I finally got under Elsie's 79 today around 2PM. Wanted to put the new oil pan on it, see whats in the motor and install the Corvette Centeral true dual exhaust with new Magnaflow mufflers.

Right from the get go this thing was a SOB. Drivers side manifold 2 of the Y-Pipe nuts come right out and one refuses to budge.... Scared I'll break it I move over to the pass side... 2 come right off and the 3rd won't budge. Break out the MAP torch heat them up as hot as I could get them and they unscrew... the studs from the manifold of course. The converter, rear Y-Pipe and mufflers come off without incident.

I dropped the power steering ram and drag link so the pan would drop down enough to get the oil pan off. Once that was done the oil pan comes right off without incident.

Surprise!! The block is a 4 bolt main (2pc rear seal). Cast crankshaft, X rods and Zollenger cast pistons. I also noticed a double row timing set.... Pull a rod cap, check the brg and it's .020 Federal Mongrel made in Mexico. Main brg is the same, and both brgs look pretty good with minimal trash going thru the motor. I push the rod up, break out my 2"-3" Mic and the journal measuers about .001 undersize and about .0003 egg shaped. Satisfied it won't blow up tomorrow I put the brgs in the caps and screw it back together.

New oil pan is a Summit brand stock replacement (gold zinc washed) and I also used their brand (mfgr by ROL) 1pc pan gasket. The holes lined up not so good, but with some cussing and help from the floor jack I got it all buttoned up. However while I was cussing the front 2 bolts I noticed the balancer looks kinda strange.... YEP it's come apart and the outer ring has de-laminated from the hub.... I was really pleased to see something else wrong, that I'm going to have to fix on this car. At least it hasn't eaten a hole in the timing cover yet.

Next on the install list was the Corvette Centeral 2.5" true dual exhaust system. Install actually went pretty smooth considering I did most of it by myself. I sent Elsie to the store to get oil (15W40 Rotella T), and a new thermostat. Towards the end Elsie got back and helped me line the mufflers up. I've still got to replace those 2 studs that came unscrewed tomorrow. I like the exhaust. It fits reasonablly well and was easy to install. It also does away with the exhaust flapper valve, which as I suspected was stuck closed (explains all the floor board heat). The one thing (actually there is 2) it don't come with is new hangers for the mufflers.... So I re-used the old ones.

I took a few pics of the bottom end while I had the pan off and I'll post them up tomorrow.

This thing is almost ready to drive. On tomorrows agenda is replacing the balancer and installing the new 160*F thermostat. My buddy Noland thinks he has a good balancer and he is going to bring it over tomorrow. If not, I'll get a Pioneer stock replacement from the parts store.
Will

Can't wait for pics. Sounds like ypu are making good progress.

I need to get down your way and check it out. Sounds like a fun project.

Sounds like a lot of fun Will. Wish some of us lived closer and could have made a day of it.

A very fortunate find on the balancer!

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The studs coming out is way better than breaking one. 2 out or 3 nuts coming off easy is rare.
You are going to have a really nice car when you're done.

Seems that the CC systems always get decent reviews. I was pleasently supprised at the quality & ease of the install.

My C4 chambered catbacks, initial fitting, I painted the whole system black before the final install.

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Will,

Awesome to get some good news related to the motor! And glad you caught the HB problem early.

Looking forward to pics.

Matthew

Sounds pretty good! I suspect the entire car will feel a ton better once the balancer is fixed.

As promised a few pics.

The old oil pan.

[IMG]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f303/rklessdriver/1979%20Corvette/DSC00113.jpg[/IMG]

Rod brg.

[IMG]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f303/rklessdriver/1979%20Corvette/DSC00108.jpg[/IMG]

Yea!! 4 bolt mains. Talking with my dad he confirms my belief this is one of those Targetmaster Goodwrench Remanufactured engines built in Mexico. Only ones we have ever seen with the main caps that have no id cast into them.

[IMG]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f303/rklessdriver/1979%20Corvette/DSC00107.jpg[/IMG]

New oil pan installed.

[IMG]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f303/rklessdriver/1979%20Corvette/DSC00115.jpg[/IMG]

This morning I got the balancer off.

[IMG]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f303/rklessdriver/1979%20Corvette/DSC00109.jpg[/IMG]

Pic of the rubbing on the timing cover. Very minor so I was indeed very lucky.

[IMG]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f303/rklessdriver/1979%20Corvette/DSC00110.jpg[/IMG]

No word on the good balancer Noland has yet. So I checked the local parts houses and can you believe not one of them has one in stock?? I ordered a new one from Rock Auto so it should be here in time for me to fix her up by the end of the week. If I got to order one $27.95 is better than $51.00 for a few days wait.

