# Just bought my first lowrider and I've got some questions...



## 82_cutlass (Jan 11, 2014)

Yo this is my first post, been reading for awhile, seems like you all have a legit community here with helping each other out and sharing knowledge, thats whats up.

I picked up an 82 cutlass this week with a 350 small block with a holly double pumper and single barrel carb. Its got 3 pumps, one hi point and two morebounce, and 6 batteries with 4 switches. The pumps seem to be leaking pretty bad and I was told not to try and hit the switches until being sure they are all filled with the right amount of fluid. Are any of you familiar with those brands of pumps? I think the hi point is made by a shop in ontario ca called hoppos who im going to take the car to for an inspection next weekend.

How do i know if the pumps are filled with enough fluid? should I purge the old fluid and fill it with fresh stuff so i know exactly what I have in there and how would i go about doing so? 

the guy I got it from didnt seem to know shit about it.

Ive got basically zero knowledge on how the hydraulics work and would love some pointers.

can anyone tell me if these pumps are any good? ill post pictures this weekend

It looks like the front A arms have been reinforced but not the rear axel but then again im not even sure, the upper arms have a plate on the bottom.

the car is sitting a little low on the driverside, could that be from the pumps being empty or just not sat down all the way?

I havent even seen the hydros work so im trying to figure this all out before i hurt em.

got the car for 1250 though so even if it needs work i think i still scored. 13" wire wheels that appear to be daytons but could just have the bird and came with a spare, custom paint, custom limo moon roof.

Hope to hear back from some of you guys.


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## MOSTHATED CC (Jul 30, 2006)

I wouldn't drain the fluid and add new fluid if its leaking all over your just gonna waste the fluid. Why do you want to add fluid wouldn't you want it fixed first??. If you must add fluid open the plug on the tank and look inside and see what's in there you want it to be almost to the top maybe an inch down from the fill plug. It might be sitting low on one side cuz the other side has the cylinder sitting in there wrong it could be a bunch if reasons maybe a bent cylinder not letting it go down all the way but that's worse case scenerio hope that helps


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## 82_cutlass (Jan 11, 2014)

for sure thanks man. like i said i dont know shit, just trying to learn.


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## Mafioso1988 (Jul 6, 2011)

X2 with what the Homie above said... Make sure the car is all the way dumped "lowered" before you check or add fluid so u don't over fill ur set up and blow off ur plug. Also if u have no Knowledge of Hydrualics and have no one to help you out I'd Definetly would look for a shop.... if you don't have one in your area id do some searching thru the topics and learn to replace the seals yourself it's not hard and no better way to learn than to do it yourself. Good luck and Welcome to Layitlow.... O yeah and don't become a troll L.i.L has enough of them Idiots nowadays lol


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## 82_cutlass (Jan 11, 2014)

Thanks man. I'll be taking it to a shop next weekend to get it inspected, only $65 bucks. I noticed the pumps have a spot for what looks like an air compressor port and they seem to be leaking from there. What is that used for?


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## umlolo (Nov 5, 2001)

It is a airchuck for people that put extra air in tank it is not needed aldo never leave the car up more than 5 hours or you will have cylinder leaks go to hydraulics section forum its below and look at the top yellow section it will let you read about how hydraulics work lots of good info there


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## 82_cutlass (Jan 11, 2014)

Thanks man. Solid advice. I've been reading a lot of the forums here and faqs. A bunch of useful stuff I feel like I've learned a lot already as for as what I need to look into. 

If a battery is reading as low as 8.6 should I bother trying to charge it?

The car came with a golf cart battery charger it's a 36 volt which is right for what I've got I believe. I'm also curious about the street chargers and I've seen mixed reviews on here.


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## scooby (Jun 22, 2002)

8 volts is way to low get them over 12 volts.......13.1 is great if the batts are at 8 they are basically dead lol and the solenoids can pop, or the motor may burn up


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## Lowdoza (Jan 5, 2013)

Look to see where the leak is coming from,,,take some
Wood or cardboard and put it underneath all for cylinders and lock the car up and just find out where it's coming from,,,use a rag to clean off all the cylinders ten lock it up,could just be a loose hose,,,if it is remove it check the threads to see if they are bad or if it was put on incorrectly,,,also check the fittings on the pumps and make sure it's not from the pumps,,,if no sign of leaks from hoses or fittings you might need to remove the strokes and replace the seals,,,your car could be leaning because of one cylinder having oil an the other one is leaking, coils
Cut uneven, or worst case bent cylinder,,,I'd just lay it flat add oil lift it and start wiping everything down and finding the leak and inspecting the coils and cylinders,,,you should charge your batteries also,,,2 amps slow charge for a few hours each battery that way you don't burn anything out


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## 82_cutlass (Jan 11, 2014)

Awesome thanks for the tips. 

Should I do each battery individually or keep them in series once I get them have an even charge?


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## 82_cutlass (Jan 11, 2014)

I also have two bad batteries. Could I run the pumps on 4 instead of six to just see where I'm at and what works? I have a feeling there are bad solenoid or motors from what I gathered. How do I test to see if either of those are bad?

I will also do some searching but just wanted to put it out there.


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## crucialjp (Jan 25, 2004)

Yo homie glad to see you stepped into the lowrider game. Having your first lifted car can be a headache but once you learn the in and outs of the system you will be alright. I'd suggest getting the book "The science of hydraulic suspension" just to get a get overall view of each component and the hydraulics system as a whole. I keep that book in my garage cause I learned alot while working on my build. 

