Thought I would introduce myself to the Eagle community. I am a Nashville resident that has just inherited a 1987 AMC Eagle. I rode in the car less than a week before it was passed to me. My father was driving daily and he was constantly working on it. It would start, but you had to know the correct number of times to press the gas while rubbing the dash in an undisclosed number of counter clockwise circles while whispering the prayer mantra "come on baby I know you can start". My father, the mechanic, knew what all needed to be done to this vehicle but failed to disclose it all to me before he passed. I know that he would pour powersteering fluid in it everytime he got in the car and the only power steering it had was the power your arms could muster to turn the thing. I am pretty sure the transmission was slipping as well. After he passed I went to his house and found the front drivers side tire flat and of course I could not get it to start. I loaded it on a trailer and brought it to my house. We put the trailer on a hill and put the eagle in neutral to let it roll off the trailer. As it was rolling off something on the bottom of the car caught the edge of the trailer and fluid started coming out from the bottom. It is sitting there now. My dilemma; I really enjoy the car and from what I can tell it is in very good condition (no undercarriage rust and all the chrome is great) but I am not very mechanically inclined. I can turn a wrench if I have good instructions but I really do not have a good place to work on this car. I do not have a lot of money to dump into it either but really hate to sell it. How much do you think it would take to get this car dependable again?
Pictures are here http://www.flickr.com/photos/80371482@N05/
There is a reason your dad was constantly working on it (as every Eagle owner does)! It sounds like a parts car at this point.
I'm sorry to hear about your father passing and can appreciate that you want to get it in running shape again. Nashville, TN? I'm not too far in Fayetteville. I'll be in the Nashville area Saturday riding my dirt bike and can swing by late in the afternoon and take a look at it for you to see how much work it may need. It looks a lot better than a parts car to me.
Sounds like someone is being a little pessimistic.
The majority of us would say that if it doesn't have any major frame rot, then it isn't a parts car.
Sorry to hear about your fathers passing and welcome to the Nest. Anyways, the main reason Eagles need work (some more than others) is that these cars are all 24+ years old now and most haven't been appreciated much by previous owners.
Doesn't sound like too much work.
And thanks to eaglefreek for offering to swing by to check out your bird.
I guess you missed the part about not having a lot of money to dump into what is most likely to be a major (endless) project!
Quote from: George Mann on June 13, 2012, 07:22:25 PM
I guess you missed the part about not having a lot of money to dump into what is most likely to be a major (endless) project!
That's definitely understandable and any old car can be a money pit, but it could also be passed on to someone who will fix it instead of part it out if chanticlair decides not to keep it.
Quote from: MudPuppy on June 13, 2012, 07:08:16 PM
Sounds like someone is being a little pessimistic.
The majority of us would say that if it doesn't have any major frame rot, then it isn't a parts car.
Sorry to hear about your fathers passing and welcome to the Nest. Anyways, the main reason Eagles need work (some more than others) is that these cars are all 24+ years old now and most haven't been appreciated much by previous owners.
Doesn't sound like too much work.
And thanks to eaglefreek for offering to swing by to check out your bird.
Just read this & want to X 2 on the thanks to Freek. Always nice to see someone willing to spend a little time to help someone. Actually, I agree with what the entire post says, but wanted to add my thanks.
Quote from: MudPuppy on June 13, 2012, 07:08:16 PM
Sounds like someone is being a little pessimistic.
The majority of us would say that if it doesn't have any major frame rot, then it isn't a parts car.
Absolutely. No Eagle with a good body is a parts car.
Wish I was closer. I could at least help troubleshoot it. Can you get pics of the underside? Especially where the fluid was coming from. It may be a hole in the trans pan (not too hard to fix and pans are available at the nearest pic-n-pull yard in Mopars as well as Eagles not to mention through here)
The starting issue sounds like the carb needs to be looked at as well as vacuum lines. I'm about to do the harness conversion (from the parts Eagle) and leave the other stuff in place until I do the head/valve cover swap along with EFI.
Sorry to hear of your fathers passing. I lost mine in 2008 and while one never gets over it, the memories you have of him will help get you through it.
I've had my Eagle for the last two years and through this site, there's lots of knowledge to help you get it running and reliable again. From the experiance with my 83 Eagle, if the critical parts (Drive Train, Body) are in good working condition getting it dependable could be as easy tuneups, rubber part replacements (water hoses, vacuum hoses, belts) adjustments etc.
Being optimistic, the starting issues could be ignition or fuel related, power steering issues could be just a leaky hose, pump or steering box, transmission slippage could just be an adjustment.
Being pessimistic, yeah could always be a lot worse. I've put about $2500 into mine over the last 2 years which included radiator, most of the hoses replaced, alternator, transmission rebuild, belts, battery, tires etc. But then again its almost 30 years old and some of those parts have to be fixed/replaced normally and the car apparently sat unused a lot of years.
