rickc

I just came back from a cruise-in where I was approached by a fellow 69 Vette owner who asked if my car was a Calif. car because it has the A.I R. system. I told him that in 69 all Vettes had smog pumps. (My 69 Stingray Guidebook told me so). He was adamant that this was not true.

Anybody on my side? If so, I guess I'll have to start carrying the 69 Guidebook with me to the shows.

427V8

Bubba is wrong, 68's on up had pumps...

75Rag

On this same topic, do the AIR pumps take much H.P. ? Can they be disconnected ? Any negative side effects ? :confused:

Bob Jenkins

not all '68 up had smog pumps....the 1970 L46 350/350 did not have a smog pump. For the car to pass emissions in 1970, GM had a TCS switch which limited vaccum advance to only 4th gear.... :smash: :yesnod:

Chinaski

i have a '74 L-48 4 speed coupe and the smog pump was removed by the first owner (i am the fourth owner, but i know the two previous owners) i've read on the forum that '74's with an auto trans did not have an air pump. i live in california and this vette has been here for approx 16 years w/o smog pump and the previous owner (who i know well) only had a problem getting it smogged once, when the shop recognized that it was a 4 speed minus airpump and not an auto ...it passed emissions last Feb, but i guess the shop failed to do an underhood inspection. (the passenger side exhaust manifold is not original and the drivers side exhaust manifold air holes are plugged with brass pipe plugs) so she still doesn't have a smog pump...just holding out for the new smog laws in los angeles that are suppose to take affect soon....lets hope.

LT1driver

Not all did, friend in Arkansas bought one new and it didn't have one, I believe it was optional in some cases. :cheers:

Chuck Gongloff

ALL 1969 Corvettes, even the L88 came from the factory with a smog pump. NO exceptions. As far as horsepower "loss", you have one extra pulley, about the same size as the alternator. The "incidental" HP loss would have to be minimal. My 69 is dead stock with all the smog stuff. Ran a best of 13.70 at the drags. Chuck

rickc

Not an overwhelming affirmation on this one but if Chuck says so, I'll have to believe him - being an NCRS judge and all. That's credibility enough for me.

Chuck, I sure would like to see those beauties sometime! Will they be at Carlisle?

Rick

Chuck Gongloff

Hi Rick. I'll be at Carlisle, but the cars will not. I've never brought a Corvette to Carlisle, believe it or not. :) I go up and meet several of my friends there. We have a flea market "area"....I 27 through I 30. I bring up my "wares" to sell. We have a good time. Will be there Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Stop by. LOTS of stuff to get rid of!! I'll be driving my Dodge Durango. It will be full of Corvette parts, if that counts. :)

Regarding the smog pumps for 69 ONLY....again, they ALL have/had them from the factory. Also, ALL of the original exhaust manifolds were drilled and tapped for the AIR tubes. In 70 and up, somewhere along the line, they started to use the TCS...throttle controlled spark ?? system as an emissions device, and I do believe that cars with the TCS system did not have the pump. Chuck

Chuck

Juliet

In 1970 the LT-1 had the smog pump because it was higher performance than the TCS system. I'm not sure about the other engines or California cars. I can say that base engine AC 1970 did NOT have the smong pump - it got the TCS. ~Juliet

mountainmotor

I have heard that the 1975 year model came without a pump and it's A I R system. I heard this from a fellow that worked at the ST Louis Plant

Can anyone confirm this?

My first 1974 4spd had that throttle switch but the new one I have now does not,,it has not been removed either. I wonder what the deal on that is? Just curious :)


[Modified by mountainmotor, 11:40 AM 8/18/2002]

Markm10431

Interesting. I know 66 Mustangs had air pumps. I thought it was mandatory in 66 for all makes

Paul Borowski

Since were on this "smog pump" issue, I'll share a little I do know. All '68's had them. I've seen enough "base" motor and up cars('68's)that either had the smog still on it OR there was evidence there that there WAS one.

All '73's had them, even the "TCS" OR the "TCS" cars-temp controlled spark OR Transmission Controlled Spark systems.

All '74's EXCEPT the "Federal Emission L-48 automatic"(got one of these)

All '75's-I believe I seen and judged enough '75's to say that they all had a smog pump originally-again, every '75 I've ever seen under the hood, either had one OR there was evidence there was a pump there "originally.