That being said, check the voltage of each battery at if the are 12.5 volts or lower trickle charge them one by one at 2 amps until the read over 13.1. If a couple batteries are dead disconnect them from the series and you can run the system on just 4. Are the batts in one rack accross the back or split bank w 3 batts on each side? Depending on how the batts are laid out and wired you may have to move some wire connecting points to get everything going at a proper voltage. There are plenty of good wiring diagrams from kingfish posted on LIL that will help you. If you hit the switch with dead batts connected your likely to burn up some solenoids (I learned the hard way) or worse your pump motor. Also remember when dumping the car you can always hold the switch down but when raising the car tap the switch instead of holding it. That will prevent you from burning up motors or over locking the system and blowing pump head seals. As you get used to the system you will learn how to hit the switch and not break something.

As far as the oil in the pumps, like everyone said make sure the car is fully dumped and the oil should be 1 to 1/2 inch from the filler hole. One you've got the batts charged and pumps full with oil (filler cap on tight), wipe each pump down and tap the switch for each pump up and down and see if any oil starts to leak on any of the pump and let us know what you see.


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## crucialjp (Jan 25, 2004)

Also as a side note get some spare accumax solenoids cause if you have battery issues your are probably gonna burn some up. You should keep some solenoids in your cruising toolbox anyway(I keep 3), they are only $10 a piece and well worth it when you keep cruising instead of having to call it a night until you can go buy some again. If one solenoid burns up change all of them for that pump. So if u are running 3 solenoids per pump change all 3 cause the others are likely to blow soon. I'm just trying to think of everything I learned with my first setup that can make it easier for you. If you have any questions for hydraulics you are on the right site.


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## 82_cutlass (Jan 11, 2014)

Damn y'all have been so incredibly helpful I really appreciate it. I can't wait for my work week to end so I can spend hours in the garage. 

I have two banks of three and I believe they are in series. I'll try to take some pictures tonight. Can you over charge batteries? I have my car being stored at my mechanics pad since I don't have a garage right now. So I'd just throw the charger on at night and come back about 24 hours later to switch it to the next batt. Is a golf cart charger sufficient? 

What's the tell that a solenoid has gone bad? Or motor for that matter? Clicking I assume?


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## Lowdoza (Jan 5, 2013)

You'll know if the motor is bad you will hear it, probably see smoke and it will make a distinct sound,,,if it's the solenoids they will just make a clicking noise


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## lakewood213 (May 27, 2003)

typically when a solenoid goes its gonna hang up (when you release the switch and the motor keeps spiinning). they also tend to catch fire when hanging up. when the motor is on its way out, there is a burning smell you become aquainted with over time. the motor will just quit spinning, and its done. im in the beaumont area if you are close enough and need some help, i will show you whatever you need to know bro


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## 82_cutlass (Jan 11, 2014)

Thanks guys. What about over charging the batteries? 

And how do I know if I have raised the car to high and over locked the cylinders? 

The car came with 3 extra solenoids. One is accumax and the others are orilies brand.


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## Lowdoza (Jan 5, 2013)

Just raise the car when it doesn't go up anymore that's as high as it goes, don't keep hitting the switch just note how many hits it took to put up the rear and there you go you know how high your ride goes lol the batteries will be fine at 2 amps slow charge for about 3 hours each don't worry about over charge unless you charge them every day like that which isn't needed


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## umlolo (Nov 5, 2001)

Also check to see if you have a quick disconnect it will save you when solienoids stick (stay open).also keep some tools to change solienoids and motor in car , I made the mistake of going to a show 2 hours away snd left my tools my car sits high enough all the way down that I can drive home.


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## 82_cutlass (Jan 11, 2014)

Awesome. you guys have answered so many questions I have. Thanks.


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## crucialjp (Jan 25, 2004)

82_cutlass said:


> Damn y'all have been so incredibly helpful I really appreciate it. I can't wait for my work week to end so I can spend hours in the garage.
> 
> I have two banks of three and I believe they are in series. I'll try to take some pictures tonight. Can you over charge batteries? I have my car being stored at my mechanics pad since I don't have a garage right now. So I'd just throw the charger on at night and come back about 24 hours later to switch it to the next batt. Is a golf cart charger sufficient?
> 
> What's the tell that a solenoid has gone bad? Or motor for that matter? Clicking I assume?



When I first got my car it had 2 pumps and a split bank with 3 batts each side. Each pump used the full 36 volts from each bank. Since then I've added a 3rd pump and a long 0 guage cable to tie each bank together so my rear pumps run at 36volts and the front pump sees 72volts. Solenoids will click when they go bad. Another thing I learned after changing my first bank of 3 solenoids is that they will also click if they are not grounded well. If you have to change a solenoid make sure you have a bolt or screw holding it down tight for a good ground. Also as far as charging what brand and model charger do you have? That will determine how you can charge.


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## 82_cutlass (Jan 11, 2014)

Awesome thanks man. It's a golf cart battery charger. It's a 36 volt and has an amp meter but no volt meter or setting. I'll just use this for individual batteries I assume not trying to charge in series.


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## Lowdoza (Jan 5, 2013)

What you should do is get it working properly then start replacing little odds and ends first like new motor, open up the pump and learn how it works, replace struts, replace wires, learn about what you got and then go onto building more into it, that way if you want to start adding things your not lost in a mix up of how stuff works


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## 82_cutlass (Jan 11, 2014)

Yeah man that's the idea. I just need to get it half way working ha. I'm getting more of the feeling I'm gonna have to re-do everything.


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## 82_cutlass (Jan 11, 2014)

here a link to another thread i started about how my pumps and batts are set up with some photos

http://www.layitlow.com/forums/29-p...ider-ive-got-some-questions.html#post18789833


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## RI82REGAL (Dec 3, 2008)

when you take it to hoppos he will get it straght they know what they doing over there


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