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#434 of 485 Window and Ashtray, Park Avenue, 1998 by gcraig Jul 09, 2008 (5:09 am)
I have 3 questions. 1) Does anyone know where I can get an ashtray from the front dash of a 98 P.A.? I bought one yers ago and it's broken again (the latch has snapped off. color is unimportant as I can rebuild it but cost is important and I'm looking for a used one from a wrecking yard. Thanks. 2) My windows are giving me some trouble. The back left one will not roll down all the time. Once in a while it works, then it stops working for months. Luckily it is always in the up position when it stops functioning. Also, my passenger side front window rolls dosn fine some times but then it won't roll down all the way when the weather is rainy. It stops about 3/4" fromt he top and will go back up but seems stuck or jammed up somehow. 3) My driver's side door latch broke inside somewhere. It just went "Click" and it seems that the mechanism has failed inside the door since the handle flips up easily but doesn't engage the latch.   Thanks for help with any of these three items. Replies to this message: buickman3 (Jul 19, 2008 6:20 am)
#435 of 485 1999 Buick Park Avenue Ultra by dafraq Jul 15, 2008 (6:49 pm)
Hello, I am considering buying a PA Ultra with 52,000 miles on it. I am not familiar with Buicks and I would like to know if there are any service issues I should be aware of. What I do know is that the fuel gauge does not work. It appears to have gone clockwise and is resting below the needle under the E. The A/C does not work. I feel like these are minor issues but are they repairable? Are these typically good cars?   Thank you,   David Replies to this message: imidazol97 (Jul 16, 2008 3:19 am) 97ultra (Jul 16, 2008 5:12 am) imidazol97 (Jul 16, 2008 8:00 am) dafraq (Jul 16, 2008 6:09 pm)
#436 of 485 Re: 1999 Buick Park Avenue Ultra [dafraq] by imidazol97 Jul 16, 2008 (3:19 am)
Replying to: dafraq (Jul 15, 2008 6:49 pm) The gas gauge needles are fixable. People have removed dash cover and lifted the needle over the post. Some drill a small hole in the plastic and use a paperclip to lift the needle. Someone else talked about using a magnet to lift it.
#437 of 485 Re: 1999 Buick Park Avenue Ultra [dafraq] by 97ultra Jul 16, 2008 (5:12 am)
Replying to: dafraq (Jul 15, 2008 6:49 pm) The gas gauge problem is easily fixable. Same thing happened on my '97 Ultra when I disconnected and reconnected the battery one time, and I used a strong magnet to turn the needle and fix it. Just wrap the magnet in a paper towel or Saran wrap so you don't scratch the clear plastic of the instrument panel. I can't remember if you have to have the ignition off or on, but it does matter.   The A/C situation is something you'll want to have someone look at (take it to an A/C shop and have them do a system check and possibly a leak test). If it's just a very slow leak that you can deal with by adding refrigerant and a system-safe leak sealer, it's no big deal (my PA has had a slow leak from the compressor for around a hundred thousand miles now).   If the compressor is shot, though, then you are looking at an expensive repair. The PA uses GM's luxury-car compressor that doesn't cycle on and off like cheaper compressors do; instead, it smoothly varies the piston stroke so that you don't hear and feel the compressor cycling on and off. It's a neat system, but fiendishly complicated and expensive; to replace the compressor, you'd probably be looking at a thousand dollars or more. So definitely have that checked out.   IMO, the Park Avenue Ultra is an awesome car, though. Mine now has 170,000 miles on it, gets 30 mpg at 75 mph on the Interstate and ~20mpg around town, and is DARN quick. And I love the supercharger whine when it's on boost. It's also very comfortable and quiet, has a great sound system, heated seats, and lots of other amenities. I'd buy another used one if I were in the market to do so.   If you do buy it, change the supercharger oil (a lot of owners forget to do so) and the cabin air filters, or have someone do it for you; GM sells the special supercharger oil, and you'll need 2 bottles ($10 each). And I run synthetic engine oil in my engine, because I tend to run it hard. Replies to this message: imidazol97 (Jul 16, 2008 8:00 am) dafraq (Jul 16, 2008 6:09 pm)
#438 of 485 Re: 1999 Buick Park Avenue Ultra [97ultra] by imidazol97 Jul 16, 2008 (8:00 am)
Replying to: 97ultra (Jul 16, 2008 5:12 am) The compressors range from $194 off-off brand to $328 Delphi and $280 Delco compressor. Of course if compressor broke and spun out parts the expansion valve and dryer need to be replaced and a filter put in before the system is restarted.   At 56000 miles I'd be surprised if the compressor were bad. Most likely freon leak.   Thanks for posting about the magnet use. I recall someone saying the magnet had to be s certain strength...
