Vette – October 2018

1965

327 COUPE FOUND 8

50 YEARS OF SUMMIT RACING … GENESIS VETTE RESTORED

MILES FROM HOME

r e m r o f r Pe hway ig -H ff O d n a n O Literally an The Turns!

In r O e in L t h ig a Str

PROOF POSITIVE

1957 AIRBOX REALLY IS … 1 OF 43

END OF AN ERA

BEGINNING OF A MODERN C1

SIMPLE IN & OUT

SOLVING 1995 CLUTCH WOES

iT’s Time for yoU To sTarT Driving yoUr veTTe UnDer The inflUence of The besT igniTion available! chevy D.U.i. DisTribUTors The Chevy D.U.I. Distributor was the first, and still is the best performance H.E.I. Distributor. Inferior copy cats have come and gone, but the D.U.I. remains the most popular choice for hot rodders around the globe. A super smooth advance curve is machine calibrated, providing you with instant throttle response, while eliminating engine damaging detonation. The 50,000 Volt D.U.I. Coil teams up with our high dwell Dyna-Module, allowing you to run a massive .055” plug gap. 8, 6, & 4 cyl. applications are available.

Tach-Drive D.U.i. DisTribUTor This provides you with all the great benefits of our Chevy DUI Distributors, but is built with a mechanical tach-drive connection for those of you who want to enjoy modern electronic ignition, yet maintain your original tach set-up. Features precision aligned tach gear and mainshaft tach cross gear. To insure complete mechanical synchronization, the end-play between the distributor gear and housing is checked with a feeler gauge. Durability is certain, and timing is rock steady.

DelUxe chevy D.U.i.

The Deluxe D.U.I. has 4 terrific features included in one Davis Unified Ignition package. First the new Cross-Fire Cap allows you to route your plug wires neatly on each cylinder bank. Makes plug wire routing easy. Second, is the Adjustable Slip Collar. The unit features a slip collar with 7/8” of adjustability. Insures a precise installation. Third, a Carbon Ultra-Poly composite gear is used. It is compatible with any camshaft-solid, hydraulic, factory roller, or steel billet roller cam. Unmatched durability! Fourth, every D.U.I is calibrated on a distributor machine, providing a super smooth advance curve.

compUTer D.U.i. DisTribUTors Performance Distributors is now building the one piece DUI Distributor for 1981-1995 Corvette EFI motors.

The DUI is a simple one-wire hook-up (with an optional tach connection included). Because the DUI Coil and 7-Pin Dyna Module produce a longer duration spark, you can open up your spark plug gaps to .055”, burning your fuel more completely. The DUI utilizes a brass terminal cap and rotor, insuring maximum conductivity. Each distributor is lubed and checked for exact tolerances as they are hand assembled.

Each housing also is built with oil impregnated brass bushings and are lubed for durability. Also includes the 4-prong wiring harness that plugs directly into your Vette’s computer harness.

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Spark up your Vette with an easy 10 more horsepower! S.O.S.-Sultans of Spark coils allow you to open up your plug gaps to .065” burning your fuel more completely. Great to run with programmers and tuners.

Utilizes superior thermal epoxy for durability.

“Boasting 7,000 volt-per-coil advantage over stock coils, the S.O.S coil packs allow you to run plug gaps as wide as .065” and offer improved heat and vibration resistance.”

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contents 16

F E AT U R E S

16

Georgia Teach Recovery trail of a one-owner Airbox

24

1967 Sting Ray That Spawned a Speed Shop 36

Summit Racing Equipment celebrates 50-year anniversary

36

1962 and Then Some Chevrolet upgraded the Corvette in 1962 with an all-new 327 engine, but Chris Kearney wanted more

58

46

COVER

Chris Jacobs can often be found at any one of a number of competitive autocross events with his 2001 Corvette Z06. You will then find this rapid Corvette more times than not sitting in the winner’s circle. With 500 lb-ft of torque it takes an “educated” throttle to come out of the corners fast enough, but not too fast, and it’s here this C5 excels. Oh, and don’t let the Corvette’s moniker fool you … Fluffy it isn’t!

TECH

20

Be The Light You Want To See Upgrading the headlights on a 1998 C5

30

Dial It In Freshening up C3 gauges

40

Putting Your Foot Down Repairing the clutch in a long-neglected 1995 C4

52

Reupholstering Your C3 Corvette Seats

Back on the Block

Corvette America restores your Corvette seats

A look inside what makes a non-driveable 1965 Corvette worth $1,000,000

62

58

ON THE

OCTOBER 2018  VOLUME 42  NUMBER 10

Flex Leads to Fracture

Fluffy, the Autocross Dominating Corvette

Repairing a dangerous C3 steering problem

Don’t let the name fool you

D E PA R T M E N T S

04 08 10 12 66 68

IN THE INTERIM PRODUCT PREVIEW FROM THE ARCHIVES TECHNICALLY SPEAKING RARE FINDS DESIGNER SERIES

In the Interim

BY BRIAN BRENNAN

For Shame … Not All Corvettes Bask in the Light nyone reading Vette understands it’s a forgone conclusion that the Corvette is #1, can do no wrong and it’s blasphemy to think otherwise. In our more mundane moments we also realize that not every Corvette was a styling or performance legend. Let’s face it, there were years that just flat didn’t make the emotions jump or our blood rush with excitement as we pressed down on the throttle.

In the interim, let us take a look at some of the misses that are weaved throughout the history of the Corvette. Since Corvettes have always been associated with performance let’s start at the beginning and say … not necessarily. The original Corvette, at least the first two years (1953-’54), found their primary (and only) source of power was an inline six. Nowadays, that sounds “kool” and maybe a bit nostalgic, but let’s face it, 150 hp—or 155 hp in late ’54—was nothing to get all that excited about. So this to us is one of the early downfalls to the Corvette making its mark. (A good thing the Ford T-bird was kicking its ass as this helped the brass at Chevrolet keep moving forward with the Corvette.)

It’s pretty hard to find fault with any of the C2 Corvettes (1963-’67), although the “split” in the split-window did lead to many a “disagreement” inside and outside of General Motors. While there can be no denying that the “split” was a disaster from the driver’s rearview perspective (I can attest to that having driven a ’63 coupe), the reality is it has made for one heck of an iconic car!

When it comes to the C3s there is room for several head scratchers. The ’68 just wasn’t a good car and there are plenty of stories about the internal struggle with making it a good car.

(Full disclosure: I have a ’68 and love it … after I made a handful of modern changes to improve the overall driveability and performance.) Chevrolet finally made the ’68 a better car by coming out with the ’69.

4

VETTE 18.10

The last of the steel bumper Corvettes came about in ’72 with the ’73 having a steel rear bumper but the injected-molded urethane front bumper. So, just because of the steel rear and plastic front bumper system the ’73 is on our list of “mistakes.”

While you could still get a 454-cubic-inch V-8, the smog race was in full swing and the horsepower numbers were really dropping.

Down to 275 hp, well below the 1hp per cubic inch plateau that was achieved back in ’57.

The first of the C4, 1984, was truly an all-new car with many innovations and many breakthroughs. But alas … the cross-fire injected engine did not survive the test of time.

Additionally, horsepower continued to plummet (205 hp was it!) and the big-block was all but forgotten, having vanished from the option list in ’75. It was 1984 when the first all-new Corvette surfaced in many a year … 1968-’82 represent the C3. One of the truly notable features of the ’84 was the digital dash. It’s been reported that there was an assembly line all-ready to go with analog gauges should the digital dashboards have proven not to be what was hoped for … but they made it. Today, restoring one of the digital dashes can be a challenge, but it does represent the ushering in of a new era for America’s sports car.

So, the ’84 is another Corvette that meant well but to us falls short … primarily because of the cross-fire injected engine.

We are sure you have your favorite not-so favorite Corvettes … we all do. But the fact is that by the time the C5 (1997-’04) came around, Chevrolet was really getting the Corvette “right.”

Styling, handling and engine/trans performance was all knocking on the door of world class. For the past 10 years there can be no doubt that the C6 (2005-’13) and C7 (2014-present) Corvettes are truly world class cars and about as good a value for your performance car dollar that exists anywhere in the world.

Let us not dwell on the Corvettes that missed the mark but it is always a good idea to see where the mark was missed and what about these cars made it so. Don’t want to repeat bad history! VETTE

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Typographical, description, or photography errors are subject to correction. Some parts are not legal for use in California or other states with similar laws/regulations. Please check your state and/or local laws/regulations. © 2018 AUTOSALES, INC.

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DON’T GET LEFT BEHIND As the Corvette evolves with sleeker lines, wider wheels and greater performance, so does our inventory. Stay up to speed with all the latest product for

EDITORIAL

your modern sports car.

Network Content Director Douglas Glad Editor & Network Director, Street Rod & Super Chevy Groups Brian Brennan Managing Editor Bill Klein Group Tech Editor Jim Smart Tech Editor John Gilbert Feature Editor Taylor Kempkes Contributing Editors & Photographers James Berry Gerry Burger Jeremy D. Clough Bill Erdman Franz Estereicher Drew Hardin Jerry Heasley Stephen Kim Robert McGaffin K. Scott Teeters Walt Thurn Chuck Vranas

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6

VETTE 18.10

To some, sunglasses are a fashion accessoryÉ

But When Driving, These Sunglasses May Save Your Life!

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Drivers’ Alert: Driving can expose you to more dangerous glare than any sunny day at the beach can…do you know how to protect yourself?

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Product Preview I

BY JOHN GILBERT PHOTOGRAPHY BY MANUFACTURERS

Do Fear The Reaper

è

Great news for anyone building a nasty big-block Vette engine, Howards Cams’ decades of experience in designing and manufacturing high-quality engine components went into the company’s all-billet Reaper crankshaft. The new billet Reaper crankshaft is amazingly strong due to its uniform and no-stress grain structure, so it is ideally suited for high-output engines. Each Reaper crankshaft is wrought from E4340 AQ bar stock and precision CNC machined to exacting tolerances. All rod journals are lightweight and exceptionally strong. Reaper crankshafts are stressrelieved shot peened and feature dual keyways for dampers. For superior wear resistance, Reaper crankshafts are nitride treated, and all bearing surfaces are micropolished.

Howards Cams & Racing Components (920) 233-5228 n www.howardscams.com

Holley Holy Holley

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Holley/MSD is thrilled to announce the release of Sniper EFI’s high-horsepower Super Sniper 4150 in two versions – one with eight 100-lb/hr injectors for forcedinduction engines making 1,250 horsepower (or naturally aspirated engines making up to 700 horsepower), and one with four 100-lb/hr injectors for engines making up to 650 horsepower. Both have built-in, single-stage progressive nitrous control so there’s no need for the added expense of a separate nitrous controller. Ideal for converting blowthrough-carburetor turbocharged engines to EFI, the high-horsepower Super Sniper 4150 is equally suitable for draw-through and blow-through forced-induction engines.

Holley Performance Products (866) 464-6553 n www.holley.com

C1 Springs Are Groovy

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Eaton Detroit Spring wonders, “If your first-generation Corvette rear springs are looking a little worn out, it might be time for some R&R (R&R stands for Re-temper & Re-arch) courtesy of Eaton Detroit Spring.

Original C1 Corvette rear springs were made with spring steel that had a groove in the bottom side of each spring leaf. This grooved steel has not been produced since the mid-’60s, so the original-style springs with the groove can no longer be made. This predicament could bring many restorations to a standstill. However, for springs that are not fatigued, Eaton offers an R&R process that can make them as close to new as possible.

Eaton Detroit Spring (313) 963-3839 n www.eatondetroitspring.com

Done Denso Style

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Powermaster Performance now offers a compact and powerful alternator that is ideal for street comp, circle track or drag race Corvettes. The new 100mm Densostyle alternator weighs in at just 6.4 pounds and delivers up to 75 amps at higher rpm.

The 100mm Denso-style housing is exclusive to Powermaster and will mount directly in place of a lower-output 93mm model. The alternator produces 35 amps at idle with a peak of 75 amps. Powermaster also offers several low-mount bracket assemblies for small- and big-block Chevy engines, as well as for 9-inch and quick-change rearends.

Powermaster Performance (630) 947-4019 n www.powermasterperformance.com

8

VETTE 18.10

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Hoods open to reveal the engines that powered these automotive legends.

