It the rad is clogged up, should I just replace it? It is the orig harrison radiator. I will do the other checks as well. Is there any brand of anti freeze you would recomend? I assume you would use distilled water too.

I will have a ton more questions.. I know about 56 cheys, 68 gtos and 68 442s.. so this is a totally new experience. And, yeah the car looks pretty good. Up close you can see the imperfections but I can live with it. Looks good enough to drive around.

 

If your radiator is bad, you could recore it but it will probably be north of $350-400. Great if originality is your concern. There are probably companies that make aftermarket radiators that fit your car, either in aluminum (would cool the best) or copper. Should be a cheaper option than recoring. (Could try Summit Racing, or maybe someone else here has another source they could recommend)

I use Prestone green 50/50 mix (Walmart - $10/gallon), but you could also buy straight antifreeze and just mix it with distilled water, 50/50.

 

I have another question.. are the seat backs supposed to lock in place?? I know they did in my 68 GTO/442.. but I am not sure if they are supposed to or not in the Starfire.

I will check that out. Could I run some rad cleaner though everything to help clear it out as well, instead of doing a recore?

 

Very nice looking car! Pics are cool; looks like you have original interior. On those old cars, I don't believe the seat backs locked; but it would make sense if they did.

Rad cleaner can't really hurt to help clean it. Get the rad pressure tested. The shop can advise you whether a re-core is needed. Not sure if they will even have cores for 50 year old cars. Good luck with that!

 

Thanks for the info!! I guess without the seat backs locking.. you will have a semi ejection seat though the front window lol. Yeah the interior is orig.. the carpet is actually new, but it is hard to tell bec it is kind of dirty.

I will prob change out the thermostat since that is an easy job, and do a visual inspection of the radiator. I will give it a better look though tomorrow when the bugs aren't out drinking all my blood

 

I love the looks of those old beauties!!!

 

The seat backs do not latch. That didn't start till 68, though they were optional in 1967.

I'm thinking you may have good original carpets since the sewn-in vinyl mats are still there.

I doubt you will find any aftermarket aluminum radiator that will fit without a whole lot of fitting and rigging. A good radiator shop should be able to get a correct core.

Water pump should be easy to get if that's it; they used the same one from 1949-62. I'd try a new pressure cap first though. Did you pay attention to the COLD warning light when you started it cold?

 

I like her! Very nice!! Good luck with the coolant issue - hope you get it figured out!!

 

When it turned it over..it was yellow.. then just shut off. I didn't see anything green but when I check it out tomorrow I will look at things closer.

I was thinking they were orig carpets, but I found the reciept for the new carpet that is in there. The guy who had it had the front mats sewn back into the carpet, but the rear mats have these big holes in there (looks like someone put seat belt bolts though them or something at one time) so he didn't attach them in case i find better rear mats.

I was surprised the seat backs didn't latch! I thought my seats were broken lol! The power seat still works. I think there may have been a problem with the wiring after digging into the reciepts. The last owner took it somewhere and they diagnosed some stuff wrong but it was fixed... some stuff kind of bypassed to get things working. I don't know for sure but I will find out more. Once I fix the coolant issue I am going to plate it and drive it around a bit

 

Well viper, looks like you're about to take the first, second, third etc step into the never ending journey of learning about your car. Sometimes rewarding, sometimes discouraging. All the time - it's your pride and joy. We'll continue to be here for you.

 

Thanks!! I am looking forward to this new adventure. There will be a lot of questions, believe me!! The car came with the 2 repair manuals.. do they have a body assembly manual or anything else I would need?

 

Some good news. Here is a link to Fusick Automotive - big cars including the Starfire. They have licensed GM repro parts for the car. Not everything but it's certainly a start. If you look at their manuals section they have a 5 piece shop service manual for your car. http://www.fusick.com/catfile/Catalo...yout%201_3.pdf

Also, if you go to Faxon http://www.faxonautoliterature.com/Search.aspx?c=22156 they have the body shop manual for this car (as a reprint) but it should have the info you're looking for. I would send them an email and describe what you are looking for before you commit to buying anything sight unseen.

Hope this is a good start for you.

 

Got ya! That will help out and I appreciate it!

 

very nice. i plan to have a 62 Starfire someday and the red interior is my favorite that year. i had a 62 dynamic 88 and the only place i could find a water pump was at Carquest. kanter had them but was 4 times the price of carquest.

 

I was looking though some of the books and what not that came with the car and I found a usa part supply catalogue which had the water pumps in there. They aren't too expensive. If I get a new thermostat, which degree do you all recommend? I am gonna look at everything today and see if I can figure out what the problem is.

 

Congrats on the new ride! She looks pretty good to me. You have been given good advice so far. Follow it and life will be easier for you. Especially the advice on the manual.

You need the FSM (Factory Service Manual). Note it is in 2 volumes; the 1961 FSM and the 1962 Supplement.

Don't try and guess on the cooling system. Drain/flush/drain again/flush again, the cooling system. Note that there are drain petcocks on each side of the block, at the bottom, near the oil pan flange. Drain the block! Replace the thermostat and radiator cap. Then, and only then begin your diagnosis.

