My '88 Rivi T-Type

Check it out. This is my 1988 Rivi T-Type. Hope you all like it. Its my second car and it makes my first, a oldmobile cutlass ciera, look like scrap metal. http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewPicture&friendID=31322606&albumId=1739363

Sweet. I learned to drive in an Olds Cutlass Ciera. They've got an interesting style although I doubt many would agree with me.

I enjoyed my Cutlass. It was a beast. I was under the hood every week to make sure it worked for me. I put that olds thru a few wrecks. But it never gave up. What ended the olds life was a broken off oxygen sensor. I caught it too late and the engine just seized up. That was the first thing I replaced when I got my Rivi. I didnt want to go thru all of that again.

Nice Riv!!! Super clean, is it all original? I wish mine had a sun roof and the back half of the roof wasn't vinyl. What is different between a reg riv and a t type?

Nice Riviera, very clean and classy looking!
I had a '90' dark brown metallic w/ half padded top. It was always a very comfortable riding cruiser.
I see also you have Stewie Griffen riding in the back. cool!

I believe the main differences between a regular Riv and a T-type are the transmission final drive (2.84 VS. T-type 2.97), badging, and some other small trinkets. The only thing that bothers me about your T-type, Wolfmaster, is that the T-type emblem is missing off of the steering wheel. I'm not saying yours isn't a T-type, it's just that there should be an emblem there.

It's a very nice car though! Very interesting two-tone paint scheme.

Well not all T-types had the emblem on the steering wheel. It most certainly is a T-type. The different between regular and T-type is also the ability for a Turbo. That is what T in T-type stands for. There were a few models that had turbos straight from the factory. Unfortunately, I didnt get one with a turbo already on it. Id still love to get one for it if it wasnt for the engine's age. And thanks for the comment on stewie. I get a laugh when people ride up close and point, or walk by in the parking lot and say "There's Stewie!!" Makes it all the more worth while.

I believe it's a T-type, albiet a rare one. There were only some 8,000 total Rivieras built in 1988 so a T-type of that year is going to be rare. However, no Rivieras after 1985 were turbo'd or even had that option. Admittedly, the 'T-type' name did have something to do with turbocharging at one point but in the mid 1980's it was just meant as a performance and appearance upgrade package over regular models. Unfortunately for us Riviera owners, turbos were Limited to the Regal T-type and Grand National by the time your Riv's body style came around.

Hey Andrew, I just noticed that your 25mi south of the burgh. You anywhere near little washington?

89riv, you have a PM

Yeah Z-Type, it kinda sucks that they cut out the turbo addition on the engine. Of course, Id be getting myself into even more trouble. And thanks for the fun facts about the numbers on my car. Makes it even more worth holding onto as long as I can. I have been thinking about putting a K&N filter set-up and upgraded performance ignition module, coil pack, plugs and wires in my car down the road. Any thoughts on that?

I'm not familiar with that Generation Riv at all. What engine package came in them.? Were there options on engines from the factory.?

These Rivs came with the first Series 1 3800s. They had the very cool touch-screen CRT inside that interfaced for everything, radio, hvac, etc. A pretty unique vehicle.

One of my favorite things is the built-in diagnostic feature of the CRT. Hold down "Heat" and "Off" at the same time for a few seconds, and you enter diagnostic mode, where you can scroll through EVERY sensor on the car. It's very very cool, and especially useful when you are trying to troubleshoot a problem.

That CRT is the coolest thing. My sister's '89 Reatta has it and it makes me feel fancy. Way WAY ahead of their time. And yes in '86 and '87 the only engine it came with was the 150 horsepower 3.8 LG3 and starting in '88, the 165 HP LN3 3800. Then in '91 it got the Series 1. Mostly the same engine across the board. Mostly.

Wolfmaster - a K&N drop in filter will do you wonders. The only reason I wouldn't suggest just getting a cone filter is because you dont want to suck up hot air, and there's not much room in those engine bays. We tried to figure it out on my sister's Reatta (same front end construction) and it's just hard to do any worthwhile intakes that aren't hot air.

I have been thinking about getting a k&n filter, but you dont suggest a cone filter? I pulled my aire box on my s10 and put a cone filter on it, it made a difference. Is it best to stay with the factory type filter?

Anyone have experience with the door speakers in these rivs? I have made threads and got alot of good info, but it doesnt hurt to ask.

Ryan...some interesting riviera data for you,

The "T" in your T-Type actually stands for the grand "Touring" package option which could be added to the base riviera.

There were 8625 combined total rivieras produced for 1988 (no specific breakout for T-Type production or silver anniversary production). Base price was $21,615 plus an additional $1,765 for the Touring option.

The Touring option included grand touring suspension (RPO code FE3), 2.97:1 axle ratio, 15in aluminum wheels, leather steering wheel & shift handle, fast-ratio power steering, and P215/65R15 black sidewall Eagle GT+4 tires.

1988 was the last year for the straightback rear end design...89-93 had the slantback rear end design. 1986-87 had the first gen CRT and 88-89 had the second gen CRT....89 being the last year due to too many accidents caused by people taking eyes off road to play w/ radio & A/C controls.

As Derek said, 1988 rivs used the LN3 (pre)series1 3800 V6 rated @ 165hp. 1992-93 rivs had an improved L27 Series1 3800 rated @ 170hp. These were the only engines available for rivs.

1988 was the last year for the "T-Type" option available on the riviera.

Oh an open filter helps for sure with flow, but it's not necessarily a good idea to be sucking in hotter than ideal air...that's why the air box has the tube that goes behind the headlight, to a degree.

I would suggest a large cone filter if you can do a fenderwell intake of some kind, but as far as I know, it's semi-difficult to do on those 7th generation Rivs. We'll take a look at it when you come swing by my place one day! Oh and you have a PM 89riv.

deek wrote: Hold down "Heat" and "Off" at the same time for a few seconds, and you enter diagnostic mode, where you can scroll through EVERY sensor on the car. It's ....wow! why didnt they put that in ours? F..K!!

One of my older Cadilacs (I think it was late 80's) had a similar feature. It did not have a CRT but you could read everything through the HVAC panel after holding down the Heat and OFF buttons. Then you were able to read all sensor values and also do some diagnostics from the panel as well. You could read codes and the FSM had all the instructions for how to use the feature and interpret the readings.

My '92 rivs have the diagnostic feature through the HVAC along with a primitive OBD1 hookup next to the emergency brake release lever.

Alright. Ill think about a standard K&N Filter and leave it in my box. I dont want to pump hotter air into my engine anyway. The plugs show that the cylinders are running hot. I have to do a radiator flush soon as well. It is in need.

I did try that code search diagnostic on my car. My haynes manual told me every code so I was able to figure out what they all meant. I had a few circuit faults. One with the twilight delay, one for the courtesy lights which has to do with faulty door jamb switches, and i cant find them anywhere. And the last code pertains to the AC refrigerant being low.

And thanks for more facts Z-type. I already knew my engine type and HP. Ive done a few nights of research as well. Its too bad the stopped making Rivis cause I would of loved to show up at a 50 year meet with my silver anniversary car. I hope to get it a paint job soon. Its chipping here and there. The people who painted it didnt do a very good job of it.