Dad's L-82

Good day, all. New to the forum and new to the world of Corvette restoration. I inherited my dad's '79 Vette (hence the screen name) and I've decided to give her the TLC she deserves. He's not the original owner, and she's had a good bit of work done in the 38 years or so since she came off the line. I'd like to know what exactly I have, I know it's a '79 L-82, but what other things do I need to know so I can get the resources I need to do right by her? And speaking of resources, what should I get my hands on? I've heard of the "Black Book" and I know what a Haynes manual is, but is there anything else I should pick up? This forum and places like Willcox is an embarrassment of riches with all the info I've picked up just since I joined.

What I know:
'79 L-82 (Dad said she's matching numbers, but I haven't verified yet)
Engine rebuild at 96k miles, currently at 102k
Edelbrock intake and carb installed at some point, I believe in the 90's
DynoMax exhaust installed in 1999
She's been repainted at least once (1990), and had some (questionable) body work done.

I'm not into racing and modding isn't my cup of tea. She's a driver, I would like to restore her to her original condition as much as I can either by repair or replacement. As with most vehicles this age, there's some gremlins in the electrical system that I'd like to sort through. I have a feeling it has something to do with half the fuses missing from the fuse block, but I haven't located a proper diagram for that yet. Assume it would be in the Haynes? Thanks in advance for any assistance, I hope to repay the favor one day. Cheers!

michaelroy

The first thing I would do is buy a AIM (assembly manual) year specific 79. Check out the Willcox Videos. Lot of info on You Tube. Patience is absolutely a virtue. Now all you need id Time and Money. Good luck. This forum is a treasure trove of info regarding your car. Have Fun!

Alan 71

Hi Dad's,
WELCOME!!
As mroy indicated having the 79 Assembly Instruction Manual will be a good start to understanding how the car is put together.
In addition I'd suggest the 79 Service Manual. I believe you'll find it has much more specific information than a Haynes manual.
Good Luck!
Regards,
Alan

An example of the AIM.
It was used on the production line in St./Louis


An example of a page from the AIM.




An example of a Service Manual.
It was used by the Service Techs at the dealerships.

henrikse

If you check this form a member (papawana) has wiring diagrams he will send you. Click on his name top left and send private message asking for your year and he will send. or you can hit reply on bottom. Great to have some diagrams for those gremlins

Peterbuilt

Here's some information, just click on Corvette and select your year;
https://gmheritagecenter.com/gm-heri...tion-kits.html

Here's a schematic for your '79:
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&p...TYyNWViMWY1NzY

Post whatever your electrical problem is and someone will help you figure out the fix.

derekderek

Hi. Welcome aboard. 100k. Engine has been done. Brakes. Front suspension. Rear suspension. I am not saying they are shot, but you need to know their condition.

C3 4ME

Yes, as mentioned, the AIM and shop manual will be invaluable. You'll find a wealth of information right here on this forum too. Since no one else has said it, from one 79 L-82 owner to another, we need to see some pics of this car!

derekderek

https://m.ebay.com/itm/Corvette-Serv...kAAOSwNRdX9jbm These older Chilton were better than current stuff. And the sales brochure and owner's manual seem to be original, not reprints. If you don't want these, somebody here will. I was looking for a chassis service manual for your year. Goes into detail of repairing every piece of the car. Even down to rebuilding the water pump!

Easy Mike

FWIW: if the car was ordered with the optional L-82 engine, the fifth character of the VIN will be a 4.

Congrats on the 79.

Dad's L-82

Thanks for all the responses, this is wonderful! I've got my homework cut out for me. The gremlins I'm chasing seem to be minimal now that I've busted out the multimeter and checked a few things. I need to enlist my son to get himself near the fuse block to check that out, I'd like to know what circus Chevy engineers came from thinking normal people could access that. Middle age has set in, I don't bend that way easily. My gas gauge does not seem to work, it stays past the F but not pegged to the 3 o'clock position. Using the Willcox info I checked the fuse (good), fuse holder (also good), and sending unit (not good). I haven't pulled the gauge out of the dash yet to check that, I figured I'd stop at the sending unit since that seems to be where the problem is. Also the clock doesn't work but the rest of the gauge cluster seems operable. Not as bad as I thought. I'd like to get the antenna operable again, so if I do drop the tank to change out the sending unit I'll tackle that at the same time. At this point I don't know if the antenna issue is mechanical or electrical. It looks like a replacement because it doesn't sit in the fender hole the way I think it should. It looks...askew. Maybe that's my OCD.

