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Car Forum / Chevrolet / Chevrolet Corvette / September 20051976 alarm switch problem and a couple other questions
Hi all, I'm having a lot of fun working on my 73,000 mile, yellow, 1976 vet that was actually given to me as a birthday present from my in-laws. Yeah, I know, nice in-laws... Anyway if anyone could give me some tips on the following... 1) The alarm always sounds when I turn the key to the "armed" position. My understanding is that the alarm is tied into both door jamb switches and the hood switch. The 4 door jamb switches all seem to work correctly, the lights do go off/on. What would be the way to test the hood switch. Is there something else I'm missing or another switch I need to check? A grounding problem? 2) It's still the original yellow color, but repainted with some black detailing that (primarily the roof and the side air vents) done sometime in it's history. Now, it has a few very small dings where the paint is scratched to the fiberglas. On the driver's door, there's a outward bulge exposing some fiberglas about the size of a quarter. It looks like this happened when the door spring broke, fell into the door jamb space, and someone opened the door, causing the spring to push out against the door. I have no experience repairing fiberglas. What would you recommend. 3) The original radio works fine in FM, but there's no AM reception. 4) The windshield water bottle pump doesn't work. I've tested the leads going to the pump and there's voltage, so I have a new pump to install. It's hard enough just getting to the bottle and pump as there's not enough room to remove the bottle. The power brake vacuum canister, steering shaft, master cylinder, and inside side panel do not provide enough clearance. Is there a way to remove the bottle without removing everything else? Can it still be replaced inside the engine cavity? I'll probably have more questions along the way, but that's enough for now... Thanks, Mark > Hi all, > I'm having a lot of fun working on my 73,000 mile, yellow, 1976 vet that was [quoted text clipped - 34 lines] > Thanks, > Mark You'll find answers to most of your questions in this group, so I'm not going to do that. What I would like to do is offer you some perspective. I have spent four committed years and thousands of dollars to get my '77 into the shape where I now have only to worry about things like those you mention. Be very, very grateful to in-laws who gifted this vehicle to you. First thing for you to do is get a Service Manual for the vehicle. A GM Service Manual. You'll find them on e-Bay. In fact, get all kinds of written material on your new car. It all helps. I'm envious, sure, but also happy to hear of someone joining in the fun of 'Vette rebuilding and maintenance. Welcome aboard, and realize that some things are just a pain in the a.s -- like the window washer bottle. All part of it. All worth it. (BTW, there are printed materials exclusive to things like the circuitry of the alarm system and the vacuum system for the headlights. Get all that stuff, too.) I don't have all the URLs of the various parts suppliers close at hand, but someone here will. I'm trying to be, but still not as organized with the information as I need to be. Welcome to the world of Corvettes. Is this your first one? Yes, it's my first Vette. I am 39 years old and loving it. My 13-year-old son is drooling, just waiting for his permit at age 15. My 10-year-old daughter likes me to drive fast. My wife actually drives it more than I do :). I've learned a lot about the car since I got it last April. I've already done the following: - Replaced a few of the dashboard gauge lights - Cleaned up the engine cavity a bit, all the majors appear to be original. - The headlamps were going up & down very slowly, so I replaced the vacuum hose and the vacuum hose air filter, now no problem. - The hardest job so far for sure was having to replace the two small springs that pull the rear brake shoes together when the parking brake is not in use. The 30-year-old springs must have snapped when I used the parking brake. The rotors are original and I had to drill the rivets out just to get the rotor off to get to the darn shoes. Took a lot of patience with needle-nose pliers to get the new springs in. - Replaced the air cleaner filter, the small air filter on the side of the air cleaner and the fuel filter. - Oil change. Now using synthetic only. - Oh a funny one. It spent all of its previous life in New Mexico where there is no emissions testing. Somewhere along the way, someone removed the Cat and welded a pipe in there. Well, they couldn't pass me here in Colorado because it was missing the Cat. So, I had Meineke put in one and passed the test. I got Collector Car plates, so now I don't have to have emissions testing anymore. Oh well, at least I'm a good environmental citizen... - The door springs that hold the doors open were missing. Put in new ones yesterday. I'm awaiting new side-view mirrors this week. The current ones must be original. The ball/socket joint doesn't hold the mirror in place anymore. Anyone need mirrors that don't work :)? One of the bigger things I'll need to look at next spring is the blower. Either it's not working well or there is some blockage, or the vacuum switch that controls where the air is diverted to is screwed up. The heater seems to work and air comes out the bottom vents when I choose Heater or Defroster, but air will not come out the top vents when I choose Vent. Since I'm on a roll, here are more questions. - It rides pretty rough, every bump is felt. Obviously, the suspension needs work. Would you replace all the springs, shocks, leaf spring, etc. or take it one part at a time? What would you start with, the shocks? Regards, Mark - >> Hi all, >> I'm having a lot of fun working on my 73,000 mile, yellow, 1976 vet that [quoted text clipped - 71 lines] > > Welcome to the world of Corvettes. Is this your first one? > Yes, it's my first Vette. I am 39 years old and loving it. My 13-year-old > son is drooling, just waiting for his permit at age 15. My 10-year-old [quoted text clipped - 35 lines] > to work and air comes out the bottom vents when I choose Heater or > Defroster, but air will not come out the top vents when I choose Vent. This is one of the things I'm working on as well. Except my blower is not currently coming on, but I know it does, or used to. I love the electrical stuff because I don't have a clue what I'm doing. > Since I'm on a roll, here are more questions. > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > Regards, > Mark Mine rode like hell when I first got it too. I didn't even like to drive it. When I pulled the engine to do a rebuild, I replaced all the bushings in the front (later in the rear, too) and put on new shocks. I also got really good tires. Now, I'd say it rides as well as anything I've owned. The only thing left is the mono-leaf, but the way it rides now, I'm putting that off until it seems like a problem. How is your weatherstripping? Mine's shot, so that is what I am making as my next purchase. Then I'll find out what kind of problem that is to rip out and replace. Keep your son away from it. He should be at least 35 before you let him sit in the driver's seat! (j/k) > - > > [quoted text clipped - 73 lines] > > > > Welcome to the world of Corvettes. Is this your first one? The weatherstripping is so-so. Would probably like to replace the front windshield stripping and the T-top stripping. >> Yes, it's my first Vette. I am 39 years old and loving it. My > 13-year-old [quoted text clipped - 171 lines] >> > >> > Welcome to the world of Corvettes. Is this your first one? Replace that weatherstripping soon and be sure you get no leaks inside the car. Unlike earlier Corvettes, the '76 and up have metal floors that rust, so leaks can be very bad. Unfortunately, most t-tops leak, and it takes a lot to keep them sealed. Many solve it by never driving in the rain, but my attitude is that it is a car, it was designed to be driven, and if you hide from the rain, you lose an awful lot of opportunity to drive it. If you drove it every day in the rain, that would be one thing, but to hit rain on a trip or get caught in it while out is no big deal. > The weatherstripping is so-so. Would probably like to replace the front > windshield stripping and the T-top stripping. [quoted text clipped - 190 lines] >>> > >>> > Welcome to the world of Corvettes. Is this your first one? |
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