Completely forgetting that the MLB All-Star game was on, I jetted out to the garage to get the ball rolling – so to speak – on the ‘56 Roadmaster. After removing the rest of the grates, I was finally able to get a pavement view of the floorboards, rockers and lower body panels, not to forget the frame. Much to my relief, everything was solid (visually), thanks to a healthy factory undercoating and decades of oil residue buildup. There was one ding to the underside, the result of an misplaced jack sometime in its past – fortunately, no rust. I also dabbed up the drops of fluid on the underside to see if I could locate any leak origins. During my time under the car, I did not notice any fresh drips forming.
Puzzling was the lack of any “clank” while giving the dual exhaust system a good shakedown. On the other hand, the right side muffler sounded hollow compared to the left. We have one spare NOS muffler in the parts bin upstairs, but it will be interesting to see if I’ll be able to swap it out without massive aggravation this close to the weekend. Next on my list was the oil and filter.
The Buick shop manual said that it takes six quarts – it looked like I drained 10. All kidding aside, I did experience some relief when – after pulling the filter from the canister – it was apparent that there was no sludge clogging the pores.
I also took the time to inspect the mating surface on the engine block to ensure that the ports were free of debris – check.
Lastly, a closer look at the canister revealed minimal levels of sludge. Whether or not this kind of buildup is a hint at what my lay at the bottom of the pan is still a mystery to me, but during the drain cycle, I didn’t notice any chunks flowing out; nor were there any metal shavings on the oil pan plug. While it was off the car, I opted to waste a lint-free cloth and give the bottom of the canister a good thrashing. In went the new filter – along with half a quart of fresh oil, and in minutes I was filling the car with the other five-plus quarts.
Half way through the fill process, my wife noticed a drip – a large one at that. It was all stop until I figured out that the cork rocker arm cover gasket was failing to retain all of the fresh oil. Tonight, it’s another trip up to the parts bin to see if we have a fresh set of gaskets, get the fresh oil cycling through the block, and see if the other leaks are anything to be concerned about. If all goes according to plan, the Buick will be ready to go to the New England Concours d’Elegance weekend in less than 24 hours (I think I’ll skip the muffler swap for the time being).