I just sold my C4 and am undecided on whice Corvette to buy next.

I have owned a 65, 81, 86, 87 and a 96.

My goal is to own something that has plenty of power, handles well, is reliable, gets over 20mpg on the Interstate, and has good AC. It must be different from the herd yet tasteful (no strange body kits).

I spent some time on the road course at Cruise In riding shotgun in a supercharged C5 vert. Something like that meets all my criteria but there are a tons of them at car shows and they just don't set off my "wow that's cool" brain receptor.

I really like the 80-82 body. I love the view of the road from the cockpit. If you have ever driven one you know what I mean. The problem is that they do not handle like the C4/C5 or have the nice AC system or the fuel economy.

My left knee is going to require replacement sometime in the next few years. I will thus require an automatic and this is one of the reasons I sold the 96 LT4.

My questions:
1. When I bought my 81 I was ignorant. I was lucky that it had a good bird cage. Now I know to look for rust in the bird cage but I am not sure how to do so. I have seen Terry Michalis (spelling) from Pro Team use a small flashlight to look down the door frame near the windshield at auctions. Is this the proper way to spot bird cage rust?
I already know how to look for frame rust at the rear kick-up so I don't need help there.

2. Any good sites to look at for info on how to install an LS1 and A4 tranny in a C3?

3. How difficult is it to change the front end over to a steeroids type system?

4. I like wide tires. Does one have to use offset trailing arms to get this look in the rear. I would want 17" wheels too. Any hints for putting these on the front?

5. I have read articles on how to restore the factory C3 AC system but don't know how to find them again. Any tips?

I rode back from Bowling Green to Michigan in another C5 and we convoyed with several others to include a C4 and a C3 (1976?) owned by Big Fish. We were rolling along at 85-105mph most of the way and the C3 had no problem keeping up and it looked good doing so.

Any help or advice is greatly appreciated and will likely keep me from joining the "big butt" cookie cutter C5 crowd! Thanks!!!

 

If you ever get to Bloomington Gold Corvettes event in June at St. Charles, Ill you'll see a tent with a vendor that puts all new C4 or C5 running train under C1's, C2's & C3's. This sounds like right up your alley.

 

Yes, I have talked with them. BIG bux though. They supply a tube chassis and you supply a wrecked donor C4/C5.

 

For all the things you would want to do to a C3, I would just go out and buy a C5. It would probably be cheaper in the end and you would have a great car. Especially if comfort is a big thing, you don't want a C3 with a bad knee. Just my opinion.

 

to check for birdcage rust, the 2 easiest ways r to take the kick pannels off, and look in there, also if you hav the time you can take the chrome metal coverings off of the T-top bar, right above the windshield

good luck hunting!!!

Miles

 

Get a Silverado SS pick-up. 6.0 liter vortec, 20+ mpg. great A/C, and will blow most cars off the road. Easy on the knees gettin' in and out!

 

Stick with C4-C6.

 

1, Bird Cage Rust, as mentioned, pull the kick panels and look at the #2 mounts, use an inspection miror and light to look up into the door pillar and see whats there. Pull up the carpet and see what the floor looks like, thats where the water leaking ends up. Rocker channels are another victem, pull the rocker panels off and smak the channel with the heel of your hand see if anything falls out. Chances are if there is much rust on the #2 mounts there will be at least some on the channels, the water migrates along thr channel from the #2 mount.

2. I don't know of any sites out there for putting in an LSx motor, but there are several guys in here that have done it and they share info freely. Ebay also has some info resources, I got a book there for the electrics.

3. I don't have steroids, but from what I hear in here it is not a difficult change

4. Offset TA's are required for big tires on the back, spacers on the front. You might need to do some fender flairs to get it all looking nice

5. AC systems, annother thing we have a collective experience with in here. C3 ac is not the best, but there are things to do that are not all that difficult to make it better. Fixing all the leaking 30 yr old duct seals, fixing the vacuume controlls and making sure the operators work helps a lot. An R134a conversion with a paralell flow condensor and maybe a C4 fan should get it all up to snuff.

A 2004R tranny swap with a 2200 stall converter, or a 4L60E tranny will get the snap you want in it. Complete suspension rebuild with Poly bushings, transverse springs and good sway bars will get it cornering like you want.
And you can do all that for a mere $20k or so. More than a nice C4, but nobody turns to look at a C4, they DO for a sweet C3

 

Thanks guys! The search for the donor car begins. I really like the opening hatch on the 82 Collector but there are just too many of them out there so I am thinking of a repaint such as charcoal with a red interior. Might go with a 383 carbed crate motor.
My 81 had the same rear end as the 82. If I recall correctly it was aluminum. Can the stocker handle the torque?

 

Here is the look I am after:

With this type of wheel and this paint color on a 82 CE. I am thinking chrome 69-style side pipes though.