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From the Archives I

BY DREW HARDIN PHOTOS: DARRYL NORENBERG, PETERSEN PUBLISHING CO. ARCHIVE

It’s Got the Go—Now

ot Rod magazine’s Eric Dahlquist summed up the ’66 Corvette pretty darn well in just two paragraphs as part of a new-model overview in the magazine’s Nov. 1965 issue: “Pick a gear, any gear, and punch it; the effect is always sensational if not breathtaking. The 396 V-8 introduced last year has been bored an eighth, the compression upped to 11.0:1, and the neat NASCAR Holley three-barrel added for second wind.

Grab a rearend ratio; 3.08, 3.36, 3.55, 3.70,

10

VETTE 18.10

4.11 or 4.56, and the heavy-duty four-speed with the boss 2.20 low; click-click-click, and with the right combination you’re at a hundred and forty with no sweat. It’s frantic.

“Brakes? It’s got ’em; 11.75-inch, vented caliper discs on all four wheels, vacuum assisted by Delco-Moraine to bring you back safely from orbit. You’ll know it anywhere as a ’66 when you see the bold, egg-crate grille and the cool hood bubble, with vents yet. You’ll be hard put to stay ahead, unless maybe you’ve got one with a 6-71 on it.”

A few months later in its March 1966 issue, Motor Trend tested a convertible powered by “the most brutish version of the biggest engine offered by a company that disclaims any interest in racing,” wrote associate editor Bob McVay. “The 427 has the kind of torque that made World War II fighter planes try to wrap themselves around their propeller on take-off. In the relatively light, front-endheavy Corvette, this verve tends to pave the highway with your rear-tire treads.”

McVay had the car during a rainy

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magazine are now available for your computer, tablet, and smartphone. The digital version of the magazine includes everything that appears in the print version, so if you prefer to read on an electronic device, you won’t be missing out on anything. n You can buy single issues or a full 12-month subscription. Available through Zinio at zinio.com, the iTunes Store, on your Kindle or Nook, and other eBook platforms. n For more information about digital and print subscriptions, go to vetteweb.com and click on “Subscribe.”

December in 1965; he talks about the convertible being “completely weatherproof” but notes that, “on wet pavement, the power goes to the standard whitewalls but not to the road.” He recommends upgrading from the skinny, 7.75x15 factory bias-plies to “[Pirelli] Cinturato or Michelin-X (or their equivalent) tires, along with the optional, 6-inch-rim aluminum wheels—anything to further a closer association between the Vette and the road, wet or dry.”

McVay’s Vette had a base price

of $4,225.75 and an as-tested price of $5,259.20. The L72 427 added just $181.20 to the bill, while the four-speed was more at $184.35, and the AM/FM radio option a staggering $199.10! If you’ve got a 427 underhood and an open roof, who needs a radio?

At the track, the 427 logged a 5.6-second 0-60 time and went through the quarter in 13.4 seconds at 105 mph. Factory literature he got with the car indicated that with the optional 3.08 rearend gear (his tester had 4.11s) and at 6,700 rpm, the 427-powered

Corvette would be going 170 mph. “…6,700 is only 200 rpm into the red-shaded warning area on the tach, so we will not argue with the chart. All we know is that at 6,500, we were doing about 135 on the back straight at Riverside and Turn 9 was coming up awfully fast.”

It’s interesting that, in a fairly short twopage write-up, McVay spent a lot of words warning potential buyers that the 427 isn’t for everyone. “For drivers who have the guts and skill to master it—and the maturity to recognize it for what it is and handle it accordingly—the 427 Turbo-Jet Corvette is a road king. The other 99 percent of the population is likely to be much happier and safer in either of the two 327 models.”

He ends the story on the same thought: “For those rare individuals who want, and can handle, its potential, the 427 Turbo-Jet is a red-hot machine, but if it gets away from you, don’t say we didn’t warn you.”

Sounds like the voice of experience talking, doesn’t it? VETTE

VETTEWEB.COM

11

Technically Speaking

BY JAMES BERRY

I PHOTOGRAPHY BY THE AUTHOR

Replacing the Oil Sending Unit on a C5

Q

I have been a Corvette owner for as long as I have been driving, and love the magazine. I currently own an ’01 Corvette and for the second time in two years my oil pressure sending unit has failed. When I came out of work last week and started the car the oil pressure gauge was pegged at 80.

The last time I did this I had to remove the upper intake to access the oil sending unit and I don’t want to do that again if I don’t have to. I remember someone at a car show telling me you could replace the oil sending unit without removing the upper intake. I believe it involved drilling a large hole at the back of the firewall and then patching the hole. I was hoping you could help me with this?

Thanks, Mike 12

VETTE 18.10

A

I think I can help. The oil sending unit is a common failure item on C5 Corvettes. Mike, first of all, you do not want to cut a hole in your firewall. There is a way you can access the oil sending unit easier by cutting a hole in the cowl, but you should be able to change the oil sending unit without having to cut any holes at all or having to remove the intake manifold.

The oil pressure sending unit is located on the driver-side top rear of the engine under the cowling between the firewall and the intake. The sender is a small cylindrical sensor with a metal base and plastic upper connector.

OIL SENDING UNIT REMOVAL PROCEDURE Remove the plastic cover over the valve cover from the driver-side of the engine.

Just pull it up and it should pop off easily.

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Technically Speaking Locate the oil pressure sending unit; it’s located on the driver-side top rear of the engine between the firewall and the intake.

Release the locking clip from the top of the oil sending unit. If you use a pick with a 90-degree at the end of the pick it will make it much simpler to unplug the connector from the sensor since it is almost impossible to reach with your hand. Use the pick to release the locking clip and pull the connector straight off the oil pressure sensor.

Remove the sensor by using an oil sending unit socket and a ball-style swivel universal. Tighten the oil sending unit making sure you keep the socket straight on the sensor so you don’t crack the plastic body of the sensor.

Plug the wiring harness connector back onto the top of the new oil sending unit.

When you reinstall the wiring connector back onto the new sensor you may want to use a pair of long needle nose pliers. Push the wiring connector down until the locking tab engages the tab on the sensor body.

I have seen people use a hole saw or a Dremel to cut an access hole in the cowling so the oil sending unit can be accessed without using a ball style swivel universal. I personally do not like the idea of cutting a hole in the cowling. Even with an access hole you are still going to have the same difficulty unplugging the wiring connector from the sensor unless you make the access hole large enough to get your hand into.

Well, Mike, I have done quite a few of these oil sending units and have never had to cut an access hole to reach the sensor. So good luck and let me know how it works out. VETTE

QUESTIONS

Got a question for our Tech Corner expert? Just jot it down on a paper towel or a lightly soiled shop rag and send it to us at VETTE magazine, Attn: Technically Speaking, 1821 E. Dyer Rd., Suite 150, Santa Ana, CA 92705. Alternatively, you can submit your question via the Web, by emailing it to vette@enthusiastnetwork. com. Be sure to put “Technically Speaking” in the subject line.

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[ F E A T U R E]

GEORGIA TEACH

Recovery Trail of a One-Owner Airbox I

BY JOHN GILBERT PHOTOGRAPHY BY BILL ERDMAN

T

he very first thing a person needs to establish when they take a rare Corvette to a shop for restoration is to make sure the shop owner clearly understands his directions are to restore the car and not just store it. Otherwise one might end up with a $75,000 storage bill like Phil Bachman of Greenville, Tennessee, did with his Onyx Black ’57 Airbox Corvette.

That’s not exactly how the saga unraveled; the large payment was more to settle a legal dispute that festered after the car sat 19 years with nothing more than disassembly taking 16

VETTE 18.10

place. And then to complicate matters, toward the end of that nearly two-decade wait, Phil had a debilitating stroke and, coincidentally enough, the Corvette shop owner had a debilitating stroke around the same time.

Enter Phil’s son to help sort out where Phil’s cars are and the title for the ’57 Corvette Airbox comes to light. A Google search later and the VIN number pops up as a mechanic’s lien taking place at a shop in Georgia. Phil’s son contacts Kevin Mackay at Corvette Repair of Valley Stream, New York, and hires Corvette Repair to retrieve the Airbox from Georgia and complete a frame-up restoration.

A little background on Phil. He’d been a Pontiac/Cadillac dealer in Tennessee for many years and for just as many years he’s had a love for Corvettes, amassing a collection of examples he bought brand new ranging from 1960 to 1968. Phil still owns every Corvette except the ’60, which was stolen, and in a different manner that was almost the fate of the Airbox.

Phil is not the original owner of the

Airbox. He told Vette he paid $150,000 in 1992 to J.D. Purvis, a well-known Corvette hunter that bought it from John R. Marcotte, a member of the original owner’s family. This 1-of-43 RPO 579E Airbox Corvettes produced was in ragged, unmolested condition complete with leftover traces of a rollbar and a stack of documentation confirming its sale from Don Steves Chevrolet in La Habra, California. Corvette fans

with knowledge of early road racing history will recognize Don Steves as a team owner, and the dealership where Dave MacDonald, the greatest Corvette driver that ever lived, worked and raced.

A less than friendly rendezvous, it was the Corvette shop owner’s son that showed the Airbox to Kevin. Mackay explained to Vette when he first saw the Airbox in Georgia it was completely disassembled, but as he searched around everything that came off the car was found somewhere in sight. Once the terms of the ransom were agreed to and paid for, the Airbox was transported to Valley Stream, New York, where Corvette Repair went to town restoring.

Take a look at the detail photos of the 102-inch wheelbase chassis and you’ll notice a part number stenciled on a framerail that ends in -43, that’s just a coincidence and has nothing to do with the 43 RPO 579E Airbox Corvettes produced. The factory-authorized production run for the ’57 Corvette Airbox was for 50 units, leaving the question as to why only 43 were produced. Chevrolet listed the curb weight for a base model ’57 Corvette at 2,849 pounds, and took measures to reduce the curb weight of the RPO 579E cars.

To help authenticate an RPO 579E, one of the dead giveaways is to look on the underside and one should find a coarse fiberglass white-matte finish sans undercoating. Refer to the undercarriage photos pictured to see what we’re talking about. Corvette Repair prepared the surface and re-sprayed the underside of the floor and trunk pans with an exact color match to original.

The year 1957 saw pinnacle gains in high performance on and off the track for Corvette. The new-for-1957 283-cubic-inch engine with 10.5:1 compression and mechanical fuel injection produced one horsepower per cubic inch and the cold-air induction offered by the Airbox option was believed to add 7 horsepower at speed. A heavyduty right-side engine mount was included in the package that produced a VETTEWEB.COM

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GEORGIA TEACH

gross rating of 283 horsepower at 6,200 rpm and 300 lb-ft of torque at 3,000 rpm. The year 1957 also saw the introduction of Chevrolet Orange, the engine color that remained in use until early 1977 on Corvette engines.

RPO 684 heavy-duty racing suspension with big brakes option.

Unfortunately, the cold air sucked in by the Airbox into the fuel injection didn’t leave much cool air left to run through the air duct in the rocker panel to effectively cool the driver-side rear brake.

Look at the photos and you’ll notice an air scoop on the backing plate that covers a vented screen for cooler air to pass into the finned cast-iron rear drums with metallic brake pucks mounted inline on conventional brake shoes.

Even with a standard additional leaf spring and heavy-duty shock absorbers add rear suspension travel up or down, and the cooling duct in the rocker panel became misaligned with the rear brake scoops, diminishing cooling further.

Other inclusions of the RPO 684 package are quicker-ratio steering and larger-diameter front stabilizer bar. Exact replicas of original equipment, Corvette Repair mounted Coker Firestone 6.70x15 blackwall tires on the factory uprated 15x5 steel wheels.

Similar to the rear ventilated backing plates “elephant ear” scoops direct cooler air into the front finned cast-iron drum brakes.

An option that arrived available for all Corvettes produced after April 8, 1957, a four-speed manual transmission was standard for the Airbox cars. As was a mandatory deletion of the radio and heater replaced on the dashboard with a radio and heater delete plate. And since there was no need for radio interference suppression, the polished stainless steel distributor cover wasn’t factory fitted, along with rerouting unshielded spark plug wires further away from the ram’shorn cast-iron exhaust manifolds new for 1957.

In a relatively short period of time, Corvette Repair went from stem-tostern repainting, restoring and reassembling Phil and Martha Bachman’s Airbox Corvette. On June 23, 2017, the Onyx Black ’57 was awarded Bloomington Gold certification at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. VETTE 18

VETTE 18.10

[TECH]

Be The Light You Want To See

Upgrading the Headlights on a 1998 C5 Without Blinding Oncoming Traffic I

BY JEREMY D. CLOUGH PHOTOGRAPHY BY THE AUTHOR

ost Corvettes can benefit from a headlight upgrade.

