I bought a 1979 corvette a while ago and it's running great after having some work done at a local shop. The car cost 3000 and I paid 6000 for a bunch of suspension work. I enjoy working on cars, but my skills are limited to basic component replacement (heads, top end stuff) and electrical work. Troubleshooting problems definitely takes experience that I haven't developed yet.
My budget for anything else is 1000 right now, leaving 10k in the car total.
I live near the pierce/king border in washington if there's any corvette enthusiasts near, always a good time talking to others passionate about cars.

How is the reverse lockout is supposed to work on a 1979 corvette? My transmission is hell to get into and out of reverse, and has a lot of play (sometimes enter 'void zones' where it'll move forward and back but not side to side and can't enter any gears).
If it's supposed to lift up, the previous owner replaced the **** with one that screws in from the sides.



The old turn signal lever is broken off, and I was curious if there are any tips to removing it? I'd try a punch make a guide for drilling but that seems like it'd damage something, and I've always taken the bolts I snapped the heads off (happens frequently) to a shop to remove. It's snapped flush inside the hole, and I tried small needle nose pliers.



Are there any tips on accessing the fuse box? I would take pictures, but I can barely fit my hand under there. Can it be relocated?

Here's some general pictures of the car as well, I'm a huge fan of C3's (my #2 dream car after 80's lamborghini's). I'll add some of the engine in the morning, the car has certainly been 'bubbafied' in the past.

 

The *** looks right. You lift up on the T handle to go into reverse. Maybe the T handle is jammed?

 

someone cut part of the housing for the turn signal off flush with the column. There should be sort of a box surrounding the turn signal lever. That aside, the turn signal lever just pulls straight out. It will feel like you will break something, but that's how I replaced mine on my 79 based on advice I found right here on this forum.

 

the **** on the shifter is wrong and may be your issue on that. take it off and see if the lockout functions correctly.

 

Just give it a yank.

 

WOW!
That suxs when someone pays $9000 for a good car and has a $1000 left for lunch, but to see $6000 ate away and then be in the same boat as someone who bought a good car in the first place is..... well an avenue traveled by several!
If it was that wore out, what else is ready for $$$?

 

first off, welcome aboard. these cars can bring a lot of fun, but also often require a lot of patience. (fun, though... we MUST remember that!)

our situations our similar in that i bought my 'Vette for a relatively low price and immediately put $2500 into bringing it up to snuff. i had to tell the shop to stop the work because i ran out of budget! then last year i had the rear suspension redone and that cost me another arm, leg, and kidney! by now i've spent more fixing the car than what i paid. but i always learn new things about the Vette every time i dive into a project now matter how small [i just had an "ah-hah" moment this weekend]

plus, there's no other car that looks as good!

cool, i agree. does that also include the Lamborghini LM002?

 

Thanks for all the reply's, most everything is working now. I spent 2 hours trying to check the fuses, but only got half of them and I cramped up. Are there any tricks to it I should know?
Is it possible to relocate the fuse box near the battery for easier access?