Hello,

I've come upon a 1984 stock automatic C4 Corvette with a family history which has been sitting idle, presumably in disrepair, for three years. It's of high sentimental value and I'd like to get it back into running condition. I have virtually no experience working with cars but I tried to research the ins-and-outs before I started anything. I've done all that I can, but I'd like to state what I've done and hear feedback on things I may have done wrong, or things I didn't do at all, in order to get this puppy back on the road.

So far, I have:
-Filled tires to appropriate PSI
-Replaced the dead battery
-Dropped the transmission pan, drained all fluid, cleaned pan, replaced pan with new transmission filter, filled with Dex/Merc ATF multi-vehicle (recommended by guys at AutoZone, I don't know anything about this stuff so the health of this car is at their mercy)
-Drained and filled oil, replaced oil filter, used Castrol GTX SAE 10W-30 (also AutoZone recommended)
-Siphoned all possible old gas out and filled with 5 fresh gallons
-Siphoned old murky coolant out of radiator and reservoir, filled with high-pressure water from hose to rinse the dirt and gunk out, siphoned again, filled with 50/50 coolant/water mixture

I purchased ignition wires and new spark plugs but I didn't realize until I looked at the engine how impossible the spark plugs seem to be to get to. I'm holding them in garage stock in case they absolutely need replacing but for now the old ones still work.

Here are all of my preliminary concerns:
1. Is it bad to change all of the fluids at once?
2. The manual instructs a 5 quart oil fill including a filter change, but I've heard 5 quarts is the absolute maximum. I dumbly assumed the jug I picked up was an even 5, but only after dumping every last drop in did I realize it was 5.28 quarts. Is that .28 overfill going to do any damage?
3. I planned my efforts poorly and ran out of physical energy and daylight on the first day and left the transmission fluid pan off overnight before putting it back on the following morning. Is this as bad as it sounds?

After four days of work, I turned the key and it roared to life. Per manual instruction when replacing coolant, I left the radiator cap off and filled with more of the 50/50 mixture as it pulled in. But after about ten seconds I started to smell burning and saw smoke coming from the engine so I turned it off. It didn't smell particularly sweet, so I understand it isn't coolant burning off, but I'm oblivious to what else it could be.

After some worried checks, the ATF dipstick--which was at HOT/FULL when I initially filled it--was now bone dry. Then I realized I didn't actually know how much ATF is required for a 1984 C4. I can't find anything conclusive from Google, hearing anything from 3 to 12 quarts, and the manual doesn't list ATF capacity at all! I only put it a one gallon jug, which brought the level to HOT/FULL before starting, but in retrospect the oil drain pan collected way, way more than one gallon of fluid when I dropped the pan. Is the ATF shortage causing the smoking? Or does it have to do with an oil overfill? And just how much ATF am I supposed to put in this thing?

If it helps, smoke was visually coming out of this pipe, though it seemed to be coming from someplace underneath the other side of the engine as well. What is this pipe, and what does it mean when smoke comes out of it?

Thanks in advance.

 

You can change all of the fluids at once.

Slight crankcase over fill up to 1/2 qt is not a problem.

No problem with the trans pan as long as it was clean before installation.

Probably has oil on the exhaust manifolds & will burn off quickly.

After initial trans fill top off to correct level with the gear selector in park & the engine running.

Suggest replacing the fuel filter.

Good luck with your project.

Schedule some time to replace all the heater & radiator hoses.

 

Don't forget a full flush of the brake fluid as well!
The Valvoline Syntec brake fluid is great, I use just under a quart to flush the brake systems on my 92 and the wife's 04

Also flush the power steering fluid.

Sounds like a good job so far! Keep up the good work.

 

You are doing fine on your own. You will be out cruising in no time. Also, good on ya for saving a neglected C4.

 

Great, another 84 back on the road! Where are you located? Maybe one of the board members is close to you and can spare some time to give you a hand.

 

When I installed LT headers recently I got a shock when smoke was coming off them too when I fired the engine up. As stated above it was just a bit of oil that needed to be burnt off.