 

What happened to the 20 mpg you wanted?

 

We all know that you can get @ 20 mpg from a 4-bbl , as long as you keep your foot out of it!

(and Santa Claus wouldn't be fat if he stayed out of the Christmas cookies!)

A 383 will do a nice job of getting you off the line quick. The rear end should hold up to some horse-play, but the key is to have some hard compound street tires that'll just spin, if that's what you're into. Big, sticky tires are what destroy drivetrains.

If you're going to customize a little, and swap in an engine, a common 78-82 L-48 is an affordable start. If you get a nice Silver Ann. or Collector's Ed., it's not as wise to mess with them.

 

Would it be too much work to modify a C3 body and set it on a C5 chassis?

 

This would go in stages. Probably put a LT4 intake and fuel injection on it as it progressed.

 

There is a trashed CE for sale on this forum in the 5K range. I like the idea of being able to open the rear hatch.

 

I am going to talk with the vendors at Bloomington Gold about this. There were 3 of them there last year if I recall correctly.
There is a Corvette salvage yard in Streator, IL (just north of Bloomington, IL) called Vette2Vette. Jason, the owner bought an old Coke bottling plant and has the place stuffed with C4 and C5 parts. He is trustworthy and his prices are reasonable. He also works with Gordon Killebrew who is teaching him the ins and outs of the ZR-1.
Now there is a thought! A shark body with a ZR-1 engine, drivetrain and suspension! I'm getting wood just thinking about it!

 

Sixfooter basically hit the nail on the head. But you don't HAVE to have offset TAs to use wide tires. Relocate the parking cable brackets to a different part of the trailing arms and you gain at least a good inch of clearance, for bigger tires.

To go beyond 275s in the back, though, you'll have to go outwards and either use massive wheel adapters (which I wouldn't really recommend) or wheels with a negative offset. You'll also needa cover up the fatties with some fender flares, which is easy with fiberglas. You've actually got more room up front on '78 - '82s than in the back so 17x9 wheels actually fit pretty easily. I run 275-40-17s on my '81 and they don't rub at all.

The a/c thing... As sixfooter said, reseal the ventilation system and put a higher cfm fan motor in for starters. The a/c in later models is actually not too bad, as long as it is well maintained. Upgrade the condensor (that's the part that sits in front of the radiator right?) and the radiator to something more modern (northern factory makes excellent replacements for both) and your interior should stay pretty cool.

Putting steeroids in is no biggy, although I personally think the stock power steering system is fine, but I'm probably the only one who thinks that.

As for putting in an LS1. Meh, just build a nice roller 383, 400, 406, or 427 small block and put fuel injection on it and you'll be just as happy. You can run a mechanical fuel pump with a Gen 1 block, which I think is an excellent advantage as I don't trust electric fuel pumps. Put a good 2004R behind it and you can get 20mpg just fine.

I've heard of people beefening up the rear ends on '80 - '82s. So there's definitely a way to make it able to take the abuse of a 400+hp engine.

 

I have a 82CE and I'll tell you one thing for sure.You WILL have problems with the rear hatch.The metal GM used wasn't very good and all of them streched,making them allmost useless.I got lucky and bought a pair that a guy made out of 6061T6 soild billit alum.These will never streach!!.I have heard of some guys that have bent them back into spec. with a vise but much care is needed.We have come to aggrement that 1/2" is the norm for them to spread so you need to bend them back 1/2"+ to allow for them to bend back when you take them out of the vice.A lot of CE's you will see that bubba has been back there cutting out the holle in the plastic for the pins to go into.Then you will have a leak at the top of the glass.Thats the first thing you need to look at when considering a CE.The hinges are not being repop. and the used ones on ebay are more than likley just as bad as the ones you have.I've still got my originals but wouldn't want to sell them for that very reason.All 82 are auto's 700R4's and they are geared for a pretty good take off considering the HP and you do get the OD for the gas mileadge.

 

THANK YOU Kalway and Copter! Copter you have almost talked me out of a CE. If I look at one then I will surely check out the hatch hinges!
Here is a pic of my 81. I did a base/clear coat repaint and did the 355/Edlebrock mods to bring her to an alleged 400 HP. It had the Gymkhana rear springs and rode a bit rough. I sold her at Bloomington Gold auction the last year they actually had it in Bloomington. She is owned by someone in Birmingham, AL. I never was able to find who did the original conversion to a vert.
As I said, I really like the view from the cockpit looking over those front fenders. Excuse the smudge on the pic. It sat in a drawer for too many years.

This time around I have the knowledge of the Forum to help me out and I am not strapped for cash like I was way back then.
This could get interesting.

 

Thanks

If you want the LS1/auto combo with modern suspension and steering you're better off taking the body off and go from there.... maybe you should look for a 78-82 model without engine/trans ... it's a lot of work though.....