hey,

thanks for being a great source of background info. i have no shade tree skills, so i have to come on the board now and ask for some helping hints about a possible valve adjustment. i have an 81 GL (240) that sounds like it is knocking. my guess is it is a lifter doing something wrong. i have been told i need to look into a valve adjustment or something along these lines. what could the knocking sound be? am i on the right track? i am also told i need to look for the lifter being one type or another, and one type is more work than the other. the car rides fine other than that small barely noticable knock. but i would rather fix all the small stuff than wait until a whole bunch of things are wrong. how much could i expect to pay for this in minneapolis? and no, for the love of god don't say gorshe brothers. here is why:

i took the car into their shop for brake work. not complicated for a shop that does a lot of business - replace calipers, rotors pads and probably master cyliner. took them two weeks, paid 750 for this with front joints replaced (can't remember off top of head if they were "ball" or u-joints or what have you) the money part was fine, but they never did replace the master cylinder. they should have done that because there was hardly any pressure to stop the car. i was braking with the emergency brake to prevent running over a bunch of business people downtown. that was the original master cylinder with a big fat "volvo" stamped on it practically. why they sent me down the road like that i have no idea. why it took them two weeks and one day to do this and still not finish the job is beyond reason. i feel bad, because i bet they are good mechanics pound for pound, but they sure did not do right by me. and of course, the endgame is i would have to take it back in to pay more money for a new master cylinder. they might have been understaffed or just neglectful. and when you say you are going to call someone with timely updates, you do it. especially if you are some sort of business. i spent good money there and if i did not, i still would expect some measure of forthright respect. i took my bidness down to st. paul instead. cheaper and less baloney if you find the right place. i know folks on here speak highly of gorshe, but i have compelling evidence to offer a slight counterpoint.

the *$%&*& power windows. i have done all i can replacing and rotating the euro-fuses, to no effect. i have done some troubleshooting to determine it is not an individual window switch issue. is this a bad relay or wiring somewhere? there does not seem to be much a correlation between the power windows not working and heat, cold or anything else.

otherwise, SOLID car. 300 dollars at the goodwill - kid you not. 81 gl with 96k original miles at time of purchase. 900-1000 to get it to virtual perfection (brakes, tires, outer tie rod, joints) excepting small engine knock and quirky power windows. engine is otherwise solid, the only oil i ever see leaking is on cnn. (the car was granny-driven, excepting the condom wrapper and drug paraphenalia in the back seat) ((do not go gently into that good night indeed))!!!

thanks again for all of your help as a lurker and i hope i can hear some good answers and guesses.

aaron