Congrats Jeff! Just about done myself...headers than the rest of it.

 

Been following this thread, and am happy for you that all turned out well. I'm sure everyone found it informative and helpful - can't wait to see some numbers after you get it tuned!!

 

Went camping, I got back as early as possible today so I could go for the first drive. Here is one final pic of the engine when it was mostly assembled:



And a video of the initial startup at 2:30 am (I sound like Kermit for some reason, I blame the late hour and the camera ):
http://rscpro.com/borlatips/Vette Startup.zip

I compressed it in divx 6.6 format so if you don't have the codec go to www.divx.com and pick it up.


The first drive wasn't a total success, about a quarter of a mile down the road every light in the car lit up and the reduced engine performance message displayed. Turned out to be a loose spark plug boot and after that it hasn't had any problems. I have an oil catch can running to a fram g3 filter and I noticed the filter walls had collapsed, there is definately more pressure there. After removing the filter I saw that the tube I was using collapsed also so I went and picked up another one. Other than that it just hums along.

My first impressions are very disappointing, it doesn't seem to have any more power than it used to. I didn't take it past 3K rpms but I was expecting *something* down low. Hopefully the computer will adjust soon. It does sound and feel a bit "healthier" but it is hard to quantify.

We ended up opening the AC system to the air and had to recharge it. It blows cold air but for some reason the defrost vent puts out air no matter what, I can't get any amount of pressure through the main vents... Any ideas?

 

You are running stcok manifolds? At least go to a shorty set. I know you are in CA so you are somewhat limited. But those stock manifolds are hurting you. I have run the shorty headers, they will give you power. But, with the H/C now you may want to see about trying to et by with long tubes. It will wake your car up. Trust me when I tell you this. I just did LT on mine from the shortys and WOW! They just flow more period. If I were stock motor, I would stay with the shortys though. PM sleeperC5 maybe he can hlep you out with the LT situation out there. Deno is a great guy and will help you.

I know I was underwhelmed initially with my set up but now, three months later, I'm loving it. Definitely give it some time.

Good Luck



Brad

 

Is the vacuum hose on the back of the intake reattached? This controls the A/C vents and you may have a vacuum leak that won't help how it runs as well if it is off.

 

Can you describe it in more detail? There is a line that runs between the valve covers that is routed behind the intake manifold, is that what you are referring to? I'll double check everything tonight to see if there is anything loose, thanks for the heads up.

 

Not that one.

There is a small (~1/4") rubber hose that attaches at the rear center of the intake manifold. It should have been connected at the same time/place you plugged the MAP sensor connector in. You have to have the manifold almost in place to be able to reach behind it and slip this hose on.

 

Yep, that's the one. I can dig up some photo's if you need them (at work right now, would need to do this from home).

 

I had that same a/c probs when I pulled the heads. I had had to pull the intake manifold again to reconnect tha vacuum line. easy fix though

 

Nothing worse than going through all that work and not feel like you made a difference. But by not taking the motor over 3k, I think you are selling it short. These motors like to rev. The manifolds will hurt the combination (an engine can't ingest air it can't expel), but you still should still feel a gain.

And your AC problem is the vacuum line on the back of the intake. Been there, done that.

 

I'm trying to follow the break in outlined in the guide so I didn't push the engine very hard yesterday. Tonight we're going to remove the intake manifold and fix the AC issue, then we're going to beat on the engine until I'm satisfied it's making more power .

I did notice that the temps were about 10-15 degrees higher than they were when the engine was stock. I'm attributing it to the difference between the castrol synthetic (will be gone after the first 100 mile break in) that is in there now and the amsoil that I usually run.

 

Thanks, I think I remember the layout now so don't worry about finding the pics. We're going to pull it off again tonight and reconnect the hose, AC is becoming necessary here as we're hovering around 100+ degrees.

 

Who's going to tune your new setup? Even with a small cam you need a tune to get the most out of it....

 

You won't want to remove the intake completely. Just remove the bolts and injectors and slide it forward enough to get your hand back there. It's much easier to remove the rubber elbow from the intake (by the MAP sensor) and affix it to the hose and then slide the elbow back onto the intake then it is to try and get the hose into the the elbow. It's a frustrating operation, but you'll get there.

 

Someone with small hands can reach it if they know what to do.

 

Nice, I'll get one of the neighborhood kids to do it . I have a friend that can probably hack it, my hands definately won't fit.

 

I'm not sure, I need to find someone in the Sacramento area. Corvette Care in sac will do it but I'm not sure how good they are. I want a street tune as well as a dyno tune so if you have any suggestions please let me know!

 

Thanks for the info, I'll try this method tonight.

 

It seems to be pulling stronger now that I've run it for a couple days. There is a noticeable increase in power above about 4500 rpms and it doesn't stop pulling, I'll need to adjust the rev limiter. If a tune will give me a bit more low end response then I think I'll be quite happy with this setup. Looks like headers are next.

 

I was hoping to get away scott free... I received an 0410 code this evening, not sure what it means. Any ideas? I haven't plugged the hole for the AC yet, could that cause it?