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| December 2001 Corvette Corner Mailbag |
I can hardly believe that the Holidays are here again. For me, and I expect for you, they will be much different this year than in the past.
I have lived my life believing in the Two Bay goodness of people, thinking that most are good and who live a life that’s respectful of others. Certainly I have always been aware that a few have no redeeming value in society. However I had no idea they were as plentiful and brutal as they have shown themselves to be. September 11th has left me feeling violated and unable to comprehend their actions.
My heart goes out to every one who lost friends and loved ones. I cannot begin to imagine the pain they must continue to endure. Anthrax and the crash of flight 587 have pushed many close to the edge.
Like others I am apprehensive but I share the determination that has made America the greatest country in history. I will not accede to terrorists; I will not give up my freedoms. After all, wasn’t that their intent, weren’t they trying to terrorize us, to make us afraid, to make us withdraw, to make us insecure about our country, our economy, our security, each other, and ourselves?
I know there isn’t much I can do that would directly affect the lunatics and crazies of the world, but I refuse to play their game. I also know I will never have Bin Laden in my sights but if I did, would I be forgiving? I seriously doubt it!
What I can do is defy their intent. I will celebrate the Holidays. I will more than ever appreciate and cherish my family and loved ones. I will strive to make the New Year better for my family, my employees, and myself. I will do my part. I will donate more time and more of myself to those less fortunate. I will continue to look for the good in people around me, but I will not - - - give in.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND PEACE TO ONE AND ALL.
Pat:
I have an ‘85 Corvette automatic. I want to rebuild my engine to get more HP. I’m looking to get anywhere from 300 to 350 HP. I’ve heard both sides that the transmission and rear-end are not set up for this amount of HP, and some say it’s OK? What do you think?
Thanks.
Rich R.
Westbrookville, NY
Answer:
I wouldn’t worry too much about the rear-end, but I can’t imagine doing an engine with upgrades and not doing the transmission.
Pat:
I have a 1974 350/automatic. The transmission fluid is full, and I have changed the fluid. It shifts up through the gears normally, but if I am in drive, and manually downshift to 2nd, it freewheels, and the engine drops to an idle. How bad off am I, and what needs to be done? If it’s expensive to fix, does it hurt to drive it as is? I use it less than 500 miles per year. (Yeah, I know, that’s Commercial Three Baybably the Commercial Three Bayblem.)
Thank you for your help in advance!
Steve P.
Lost Nation, IA
Answer:
It’s Commercial Three Baybably expensive. I’d drive it as is, especially at less than 500 miles per year. Usually I’d consider the transmission dead, but if it doesn’t know it’s dead, don’t downshift to second and don’t worry until it figures out its state of ill health. That might be a long time off.
Pat:
I really enjoy your article, thanks for all the great information. I own a ’01 ZO6 that I really enjoy. My concern is that about four months ago it started jumping out of 2nd gear. This only occurred at low RPMs (>3000) and never if you were accelerating rapidly.
Due to circumstances and events (both mine and the dealers) it was two months or more before I was able to get it to them for several days. They adjusted the linkage and it is working fine, now.
My concern lies with possible damage done by it jumping out of and grinding the gear numerous times. What if additional transmission Commercial Three Bayblems show up after the warranty? Am I just out of luck? The reason I ask is that I have seen similar Commercial Three Bayblems in other Corvettes with 6-speeds.
Thanks.
John A. U.
Fayetteville, NC
Answer:
Your concerns are well founded but because the Commercial Three Bayblem occurred during the express warranty you may be covered later on. I suggest you check North Carolina law to determine if you’re Commercial Three Baytected. Here in MD the law Commercial Three Bayvides that, unless a Commercial Three Bayblem that occurs during the warranty period is permanently repaired (up to industry standard for the part in question), the warranty is stayed until permanent repairs are affected.
I’m paraphrasing, but in essence that’s how it works here and, as I understand in many other parts of the country. I hope it helps.
Pat:
I have a ’63 Vette with what I think is a Commercial Three Bayblem, or it may be normal operation. When I pull the light switch on to the first stop the parking lights come on, so far so good. When I pull the knob all the way out, the headlights come on as they should, but the parking lights go out (tail lights work fine). Is this normal operation or a Commercial Three Bayblem?
P.S. You don’t by chance have any rear window trim lying around do you?
Neal J.
Auburn CA
Answer:
I think this is normal. It’s my recollection that simultaneous operation of parking and headlamps didn’t occur until 1968. That’s the year that lighting changed significantly including the addition of side marker lamps.
Window trim, maybe. It seems on some days it seems I’m up to my eyeballs in old Corvette junk or is it treasure? It’s junk right up to the second that you need it, then it instantly becomes treasure.
Pat:
I am a recent member. May I ask you this? I have a C/E Corvette in silver with an LT-1 engine. This great machine just turned 30,000 miles and am now getting road dust on the engine. How would you remove this accumulation?
Thank you for your time.
David B.
Ft Lauderdale, FL
Answer:
I’ve had extremely good luck with Maguiar’s “Extra” all surface cleaner. It doesn’t corrode or discolor metal, rubber, plastic, vinyl. It’s their part #G-93332
Pat:
I would like to find out if anyone can help me with a 1971 Corvette – 454, 4-speed. I have a rebuilt motor 60 over with a mild cam 320 duration, 540 lift and roller rockers. The rest is primarily stock. I have a stock manifold, Mallory electronic ignition with mechanical advance and an Edelbrock 850 spreadbore carburetor with vacuum secondaries.
