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1979 Seville

Started by Gene Beaird, June 17, 2022, 06:22:26 PM

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Gene Beaird

It's getting to be time we reduced the herd some, so I'm making available our 1979 Seville.  It was a dream car for me, one that I had always wanted since I saw them as a kid.  This one showed up at a friend's who was working on an LS-swap project into a Seville.  He had the '79, but then found a'76 with very low mileage and in much better shape, so this one was available.   I've only driven it a few times, having way too many projects in our shop to give it the time and care it really needs.  We'd like to see it go to a good home. 

The particulars:
1979 Seville, white with tan interior.  I've added 1996 Fleetwood Brougham wheels, but still have the original steel wheels and wire hubcaps.  The car starts and runs well, albeit at a bit of a high idle.  I've tried the 'spacer' trick in the throttle body, but was only able to get the idle down a bit lower, or too low, so put that project off until I could concentrate on getting varying thickness spacers.  That hasn't happened. 

When we got the car, the transmission slipped if you didn't let it gently shift into 3rd.  I had the transmission rebuilt by a good local rebuilder who discovered, and fixed several issues with it.  It shifts and runs great.  The car starts right up and I wouldn't hesitate to take it out to run errands except for the motorhome and other things I have to get out of the way to do so. 

I added Kwicar sway bars and while it still has the very soft Cadillac ride, it corners much flatter.  I really like it.  I do have the OEM sway bars though. 

When we got the car, the front plastic/fiberglass grill/headlight support had suffered minor collisions and was cracked in several places.  I removed it and repaired it with epoxy and fiberglass.  There are a couple of places you can see the repairs, but it's all one piece again.  The car did get a new vinyl roof installed under the PO's ownership, and it looks good.  The carpet could use a good cleaning, and the seats show general wear for their age.  I think the headliner needs replacing, but looks good otherwise.  It has an aftermarket stereo in it, and while I've tried to get an OEM replacement, that hasn't happened yet. 

The A/C was converted to R134, and while it needs a recharge, it ran great for more than a year after I bought it.  The HVAC controls all seem to work fine, and I have the climate computer tester that comes with the car.  I also have a few spares, including spare ECUs.  The ECU on the car has had the Bruce Roe relay kit installed, so it should be good to go for some time. 

The bumper extensions in the back have suffered from the normal 'crumble and fall' issue that many of this era cars suffer from.  I do have a set of the fiberglass replacements, but have not attempted any fitting of those pieces. 

Th driver's power seat adjuster housing is cracked, so the seat will not move forward or back from current setting.  I haven't tried (but will soon try) to see if we can manually-hold the housing together to get forward-backward adjustments to work, but right now, that's a no.  I had, for a while, attempted to find a replacement, but part outs for 70's-era Sevilles happen so rarely, and no one could ever tell me if one from some other car would work.  I suspect they're pretty common, but do not know for certain.

Overall, it's a nice car, but does need some TLC.  I hate to get rid of it, but have way too many projects already, and this one isn't being helped by just sitting there. 

I believe it to have about 102,000 miles on it, but do not know for certain.  I'd like to get $4500 for it, but we can talk. You can PM me here, or email at bgbeaird@sbcglobal.net. If you wish to have a picture of something else, just ask.  I think I've taken representative pictures here, showing most of the warts. 

Here are some pictures:





















Gene Beaird,
1968 Calais
1979 Seville
Pearland, Texas
CLC Member No. 29873

Gene Beaird

I just remember that I also replaced the radiator within the first year of ownership.  The, what looks like original, radiator sprung a leak, and when I finally found a place that could do the repair, they talked me into a thicker all-aluminum unit, which I installed.  We've had zero issues with this new radiator, and still have the old one, which will go with the car in case someone wants to repair it and return it to the car. 
Gene Beaird,
1968 Calais
1979 Seville
Pearland, Texas
CLC Member No. 29873

Gene Beaird

We got the driver's seat adjuster transmission replaced over Labor Day, so it's back to working as expected.  We used one of the Caddy Daddy rebuilt units.  The old one came out in tiny pieces. 
Gene Beaird,
1968 Calais
1979 Seville
Pearland, Texas
CLC Member No. 29873

Gene Beaird

We've had a few send questions, but no viewings yet.  The car is still available.  Thank you. 
Gene Beaird,
1968 Calais
1979 Seville
Pearland, Texas
CLC Member No. 29873

79 Eldorado

Gene,
I'm making a replacement for the FIV which will drop your fast idle in the time which Cadillac intended. I thought I would mention it in case that becomes a point making perspective buyers uncomfortable.

