well as some of you know i picked up my 76 a week ago yesterday - and thank you for the reception and help i have received so far. yesterday was supposed to be the "grand unveiling." a buddy was having a party and all the guys were going to bring their "toys." there was a mustang, a WRX (a surprisingly cool car IMO), a jacked up ram, camaro, and my corvette was supposed to be welcomed to the stable. so i spend all week waxing, polishing, working on small details - she was ready.

well 15 minutes from home i go (very gently) over some nasty railroad tracks when it happens......SNAP! followed by the worst grinding noise my ears have ever heard. ugh.

i guess this is my initiation into C-3 ownership.

well, the bolt/tie road/whatever holds the left-most side of the leaf spring had busted clean in half. the spring was dragging, the leafs have slightly separated - party! heh....try tow truck. so. now i have some questions:

1. i suppose a new spring is in order (as the leafs appear separated): it sounds like composite is the way to go. any suggestions? is composite the correct choice? best place to purchase? (hi vendors!)

2. how do i get this spring off (besides going back to the tracks). do i start on the (remaining) end, or do i start with the middle? how do you safely unload the spring to get it off? (support with a jack im guessing?)

3. some of you may have read my post on a leaky rear end. i suppose this is a great opportunity to fix that. ive seen some posts on a "heavy duty" rear end cover. since i would most likely break the stock cover (which appears to be the problem with these cars) when installing a new spring, should i just go ahead and snag one of these?


sorry about the novel fellas (and ladies). i knew i'd have to do some work eventually.....i just wanted to drive her for a while first. i appreciate the help!

 

Speedcoach,

Check out Corvettefaq.com for most of the answers you are after. If your old cover is OK then keep using it. Mine is 34 years old and no cracks in mine. If you pull the rear end then you should get it at least looked at (maybe rebuilt) while it is out. It is all about time and money. Do you have the time and money to rebuild it right now? If not just do the spring and leave the rear end till winter.

Use a pair of vice grips to clamp to the sping and put a floor jack under the other end and lift the spring up until tension is off the spring-T-arm bolt. If it is seized up just cut it and buy new ones when you get a new spring. DONT cut or loosen the bolt under tension. You must support the spring while you remove those bolts.

Van Steel and VBP have the spring kits.

One last thing - don't tighten the spring to full torque ratings (ie bolts to diff) until the car is on the ground and weight is on the srping. That is one of the main reason the covers crack. People torque the rear end bolts with the car in air. It puts stress on the covers after the car weight is applied (as the spring is flattened out and pulls the rear end ears out).

 

RR tracks and C2 & C3's don't mix well,never have. The stock cover is most likely cracked at one of the spring ears. This will require the removal of the rear end. The old manuals say to remove the cover but that might be harder then dropping the whole thing.
Take some time to learn about your car, you will work on it as long as you own it so don't loose your patience.
Good Luck,
Gary

 

RR tracks and C2 & C3's don't mix well,never have. The stock cover is most likely cracked at one of the spring ears. This will require the removal of the rear end. The old manuals say to remove the cover but that might be harder then dropping the whole thing.One of the best ways to remove the rear spring is get a helper and a piece of 10'-15' 1.5" black pipe. I have a 6' pry bar that fit under the spring and in between the strut. Have your helper pry up on the spring and release the tension then remove the nut off the bolt. Slowly lower the bar. You can use a 2x4 too.
Take some time to learn about your car, you will work on it as long as you own it so don't loose your patience.
Good Luck,
Gary

 

perhaps i should clarify:

it doesnt appear that the dif. cover is cracked.....when i've been searching the archives it appears that a lot of people crack them as they install new springs (which i obviously need to do) - i figured mine would crack as well, just because that is my luck - and thanks for the tips Stingry. i need to take the cover off anyway as it appears the gasket is kaput. anyway...just wanted to clarify that detail.

 

If you just want to do the spring, you need to get the wheels off the ground and then lift the remaining side of spring with a jack to remove tension. Then, loosen and remove the nut that holds the spring bolt. Theoretically, you should be able to just replace the broken bolt by jacking that side and threading through a new bolt. I think there is some interference from the brake line or something if I recall correctly.

Now, given that you just got the car and have already broken a bolt, I would suggest that since the car is out of commission anyway, now would be the time to drop the rear, remove the trailing arms, send them out have them rebuilt, replace the bushings on the strut rods, etc... You will be glad you did. This stuff will have to be done soon if it hasn't been done, and it will save you both money and time to do it all at once. Not cheap, but it is a onetime thing and you are done. In the meantime, you can go through the rest of the car.

BTW- have you checked the brake calipers? While you have them off to do the trailing arms..... Welcome to Vette ownership!