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Ok...it's no wonder we cuss so much when working on these things!I've got the old junk exhaust out now trying to take the cat shield off. It's ALWAYS that one last bolt!
Can someone tell me how to get this last one out? It's between the crossmember and floor. Impossible to get to. 1/2 wrench can't get to it!
Make a 1/2” wrench out of some 18 gauge sheet metal, bent to fit over the bolt.
You could also cut the box end off a 1/2” wrench and spot weld a long sheet metal handle to it.
Just use your imagine and design a tool to do the job.
I’ve had to make my own tools many times for some difficult tasks that the tools in my box won’t accomplish.
If it’s just a self tapping bolt that screws into the frame, it shouldn’t take much to back it out.
Hello,
TEMU flat steel plate wrenches ...a whole set for $6. Amazon.
I've bent/shaped a couple of these to get into tight places for fuel and brake line clip bolts.
Maybe?
Regards...
Hello,
TEMU flat steel plate wrenches ...a whole set for $6. Amazon.
I've bent/shaped a couple of these to get into tight places for fuel and brake line clip bolts.
Maybe?
Regards...
Look in the last pages of every chapter in the GM Service and Overhaul manuals! You will almost always see specialized tools GM advised to service these cars - it was kinda crazy but the engineers had to come up with tooling to service their designs.
Yes it boggles the mind sometimes with the crap they come with.
Yesterday was working my winter list changing the radiator (original started leaking) and what a dumb *** approach just to get the thing out of the car. While I have a lot of patience still can not but wonder why would anyone design something like that.
Going back in should be easier but I still would need too reverse the dumb *** order.
In your situation it appears that the transmission crossmember may have to be dropped on one side to access the bolt head or a well placed Sawzall might do the trick.
Yes it boggles the mind sometimes with the crap they come with.
Yesterday was working my winter list changing the radiator (original started leaking) and what a dumb *** approach just to get the thing out of the car. While I have a lot of patience still can not but wonder why would anyone design something like that.
Going back in should be easier but I still would need too reverse the dumb *** order.
In your situation it appears that the transmission crossmember may have to be dropped on one side to access the bolt head or a well placed Sawzall might do the trick.
That's funny you say that about the radiator because I thought the same thing when I was just pulling my the fan shroud and all of that mess and just the whole thing is ridiculous but it's out. I love those days when you do a lot but Don't actually do anything
2025 c3 ('68-'73) of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
2025 C4 of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
2025 C8 Stingray of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
Not defending any engineers but I don't think the corporate priority was designing cars that were easy to repair. The goal was for consumers to buy new replacement cars, not to keep them 50 years. In addition I always felt cars, even back then, were very complex and complicated, and the engineers were always trying to get 10 lb of sand in a 5 ib bag.
Not defending any engineers but I don't think the corporate priority was designing cars that were easy to repair. The goal was for consumers to buy new replacement cars, not to keep them 50 years. In addition I always felt cars, even back then, were very complex and complicated, and the engineers were always trying to get 10 lb of sand in a 5 ib bag.
That's a great point. I've worked w enough of them to know you're right. They weren't thinking about some schmuck 40 years in the future putting a Pypes Race Pro exhaust on.
Don't you guys know you're not supposed to repair your cars? You're supposed to take it to the dealer, let them do it, then drive away happy! (And BTW, buy a new car after 5 years.)
Not defending any engineers but I don't think the corporate priority was designing cars that were easy to repair. The goal was for consumers to buy new replacement cars, not to keep them 50 years. In addition I always felt cars, even back then, were very complex and complicated, and the engineers were always trying to get 10 lb of sand in a 5 ib bag.
Adding to this, you also have to consider what you're doing and how often you're doing it. How often do you replace the radiator or exhaust in your car? Every 20 years? As an engineer, we'll make sure you *can* replace it, but we're not going to take the hit to every other metric (cost, size, weight, packaging, etc) to make it easy to do. Its real easy to replace pretty much everything on a C10. Do you want your Corvette to look or perform like a C10? Probably not.
That said, there are engineers who have no grasp of how their designs work in the real world. I've seen the lack of tool clearance issue pop up. Again, sometimes, there isn't a choice. Other times...its just bad engineering.
I would like to stand up for the GM Corvette Engineers who are no longer with us to defend themselves. They built one great machine in the 1968 C3. When it came out in 1968, it looked like something totally different and they did it all with virtually the same chassis. That was a serious re-packaging and they did an amazing job with the restraints (cost and time) that they were under.
I believe that ALL Engineers should spend a month building/working the vehicles before being allowed to go on to designing parts for others to install and remove. My Uncle (another Engineer) went at school for a period at Univ of Michigan and then worked at Ford for the same period. When he graduated from school he had plenty of real hands on experience as well as his degree.
Who was the bright guy who put the electric fuel pump under gasoline? At least fuel pumps were serviceable before...
As a product design Engineer I follow the KISS program....
Why submerged pump? Just a few compelling reasons:
Goodbye Vapor Lock
Reduced risk of explosion
Longer pump life (cooled while submerged/surrounded)
Yup, submerged pumps can be a PITA to R&R; have done so many times. And paid big $ to have some dullard do it when I couldn't.
A simple gravity tank drain would be an assist for most (why no drain? submerged pump or not)
Are you sure that GM's engineers are to blame? I tend to think not. My vote for blame are the manufacturing financial analysts. Not only would these guys sell their grandmothers to save $1 per car, they'd also include delivery.
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Kudos to the C3 GM development team for placing the fuse box in the second most worst place. The worst place? That'd be positioning the fuse box on top of the transmission underneath the transmission tunnel.
This is what happens when a bunch of lawyers elected to office bribed by environmentalists decide to tell engineers how to build cars. They did nothing to improve the quality of cars. I'm certain left alone public pressure would have made today's much better.
Thank goodness CARB has been de fanged. The aftermarket and replacement parts companies will be able to keep prices on parts lower.
I have a C8 and just changing the transmission and oil fluid is a pricey affair because of the extremely large metal plate going under the car, with a zillion small bolts. Some owners have installed a small door, but I wonder if that would weaken the plate? Changing the battery was no fun task either. Why would Chevrolet install an OEM BATTERY with no handles … so you would take the car to their dealership! Remember profit is the most important number in corporate America.
Corvette engineers hated us!!
