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Hi All
I have recently picked up an 84 Corvette with original crossfire and a doug nash 4+3. The plan is to work on it with my son and make it a daily driver. Corvettes are not that common in Australia so I will probably have to do most of the work myself.
Anyway ive been gradually fixing the cars issues and it has been getting better and better. The other day i went down to the garage to be confronted by a large puddle of oil. The the oil was dripping down the back of the engine and was also on the top of the crossfire inlet manifold.
I read in these forums that it could be the oil pressure sender so I have removed the wiper motor and the distributor to have a better look. The oil pressure sender and switch look dry and I can’t see anything obvious. I thought it might be leaking out of the rear of the manifold and I noticed that a couple of the bolts were not tensioned up correctly so I touqued them up. It looks like oil is tracking up the choke cable (I thing that’s what it is) and depositing on top of the manifold then dripping back down.
my question is, would the oil under the inlet manifold be under enough pressure to cause this amount of mess or am I missing something?
Thanks for reading.
I'm glad you solved your oil problem. I love this place, it is such a great resource ... remember search is your friend. So it was converted to right hand drive not built that way?
I'm glad you solved your oil problem. I love this place, it is such a great resource ... remember search is your friend. So it was converted to right hand drive not built that way?
Pics please
Hi Mate
Yep converted. I don’t believe they ever made them right hand drive. It looks like was a good quality conversation at the time but it makes it a bit more difficult to work on. I’ll try and get some pics today.
Regards Greg
Big thank you to all who responded with help and suggestions and also thank you all for the welcome messages and well wishes.
I had been searching the forums for a while before I signed up and had already discovered a wealth of quality advice and information.
I am on a journey with this car, it has many unsolved mysteries and many plugged vacuum hoses. It gives me confidence moving forward that there is so much expertise and knowledge on the forum and a willingness to help.
Currently the car is running quite well. A quick look at the spark plugs indicate that it is running too rich but the ECM routinely throws a code 44 which means too lean. I think the o2 sensor is probably stuffed so that’s the next job.
But on a big positive my 18 year old just took it up the coast for a few days. He races go karts, wants to race cars and has my love of Corvettes. He is also a part owner of the car. Attached is a photo of him plying his trade.
Last edited by GregMartin; Jun 25, 2018 at 08:27 AM.
Hi All
Thought I would give a quick up date. The car has been running quite well and it no longer leaks oil. It occasionally throws a code 44 but when I look at the plugs it is running rich not lean. I just received a new O2 sensor in the mail so I will pop this in and see if that addresses the issue. I didn't fully diagnose this because I couldn't be bothered trying to measure the O2 sensor voltage when a new sensor is 25 bucks and the car is 34 years old.
In general this car is running quite well now however sometimes the idle speed drops and is stalls. I probably need to balance and adjust the throttle bodies and set the idle. I may also up the timing to about 10Deg BTC (its currently at about 7Deg with the ECU disconnected) So my first question is:
Does anyone know where I can buy the tools used to block the idle ports so I can set the vacuum on both throttle bodies. I friend of mine has a Pascal meter so that should read low enough. While I'm on the quest for tools does anyone know where/or if I can get that little tool for adjusting the fuel regulator. I can find pictures on the internet but thats all. Also I can find pictures of the fuel line that connects both throttle bodies together with a pressure gauge installed. It looks like at one point these were for sale but again I can't find them now.
Secondly (fourthly really) could some please help with an exact connection diagram of the vacuum lines that connect to each of the throttle bodies? The FSM has a diagram but it is only for one the the throttle bodies and I think its more of a guide. It looks like different ports may provide different vacuum levels so I want to ensure that everything is connected to the correct spot.
One more thing. I was having difficulty accessing the distributor bolt so I removed the EGR valve. It didn't appear to be working (by that I mean its vacuum line appeared to connect to a solenoid that had no other vacuum connections (I maybe misunderstanding how this works!)). Anyway instead of reinstalling it I made up a blanking plate and blocked it off. Will this cause me any issues in the future or is this a reasonable approach?
Hi All
I have recently picked up an 84 Corvette with original crossfire and a doug nash 4+3. The plan is to work on it with my son and make it a daily driver. Corvettes are not that common in Australia so I will probably have to do most of the work myself.
Anyway ive been gradually fixing the cars issues and it has been getting better and better. The other day i went down to the garage to be confronted by a large puddle of oil. The the oil was dripping down the back of the engine and was also on the top of the crossfire inlet manifold.
