Hey Guys,
So at this point in the conversion I've already collected a few manuals which are very very useful and i'd like to share the how why and what of each one.
Clymer Camaro and Firebird 1982-1985 Shop Manual
Where do you get it? : Ebay or Amazon for about $10-$20
No. Pages : 323
Why do you need it? : This is for your use, not your mechanics. Its a fairly compact book and is smaller in every way than its Haynes equivalent. It has some really nice colour photos though that will help you learn about maintenance of your car generally, which i think is the biggest advantage.
Pros : Easy to read, color Sections, Good tooling section. Sharper and higher contrast photos.
Cons : Not as detailed as Haynes (an example would be radiator removal)
Where do you get it? : Ebay or Amazon for about $10-$20
No. Pages : 344
Why do you need it? : Again, this is for your use, not your mechanics. It is very similar to the Clymer book, but i feel that the font is smaller and the book is generally more detailed.It also has an index at the start of each Chapter, in the Clymer book you need to read through the chapter until you get to the section you want.
Pros : More detailed than Clymer, better indexing
Cons : No color sections except for the Spark Plug conditions on the back page, low contrast photos
Where do you get it? : Ebay for about $25-$60
No. Pages : 1766
Why do you need it? : This covers absolutely everything you could want to do to a 1985 Firebird in excruciating detail. It is a huge and daunting book. The main reason you (and i) want this is so that you can bring your car to any mechanic in the area and he'll have the documentation to get the job done right. Nothing in this book is geared towards the amateur, its a shop manual, so only mechanics are really going to get the value out of it. If you are a total gear-head and can handle it, its all here.
Pros : Can help train your mechanic, there is no equivalent. Will also help you buy the parts that you need exactly, rather than having your mechanic order the wrong ones. I used this to pull emissions parts from a 1982 fire-bird and then deliver every single tiny part that was required to my mechanic. I then scanned the reassembly instructions, printed it out and gave them to him including all the emissions settings. This probably saved me about a $1000 in money and time as my mechanic searched junkyards for these really hard to find parts and then installed them.
Cons : Heavy.
Where do you get it? : Ebay for $80-$100, GMParts Wiki, or PDF online here. (Pontiac - contact me if this is not supposed to be linked)
No. Pages : 1078
Why do you need it? : This is useful if you are looking for the GM part number of a very specific part so that you can go searching for it online. It should be in here.
Pros : Nice to have parts inventory book
Cons : Expensive in physical form.
Where do you get it? : Online at several GMC dealer sites (i.e Nalley GMC)
No. Pages : N/A
Why do you need it? : This is SUPER useful. You can literally browse your cars body and engine and find exactly the parts you need. I use this in conjunction with the Workshop and Parts Manual to find whether GMC are still selling the hard to find parts NEW. Yes, this is a real thing, some parts are still for sale which is really cool.
Pros : Super detailed with diagrams
Cons : You have to boot your computer. Not necessarily the best descriptions for each part.
So at this point in the conversion I've already collected a few manuals which are very very useful and i'd like to share the how why and what of each one.
Clymer Camaro and Firebird 1982-1985 Shop Manual
Where do you get it? : Ebay or Amazon for about $10-$20
No. Pages : 323
Why do you need it? : This is for your use, not your mechanics. Its a fairly compact book and is smaller in every way than its Haynes equivalent. It has some really nice colour photos though that will help you learn about maintenance of your car generally, which i think is the biggest advantage.
Pros : Easy to read, color Sections, Good tooling section. Sharper and higher contrast photos.
Cons : Not as detailed as Haynes (an example would be radiator removal)
No. Pages : 344
Why do you need it? : Again, this is for your use, not your mechanics. It is very similar to the Clymer book, but i feel that the font is smaller and the book is generally more detailed.It also has an index at the start of each Chapter, in the Clymer book you need to read through the chapter until you get to the section you want.
Pros : More detailed than Clymer, better indexing
Cons : No color sections except for the Spark Plug conditions on the back page, low contrast photos
No. Pages : 1766
Why do you need it? : This covers absolutely everything you could want to do to a 1985 Firebird in excruciating detail. It is a huge and daunting book. The main reason you (and i) want this is so that you can bring your car to any mechanic in the area and he'll have the documentation to get the job done right. Nothing in this book is geared towards the amateur, its a shop manual, so only mechanics are really going to get the value out of it. If you are a total gear-head and can handle it, its all here.
Pros : Can help train your mechanic, there is no equivalent. Will also help you buy the parts that you need exactly, rather than having your mechanic order the wrong ones. I used this to pull emissions parts from a 1982 fire-bird and then deliver every single tiny part that was required to my mechanic. I then scanned the reassembly instructions, printed it out and gave them to him including all the emissions settings. This probably saved me about a $1000 in money and time as my mechanic searched junkyards for these really hard to find parts and then installed them.
Cons : Heavy.
No. Pages : 1078
Why do you need it? : This is useful if you are looking for the GM part number of a very specific part so that you can go searching for it online. It should be in here.
Pros : Nice to have parts inventory book
Cons : Expensive in physical form.
No. Pages : N/A
Why do you need it? : This is SUPER useful. You can literally browse your cars body and engine and find exactly the parts you need. I use this in conjunction with the Workshop and Parts Manual to find whether GMC are still selling the hard to find parts NEW. Yes, this is a real thing, some parts are still for sale which is really cool.
Pros : Super detailed with diagrams
Cons : You have to boot your computer. Not necessarily the best descriptions for each part.
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