Axel shaft grooves at seal location



Nice. I click on the link and the first shaft I see is rated 1,000 HP! and that's after the safety factor.....


I check the shafts, boots all look good, nice, smooth rotation under flex. The only thing that concerns me is the grooves you can see in the pic at the seal locations. Mostly visual, barely discernible by touch but definitely a groove you can snag with a thumbnail.


I'm wondering if it is seal wear or maybe a little eccentricity getting the shaft close to the outer seal race under driving conditions. I've noticed that in various photos of differentials, including mine.


I might try some emory cloth and see how that does.

 

That groove is the only reason I replaced mine. I kept my old ones just in case. I bought some aftermarket CV's and sent them back because the shafts were about 1/8th thinner and the boots didn't look that hardy. Then I bought the GSP ones and they looked pretty much like the stock axles. http://www.ebay.com/itm/131790930483?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
They arrived in two days.

 

Separation......


Progress update.


Engine separated. Just awaiting replacement engine next week. Only one stuck bolt in the entire disassembly (including suspension)...caliper to knuckle bolt on the front driver side. Some knucklehead used an impact wrench to assemble. Might chase threads and replace bolt.


Only three notable mishaps:

• Snapped braided ground cable from engine block on driver's side at frame. Fortunately it snapped at the pressed on ring so I'll press on another. missed that one.
• Forgot to disconnect the brake lines at Master Cylinder...caught in time though. Lines were flexible.
• Got on the wrong end of the rear lower control arm carriage bolt with the breaker bar. I thought I was on the opposing nut, I was on the cam bolt end. May have deformed it slightly

In the meantime complete suspension refresh underway, parts arriving daily:

• Bushings all around, upper and lower, for all control arms
• Ball joints all around, upper and lower
• Outer tie-rods all around. Rear inners look and feel good
• All four shocks...I went with the OEM Monroe replacements from Rock Auto for now
• I didn't like the way the inner tie rods felt on the steering assy and upon closer inspection found sludge accumulation and leak from the pinion housing that had gone on for a while. Since I need new boots and inner tie rods I figure for about $175 more its worth it to get a remanufactured unit from Zip Corvette and have proper boots/clamps and leak free so I pulled it out and ordered another one

Thanks Rob02 for the lead on the CV shafts. I looked around and Rock Auto currently has a few of the GSP's privately labeled (but with the GSP replacement number) for $38 each. I received them and put them side by side, measured shafts, etc., nearly identical to OEM...just the boot clamps were very slightly smaller.


I also ordered new seals and O-rings for transfer case.


Currently pressing out the old bushings.....

 

Do not remove that spline coupling at the fly wheel or you will be getting a new one. It's mounted, centered and balanced by the factory.

And when you reinstall the engine just tighten that collar finger tight. Run the engine to operating temps then tighten it. This allows for the thermal expansion of the crank shaft and thrust bearing.

A good time to tighten it is when you top off the trans fluid.

 

Thanks, I saw the 10-minute warmup in the procedures, I DID NOT see the spline coupling warning, but haven't touched it. Waiting to see the configuration on the rear of the replacement engine. It was from an automatic, should be same, if not I will do a flywheel swap in tact.

 

Should I be able to pull the old balancer off with standard three jaw puller or is something heavier needed? Those seating torques look pretty high. Thanks.

 

It comes right off. The hard part is putting one back on. The bolt takes a sh-t load of torque and it it hard to hols the engine still.

I recommend any of the cheep kits that allow for you to easily drill a small hole on the radius to keep this from spinning.

I would find a replacement damper that is less likely to fail. It doesn't necessary have to be the high end one unless you have big HP.

 

The bushings are cast into the control arms. If you are thinking of polyurethane then there is a trick.

 

For performance, and if you are keeping this car, stainless brake lines are an excellent choice for many reasons.


These tie rods work on the rear
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-REAR-INNER-TIE-ROD-END-SET-CHEVROLET-CORVETTE-2002-2011-/321226689124?fits=Model%3ACorvette&vxp=mtr&hash=item4aca9a4a64

 

Man, fifty bucks for two of them. Thanks. As it turns out, the rear inners are the only thing I haven't replaced....I think they may have been replaced not too long ago. Boots are in good shape and they feel nice and tight, no soft wear spots. Everything else is being replaced.




Yes, new poly bushings all around. The current rubber ones are hit and miss, some where old some looked new, some squeaked just from movement. I have all but two of the NR bushings removed and hardware cleaned up. Looking ahead to installing the poly's. They are Energy Suspension brand. It looks like fun.

 

I went with PB racing series balancer (1117SS) based on several recommendations..I think RockAuto had the best price. Not for HP but cheap insurance to hopefully not having to deal with it for a while. ARP bolt and installation tool from Summit.


The replacement LS1 just arrive but I haven't cut the cardboard/plastic off yet to examine. It will be funny if it already has that balancer on there.