I also managed to install the new 160* thermostat. I was amazed that it had a 195*... no wonder it ran 210* running down the road.

Before I go her is a pic of the Corvette Central true dual exhaust. Fit's real well and I tried show that and get as much of it in the pic as I could. Them Magnaflows are much quieter than I thought they would be... Must be the weak sauce motor....

[IMG]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f303/rklessdriver/1979%20Corvette/DSC00112.jpg[/IMG]

I will update when it's all back together.
Will

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Well that looks familiar. Apparently never discovered by the PO, mine had dug a little deeper.

The new balancer came in last night and after work I got everything put back together tonight.

After a 10 mile drive, it's leaking oil and it's a noticeable amount. Seems to be on the passanger side. At least with everything new and clean down there once I get it jacked up, I can see what it is easily.... Turns out it is leaking right past a few of the oil pan bolts.... First time I've ever seen that happen.

The water temp is still getting up to 210*F as well.... checked out the fan clutch (looked new) and it's locking up at idle so I might have to flush or replace the radator.

So far I'm a weeks worth of work and about $450 into repairs and upgrades. It's still leaking oil and running hot.... At least the exhaust is new and the balancer isn't going rip the timing cover off anymore.....

Not much better than it was but I'm working on it.
Will

Give it time, Will. It's a great project and will be a solid driver when you're done.

Matthew

Alright. I got the oil leak fixed today.

Took it on a long drive tonight. For whatever reason it just seems to want to run right around 210-230*F. Goes over to the 2nd mark past 200* and fluctuates between it and the first mark after 200*.... never goes all the way to 260*.

If I take it on the hwy and drive it at 70mph it stays at the 230* line. 50mph and it fluctuates between 210* and 230*. 40mph and it will cool down and fluctuates between 200* and 210*.... Idle stopped and it just stays at whatever temp it was at when you stopped moving....

Seems like an airflow problem but it's pulling plenty of air off the fan at idle.

It dosen't have the little lip spoiler under the nose... Maybe that's the problem??

The radiator looks orginal and it's not coroded all to heck.... but it's showing a little green in spots.....

Problem is a new stock replacement radiator is more than an alum aftermarket one.... Of course I can't just stick a Howe or Griffin oval track radiator in a C3 with how the lower hose inlet is curved....

Anybody have experience with the 2 row "Champion" or "Amercian Eagle" that are sold on ebay??

I know Dewitts sells one, I know it's the greatest.... but I'm just not going to spend that for this car.

For something that was pretty close to "ready to drive" I've worked on this SOB more in the past 2 weeks than than all of our other cars combined.

Will

Does it have a radiator shroud in good shape? The spoiler might have some to do with it. Have you flushed the rad yet?

Matthew

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Yea radiator shroud is in good shape.... And like I said at idle it's pulling plenty of air.

Have not flushed it but it's circulating water fine from what I can see running it with cap off. There is just no real temp drop across the tanks. My digital temp gun is reading within 5*F on both tanks once you drive it and it gets hot.... I'm not going to waste my time flushing it out.

I reckon I'm going to take my chances with one of these ebay alum radiators.
Will

My C4 was running hot, and everything looked great. Mine was missing the front spoiler, and with alot of searching found that the spoiler does make a difference. So I did buy one and it did!!

Any news?

I agree with 76Nordic, the chin spoiler should make a difference. It may not solve it completely, but it's only going to help, and they're relatively inexpensive - think I got mine new at Corvette Expo for $40.

Got a new radiator yet?
I just recently installed an aluminum rad, and I also considered the ebay brands. They get mixed reviews on CF, maybe leaning toward the positive. I ended up biting the bullet and sending my money to Dewitts, but I'd like to hear your experience.

Yea my research provided about the same info/opinions for Champion radiators. Those that got good ones got perfect stuff and those that didn't got totally F'd up parts.... Hope I'm in the former group but if I'm not - I'll just keep returning them until they make it right.

I weant ahead and bought a 2 row Champion. According to the FedX tracker it is suposed to arrive tomorrow.

Aparantly pulling the radiator in a 79 is alot of PITA work. Some folks said they had to unbolt the upper pass side A Arm?? It looks tight but I wouldn't think you had to do all that.....

As long as it get's here tomorrow or Friday, I plan to replace it this weekend.

