1978 Pontiac Grand Am image from the web.
It was 1990 and the growing joys and demands of family and work left me little time to pursue any automotive adventures. In the meantime, the ’87 Plymouth Voyager was a competent vehicle and versatile family hauler.
However, the ‘78 Grand Am I had bought for commuting had to be babied since there was no prospect of buying a replacement if it failed. All it had to do was get me back and forth to work and I had no desire or intention at the time to work on vehicles. Besides, the shift to electronic ignition, fuel injection, disc brakes, and front-wheel drive on our family fleet meant my experience was out of date and I would be facing a steep learning curve to tackle any issues involving those systems.
My career in manufacturing was demanding and the needs of child rearing were pressing and time-consuming. In addition to changing cars when our youngest daughter was born, we moved to a new house. I no longer had to cut firewood to avoid running electric heat since our new home was heated with natural gas.
One winter day on the way home from work the Grand Am would not warm up but did not overheat. I checked the water hoses and radiator and realized the thermostat was stuck open. While I could tolerate the cold, I needed heat to defrost the windshield.
1978 Pontiac Grand Am image from the brochure.
I got a thermostat replacement and an adjustable end wrench at a parts store at the mall. GM V8 engines were in my wheelhouse and I quickly had the thermostat changed, however, the coolant system bled as the snow fell around and on me. A few weeks later the transmission was sluggish shifting out of low gear. I drained and replaced the fluid and the pan filter. That fixed the issue for about a week and then the transmission refused to shift out of low at all, so I drove the 22 miles each way to work in low gear for a month.
The transmission shop guessed that some sludge or particles had been dislodged during the fluid change and gotten stuck in the shift valve body. I saw no option but to live with the problem; I certainly was not going to try to rebuild the shift valve or replace the transmission on a 12-year-old car. I had learned my lesson early about throwing good money after bad.
Suddenly, one day the transmission shifted like it was new. As the annual inspection was coming up, I took it into the shop to see what it would need to get renewed. Once up on the lift, I could see the front end was severely rusted and the car would never pass inspection. On the last possible day, I drove it to the auto wrecker and sold it for a penny a pound.
1980s Chrysler LeBaron image from the Cohort by Davo_
I carpooled for a few days until my wife and I could go car shopping. The dealer we had bought the Voyager from had been easy to deal with so we started there. New was out of reach so we looked at late models used with warranty remaining. We ended up with a 1988 Chrysler LeBaron four-door sedan, white with red velour upholstery. It was the ultimate K car, with every option except sunroof.
It was comfortable but not enjoyable and the four-cylinder front wheel drive layout was reliable but not inspiring. The LeBaron was not a car I wanted, but one I needed and could afford. I had no major issues during the time we owned it, and looking back it was a better car than I realized at the time. The only vivid memory I have was lending it to my secretary who spilled a bottle of patchouli oil on the front carpet. Not sure why she had an open bottle of patchouli oil in the car, but the odor remained strong until the day I sold it.
Related CC reading:
Cohort Capsule: 1978 Pontiac Grand Am – Neither “Grand” Nor “Am”
I have never encountered anyone with just a hint of patchouli oil about them.