What have YOU being doing or are you planning to do with your Vette?

[CaptainK]

Yesterday I did something I was planning on doing ages ago, but forgot - check to see if my Corvette really does have a numbers matching engine. It does. It was sold to me as engine matching and all paperwork etc, but I just forgot to check it along the way. Possibly silly, but meh, impulsive buy at the time, what can I say.

Anyway, checked the engine number on the flat part in front of the passenger side cylinder head, and checked the block number at the rear of the driver's side cylinder head. After a bit of internet decoding, it all matches up to my vehicle and is what I expect to be in there - a 327/300hp with manual trans. I like it has part of my VIN on the engine too.

So its nice to know it is all as expected, but shame it hadn't been converted to a super-power engine and I was just driving it wrong.

 

[richie500]

I CERTAINLY WASN'T PLANNING THIS
It all started well, Friday afternoon topped up the power steering fluid put some air in the tyres and took it round the block - all good to go....
Saturday morning, started on the button as usual, warmed it up and set off to the breakfast meet. Ray bans on, roofs off, glorious sun shine, roar of the BB, cruising along at about 40mph then with no warning it just died. Think its the fuel pump but will check tomorrow, £80 to recover.
Barely 12 miles from home - everybody be warned if you haven't got breakdown recovery then get some, I won't be making this mistake again, shows you the knock on effect of fuel prices etc, this would have been £50 or less a year ago.

 

[Forrest Gump]

I CERTAINLY WASN'T PLANNING THIS
It all started well, Friday afternoon topped up the power steering fluid put some air in the tyres and took it round the block - all good to go....
Saturday morning, started on the button as usual, warmed it up and set off to the breakfast meet. Ray bans on, roofs off, glorious sun shine, roar of the BB, cruising along at about 40mph then with no warning it just died. Think its the fuel pump but will check tomorrow, £80 to recover.
Barely 12 miles from home - everybody be warned if you haven't got breakdown recovery then get some, I won't be making this mistake again, shows you the knock on effect of fuel prices etc, this would have been £50 or less a year ago.

That's unlucky and a load of grief.
If it is fuel pump failure, be sure to check that it's not dumped fuel into the oil sump as can happen. Oil will go black and smell fuelly.

 

[Chuffer]

What a great day today at the BBNC `s first Brunch Meet at the Navigation Inn on the Grand Union Canal at Cosgrove . Brilliant sunshine , great location , stunning cars , good food and excellent company . What more could you want ? Ten Corvettes from C2 through to C7 . Well done to everyone for making the day a success , even had members from other regions too .

 

[Nassau65]

Love the 66 convertible . Looks like mossport green, a beautiful light greenish Color.

 

[Chuffer]

Love the 66 convertible . Looks like mossport green, a beautiful light greenish Color.

Yeah , nice car but unfortunately had his passenger side front spinner came undone three times on the journey up !!! . His 20 stone mate ( in photo) was standing on his wrench bar in the carpark trying to get it tight enough for the trip back home .

 

[Nassau65]

Yeah , nice car but unfortunately had his passenger side front spinner came undone three times on the journey up !!! . His 20 stone mate ( in photo) was standing on his wrench bar in the carpark trying to get it tight enough for the trip back home .

Oh, so thats the one who couldn’t get the spinners off, then did, and then had all the trouble on his drive.
glad he managed to sort it of sorts and that the car didn’t get damaged.

 

[antijam]

Any old iron.....?



This is most of the stuff I've replaced on the arse end of my '71 in the last couple of months. Makes you realise - that's a lot of unsprung weight!

 

[fine69]

Finally got the front shocks in and got the Borgeson steering box reinforcing bracket bolted up.
both jobs were time consuming and knackering!
Glad they’re done though well mess around with the compression and rebound setting over the next week or so.

