Bringing car out of storage

Ok...it's too cold out for me to verify right now. I remember this connector to be really stiff and hard to disconnect...but if I'm wrong, I can live with it.
 
It may need a good tug if it hadn't been disconnected for a while. Usually my go to method. At least with the hammer you could consider it a real world test to verify functionality. 😉
 
I don't know why, but I fell in love with a car Dereck showed two years ago. I have watched that show a few times and really like that particular car. I have seen plenty of other Bonnevilles, but for some stupid reason, it really caught my eye. I think it was the color and the interior.


He got it running and I am sure he sold it.
 
White Lincoln said:
I don't know why, but I fell in love with a car Dereck showed two years ago. I have watched that show a few times and really like that particular car. I have seen plenty of other Bonnevilles, but for some stupid reason, it really caught my eye. I think it was the color and the interior.


He got it running and I am sure he sold it.
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68-69 is my favorite of the B body pontiacs. Probably because I’m one of few who liked this movie when I was a kid 🤣

 
several cars and suvs have the inertia switch in that area; I've been known to punch the qp of an inconsiderate driver's car, and watch it die. Assholes that ignore crosswalks are a frequent target,lol.
XR7-4.6 said:
68-69 is my favorite of the B body pontiacs. Probably because I’m one of few who liked this movie when I was a kid 🤣

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That looks like the 68 pontiac my mom had.
My dad had to buy her a new car, off the lot, after he totalled her starliner. My mom always said he wrecked her cars; I dont remember her letting him drive the pontiac, lol. Emerald green,it was a huge boat with a 400v8 iirc.
 
Dumb question, but it needs to be asked.

Can I use my Milwaukee battery for auxiliary power purposes instead of an actual car battery? Thinking of using mine for power cycling the car for fuel pump purposes.

Tell me why this is a dumb or genius idea.

I don't intend on attempting to fire up the engine off this battery. Pretty sure it won't even if I tried.
 
It will run the fuel pump, but not for long; and yeah, hitting start might blow up the battery. This assumes a 12-14v battery. Don't use a 20v or something.
 
Word in the junkyards is that that's what people do to move power seats, etc., because you're not allowed to bring car batteries onto the field. Never attempted it myself though.
 
Yes you can use a small 12v battery. It might be easier to just power the fuel pump circuit by itself rather than trying to power the entire car. Can't say how long it will run the fuel pump for, but it will work.
 
1997ThunderbirdLXV6 said:
Word in the junkyards is that that's what people do to move power seats, etc., because you're not allowed to bring car batteries onto the field. Never attempted it myself though.
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Those 6V flashlight batteries are ideal for this.
 
Update:

I purchased 2 gallons of fresh fuel and ran the car off of my Milwaukee 18v battery pack. I turned the key to KOEO position several times, hearing the fuel pump so it's thing each time.

From there, I disconnected the fuel line at the fuel filter and I was genuinely surprised about the color of the fuel. I expected it to be an orange-red color but no because of how long it was sitting, but no. The fuel color was a lemon yellow. So despite having been sat for so long, the fuel didn't decompose as far as I'd thought. It must be because of all the extra fuel additives they use here in California vs the rest of the country 🤷‍♂️.

Anyway, I also purchased 4qts of Mercon V, but I didn't get a chance to put it in, and I'm not going to until next weekend because I don't want to be losing what I would have just put in from the front pump seal. I'm not sure if I should have purchased more ATF though. The dipstick showed a small amount of ATF at the bottom of the stick, but still not enough to cover the "low" line.