After all, the better your headlights the better you can see at night and the safer you are. For many people, a headlight upgrade means HID or some other conversion that may (or may not) be legal and which often delivers a retina-searing blast of white light toward oncoming drivers, making it difficult for them to see the road. While it may be useful to have a set of driving lights set up like that, for day-in, day-out driving, the better answer is probably somewhere between that and the factory bulbs.

In the case of the C5, it’s not just the inevitable aging and fading of the 20-year-old lamps that hurts them, it’s also because

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VETTE 18.10

Chevy could have done better at the time. Factory lamps for domestic-market Corvettes were originally designed for the 1992 Cadillac Seville, a fine car I’m sure, but not one expected to be driven enthusiastically through the mountains. The good news is that export C5s came with better lights that combine H4 halogen bulbs with Bosch metal reflectors and glass Guide lenses that provide beams that are wider, brighter and better focused.

However, it’s not just as simple as finding export lamps. The reflector housings are made for both right- or left-hand driving, and using left-hand headlights here in the U.S. is unsafe. To get the correct, righthand export components, we reached out to Daniel Stern Lighting Consultancy for a

pair of the correct housings as well as the bulbs and a relay kit containing the components needed to assemble the wiring harness to power them. While Stern offers professionally built harnesses, we’re wiring nerds and prefer to do it ourselves.

Instructions came with the parts we ordered, but for those who haven’t done much electrical, there are a few things to be aware of and the first is the use of relays. A relay is basically a switch that you turn on, which then allows power to pass through it to go somewhere else.

Typically, the power for a pair of headlights goes through the headlight switch that, when turned on, allows the power to go to the headlights. It’s a long path for the electricity to follow and every bit

Headlight disassembly should be familiar for anyone who’s ever changed their bulbs. Start by raising the headlights, which you can do by turning the grooved knob on the headlight motor assembly and then removing the screws that hold the plastic bezel surrounding the lights.

01

With the plastic bezel out of the way, you have access to the Torx screws holding the body-colored headlamp door in place.

02

The headlight assembly has three molded-in alignment studs that fit into holes in its metal bracket and is screwed in place with three selftapping screws: two on the outboard side, one on inboard.

The two outboard ones on the passenger’s side are visible in this photo, shown from the front. The The upgraded headlight assembly uses an H4 halogen screw heads are hard to get to, so we strongly suggest a ratchbulb with an entirely different plug than the stock C5 eting wrench. Our screws had pieces of the headlight’s plastic headlight so there’s going to be some wiring involved in getting housing still stuck in the threads after removal, so make sure this to plug in. the threads are cleaned out prior to reassembly.

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Although the headlamp housing in our kit came with bulbs already installed, we ordered the upgraded Osram bulbs to go with it. The standardwattage Osrams offer better seeing distance and beam focus, and run a bit over $40/pair.

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There are two different types of H4 plugs available from Stern: a phenolic plug with a pigtail that needs to be spliced on and a heat-resistant ceramic plug, which is the one we selected. It’s a bit of a bear to install, as standard crimpers can distort the terminals and the ceramic can be easy to break but we took our time and also soldered the connection. We ordered a spare set to replace the one we bent beyond repair.

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21

[TECH] of power that gets to the lights has to go under the dash and through the headlight switch, places where you really don’t want a lot of amperage. This is especially a problem on older cars.

A typical relay setup, however, draws power directly from a source such as the battery or alternator and sends it to the bulbs, with the original output wires from the headlight switch only serving to “turn on” the relay and allow the power to pass through it. The power through the relay usually comes through a shorter, heavier gauge wire, which also helps deliver more power directly to the bulb. For example, the factory wiring to each bulb on a C5 appears to be 16-gauge. We fed the relays with a much larger 10-gauge wire and then each individual bulb with 12-gauge.

We used two relays (one for high beam and one for low) and located them on the passenger-side of the car close to the battery box, from which we drew power.

The factory headlights have two plugs on each light: one that goes to the high beam bulb and one to the low, for a total of four plugs. Each plug has two wires, a power wire (green for the high beam bulb, brown for low) and a ground (black on both). The new H4 bulbs, however, use a single bulb per side with a three-wire plug that has a power wire each for high and low beam (green and brown) and a black ground wire. To wire the new plug, the power wires will come directly from each of the two relays and the black ground wire will need to be grounded from the plug to the frame.

Since the relays are located on the passenger-side, that means snaking the long harness of three wires and the plug across the nose of the car to the driver-side. We used zip ties to attach the harness to the bolts protruding downward from the bodywork just forward of where the hood sits when its closed, where it’s out of the way and unobtrusive. You’ll need to measure this distance before wiring the relays so you’re sure to have enough wire length, and don’t forget to include an extra loop of wire on both sides to allow the headlights to go up and down.

Disconnect the battery prior to starting work, and once the lights are installed and working, don’t forget to follow Stern’s instructions and have them correctly aimed to get the most out of them. VETTE 22

VETTE 18.10

07

The Flosser relays use the standard Bosch designations (30 for power input, 85 for trigger ground, 86 for trigger input, and 87 for power output) and have two output terminals—one for each side of the car. You’ll want to keep an eye on the plug as you wire it to make sure you’re plugging things into the correct terminal, and remember there’s a separate relay for high beam and for low.

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Each relay will be fed with a heavy-gauge wire (we used 10) from the battery, and each will need to be fused at 20 amps. The kit came with these weathertight fuse holders. To install them, we clipped the red-insulated wire and spliced one end to the main power wire and crimped a ring terminal on the other.

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The plugs are grooved so they can be mounted together as one unit, and the relays come with a thin, bent metal bracket that can be slid into a matching recess on the back of the relay.

While we considered mounting the two relays together as a unit, that would have required fabricating a bracket, so we took the easy way out and mounted the relays separately by the metal tabs.

We replaced the terminals that came in the kit with these strainrelief ring terminals, which have a second set of prongs that are crimped onto the insulation for a more secure, longerlasting connection. After crimping on the terminal, we sealed it up with 3M adhesive-lined shrink tube. The terminals came from Mouser, the tubing from Waytek.

The most easily reversible way to wire the lights is to use the included adapters that plug directly into the factory bulb connectors and wire them to trigger the relay. You never cut the harness, and it can just as easily be unplugged and removed if you want to return to the factory lights.

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The cleaner way, however, is to remove the sub-harness that goes to the bulbs and build a new one that will go from the main lighting harness to the relay. This is where the sub-harness plugs in, right next to the headlight actuator.

Note the three visible wires: black, green and brown. These are the ones that matter to us.

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The three terminals of the subharness plug into a five-way Metripack 280 connector: the other ways contain the wiring for the actuator that raises the headlight. We removed the black secondary lock from the connector and used our Metripack pin removal tool to gently remove the three headlight wires, being careful to note which of the pins went into which way.

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To make the installation as unobtrusive as possible, we routed the power and ground wires through the same type of heat-resistant conduit (we had two sizes on hand) and ran it beneath the surge tank located on the passenger side. The tank is easily removed and should not have to be drained if you’re careful enough not to knock any of the fittings loose. The two main mounting studs are visible in the lower part of the photo, and the two plastic prongs on the lower left of the tank are clamped in place by a third nut visible directly beneath the prongs.

We then created a new sub-harness with 16-gauge wire in the correct colors, using the correct grey wire seal and Metripack 280 terminals so we can plug it right back into the connector. (For those unfamiliar with assembling Metripack connectors, we covered that in the Scarlett project in some depth) The green wire serves as a trigger wire for the high beam relay, brown for the low, and the black wire, which we spliced into two separate wires, serves as a common ground for each of the relays. All wires were then routed through heat-resistant fiberglass conduit similar to what the factory used.

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This steel bracket is conveniently located directly beneath the passenger-side headlight assembly.

We mounted the high beam relay to it by simply removing the existing nut, opening up the hole on our relay mounting tab, then slipping it on the threaded stud and reinstalling the nut. The low beam was about as easy: we added a second nut so the body of the relay would clear the molded lip at the bottom of the bracket.

15

The bulb ground wires were connected to this ground stud located beneath the battery box, which should be loosened to give you access to the stud. Note the conduit containing the main power wires for the headlights: it enters the battery box at the same place.

17

Sources Daniel Stern Lighting Consultancy www.danielsternlighting.com

Mouser Electronics (800) 346-6873 www.mouser.com

Waytek, Inc. (800) 328-2724 www.waytekwire.com

The main power wires were routed behind the underhood fuse block located in the battery box and mounted to the stud where power comes into the fuse block. In a perfect world, we’d have powered the lights using one of the two existing, unused Maxi-fuse ways in the fuse block, but that was a bit deeper into the car’s wiring than we wanted to dig.

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After installing the passenger-side headlight, but prior to replacing the driver-side. The new light produces a much cleaner, brighter light than the dirty yellow illumination from the factory lights, but without blinding those in oncoming lanes.

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1967 STING RAY THAT SPAWNED A SPEED SHOP

Summit Racing Equipment Celebrates 50-Year Anniversary

I

t seems like the best success stories in the automotive business world always start from a home garage and then grow rapidly from a cottage industry into a major presence. And so it went for Summit Racing Equipment, which began with the founder’s quest to soup up his ’67 L71 Corvette Sting Ray to drag race on the weekends.

The year was 1968 and the young engineer sought out wholesale connections to buy speed equipment—discounted below list price—for his 1 of 3,754 L71 Corvette. He shared the good deals with his dragster buddies and before long had to move the burgeoning part-time speed shop business out of his home garage and into the basement of a Stow, Ohio, donut shop.

Summit Racing’s customer base grew fast and at the dawn of 1969, the donut shop location became too small and the next move was to a real storefront in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Much longer than its 20-foot width, the 1,500 squarefoot storefront was located between a Midas Muffler and a pizza parlor and it took only a year to outgrow. The next move, in 1970, was to a much larger location in Akron, Ohio, with the speed shop carrying a line of major brands that included Holley, Mallory, Hurst, and Mickey Thompson.

In 1972, Summit Racing launched an advertising campaign in Hot Rod magazine and with it the company soon took on sales orders from across the United States. Advertising in Hot Rod opened the floodgates. The incredible amount of new business garnered nationwide was fantastic, but with it leisure time became extinct and the ’67 Sting Ray was mothballed in a warehouse.

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VETTE 18.10

I

BY JOHN GILBERT PHOTOGRAPHY BY SUMMIT RACING

The year 2008 found Summit Racing celebrating its 40th anniversary.

Longtime Summit Racing employees and Corvette aficionados Bill McGhee and Wayne Krinjeck pulled the ’67 Sting Ray out of mothballs and did a top-tobottom restoration that included punching the 427-inch L71 out to 496 inches.

The body on the original-owner Vette necessitated a lot of attention from McGhee and Krinjeck thanks to an iffy repaint before it was tucked away. The sharp body lines had been rounded off with an orbital sander

VETTEWEB.COM

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[ F E A T U R E]

1967 STING RAY

and required a tremendous amount of fiberglass work before the car could go into its correct Marlboro Maroon, formulated in PPG paint.

It looks like a stock L71 engine, but don’t be fooled. Under its black accented Stinger hood is where McGhee and Krinjeck drove through the Summit Racing catalog with a magnet grabbing all the goodies needed to coax out an estimated 592 horsepower. The basis is a Mark IV block with a Scat forged crank with all of the machine work by Racing Products. The JE Pistons forged 10.5:1 slugs rise and fall under a pair of Trick Flow PowerPort 320 aluminum heads.

The valvetrain starts with a Comp Cams hydraulic roller cam and lifters enlisting Trick Flow chromoly pushrods to actuate roller rockers. Under the re-popped K&N-filtered air cleaner is a trio of two-throat Holley 500-cfm carburetors modified by Quick Fuel on a stock aluminum intake manifold. The stud kit of aerospace quality fasteners is from ARP. The high-performance ignition system is an MSD 6AL nourished with a Summit Racing brand alternator. The exhaust system starts with GM exhaust manifolds and dumps into Sweet Thunder 3-inch side pipes.

A custom driveshaft from C&U Equipment of Mogadore, Ohio, connects a Muncie M22 four-speed with a Centerforce Dual-Friction clutch set inside a Lakewood bellhousing to a 3.73 IRS rearend with limited-slip.

The four-wheel discs brakes are Vette 26

VETTE 18.10

[ F E A T U R E]

1967 STING RAY

Brakes and Products discs that feature calipers with stainless steel sleeves and O-ringed pistons, plus a set of semimetallic pads. The shock absorbers at all four corners are from Koni. And again, right from the pages of Summit Racing’s catalog, is a set of four Wheel Vintiques 16x8 Corvette Rallye wheels mounted on four 245/50R16 Michelin Pilot Sport A/S radial tires.