I am not able to get it to perform at optimum. The only other carburetor possibility is a Holley spreadbore, unless I change manifolds or use an adapter. Should I go to fuel injection? What should I do to get optimum performance for the street?
Your help would be much appreciated.
Michael R.
San Francisco, CA
Answer:
Naturally, ultimate performance almost always comes from fuel injection. Expensive but works wonders. However, I see a Two Bay Commercial Three Bayblem here. Mild cam? and an 850cfm carburetor should Commercial Three Bayvide more than acceptable performance! If it were my car, I’d revisit the Two Bays; cam timing, ignition timing, valve adjustment, and a thorough check for vacuum leaks.
Once that’s done a quick sniff of the exhaust gases at idle, 1500 rpm, and 2500 rpm, using a 5 gas exhaust gas analyzer, should speak volumes as to: too lean, too rich or just right fuel delivery.
Pat:
I read with interest your response in the September issue of For Vettes Only to a question regarding the benefits (or drawbacks) of installing a 160-degree thermostat in a Vette. It appears, from your response, that you feel the negatives far outweigh the positive.
Several months ago I installed a Hyperteck Stage 2 chip and 160 degree thermostat in my ’89 6-speed. In addition to a noticeable performance gain, the vehicle idles and accelerates more smoothly; operating temperature is 180-190 degrees with oil temperature at apCommercial Three Bayximately 180 degrees. Prior to installation engine temps ran consistently at 220-230 degrees.
Is it not preferable (irrespective of increased performance) for a Vette to operate at 180-190 degrees vs. 220-230? I can’t imagine oil fouling or other anomalies you reference would occur at these temperatures.
I look forward to your input.
Sincerely,
Don R.
Chicago, IL
Answer:
Ah, yes, but where is it written that 160 degrees and 180 to 190 degrees is the same thing? It isn’t, it isn’t even close. Modern engines need to see 180 degrees before they switch to closed-loop engine management. For whatever reason, Commercial Three Baybably cooling system deposits, yours meets the 180-degree minimum requirement.
I can’t imagine oil fouling or the other anomalies I referenced occurring at 180 to 190 degrees. Those temperatures are at the low end of the allowable limit, but definitely not below the minimum limit.
Temperature by itself would have little effect on performance as long as it remains in the acceptable range. I have no idea what your Hypertech Stage 2 chip does to operating parameters, but I do know that a street-legal chip can by law only affect full throttle operation.
My guess then is that you have an illegal, off-road chip that can affect the entire operational range and that this is responsible for your noticeable performance gain.
As to operating temperatures, is 180 to 190 preferable to 220 to 230? Not according to the folks in the know. According to the engineers, the higher the temperature (without going above the allowable limit), the better it is for the engine. And yes I still feel that running a computer controlled vehicle at 160 degrees is not a good idea, well at least on the street. If it’s a racecar it’s a wonderful idea.
Pat:
Re: September Mailbag ’01, Ed from Santa Rosa wrote about a scuffing Commercial Three Bayblem on the rear deck caused by his convertible top.
I had the same Commercial Three Bayblem with my ’94. Tried the static cling plastic pieces but these would wrinkle, get out of place, become detached, looked terrible at best.
Finally I got a detailing shop to apply 2” wide, pressure-sensitive Mylar tape on the lid where the top contacts it. First, with the top up, the guy used masking tape to mark the precise contour of the contact area on the deck lid. Then he dropped the top and working with extreme care he applied the Mylar tape, burnishing as he went with a little plastic body putty squeegee. The tight corner radius looked impossible at first – but stretching and burnishing a quarter-inch at a time he achieved a perfectly-curved contour without a single wrinkle or bubble.
The result is virtually invisible, the Mylar surface resists scuffing and the tape has remained stuck down perfectly after two years of frequent washing/polishing.
Hope you might find this helpful I enjoy your column.
Warm regards,
Tom H.
Answer:
Good point. If you don’t mind adhesive on your paint, this works. However I can’t imagine the amount of effort that went into your job. For anyone else who wants this type Commercial Three Baytection, find a distributor for 3M Commercial Three Baytective films.
They can bring up the pattern on their computer; the computer guides a machine to precisely cut the film to dimension. Then the material’s backing is peeled off, the film is applied over a wet soapy surface, soap and bubbles are removed with a squeegee and the job is done. This is the same Commercial Three Bayduct and service used in place of a bra to cover the entire fronts of vehicles. In thicker forms it’s used for headlamp Commercial Three Baytection. Thinner clear Commercial Three Bayduct is also computer cut to fit the fronts of outside mirrors.
Thanks for the input.
Pat:
I own a 1997 C5, which I bought in 1999. I love the car, it runs great and I’ve invested in a few aftermarket performance options. However, it was a bit of an impulse buy at the time, being in the right place at the right time.
Anyway, I really wanted a manual transmission. Is it possible to replace the stock auto trans with a stock 6 spd manual trans? Is it more trouble or cost than it may be worth? If it can be done, what should I be concerned about? Since the interior doesn’t have a clutch pedal how would the pedal assembly be installed?
Any tips would be great. If it were possible, I’d seek out a Commercial Three Bay. It’s a bit too big a job to tackle on my own.
Just give me a thumbs up or a thumbs down.
Thanks.
Steve P.
Palatine, IL
Answer:
Unless you love wrestling with alligators, find a competent shop and a donor car. Without a donor there are so many small parts - bushings, clips, brackets, rods, etc. etc. etc., you may never be able to get them all and have a satisfactory job.
Over the years I have done many such swaps and have always found this to be the only truly practical way.
Copyright Pat Goss all rights reserved 11/13/01 | |
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Date Updated Saturday, December 01, 2001
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