She's definitely going in the garage this weekend! 😁

PXL_20250310_014145698.jpg
 
CDsDontBurn said:
Anyway, I also purchased 4qts of Mercon V, but I didn't get a chance to put it in, and I'm not going to until next weekend because I don't want to be losing what I would have just put in from the front pump seal. I'm not sure if I should have purchased more ATF though. The dipstick showed a small amount of ATF at the bottom of the stick, but still not enough to cover the "low" line.
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I guess that depends if/how much fluid has drained out of the converter. If the converter is still full, any reading on the dipstick would put you at a minimum of 7/13 quarts (potentially closer to 8 if there's fluid left in the heat exchanger and lines). IME a dry trans and converter will fill and engage the 1st gear circuit with about that much fluid. If, on the other hand, the converter has drained (let's say ~2.5 quarts remain up to the bottom of the snout) and you've got a little in the pan, that would probably put you somewhere around 3-4 quarts minimum. If you add in your 4, again, that should be enough for 1st gear to engage successfully.
 
theterminator93 said:
If, on the other hand, the converter has drained (let's say ~2.5 quarts remain up to the bottom of the snout) .
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Does the torque converter drain through the snout during normal standstill between drives? Or is that just a long-term standstill phenomenon?

Ok...as I type this, I realize I can answer my own question: it does not normally drain through there. During my fluid change, when I drained through the torque converter drain plug, I got 7 quarts from the converter alone (the pan had already been drained).

So I guess my question is: what (type of damage/wear) would cause it to drain through the snout?
 
theterminator93 said:
If you add in your 4, again, that should be enough for 1st gear to engage successfully.
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I'll recheck the fluid again before I fill it and of course, afterwards. 1st gear is all I need, but will it also do reverse? I've decided that I would prefer to the front end first, so it needs to be backed in.

That said, will that be enough to engage reverse?

1997ThunderbirdLXV6 said:
to drain through the snout?
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Where is the snout on our 4R70W transmission?

1741589582420.png
 
CDsDontBurn said:
1st gear is all I need, but will it also do reverse? I've decided that I would prefer to the front end first, so it needs to be backed in.

That said, will that be enough to engage reverse?
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TL;DR: I think so, but can't be sure.

Many years ago when I put in the larger trans fluid cooler I had one of the lines blow off because I didn't flare it properly. As all the trans fluid shot out of the cooler feed line over the road, the first thing I noticed was the car dropped out of OD into 3rd, then from 3rd into 2nd. I don't recall exactly but I think at that point I pulled off the side of the road to see what was going on, then noticed the massive leak. Fortunately I wasn't far from home, so I managed to limp the car along in 2nd after I slipped the end of the line over the fitting to prevent more fluid loss. I don't recall reverse not working when I got home, but I can't recall clearly. Even if I did, I still had 2nd gear so I wouldn't know if the R circuit fills before or after either 1st or 2nd.

When filling an empty trans, the usual fill procedure is 6 quarts, then 4, then finally the last 2-4 to top off with an engine start and cycle through all MLPS selections between each fill. The first 6 quarts always goes to fill the converter with none to spare for the clutch circuits. The next 4 quarts is enough to engage R, 1, manual 2 (which uses the OD servo) and the last 2 tops off the pan. So with 6-8 quarts, you're solidly into "engaging gears" territory.
 
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The diff between 1st and reverse is the reverse band, so it has to fill the accumulator that applies the band; so you'll have to test it. As long as the seals are wet with fluid, it shouldn't hurt anything to try, Normal level on the dipstick is above full when it's not running. The worse condition the seals are, the higher it goes, from everything draining back to the pan.
 
Usually reverse is the last gear to go in my experience. I’ve had cars in the shop, both with 4r70s and other transmissions, where the thing wouldn’t move at all in any gear, but reverse would still engage like nothing was wrong. So you should be fine.
 
Thanks for the feedback guys, it's much appreciated!

I think I might need to get an extra quart of two of ATF just make sure I'm good, and namely because of how much my transmission leaks and will be leaking.
 
Not sure if this has been asked already, but can you get a few of your neighbors or family members and just push it into the garage?

Joe
 
I have floated the idea, but the concern here is the possibility of the car suddenly rolling backwards.

I can't seem to upload a picture from mobile, but the area of driveway just behind where my T-Bird sits gets real steep real quick.
 
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