I'll update once the radiator comes in and again when I get installed.
Will

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I don't know about the '79 style, but removing the shroud in my '76 is (was) definitely a PITA. We've never had to unbolt the control arms, but we did have to remove the bolts to the radiator support - 3 inside each fender, 2 underneath, and 1 rod from the bottom center of the support to the upper nose structure. After that, we could shift the radiator and support forward enough to remove the shroud (with the mech. fan removed).

Unfortunately, I don't think you can slide the radiator out with the shroud in place. Due to interference between the outlet tube and the upper control arm, you will likely have to rotate the rad as you remove/install it.

Thanks Trae.

The new radiator came in last night.... I've never figured why FedX comes at 7PM...

Impressions of the Champion 2 flue core radiator... For $149.00 it's good. Definatly not the quality of what I'm use to working with, but for what I paid I'm happy as long as it fits as advertised (I can see no reason why it won't). Everything is straight, the tank welds are OK but not as nice as they could be. It was packaged in a sturdy cardboard box, bubble wrap and packed inbetween stryofoam sheets.

Anyway I was bored after dinner so I yanked the fan/fan clutch off last night and was able to get the shroud off/out. Took me about 15 mins in all. Not hard at all but the PO cut the borrom of my shroud a bit to clear the WP pulley and stuff comming out.

Once the hoses are off the radiator will pull right out with (like you said) a little rotating on the passanger side to get the outlet clear of the A-Arm.

Tonight I'm going to swap the radiators.

While pulling the shroud off I think I figured out why the radiator won't transfer any heat. Filler/Primer/Paint sanding dust is in every crevis of the radiator's flues.... it was caked about 1" thick on the inside of the shroud.

I'm going to try my best to wash everything infront (AC condensor and bumper support structer) off to get it all out of there tonight before I install the new radiator.

I'll update tomorrow.
Will

Everything went as expected last night except the parts store didn't have a new upper radiator hose in stock.... which is suposed to be here in a few mins.

Elsie helped a bunch. Her assistance in pulling and installing the radiator and then putting the shroud back in was a big help. We managed to put both in without putting a singe crease in any of the new alum radiator flues.

I was able to wash out the AC condersor and everything infront of it (the grill/bumper support area). I also used some simple green to clean all the caked up body dust out of the inside of the radiator shroud.

Going to get the new upper hose and once installed, we'll take it for a test drive.
Will

Everythings installed and working fine. So far it won't go past halfway on the gauge.

Before the test drive I let it idle for about 15mins to get up to operating temp. Temp stayed rock steady at 160*F (1/4 of the gauge). I used the same 10 mile test drive I drove before and the car easily would climb to 220*F (3/4 of the gauge) with the stock radiator....

Going down the road temp stayed at 160*F, until speed picked up past 50mph at which point temp goes up to 190-200*F (halfway on the gauge) and stays stable.

At stop lights the temp goes down to 180*F ish (sometimes a little less) and then climbs back to 200*F when driving at anything past 50mph. Didn't go out on the hwy (I-95) because it's a parking lot. Will try 70-80mph tonight.

Obviously at speed the fan clutch is disengaging and no front spoiler, means limited air flow... common problem with these cars and easy to fix with a $40 spoiler.

We will pick up a new front spoiler at Carlisle. Until then at least we can drive the thing without the temp gauge being 1 mark away from pegging out at 260*F.

A few notes.
1. The overflow nipple supplied on mine is the wrong size. OD is too small for the factory hose.

2. The overflow nipple and drain petcock were threaded in at the factory with teflon tape, wrapped the wrong way (of course). I removed and resealed them with PTFE liquid teflon.

3. The tranny cooler threads seemed a bit loose going in but tightened up fine and so far do not leak.

I do have a few pics of the new radiator if anyone wants to see and judge quality for themselves.
Will

Glad you got it worked out, Will.

Matthew

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Thanks Matt.

Just got back from some hwy driving. Extended cruise at 70mph and it is a steady 200*F, right at halfway on the gauge.

Now that's fixed it's time to move on to the important stuff..... (finish converting the interior over to black).
Will

Sounds like you got it. Those temps are right around the range I'm seeing. For reference, I'm running a 180° t-stat.
And glad to hear the install was relatively uneventful.

that's what I call SUCCESS! The results speak for themselves! Awesome!

I was going to suggest a fin comb for the AC condenser, but it sounds like you got it sorted out.

Have you considered an electric fan conversion? You get rid of the drag off the motor and better air flow at all speeds.

Will, my dad has a fan off a Lincoln that I don't think he's going to use. He might part with it if you're interested.

It never ends with this f'n car.....

Sunday we took the car on a 30 mile drive to dinner. I watch the temp gauge like a hawk and after a while of normall driving I noticed the temp was still barley above the 160*F mark.