The interior appointments start unseen to the eye with NASCAR-spec heat insulation laid beneath the black loop pile carpet. The stock ’67 bucket seats are covered in black leather and equipped with N.O.S. date-code stamped factory original seatbelts.

The instrumentation features restored gauges in front of a stock, deep-dish steering wheel.

Summit Racing expressed to Vette, “Summit Racing would not have gotten off the ground without the support of our customers. As a company of enthusiasts, nothing gets us more excited than helping our customers bring their automotive passion to life.” Summit Racing has been offering everything gearheads need for what they drive for the last 50 years and Vette wishes them the best for the next 50 years. VETTE 28

VETTE 18.10

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[TECH]

Dial It In

Freshening Up C3 Gauges I

BY GERRY BURGER PHOTOGRAPHY BY TAYLOR KEMPKES & CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

fter many years of walking car shows we have seen it all, ranging from incredible builds with amazing attention to detail to the ragged originals, and everything in between.

Through the years we have noticed several key areas many enthusiasts ignore and it often reflects poorly on the whole car. One such area is the gauges. We’ve seen flawlessly painted cars with completely refurbished interiors still using worn and tired (not to mention non-functioning) gauges in the dash. Few things are more important inside a car than the gauges; after all, you will be looking at them every time you drive the car. Fresh gauge faces and accurate readings make a world of difference to the overall driving experience.

As faithful readers know, we are in the midst of bringing a ’71 Corvette back to life. The car spent most of its life in sunny Arizona and the interior had plenty of sun damage to prove it. We recently freshened the seats with brand-new leather (from Corvette America) over at Hot Rod Interiors by Glenn. While the seats went a long way to freshening the interior, they looked so good the instrument panels appeared that much worse for wear.

Happily, the solution is as simple as visiting the Classic Instruments website and perusing their offerings. Since they also do custom work, the actual finished product is limited only by your imagination. Choosing custom colors, fonts and pointers is a great way to personalize your Corvette. This is also one of those projects that should be started early in the restoration process since you must allow time for a busy shop like Classic Instruments to complete the renewal of all your gauges. By planning ahead, the gauges will be on the shelf waiting to be installed with the rest of the dash 30

VETTE 18.10

Few things add to the joy of driving like gazing at a set of fresh gauges. At first glance you may think these gauges are original, but look closer and you will see subtle yet effective modifications by Classic Instruments.

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components (Corvette Central) and wiring (American Autowire).

Our Corvette is a non–numbersmatching car so it is being built as a hot rod. While we didn’t want to stray far from the factory look, we were not bound to exactly replicating the factory original gauges. To that end, we decided to go the custom route with the final objective of

testing people memories. We wanted people to look inside the car and think at first glance it was all stock, but then to scratch their head wondering, “Hmm, did the ’71 Corvette have chrome bezels on the console gauges?” Well of course they didn’t, but the look is so period perfect it should leave a lot of folks guessing.

One other major change is the

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The first step is to remove the gauges from the car. In this case, we sent the entire center gauge cluster along with the two large gauges: the speedometer and tachometer.

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After the gauges arrived at Classic Instruments they inventoried all the parts and began disassembly.

Here you can see the speedometer, and the gauge itself was in reasonably good condition. The speedometer is showing 41,895 miles. Sadly, the actual mileage just flipped 292,000 miles, which may be a record for C3 Corvettes.

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Classic Instruments utilizes the latest technology to construct gauge clusters, like this Buck Rogers’ XZ-38 Disintegrator Ray Gun. Well, okay, it is actually a 3-D scanner that plots the location of virtually everything on the panel, but we still think Buck Rogers would love it, too.

We also sent the center console gauge panel so Classic Instruments could custom fit the gauges, replace warning lights with LED lights and pre-wire the whole panel.

After some discussion and a few changes, we finally arrived at the perfect look for our gauges. A computer generated image is created and we had to approve that before final work began. This ensures everyone is “on the same page� (pun intended) for the final product.

From the CAD information harvested by the 3D scanner, this backside sheet was cut out by a water jet cutter and attached to the original gauge cluster. It is held in place by the original bolts, and the gauge openings are precisely located.

[TECH]

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Classic Instruments uses the very latest electrical and electronic gauge movements housed in plastic gauge cups. This provides unmatched accuracy and durability.

09

Headlamps, Door Ajar and seatbelts lights are all housed in the center console on the C3 Corvette. The housing is custom fit to hold LED lamps in place of the original bulbs. First, the light housing is marked for cutting.

10

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After being painted in satin black, all the gauges and lights are installed in the panel. Then everything is prewired with color-coded and tagged wires. The plugs permit the console to be removed later by simply unplugging the wires.

12

And here are the new, stylish Classic Instruments gauges. The chrome bezel is so traditional that unless you are a Corvette guru it could easily be mistaken for original.

13

Forty-seven-year-old plastic is brittle, particularly after baking in the Arizona heat. This small tab broke off during disassembly. Classic Instruments will use a small bolt and special cup washer to replace the broken tab.

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The original tachometer and speedometer cups are CMM 3D scanned for measurements and then the hole is cut using computer controlled water jet technology.

16

14

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VETTE 18.10

The plastic housing is then cut flush with the back of the gauge cluster. This enables the new rear panel to fit flush. The new LED bulbs will be held in place in the proper hole in the new panel.

The two large gauges will involve blending the old and the new. The reproduction bezels and new Plexiglas lenses were sourced through Corvette Central while Classic Instruments handled the rest of the gauge work.

The new tachometer fits inside the original cup with room to spare.

The dark red box on top is the parking brake indicator light, and yes, Classic Instruments upgrades that too, with long lasting LED backlighting.

Not Available in Stores transmission. The car was originally equipped with a TH400 automatic. We decided mixing gears is more fun, so to that end we added a TREMEC five-speed transmission that was custom built by American Powertrain so the shifter will be in the stock location. It all worked out beautifully.

Once we had a good idea of how we wanted the instrument panel to look we placed a call to Classic Instruments to discuss the project. The speedometer and tachometer would be refinished in the factory design but with modified ranges, the tachometer would go to an optimistic 8,000 rpm, while the speedometer would add some visual performance potential by pegging out at 200 mph. Will Editor Brennan be “burying the needle” on these instruments? Not hardly, but we must admit the big numbers add a performance vibe to the interior. Speaking of the speedometer, while we could have used a speed signal from the American Powertrain TREMEC five-speed transmission we opted for the instantly accurate GPS-based (SkyDrive) speedometer. It should be mentioned that the redline on the tach is marked at a realistic 6,500 rpm while the final top speed will be controlled by the final gear ratio, driving conditions and good old common sense.

The gauge cluster in a ’71 Corvette is made primarily of plastics. The combination of 47 years and the high temperatures of the Arizona desert will fade the faces, make the plastic brittle and fog the lenses.

After some discussion, Editor Brennan (who also suffers from being brittle, has foggy lenses, and a faded face) decided to go with factory appearance, big gauges.

He then decided to add a splash of chrome plating on the bezels of the small gauges.

The chrome rings are vintage enough to almost convince people it was a factory option. By using black faces with red pointers, the traditional look continues.

The process on our end was really quite simple. We removed the original gauges and carefully boxed them up and shipped them off to Classic Instruments.

Upon arrival, the gauges were carefully examined by the craftsman at Classic Instruments and after a phone conversation we agreed on the estimated price.

We discussed the desired work one last time before design work began. Classic

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[TECH]

17

The original speedometer cup receives a similar treatment. Here we see the faceplate being test fit prior to having the graphics painted on the plate. The gauge faces are cut using CAD design that operates a water jet cutter for incredibly clean cuts.

18

Here is the speedometer face fully printed. Editor Brennan chose the fonts for the numbers and also opted for a rather optimistic 200-mph gauge.

The black face, white numerals and red pointer are similar to the original design.

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Classic Instruments takes the time to coat the metal cup in a gray finish and the green plastic is as clean as new, it’s a class act. Rather than trust the 47-year-old plastic threads, the top cup screw has been replaced with a small bolt.

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Looking from the backside, the speedometer is completely prewired. Inside the plastic bag you will find pins and plugs so you can wire to the plug. All wires are clearly marked. We opted for Classic Instruments GPS-based (SkyDrive) speedometer.

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All we can say is “WOW,” they look so cool. Flawless craftsmanship combined with modern movements and accuracy, it just doesn’t get any better.

This is the tachometer, with built-in parking brake indicator light.

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Fresh face graphics, crystal clear lens and perfect bezels all add up to one great looking speedometer.

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VETTE 18.10

Here we can see the original tachometer/speedometer bezel and the scratched and hazed Plexiglas lens. While Classic Instruments can refinish such items, it was easier to simply order reproduction pieces from Corvette Central.

The backside of the tachometer is also prewired. The row of dip switches are set for accuracy. Adjusting the switches is simple and is explained in the directions with the custom wiring diagram Classic Instruments supplies with the refurbished gauges.

We just had to zoom in close so you could see the attention to detail. We really like the clean and simple font for the numbers. The 200-mph marker adds a nice performance vibe to the cockpit.

While our engine will never approach the 8,000 point we do like the full sweep design as the pointer position is very intuitive and somewhat proportional to the movement of the speedometer.

26

Instruments provided us with printed “proofs” of what the actual gauges would look like. We reviewed the design and signed off on the work. After that it was a simple waiting game and soon enough the big brown truck backed up to the door at Hot Rods by Dean with a box full of very fresh gauges.

Of course, things weren’t quite that simple on the other end. The team at Classic Instruments employ a lot of very high-tech equipment to produce great looking, incredibly accurate gauges. Fitting the modern gauge movements in the stock location is their specialty and when we received the new gauges they fit like a glove; looked better than new (because we really like our subtle design changes) and came complete with senders, instructions, a custom wiring diagram just for our installation, and they even returned our old unused pieces.

We thought it would be interesting to get an inside look at exactly what goes into restoring and/or modifying a set of Corvette gauges. With that thought in mind we followed along as our gauges were dismantled and replaced with new units. You may be surprised to see this very technical process and to see how few parts of the

original gauges are actually reused.

Installation in our dashboard proved to be even easier than a factory installation since the Classic Instruments center console panel came prewired. It was a simple matter of wiring to the panel and plugging in the gauges. In no time we had a factory fresh appearing dashboard. In combination with our fresh upholstery, the car truly looks brand new. Few things can compare to sliding behind the wheel of a vintage Corvette where everything has been brought back to this high a level. The fresh interior will make driving a pleasure and that new American Powertrain five-speed will keep the needles moving on our new Classic Instruments package. VETTE

Sources American Powertrain

(931) 646-4836 www.americanpowertrain.com

Classic Instruments

(844) 342-8437 www.classicinstruments.com

Corvette Central

(800) 345-4122 www.corvettecentral.com

[ F E A T U R E]

1962

AND THEN SOME

Chevrolet upgraded the Corvette in 1962 with an all-new 327 engine, but Chris Kearney wanted more I

BY TAYLOR KEMPKES PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEPHEN KIM

36

VETTE 18.10

I

n 1962, Chevrolet was on the cusp of releasing the very first complete overhaul of the Corvette.

It was almost a decade since the Vette was born so it was time for a little refresh. As Chevy prepared to transition to the new model, they didn’t completely forget the ’62 model. In fact, the ’62 model was injected with some pretty substantial modernization in the form of the all-new 327ci engine. In its top form, the engine made 360 horsepower, which was almost 50 more than the outgoing 283 could manage in its top spec. Other than that, not much else changed for the outgoing year of the C1.

For Chris Kearney of Charlotte, North Carolina, 1962 was his choice year for the Corvette. “The ’62 Corvettes were always intriguing to me,” he told us. “I think of that model year as the crossover year. Performance was

enhanced dramatically with the 327.” But just because performance was enhanced dramatically that year didn’t mean it was quite good enough for Kearney. He wanted something even more. For that, he reached out to Carr Campbell of Carr’s Corvettes & Customs in Plano, Texas, who would build Kearney a Corvette that went a step—or 10—further than the Chevrolet engineers did in 1962.

Kearney ran across Campbell and one of his previous creations at a Barrett-Jackson auction a few years back. “I liked his work so much that I ended up bidding on one of his client’s cars,” Kearney recalled. “The bidding was going higher and higher and I thought, ‘If I like his work so much, why don’t I just do a project with Carr and get exactly what I want?’” Without further ado, Kearney contacted Campbell and they were off to the races.

