Bjankins1

So I just bought this car and unfortunately as much as I love it, I didnt find out about a few things until I got home

Three problems so far that I have found and I'm sure there's more I'll deal with later....

1. Heat Guage Does not work at all 2. Gas Pedal is loose ( I'm kicking myself for missing this)

3. Turn signal sticks on left and works intermittent, right side does not show a light on the dash not does it blink

I'm really hoping with problem #1 that I don't have to do what someone had to do with there 95 cutlass, on his, the temp was reading hot even know the car was cool, it turns out that a TSB was made and you had to replace the harness with a three prong, and I'm pretty sure you have to splice and solder wires

Olds64

Have you replaced the coolant temperature sensor? You should be able to get one pretty cheap at the auto parts store.

joe_padavano

Turn signals not blinking is usually a sign of a burned out bulb on that side.

BlueCalais79

There are some great folks here on this site that can help you out, and there's another great bunch of people on the W-Body Forum site that can help as well. I currently have a 1994 CS and a 1996 CS so I find I am visiting that site alot.

With my gauges in my 1994 I'm finding my amps gauge buries itself at j-u-s-t short of the red line when it's running, that's something I need to work on, so I share your pain on those gauges. Perhaps a loose connection at the sensor for your gauge?

Olds64

FWIW, my 96 98 had a slow or intermittent blinker when the alternator was failing. You can have the alternator tested for free at the auto parts store.

Bjankins1

It's most likely the switch for the turn signal, which is kinda ridiculous, the rear left brake light doesn't work after changing the fuse and the bulb
what are common issues with the cutlass models 91-93? I seriously can barely find info about these cars

joe_padavano

You could break down and buy a factory service manual. There are about two dozen on ebay right now. This one was all of $8.

Olds64

Be aware that the turn signal lever is quite complicated and a salvage yard only item. The lever on my 96 98 is quite worn and I've considered getting another at the junkyard. Left/right turn signal, cruise control ON/OFF/RESUME and multiple wiper speeds are way too many functions to have in one spot.

x2 about the service manual. You can even get them on disc. The service manual I got for my 96 98 was on disc and the writing quality is pitiful compared to my FSM and CSM for my 71 98. Maybe they outsourced the writing in the 90s?

joe_padavano

Don't get me started on the decline in quality of the GM factory service manuals. I've got manuals from the 1950s through 1999. Suffice to say that the content has dumbed down significantly starting in the early 1970s. The manual for my 1999 Chevy truck is SIX volumes, and nearly every chapter is a turn-by-turn flowchart that ends up with "Replace computer with known good unit and retest." The older manuals used to provide theory on how the subsystems worked so you could both understand and figure out obscure problems on your own. Today we've succumbed to the navigation system approach where we can only follow a cookbook and are unable to think for ourselves.

matt69olds

i do prefer the electrical diagrams of GM manuals starting in the mid 80s. It’s nice having just the wiring related to whatever your working on. I’m sure that is due to the ever more complicated electrical systems that started showing up around the same time.

Bjankins1

It's the turn signal switch, the brake light will come on if u pull back on the high beams, odd ...

Appearently this is a very common issue with these cars

Olds64

Did you find a new turn signal switch in the salvage yard? Here's a search engine to use to find salvage yard parts near you:

https://www.car-part.com/

Cutlass Fan

How is the body? Any rust or other damage? I doubt if there are any reproduction panels.
If you like the car and can make it reliable for a very reasonable price, go for it, but don't let I become a money pit. To me it is not collectable and may never be, so only you can decide if spending $$$ on it is worth it or selling it and putting it down to a life lesson is the way to go. Most of us have made similar mistakes.

Bjankins1

Trust me I'm in between about it, so far I just replaced brake pads and rotors, body is good, paint faded on hood and trunk but overall no rust on the body but on the exhaust, there's some rust, and inside the door panels, there's a decent amount of metal parts in there that are rusted, luckily, I was able to get rust off a few of these parts with some rust o leum rust dissolver