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One problem with one big thread is you dont get the exposure when new questions come up. so for many of the individual items ive repaired i made new threads for. here they are. :
The original thread started here:
After selling my 85 auto z51 2 weeks ago, I intended to do a restomod on my 87 auto z52. ive decided to just sell the 87 auto.
Instead I found an 86 manual trans. the price was....very good...because it has many small things that others did not like...however, has the car is complete, started right up...so i bought it drove it home. it has 226000klm or 140000 miles which checks out on the carproof.
youll have to use your imaginations in these pics because i hadnt even washed the car yet. this was traight from the sellers home to my garage.
yyuuuccckkkkkk painted plastic and vinyl
this car is a z31. which just means it was exported to be a canadian car. im in canada. many of our c4's are usa originals so this is cool.
over the years this car has seen its fair share of modifications. im not a fan of any of them and my mission is to restore this car to mostly oem spec but with a touchscreen double din stereo and updated rims. if i choose to turn it into a track car it will get an oil cooler as it doesnt have the oem cooler.
interior
- originally it was a medium grey interior. (i have a thread where i have asked for pics of all components of the med grey interior)
- at some point in its history, someone elected to paint the gauge and center hvac bezel silver.
- then at a later date, somebody decided to primer all the interior plastics in red, then spray with black. In this process they filled the trim grooves on the main bezel panels with bondo. wtf.
i found replacement dash parts for a good enough price that im not going further withtjis lost cause. wtf!
- those panels are being replaced or restored. i have a full set waiting for pickup for 170$. i briefly considered carbon or leather wrapping. it can look very good especially the red stitch leather packages on ebay but ive opted to restore the panels to oem spec instead. I like the modern high-gloss carbon fibre wrap but only sparringly not as an entire wrap job for the interior of the car.
- a note on stripping vinyl flexible paint or "dye" on vinyl. i tried using easy off, the yellow kind. It worked, using green scotchbright pad to rub it out of the textures, but the silvery overtones on the factory vinyl "medium grey"came off with it or was perhaps already worn off when the previous owner painted it black.
here is the stripped vinyl cover awaiting a color match to the oem medium grey: distressed leather look! you can see the oem silver overtone medium grey.
- thank god they didnt paint the leather seats. it has the original adjustable sport seats and i have to say wow they are different than the base seats. much better at holding a person in. The seats have been swapped side to side and both bolsters are trashed. Thread has come apart at a few seams. I have to say i really rreeaallyy like the silvery overtones on the "medium grey" interior. I dont think of the color as a medium grey if anything maybe a silver grey. my previous c4's have been graphite.
- i dont think the adjustability is functional right now on the sport seats. air hoses are disconnected under the cusion.
- i dont mind the look of worn leather at all. especially these perforated seats. worn as in wrinkle marks is ok with me but cracks tears and comprimised stitching is not ok. im going to give it a try to get these seats repaired rather than replaced. in need a set of somebodies old oem medium grey (84-87) leather skins for a leather guy here to remake the bolsters.
so far my fav interior color seats.
- missing fuse cover.
-aftermarket walmart stereo - trash
-some sort of acid spill in the cargo area toasted the carpet. Color is faded but not to bad. ill buy a replacement piece for it.
- door panels are f'd.
- door carpet panels and passenger hush panels are mia and replaced with black vinyl. total bubba.
- the shift console bezel is hilarious. somebody put the window switches mounted on the underside of the skeleton at first i thought they were smashed in but nope.
The exterior has also been adulterated. My guess is because it was in a fender bender in 2009 with a 0$ claim amount. This explains why it has a late C4 rear clip on it.
- needs front and back emblems
- The rear clip install actually looks good. I got up underneath and there is zero damage to anything that I can see. My guess is the original bumper got cracked in a fender bender and the owner liked the look of the newer rear clip and on it went.
- it has been repainted metallic black with a split grey racing racing stripe. Not sure about the paint codes unfortunately. The paint job is allright, wish i knew the paintcode so i could buy a duplicolor touch up pen as it does need it in a few places. its a 7/10 paint job.
- fiberglass targa roof in excellent shape.
- amazingly all the weatherstrip is the good latex rubber type, and the only piece to be replaced is the windshield frame
Mechanically, im amazed to the upside. this car is tight and runs great!
- its an early 86 with the iron head and the scissor style hood support that at some point failed on the previous owner and bent the wrong direction which you guessed it, pushed into the light housing and cracked the headlight.
- it drives and handles better than my 87 or 85, not sure why. Its got monroe 'gas matic' shocks which i read are not super high end but it was super tight when i drove it home.
- there is a hole in one muffler, will probably replace with obx.
- the engine started first crank, amazingly. When I rescued it it was definately neglected. to say the least. Covered in pine needles. All fluids were topped up, but not recently changed.
- leaking seals (seriously, every c4 i have ever looked at has dried out cracked seals) and a slight whine in neutral, which i expect will be front or rear carrier bearings in the T10 or the throw out bearing
- there is a decent sized valve cover leak that is allowing oil onto the exhast manifold which ive never seen before and was pretty funny to see it start smoking like a coal train
first order of business for me on my vettes has become spraying the underside and engine bay with purple cleaner (it will blotch aluminum, careful) then pressure washing. then i can get under the car to evaluate wth i am dealing with.
