68 High Beam Switch
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5th Gear
Joined: May 2022
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68 High Beam Switch
Does anyone have any experience moving the high beam switch from the floor to somewhere else in the car?
I have a 68 convertible and find myself constantly hitting the switch by accident. This project will be a restomod designed to look like a Day 2 car, while only true Corvette enthusiasts will know what is factory / what isn't (I'm 27, don't care much about originality on this project).
My next major project will be stripping the interior out and replacing the insulation / carpet, etc..... while the carpet is out, would it be a good time to move the switch elsewhere so I don't have to go back and do that down the road? My original idea was to move it to the dash in place of the seat belt indicator button when I get a set of Dakota Digital RTX gauges as part of an LS swap....
I have a 68 convertible and find myself constantly hitting the switch by accident. This project will be a restomod designed to look like a Day 2 car, while only true Corvette enthusiasts will know what is factory / what isn't (I'm 27, don't care much about originality on this project).
My next major project will be stripping the interior out and replacing the insulation / carpet, etc..... while the carpet is out, would it be a good time to move the switch elsewhere so I don't have to go back and do that down the road? My original idea was to move it to the dash in place of the seat belt indicator button when I get a set of Dakota Digital RTX gauges as part of an LS swap....
Safety Car
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 4,740
Likes: 1,639
From: Fairfax Virginia
Welcome to the Corvette Forum Dan 68!
This is the place to be when you run into issues with your Corvette!
I have had my 1968 Corvette for 31 years and have loved the car since the day I brought it home. Mine is a L71 427- 435 HP Car that came with a single four barrel carburetor and today sports a factory L88 Hood with a replica L88 engine underneath.
The good solution would be to put a new turn signal stalk with the headlight dimmer built into it from a later C3 that has a steering column like your has. That should not be to hard a modification.
Al Knock makes the best replacement Carpets, Seat Covers, Convertible Tops along with dash parts. He is located in Texas and is online and makes the best replacement parts for a C3 Corvette.
And now, some thoughts regarding the 1968 Corvette... Please don't misunderstand what I am trying to tell you. It is YOUR Corvette and you can do anything you want with it.
If you do remove or modify the 1968 you bought, a good idea would be to save the parts from the car and put them away. I take parts off and "bag and tag" them and store them in my garage. Any permanent modifications can potentially hurt the value of the Corvette you own. Unless you bought the car so cheap that you are not worried about the re-sale value I would be careful what you change or modify. The 1968 Corvette is and will become more collectible as time goes on. I see that you want to change the dash and the engine and so on. That will get very expensive and it will change the "nature" of the Corvette. If I wanted an higher horsepower LS engine and a newer style dash and interior there are lot of C5's and C6 Corvettes that are similar in value and already have the stuff you want and are looking for in a Corvette, heck I have seen Z06's for less than $10k here in Virginia.
I drive the 1968 Corvette because I was alive and aware when these cars were being made and driven on the roads of the United States. My favorite Uncle had a 1969 Corvette with a Big block in it. As a kid I saw them and I wanted one. My Corvette is basically a time machine that takes you back to the days when we turned "on" the High beams by pushing a button up in the left corner of the floorboard. My mechanical tach is still there working great but I now have a EFI system in place of the carburetor making it easier to use the car. I have a MSD ignition system including a Billet Distributor, MSD 6AL box and so on and all the factory parts were rebuilt and bagged and tagged and stored away. Don't get me wrong I have changed a Lot of parts my Corvette, but I see myself as the temporary owner of this "piece of history". My Corvette doesn't look like it did and makes a whole lot more power than the original 435 hp Car did.
My Daughter and her Husband have already asked for the 1968 Corvette when I am done with it and she will get it with all the parts to put it back in the condition it was in when I bought it.
My C3 had the transistorized Ignition system along with several nice options like the factory Hard top. Today the car is modified the way "I want it to be" but I do recognize that down the road these cars will be even more prized and collected. I am obviously older than you are but when I bought the C3 I was just a bit older than you are now. I have had 31 years of incredible fun with my Corvette. I have raced it at a drag strip and beat every other Corvette that was there including a ZR1 and a few 1970 LT-1's. I have driven it long distances and when my kids were growing up they rode around in it with the car seat facing rearward in the passengers seat. It has been a big part of my life and is still a very special toy I own. I hope that the future owners of this Car of Mine have even Half as much fun as I have had.
It is fun to drive and it gets a lot of attention wherever you go with it.
This is the place to be when you run into issues with your Corvette!
