Avanti 79

Thanks to all for your help. I have seen that some vendors have the semi fluid grease, I will order some, it is certainly worth a try. If anyone knows, would I want to drain any fluid in the steering gear box first, before adding the new semi fluid grease? Thanks again for all your help. Joe

Hi Bill, Thanks for the information. Yes, the nut is tight.

Has anyone had their gear box leak from the adjustment screw? If you did, how did you stop it from leaking? Thanks for any help.

Thanks so much for your help and information. It is greatly appreciated.

Does anyone one know what kind of gaskets are used for the valve covers. I can’t get a good look at them of course, but I’m thinking they are the blue rubber type. Thanks in advance for your help.

I was wondering if anyone has done business with Avantpartsbiz?

Ok, thank you.

I’m not sure why the pictures came out so large, but I think you’ll get the idea.

Here are some pictures. It’s the best I could do. Thanks for the help.

Just a follow up to the cigarette lighter and dome light issue. I was able to get the cigarette lighter and cigarette lighter light resolved. The cigarette lighter light is now working. I was only able to find a clear bulb not a red one. The under dash dome light is a different story. It appears there was some kind of switch close to the dome light and the the switch that controls the rear dome lights. There is a loose wire around the hole where there appears to have been a switch. As I recall, I think the wire is green. Additionally, at least on my car the same fuse does not work the dome lights and cigarette lighter. As I was looking at Avanti pictures, I noticed an interior picture showing an additional switch where I believe my car had one. At this point, I can’t get power to the under dash dome light. It doesn’t appear to me to be a loose ground wire. Any thoughts would be appreciated. As always, thanks in advance for any help Joe

Thanks for the information. I put in a new fuse in the cigarette lighter/alarm slot and pushed in the cigarette lighter and the fuse blew. I’m going to disconnect the lighter and put in a new fuse and see what happens. As far as the light, I’m going remove it and check the wiring, in particular I’ll check the ground wire. If you know, did any of Avantis come with a factory alarm? Thanks again for your help.

Thanks so much. The other dome lights worked just fine. I’ll do what you suggest. Additionally, I don’t think the cigarette lighter works either. However, the trunk light works as well. I’ll try and use a volt meter to see what’s going on. From what I understand the the switch is either on, off or on and off while opening or closing the door. I think there is a light in the glove box that is not working either. I don’t know if this is part of the same problem or not. I’ll let you know tomorrow what I find out. I certainly appreciate your help.

My under dash dome light isn’t working. I’ve replaced the bulb, because the old one was blown. There is a switch next to the light, but whatever position I put it in, no light. Is there a separate fuse for this light? I see one empty fuse location, it appears to be an ACC, but I’m not sure what it’s for. Any help is appreciated.

Hi, I found a picture of the spring assembly from what appears to be out of an original shop manual. It does list the part number 526830 as a spacer 3/16” (w/air cond.). I’ll see if I can find those in addition to the 1/2” spacers part number 1560408 listed on the same diagram. In any case, thanks for your continued help, it is greatly appreciated.

Thanks so much for the information and the pictures. That helps a lot. I was not aware of the additional steel discs under the aluminum spacers. These discs could potentially raise the car another 1/4”. I’ll have to look carefully again to see, if in fact, there are rubber isolators at the top of my springs, and of course, install new ones. This is the first time I’ve been made aware of the additional discs. I’m now wondering what the purpose the additional discs serve? The car only has 15,000 miles on it, so hard to tell if there is any spring sag or not. Of course, age is certainly a factor. I’m not apposed to putting in new springs if necessary, but I’d like to see if the spacers and slightly larger tires take care of the problem. Thanks again for all the information and the help.

Thank you so much. This is really helpful. At least now I have an idea of what I’m dealing with. I’m almost certain I’m going to put the spacers back in. For one, it’s really annoying to constantly be scraping the bottom of the car. Additionally, I don’t like the look of the small tire in the front, just a personal preference. From what I understand, apparently the 1983 anniversary model came with 245-60-15 in the rear and 215-60-15 in the front. Which is what is on my car now. While I have no direct knowledge, I’m guessing they still used the spacers in the front springs, and the car sat a bit higher avoiding the scratching. Or perhaps, the cars were equipped with different springs altogether. I’m hoping to put a suitable tire on the front which should give me a little more ground clearance. The original tire height is about 27”, while the 215-60-15 is 25.2”, as you can see it’s almost a 2” smaller tire. Between the lack of the spacer and the small tire the car sits very low in the front. I like many others, appreciate the original Avanti Rake, but not at the loss of enjoyable driving. This of course, is in my hombre opinion. Thanks again for your help. It is greatly appreciated.

Thank you, that would be great. I’m reasonably new at this and appreciate all the help I can get.

Thank you so much for your help. When you say two, do you mean one on each side, or two on each side? I’m told that the spacers go on top, however, I’m not sure that is accurate information.

I was wondering if the spring spacers on the Avant II were on the top or the bottom of the spring? I have also heard that there was a rubber grommet both on the top and the bottom of the springs. I can’t seem to find a picture or specs about either the spacers or the rubber grommet. If anyone has any information about this, I would appreciate any insight and help. The spacers on my car have been removed to give the car the original Avanti Rake look. Additionally, when I bought the car it came with 245-60-15 tires in the rear and 215-60-15 in the front adding to the rake. My issue is the car sits so low that getting into and out of a normal driveway can be challenging without the car scraping. I’m wondering if I put the spacers back in, will it still have a bit of a rake but better clearance? Thanks in advance for any help. By the way if you haven’t noticed the car is a 1979.