Jobs to do this winter.

[ZR1cliff]

OK fellow vette owners, what's on the 'to do' list this winter for your pride & joy? I was losing oil somewhere and found it to be an injector housing (IH) gasket leak, damned annoying as the only sign I could see was oil settling in the valleys between the head and the IH. It meant stripping some of the top half of the engine and while I was there the oil and oil filter were changed as well. Job's all done now and tomorrow I'll flush out the radiator and put in some fresh anti freeze - now shall I fit that 4.10 diff while I'm in the frame of mind

[ZR1cliff]

ps, Picture was taken before I stripped out the Injector Housing, which is the housing the duck tape is on.

[roscobbc]

Hmmm - winter jobs - sooooo many - 1 have Boyds off to polish insides - 2 install new front springs - 3 lower rear end - 4 install front & rear Konis - 5 take car to have tracking, camber and most importantly caster checked - 6 (and this is the nasty bit) take angle grinder and 'section' passenger front fender ('cos front 18" Boyd fouls rear of wheel arch) - 7 glass-up - 8 take to paint shop - 9 decide whether to have body colour L88 hood or have 'wrapped' in carbon fibre effect vinyl - 10 install some 'sounds' in car after installing soundproof mat and heat reflective matting - is that enough guys?

[vetteheadracer]

Where do I start?

C5 Z06 needs the following doing:
Complete the installation of the dry sump oil setup.
Install the new custom built horizontal radiator.
Reinstall new modified turbo inlets.
Make up all of the connecting hoses and install the new aluminium turbo intake pipes.
Make up and install new turbo oil lines.
Make up and install new turbo water coolant lines.
Purchase and install new electric water pump.
Connect new water pump to the radiator and also re-install the header tank.
Make up connection pipes and install air intake.
Make up and install fuel lines from fuel rails to new fuel pumps.
Install Lexan windows and front screen.
Design and install new brake lines.
Find suitable alternator and get it fitted.
Re-wire the whole car.

Plus a whole host of minor jobs!!

[ZR1cliff]

You lads sound busy - It's made me think, perhaps I need to sit down and list other minor jobs

Nige - when my alternator went on my ZR-1 I found these chaps really helpful and reasonable and had the unit within 24 hours. Just a short trip off the M4.

http://sitebuilder.yell.com/sb/show.do?id=SB000374...

[Tom74]

Christ! I thought I'd give mine a wash and put the cover on.

Seems like I may have to find something else to do just to keep the ethos of the forum going!

[vetteheadracer]

ZR1cliff said:

You lads sound busy - It's made me think, perhaps I need to sit down and list other minor jobs

Nige - when my alternator went on my ZR-1 I found these chaps really helpful and reasonable and had the unit within 24 hours. Just a short trip off the M4.

http://sitebuilder.yell.com/sb/show.do?id=SB000374...

Thanks Cliffy

My issue is not that the alternator doesn't work more of an issue is where to fit it as the original mounting position now has something else there which I can't move!

[ZR1cliff]

Nige - are you doing all this fabricating yourself?

Ross - I've often found the tracking/castor/camber 'setting up' disappointing and have never really come away convinced that they've improved the ride of my car. Are there any experts in this field around, that can perform satisfactory standard or, dare I say, improved changes to Corvettes?

[anonymous-user]

Mine's one of those All-Season Vettes. Hope others are too!

Summer

Winter

[roscobbc]

ZR1cliff said:

Nige - are you doing all this fabricating yourself?

Ross - I've often found the tracking/castor/camber 'setting up' disappointing and have never really come away convinced that they've improved the ride of my car. Are there any experts in this field around, that can perform satisfactory standard or, dare I say, improved changes to Corvettes?

Cliff - When I first had the car some 10 years ago with relatively new BFG's it used to run 'hands off' on really badly tramlined roads. As the BFG's became older (note I didn't say worn - they never, ever seem to wear do they?) it started the 'darting' in tramlines.
For me the addition of stock width (8") but 18" diameter Boyds with 255/45's created an issue - i.e. 1960's build standards - front wheel opening on passenger side was effectively 'too far forward' - as a temporary fix (2 years ago!) I dialed-in negative (or was it positive - can't remember) caster - yes it does have some really odd handling characteristics now - I think with a C4 you will have less of an issue getting it right - C3? well people say that you should 'dial-in' as much negative (or is it positive) caster to aid 'hands-off' steering self centreing and that stock C3 really needs to change to aftermarket A arms to achieve more caster - bottom line? haven't a 'kin clue. I think the track boys keep it to a minimum to aid steering response.
Andy of T @ A Automotive (old Vette boys) say to go to Goodwin Tyre, Green Lane, Ilford who again have been around for ever and seemed to know Vettes well enough.
The other option perhaps is to lay-out £100 or so for a specific camber gauge and do it ones self? - unless of course someone has a better idea.

[ZR1cliff]

I'll check them out nearer the time Ross. I've also decided to renew my coil-overs before I do anything in that area - the ones I have were fitted some years ago and although they have 'Height adjustment' they don't have any 'ride adjustment', so another job this winter depending on cost. Are there any specialist coil-over shock absorber Companies around I wonder?

[franv8]

Winter jobs for me, well I've got a set of poly bushes to fit to the front end, and a diff bearing kit. I suspect I'll end up doing not a lot though!

Need to redo the inlet manifold gasket due to a minor water leak that, strangely, isn't getting better by itself. And I'm still on the lookout for a wiper motor, so I can go back to the luxury of wipers that can be switched off...

On setting cambers and casters, given a little time, some fishing line and a little sprinkling of trigonometry, should it not be possible to have a reasonable go at adjustments without laying out for expensive instruments?

[vetteheadracer]

franv8 said:

Winter jobs for me, well I've got a set of poly bushes to fit to the front end

Fran I did the C5 bushes a couple of years back and it is a pita to get the old bushes out, I ended up drilling holes in the rubber, filling the holes with lighter fuel and setting fire to them!

Hi Cliffy, some of the fabrication work for example aluminium bits is being done by a company called Concept Racing who are brilliant but all the other stuff is being done by me up to the point where I get to the re-wiring at which point I will get a specialist involved.