The 5th VIN digit is a 4, so she's a bona fide L-82. The brakes seem to be in good condition. The suspension on the other hand, I think could use some TLC. Any bump in the road larger than a green pea and you can feel it. I have a friend with a transmission shop, he's going to give that a once over for me to make sure everything is in good shape. There's a few other things that need to be addressed, but nothing that keeps me from driving her. Thanks again for the info so far, I'm glad I came across this place. Cheers!

Edit - Oh, and pics are coming. Just need to get them from my phone to the computer.

CheezMoe

Bikespace

You can get a surprising amount of stuff from Rock Auto:
http://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/c...118,literature

I just picked up a shop manual for my '80, and the brochures for '80 and '79. The Factory Assembly Manual (AIM for older 'Vettes) and the shop manual are required reading.

The forum will require pictures to continue to help you, but you can use this opportunity to create a build thread for your car.

Scroll down on this thread to see a picture of the engine stamp. It may be behind your AC compressor, and you may have to clean it, then rub dirt on it, to get enough contrast to read the numbers. Your phone may see it better than your eyes.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-a-1977-a.html

A "matching numbers" car will have, at a minimum, an engine block with a partial VIN that matches the car's VIN, and an engine code that matches the OEM configuration. For a '79, the possibilities are ZBA for a 4-speed, and ZBB for an automatic.

http://corvettec3.ca/engines.htm

The trim tag in the driver's door opening by the hinge will tell you what color the car was originally, inside and out (also available at the Corvettec3.ca site)

Good luck!

G-Sting

Welcome to C3 land! Along with the AIM and aforementioned manuals, it sure helps to take digital photos of everything before you disassemble. Guarantee, it'll help in reassembly. (Which bolt goes there?, etc.)

If you need particular photos of an original '79, there are many here who can provide them... as can I ('79 L82 4 speed, only 15k original miles)

Enjoy your ride.

Easy Mike

Was originally an L-82. Check the two stamps on the engine pad. One is the engine ID stamp; the other should be the VIN derivative for your car.

Dad's L-82

You're right, I can't assume anything. I've located the engine stamps on the firewall side of the engine, but I'll be darned if I can find the VIN stamp on the front of the block yet. There just isn't anything protruding like in all of the diagrams I've seen. I'm probably looking in the wrong place or it's just obscured. This is a marathon not a sprint, though, time and help from y'all will help. Thanks again! Oh, and here's a pic from the other day after I changed the plugs. Excuse the dirt, it's yellow season in the South. The oaks are shedding pollen worse than my wife's white cats on my black pants.

SwampeastMike

Nice looking '79. "Corvette Yellow" was the least common and the bolt-on spoilers were a rather rare option. The engine compartment looks wonderful from a distance! The ignition/radio shield over the distributor is missing but such seems very common. Many have removed the special paint from the "black chrome". Good to see yours intact--particularly on a yellow car!

Before you drop the fuel tank to check/replace the sender disconnect and carefully clean the rear harness ground near the antenna in the rear fender. Most of the ground connections in our cars are large hex head sheet metal screws installed into heavy gauge support brackets and such. They are VERY prone to corrosion and electrical havoc ensues as they conduct less and less current.

bradleyb66

It's possible that the VIN derivative stamp is gone, if the engine was 'decked' when it was rebuilt. It should be on the passenger side, near the front base of the head (not on the head, but just in front of it). You need to be looking 'down' to see it, as it's on a horizontal surface.

Dad's L-82

It's been some time since I've had time to post, whole lot of life happening but that's usual, right? Between work, family life, and the oppressive heat I haven't done too much since I made the decision to take on this project. My friend with the transmission shop gave her a once-over and found all to be in good order. The code on the tranny casing matches the VIN so at least that much is original. He didn't do a complete tear-down, though, so no way to tell if it's been rebuilt but close enough for me. I've decided to get new tires. The set she's wearing is old, I can't even find a date code on them. They also seem very hard, not nearly as "supple" as fresher tires. I wouldn't trust these as driver tires, but they're in fairly good condition as far as the raised white letters go. Is there any market for these as rollers or show tires? My shop guy is going to charge a few bucks disposal fee, but if someone can use them I'd rather sell them to someone who wants a more authentic tire. If there's not much market for them I'll just dispose of them. They're 225/70/15, I'm going with the wider 255/60/15 because that fits on the aluminum rims. More to come as time permits, I may not post much but I'm on here several times a week digging for answers to questions that seem to come up almost daily.

gguillot

Hi Dad's L-82,

Nice car! I grew up in NOLA so I know what you mean about working on a car in the summertime! Regarding those tires - excellent decision to replace them - just let the shop recycle them. BFG's or Cooper Cobras seem to be tires commonly installed these days.

Good luck!

C3 4ME

Yes, those Eagle ST's are not original to the car, and I doubt they have any value to anyone. I'd just let the shop ditch them for you.