Lastly, an egg to Eaglefreek in advance for his offer to look it over..
Thank you all for taking a look at it. I really appreciate EagleFreak for offering to come by and take a look. I will be out of town this weekend. Father's day is Sunday so I plan on spending it on the lake and camping. The engine ran strong after it was started and the body is in really good condition. I am going to sell a motorcycle so that I can put the money into this car. I just wanted to know if the $2000 I get for the bike would be enough to turn this thing into a daily driver. I will get some more pics soon. anyone know the towing capacity on these cars? After reading through several builds I am pretty excited that I could restore this beauty!
$2000 really depends on what needs to be done and if you are doing most of the work or a mechanic. It's near impossible to put any kind of price on the repairs without knowing what's wrong with it. Sorry, we couldn't meet up the this weekend. I should be out that way next weekend also.
Much respect for taking on your father's Eagle project. My mom was planning to sell dad's '86 Eagle after he passed away but I convinced her that I could use a 4-wheel-drive and that I could learn more about car repair on it.
So far I purchased a glove box hasp and a steering column in the wrong color for it. The hasp was easy to install and the glove box finally closes. I have yet to install the steering column though. Does anyone know if I can remove the steering column cover (gray) and replace it with the buckskin cover from the original steering column?
yes
I'd say if the motor and body are in good shape $2000 will very likely easily get it going. Even if your transmission or differentials are bad working used ones can be had for not too much money and if you install them yourself you won't be spending anywhere near $2000 to do it. If every other mechanical component on the car needed to be replaced you'd probably go over $2000, but its doubtful that everything on the vehicle is bad.
Quote from: chanticlair on June 14, 2012, 05:32:01 PM
Thank you all for taking a look at it. I really appreciate EagleFreak for offering to come by and take a look. I will be out of town this weekend. Father's day is Sunday so I plan on spending it on the lake and camping. The engine ran strong after it was started and the body is in really good condition. I am going to sell a motorcycle so that I can put the money into this car. I just wanted to know if the $2000 I get for the bike would be enough to turn this thing into a daily driver. I will get some more pics soon. anyone know the towing capacity on these cars? After reading through several builds I am pretty excited that I could restore this beauty!
That's a really nice car your Dad left for you. There is lots of good advice available on the forum but what I've found essential as a beginner mechanic is having someone that lives near you that can serve as your mentor and help you through things. When most of us started out, it was easy enough to replace things if you knew what was wrong, and that is what I think is hardest for a new mechanic. So someone knowledgable that you can talk things through with is invaluable.
Based on my own experience, $2000 should be able to get a lot done on your Eagle, but there is no guarantee that it will be enough. I've had to do some major things like transmission rebuild ($700), transfer case rebuild ($600), and replace the engine ($300 engine off Craigslist, installed it at my mentor's house with him leading me through it). My guess is you can do most everything you would need to unless you need to rebuild the engine (try to find a used one first) and painting the car. Good luck, and welcome to the Nest!
Wish I would've seen this, I was just camping down in Jasper last week and had a couple of days of nothing, I probably could've had that thing starting first turn, lol. I hope you decide to keep it though, and like everyone has mentioned, there is plenty of help here. But starting with your starting issue, try to pour just a few drops of gas down the carb first, if that gets it running, you will know where your issue is. From there, you want to check the power of your fuel pump by removing the hose going into the single nipple side of the fuel filter and put it into a container(pop bottles work great), and then turn it over a few seconds, I would say 3-6 would suffice. After that, you should have at least 1/2cup of fuel in the bottle, if so, you are in need of a carburetor rebuild or fuel filter replacement. To check the filter, it's the same procedure, just removing the hose going into the carburetor instead.
WOW! That is the type of advice I really needed. A great place to start, I know where those items are under the hood (or at least I am sure that I can figure it out). I have some free time this weekend for me to tinker with it. I guess I should figure out how to move this thread to the project section as I begin work on my first Eagle! These steps seem simple enough for me to at least get it started. Once started, maybe I can move it to a garage somewhere instead of trying to work on it in the grass.
No need to have the thread moved. Just start a new thread in the Projects section.
Well,, I got to meet Jonathon and check out his Eagle today. It's definitely not a parts car. I don't think it's gonna take a whole lot to get it back on the road. When I got there he had 4 key rings full of keys and after about 20 minutes of trying, we could not find a single key that would work. I whipped out my keys and the door key from my 86 worked in his ignition. :o It sounded like it wanted to start but wouldn't. I pulled the air cleaner to pour a little fuel in it and noticed the choke was open. I closed it with my hand, cranked it again and it started right up. It actually sounds really good. He's gonna start another thread soon with it's issues and progress.
I agree, its defiantly far to nice to relegate to a parts car. The drive train components are still fairly plentiful, both used and new. The fluid leaking out could be as simple as a return line that got knocked off. With a good trans flush and a tune up that old bird might just fly.