I would tell you these engines do generate a lot of heat, even when operating normally. Of course, they should not leak or vent steam.

I suspect electrical problems, from what you have discovered so far. The lights would be weak for only a couple of reasons: The battery charge is low, or there are poor grounds.

Have fun and enjoy sorting everything out!

 

I will definately follow everyone's advice. I am going to take all the spart parts out today and look for the manuals that came with the car. I should take an inventory as well. It decided to rain today...so I guess I won' t be able to give her a wax

 

All the body service procedures are in the Chassis Service Manual back in those years. Like Dave says, you need the 1961 manual and the 1962 Supplement which are the manuals I'm guessing came with it. To my knowledge 62 was the only year Olds did that, though supplement manuals are common for Chevrolets. As in case of a 1964 full-size Chevy, you have to get the 1961 book, then the 62, 63 and 64 supplements to make sure you have everything.

I'm not crazy to hear there's been electrical rigging, but I have to believe it was done because they couldn't find a replacement part.

180 degree stat should work fine. Get a pressure cap while you're into it.

A lot of people are afraid of early 60s Oldsmobiles, but they work the same way as any other car from their era. Just not as easy to find replacement parts or in some cases people who understand them and know how to service them.

 

Very sharp ride, nice colors. Don't let the small stuff discourage you, improvements will give you more of a sense of ownership and pride. It's a keeper!

 

Wow... that's one cool car! Congrats!

 

A Jetfire and a Starfire are two very different animals. Jetfire is a turbocharged Cutlass with aluminum-block 215. Starfire is the full-size "executive hot rod". (See, they were doing that even before the 68 Hurst/Olds!)

 

Thanks for the advice and info everyone. I am going to head out to the car and see what I can dig up. I should have more pictures today. I am just glad the car runs, drives, and stops...which is already about a million times better than any of the other old cars I have/had. So everything else that works on this car is a plus. I was really surprised that the build sheet came with the car in a vac sealed pouch.

 

I just spent about an hour or so digging the spare parts out of the trunk.. I must have at least 1/4 of a Starfire in there in just the spare parts!!! I noticed there is a small oil leak Since it is sunny out now I can wash it and give it a good wax job.

 

Let us know when you decide to change oil so we can hear you holler about the drain plug...

 

I will have to keep that in mind heh...

I think I found the source of the coolant leaking around the radiator. My wife noticed the overflow hose was cracked, so coolant was comming out. I will need to go though the wiring for sure and clean all the contacts. When I start the car, the tail lights will come on, except for the inner pass. side tail lights. Reverse lights do not work. Also, the light that is at the bottom rear of the console won't turn off even if I flip the switch and the doors are open. I need to mess with the summer ventilation controls as well and see if all the diaphrams still work correctly. I got to wash and wax some of it today so it really looks a lot better, although not perfect..but that is ok

 

Sweet ride, really like the white with red top and the red interior

 

Hopefully a good flushing, thermostat change and fixing that cracked hose will fix your cooling system.

But, if you do end up needing a radiator recore, a good radiator shop can do it for you. Just had mine done for my 63 Riviera last year, was around $425 for the recore.

 

I started to wash and wax it yesterday. It is starting to look really nice. I was surprised at how many spare parts came with it. I am going to put an order in today for the small things I need, as well as the 61 shop manual (I only have the 62). Once I get the cooling issue fixed... I can plate/drive the car around to test it out.. maybe find more problems lol

I hope I don't have to do a recore, but thanks for the input SKL. Honestly, it may have been already done from the look of the radiator.. there is a newer radiator shop tag on there, and the inside doesn't look very bad at all.. almost like a radiator that is a year or 2 old. But, I will have to be open to the recore option if it comes down to that

 

That is a nice looking car and should be great driver once you sort it out. When you get a chance be sure to jack it up and get under, check out the suspension. My 63 was OK in the cooling and electrical departments but needed some major help underneath, currently having all new bushings, springs, and shocks installed. Another thing to check are the rubber fuel lines back by the tank and up by the engine plus the rubber lines to the transmission cooler in the radiator - make sure they are not soft or leaking, I also had to do work in that area. Good luck!

 

Where in Ohio are you located, fellow Buckeye??

 

Middletown.. between Dayton and Cinny I am pretty new to this side of the US. I grew up in California from 1982 to 2003 when I joined the Army reserve. My wife's family lives up by Van Wert so once we were both done with the military and left Germany.. we decided to settle close to her family.

 

Well, it is a small world, as I lived in Middletown for a few years in the early 1970's. So, we have that and '62 Olds in common!

 

Where in Middletown did you live? It was prob a nicer area back then..before that mall they built into the old downtown killed off everything. I live close to the old downtown and in the process of restoring an old house (as well as the Starfire). The area isn't too bad, but needs to be fixed up a lot.

I bought a new thermostat yesterday but the gasket for the housings are special order I may just take in the gasket and have them try to match it up or just order if from Fusicks or USA parts supply etc. It has kept raining on and off the past few days so I have only been able to wax the car a fender at a time lol..