Chassis Suspension; Rear Axle - Cadillac 54-6219 1954 Shop Manual

LUBRICATION AND PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE
The Hydro-Lectric motor andpumpassembly,on
Convertible Coupe styles, is located on the trunk
floor pan beneath the top well. On the Eldorado, this
assembly is located in the trunk on the left side to
the rear of the wheel housing. A reservoir filler plug
is provided should it become necessary to add fluid.
The fluid capacity of the Hydro-Lectric system
is 3/4 pint.
5 Chassis Suspension
The front wheel bearings on all series cars re
quire repacking with wheel bearing grease and
adjustment every 25,000 miles, or when brakes are
relined. When lubricating these bearings, always
use grease meeting the G-12 specifications.
Lubrication fittings for use with grease gun are
provided where necessary on the chassis of all
54-Series cars. All of the points on the car that are
provided with grease gun connections must be lub
ricated every 2,000 miles. The locations of these
points are given in the Lubrication Chart, Fig.2-2.
When lubricating the threaded pins and bushings of
the front wheel suspension system, the front endof
the car should be lifted with a jack,or hoist, bearing
against the center of the front cross member so
that the front suspension system is entirely re
lieved of weight. Application of lubricant with the
weight of the car off the bushings will assure more
complete lubrication. Clearance between the pins
and bushings is necessary to allow space for a film
of lubricant.
The rçear upper control arm bushings are fitted
with 90 lubrication fittings which point downward
toward the opening between the frame side bar,
front cross member and reinforcing brace on each
side. Use of a 12" extension on the grease gun is
required to reach these fittings through the bottom
of this opening.
If any of the lubrication fittings are found to be
broken, plugged, or missing, be sure to secure
authorization for the installation of new fittings
.
No
point should be left unlubricated.
6 Steering Gear
Special Steering Gear Lubricant, meeting G.M.
4673-M specifications, is required in the gear
housing of
both
the power and manual steeringgear
units. The lubricant level should be inspected every
2,000 miles and additional lubricant added to bring
the level to the filler plug opening. Special tubes
of Steering Gear Lubricant 4673-M are available at
the Factory Parts Department under Part No.
146 1598. Each tube contains sufficient lubricant
for one complete refill of the power steering gear.
Manual gears require only
two
thirds of a tuhe.
The fluid level in the pump reservoir, on cars
equipped with power steering, should be checked
every 2,000 miles and filled with Automatic Trans
mission Fluid, type "A", to the mark on the outside
of the reservoir as shown in Fig. 2-2. If the fluid
level is excessively low, it is an indication of a leak
in the system and should be checked as explained in
Section 7.
The Hydra-Matic transmission neutral switch
actuating pin, located on the shift lever attached
to the lower steering column, should be lubricated
every 2,000 miles with a small amount of Lubri
plate to prevent undue wear at the switch arm and
pin.
7 Rear Axle
Check the lubricant level in the rear axle every
2,000 miles and add fresh lubricant if necessary.
Draining and refilling of the differential is neces
sary, only when the unit is removed for overhaul,
or when seasonal temperature changes make it
necessary to use a fluid of lower viscosity. S.A.E.
90 Multi-purpose-Type Gear Lubricant should be
used, except in localities wh8re winter temperatures
are consistently below 0 F. In these localities
S.A.E. 80 should be used. When a replacement dif
ferential is installed, use the special "break-in"
lubricant supplied with the differential.
8 Brakes
The fluid level in the brake master cylinder
should be checked every 2,000 miles and every time
the brakes are relined or adjusted. Fillwith Delco
Super No. 11 brake fluid to 3/4" from the top of
filler cap boss. Fig. 2-4. The remote filler
tube
is located on the left side of the cowl, near the hood
hinge, in the engine compartment.
A popping noise may sometimes be heard in the
brakes when they are appliedinforwardspeedafter
having been applied in reverse. This is generally a
result of the edge of the brake shoe hanging slightly
on the bosses of the dust shield before centralizing.
In such cases, the edges of the shoe should be
smoothed up where they contact the bosses andlub
ricated slightly. A suitable lubricant for
this
pur
pose is furnished under specification number G-2
1/2-B Lubriplate. Care should be taken in apply
ing lubricant to make sure that none is permitted
to get on the brake lining. Brake cables, brackets,
and levers should be lubricated every 2,000 miles
with 10-W engine oil.
On cars equipped with lbwer Brakes,
the
cylinder
air filter should be cleaned every
2000
miles. This