Bought my first Riv today

Hello all. My name is Matt and I'm 20 years old. I bought a 97 Riviera today for a good price, and I LOVE it so far! I spent the past two or three evenings reading alot of threads on this forum (that is also when I joined technically), and it is truly a great resource. It has 138K miles, and runs great. Needs some work, but nothing horrible. I am new to Rivieras but not new to the 3800/4T65e-HD, or GM (I have done 4 engine swaps in Fieros so far). I have already done some mods, one of which was gutting the air box. Helped for sure, that red piece was so limiting flow.

Hey that Light... open the wiring harness boot that's between the door and body,
you may have some broken wires in there... that's common. and if its burnt out you can
try a junk yard or search the site, I know someone did a post about replacing them.
AND WELCOME!!!!! shes a beautiful car!

Welcome to the group, Matt.

That's a nice looking Riv you have there. I'm always amazed at how well the interiors hold up on these cars. I'm more of an exterior / interior detailing nut, so I will leave the mechanical advice to the pros. I'm sure they will be here to offer good advice. Congrats on your new ride.

Hi, Matt. Welcome aboard. Lots of questions in your first post. In order to better serve you, it would be a good idea to read through our Getting Started page. If you missed it, here's the link:

https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t50-welcome-riviera-fans-read-here-first

Once you understand how to use our board, it will be easier to find the answers you need. I've posted some links for you below, directing you to existing threads. Please post further questions in these threads. Thx.

Quote :

I do have a few questions-
-Power steering pump is making more noise then I would think is normal. Not sure if it's the pump though. The power steering works great still, too great actually. I just read about that today here, and yes my 97 has super feather light steering. I could use one finger. Haha. Of course there is no steering feel at all because of it.
-Supercharger coupler needs replaced (rattle rattle). What would you recommend I get for a pulley size? 3.6 or 3.5?
-Fuel door doesn't open without assistance, how can I fix this?
-The rear brakes look HORRIBLE. Those rear rotors are disgusting, there is no solid wear surface anymore, it's only like half. I'm sure pads are toast and Front brakes look OK, but the rotors still look worn down some. I think this is partly because the ebrake cable is completely frozen from rust (or maybe the calipers.. gulp). I put some force on the little pedal and it didn't budge.
-What about the F-body brake upgrade? Haven't read into that much. Is it worth it?
-I"m slightly concerned about the transmission. The fluid is somewhat brown ish and doesn't smell that great. Would a fluid change and fluid help it? It works just fine.
-Rust. It's there, and needs to be taken care of soon. It's at that point where if I don't do something about it in the near future, I will most likely start seeing holes.
-Not sure if the suspension needs work or not. Seems ok.
-I do have a slight wobble in my steering column, but it's a small amount, so i think it should be ok for now?

Is there anything I'm missing or should know about these cars so I'm prepared?

Power Steering Noise: https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t4631-faq-power-steering-pump-noise-problems

Supercharger Coupler: https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t6718-write-up-supercharger-coupler-replacement-series-ii

SC Pulley Size: https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t3656-faq-smaller-sc-pulley-what-size

Fuel Door Stuck: https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t3111-faq-fuel-door-stuck-closed-hinge-problems

Rear Brakes: https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t631-write-up-replacing-rear-rotors-and-pads-lots-of-pics

F-Body Upgrade: https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t2310-write-up-f-body-brake-mod

Transmission Fluid: https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t3692p15-write-up-transmission-fluid-filter-change

Rust Concerns: https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t6233-faq-rust-areas-concerns

Suspension: https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t4759-faq-g-body-suspension-basics

Steering Wobble: https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t6471-faq-steering-column-slop-problems-replacement

Again, welcome, and congrats on the new ride!

Welcome. Nice looking car you have there.

Thanks everyone for the welcome and compliments.

AA, thank you very much for the links, I apologize for the excessive amount of questions in my first post. It started out as a few simple things, but it just kept growing the more I thought about it. I tend to over-analyze things a bit too much.

Well Matt, you've come to the right place
There's no finer venue for in-depth Riviera info, especially 8th Generation.
Soak it up!

Welcome! You've found a multitude of Riviera aficionados here, and we're all glad to help however we can!

Welcome

I would change the transmission fluid pronto it's a simple job no need to wait.

I would fix the rust pronto while the weather is favorable.

No problem, Matt. The Riv FAQ button at the top of the screen is your friend. Click on it and look in the Interior section. The Search feature will help you locate the harder to find stuff. We're here for everything else!

Best of luck!

Congrats on your find, Matt! Sweet looking ride...
Welcome to the family!

i bought a 97 sc riv about 2 month ago 75,000 miles old lady car . but i dont think she washed it once since she bought it in 96 needs paint .but i think iam gonna keep it for a while and repaint it

Nice find! Is your new '97 supercharged??

yes it is super charged