Hey Guys! After 30 years of wishing and waiting I finally got my 'Vette! It's nothing fancy, just a standard '81 but I love it. It's been a long time since I've put wrenches to anything. I had Firebirds years ago and have done an off frame resto' of a 66 Chevy pickup. Then I got married, had kids and my toys had to go. Kids are grown and almost gone so it was time for me to have a little something and this is it. I was looking for a project car but nothing too extensive as my time is still a little short. The previous owner had a decent paint job put on it and it's a sound car, good frame, etc. but she does have some mechanical issues as the PO was no mechanic and in over his head. I've already fixed a couple of items but was looking for some good advice before I dive into my first biggie. This car idles WAY too high. In the range of 1200 rpm in park when warm and about 900 in drive. Also, it has a very strong exhaust smell. I've never worked on a Vette or anything with this extensive a vacuum system. Ya'll feel free to jump in here and correct me if I'm wrong but my previous experiences tell me I have a pretty good vacuum leak somewhere. My question is "Where do I start?" Should I just disconnect and plug off everything on the carb and intake and take it one system at a time? Do ya'll know of any systems that are more prone to cause trouble over another? At this stage any advice is welcomed because I'm shooting in the blind.

 

You might locate a 1981 Corvette Factory Maintenance Manual on Ebay.

 

your headlights are vacumm.that is the first place I would look .take the line off and see what you get .

 

Thanks for the replies guys. Yep, I'm going to order a shop manual and the AIM. Probably should get those before I go much farther. Had them for the Firebirds and the 66 and they were invaluable. The headlights are definitely on the list to check. I knew they were always a problem area. My headlights work fine, though. Would they still operate with a leak? Would they cause that high of an idle rpm?

 

do they work after you shut the motor off?check all vac lines first .then check carb gasket .then intake .