Hi! I'm verrry pleased I've found your site...I've owned many cars in my days, but Pontiacs have always held a soft spot in my heart: I got my permit in 1976 & learned to drive in my Dad'* '69 LeMans Tempest Custom * ...But I digress; I'm coming back to where I belong soon: over the X-mas holidays [Happy Holidays to everyone, by the way!] I'm picking up a '93 Bonneville SE with 98K miles on it...It'* a great deal [free! ] & in very good shape, but I'm wondering what ideas you guys may have as to what I should do/check out after I drive it from CT back to Rochester, NY... Are there any known problems/issues with this vintage vehicle that I should be concerned with?....Of course I will be changing the oil/filter, plugs/wires, fuel filter [if I can get at it], air filter & anything else that I can get my hands on, but I was just curious if you may have any suggestions for me...

Thanx for your help!
Andy

P.*. At this point, she will be my daily driver, so I have no plans for serious mods right away [but I imagine it probably wouldn't be too hard to make an intake pipe that would use a K&N filter for a little more "fun" ]

Welcome. You should be fine with your plans on tunning it up.

93'* rock. I bet you've read about the roller pivot rockers you got in the heads..

the fuel filter is under your passenger'* feet, inside the frame rail.
the PCV valve is right by the Alt, should be checked.
Check your Lower Intake Manifold gaskets for detioration.


With only 98K, you've got a lot of life left. I'm at 181,244 miles.

Welcome to the club, id say just do the normal tune up, throw a good set of tires on it (if it doesnt have them already) and that Bonneville will never let you down, at least my 97 hasnt yet and its been through a few Rochester Winters... Nice to meet ya


-Fred

Actually, I'm not familiar with the 3800 engines yet: does my 93 have a different valvetrain from other years?..... I'm assuming that to change the fuel filter I'll pull a fuse to stop the fuel pump/release pressure, and then need some sort of unique tool to release the old filter 'cause it'* a high pressure line, right?

The car is a one-owner vehicle and has been well maintained...I'm hoping to get service records as well.....One more question: If I find out that the tranny filter/fluid has never been changed, would you guys say that it'* OK to service it now [at 98K], or should I just leave it be and just make sure the level is up?...

Thanx,
Andy

Fixed your quoting You can look in your post to see how that works..

To pull the filter, pull the fuse and crank the motor for a second. The filter uses quick connects, Just push in on the lighter plastic parts and pull apart.

Yup, the '93 got the nice heads and ECM. I love it.

its has been said before

93 is the best year

Kewl! I guess I lucked out!

So at 98,000 miles, if the tranny has never been serviced, should I leave it alone, or is it OK to go and change the fluid/filter?

Are there any "free" modifications that I can do that I should consider?

I personally wouldn't get the transmission flushed. But, I would change the filter and as much of the fluid as possible (you'll get 4 quarts out or so when you drop the pan). Flushing an older transmission that'* never been flushed can result in a catastrophic failure so just stick to the filter replacement.

About the only "free" modifications I know of are to remove your mass air flow screen in the throttle body. Otherwise...it'* on to a cold air intake.

Welcome to the club!

you could clear the corners,

I wouldnt remove the MAF screen untill you have a CAI, and that may still cause a rough idle