 

Thanks for all the replies! Great help. Good to hear it's just a bit of burnoff. I was really worried something had blown. I'm heading out today to get some more ATF, and I'll pick up some of that brake fluid.

Going through the manual page by page I remember reading that one of the fluids never needed to be flushed, only filled? I believe it was the power steering fluid. Anyone have any experience with this guideline?

I remember my father fixing her up and taking her out for summer drives years ago but every once in a while she'd just give up and he'd have to call AAA and get a tow back to the house. I realize this isn't very specific and probably hopeless, but is there anything else I should change/replace to prevent possible engine failure like this in the future? She's only getting older and starting to look pretty rusty under the hood! I'll look into replacing the fuel filter and hoses. Are these a difficult change?

I picked up a can of "Seafoam" to hopefully clean everything out. I've never used it before but I keep reading good results from it. Has anyone tried this product?

Cheers!

 

A new air filter may be a good investment. The 84 I just bought had an air filter that was disintegrating and getting sucked into the engine.

Getting the 2 injectors reconditioned at FIC injectors may also be a good investment.

 

Check the tires real good for cracks and signs of old age. Tires can have great looking tread and still be unsafe to drive on. If your going to keep the car and work on it yourself it;s a good idea to get a factory service manual. I got one on cd which is ok but also bought a printed version on EBay this week. Good luck with the car.

 

The trans. in your 84 is a Turbo Hydra-Matic 700-R4 (THM 700-R4).
For a drain and fill you will need 5 quarts. The entire system holds 11.5 quarts which would require a complete system flush to change out. Remember to bring the the engine / trans. up to operating temp. prior to checking the HOT level.


As previously mentioned, you should drain / replace ALL the fluids.
A turkey baster works great at removing the old fluids.

The brake system should be completely flushed with fresh fluid. Not just drain / refill the master.

Not that hard to do. Give the fittings a good overnight soak with penetrating oil prior to removal.

How many miles on the car?

Where are you located?

 

Moon86 - thanks, I'll look around for a repair manual. I figured it would be a good investment but wasn't sure where to find one. eBay sounds like a good bet. The tires are showing cracking and I should think they would need replacing - I have no idea if these are originals or what. Any recommendations of tire type/specifics for this car?

EastCoastHD - How is a brake system flushed? Yes, Groton, small town in northern Mass. I wish I could tell you the mileage but after adding another quart of ATF and putting the key in the car this morning, nothing happened.Just installed the fresh battery yesterday and everything was OK. This morning nothing turns on; no lights, no gauges, just dead. Unfortunately the local field mice have decided a Corvette makes a good home, so I'm worried they may have chewed some wires.

 

Hopefully you'll find the reason the battery's died, but in the meantinme, here's how you flush the brake system. First use a turkey baster to remove as much of the old brake fluid from the master cylinder as possible. (If it's nasty, pour in clean fluid and suction it out repeatdly to get any gunk out. If necessary, use a lint free cloth or paper towel to clean the resivour)

After you've done that, slip a short piece of tubing over each wheel cylinder bleeder valve and position them so that they can drain into a catch container. Then open all four bleeder valves and let them drip until clear fluid is coming out.

Keep watching the master cylinder to be sure it doesn't run out! When all four are running clear fluid, close the bleeders, top off the master and you're good to go!
Cire

 

Cire - thanks for advice. Did some graphical research to make sure I understood and I think I got it. Seems relatively simple. If I ever get the car to a healthy idle I'll do a full flush and fill.

About the battery situation:
Previous battery appeared dead; would leave a charger connected for hours and the electrical systems would work after that, but it would invariably be dead the next time I went to use it. Figured it was the battery's age so I replaced it, but seeing an overnight kill on a brand new battery tells me this is a problem with the wiring or electronics. Parasitic drain, maybe? Used a light tester on another car's battery terminals to be sure that it worked, but it failed to light on the Corvette's new battery. Could be anything - bad battery cables, poor ground, some kind of contact causing discharge, faulty fuse, bad alternator, etc. I assume the proper fix is to charge up the battery and run a series of tests to isolate what the problem is but I'm not sure how to do this or what tests to run.

