ronarndt

I don't think I will ever complain about working on my 68 convert ever again. I volunteered to help a friend repair a 2003 GMC Sierra 2500 HD 4WD with 8.1 L engine that was in a bad accident. A Salvation Army 10 ton box truck sideswiped the driver side, hit the back wheel with such force it ripped the axle housing from the spring u-bolts and pushed the wheel to the back bumper. Permanently bent leaf springs on both sides, bent spring hangers and shackles, ripped off shocks, ripped off parking brake cable, ripped off drive shaft- plus the damage to sheet metal. It seemed every part weighed at least 100 lbs and every bolt was bigger than any wrench I have and was torqued on with 300 ft/lbs. Now every bone in my body hurts from wrenching and struggling around on my creeper. I look forward to the relatively easy job of dropping the differential from my Vette........as soon as I stop hurting.

SteveG75

I find the Vette easy to work on. Now, the 308 that I had for a while could be a pain in the ***. I am convinced that the Italians bred mechanics who had arms that were extra long with two extra joints and fingers that could exert 50ft-lbs of torque on a nut without a wrench.

Tonio

Severely wrecked trucks are never easy to work on. To compare that to an unharmed Vette is, well, not comparable.

ronarndt

SteveG75 said "mechanics who had arms that were extra long with two extra joints ". I agree. I forgot to mention the PO stuffed a 454 with long tube headers in the engine compartment of my car. Everything between the engine and frame is close quarters. I have a spark plug socket that I have customized on my bench grinder so it will fit in the area for plug #1 and #4. Most other areas on the car are not that bad to work on, as opposed to the heavy duty stuff on that GMC truck. I've had two Ford 3/4 ton and two Chevy 3/4 ton trucks and they were no where near as tough to work on.

L-46man

Unfortunately, I'm a car lover and Mechanic for life. I've owned and restored 108 cars.

My 69 convertible is the EASIEST car to work on....there is a lot of 'stovebolt' tech in there and I LOVE IT. Best thing=CRUDE!

The 82 CE is a bit of a faff to work on insofar that every nook and cranny has some component shoved in there....wait until you have to remove the cruise control!

My Audi TT takes the cake however....it is a TOTAL BLIVET! (10 lbs worth of $#!+ into a 5 lbs bag.) EVERYTIME something has to be done it's a complete cluster@#$%.
Remove 10 items to fix the one item that broke...always something electronic...damn CAN-BUS electrical systems. In addition regular OBD2 readers do not work insofar as the VW/AUDI/PORSCHE/LAMBO/BENTLEY uses VAG-COM which is not compatible and proprietary.

I have a 78 VW Scirocco....you can remove the entire dashboard and drive the car across country with no ill effects....the TT, one PIN in the electrical system and it won't run!
Keeps me young and aching!
Unkahal

ronarndt

Tonio said "Severely wrecked trucks are never easy to work on" Agree. I had to use a come-along to pull parts that extra half inch to get the bolt inserted.

ronarndt

"regular OBD2 readers do not work " They do not work on my BMW X-5 either. Average cost to reset an error code is about $100 at my BMW garage (not dealer)

L-46man

Vag-com is $350 and worth it....if you're not leasing your BMW SUV! LOL

Vag-com-$350
VETTE-COM= 9/16th in wrench! LOL (and a beer!).

Unkahal

72downunder

naramlee

the hardest part I think for new owners not used to older cars, is how everything is shimed and layered... everything goes in a certain order, like the brake console and shifter console... trim is bolted to an undercarriage etc etc...

I used to own a 86 foxbody mustang when broke me into the understanding of trim and layers already... honestly the best thing with our cars is getting a nice big sheet of double thick cardboard for working under it... 10 times better than a creeper IMO

NONN37

bodywork on corvettes sucks!
fixing panel gaps on metal cars is a matter of loosening a few bolts and adjusting panels. corvette you gotta adjust the doors/body shims. use fillers repaint etc.

Got a scratch or spot repair? Metal car= you can just pull off the panel and hammer it straight, and then paint it.
vette= you have to strip down the area. apply fiberglass or filler, block entire area, check bonding areas for stress cracks. and repaint a huge section of the car because there are no seams or body lines to blend into.
...yeah that 5mph fender bender gonna cost 5K.

Antz81

Thats not just mechanics; the machines we have at work are designed the same way. I think they must have extra arms as well.

427SIXPACK

Vettes "NOT" difficult to work on as long as it's NOT broke !!

Jebbysan

Going from a 66' to a 69' Big Block then the current 72'.....I can tell you that working on the 66' is about 100 times easier....at least from an interior and body point of view....... In fact,working on anything I own is easier than working on my 72' Body and Interior........It really is a challenge.....even for me, who started handing his Dad wrenches when I was 9........I wire and have built about 8 complete automobiles from nothing and the Vette takes the cake.
The first thing you learn is that you need to put things back together in the order they were removed. The second thing you learn is that the actual drivetrain is a piece of cake.......engine, suspension and rearend are all great and fun projects for the automotive savvy...........this is also why you see a s&%tload of project Vettes with brandnew chassis and drivetrain and the body is not finished........a lot of folks get to the paint and body on these and run........if you do make it past the paint and body, you have to put the interior together.....which just plain sucks..........
I helped my Dad put a stolen and recovery 77' Vette he bought in 1985 (I was 14) back together once.......it was all there except the interior and wheels/tires were gone.......Dad had me pretty much do everything he couldn't because he was a large build man.......I remember that I had a lot more patience then!!!!!!

Jebby

gmmeyerIII

Easy to work on if it was never a vehicle from the North. Ughh the hours spent trying to loosen frozen bolts and surface rust removal.
Never again will i but any type of vehicle from the North again.

BLUE1972

rcread

I could replace ten C3 clutches in the time it would take to replace one clutch on either of my Porsches.

naramlee

x2

im so lucky this car wasnt rusted, i see so many horror stories and pictures on here...and i havent had one bolt even heavily rusted yet even on the radiator support.

L-46man

Especially the 924-944....you have to pull the entire rear end and torque tube as well.

unkahal

Rescue Rogers

I dont think I'll ever buy a newer car again. They suck to work on, the electrical systems are unreliable, and you have to use a computer to get close to whats wrong, even then its not right. I'm hoping for a 1960s el camino in my future for a daily driver. Throw a holley sniper system on it and an autogear overdrive.......