 

[fine69]

The Vette now handles fantastic. Double adjustable shocks are a MUST for glass VBP monosprings.
I’ve had Koni adjustable and Spax adjustable shocks before these Viking shocks. But a single adjustable shock is wrong on every setting as the ratio of rebound/compression is wrong. So it was always bouncy.
I have the front shocks set at 4 compression and 8 rebound and it’s way better.
I’ve still got messing around to do setting wise but after 10 years I’ve finally got a street racer that handles like a big Mk1 Escort

 

[fine69]

Any old iron.....?

View attachment 16145

This is most of the stuff I've replaced on the arse end of my '71 in the last couple of months. Makes you realise - that's a lot of unsprung weight!

Quite a pile you have there. Good job.

 

[Forrest Gump]

Any old iron.....?

View attachment 16145

This is most of the stuff I've replaced on the arse end of my '71 in the last couple of months. Makes you realise - that's a lot of unsprung weight!

Lightweight sports cars these are NOT , this is why they need a big V8 to shift them.
I‘m going to guess that lot weighs over 180lbs. (And the wheels and tyres can be added to the unsprung weight).

 

[CaptainK]

A question worthy of beard stroking moments.... is the giant rear spring actually "unsprung weight"? It is a spring itself, and with no force currently on it it could be considered "unsprung", and it is heavy so it has weight.

 

[fine69]

Lightweight sports cars these are NOT , this is why they need a big V8 to shift them.
I‘m going to guess that lot weighs over 180lbs. (And the wheels and tyres can be added to the unsprung weight).

I had my '71 on the scales at the dump the other day. 2980lb, although that is with a few mods and deleted bits!

 

[Roscobbc]

A question worthy of beard stroking moments.... is the giant rear spring actually "unsprung weight"? It is a spring itself, and with no force currently on it it could be considered "unsprung", and it is heavy so it has weight.

Spring is affixed to chassis so 'sprung' weight. Differential affixed to chassis, so once again 'sprung'. 'A' arms although pivoted from chassis end are 'unsprung' weight as are drive shafts. Irrespective of how basic the IRS is in terms of design it is still far lighter than a 'conventional' rear axle. Even at 3600lbs for the heaviest C3 has better weight distribution and handles far better than it has a right to.
EDITED.....

 

[antijam]

Spring is affixed to chassis so 'unsprung' weight. Differential affixed to chassis, so once again 'unsprung'. 'A' arms although pivoted from chassis end are 'sprung' weight as are drive shafts. Irrespective of how basic the IRS is in terms of design it is still far lighter than a 'conventional' rear axle. Even at 3600lbs for the heaviest C3 it has better weight distribution and handles far better than it has a right to.

Do you not have your sprung and unsprung masses reversed Rosco? The sprung masses are those supported by the spring e.g Body, chassis, engine and transmission and in the case of the 'Vette, the differential.

 

[teamzr1]

Unsprung weight defined :

In simple terms, a vehicle’s sprung weight is supported by springs of one kind of or another (coiled springs, air springs, Belleville springs).
Unsprung weight moves up and down with the wheels as they travel over bumps, potholes, and other obstructions.
So unsprung weight includes the wheels, tires, brake assemblies, differential, solid drive axles, hub motors, and anything directly connected to the wheels is unsprung mass.
This still leaves the majority of the vehicle’s components weight as sprung weight—the chassis, motor, transmission, body, and interior, as well as the passengers and cargo.

There are also semi-sprung parts (also called partly sprung or hybrid weight).
These parts are usually attached to the wheel on one end and to a sprung component on the other. The springs themselves, for example, connect the wheel to the body. The half shaft going from the transmission to a wheel is another semi-sprung part.
The list also includes shock absorbers and struts, control arms and other suspension parts, half shafts and other drive shafts, and some steering components.

Sprung weight is shielded from the shocks and vibrations that the wheels experience as they travel over every bump and pothole. This makes for a more comfortable ride and protects the sprung components from destructive and life-shortening shocks and vibrations.
Conversely, unsprung weight must be designed to be tough enough to survive the constant shocks and vibrations, which can be difficult for complex parts such as hub motors and wireless pressure sensors.

