First Corvette , any issues
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8th Gear
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 8
Likes: 0
From: Iowa
First Corvette , any issues
Wanted to say hi my name is Lee. I recently purchased my first vette a 1988 l98 auto with 105k (needed a toy while im restoring my 69 camaro ) . Have a question my car will barely spin tires from a dead stop( barely one revolution ) is this normal for these cars with their gearing or do i have a problem. I just changed plugs wires cap rotor and coil. i did have a miss before and thought that was maybe why but no. I eventually want to use this vehicle for drag racing after my camaro is done. As far as i can tell the car is completely stock except maybe the mufflers, i havent got underneath vehicle yet to look . Was there any major issues with theses cars that i should look for ? Also ive notice at times when you start it it dies right away or will cut in and out for a couple of seconds before it staightens out of it still doing since tune up . I did replace both relays for Maf as i had a code 36. Thanks in advance for any thoughts on this.
Intermediate
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 45
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From: Cincinnati Ohio
I used to own an '87 automatic with the 2.59 rear end and can tell you it had absolutely NO problem smoking the tires from a dead stop. My car was stock with the exception of the Borla mufflers.
From my limited experience with these cars (~two years), the L98s tend to have issues with the intake gasket eventually giving out and leaking coolant. However, I am unaware of any "major" issues with these cars that would cause a loss of torque. I'd check all the normal stuff: fuel pressure, throttle body/IAC, spark gap/timing, etc. You may also want to change your fuel filter if you haven't already.
Maybe some of the more senior members have some ideas...
From my limited experience with these cars (~two years), the L98s tend to have issues with the intake gasket eventually giving out and leaking coolant. However, I am unaware of any "major" issues with these cars that would cause a loss of torque. I'd check all the normal stuff: fuel pressure, throttle body/IAC, spark gap/timing, etc. You may also want to change your fuel filter if you haven't already.
Maybe some of the more senior members have some ideas...
Last edited by Buckeye99; Jul 3, 2012 at 09:55 PM.
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Lee, as buckeye said, even if you have 2.59 gears you should be able to smoke the tires some. The L98 has a lot of torque.
Maybe you have really sticky tires
Oh, and welcome to the forum and Corvette ownership!
Maybe you have really sticky tires
Oh, and welcome to the forum and Corvette ownership!
Team Owner
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 90,675
Likes: 304
From: SE NY
Cruise-In II Veteran
There are a few things to boos power:
-remove the "frisbee" disc from the front of the WP pulley
-bump base timing to around 8deg BTDC
-cut back electrodes on stock spark plugs
-install a 160 deg T-stat & fan switch
-replace the front Y with a hi-flow unit (no pre-cats) & a hi-flow cat
-cut the air filter lid and install a K&N filter
-install an AFPR and boost fuel pressure (vac hose off) to say 48psi
-remove the spare & jack and run with 1/4-3/4 tank of fuel
-bump the TPS sensor idle reading to around .75 VDC or .65 VDC if at base idle of 450rpm
With these and a few other simple mods I had my '88 up to nearly 300chp still with stock cam, headers and heads.
Welcome to the "club"; enjoy your '88 Vette...
-remove the "frisbee" disc from the front of the WP pulley
-bump base timing to around 8deg BTDC
-cut back electrodes on stock spark plugs
-install a 160 deg T-stat & fan switch
-replace the front Y with a hi-flow unit (no pre-cats) & a hi-flow cat
-cut the air filter lid and install a K&N filter
-install an AFPR and boost fuel pressure (vac hose off) to say 48psi
-remove the spare & jack and run with 1/4-3/4 tank of fuel
-bump the TPS sensor idle reading to around .75 VDC or .65 VDC if at base idle of 450rpm
With these and a few other simple mods I had my '88 up to nearly 300chp still with stock cam, headers and heads.
Welcome to the "club"; enjoy your '88 Vette...