:hello2: WAY TO GO Freek!!! Another Eagle saved. Glad to hear you were able to help. EGGselent job.
Quote from: eaglefreek on June 23, 2012, 10:33:48 PM
I whipped out my keys and the door key from my 86 worked in his ignition.
That's really strange. The door key from any Eagle shouldn't work in the ignition of a 1985 or newer Eagle. It's a totally different cross-sectional profile between those keys.
His ignition cylinder, or perhaps whole column, must have been changed out at some point.
Welcome to the forum an sorry to hear bout your dad's passing. As far as the car goes it depends on what all ir wrong with it as to what it will take to fix it. Once you get it running just look under it for any leaks an put it in gear an drive it round the property an check it again for leaks. As far as the power steering not working check the hoses an power steering pump an check all your fuses on the car some fuses might be blowed an that might be some of your problems. With it not starting check it with a good battery will the lights on the dash come on an will it turn over if not check your alt an starter if that aint it check your fuel pump an carb an make sure it is getting gas to the carb. With the trans not working right might be a cooling problem with the radiator or low on trans fluid try flushing the trans fluid out an replacing it. You can go to advance auto an they will check starters etc.. an put them on machines an tell you if they are good or not. I got a 85 Eagle wagon for $700 an the guy had not started or drove this car any in 8 years since 2004. I put new plugs an plug wires in it an new starter an belts an it started right up an all the fluids were low on it all together so far I got bout $1,600 in it after buying the car an getting it home was $1,000 just for that an I got now bout $600 in parts in it an it runs fine. But check everything I said an give it a tune up plugs wires etc an see if that help another thing is the solenoid & voltage regulator will keep it from starting to. Just check all that an take it one step at a time with a good frame an body its a good car. An if there was to much wrong with it your dad would have not put all this time an money into trying to fix it. What is the history on this car? How long did he have it an what was his plans for it?
Thanks for bringing this thread back up. I've been meaning to call Jonathon and see what's going on with the Eagle. I'll do that today.
no prob just trying to help way some on here helped me with mine
Hey EagleFreek, I am in Manchester, very close to you! We should have an Eagle meet in Tennessee sometime, know there is also a guy called TenneseeFarmer but Im not sure where he is
In fact you can come and help we work on mine anytime! (hint)
I sure apreciate all the help that is offered on this forum by everyone, I spent three hours on three bolts, and 4 bandaids for cuts and scrapes (strut rod bushing replacement) this past weekend, got somewhat discouraged at all the work I need to do to the Eagle and wavered in my comitment to finish it someday......., but then I got home and read some posts on this forum and it got me inspired to do more!
I hope we hear from the guy in Nashville who started this thread and hope he might still have his Eagle too
Thanks!
Rob C
Hey Rob, an Eagle meet sounds like a good idea. Manchester isn't that far from me. Tennessee Farmer is near Knoxville, which is a little bit of a drive, but that would be somewhat close to the Carolina members. We'll have to start a new thread for that.
I talked to Jonathon and I hope he is ok with me sharing this info. It looks like he has to sell the Eagle to satisfy some of his dad's creditors. He is trying to figure out if he can buy it and afford to fix it.
I had started another post where I was working on the Eagle and had some pics of it up. You can find it here http://forums.amceaglenest.com/index.php?topic=39018.0
It is so difficult to read about everyone wanting to do a meet close to my area and yet Rick is right, due to my dad not actually having a will, my dad's assets need to be sold in order to satisfy creditors. I have asked my lawyer if I could purchase the car but as the administrator of the estate I have to prove that I sell the car for the most amout of money that I could get out of it or else my dad's creditors can come after me for his debts. If all my dad's assest would cover the costs of his bills this would not be an issue but I have to get a judge's approval of every sale (or show proof of trying to get the most out of each asset) On top of that I have had some issues with my dad's side of the family... but that's another story.
When I last worked on it, the battery was strong and the starter that eaglefreak gave me was installed. After replacing solenoid the car would start but the starter stayed engaged. I replaced a fuel line and that did not leak anymore. It has been a while since I worked on it but I think the last thing I did was some solenoid work around to get the car to start and the starter disengaged. It was determined that the replacement starter must be bad and my next step was to purchase another one. With the current one I could at least drive it enough to get it on a trailer and to a garage. (though I never got the chance)
I will let you know as the events unfolde. My lawyer wants me to have an auction and just put all my dad's assets in it. I do not want to do that but it would protect me from his creditors. If anyone here is slightly interested let me know. I may try and work on it again on Saturday but I hate to put more money into it if I am just going to have to seel it.
Sorry to her that Jonathan, I hope it works out, let us know if there is an auction or something, somebody will be interested I'm sure. I know I would come myself, I seem to have this strange problem with trying to save every AMC i find......
Rob c