First of all I want to congratulate you on this terrific forum. It is one of thee best designed sites.
I presently own a 1991 Olds 88 with a NA 3.8 engine(approx 85,000 miles). I'll be heading on down to Florida from NJ with my family during the Xmas Holiday. I want to make this trip as uneventful as possible. In preperation for this trip, I have used your "easy to follow sep-by-step procedure" for changing the transmission oil(I change the transmission oil every 30,000 miles). I changed the coolant last year with Dex-Cool and replaced the Cap and 195 degree Thermostat at that time(sorry I didn't know about the 180 'Stat). I'll be changing the plugs(R45LTS6), Air(A974C), PVC(CV899C) and Gas(GF626) Filters. I'll also change the Oil(10W-30) and Filter(UPF47) before I go. Like many of you(with vintage GM vehicles) I have replaced the Alternator and Window Regulators in the past year(all Delco Stuff). So the question is....What else would you do(the ignition wires maybe?) to prepare this Orphaned Olds for the trip? And, can you tell me if my NA Series I engine is the same as the Bonneville. Thanks again for this great site.

Welcome to the forum Ol'Timer!

Well, you have pretty much covered it. There are a few other things you could do, but it depends on your wrench saavy. I would definately replace the spark plug wires. Taylor makes a good set that you can pick up from the GPStore (on line--check the links section). This in not difficult at all to do--just do one at a time.

The second thing you could do is clean your throttle body. This is a little more involved. It will give you better fuel efficiency if it currently has carbon deposits in it. You should also be getting around 26-32 mpg on the freeway. If you aren't, you may wish to change your O2 sensor.

As for the 3800 engine, it is a series I based on the Buick 3.8--the same as in the Bonnevilles of the same year. You should have no problem finding stock parts for this engine. Performance parts are a bit more difficult to come by as they are mostly marketed toward the series II engines.

When GM went with corporate engines in the U.*., they selected the Buick 3.8 as the corporate 3.8/3800, just like they selected the Chevy 350 as the corporate 350/5.7 L because they were very reliable and easy to maintain.

I hope this helps out.

Ol Timer, if you click on the Techinfo link at the top of the page, and go to specifications, there'* an article there on VIN codes. It'll tell you exactly which engine you have. I agree on the plug wires. I'm changing mine this weekend. With Taylor!

Thanks for your advise. The only wires I saw @ the GP Store were Jacob Electronic Ignition Wires and they were on Back Order. The OE wires(Delco?) are OK with me so unless you can recommend something better(in the same price range) I'll go with the Delco stuff again.
I'm getting approx. 30 mpg on the highway so the O2 is good to go(or stay) for another year. I "cleaned" the Throttle Body last year, but I'm not sure if I did it correctly. Basically I sprayed Gum Out on a piece of cloth(Iwas told not spray it directly into the TB because it'* possible to ruin the sensor) and just wiped as much of the carbon deposit off as I could. Is there a "Step-by-Step" procedure on this site for the best way to clean the TB? Thanks again.[Ol'Timer]