- the valve covers......very few c4 owners get the valve cover refurb done right. well he tried anyway. and he put the logo on uside down and ofcourse the laint is crap
- but ITS ALL THERE AND IT RUNS PERFECTLY.
- the trans, 4+3 which i have been pining over ever since i brought my first auto trans c4 home, shifts great, overdrive button works, od engages fine.
- trans does have a very slight whine when in neutral and the clutch is engaged. when i disengage the clutch by pressing the pedal, the slight whine goes away. I expect this is a carrier bearing in the front, ive read they were starved of oil and there is an updated part for the unit. i look forward to dropping it this winter and finding a worn bearing.
- i did drop the gearbox oil. it did have slight and i mean slight bearing surface material in it. small miniscule flecks.
- i also dropped the od unit atf. it looked like diarrhea. just clutch material. but it looked like....a bit think and chunky....
you can see a texture on the surface there. only clutch material. used the gasket that was on there with hylomar on both sides. im a hylomar fanboy
- installed clean fluids with non-synthetic versions
- engine oil smelled like it may have had a bit of fuel in it. not 100% sure on it though. ill know when in do a fuel pressure diagnosis on it. very possible that the fluid was just really really old. running some cheap oil through it to douche it.
- rad fluid is green and full. much different from my 85 that was brown and rusty.
- i havn't sucked out the rear diff fluid yet, wish those things came with plugs.
- needs new hood release cables.
So much of this stuff i did on my 85.
looking fwd to it. its not a dd and the acquisition cost was good so no stress associated with it.
more info and pics to come!
Last edited by VikingTrad3r; 02-15-2018 at 05:02 PM.
I rotated your SPID - I've never seen the Z31 as being a "Canadian Specific" but the Z49 is Canadian Base Equipment RPO. In '86 I don't know what that might have specified but it confirms a build for/to Canada. I think it only a GM "build to Canadian Safety Requirements" - which in '86 would likely have only been the Metric spec for instrumentation. Don't know! Clusters are mentioned to be different by part#.
The ZF8 is interesting and I don't know that I've ever noticed previously on C4 SPID. The only ZFx (x being numeric) that I've ever seen were assigned to Canadian builds of a Chevy chassis. The ZF8 I'd say is certainly a Canadian RPO and might be interesting to research. GM Canada might be able to identify for you. I don't know that a build sheet would but it might be interesting to have the build sheet.
***Pure speculation but the only other reference I've seen to the ZF8 was with a Fiero so ............... MAYBE it's a 2 passenger reference
I rotated your SPID - I've never seen the Z31 as being a "Canadian Specific" but the Z49 is Canadian Base Equipment RPO. In '86 I don't know what that might have specified but it confirms a build for/to Canada. I think it only a GM "build to Canadian Safety Requirements" - which in '86 would likely have only been the Metric spec for instrumentation. Don't know! Clusters are mentioned to be different by part#.
The ZF8 is interesting and I don't know that I've ever noticed previously on C4 SPID. The only ZFx (x being numeric) that I've ever seen were assigned to Canadian builds of a Chevy chassis. The ZF8 I'd say is certainly a Canadian RPO and might be interesting to research. GM Canada might be able to identify for you. I don't know that a build sheet would but it might be interesting to have the build sheet.
***Pure speculation but the only other reference I've seen to the ZF8 was with a Fiero so ............... MAYBE it's a 2 passenger reference
haha. i think u and i landed on the same fiero forum. i saw that too and there was no definitive answer there.
changed the title of the thread to call it a ZF8. if nothing else, its a mystery!
**doesnt look like i can change it. i guess it will be a Z31.
Last edited by VikingTrad3r; 11-23-2016 at 08:11 PM.
so far this is the only thing on the car that looks like it needs to be replaced mechanically, do you guys know what this is? And where I can find one? I haven't done anything to suspension yet on these cars in my first two.
its cracked. crackecd along the casting line?
The FSM calls those "anchor plates", retaining the spring and spacers. The book doesn't give a part number for the anchor plates, just the spacers. It also doesn't show a different part for the D36 & D44, so a set from either will likely work.
so far this is the only thing on the car that looks like it needs to be replaced mechanically, do you guys know what this is? And where I can find one? I haven't done anything to suspension yet on these cars in my first two.
[img] its cracked.
[img]
[img]
[img] crackecd along the casting line?
Those are all over eBay. Search for c4 corvette rear spring or 84-96 corvette rear spring and you will see at least a few different ones. Redneck43 has an eBay store and specializes in c4 small parts, I know he has them.
