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Thanks! I got a pretty good deal on it. I bought the car with the intentions on swapping out the motor. I started learning more about these cars though and was leaning towards keeping the L82 and modifying it. Now I'm not too sure what to do - is it worthwhile to modify the L42? What type of gains are expected from the typical exhaust, headers, cam, etc?
I can't really say other than the big determining factor in my eyes is whether you need to keep it smog legal or not. If not others here can tell you around what hp to expect for a set of mods, there will also be many that says the motor is not worth modifying. You can ignore those guys as most 350s are highly modifiable unless you are trying to build something really quick that would reach the limits of the block.
You're right. Material misrepresentation by the seller. It is a L48. I texted messaged him and he's playing dumb.
Bummer! Welcome to the '76 L-48 Owner's Club!
The guy I got mine from told me it was an L-82 also, although at the time I didn't know the difference and it meant nothing to me. He could have said it was a T-101 and I would have been like: "cool."
I love C3's, I like the year, and I like the color, that's all that mattered to me.
Are you planning to restore it to original color, keeping it yellow, or going with something else? I'm debating myself on what color to go with when I repaint. I love my Mahogany color, but I was considering having my shop mix a custom Mahogany; a bit more red and a bit less brown, like a black-cherry.
Very nice work on the air cleaner. Looks brand new!
L48, L82, no matter they were both pretty much dogs by the mid 70s. Get some high compression pistons, a healthy cam and some headers, and have some fun.
Mine has an L-48 I just had rebuilt and modified to 310 at the crank. After the 1k mi. break-in, I will have it dynoed to see what kind of HP/torque I am getting at the wheels.
At first, I thought about buying a crate motor for it but decided to keep mine numbers-matching.
Like shok said, the Chevy 350 is highly modifiable, so it really comes down to how much you want to spend. If a numbers-matching car is not a concern, you may also want to consider going LS.
I even kept the OEM exhaust manifolds on mine which I had ceramic coated. The intake manifold is an Edelbrock Performer but had it painted Chevy Orange since I wanted to stay with the factory look. The original QuadraJet was remanufactured by All American Carburetor of Jacksonville.
I found a local shop that does powder coating so I went bananas and had most brackets and even the air-cleaner assembly done with gloss black. It looks beautiful and it was reasonable. Also replaced most of the nuts and bolts with grade 8 hardware I purchased at ACE Hardware. Love the cad-plated look. lol.
Anyway, whatever you decide to do to your Vette have fun with it, and make it your own!
P.S. Sending you a PM with links and contact info.
Wow. That looks great! I'll be in touch with you to get some more details on having the stock engine rebuilt.
Originally Posted by SpiritOf76
Bummer! Welcome to the '76 L-48 Owner's Club!
The guy I got mine from told me it was an L-82 also, although at the time I didn't know the difference and it meant nothing to me. He could have said it was a T-101 and I would have been like: "cool."
I love C3's, I like the year, and I like the color, that's all that mattered to me.
Are you planning to restore it to original color, keeping it yellow, or going with something else? I'm debating myself on what color to go with when I repaint. I love my Mahogany color, but I was considering having my shop mix a custom Mahogany; a bit more red and a bit less brown, like a black-cherry.
Very nice work on the air cleaner. Looks brand new!
Yea I can't say it would have mattered to me much either, maybe just on the sale price. I originally wanted to do an LS swap but it seems like there's so much involved and it would be a project that I never finished
Both the original blue and current yellow appeal to me, but I think I may go with something a bit more modern. I haven't decided what color yet, but it should be soon as I hope to have it painted by December.
Your mahogany looks great. It's the first time I've seen that color. Black cherry is always a solid choice though!
Originally Posted by Richard Daugird
L48, L82, no matter they were both pretty much dogs by the mid 70s. Get some high compression pistons, a healthy cam and some headers, and have some fun.
Good to know. Thanks!
Originally Posted by Kubs
Nice project! Looks like you have already hit the ground running. Keep the updates coming.
So I gutted the interior. Like so many others, I ripped up the carpet and discovered rust and holes in the floor pans. I wanted to see how bad the rust was so I took a metal brush and drill to the pans and attacked it. Its not so bad and there should be a good surface area to weld new pans in.
I also removed all of the interior pieces for paint. The pieces are originally light gray but I want to convert over to black. Unfortunately, the previous owner used random screws throughout the interior, causing large holes and an overall inconvenience.
There's one screw that I haven't been able to remove because it was tightened so much. It's so long that it was touching the window glass on the other side!
I'm almost finished painting the interior pieces and will post some pictures then. I'm not a chrome guy whatsoever, so I'm even blacking out the chrome trim on the door panels (and every other chrome accent in the interior, as well as the interior). I'm sure this is not popular opinion around here
Unfortunately, the previous owner used random screws throughout the interior, causing large holes and an overall inconvenience.