Campbell started the task of finding a car that would

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[ F E A T U R E]

1962 AND THEN SOME

suit the project’s needs. What he came up with was a car out in Beverly Hills, California, advertised on eBay. It had been sitting in the California high desert for years, but everything was there except the engine and transmission so it was just what they needed. Even better, the car had some pretty neat history to go along with it. “As we understand it,” Campbell said, “the car was a race car from the day it was delivered to its first owner. They immediately painted flames on the car all the way back to the windshield and down the doors.” He continued, saying, “When we got the car it still had the original paint but it had basically dried out and turned to chalk.”

Looks like this clapped-out old racer was about to get a new lease on life.

Over the course of two years, Campbell and his crew turned the old Vette into something more than just a flamed hot rod—it became a top-ofthe-line luxury sports car. The transformation started underneath where they tossed out the frame and suspension components in favor of an Art Morrison GT Sport chassis. The high-end chassis 38

VETTE 18.10

is supported by C6 Corvette suspension up front and a triangulated fourlink with a Strange 9-inch out back.

The 9-inch houses 31-spline axles and a Detroit Truetrac limited-slip differential with a 3.70:1 gear. JRi coilovers modernize the ride and sit at all four corners while the Detroit Speed power rack-and-pinion steering box is a huge improvement over stock. The final piece of the chassis are the brakes. Wilwood 14-inch slotted and cross-drilled rotors with six-piston calipers go in the front and 13-inch, four-piston units live in the rear.

As far as the exterior and bodywork goes, they decided to take it a step further than just paint and chrome. On top of repairing the steel reinforcements in the rocker panels, they went to extensive lengths to modify the rear fenders using 1 1/2-inch wider rear quarterpanels from GTS Customs. Once all the fiberglass and bodywork was completed, Carr’s Corvettes & Customs sprayed the Corvette in Jazz Blue, a deep blue found on later-model Dodge trucks. PPG Deltron was used for the

basecoat then finished off with PPG Global Glamour Clear. Then in went a stock reproduction ’62 grille as well as the reworked and tucked original front bumper and grille bar. In the rear, the bumper needed more attention to fit the new width of the quarter-panels.

Both bumpers were triple-chromed plated before going back on the car.

The finishing touch came in the form of chrome reproduction 2009 Corvette ZR1 wheels, 18x8.5 front and 18x9.5 rear wrapped in 255/35R18 front and 275/40R18 rear BFGoodrich g-Force Sport Comp-2 tires.

Moving into the interior of Kearney’s Corvette, most of the original style was retained but with more than a little luxury and modern tech thrown in.

Before anything else, the entire floor, all the way up under the dash, was covered in Dynamat. Cut pile carpet from Auto Custom Carpets went on top of the Dynamat while the rest of the interior was bathed in Doeskin leather. The seats and door panels are from Al Knoch while the gauges were all restored originals modified to work with the more modern tech under the hood.

A 15-inch Con2r steering wheel and reproduction C1-style shifter were also wrapped in that Doeskin leather to give Kearney the luxurious feel he wanted.

But luxury couldn’t be the only addition to the interior of his Vette. He needed some modern tech, too. That came in the form of a Bluetooth-controlled stereo head unit from RetroSound.

The head unit controls a pair of Infinity speakers in the kick panels paired with another Kenwood speaker in the dash, all boosted by a Kenwood 400-watt amplifier.

Under the hood is no longer that “modern for ’62” 327ci small-block.

In its place, Campbell and his guys dropped in the most modern, reliable and powerful engine they could: a 2015 Chevrolet Performance LS3/480.

Holding the A/C compressor and other accessories is a front drive system from Street & Performance in Mena, Arkansas. A DeWitts aluminum radiator and SPAL electric fan keep everything running cool. On top of the engine are a set of trick, stock-style Corvette valve covers that have been modified to conceal the LS coil packs.

The engine draws fuel out of an EFI tank from Rick’s Tanks while air gets to the LS via a fabricated 4-inch aluminum air intake and Spectre cone filter. On the chassis dyno, the Corvette put down 461 horsepower and 473 lb-ft of torque at the rear tires.

The exhaust system is no less impressive when compared to the rest of the car and is comprised of hand-fabricated 2 1/2-inch aluminized steel held together with NASCAR-style quick release clamps. On opposing ends live 1 7/8-inch long-tube Art Morrison headers and MagnaFlow mufflers

dumping out custom tailpipes. Once the whole system was installed, it was disassembled and ceramic coated.

Oh, and Kearney didn’t go easy on the transmission either. He wanted to row the gears himself so Carr bolted in a five-speed TKO 600 from Silver Sport Transmissions behind the LS3. They also used Silver Sport Transmissions’ hydraulic clutch release system paired with an 11-inch clutch.

When we asked Kearney what his

favorite part of the car was, this is what he said, “The car is absolutely handbuilt from the ground up. It has the classic styling of a ’62 Corvette with the build quality, performance, comfort, conveniences and driveability of a modern, high-end luxury sport car and is extremely elegant with its color combination and endless details that make you look at the car for hours.”

To be honest, we couldn’t have said it better ourselves. VETTE VETTEWEB.COM

39

[TECH]

Putting Your Foot Down

Repairing the Clutch in a Long-Neglected 1995 C4 I

BY JEREMY D. CLOUGH PHOTOGRAPHY BY THE AUTHOR

eet Baby Red, a six-speed ’95 Corvette coupe that sat without running for about three years and which we purchased for $3,000. There are deals like this to be had, but it’s only a deal if you can do the work yourself. If not, it’s cheaper to buy a car that drives.

In this case, the obvious mechanical problems are that the car didn’t run, the brakes were rusted well beyond salvage and the clutch would not disengage. Here, we’ll cover replacing the hydraulic components of the clutch, which consists of the master cylinder mounted to the firewall and the slave cylinder that bolts to the transmission bellhousing. We could have

40

VETTE 18.10

just replaced the master cylinder, which was so frozen in place the clutch pedal could not even be depressed, but the slave cylinder is every bit as old and is likely to fail soon so we ordered each component from Summit Racing and the local O’Reilly Auto Parts store, respectively. As the phrase goes, “OHIO—Only Handle It Once.”

The step-by-step is in the photos, but there are a couple of other things we’d like to pass along: both components are held in place with 13mm fasteners and have hydraulic lines that need to be removed with a 14mm flare wrench. They are also both torqued into place: 25 ft-lb for master and 19 ft-lb for the slave cylinder (these specs are for the six-speed only; torque values for earlier cars are different). You

should also be warned that it takes a fair amount of force to get the slave cylinder back into place because the actuator rod has to be compressed against the clutch fork. The easy way is to use a short pry bar to hold it forward long enough to line it up on the mounting studs and get the two nuts started.

Once everything is bolted in place, the system must be bled, which is a royal pain, especially underneath a car with the amazing selection of spider webs and egg sacs that came with this one. You’re also going to be dealing with brake fluid, which is highly flammable and can destroy your paint. It’s also not great for your health, and eye protection is required when working with it. DOT 3 brake fluid is required for

01

The first order of business is to remove the side panel and disconnect the battery. It’ll come out as well, but that can wait until more stuff is out of the way.

02

03

04

With the ECU out of harm’s way, the bracket remains. Two things hold it in place: a tapered rod-like mount onto which it slides and a bolt located near the hood latch.

05

Remove the two bolts that hold the ECU in place on its bracket and gingerly move it to one side where it will be out of the way.

This is the bolt that holds the ECU bracket in place. Once it’s removed, the bracket can gingerly slide forward off its mounting. This is the end of the easy part.

The next step takes us under the dash, where the hush panel has to come out.

Removal starts with the two 7mm bolts that hold it in place from underneath.

[TECH] the clutch system and we used Wilwood’s Hi-Temp 570 Racing Brake Fluid, which is our fluid of choice. Since brake fluid is hygroscopic (it draws moisture from the air), only use fluid from a new, sealed container.

For those of us who often work alone, a vacuum pump is an invaluable tool that makes it possible to bleed hydraulic systems like this one (or brakes) without

having someone else available to pump the pedal. All the other rules apply, such as not letting the reservoir get too low, but it can make bleeding a one-man job. We learned a number of valuable lessons from trying to bleed the slave cylinder with a vacuum pump. The first is that using a pump in close quarters where the reservoir cannot be held vertically (or connecting the hose to the incorrect nipple on the reservoir) will

result in sucking brake fluid through the pump itself and a spectacular spray of fluid being blown through the face of the pressure gauge, followed by an impromptu lesson in how to field strip a vacuum pump so you can clean it out before the fluid eats the seals. The correct orientation of the nipples on the reservoir (determined by which side the down tube is on) is shown in the photos.

The other issue is while the pump system may come with fairly large diameter tubing to affix to the nipple on the bleed screw, you may want to replace it with smaller diameter tubing that will seal better (especially on aftermarket cylinders that, like this one, have a nipple smaller than the factory one). With the better seal, it’s also easier to tell when you’ve got all the air out of whatever you’re bleeding. After starting with the pump, we used 1/8-inch ID rubber fuel line and hit it with a heat gun just long enough for it to expand around the nipple but still seal tightly. VETTE

06

Unlike the lower screws, the side screws are Torx bolts like the trim panel above. There is so little room that getting a driver in place may not be possible. We used the old standby of a wrench on the bit to remove the one closest to the door hinge.

07

With that, the panel can be gently lowered into the floorboard, exposing the courtesy light and OBD port, which are still attached to the hush panel.

08

While the courtesy light can be unplugged, the OBD port needs to be unscrewed from its bracket in order to free the hush panel so it can be removed from the floorboard to make room for you.

09

The clutch actuator rod fits on a stud on the side of the clutch pedal and is held in place with this spring steel clip, which served the same purpose from 1963-2004. A narrow screwdriver will let you pry the locking tab up high enough to slide the clip off and free the round end of the actuator rod from the clutch pedal.

You’ll be working in very close quarters and the only way to see what you’re doing is to lay upside down on the floorboard with your head under the dash. Removing the seat will make this easier.

10

With the underdash side of things done, it’s time to move back under the hood. If you haven’t figured it out yet, one of the real problems is getting access to the clutch master cylinder reservoir, which is so packed in there some owners can’t even find it.

[TECH]

11

Removing the battery makes it possible to get to the two bolts holding the master cylinder to the firewall. You’ll want to break loose the hydraulic fitting at the bottom of the master cylinder with a 14mm flare wrench while it’s still firmly bolted in place, and then unbolt the master with a 13mm socket.

12

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Any time you open a hydraulic system you’re going to have to bleed it afterward in order for it to function correctly. We got a start on it by bench bleeding the master cylinder in a vise prior to installing it in the car. Fill the reservoir with fluid, put something underneath the outlet to catch the fluid and push the actuator rod in until the fluid flows out of the outlet.

There’s a spacer that goes between the master and the firewall and you will want to replace it. In our case, the gasket was destroyed and the spacer so stuck in place there was no serious thought of reusing it so we ordered a new one from Corvette Central.

The master and the slave cylinders are both about the same age, so if one is giving you trouble the other isn’t far behind. This is the slave cylinder as seen from directly beneath, mounted to the rear of the transmission bellhousing; note the rubber cap on the bleed screw, which will have to be removed for bleeding. Like the master, the slave cylinder it’s held in place with 13mm bolts and the hydraulic line uses a 14mm flare wrench.

16

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We ordered a new one from the local O’Reilly. Prior to installation, the rod is inserted into the rubber boot, round end first. The boot fits snugly into place on the step near the tapered end, which must be seated in a depression in the clutch fork during assembly. The clutch fork and the depression are visible with the slave cylinder removed.

44

VETTE 18.10

The most vexing part is bleeding the system, which must be done prior to installing the slave cylinder. First, find all the slack you can in the hydraulic line going to the slave cylinder, which needs to be at a 45-degree angle with the screw pointed upward, then bleed.

Driving Your Classic Should Be A Pleasure.

17

We used a vacuum pump to start the bleeding process. Pump the handle to build up pressure and then crack the bleed screw just like you would with someone pumping the pedal. Be sure the down tube inside the fluid reservoir is on the side that goes to the bleed screw, and not the pump.

18

We finished bleeding with the usual method of having one person pump the pedal then hold it down while the bleeder screw is opened since it let us use a smaller tube that sealed better on the nipple. Repeat until no bubbles appear, replace the rubber cap on the bleed screw, and torque the slave cylinder in place.

