clhlsh

Please help. obtained car (2001) two weeks ago. It had left and right air dam/spoilers but no middle piece. Two dealers have told me that the parts breakdown does not show a middle piece. Eklers says that there is a middle airdam. I don't see how it would attach under the car. Can someone clearify this issue for me. Thanks

BlackZ06

Two dealers and they can't find the part ?????

It is part # 10401458

go to either of these locations and order it ... way cheaper than those idiots at the dealership (though I'd phone them and give them the part number ... maybe in their embarresment they will cut you a deal)

http://www.gmpartsdirect.com

http://www.gmpartshouse.com

Mounting it will be obvious once you have the air dam in your hands. It is mounted using two bolts and nuts to the skid bar. The bolts and nuts are probably still in the skid bar, but if you need them they are

Nut - 10281487
Bolt - 11514623

I believe they come in packs of 10.

You need to replace the front air dam soon, as it contributes significantly to pushing air up through the A/C condenser and radiator.

clhlsh

Thanks for the reply I have order the part, still getting flack from dealer but Hey, its not his money.

dndrsn

Here are a couple of pics from a previous thread of how it looks installed.

BlackZ06

What do you mean "still getting flack from the dealer" ???

Hopefully you didn't order it from them ... if they are that incompetent that they can't look up a part that is commonly rreplaced on a C5 ... you are dealing with the wrong people ... I wouldn't hand my money over to them. Order the part from one of the websites I gave you above and save yourself time and money.

BlackZ06

Another thought ... since you're new to the car and it doesn't currently have the center air dam ...

When you receive/install it you will find that it is "spring loaded" ... the air dam is designed so that if you drive the air dam into an object (such as a concrete parking bumper) the air dam will roll up flat under the car. Once the object no longer exerts force against the dam, the dam will roll back into the correct position.

NOTE ... if you drive the car far enough over an object like a parking bumper ... the dam will swing back into place and is not designed to roll the other way. You will hear HORRIBLE noises as you try to back the car over the parking bumper again. The side dams, by the way, are designed to tear off if they hit an object, rather than stay attached to the car and transmit the damage to much more expensive parts.

Bottom line ... be VERY careful parking the car. The nose is very low and objects can do a lot of damage to the air dams and even the underside of the front fascia (the front "bumper" of the car).

striper

You now know that there is a center piece and it is very instrumental in your cars's cooling. I just wanted to add my opinion that you never do any business with the two dealers you went to. If they are so inept they didn't know an essential part was missing, I wouldn't let them check the air in my tires.

clhlsh

I wish to thank you for your help. I now have a fair idea what is going on. Reguarding the dealers, I live in a small town. There are no corvette specialist around here. You are my specialist in fact, which I greatly appreciate. I am trying to impart the knowledge you are providing to me to the technicans at the dealership so that next time they will know the answer. As an aside, I got this car for my wife and wanted to fix it up as muuch as possible foor her birthday. again many thanks.

corvettedoug

My driver's side one is hanging lower than the middle and passenger's side. Do the side ones have a bolt or just a clip? It would look much better if I fixed it.

BlackZ06

It's a bolt .... the GM part number is 11516569 and you need three per side, IIRC ....

In case either of the dams need replacing .....

Left (driver) side 10419313
Right side 10419312

They are about $15 to $20 each, so to me it is cheaper to replace them than try and fix them if they are torn/damaged.

bgreen83

I don't have one, but havent had any problems with cooling yet. I'm still looking to getting one though, along with all the other things I plan to do this winter,just hate the way they look

corvettedoug

Thanks. I will get under the car tomorrow and see how bad it is.

BlackZ06

Where you will see a cooling difference is when you start to stress the cooling system, such as at a race track, or hauling the car up a mountain on a hot day. In "regular" driving situations the cooling system has enough spare capacity to overcome the lower airflow caused by the missing air dam. You are also stressing the A/C system as the condensor relies on the same flow of air from the dam.

As far as looks, to each his own, but I think you will find the car looks much better with all of the front dams in place ... to me it just fits the image of a vehicle ....

bgreen83

Yeah, i see. I don't really race my car. I have alot of top work on the motor.(ls6 swap) The temps aren't that high except in the COCKPIT!! and I have no a/c.lol. It need's to be recharged. It's getting cold here so I will have time this winter to do it. I need a tunnel plate and etc. So many things to do and learn.
Got the ambient temp sensor switched also. I have a dvd service manual so printed out some pics. took a few minutes!
Thanks again for the help black z06