I have had my 1968 Corvette for 31 years and have loved the car since the day I brought it home. Mine is a L71 427- 435 HP Car that came with a single four barrel carburetor and today sports a factory L88 Hood with a replica L88 engine underneath.
The good solution would be to put a new turn signal stalk with the headlight dimmer built into it from a later C3 that has a steering column like your has. That should not be to hard a modification.
Al Knock makes the best replacement Carpets, Seat Covers, Convertible Tops along with dash parts. He is located in Texas and is online and makes the best replacement parts for a C3 Corvette.
And now, some thoughts regarding the 1968 Corvette... Please don't misunderstand what I am trying to tell you. It is YOUR Corvette and you can do anything you want with it.
If you do remove or modify the 1968 you bought, a good idea would be to save the parts from the car and put them away. I take parts off and "bag and tag" them and store them in my garage. Any permanent modifications can potentially hurt the value of the Corvette you own. Unless you bought the car so cheap that you are not worried about the re-sale value I would be careful what you change or modify. The 1968 Corvette is and will become more collectible as time goes on. I see that you want to change the dash and the engine and so on. That will get very expensive and it will change the "nature" of the Corvette. If I wanted an higher horsepower LS engine and a newer style dash and interior there are lot of C5's and C6 Corvettes that are similar in value and already have the stuff you want and are looking for in a Corvette, heck I have seen Z06's for less than $10k here in Virginia.
I drive the 1968 Corvette because I was alive and aware when these cars were being made and driven on the roads of the United States. My favorite Uncle had a 1969 Corvette with a Big block in it. As a kid I saw them and I wanted one. My Corvette is basically a time machine that takes you back to the days when we turned "on" the High beams by pushing a button up in the left corner of the floorboard. My mechanical tach is still there working great but I now have a EFI system in place of the carburetor making it easier to use the car. I have a MSD ignition system including a Billet Distributor, MSD 6AL box and so on and all the factory parts were rebuilt and bagged and tagged and stored away. Don't get me wrong I have changed a Lot of parts my Corvette, but I see myself as the temporary owner of this "piece of history". My Corvette doesn't look like it did and makes a whole lot more power than the original 435 hp Car did.
My Daughter and her Husband have already asked for the 1968 Corvette when I am done with it and she will get it with all the parts to put it back in the condition it was in when I bought it.
My C3 had the transistorized Ignition system along with several nice options like the factory Hard top. Today the car is modified the way "I want it to be" but I do recognize that down the road these cars will be even more prized and collected. I am obviously older than you are but when I bought the C3 I was just a bit older than you are now. I have had 31 years of incredible fun with my Corvette. I have raced it at a drag strip and beat every other Corvette that was there including a ZR1 and a few 1970 LT-1's. I have driven it long distances and when my kids were growing up they rode around in it with the car seat facing rearward in the passengers seat. It has been a big part of my life and is still a very special toy I own. I hope that the future owners of this Car of Mine have even Half as much fun as I have had.
It is fun to drive and it gets a lot of attention wherever you go with it.
Is my vette stock?? HAHA
Joined: Oct 2015
Posts: 20,108
Likes: 9,237
From: Im not allowed to tell you
2020 C3 of the Year Finalist - Modified
2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (performance mods)
2019 C3 of Year Winner (performance mods)
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The easiest thing would be to move the switch were you wouldnt hit it so easily but keep it on the floor.
Second choice... i would wire the plug of switch into a relay and put it somewhere close so its a minimum movent to flip the switch or use a rocker switch. While sitting all the way back figure out what you can touch with your hands or finger tips. I would lean towrds a rocker switch on the center console next to the emergency brake handle or a switch built into the shift ****. You have your right hand there all the time. Or if you have your arm on the door alot maybe on the A pillar or dash by the light Switch. If you drive at night and need high beams you will be flipping the switch alot.
Third is to buy a wireless remote and wire it into the high beam plug. I have one for my driving lights. I can velcro it any where, use a magic mount or keep it in my hand..
Second choice... i would wire the plug of switch into a relay and put it somewhere close so its a minimum movent to flip the switch or use a rocker switch. While sitting all the way back figure out what you can touch with your hands or finger tips. I would lean towrds a rocker switch on the center console next to the emergency brake handle or a switch built into the shift ****. You have your right hand there all the time. Or if you have your arm on the door alot maybe on the A pillar or dash by the light Switch. If you drive at night and need high beams you will be flipping the switch alot.
Third is to buy a wireless remote and wire it into the high beam plug. I have one for my driving lights. I can velcro it any where, use a magic mount or keep it in my hand..