Sources Corvette Central (800) 345-4122 www.corvettecentral.com

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[ F E A T U R E]

Back ON THE BLOCK A look inside what makes a non-driveable 1965 Corvette worth $1,000,000 I

BY SCOTT TEETERS PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF BARRETT-JACKSON & RM SOTHEBY’S

46

VETTE 18.10

n January 20, 2018, a unique piece of Corvette history sold for a cool $1,000,000 at the Barrett-Jackson Auction in Scottsdale, Arizona. And the car doesn’t even run! Known as the 1965 World’s Fair Corvette cutaway, the pre-auction speculation was that the car would sell for between $1 million and $1.4 million. So the 1965 Corvette cutaway didn’t sell for more than a million, but still, 1 million dollars is a magical number. One that always gets people’s attention.

Bidding lasted less than two minutes and the auctioneer really worked it. The initial bid was $200,000 and quickly went up in $50,000 increments. Thirty seconds later bidding was up to $650,000. Twenty seconds later the bid was $900,000. It took 30 more seconds before the auctioneer yelled, “One million is bid! One million dollars!”

We were just 1-minute and 20-seconds into the auction. The auctioneer was franticly calling for $1.1 million before saying, “Scottsdale, can I hear you? Scottsdale, can I hear you? And the crowd went wild. One minute and 40 seconds into the auction the auctioneer yelled, “Sold! One million dollars!”

The Corvette cutaway wasn’t the only high-profile Corvette that sold big. A ’19 ZR1 Corvette #001 sold for $925,000.

GM spokesman Steve Hill announced that 100 percent of the proceeds of the sale of the car would go to the Stephen Siller Tunnels To Towers Foundation, to build smart homes for the most catastrophically injured military vets. Frank Siller, the founder of the organization referred to the ’19 ZR1 as “the greatest car GM ever built!”

The ’18 Carbon 65 Z06 #001 sold for a staggering $1.4 million, with some help from Jay Leno and former President George W. Bush. And like the ’19 ZR1, 100 percent of the proceeds went to The Bush Initiative to help our wounded warriors. Also, Barrett-Jackson gave up their commission so that all of the money would go to our wounded veterans.

So, how is it that a 53-year-old Corvette with only four miles on the odometer, that can never be driven, could sell for 1 million dollars? Answer: Because it’s just that special and unique.

We can’t call it a “one-of-a-kind” (two were built), but it’s the one that has been fully restored and functions, as it was in 1965 at the New York World’s Fair. Here’s the story.

O The entire display is fully animated. All four wheels turn and move up and down; the engine, transmission, and differential inner components slowly rotate; and the body could go up and down 24 inches. The black stand had mirrors to show the underside of the display. Electrical and mechanical components were hidden behind the black drape.

(PHOTO BY RM SOTHEBY’S)

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47

[ F E A T U R E]

BACK ON THE BLOCK

The GM Futurama Pavilion was the largest exhibit at the 1964-’65 New York World’s Fair. Car companies were well represented at the fair. Ford debuted the 1964 1/2 Mustang in April 1964, and in 1965 Chrysler was giving rides in one of their bronze turbine cars. In 1964, Chevrolet displayed their cherry red, customized ’64 Sting Ray. For 1965, Chevrolet had three unique exhibits: the new Mako Shark-II, a cutaway Mark IV 396 engine and a very special cutaway ’65 Sting Ray fuel-injected coupe. It was 1965 and a banner year for technology in the Corvette, and GM wanted to show off the Corvette’s fully independent suspension, fuel-injection engine, and first time ever, standard four-wheeldisc brake feature.

It is reported that GM spent somewhere around a million dollars on the display, that’s almost $8 million in 2018 dollars. However, it has to be pointed out that GM had two Corvette cutaways, but only one was at the New York World’s Fair. One account is that the ’65 Nassau Blue Corvettes were taken off the assembly line, and another is that the cars were preproduction mules, or pool cars. Remember, there were two Corvette Cutaways built, so both stories might be correct. Either way, sometime in late 1964, the cars were sent to a company that specialized in dynamic promotional displays for industrial and trade exhibits.

I’m sure that before the cars were completely disassembled; many things had to be worked out. Plans had to be created for exactly what the display would do, how many cutouts would be needed and where, how will the body be a single unit that could be raised and lowered, how the wheels would articulate and spin, and lastly how to build into the engine and drivetrain the electric motors needed to turn the inner components. All in a day’s work for a specialty company, I suppose. Let’s start by looking at the components of the display, paint, cutouts and operation.

Body: The exterior Nassau Blue factory paint was left intact and the underside was painted white. The lower rear valance was attached to the frame. A support structure was created under the body so that four electric screw-type lifts could raise and lower the entire 48

VETTE 18.10

body 24 inches. The platform that the entire chassis sat on had four openings that spun the tires and articulated each tire up and down to show the working of the suspension. And lastly, there was a mirror under the chassis to show the car’s underside.

Paint: The frame and steering box were painted yellow. The upper and lower front suspension A-arms, and the rear control arms and shocks were painted blue. The following items were painted red: the cylinder block and heads, water pump, water inlet, Rochester fuel-injection unit, fan clutch, bellhousing, transmission and tailshaft, driveshaft, differential, halfshafts, exhaust pipes and mufflers, and steering shaft.

Cutaways: The engine had the following cutouts: the lower sides of the engine block, the front and rear of both cylinder heads, the top of the fuelinjection plenum chamber, the fuelinjection air meter, the water inlet and intake manifold to expose the thermostat, the bellhousing, the transmission case and tailshaft, the rear differential, the exhaust pipes and mufflers and the disc brake calipers.

Articulation: Aside from all of the cutouts and contrasting paint, what made this display so captivating was that mechanical items moved. Electric motors were carefully hidden to slowly rotate the moving parts in the engine

and drivetrain. The body could raise and lower 24 inches. The following items in the engine and drivetrain rotated: cooling fan, crankshaft, valvetrain, flywheel and clutch assembly, transmission gears, driveshaft and rear differential gears. The wheels and tires rotated and moved up and down.

Chrome and Special Features: The valve covers were molded in clear plastic to show the articulated and polished pushrods, rockers and springs. The oil pan was also molded in clear plastic to show the polished crankshaft and bearing caps, visible in the reflection on the bottom mirror. Chrome plating dressed up the following parts: engine fan, front pulleys, alternator bracket, fuel and vacuum lines, clutch assembly, transmission gears, shifter and linkage, heat shields, universal joints, front suspension linkage, front and rear sway bars, various attaching bolts and hardware.

After the event, both Corvette cutaways toured the USA at Chevrolet dealerships and car shows. But after the ’68 Corvette came out the 1965 cutaway

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[ F E A T U R E]

BACK ON THE BLOCK

car looked completely irrelevant, so GM sent the car to their South Africa Motorama event. After the event, GM donated the Corvette cutaway to a South African engineering college. It is not known how long the college displayed the car, but consider this. The ’65 Corvette is a “mechanical” performance car. As electronics and computers were introduced into common automobiles, the old “mechanical” Corvette became less and less relevant. Eventually, the Corvette cutaway was put into storage and mostly forgotten.

Someone at the college must have said, “Get it out of here.” The ’65 Corvette cutaway came back to American in the early 1990s and was purchased by Orlando, Florida, collector Al Wiseman. Fascinated with this unique piece of Corvette and GM history, Wiseman oversaw the complete restoration of the Corvette cutaway. It is not known what condition the display was in, but Wiseman brought it back to its original 1965 condition.

In December 2007, when the cutaway ’65 Corvette was on the block at the RM Sotheby’s Auction, a sign next to the car read, “Cutaway 1965 Fuel Injected Corvette. This car was prepared in 1964

by G.M. from a 4-mile car for the 1965 model year Motorama. It was recently found in South Africa after 30 years of storage and brought to the USA.” That means the car had been stashed away since the early 1970s. When the hammer came down at the auction, Detroit’s Showdown Muscle Cars won the bid, with the total sale price of $704,000, including fees.

Then in May 2015, the Cutaway Corvette was back at RM Sotheby’s Auction, but 7 1/2 years didn’t do much for the car’s perceived value. The car sold for just $515,000, plus fees. The automotive press was way off, as it was anticipated that the car would bring up to $1.4 million.

So, the January 2018 sale of the 1965 Cutaway Corvette, just 2 1/2 years after the previous auction might just be a sign of a vastly improving economy. Unique cars such as this have a way of coming back over and over. One million dollars is impressive and I have no doubt we’ll see this piece of Corvette history back on the block again. VETTE 50

VETTE 18.10

A Corvette generation for every generation.

Corvette Parts and Accessories since 1977

Corvettes are all we do.

FREE CATALOGS FOR EVERY GENERATION

CALL OR ORDER ONLINE 1-800-962-9632 Int: 1-804-746-2290 www.zip-corvette.com

[TECH]

Reupholstering Your C3 Corvette Seats Corvette America Restores Your Corvette Seats to Better Than New Condition I

BY CHUCK VRANAS PHOTOGRAPHY BY THE AUTHOR

percent leather. You can even choose to have the seats custom embroidered with your choice of applicable Corvette logos.

Corvette America offers a seat cover installation service where their experts conduct a full disassembly, evaluation and rebuild of your seats once they are received. The service includes installation of items purchased, which could include seat covers, seat foam and any related hardware. This is a great way to go, especially if you don’t have the opportunity to take on re-covering the seats yourself. If you decide to do the job at your home shop they offer extensive installation videos on their website to help guide you through the entire process. Let’s follow along as Corvette America team member John Conway reupholsters a pair of ’68 C3 Corvette seats to better than new condition. VETTE

f you’re a true Corvette enthusiast you gain no greater pleasure than from hopping into your car and heading out on the open road to put down countless miles. As the years pass by your once pristine factoryfresh interior starts to wear, eventually loosing its luster and comfort.

Nowhere is this more evident than with the seats since they suffer the most abuse on a daily basis. Regardless if you’re restoring a bone stock original car to the highest show standards, reviving a barn find or wanting to raise the bar on your daily driver, the team at Corvette America in Reedsville, Pennsylvania, has you covered

52

VETTE 18.10

since they manufacture some of the finest Corvette seat covers in the country today.

Their expertly trained artisans handcraft exact factory reproduction seat covers thanks to decades of research and development to attain the correct fit and color match required to bring your seats back to original standards. If your seats are suffering from extreme wear and tear, sun damage, mold or even mildew it’s time to look into refurbishing them. Getting started is as easy as visiting their website or catalog to determine your two-digit color code for all of your interior needs. There are a number of options available when selecting your seat covers, including fabric choices of vinyl, leather-like, leather/vinyl and 100

Corvette America supplies everything you need to restore your C3 Corvette seats to factory-fresh condition, starting with seat foam sets featuring the correct density, firmness and shape of the originals. Other available restoration parts include new hooks, clips, wires and corrugated seat wires, all available in kit form.

01

02

03

04

05

Corvette America manufactures all seat covers right at their facility in Reedsville, Pennsylvania, to the highest standards. Here you can see their exact reproduction 100 percent premium leather seat covers in tobacco, along with new matching seatbacks for the ’68 model.

While wearing suitable eye protection, the seatback latch mechanism was reinstalled with restored hardware using a standard socket wrench on the 5/8- and 3/8inch bolts.

06

Here you can see the completely reinstalled seatback latch mechanism ready for action.

Since they offer a full seat cover installation service, all you need to do is ship them your seats and they do the rest. Seat frame reassembly starts with the chrome seatback hinges being remounted to the upper frame section using a Phillips head screwdriver.

Next, the two release springs were carefully installed back into place. It’s important to open the latch to relieve the tension in order to install the second spring.

07-08

Starting with the top cover, turn it inside out and place it on a soft, clean surface to protect the leather during assembly. For the first step, use a side cutter to make cuts to the six gray listing points where seat wires will be inserted to add an attaching point for the hog rings. Be sure not to cut the stitching.

VETTEWEB.COM

53

[TECH]

09

10

11

12

This image lets you see the sleeves where the seat wires will be inserted to add the attachment points as we move forward with the installation. The wires can be seen adjacent to the sleeves.

To hold the seatback cover in place, wire clips are added to anchor the seat wires using a side cutter. Be sure the clips go around the wire in the gray listing.

The seat wires are then fed through the sleeves on the inner seat cover.

This image lets you see how perfectly the clips are attached to the seatback cover and seat wire.

13

The fresh seatback foam was then aligned and placed atop the seat cover. The seat foam clips were then attached to the three new corrugated wires using the seat cover clip installation tool available from Corvette America. Make sure the cover is centered on the foam once completed.

54

VETTE 18.10

14-15

Fit the seatback frame to the seat foam, adjusting it into the channels and trimming it slightly using a razor knife in the headrest area.