I read in these forums that it could be the oil pressure sender so I have removed the wiper motor and the distributor to have a better look. The oil pressure sender and switch look dry and I can’t see anything obvious. I thought it might be leaking out of the rear of the manifold and I noticed that a couple of the bolts were not tensioned up correctly so I touqued them up. It looks like oil is tracking up the choke cable (I thing that’s what it is) and depositing on top of the manifold then dripping back down.
my question is, would the oil under the inlet manifold be under enough pressure to cause this amount of mess or am I missing something?
Thanks for reading.
Hi from another Aussie, but from Melbourne
The most common oil leak areas are the rocker cover gasket, intake china wall at rear near dizzy.
Depending on how many miles she has done, could be blowby rings not sealing well pressurizing crankcase.
Sometimes oil will be evident around unsealed intake bolts...
Hey Man
Thanks for your reply. Oil leaks are all sorted now. What year is your C4? I just found a set of pacemaker headers (well seeing as I’m talking to an Aussie let’s call them extractors haha). I bought them because they look like they will fit and they are the only RHD ones I have found. The code is PH5301 do you know anyone who has fitter a set of these?
Cheers Greg
Hey Man
Thanks for your reply. Oil leaks are all sorted now. What year is your C4? I just found a set of pacemaker headers (well seeing as I’m talking to an Aussie let’s call them extractors haha). I bought them because they look like they will fit and they are the only RHD ones I have found. The code is PH5301 do you know anyone who has fitter a set of these?
Cheers Greg
Hi Greg
I have an 85 vette, see link below to my profile / garage photos
You can click a username and see their profile and garage
The extractors should fit as they are made for RHD, i am using ceramic coated headman headers.
They only needed cylinder number four shortened near the head, around half an inch from standard left hand drive.
That was the only modification needed to clear the steering, was quite easy.
They install quite easy, i think one from engine bay and one from under the car from memory.
Just make sure you don't wrap the headers, my previous headers did not last long before they got so thin i could poke holes in them with my finger!!
I got the headman headers very cheap, they fit and work great, C4s love long tube headers it really wake the lame horses from intake restrictions.
Have had my vette for 20 years, everything is pretty much new on it so very reliable.
She was at 40,000 miles when i got her, has 170,000 on it now.
Have driven it to QLD a few times she is no trailer queen, meant to be driven.
Is only a weekend car but i take her out as much as i can.
Now how do you go with 3 pedals on the right side? LOL pretty cramped i bet?
I have been tempted to shift the engine/ trans and floorpan to the left to give more room, that's with an auto trans !!!!
The extractors should fit as they are made for RHD, i am using ceramic coated headman headers.
They only needed cylinder number four shortened near the head, around half an inch from standard left hand drive.
That was the only modification needed to clear the steering, was quite easy.
They install quite easy, i think one from engine bay and one from under the car from memory.
Just make sure you don't wrap the headers, my previous headers did not last long before they got so thin i could poke holes in them with my finger!!
I got the headman headers very cheap, they fit and work great, C4s love long tube headers it really wake the lame horses from intake restrictions.
Have had my vette for 20 years, everything is pretty much new on it so very reliable.
She was at 40,000 miles when i got her, has 170,000 on it now.
Have driven it to QLD a few times she is no trailer queen, meant to be driven.
Is only a weekend car but i take her out as much as i can.
Now how do you go with 3 pedals on the right side? LOL pretty cramped i bet?
I have been tempted to shift the engine/ trans and floorpan to the left to give more room, that's with an auto trans !!!!
Cheers
Gerard
Yep Gerard
the RHD drivers side is a bit tight. I am 6’4” and my son is 6’2” so double clutching is not really an option. Big job to move the tunnel, I would be happy if I could get the seat further back and lower.
Your 85 looks very nice I like the 90s front and rear clip. I looked at one on the Gold Coast that had similar body work. The car looked good but it had a new engine (carby) and the new front and rear clip. It was through a dealer and I didn’t trust it.
i also see the your corvette is being force fed haha.
i looked at the Headman headers I thought they would go close. I won’t be raping mine but I may get them ceramic coated. Yes I’m hoping that the long pipes will help the respiration. I have a renegade inlet manifold and I have been looking at aluminum heads and a cam (can’t believe how cheep this stuff is now). But before I embark on major engine work I want to just drive it for a while.
Good to hear that you drive yours regularly. My plan is for our Vette to be a daily driver. I got my 18 year old son permission to drive it on his “P” plates so it may well become his regular ride.
Welcome to the forum!
