Hi guys: In may earlier post, I was musing whether to junk or keep my 1980 Impala. At the end, I love it sooo much, I'm going to fix few things and keep it for a while. Just cannot part with it. And guess what the junk yard guy told me, after offering me $50 for it: "I think you might want to keep this one".

First thing I need to do is intermittent wipers. Sometimes they work fine, but sometimes they do not start at all. Is that a motor or what?

Second thing is: The exhaust manifold is rusted out and smoke is getting in the cabin. Is this an expensive job to do. Yes I know I can visit a mechanic for a quote, but I will trust your opinion first, before I sink any money into this one.

Many thanks.

 

The intermittent wipers sounds like a circuit board problem. see if there is a circuit board attached to the wiper motor.

The exhaust manifold is going to be an aggravating job, although not a hard one. You should have 6-10 bolts holding the manifold (depends largely on the engine).
On a car that old, its a very good possibility that you will break one of the manifold bolts off in the engine block, so you may not want to do this yourself.

 

Hi EvansBlue: Thank you very much for helping: And yes, I did visit my local mechanic, and this one being a really honest guy, he told me that the whole thing (I mean the manifold and the whole rusty car) may not be worth trowing money at. So, as sad as I am to do it, the Impala is going to the junk yard.

Many thanks, and best regards.