Next, remove the seatback foam and cover from the frame to prepare the frame for the headrest foam to be set in place. 3M spray adhesive was then carefully applied to the seat frame and headrest foam.

16

18

Then the seat cover was carefully rolled over the foam base and pulled to fit.

With the seat frame, foam and cover aligned it was then secured in place using hog ring pliers to secure the hog rings to the corrugated wires and seat frame.

20

17

The headrest foam was then held in place to allow the spray adhesive to set.

Carefully slide the seatback frame over the seat foam and into the cover while also adjusting the fitment.

19

The seatback material was then carefully cut to allow the mounting tabs to be exposed, allowing the seatback cover to be installed using fresh hardware.

21

VETTEWEB.COM

55

[TECH]

22-23

Next, the seatback release bezel and release button were installed into place followed by the seat bottom bumpers.

24

Here you can see the completed top seatback cover installation. At times there may be some minor wrinkles in the leather that need to be corrected.

26

Perfection. The wrinkles are gone with a minimum of time spent on the adjustment.

56

VETTE 18.10

27

25

Using a heat gun, carefully warm the leather while following with a damp cloth to gently shrink the leather and work the winkles out. You never want to get the area too hot as this could damage the leather as well as melt or shift the internal cover piping.

To prepare the seat bottom for installation to the frame, the cover was turned inside out—similar to what we did with the seatback cover— and placed on a soft surface to protect the leather. The listing points were then cut and seat wires were installed to the sleeves.

28

There are different size wire clips supplied for the seat bottom installation depending on the depth of the seat bottom foam. Be sure to use the correct ones for each area.

The seat bottom foam was then aligned with the seat cover and secured using the seat foam clips and three new corrugated wires.

The seat cover clip installation tool was used to accomplish this step. Be sure the cover is centered on the foam once completed.

29

The unit was then flipped over and the cover was fitted to the seat bottom base.

31

Once again, hog ring pliers were used to secure the seat frame, foam and cover together—when aligned—with hog rings to the corrugated wires and seat frame.

30

32

S-clips were then used to secure the cover bottom to the seat frame on the front, back and sides of the cover.

This was followed by the reinstallation of the seat bottom catch, bumper and bolt.

33

Source Corvette America

(800) 458-3475 www.corvetteamerica.com

Nothing makes your C3 Corvette look factory fresh better than a pair of restored 100 percent premium leather seats from Corvette America.

They also restored the seat frames and tracks, making everything better than new once again.

35 Finally, the refurbished original seat tracks were bolted back into place on the seat bottom.

34

VETTEWEB.COM

57

[ F E A T U R E]

Fluffy,

THE AUTOCROSS DOMINATING CORVETTE

Don’t let the name fool you I

BY TAYLOR KEMPKES PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROBERT MCGAFFIN

58

VETTE 18.10

esides the fact that getting run over by a fiberglass-bodied vehicle would be a tiny bit softer than an all-steel car, nothing about Chris Jacobs’ 2001 Corvette Z06 is actually fluffy. In reality, it’s a lightweight, corner-carving, 500 lb-ft-oftorque-to-the-wheels autocrossing beast. So yeah, not all that fluffy after all.

Jacobs came up with the name when his buddy Mark Stielow (who you might have heard of) was thinking up a name for another one of his (Stielow’s) ’69 Camaros.

“He always names his cars things mean and ugly,” Jacobs told us. He suggested Stielow change things up.

B

The car was supposed to be painted white so he, somewhat jokingly, told Stielow to name the car Fluffy. As it turned out, he wasn’t sold and instead painted the Camaro red and called it Hellfire. Typical. So when Jacobs picked up a Speedway White ’01 Corvette Z06, he thought the least he could do was poke a little fun at Stielow by naming his new Vette Fluffy.

Jacobs and his wife, Lynda, always had an affinity for Corvettes, owning two others prior to Fluffy. Their last was a yellow C5 convertible that got the couple started in the autocross scene, but they soon realized the opentop nature of the car didn’t lend nicely to competition.

Not only did it lose precious rigidity but, as Jacobs’

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59

[ F E A T U R E]

FLUFFY

desire for entering the Optima field grew, so did the realization that their little yellow convertible wouldn’t cut it.

Safety first meant a rollcage and a rollcage meant Jacobs’ tall frame would no longer fit in the driver’s seat.

That’s when the search for a new, reasonably priced yet competitive autocross toy began. Since C5s are such a competitive platform to begin with, that’s where he started looking. This time, though, one with a roof. What he came across was a lackluster eBay ad for an ’01 Corvette Z06 that was pre-modified.

He called up the salesman to inquire further who then emailed over some of the vehicle’s paperwork. Jacobs was sold after seeing the first page: a Katech receipt dated May 2001 for $26,000.

“It was at that moment I became more than mildly interested,” recalled Jacobs.

“A friend local to the dealer did a quick recon mission to confirm that it was a clean car then a Wednesday flight to and from Dallas sealed the deal and Fluffy was now on its way north.” The $26,000 Katech receipt went to a slew of performance parts, including a fully built C5R 427ci engine with ported heads, LG headers, Penske shocks, T-1 springs and antisway bars, AP Racing brakes, Fikse wheels and Doug Rippie 60

VETTE 18.10

Motorsports hood. Inside the cabin, the Corvette was fitted with Sparco Evo racing seats and Sparco harnesses. As far as 2001 goes, this C5 Z was at the top of its game. By 2015 though, the car was ready for a refresh.

Jacobs knew that the Vette would need some upgrades before it was ready for competition again, with an upgraded oil pump first on the list. He sent the car over to Finish Line Performance in Naperville, Illinois, to throw in a highperformance Melling pump and give the engine a once-over. Next in line

were those AP brakes. Again, great for 2001 but not so great for 2015, so Jacobs had Randy Johnson of D&Z Customs throw on a new set of Wilwoods. The front got a pair of Aero6 six-piston calipers and 14-inch rotors while the rear got Superlite four-piston calipers and 13-inch rotors. But what good do fancy new brakes do without sufficient grip on the road? Jacobs took the Vette’s Fikse wheels and moved the rear 18x11s to the front of the car and then had the front 18x10s re-hooped to turn them into 18x12s to go out back. The

updated wheels were then wrapped in BFGoodrich Rival S tires measuring 315/30R18 front and 335/30R18 rear.

At this point the Jacobs were ready to race—or so they thought.

They took the C5 out for its first test ’n’ tune session but quickly found out the new brakes weren’t playing nicely with the old master cylinder. They stuck it back on the trailer and got it worked out before their next event, The Motor State Challenge in Michigan a few weeks later. While at that event, something else happened. “Once at the hotel, I went to unload the car off our open trailer and nearly killed myself. A blown right rear shock had spewed oil all over the deck,” Jacobs told us. Luckily for him, a couple of guys from RideTech were there and hooked him up with a set of their HQ triple-adjustable coilover shocks.

The rest of the 2015 season went well for Jacobs and Fluffy with no other major problems. But, by the time the competition season was over, he already had some ideas of how he’d like to continue modernizing the Corvette. Jacobs promptly dropped the Corvette back off at Finish Line Performance and had the guys at LandSpeed Development do some work on the old 243 heads.

They beefed ’em up with new Xceldyne valves and Brian Tooley Racing valvesprings to get them ready for a customgrind camshaft from Custom Machine Performance. On top of the valvetrain upgrades, Finish Line Performance also threw on a FAST intake manifold, Lingenfelter throttle body and an Airaid cone filter. When it was all said and done, Fluffy saw an increase of 50 horsepower; now making 521 horses to the wheels. Torque also increase significantly, up about 40 lb-ft to 507.

After another successful season in 2016, the only major change Jacobs decided to make was swapping out the stock transmission since it was bound to go eventually. In its place went a Tranzilla TR6060 from Rockland Standard Gear paired with a Centerforce Triad clutch.

As far as the 2017 season goes, Jacobs claimed the car was “dead nuts reliable.”

Well, that was until the original timing chain went out while he was wide open at 6,500 rpm and burnt nine valves.

Dead nuts reliable, huh?

All jokes aside, Fluffy has proved to be a trusty and potent competitor for Jacobs, winning him numerous class championships in his local autocross division. It also gave him the competitive edge he needed for some impressive finishes in Optima’s Search for the Ultimate Street Car competitions and Motor State challenges. So, the moral of the story? Don’t judge a book by its cover. Because if you ever get thrown into competition against this fluffy little white Corvette you might not be let down too softly. VETTE VETTEWEB.COM

61

[TECH]

Flex Leads to Fracture

Repairing a Dangerous C3 Steering Problem I

BY JOHN GILBERT PHOTOGRAPHY BY THE AUTHOR

ot every used C3 Corvette is a creampuff. In fact, given enough time and after many miles driven there is a steering problem that can crop up and can become a very dangerous, complete loss of steering.�

Those were the words of Jack Grubisich at his Santa Ana, California, business McJacks Corvettes regarding the white C3 convertible he had up on a lift for repairs. Jack went on to explain that, starting with 1963 C2 Corvettes and up through 1982 C3 Corvettes equipped with power steering, flexing in the steering geometry fatigues the frame bracket holding the power 62

VETTE 18.10

steering cylinder (ram) to the framerail, where eventually the frame bracket could separate from the framerail.

We took a closer look underneath as Grubisich pointed to the power steering cylinder and showed how the frame bracket holding it was ready to rip away from the frame. And it wasn’t the first time someone tried to address the problem on this particular C3 as evidenced by traces of bad welds and the use of improper parts.

There are multiple areas to hunt for the source of sloppy steering on a C3 Corvette, beginning with the rag joint right up to suspecting a worn-out

steering box is to blame. That said, after repairing a detached frame bracket Grubisich recommended a close inspection of the entire front suspension and, in particular, all the steering components.

In essence, a restoration in addition to properly repairing the problem, Grubisich showed us how to complete the job to make it look like it never happened.

VETTE

Source McJacks Corvettes

(714) 775-2799 www.mcjackscorvettes.com

McJacks Corvettes is a father and son business. Jack Grubisich’s son Anthony removed the driver-side front wheel to gain the necessary access.

01

Two retaining bolts were removed from the power steering frame bracket reinforcement plate. One plate was missing.

03

Here’s the area cut out and readied to accept a steel patch.

06

A close inspection reveals bad welds, the wrong parts and a power steering cylinder frame bracket ready to fall off.

02

Next, the bad welds were ground off the framerail. Then, a determination was made as to how much metal needed to be cut away before a proper fix could be begun.

04

A die grinder was used to cut out the area marked using a scratch awl.

05

Grubisich used inside dial calipers to measure the dimensions needed for the steel patch.

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He then fabricated the steel patch from the same gauge steel as the framerail.

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This front view shows how the inside framerail overlaps the outside framerail. Note how the outside framerail patch is welded into place.

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Grubisich paid close attention not to over-restore the jagged edge left by the factory on the overlapping inside framerail.

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The frame bracket was used as the template to re-drill the four 5/16-inch mounting holes for the two bracket reinforcement plates.

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Grubisich had to search no further than McJacks Corvettes’ onsite salvage yard to obtain used parts in perfect condition.

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The two frame bracket reinforcement plates enter into place by inserting them through a large hole found on either side of the framerail.

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Meticulous attention must be paid to reproducing the step on the bottom of the framerail correctly in order to mate with the step on the power steering cylinder frame bracket.

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There it is. The job is completed and a crusty old C3 Corvette returns to the street in much safer condition with an unmolested appearance.

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Rare Finds I

BY JERRY HEASLEY PHOTOGRAPHY BY THE AUTHOR

Finding a 1965 Coupe in a Neighborhood Shed he sense of awe that accompanies discovering an old Corvette stored or lost for many years can be intoxicating.

Kris Smith wasn’t looking for an old Corvette when his son Justin came home from college with a story that a buddy told him about a 1965 coupe parked since 1973.

With amazement in his voice, Kris said the Corvette was 7-8 miles from their home in rural Indiana. He had to have a look.

“Justin got hold of his buddy and we went over there. This elderly couple that lived out on a farm had died and their brother/brother-in-law Jack had stored the car on the farm. Jack, who bought the car in the late ’60s, was losing his storage and was now retired. Finally, the car had to go.

The fascination in Smith’s voice was apparent as the story unfolded.

“It was originally a black car. They had painted it Riverside Gold. It had only 36,000 miles, but it had been hit in the front end.” The wreck was an old one that Jack tried to fix on his own when he bought the 1965 Corvette coupe. Jack got transferred to Florida and the car stayed on the farm.

