Hi guys and gals,

Got my 'vert inspected today and the repair guy says kinda on the sly that I'm going to be putting some major cash into the car soon as my freeze plugs are going.

First of all - is this the sort of thing that is easily visible when there are no leaks under the car? He said that they may be seeping a little already and that if I noticed a leak I should take care of it soon.

The car has 50,000 on it.

I have my doubts about the whole situation. If this repair requires major intrusive work to get done, then how are they visible during an inspection?

He aroused my suspicions by telling me that most vette owners have money. I told him that I am a single mom and don't have money and that the car was a 94 and wasn't an expensive car. I'm just a wee bit on the leery side when an auto mechanic thinks that because I work for a company that pays some of its employees well (and us little guys more moderately) that he thinks I can afford to sink big money into the car.

How hard would this repair if it is necessary be to do myself? How much should it cost to get it done? How long should that take?

He told me to expect to not have the car for a couple of days and that the cost was entirely in the labor and the parts were inexpensive...

Thoughts?

V.

 

They can be a real pain to do.
I THINK you can drop the pipes at the exhaust manifolds to gain access.
fill out the rest of your information, there may be some one close that can help you with this.
Greg N

 

run, don't walk,away

 

Redrose - what do you mean? Run away from the mechanic or the car?

I really am wondering how the guy saw the plugs and their condition while doing an inspection if they are so hard to get access to...

Any more advice?

 

I think they mean run away from that mechanic, I know I would.

 

I think his point is that the mechanic is getting you primed up to hand you a large bill for auto repairs. Freeze plugs(Please don't start on the casting plug thing OK?) are just thin pieces of metal that are pressed into the engine block. When they go bad they will leak water/coolant and need to be replaced. Replacing them is simple if you can get to them?
Is this your regular auto mechanic or just someplace you took the car to get it inspected? His remarks about RICH Corvette owners and you getting ready to make major investments in this car is what Redrose means by RUN away from the MECHANIC not the car. Like maybe the mechanic is sizing you up to see if you are ready to pay large bills? As in overcharging for work that may or may not be needed?
But then again it could have just been small talk and this mechanic could be the best and most honest man out there?

 

Actually the mechanic is one I use regularly, but only for inspections. Most work I take to the dealer for my DD and to a vette specialist for any vette work.

I'm pretty sensitive to body language and I was getting the heebie jeebies about him sizing me up for a large repair bill.

I still have no reply about whether or not you could actually inspect those suckers without pulling the engine just on a casual yearly inspection.

I really hate being a woman - car salesmen and mechanics assume you are easy pickings. I have a tool set and know how to use it. My neighbors now call me to come and fix their home appliances. (washing machine last week) I'd like to see the "problem" for myself but have no idea where these things are.

V.

 

Wouldn't she be able to see the leaks if they were bad? Also wouldn't there be some sort of coolant on the drive if the leak were bad enough? I'm just curious since I'm trying to add this to my database for problems and symptoms.

 

yup, i meant run from the guy.
leaking freeze (core) plugs are very rare these days ...if one does leak you will see it easily...just cause they're rusty on the outside means nothing...if you do get a leaky one, any auto parts store has a rubber replacement with a built-in expander bolt--knock the leaker INTO the engine block (don't worry,it won't cause any problem floating around in there), place the repair part in the hole and snug up the nut on the expander..done

the repair thing costs about $3
repair is better than new..i had a big block that blew 2 oem steel ones up at high revs,rubber part cured it

the plugs are on the sides ,front and rear of the engine..sides occasionally rot out-i've never seen a front or rear leak...easily seen from under neath...a bit hard to reach if you have big arms like me but some squirming and swearing(oops-i know girls don't swear) should get it

 

Redrose - I don't know where on the block to look for them. The 101 projects for your corvette book doesn't show them at all.

I appreciate the advice - knocking them in and plugging the hole sounds like something I could handle - if I knew where they were.

I knew I should have bought the big red repair manual/bible...

I actually told the guy I would sell the car before I would sink tons of cash into it. If I had that kind of dough my home would be sporting better furniture and carpeting and I could afford to pay someone to fix my appliances.

V.

 

visit your local ''recycling'' yard...they almost always have a half dozen small block chevies laying upside down on the ground with all accessories gone...most guys will be happy to point em out to you


i imagine the 101 book doesn't show em cause hardly anybody ''needs to know''

 

I'm with you, Mom. I'm in my late fifties (happily married), have owned/operated DOZENS of vehicles over the decades and have NEVER had occasion to sweat my freeze plugs. (During about 20 of those years lived in northern Mn where freeze plugs never were an issue, btw.)

