Quarterwave

Hi all,

I'm in the process of fixing up my 1996 Astro 4.3 auto which I bought last week. In a previous post, I had an issue with an open circuit and are still yet to get the time to look at it (just taking off the positive battery lead for now).

In the meantime, I have a few more questions, and are hoping that someone can help with any of them....

1) The A/C receiver drier gets covered in ice after I've been driving for a while (I noticed it was white with ice last night whilst I was taking off the positive battery lead when I got home from work).

Is this from a blockage or is it common ? As I've noticed that the AC is cold for the first 20 minutes or so of driving, then the speed of the air coming from the vents decreases rapidly after that.... although the temp of the air that does come out is still fairly cold (have not tested the temp with an sensor yet)....

FWIW, I looked at a few posts online, and thought the decrease of air was from a vacuum leak, but from the cables that I CAN check without removing the doghouse, it all seem to be ok (I will put some soapy water on them soon to check for bubbles)....

Are there any small air reservoir bottles in these AC systems, which are usually used for that vacuum system ? If so, where is it located ?

2) How can I get the middle seat to fold back to the upright position ? I took it out yesterday so that I could vacuum the carpet, and when I put the seat back it, it seems stuck in the "flat" position. I tried lifting that little lever near the bottom right hand corner of the seat back (along with pushing near the head rests), but still no go. Am I missing some other lever ? As that's what it feels like to me....

3) I would like to change out the current front grill (it has the "box-type" headlights), to the more streamlined version that I have seen on other Astro's - which are usually chrome, have thinner headlights and also the Chevrolet "bowtie" logo is mounted on a simple chrome strip that stretches from one side of the grill to the other.

Is this just a simple bolt-on replacement ? Also, what lights will I need, and are they also just bolt on ?

4) I need new tires, and as such, I'm looking at picking up some used rims to go with it (I have steel rims with the chrome hubcaps @ the moment). However, most of the rims that I like are the 6 lug style, whereas I only have a 5 lug pattern on my wheel hubs.

What is involved in getting my 5 lug converted to a 6 lug pattern ? Are there any adapter kits out there ?

Thanks in advance for any help everyone !

ihatemybike

2) Just the one lever. Are you lifting up or moving it towards the headrest? You should be doing the later, while pressing down near the headrests.

3) Mostly just bolt on, you'll need to do a little rewiring for the dual head light bulbs.

4) Switching to 6 lug would be a pretty major undertaking. You might be able to find adapters, but they'll space your wheels out. This may or may not be a problem. You might try contacting the rim mfgs to see if they can drill a set with the correct pattern.