Fresh SC and engine oil today, with a surprise.

Changed my SC oil today, and while I read from you guys how bad it smelled, I was expecting it to have that sulfur smell gear lube has. I wasn't expecting it to smell like..I can't put my finger on it, but someone else's comment that it smells like Camel ass is probably as close a description I have heard.

Mine was a little dark, not too bad. I sure feel better knowing it has been changed. Who knows if anyone ever changed it in 192,000 miles.

Worse thing I found when I raised the car to change the engine oil is the oil pan is badly bashed in!
I don't know what happened, but this car looks like it got hung up on one of those concrete curbs found in parking lots.
While I had seen the damage to the lower edge of the front facia, I wasn't expecting this.
I managed to stick a bar of steel into the drain hole and pop it out some, but I am going to contact a local yard or Morad for a good pan.
This car also has a bad oil drip, and the underside is going to need a trip to the self serve wash with a couple cans of engine cleaner.
I'm going to have to wash it so I can see where the leak is coming from, but suspect the hit this pan took distorted the sealing area.

Replaced the idler I thought was the source of the chirping noise, and while that idler was bad, it wasn't the source of the chirp.

I've poked around with a stethoscope, and can't quite nail it down.
It's either the alternator, (which I have a different one coming from Morad)
Or, is it plausible for the bearing in the nose of the supercharger no make this noise?
It's definitely towards the top of the engine.
Chirp, chirp, chirp at idle, disappears when rpms go up.

Finished gutting the air box, and put a new set of winter floor mats in.

That's about all for today.

Are you sure it's not just a belt making the noise. What condition are they in?

I had to replace my oil pan for exactly the same reason. Goto ROCKAUTO.COM and get your pan there. I paid $59.00 for my pan and didn't even have to get a new gasket since there was no damage to the old one.
By the way, what did you use to get the old S/C oil out? I am thinking about changing my oil too.

Rickw wrote:

Are you sure it's not just a belt making the noise. What condition are they in?

They appear to be in good shape, but I'm going to look at them closer.
It's easy to overlook the simple and obvious sometimes.
Thanks for the suggestion.

EASHER wrote:

I had to replace my oil pan for exactly the same reason. Goto ROCKAUTO.COM and get your pan there. I paid $59.00 for my pan and didn't even have to get a new gasket since there was no damage to the old one.
By the way, what did you use to get the old S/C oil out? I am thinking about changing my oil too.

I can get the pan locally through Checker or Advance for that same price, but am going to price a used one first.

For the SC oil, I used my trusty garage turkey baster.
I had to attach a piece of hose to the end so I could reach all the way to the bottom.

Forgot to mention I got my service manuals Wed. that I bought off eBay.
Funny, I have never been able to read novels because they don't hold my attention, but I can sit for hours engrossed paging through technical manuals.

but I can sit for hours engrossed paging through technical manuals.
[/quote]

Me too. Technical geeks, I guess.

Well Rick, it was a belt.
I took a chunk of paraffin wax out to the car, started it and touched it to the SC belt and silence!

Silence is golden.

Ah, life's simple pleasures.
Glad it was the easier and possibly the cheaper solution.

Just a thought if you are replacing the oil pan - later years 3800s had cast aluminum pans. I've always hated the plastic oil pan. Ed Morad probably has them sitting around.

deekster_caddy wrote:

Just a thought if you are replacing the oil pan - later years 3800s had cast aluminum pans. I've always hated the plastic oil pan. Ed Morad probably has them sitting around.

I saw one of those cast pans on eBay from a 2002? or newer Buick I think, and wondered if it would fit.

I'm pretty sure yes. The bolt pattern is the same and there's nothing under the engine to interfere... not sure if the end seals are the same, but I should think they would be.