'76 through '79 seen different things here, but for the most part the L-48/automatics DID NOT have one. Have seen some 4spd L-48 cars of these four years were it "appeared" there was NO A.I.R. originally.

'80-'82, again, from what I've seen, all these years had them, automatic or 4spd, L-82 OR L-48- I know, I know, NO 4spds in '82. :nonod:

Again, these are just a few "notes" I've made the last 5 or so years in judging these cars and they are correct as I can tell, but as always-There always seems to be exceptions!!!!!

A little secret to share---IF, IF, IF the car HAS IT'S ORIGINAL emission label, up near the top, in the center, most of these years(not all)will LIST the EMISSION DEVICES ON THE CAR. Will say like ""AIR EFE EGR OC EXHAUST"" equipped or like on my '74 it just says ""EGR"".

Tom73

Here is some info that Joe Luca posted over on the NCRS board back in '99. Thought you may find it of interest:

"A.I.R. or Air Injection Reactor System was an exhaust emissions control system first used on Corvettes in 1967, although it was also used on other Chevrolet cars as early as 1966 [note: correction later added by Joe "1966 California-delivered Corvettes, except for the L-72, did use the K-19 A.I.R. system"]. For 1967 Corvettes, the system was a mandatory option(K-19)on all Corvettes originally delivered to California. For 1968 and 1969, ALL Corvettes had the system installed regardless of engine, transmission, or where delivered. For 1970, Chevrolet went to the CCS or Controlled Combustion System for emissions control on most Corvettes, except LT-1s. For 1971, most Corvettes continued to use CCS except LT-1s and LS-6s. 1972 saw a return to A.I.R. for most engines except "CKW" and "CKX" coded L-48s. For 1973 through 1975 Corvettes, all engines used A.I.R.

For 1976, most Corvette engines returned to CCS except California-certified cars which used A.I.R. In 1977, all Corvettes used CCS except California and "High Altitude" delivered cars which used A.I.R.

For 1978 and 1979 all California cars, "high altitude" and all L-82s used A.I.R., with other cars using CCS. L-82s were not available in California or "high altitude" areas during these years.

For 1980 through 1987, all Corvettes used A.I.R. A.I.R. was used on most, if not all, Corvettes through the 1996 model year, although many C4s use an electric air pump.

As far as the system, itself, goes, essentially it is a system designed to inject fresh air into the exhaust manifolds or forward exhaust pipes in order to promote the combustion of unburned hydocarbons. The system generally consists of an air injection pump, check valves, diverter valve, injection tubes, and connecting hoses. The pump for earlier models was, generally, driven off of the water pump pulley.

The system was much maligned, but I don't have any problem with it. In fact, it was a more performance-oriented exhaust emission control system than the CCS system; that's why GM used it on LT-1 and LS-6s instead of CCS. "

If you want to read the full thread, check here: http://216.122.167.32/forum/archive2.cgi?read=15694

tom...

MarkHarclerode

Thanks to every one that indicates that all 1969 Corvettes came with A.I.R. Pumps. I have a matching Number 1969 Corvette (300 HP) that had all of the exhaust and Intakes removed when I purchased it 25 years ago.
I have been restoring it with Matching number parts and have recently installed the correct Intake Manifold and Carburetor for a 300 HP 350 (7029203). After reading the dialogs, I began to look for correct SMOG Pump part and have purchased the correct Water Pump Pulley, AIR Pump Bracket and AIR tubes.

I am close to buying the correct AIR Pump Diverter valve and was reviewing the operations of this device when I found a mystery!!

According to the diagram, the diverter valve is activated by vacuum from the Rochester Carb. The carb that I purchased (7029203, 1969 300 HP Only) does NOT have a vacuum connector that is usually comes out of the carb below the Choke Pull-off. It appears that all the Carbs for the 350 HP (7029207) have this vacuum connector. Why is the vacuum from the 7029203 carb for the AIR Pump not there?

7T1vette

Is it possible that you purchased a unit that was 'stamped' with the correct P/N but was not completely in that configuration? Lots of folks want the extra money they can get for supplying the 'exact' P/N and date coded item. Few actually have the 'real' thing.

If the cast pocket for the manifold vacuum passage is there, you could drill a hole into the body casting at the correct location and insert a brass tube to provide the vacuum source [and proper location] that you need. You can get various sizes of brass tubing at Hobby Lobby or other hobby supply stores.