In general, it’s best to have a high ratio of sprung-to-unsprung weight.
A higher proportion of sprung weight can then push down on the wheels and tires with more force, keeping them in contact with the pavement or whatever surface they are traveling across. Maintaining contact with the roadway improves handling and traction, and this becomes more of an issue for off-roading and traveling over rough roads.

So as a rule, designers try to minimize unsprung weight to improve handling and steering.
That’s why hot-rodders and auto enthusiasts invest money in alloy wheels to reduce the unsprung weight and make steering more precise.
Lighter wheels and tires also mean it takes less energy to spin them or bring them to a stop, but this has nothing to do with sprung and unsprung weight.

 

[Roscobbc]

Do you not have your sprung and unsprung masses reversed Rosco? The sprung masses are those supported by the spring e.g Body, chassis, engine and transmission and in the case of the 'Vette, the differential.

I've quoted ass about face I fear....!

 

[Forrest Gump]

On a Corvette the spring is unsprung weight, it moves with the road wheel and suspension. Differential is sprung weight though, it is rigidly fixed to the chassis.

 

[fine69]

Unsprung weight defined :

In simple terms, a vehicle’s sprung weight is supported by springs of one kind of or another (coiled springs, air springs, Belleville springs).
Unsprung weight moves up and down with the wheels as they travel over bumps, potholes, and other obstructions.
So unsprung weight includes the wheels, tires, brake assemblies, differential, solid drive axles, hub motors, and anything directly connected to the wheels is unsprung mass.
This still leaves the majority of the vehicle’s components weight as sprung weight—the chassis, motor, transmission, body, and interior, as well as the passengers and cargo.

There are also semi-sprung parts (also called partly sprung or hybrid weight).
These parts are usually attached to the wheel on one end and to a sprung component on the other. The springs themselves, for example, connect the wheel to the body. The half shaft going from the transmission to a wheel is another semi-sprung part.
The list also includes shock absorbers and struts, control arms and other suspension parts, half shafts and other drive shafts, and some steering components.

Sprung weight is shielded from the shocks and vibrations that the wheels experience as they travel over every bump and pothole. This makes for a more comfortable ride and protects the sprung components from destructive and life-shortening shocks and vibrations.
Conversely, unsprung weight must be designed to be tough enough to survive the constant shocks and vibrations, which can be difficult for complex parts such as hub motors and wireless pressure sensors.

In general, it’s best to have a high ratio of sprung-to-unsprung weight.
A higher proportion of sprung weight can then push down on the wheels and tires with more force, keeping them in contact with the pavement or whatever surface they are traveling across. Maintaining contact with the roadway improves handling and traction, and this becomes more of an issue for off-roading and traveling over rough roads.

So as a rule, designers try to minimize unsprung weight to improve handling and steering.
That’s why hot-rodders and auto enthusiasts invest money in alloy wheels to reduce the unsprung weight and make steering more precise.
Lighter wheels and tires also mean it takes less energy to spin them or bring them to a stop, but this has nothing to do with sprung and unsprung weight.

Back in my Mk1 Escort days I had steel wheels and a friend had alloy 4 spokes. We swapped wheels one day to so I could see how his tyre size worked on my car. With the alloys on my car it was very noticeably how much more nimble the car was. It was faster and better on fuel. I was really surprised the difference it made. It’s the most effective change you can do on a car.

I think the Vette rear suspension is really quite good. It’s basic but gets the job done well. It’s tough enough for some serious abuse but light enough to work.
if I treated a euro rear end like I treat my Vette I’d have blown it to pieces by now.

I’ve modified the rear crossmember to raise the diff up 1”. This minimises any toe steer (lowered car). Car handles great. The other mods don’t change the design (reinforcing discs, smart struts, shocks, glass monospring, no sway bar, HD half shaft cap screws) Getting the halfshafts level at ride height is the best mod you can do with it.

I’ll swap gears from 3.55 to 3.36 at some point and rebuild the diff. Minimising diff play also really helps.
Oh I set up the caster and camber myself with a piece of string and a level. It’s really not that difficult.