I've located the fuse box but I'm no electrician - do I simply charge battery, connect test light, and pull/replace fuses one by one until the light goes out and then I have my answer?

I've read a discharge could be by something as simple as a bad cassette deck. The deck in there is probably the factory original and does not work; inserted cassettes but the deck wouldn't "accept" them. Tape goes in and out freely, never locks in or is read. I hope something as dumb as this isn't killing the battery.

 

I've located a shop manual made of loose pages in a binder which we're in possession of and it seems to be intact. There are troubleshooting flowcharts in the electrical section, but I'm not how how to follow these given I don't exactly know what the problem is. The two charts' problems start with "slow cranking, solenoid clicks or chatters" or "no cranking, no sound from solenoid." I don't know what or where the solenoid is and I'm not finding any visual indication of it in the manual. Yesterday when the key was inserted I did hear a slight rhythmic "clicking" coming from something on the passenger's side of the engine near to the base of the windshield. Is this the solenoid chatter?

I'm trying to research all of this by googling as much as I can but some things are too case-specific to be resolved that way. Really appreciate all the help here. Thanks guys.

 

I think you will need an ohm meter. With the battery disconnected measure the resistance between the positive and negative cables. If there is a short it will measure close to zero ohms.

Then it is a matter of pulling one fuse at a time to see whether the short is removed. When the short is removed the meter (if it is digital) normally displays a "-1" to represent open circuit. A few weeks ago I had a similar problem caused by a starter motor short. To remove that particular short I had to disconnect the starter motor connections as there wasn't a fuse to pull.

Have a look around where you saw smoke the other day to see whether there is any burnt wiring nearby.

 

Groton, eh? PM me.

 

MA-z06 - I put General exclaim UHP's on my 85. I also went to 17" rims cause the tire choices in 16" are getting real limited. I am very happy with the tires. Good ride and quiet.

 

Moon86 - thanks for the recommendation. Will look into those tires.

Rich stopped by tonight to take a look at the car. Got her running and idled for a few minutes in the dark until Rich noticed a red glow (!) coming from the exhaust headers--the ones closest to the windshield on either side glowing red hot. I'm inexperienced with all of this and some of Rich's terminology probably escaped me but I think he theorized it was a problem with the "timing"? He recommended asking the forums since he wasn't sure what would cause this. Feel free to elaborate if I'm not explaining this well, Rich.

Also noticed the top of the car has lost its adhesion to the removable frame; the hood visibly "pops" up an inch in the front from the air pressure of when a door is closed. Is there a particular adhesive compound recommended for sealing the top back onto its frame?

Rich and I were not able to locate the cause of the parasitic drain utilizing the voltmeter on the fuse box. The "clicking/humming" mentioned in a previous post is the motor of the heating vent; as soon as the key is turned, before ignition is even tried, the motor turns on to a slow, weak hum. Is this normal for an '84? Interior lights no longer turn off. Had to remove corresponding fuse to get them to shut off. Rich suspects problems with the triggers in the door jambs not identifying that the doors have been closed.

 

If the interior lights weren't turning off then surely that was the parasitic drain! Unless you have more than one. If you still think there is a drain then disconnect the battery between drives.

If the back exhaust pipes are glowing red then they are not getting enough fuel (lean condition). Maybe the 2 crossfire fuel injectors need servicing / balancing.

 

I end up putting a set of Yokohama YK520 (245-50-16) 60000 miles tires they are .8 smaller, Like others have said 255-50-16 are hard to find but they are out here

Link:http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/fin...=CHDINT&cs=245

The price not bad and they will last a long time or untill if you like me gives you time to save up for a set of tires and wheels you want.

I want some 285-40-17 or 18 in front and a set or 315-40 -17 or 18 in the rear but more money plus rims for them I figure anouther $2500 to $3000. to spend for them.

Theres other tires out there but I think it a good deal for what you get.

Oh ya good luck my $2000.00 Vett also started out to be a cheep fun car to restore the cheep part is long gone the fun part still there.

I don't want to tell you how much money I put in to the car so far it scary LOL.