I'm trying to figure out what engine in my '79. I found a thread that showed where to find the ID near the front of the passenger side valve cover. I found the spot where I think it should be but it is blank. Are there any pictures that might help. I'll try to get some pictures up soon. It does not appear to be an aluminum intake so I'm guessing L48.
Also, my fixer upper didn't have an air cleaner on it when I got it so I'm planning to put something aftermarket on. Any recommendations?
Thanks,
Rod

 

You only had 2 choices in 79 - Base L48 or (slightly) higher performance L82. The VIN can tell you. Here is a link to VIN decoder for C3s:

VIN Decoder

This link has basic info on what that means:

VetteFacts

 

Is your stamp pad blank or just covered with paint?
If your engine stamp pad is covered with paint, take a rag and some lacquer/paint thinner and remove the paint. Don't use anything abrasive on the stamp pad.

This isn't a 1978, but you should see something like this.

 

Thanks @cooper9811. It looks like I have the L48. Not as cool as the L82 but now I know what I have and can move forward with that.

 

Revi, maybe just thick paint. I'll try removing the paint. It would be good to verify I really have the L48 and not some piece of junk.

 

My 70 was born an L48 too - interesting thing about the base model is that it actually produced more torque than the L82 - implying it was probably a bit quicker off the line in stock form. I read somewhere the 0-60 time was better than the L82 (but both were pretty slow by today's standards).

The other thing about having a base model 79 - It was the most-produced C3. With a relatively low market value (since there are so many of them) they really aren't an "investment" type of car. To me this means they make a great starting point if you want to modify it for better performance.

 

L48 is the base station wagon /sedan engine offered by gm at the time... (not sure what you mean by piece of junk but they didnt make anything else less appealing as far as a 350 sbc goes...)

I pulled mine and built another engine for my car.... not that an l48 cant make power its just it has little going for it... smaller valve heads, small stock passenger car cam, cast dished pistons, cast crank and 2 bolt main.... you see where im going with this?
The L82 only had like 10 more hp but had the potewntial for way more reliable power for much less upgrade costs.. everything was forged and it had better heads and pistons for making power (although not as ideal for high mileage)

and yes the l48 made better torque at a lower rpm which reacted better with the cars stock gearing... but it also ran out of steam much earlier... it basically felt more powerful from stop light to stoplight than the L82 though.
thats why car and driver picked it over the l82 at the time.

OP whats your cars vin# that will tell you what you should have... its very unlikely an l82 made its way under the hood if it came with an l48 stock... maybe a different (and better) engine though..

 

Some time in 77 they changed to a square stamp pad & the suffix will tell you what was shipped. In the pic below this block was intended to be used for a L82 4spd (cmr).

This is a 78 pad:


One code left out in the vette facts link is ZAJ= automatic, Calif.

 

Rod:

As a fellow new (about 9 months) and first-time Corvette ('79) owner let me offer some friendly advice:

1) Unless you have lots of spare $,$$$s prepare to do as much of the work yourself as possible. Definitely get service and assembly manuals (both digital and print are available).

2) Expect to do a lot more working on the car than driving!!!!!! Mine when presented to me was running, moving, inspected, licensed, fairly sharp looking (exterior) and fully intact (save a jack) with low miles for the age (50k) but not really road worthy. Since I'm self-employed and semi-retired I was able to devote lots of hours for a few months to the car (not to count the $3K or so in parts plus some work from an experienced Corvette mechanic). BUT I am still reluctant to take it only about 100 miles away for a visit with my uncle who bought a new C3 every 2-3 years. At least I'm beyond the phase where something would fail or break nearly every time I drove it Since you call yours a "fixer upper" I suspect your experience will involve significantly more labor and significantly less driving...

3) Regarding cost and value a previous poster was correct in saying that a '79 is not one you can expect to have a high value no matter how nice or how original you make it. The good thing though is that most parts (both replacement and used originals) are abundant and inexpensive. You are however relatively free to make modifications without any impact on value with the understanding that highly modified=highly troublesome. While collectors love the early C3s with high HP big blocks and hate the emission control era cars after the mid '70s, I've read some very objective sounding reviews which conclude that the 78+ C3s were in fact the best with regards to handling. While my '79 may be an outlier (L82 with all options + original paint) I was rather surprised when the appraiser my insurance company insisted upon gave a value within a few hundred of the original sticker price. My '99 Seville STS that cost 53k new and 15k since will hardly sell for the cost of the shocks and struts I put in a couple years ago...

Moral: Keep things sane and you can enjoy working on your fixer-upper, enjoy some driving and sell without loosing your a$$ unless you make wild and crazy modifications that will only turn off prospective buyers.

 

Thanks for the thoughts Mike. I bought this thing for two reasons. 1. I love the C3 vettes, always wanted one. 2. I love wrenching on cars but I refuse to work on our daily drivers; too much pressure. I want to have some fun.
I expect to make no wild modifications but enough that it handles traffic well and turns heads. I do hope to drive it often.

 

Thanks Augie, My Vin is 1Z8789S44XXXX so that is an L48 if I am correct. I expect I'll be doing just enough under the hood to get it and keep it running well. If I ever need more power, then it sounds like a swap would be the way to go. Of course, to much under the hood just tears everything else apart.

 

Just something to think about. If you dont know the complete history of the car - it has been a long time since 79. With no numbers on the engine pad, the engine has - been decked and rebuilt, or changed out for something different.

In 79 so many were made, and with less than 200 horsepower, it would probably take many decades to be really valuable as "original". You could add 100HP without really overpowering the rest of the drive train - if it is in decent shape. With more power (to me) it would be a lot more fun and valuable.
I hope you enjoy your new car, and my advice is to treat it as a hobby, not an investment. Do with it what makes you happy.

 

Nope...0-60 for the L-82 4 speed and auto in 78/79 was significantly quicker than the L-48 even with a 4 speed, worse for the L-48/automatic. The L-48 made slightly more torque at a much lower rpm than the L-82 making it better matched than for an auto in everyday driving, but the L-48 would run out of gas very quickly once revved past 4,000 rpm unlike the L-82 that would pull to 6,000 RPM. A friend of mine had an 80 L-48 auto which I drove way back when and it was a complete dog compared to my 78 L-82 4 speed...no comparison. The L-82 is MUCH quicker than an L-48 in 78-80. Just want to set the record straight since this myth comes up periodically. There is very little difference between a 71/72 Lt-1 other than emissions and a late 70's L-82.

78/79 L-82 4 speed 0-60 mph 6.5 secs
79 Auto L-82 0-60 mph 6.6 sec

78/79 L-48/auto 0-60 mph 7.8 seconds.....http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...ette-road-test

1.3 seconds is a BIG difference going 0-60 MPH..an enternity

 

Now that's funny !

 

Yep, total noob here...

 

ok...