I punch it, lay into the 4 barrel a few times to see how the temp does..... stays rock steady at 160*F, however I noticed it was really noisey under the hood at RPM.

I pull over and stop the engine. I grab on to the fan and yep the fan clutch has failed in the locked up position.

No worries there, at least it's running cool.

Once we got back I put a timing light on it. Car just seems to lay down really bad for about a second before it shifts at WOT.

Seems it only had about 5* of total timing (off the scale in the negitive at idle).... Not sure what it should be at idle I use an old racer trick and pull it up to 36* total, make sure it don't buck the starter (everything is good and it starts right away). I then go to adjust the carb to idle it down and find the idle screw is bottomed out.... damn thing won't idle below 1800RPM....

I get out the brake cleaner and start checking for vaccum leaks and I find a big one on the drivers side front of the carb base plate..... Closer inspection reveals that some moron (when they removed the idle mixture screw block plugs) busted off a huge chunk out of the carb base plate....

Sorry guys but it looks like a new carb is in order before I even think about an elect fan conversion.
Will

Wow, Will, that sucks about the carb! Any chance it can be repaired? Or just order a new one?

Matthew

Ypu just gave me a thought about a starting issue with mine. It bucks at a hot start.

Sorry about the carb, it's almost like owning a C4 except it's so much easier to work on.

I know you will get it right.

Will, if you need a fan clutch, you can have mine for the cost to ship it. Since I just converted to electric fans, it's just taking up space in my garage. I installed it a couple of years ago after my original got noisy, probably has less than 15k on it.

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I don't know if it can be saved or not. It's a pretty big chunk broken out from under the mixture screw....

I'm probally going to just eventually buy a Holley 1850.... I know how to tune them and everything about a Holley is easy for me.

I can get by on a stock application Q-Jet fine, but once they have real tuning problems, I'm lost at the different metering rods and power piston springs.... Just no experience fooling with that stuff.

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With EFI, i'd be hard pressed to say uo have too much timing but thats usually it unless that new motors increased compression is just too much for the old starter.

Yea I'll fix it soon enough. It's running and driving OK for her as is and this little stuff is easy to swap out.

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I apprecieate the offer but we will just get a new one. A new one is only like $35-$40.

How do you like the elect fan conversion? What parts did you use?
Will

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Will, I have a Q-Jet sitting in the shop, came off my 77 Chev van. It's yours if you want it.

Skip white has electric s-blade fans on ebay for the price of that fan clutch. I was cruising his online ebay store today at work.

will take bill up on his offer. when you get it check the base and see if it matches yours. if so swap the base plates. hell if you lived closer to me id rebuild yours and find a base plate. lord only knows how many of them q jets ive rebuilt in my life. if you do rebuild it make sure you drill out the lead plugs under the fuel bowl and replace them. if you dont they will leak and cause a flooding problem. it will also drain the fuel bowl over nite causing a hard start problem on the morning start up. if you get into the carb pm me and ill help you through it.
rich

Bill
Thanks alot. I'd like to have the Q_Jet.

Send me a PM with your address or email and I'll either send you a check or paypal the shipping cost to you.

BTW when she got home from work the fan clutch was working properly again.....
Will

PM sent Will.

Fuzzy pic:

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Hey Bill, since you're giving away parts out of your garage, there's an old part sitting on a hoist in the other thread I'd like to come pick up.

Sorry to Jack your thread, Will....

Matthew

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If you can pick it up, you can have it, but I don't think you pump enough iron to pump that much fiberglass.

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So far so good. I only hear them running while at idle or really low speed, and at night I notice the headlights dim for a split second when they kick on. Of course I really like the extra room under the hood.

Dewitts offers this fan kit, but I thought $425 was a little too spendy. I used this fan and this controller. If I ever get my A/C working again, I'll add another controller, one per fan, in order to have an override.

I made a frame to mount it out of 2"x2" and 1.5"x1.5" aluminum angle, six tee nuts, and a bunch of pop rivets. It mounts similar to the Dewitts kit, through hollow extrusions on top and bottom, though I riveted mine on instead of using sheet metal screws.

I wanted to let everyone know I recieved the QJet BillH offered and have it installed on the car.

The car runs great! I can even adjust the idle now!!

I should make a video of how well it runs for you guys but I think the police are on to me..... with all the black marks leading from the stop light near my house.....

Bill I really can't thank you enough for the carb.
Will

awesome!

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Great to hear! We want vids

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Glad it worked. I blown away that a carb that sat on the shelf uncovered for 50 years even works.
Good thing I didn't take it to the dump last spring.