I offer them on junkyardfind.com at a lower price than on eBay as JYF doesn't charge fees and it seems like a safe and reliable site; just not as well known as eBay. It's nice as well because you can use paypal which provides a buyer with some added protection.

Here's a link to the FIV with full description:
https://www.junkyardfind.com/1975-80-cadillac-efi-fiv-fast-idle-valve-choke-heater-replaces-1628898-1181290-a-5173.html

Scott
FIV Explained GraphsGraphics 10JA2021.JPG
FIV Mine 1.JPG 

Gene Beaird

Thank you, Scott.  I'd love to grab one of those, just for my own use before the car sells.  Unfortunately, it seems that junkyardfind.com will NOT let me register.  Using a valid email address, it posts an error 'enter valid email address'.  Then, when I include a PayPal account email address, and click 'register' , it just returns to a blank registration page.  Sigh.

Gene Beaird,
1968 Calais
1979 Seville
Pearland, Texas
CLC Member No. 29873

79 Eldorado

Hi Gene,
I have encountered a couple of quirky things before on JYF but nothing frequent. Somehow I was able to contact the moderator of JYF and they sorted things out. If you're having trouble though send me a DM on this site with your contact info and I'll simply send you a paypal invoice. JYF is nice for me because it lets the buyer enter their own address and populates everything in Paypal.

Best regards,
Scott

Gene Beaird

Scott,

Empty your inbox, please.   :)
Gene Beaird,
1968 Calais
1979 Seville
Pearland, Texas
CLC Member No. 29873

79 Eldorado

Gene,
I am bumping up to the limit but it would need to be a really big file to be an issue. Maybe you could send me a message through the forum "DM" with your email. I'll send you one right now so you can reply.

Scott

Gene Beaird

Gene Beaird,
1968 Calais
1979 Seville
Pearland, Texas
CLC Member No. 29873

Gene Beaird

Got the new FIV installed, and it works great!!  I think the warm idle is still a bit high, but had no tach to verify.  It's definitely lower than before with the spacers, so I'll call it good. 

Highly-recommended for the FI cars with a failed OEM FIV.  Thanks, Scott!
Gene Beaird,
1968 Calais
1979 Seville
Pearland, Texas
CLC Member No. 29873

79 Eldorado

Gene,
Great news! If the warmed idle is a little high that's an easy adjustment. The idle screw is on the front of the TB. It's merely a threaded screw/bolt which closes a portion of a hole in the air-horn area of the TB. Turn the screw clockwise to lower the idle (CW closes the passage). When someone changes their FIV I normally recommend counting the turns until the main idle screw just touches; counting by half turns is normally the easiest. Once you do that you can always go back to your baseline. Anyway mine is set to about 3.5 turns out from fully closed. There is a procedure to set the idle fully warmed and in drive. Regardless of miles our cars are pretty old and things like timing variation will cause RPM to fluctuate. I set mine so that when the FIV is closed the car runs without an issue. Remember the car won't be fully warmed when the FIV closes but the car should have sufficient time to be able to run at normal RPM once it closes. I like using a timing light with a tachometer built-in. Those are good for diagnostic work and they aren't very expensive.

If you want to make adjustments I would recommend 1/4 turn adjustments. To get an accurate measure of the change you made you do need to have the car fully warmed. The reason being the car will increase slightly in RPM after the FIV closes while the car continues to warm-up.

Scott


Gene Beaird

#12
Thank you for the reply.  While I found the idle screw, the front was covered over, I guess by the factory, so didn't disturb it.  While the idle seems a bit high, it's just a bit, maybe 700 vs. 600 it's supposed to be, so not bad, and the car certainly no longer jerks into gear when shifting to drive.  MUCH better! 

While I have several timing lights, I'll have to get one with a built-in tach.  Looks useful.  I do have old Craftsman and Sun engine analyzers, but they require hooking up to the tach port on the distributor, and with my wonky shoulder, just wasn't happening.  Thank you for all your help.  Can't wait to get the car back out and drive it. 
Gene Beaird,
1968 Calais
1979 Seville
Pearland, Texas
CLC Member No. 29873

Gene Beaird

The car is still available, in case anyone is interested.  Thank you. 
Gene Beaird,
1968 Calais
1979 Seville
Pearland, Texas
CLC Member No. 29873