Those are all over eBay. Search for c4 corvette rear spring or 84-96 corvette rear spring and you will see at least a few different ones. Redneck43 has an eBay store and specializes in c4 small parts, I know he has them.
today i fixed the sagging door hinges. new pin and bushing. the springs are shot too with big grooves worn into them. will try to find a place that is affordable for those.
left the door on. did one at a time. easy!
cutting the oem pin cant see it here but the spring is shot too. will put them on later. door closes great now still wont stay open on hill.
im trying to track down the history on this car with respect to paint. holy hanna.
the exterior was originally medium grey metallic, then i think it became copper. then metal flake black with the grey racing stripe.
the interior was originally medium grey which was more of a light grey with silver overtones. then somebody painted all the front abs dash silver. Then later somebody hit it with a red primer and painted it black again.
it will look great once i get it sorted out out.
next is a plug inspection with compression test and brake servicing. If that checks out ill drain all coolant using the ks drain i built based offcliff harris's. coolan iis nice and green but the rad has some buildup on it can see in the cap. ill give it a good vinegar douch and then fill with prestone flush and run it for a few days.
Then over the depths of winter i should have time to replace whichever seals are leaking, i know for sure the driver side valve cover is, and im pretty sure ive seen coolant under there so that would be either the water pump or ....maybe the lower rad hose? this car doesnt have an oil cooler. Rear diff must have bery recently been services because i started draining it but sucking out the fill hole and it was still honey coloured so i stopped and left it as is. the fill plug had no sealant on it and the seepage i saw was coming from that. used hylomar on the plug problem solved. might drop the t10 to replace the front carrier bearing if needed with the updated part. i havnt driven it enough to know yet.
will be looking for updated rims for her over the winter as i cant stand the 80's rims!
not sure if ill put the z31 up for sale or keep her for a future LS swap one.
Last edited by VikingTrad3r; 01-29-2020 at 03:06 PM.
took the Z31 out tonight. my second time driving it. the first was after buying it on the way home, it was dirty, smelly, couldnt use the heater fan because the blower squeeled like a stuck pig.
after fresh fluids, attempted cleaning of the ducting, repair to the blower motor, and cleaning of the interior as best as possible, she feels much better.
ooohhhhh bbooyy i had fun. sssoooooo much more fun than in my auto cars. there is something uniquely satisfying about nailing that perfect shift in the powerband. mmmmmmmmmm.
Last edited by VikingTrad3r; 01-29-2020 at 03:06 PM.
They look amazing! Plenty of pictures in the linked thread. I absolutely love the medium grey interior door panels! space grey! Landau black is the perfect interior abs plastic match for early c4.
my advice is DO NOT use a coloured primer. just used the "sand free" and obsessively clean it first. that way if there is a scratch, its just black underneath.
I'll be continuing on the interior restoration:
next up
- interior dash mounts, which are all cracked up. I'll be using the 'lego method' that i've coined. lol. (documented in the door repair thread haha).
- the rear trim is also cracked and warped, i assume from the sun, and in need of either replacement or, perhaps! perhaps i can pull a plastic weld off on it.
- door sills were painted the same black, and need to be returned to the medium grey. worst case scenario, i can remove the black, and repaint it with the matching paint and it will be fine.
decided to pursue dash repairs so i could get thegot the dash off. i was a bit scared of cracking it but it did hold up.
there was a bit of treasure hidden. some wires and harness. i assume it is the bose speaker harness. EDIT: No, it was the rear view mirror lighting power and the vanity lighting for the visor.
this was tucked under the dash.
the speakers are alpine 4x6 again like the doors.
i winder what lies beneath the rears??
and if i have 6 speakers would i expect to find a small amp somewhere?
more fun to come.
oohhhh. wait.
you probably want to see what i found behind the bread box???
lets just say i sucked it up with a vacuum and sprayed the area down with lysol then wiped and wiped.
Last edited by VikingTrad3r; 01-24-2019 at 01:47 PM.
Might be the pictures but the seats look bronze to me, like the ones in my car, cannot read all the codes on your sticker but can see
A42 - Standard leather seats
maybe they have been swapped.
Might be the pictures but the seats look bronze to me, like the ones in my car, cannot read all the codes on your sticker but can see
A42 - Standard leather seats
maybe they have been swapped.
Thanks for the comment convas.
The leather seats are definitely the "medium grey" which is more of a silvery color. definitely a metallic sheen to them, which i love! I can see how they may look similar to a metallic bronze color. I'd like to see bronze actually i bet i'd love those too.
On the A42, the second rpo code in says AQ9. AQ9 - Leather Sport Seats
My understanding of how GM does it is they put the rpo code on for "leather" as an upgrade over "cloth" and then they put the "upgraded" AQ9 on to denote that you have the upgraded leather seats.
I'm not sure if my interpretation is correct, but I am quite sure these are medium grey and I do think they are the OEM seats.
Got a double din picked out yet? I want to upgrade mine when I swap the bose speakers out. Just gotta figure out how to do the wiring in the door first.
The leather seats are definitely the "medium grey" which is more of a silvery color. definitely a metallic sheen to them, which i love! I can see how they may look similar to a metallic bronze color. I'd like to see bronze actually i bet i'd love those too.
11-23-2016, 12:58 AM
restoring a 1986 manual 4+3 "Z31" PICS