I just feel for you single Moms as I'm convinced ya'll are targets to many of the slugs out there.

Go to your local community college, speak with somebody in the auto mechanics dept, and ask him to show you freeze plugs so you can get smart. Tell him your story. I trust you'll find somebody there who'll be helpful in equipping you with some armor against the predatory slugs.

Best of luck, and enjoy your Vette. Please don't lose any sleep over your plugs. If you ever smell hot coolant (how's that for a dichotomy?)
worry about your water pump first.

You give me the impression that you're perfectly capable of changing out your own water pump, should it ever become necessary.

 

If a freeze plug was leaking you would be able to see the color of your ant-freeze dripping out of the freeze plug.
Sometimes auto parts stores will have engines on the showroom floor, you can see them easily then. It will be a round piece of sheet metal looking material pressed into the side of the engine block. They are between 2 and 3 inches in diameter.
The use of the term freeze plug is rather generic, they are plugging holes left over from the casting process. The blocks are cast with the water jackets in them, the freeze plugs are filling the holes that the material used to keep the hollow water jackets open came out of after the engine block was finished. That's why you see the reference to CORE plugs.

 

anybody that can fix a washing machine can handle anything on a vette...worst words i can hear are ''honey, threre's water on the basement floor

btw-don't EVER disassemble the ''transmission'' of a washing machine unless you REALLY know what you are doing--there's a spring coiled up inside that is looking for trouble--it missed me ,just luck

 

Here is a pic of typical freeze plugs used in an engine. This kit sells for $11.95.

Here is a pic of them installed (the siny round things) in an Toyota block.

Take it somewhere else that has been recommended by a knowledgeable friend and have them look at yours again.
I suspect that you will find that yours are rusty on the outside and not leaking. Cost to you: $0.00
I rebuilt an engine in my 81 Corvette a few years ago and the freeze plugs were kinda rusty but not leaking. That is to be expected on an older car.
Feel free to ask any question you want here. I know I have learned a lot and saved a ton of money from other's advice on the Forum.

 

That gear assembly is a transmission and is a plug and play part. You don't play with it - you just plug in a new one.

OT but I had a van a few years back and the transmission was acting funny but would reset if the engine was turned off and then restarted. I took it to a "reputable" chain who was first going to check the pan then charge me $300 to crack it open for a peek. Long story short I got suspicious when I got a call from the "sales" guy about a $2000 negotiable repair bill (he offered to take me to dinner on the previous call) and then called the "shop" guy who was sure that they hadn't looked at it yet. The kid in the shop confirmed this when I showed up in person to find out what was going on with it.

I just don't understand how they came up with a price without looking at it...

V.

 

First off, most of the chain places are not what i would call respectable, some of them are much worse than the dealers.
They are just there for the gravy, most have tremendous overhead and have to sell, sell, sell.

We see it all the time, "but Goodyear (or what ever) said it needed brakes all the way around". I would take what a chain place tells you with a grain of salt.

Find a independent shop, ask for some referrals.

We go out of our way to make women part of the loop as far as the repairs that we do on there cars.

I am not going to touch the part about this guy asking you out, but i would fire some one who worked for me if they did any thing like that.

Greg N

 

Thanks Greg - I used to have a place I trusted in NJ before I moved to PA - independently owned.

corvetteronw - you are my hero! Thank you for the pic. I work with a lot of instrumentation and if somethings clogged or needs to be cleaned or jammed I just roll up my sleeves and do it.

Of course I wear gloves... got to keep my hands pretty

I'll just say my mantra:

Buy the manual, buy the manual, buy the manual...

V.

 

And i hope you wear saftey glasses so you can keep seeing your pretty hands.

 

[QUOTE=vette'vert]That gear assembly is a transmission and is a plug and play part. You don't play with it - you just plug in a new one.
the new gear assy/trans was 1/2 the price of a new washer (now i know how you ladies feel with car repairs) and no interal parts were available-had to trade in the old one...couldn't see spending that on a much used one..so i figured,heck,it can't be worse than a vette 4-speed,maybe i could build a new gizmo for it..ss-new washer the next day.

when you walked into that ''chain'' repair shop and said you thought your trans was hurting, you were considered an ''easy sell'' for a new one as you had already ''sold'' yourself.
..they wouldn't care if there was absolutely nothing wrong with it..and they get away with that except for the few like you who bother to question them

simple rule - big and fancy on somevody else's wallet