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My 1972 AIM is from Corvette America and about 30 years old. There are at least 1/2 dozen pages that are totally unreadable and maybe another 1/2 dozen to a dozen that are partially unreadable. Are all AIMs copied from the same source document or do some vendors have better quality than others? Is it worth replacing mine?
buy the CD version, there (some are) word searchable, then you print off the page(s) you need, take to the workshop, when they get dirty, toss em in the bin/heater etc.
Are all AIMs copied from the same source document or do some vendors have better quality than others? Is it worth replacing mine?
The easy answer is no...not all AIMs are created equal. Vendors buy the license rights to reproduce an AIM and, back-in-the day, used different sources for their version...thus different quality levels.
Originally, the factory was constantly changing out individual changes in an AIM as engineering made changes. So a 100 copies could have different page dates with items added, deleted or changed. Both quality and content become variables with the reproduction of AIMs.
buy the CD version, there (some are) word searchable, then you print off the page(s) you need, take to the workshop, when they get dirty, toss em in the bin/heater etc.
We have a couple of really old iPads that I wouldn't mind keeping in the garage... Do the CD versions have any poorly reproduced pages? For example, my '72's paper version's page M174 is unreadable.
For example, my '72's paper version's page M174 is unreadable.
here is M174 from my '72 AIM CD.
only the hand written notes at the bottom of this page are hard to read, other pages are readable, depends on how it was originally written.
Last edited by riverracer au; Jul 1, 2020 at 04:58 AM.
2025 c3 ('68-'73) of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
2025 C4 of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
2025 C8 Stingray of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
I have a paper edition for my 68 and Wilcoxs' Cd version for my 71. I would go with the CD version. If I need to use the AIM information at the vehicle location I take a picture of the page on my phone instead of bringing the laptop.
I have the Willcox PDF file for my '73. It's very legible but has some other minor issues. Their optical character recognition conversion didn't take everywhere which means you don't always find what you need with a search term. For example, I could not find the page that shows the bolts for the differential cross member to sombrero connection via any type of search term. I had to scroll through the document until I came to the correct page.
Another issue with the Willcox version is that the security is locked down so tight that I can't add notes or drawings to the pages. I contacted Willcox about this and they don't even know the password to unlock it.
I am currently looking for a digital version of the '73 AIM that will allow me to use search terms plus add notes and drawings via a PDF file editor. I don't need to make changes otherwise. If anyone knows of such a version, please let me know. I contacted Eckler's about their digital version to find out if I could add notes and drawings and was told "I guess I can say it depends on the application itself. Once the file is downloaded, if your version supports that function, then I don't see why this wouldn't be possible." That is among the worst non-answers I've ever received.
Thanks everyone. I went with the Willcox download and am generally impressed with the clarity. There are a few pages that seem to be reproduced weakly but I think in combination with my paper copy I can make out all I need. I may have mentioned before that I have a very old iPad that I can keep in the garage and have this pdf on it for reference. Printing out pages is handy too and I won't care about tears or grease stains.
Are all AIMs created equal?