 

Replacement engine arrives on pallet. I checked crankshaft seals front and back, other than a little dust I don't see anything in the way of seepage. Engine has 72K miles. I checked all over and all I see is a little oil at the head gasket on passenger side, rear of head (see pic).


If this were a 911 that stain would be considered bone dry. But this is my first LS1. It actually shows more in the photo than in real life. Not sure if its worth pulling the head.


They shipped all accessories...belts on, including the A/C compressor and starter, and exhaust manifold. A check of the VIN shows frequent service and a new alternator about 7 months ago. Also included is the air duct for the throttle body.


They also included the harness (intact, connected), ECU, TAC, and the accelerator pedal assembly with position sensor.


Comparing the replacement engine and the existing engine side by side they are identical (same year, automatic) right down to the component connections and locations. I'm thinking..

• Leave the harness and plug into the existing ECU still on the car
• Leave the throttle body on the replacement engine and plug into the existing TAC still on the car

I'm searching but I haven't found any problem with the above approach. Is there any reason I would need to mate the replacement engine with the ECU/TAC that was shipped?


Rob02, I found the warning about the spline coupling in the rear main seal procedure. I may swap it since it is dirt simple with the engine out and on the pallet.


Original harmonic balancer is on the front.

Update: I'm planning to do a leakdown test and compression test on the engine before changing plugs.

Thanks!

 

My wire harness had heat damage. Check the individual wires for peeling insulation. A good engine wire harness is worth $450 easy. A lot of your old parts can fetch some good money.

Now is the time to really consider weather or not you want more HP from engine internals.

I would replace any wear items that will be too hard to reach in the future. The oil pressure sensor is prone to failure. It's behind the intake and some have used pipe fittings and hose to mount it to a more favorable location. I was told that the ones with the brass base last longer. It may be a good time to replace the power steering vacuum hose if you think it will fail. For as cheep as it is I would replace the check valve for the AIR system on the back of the engine. The one on the drivers side is easy to get to so it can wait.

Definitely replace engine mounts. They are sort of like shocks. I haven't heard much in regards to rear trans mount failure but it may be a convent time to replace it for ~$20.

The flywheel and spline coupling need to always stay together. When you run the engine for the first time leave that allen bolt just finger tight until the engine reaches operating temps (to allow for expansion of the crank). Then tighten it to spec through the inspection hole.

 

Yep, changing out the oil pressure sensor just to be safe. I also rec'd new motor mounts before the replacement engine arrived. Easy to change now. I went ahead ordered wheel hub/bearings on all four. Once the suspension was disassembled I got a close look and the two on the passenger side are suspect.

All ball joints changed out and poly bushings installed....just havent installed the shafts in the front uppers yet (is there a trick or just brute force?...the bushings are in). Zip remanufactured steering arrived. Next the differential cover and CV shaft seals. Should be preping the engine next week start putting the car back on the drive train by end of the week.

Going through the chassis grounding check also (per Bill Curlee's post). I did find some minimal corrosion and a loose connection.

 

If your talking about poly bushings in the upper control arms, my understanding is that you need to burn them out with a propane torch. It makes a lot of stinky smoke. When they get hot enough for the rubber to start to melt you yank them out. The rubber is cast in from the factory. That's why you cant buy rubber bushings separately.

It sounds like your car will ride like new when you get done. I went with Z51 springs and C6Z sway bars and shocks. The stock base FE-1 suspension didn't feel like a true sports car to me (a little floaty). Of course, the suspension mods can be done at any time from under the car. These projects can start to get expensive with all the nickel and dime stuff and add-ons.

 

Progress....

Suspension update ready for install;

• New ball joints all around
• New poly bushings all around
• New Hub/Bearing assy's all around
• New shocks all around
• Remanufactured rack & pinion assy w/tie rods (Zip)...old one leaked and the inner tie rods were spotty
• New tie rods inner and outer all around

Diff/Trans:

• New CV shaft seals/cover O-rings
• New CV shafts
• New transmission filter, bushing, and pan gasket

Moving on to replacement engine prep; compression/leakdown test, new balancer, front/rear main seals, plugs.


Hoping to get it all back together next two weekends.


Thanks for all the input so far!

 

More progress...

Harmonic balancer, ARP bolt, new motor mounts, new exhaust pipe/header studs, and plugs/plug wires on the replacement engine. Back into the drivetrain she goes. Suspension going back together.

The front leaf spring at the balancer is an illusion, I can get my hand between the two.

 

I got mine together a few days ago. Holy crap!!!

Are you planing on keeping this car? If so, there are some mild performance mods that you may want while the engine is out. It will be a good time to think. You can add 70hp perfectly reliably, with only a cam and head swap, and a mail order tune from ECS.

They have to do with how you want the car to perform for ever at, reliably.
If you plan on keeping it there are things you can do to bring it up close to date to the C7.

If it is your baby then do it nice or do it twice. It is a good time to think about the cam and heads.

I wish I had your shop. I'm doing my interior now.

 

I put switch back turn signals in mine. I'm currently redoing the seats and center console.