As Kris talked, he did not mention the engine option in the car. He spoke about the car’s history. “It was sitting in that leanto type building that you see in one of those pictures. Looks like they almost built it for that car. We found boxes with shipping labels on them with new carpet. Of course, mice had chewed it up. It was just stuff like that, stuff he had bought.”

Kris was also intrigued at the purchase price in the late ’60s. The 1965 Corvette wasn’t running and was wrecked in the front end. “He only paid $600 for it. In the pictures, you can see Jack had put a new partial doghouse (front end) on it.”

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Kris Smith was hooked when he found this ’65 Corvette coupe, “sitting in that lean-to building” from 1973-’02. The previous owner tried to fix the front end damage. The car was by no means cherry and did not have a numbersmatching 327, but Kris took on the project, long term.

Would it have made more sense to go find a better deal on a restored ’65 coupe? Kris revealed his love for Corvettes when he said, “We recently sold a ’69 Camaro pace car that needed to be restored. I could go buy one done for less than that one was going to cost to restore. Had that Camaro been a Corvette, I probably would have restored it.”

Why did Kris buy the 1965 coupe? In his words, “I thought with some of the options it had on it, the mileage it had, and those kinds of things, it was worth the restoration.” Could Kris have found a better deal on a different ’65 coupe, maybe even with the top-dog 396? Probably, so why did he buy this small-block coupe with a basic 327 four barrel? The answer to this question was hard for Kris to explain. He tried.

“I had four brothers. When we were kids my parents would help us buy cars.

We had Corvettes and Z/28s and GTOs and Mustangs. My first car was a ’66 427 Corvette convertible. That was in 1974.

I got it for my 16th birthday. We sanded the thing down, masked it off, took it to the local painter in my hometown, and he painted it for $90. It was a beautiful car when done. That was our thing.”

Kris loved Corvettes, but sold the ’66

Do you have or know of a Rare Find? Or vintage photos?

Contact Jerry Heasley at jerryheasley@gmail.com or on Twitter at @JerryHeasley.

Exactly 2,324 Corvettes came with air conditioning out of the 23,564 built that model year. Tuxedo Black was also the rarest color in 1965 at 1,191.

427 Corvette when he was still in high school because he “didn’t know then.” Or, as his wife likes to remind him, “That is why 16-year-olds shouldn’t have Corvettes.”

Kris’ time the past 20 years has been consumed with his business and family.

He still buys cars to restore, but farms out most of the work. Did it cross his mind to find a better 1965 for a starting point?

The answer is “not really.” Kris does remember thinking when he looked over the Corvette, “If it had been a 396,” which was the hot engine for 1965, “but it was black. It had air conditioning and power brakes, which are both rare.”

He bought the 1965 coupe, a four-speed that he assumes is a 300-horse 327 (numbers-matching engine was gone) and paid a “friend of my brother” to do most of the restoration, which was close to $50,000.

Sixteen years has passed and Kris still owns his barn find. He gathered the parts in his spare time and paid for the restoration as the work progressed, starting a couple years after purchase and consuming 4-5 years. Considering the low price that he paid and the investment over time (not a penny owed), Kris figures he has less in the Corvette than it is worth today. VETTE

Kris stood with his wife, Sue, beside the ’65 Corvette after the restoration was finished.

They still own and love this Corvette.

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THE ILLUSTRATED CORVETTE

Designer Series No. 256 I

BY SCOTT TEETERS ILLUSTRATIONS BY THE AUTHOR

ZR1 Retrospective From Racer Kit to World-Class Corvette Supercar or most of 2016 and 2017, it seemed that the C7 ZR1 would never arrive. The car was supposed to debut at the 2017 Detroit Auto Show but was a no-show. When Chevrolet announced a new “LT5” engine, speculation went wild over the possibility of another DOHC super engine. Then the April 2017 issue of Car and Driver featured a computer rendering of the ZR1 that was just about right on. Through the rest of 2017 there was a steady drip of images of camouflaged ZR1s and juicy details, including the announcement that the new ZR1 would have an eight-speed automatic transmission and be available as a convertible. Rumor mills are so much fun. Finally, on November 11, 2017, the sinister-looking ZR1 debuted in Dubai and didn’t disappoint! Think Z06, but with more power and aero and a bigger price tag. Maximumperformance Corvettes have never been inexpensive.

The C7 ZR1 is the third iteration of a performance model Corvette wearing the “ZR1” moniker. To see the progress of the ZR1, let’s take a walk through the ZR1’s lineage. The original ZR1 arrived in 1970 as a racer kit option that was the L88 suspension package with the solid-lifter LT-1. The package included the LT-1 engine; a metal fan shroud; a four-speed, wide-ratio transmission; heavy-duty power brakes; transistor ignition; a special aluminum radiator; special shocks and springs and front and rear antisway bars. There were no special badges or body parts. This car was strictly for racing and the RPO ZR1 package was very reasonably priced at $968.95. For just $6,160.95, a customer had the basics for an SCCA B/Production Corvette. The ZR1 option was offered from 1970-’72 with a total of 53 units sold. There was supposed 68

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to be a ZR2 racer kit with the LS7 454, but it didn’t make it into production in 1970, but was available in 1971 with the slightly milder LS6 454. Just 12 ZR2 ’71 Corvettes were sold.

The ZR-1 moniker resurfaced around 1988 when rumors about a super Corvette under development surfaced. Most Corvette fans said, “What’s a ZR-1?” The car’s development nickname was King of the Hill, a tag that lives on to this day for C4 ZR1s. This would be the first time Chevrolet offered a separate performance model Corvette. Performance engine options had been around since 1956, but the C4 ZR-1 was a complete package Corvette that was very exotic. The star of the C4 ZR-1 was its all-aluminum, Lotus-designed, fuelinjected DOHC 350ci engine. The engine is still a beauty nearly 30 years later and is iconic for its unique eight-pack abs-style intake manifold. The regular Corvette’s L98 engine had 250 horsepower; the ZR-1’s

LT5 had an extra 125 horsepower. Yes, 375 horsepower in 1990 was a very big deal.

But this wasn’t just an exotic engine stuffed under the hood of a stock Corvette.

To handle the extra power, special 315/35ZR17 Goodyear Z-rated tires were mounted to 11-inch-wide rear rims. To cover the larger tires, the body gradually tapers out from the end of the front fenders to cover wider rear tires. The taillights were square-like with rounded corners and the exhaust tips were rectangular. All of the Z51 suspension and brake parts were standard.

The ZR-1’s price was staggering. The base Corvette cost $31,979 and the ZR-1 option was an additional $27,016, for a grand total of $58,995, plus options. From 1990-’95 a total of 6,922 ZR-1s were sold. 1990 was the best year with 3,032 units sold. By 1993 engineers bumped the power up to 405 horsepower, and in 1994 very handsomelooking five-spoke wheels helped make the ZR-1 look unique. The one critique was that

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THE ILLUSTRATED CORVETTE

Designer Series No. 256

it didn’t look much different from a regular Corvette. From 1990-’93, one has to look for the ZR-1 badge, or have a keen eye to notice the wider rear section. Looks and price aside, the ZR-1 was universally praised for its power and handling.

When the C5 came along, it was such an improvement over the C4, no one was pining for a ZR1. Then when the C5 Z06 arrived in 2001, offering ZR1-level performance, for around $20,000 less than a ’95 ZR-1, the old King of the Hill was definitely out to pasture. The C5 and C6 Z06 was the new Corvette performance champ. Fastforward to 2007-’08, the Corvette rumor mill was heating up with rumors of a new super Vette called the Blue Devil. When a test mule was caught on a smart phone video with the distinctive whine of a supercharger, the cat was out of the bag.

When the ’09 ZR1 made its debut, heads exploded. Unlike the C4 ZR-1, the C6 ZR1 was an in-your-face, $103,300, 205-mph velvet brute of a Corvette. The C6 ZR1 was built on the Z06 platform so it had all of the C5-R racer-inspired hardware. Like the C4 ZR-1, the big news was under the hood.

Z06 customers thought their 505-horsepower LS7 was a brute, but the ZR1’s supercharged LS9 packed 638 horsepower with 604 lb-ft of torque. The all-aluminum LS9 engine was not only supercharged, it had an intercooler, port fuel-injection, a 10.75-quart dry-sump oil system and a LUK dual-disc clutch. The TR-6060 six-speed transmission was beefed up and the gear ratios are closer than those in the Z06.

Modern Corvettes are all about suspension and brakes. The Speedline forged aluminum-alloy wheels measure 19x10

in the front and 20x12 in the rear, and are shod with Michelin Pilot Sport tires measuring 285/30R19 on the front and 335/25R20 on the rear. The Brembo carbon ceramic rotors are vented and cross-drilled; measure 15.5x1.6-inches in the front and 15x1.4inches in the rear. Six-piston calipers are in the front; and four-piston units are in the rear; with pads that are twice the size as those used on the Z06; and will last a lifetime for street use. The Z06 suspension used the next-generation Delphi Magnetorheological variable shocks, softer springs, larger antiroll bars and revised rear suspension geometry.

The entire front end and roof section was made of carbon fiber. Clearcoat covered the carbon-fiber chin spoiler, rocker panel, and roof section. The new hood was 1-inch taller than a regular Corvette’s and a Plexiglas window shows off the LS9’s intercooler. The front and rear fender flares were the same as the Z06, but the front fenders had larger, more aggressive vents and the back end was finished off with a short, full-width spoiler. ZR1 badges adorn the front fenders and rear bumper cover; and the interior is trimmed with ZR1 badges and embroidery on the seats.

The speedometer goes up to 220, but there was a 205-mph governor on the car.

The C6 ZR1 was another super-expensive Corvette. Costing $103,300, the ’09 ZR1 was over double the $47,895 base Vette. The ’13 ZR1 went for $112,575. From 2009-’13 Chevrolet sold 4,684 ZR1s.

The C7 ZR1 carries the traditional ZR1 status of being a true GT supercar. All of the C7’s delightful attributes are present, plus a lot more. For the first time, a ZR1 is available

as a coupe or convertible; and with a seven-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmission. The 6.2-liter (376ci) LT5 engine is similar to the Z06’s LT4, but with a 56 percent larger Eaton supercharger, additional port injection, a stronger crankshaft, a more efficient electronic bypass valve and higher volume intercooler fluid.

The dedicated 10-spoke wheels are very similar in size to those on the Z06; the ZR1’s front wheels are a half-inch wider. The ZR1 uses the Z06’s Z07 Package, but with refined spring rates and dampers. Traction Control and Active Handling is a must, and is standard.

The ZR1’s aggressive front end looks that way because it has five extra cooling radiators. Intercoolers are stacked ahead of the radiators in the outer positions. Like a race car, the front underwing extends back to the front wheelwell openings. At the back end, the basic ZR1 has a low fixed wing. For those that want more, there’s the $2,995 ZTK Package with a taller, adjustable rear wing and winglettes on the outboard edges of the front splitter. Weighing in at 3,600 pounds, the C7 ZR1 had an all-time low power-to-weight ratio of 4.76:1. Now the rest of the story … the price. The basic ZR1 coupe lists for $119,995, the convertible goes for $123,995. A ZR1 convertible can max out to just under $156,000.

The new ZR1 lives up to its predecessor’s reputations and exceeds all performance levels. This will most likely be the “finished” C7 Corvette. At the Dubai debut, Corvette chief engineer Tadge Juechter said that his engineering team did everything they could possibly do to the C7 platform when developing the ZR1. Do you realize what that means? They are already working on the C9. VETTE ABOUT THE AUTHOR K. Scott Teeters has been a contributing artist and writer with Vette magazine since 1976 when the magazine was titled Vette Quarterly. Scott’s Corvette art can be seen at www.illustratedcorvetteseries.com. His muscle car and nostalgia drag racing art can be found at www.precision-illustration.com.

VETTE (ISSN #0199-7890) Vol. 42, No. 10. Copyright © 2018 by TEN: Publishing Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Published monthly by TEN: Publishing Media, LLC., 1212 Avenue of the Americas, 18th Floor, New York, NY 10036. Periodicals Postage Paid at New York, NY and at additional mailing offices. SUBSCRIPTIONS: U.S. and U.S. Possessions $29.95 for 12 issues. Canadian orders add $12.00 per year and international orders add $24.00 per year (for surface mail postage). Payment in advance, U.S. funds only. POSTMASTER: Send all UAA to CFS. (See DMM 707.4.12.5); NON-POSTAL AND MILITARY FACILITIES: send address corrections to Vette, P.O. Box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235.

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