#439 of 485 Re: 1999 Buick Park Avenue Ultra [97ultra] by dafraq Jul 16, 2008 (6:09 pm)
Replying to: 97ultra (Jul 16, 2008 5:12 am) Thank you! I fixed the fuel gauge this morning. I am going to check out the a/c tomorrow. I appreciate your quick response. I am totally digging the PA. I spent all morning cleaning it up and it looks amazing--it had sat for 6 months and collected a ton of dirt and dust both inside and out. Now it looks spotless.   Thanks again!   David
#440 of 485 A/C issue by dafraq Jul 17, 2008 (6:54 pm)
Hey all,   I recharged the A/C today and I got cold air for a few minutes from the passenger side only and only hot air from the driver side. The cold air adjusted in coldness with the passenger slider but again the driver side and the rear vents only blew hot. I then drove it around for a while and no cold air came out any longer. I really would like to purchase this car but not without A/C. Any thoughts on the dual climate control issue and is this a most likely a leak since I managed to get cold air for a few minutes?   Thank you again,   David Replies to this message: imidazol97 (Jul 18, 2008 4:24 am) wwstibich (Jul 18, 2008 8:33 am) 97ultra (Jul 18, 2008 11:39 am)
#441 of 485 Re: A/C issue [dafraq] by imidazol97 Jul 18, 2008 (4:24 am)
Replying to: dafraq (Jul 17, 2008 6:54 pm) The unit is electronic from what I find on that car. There is an actuator motor that controls the door movements and the blend or temperature on the driver and another on the passenger. That has gone out of some Pontiacs that probably have a similar unit to that one used in the last design of the Park AVenue. Finding if the door is being moved requires some upside down time under the dash and button pressing.   The AC giving cold for a time suggests that it has a leak. One common symptom of the 2000+ H Bodies is that low freon leaves the driver side warm and the passengers get air from the cold part of the evaporator.   The unit needs to be put on gauges and a check done. Replies to this message: wwstibich (Jul 18, 2008 8:33 am)
#442 of 485 Re: A/C issue [imidazol97] by wwstibich Jul 18, 2008 (8:33 am)
Replying to: imidazol97 (Jul 18, 2008 4:24 am) I had a similar problem with my 99 PA, but it was with the heater. The vent door became stuck on the passanger side. So the driver felt the heat but the passanger only felt the cold air from the vent.   I took it to the dealer who said it was a stuck vent door. The would replace the solinoid (or whatever controled the door) for $250. They already charged me $75 for the diagnostic (and used it to close the vent door).   I chose to leave it alone. It does come and go very intermittently. And because I usually drive alone it's not a problem for me.   Good luck
#443 of 485 Re: A/C issue [dafraq] by 97ultra Jul 18, 2008 (11:39 am)
Replying to: dafraq (Jul 17, 2008 6:54 pm) Sounds like the system has a bad leak. If you got cold air for a few minutes, the system was working properly, until the refrigerant leaked back out. You could take it to an A/C shop to see where the refrigerant is leaking (some parts are cheap to replace, some aren't) but it doesn't look like you'll be able to throw a can of R-134 in it and be good for the summer.   BTW, if a '97-'05 Park Ave system is low on refrigerant (but not completely out), the system will often cool only on the passenger side. It has something to do with where the inlet and outlet tubes of the A/C core are located relative to the airstream. I spent quite a while trying to diagnose a faulty air blend door last year, only to find out that my air blend door actuator was perfectly fine and the system was just a little low on refrigerant. Adding more refrigerant restored the system to bilateral functioning. (Note--do NOT do this until you've ruled out a blend door fault, or else you could end up overcharging the system and wrecking the compressor.)   What you may want to do, if you really like the car, is get an estimate from a *quality* A/C shop on how much the system would cost to fix, and then ask the buyer to knock that much off the price. Don't take it to an el cheapo shop, though, as the Park Ave system is more complex than your typical A/C setup.

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