Yeah, Bubba did a number on the screw holes in mine too. All kinds of random hardware... slotted, square drive, drywall, hex... there was even one of those "security" hex screws with the pin in the middle that I had to go buy a tool to remove it. And of course, all of those screws reamed out the original holes so now even the right screws won't hold right. MAJOR inconvenience.
You will be faced with challenges (true with any used car, someone has tinkered with), but when you finish it you will know exactly what you have, and can take pride in the fact, that you did it your way for you.
Congratulations, you're well on your way.
Yeah, Bubba did a number on the screw holes in mine too. All kinds of random hardware... slotted, square drive, drywall, hex... there was even one of those "security" hex screws with the pin in the middle that I had to go buy a tool to remove it. And of course, all of those screws reamed out the original holes so now even the right screws won't hold right. MAJOR inconvenience.
Agreed. It's a bit ridiculous and surprising that people do it so often . Hopefully I can get it all straightened out without too much more hassle.
Originally Posted by tokim
You will be faced with challenges (true with any used car, someone has tinkered with), but when you finish it you will know exactly what you have, and can take pride in the fact, that you did it your way for you.
Congratulations, you're well on your way.
Thanks! I'm really excited to get it going and do something different with it.
Originally Posted by 929nitro
Welcome to the madness. Great looking car to start with. Keep up the great progress and watch out for the "while I'm at it disease .
I got that disease the second I got the car in my garage I can never get anything done because my mind gets distracted on something else. I'm trying to force myself to take on the car by section but that never seems to work.
Had some Volk Racing CE28N wheels laying around. They are forged monoblock wheels, pretty light, and 17x9 all around. The bolt pattern is 114.3 so I bought some 1.25" spacers to see if I could make them work just for fun. I got them on but there was some clearance issues with the suspension components. I'm assuming the backspacing is not the proper 4" that is required. Boo.
Here's a picture of the wheel just placed in front of the stockers for a guide.
Had some Volk Racing CE28N wheels laying around. They are forged monoblock wheels, pretty light, and 17x9 all around. The bolt pattern is 114.3 so I bought some 1.25" spacers to see if I could make them work just for fun. I got them on but there was some clearance issues with the suspension components. I'm assuming the backspacing is not the proper 4" that is required. Boo.
Here's a picture of the wheel just placed in front of the stockers for a guide.
After looking at the floor pan photos, what's the overall condition of the frame, body mounts, and suspension components? I would also check the radiator support since they are notorious for rusting away.
[QUOTE=aoz06;1593145751]Had some Volk Racing CE28N wheels laying around. They are forged monoblock wheels, pretty light, and 17x9 all around. The bolt pattern is 114.3 so I bought some 1.25" spacers to see if I could make them work just for fun. I got them on but there was some clearance issues with the suspension components. I'm assuming the backspacing is not the proper 4" that is required. Boo.
QUOTE]
What kind of clearance issues? Is it something that a thicker wheel adaptor might take care of since they are nice looking wheels.
What kind of clearance issues? Is it something that a thicker wheel adaptor might take care of since they are nice looking wheels.
I don't recall specifically, but I feel like it was hitting the rear leaf spring or maybe one of the bolts. I need to figure out the wheel dimensions overall and then hopefully someone can help me sort out what's needed to make them fit. I know they are 17x9" wheels with a +45 offset. However, I have no idea how that relates to anything
After looking at the floor pan photos, what's the overall condition of the frame, body mounts, and suspension components? I would also check the radiator support since they are notorious for rusting away.
Those were my concerns as well once I lifted up the carpet. I pulled up some other panels to check the bird cage and frame shortly thereafter and it all looked pretty good. I haven't checked the radiator support but will definitely do that next time I'm in the garage.
I want to replace the suspension all around so that stuff isn't too much of a concern for me. I'm starting to collect parts now and will do the suspension and brake mods all at the same time.
I had some free time today and finished painting all off the interior panels black. Don't mind my storage method -- space in the garage is limited and I had to scramble before the wife got home.
I ordered new black carpeting so that's on its way. The next step is deciding on what to do with the seats. I'm torn between recovering the stock seats, picking up c5 seats, or getting Corbeau. I know I'm only 27, but I have a lot of back problems from a recent rear end MVA so while appearance is important, overall comfort is key. Any insight?
I had some free time today and finished painting all off the interior panels black. Don't mind my storage method -- space in the garage is limited and I had to scramble before the wife got home.
I ordered new black carpeting so that's on its way. The next step is deciding on what to do with the seats. I'm torn between recovering the stock seats, picking up c5 seats, or getting Corbeau. I know I'm only 27, but I have a lot of back problems from a recent rear end MVA so while appearance is important, overall comfort is key. Any insight?
What did you use to paint the lower dash and map pocket? Did you primer all the pieces? What did you use? I want to paint my interior tan (Buckskin) until I can afford actual new interior.
09-26-2016, 12:47 AM
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