1989 Corvette C4 6 Speed Manual
Discussion
Time for a departure from 924s!
I was at Bristol Queens Sq. meet with my sister on Sunday and was talking about how I would like a C4 Corvette but it would have to be manual, with the early engine and digi dash. Walked around the corner and there was my next car waiting for me! Spoke to the seller, went for a drive on Tuesday and then on Wednesday it was being dropped off at mine!!
Since I sold my 924 Turbo, I missed the event of having a ridiculous car and although my 924S is very competent and probably the best car I've owned, it didn't have the wow factor.
So about the car, it's a 1989 Corvette C4 with the early body style which I like, especially the rear lights!
The spec is:
L98 SBC
6 Speed ZF manual gearbox
Z51 handling pack – the front wheels are 9.5in wide!
6 way electric sports seats
Bose sound system
FX-3 adjustable ride – The Bilstein shocks have 3 settings you can change in the cockpit
The awesome digital dash!
Stock apart from custom stainless exhaust with no cats and 1 silencer
Everything on it works and it has all the right options, the right colour etc.
It's a different beast to the 924s, which are small, precise cars. This is a sledgehammer! It's very comfortable, not that bad at going around corners and the sound is to die for!
I'm 26 and insurance was a mere £282 fully comp with £50 excess and commuting included! Don't ask me how much a full set of tyres costs or if I've worn out my petrol station loyalty card...
Before I got it and drove it in the rain....
I was at Bristol Queens Sq. meet with my sister on Sunday and was talking about how I would like a C4 Corvette but it would have to be manual, with the early engine and digi dash. Walked around the corner and there was my next car waiting for me! Spoke to the seller, went for a drive on Tuesday and then on Wednesday it was being dropped off at mine!!
Since I sold my 924 Turbo, I missed the event of having a ridiculous car and although my 924S is very competent and probably the best car I've owned, it didn't have the wow factor.
So about the car, it's a 1989 Corvette C4 with the early body style which I like, especially the rear lights!
The spec is:
L98 SBC
6 Speed ZF manual gearbox
Z51 handling pack – the front wheels are 9.5in wide!
6 way electric sports seats
Bose sound system
FX-3 adjustable ride – The Bilstein shocks have 3 settings you can change in the cockpit
The awesome digital dash!
Stock apart from custom stainless exhaust with no cats and 1 silencer
Everything on it works and it has all the right options, the right colour etc.
It's a different beast to the 924s, which are small, precise cars. This is a sledgehammer! It's very comfortable, not that bad at going around corners and the sound is to die for!
I'm 26 and insurance was a mere £282 fully comp with £50 excess and commuting included! Don't ask me how much a full set of tyres costs or if I've worn out my petrol station loyalty card...
Before I got it and drove it in the rain....
It is very childish! But I love cars like that.
It's the opposite of a turbo to drive, it will pull from <1k rpm and has over 350ft torque by 3500rpm but then not long after 4k you're changing up again. It's great fun pulling it up through the gears. Cruising in 6th gives you 1600rpm at 70mph and it really settles down. Unless you're in 6th, when you put your foot down, you go!
It has loads of neat features for the period. If you're pulling slowly away in 1st, 2nd is electrically locked out and it lets you select 3rd to bumble off sensibly. Of course, if you're using more throttle or revs, you can pop it right into 2nd.
I put my footdown yesterday and it spun the wheels in 3rd, and that's with 275 section tyres all round.
It's the opposite of a turbo to drive, it will pull from <1k rpm and has over 350ft torque by 3500rpm but then not long after 4k you're changing up again. It's great fun pulling it up through the gears. Cruising in 6th gives you 1600rpm at 70mph and it really settles down. Unless you're in 6th, when you put your foot down, you go!
It has loads of neat features for the period. If you're pulling slowly away in 1st, 2nd is electrically locked out and it lets you select 3rd to bumble off sensibly. Of course, if you're using more throttle or revs, you can pop it right into 2nd.
I put my footdown yesterday and it spun the wheels in 3rd, and that's with 275 section tyres all round.
Thanks for the responses!
I still have my 924S for sale if anyone wants it? I have been browsing Corvette forums and have realised I need lots of go faster bits!
5harp3y – I have ordered proper numberplates, I'm keeping an eye out for some tasty wheels. I've got 315 section urges...
Fartgalen – I paid strong money for it but it's in excellent condition and the spec really sold it to me. It doesn't have orange indicators, instead the PO wired the indicators to the numberplate lights, so they flash orange. I get to keep the cool red lights then.
Steveo3002 – Insurance is with Footman James
5ohmustang – That's right, it's the TPI engine with the ZF 6 speed (ala Lotus Carlton & ZR1) Being an '89, mine should have aluminium heads.
I took my Dad out in the car when it was dry, we hadn't even finished with 3rd gear when he stopped swearing and told me I'd proved my point.
All these American things like “hooking up off the line” are making sense to me now. I'm fortunate enough to live very close to the Butetown tunnels and can think of nothing better to drive through there.
I took it to work today on a morning shift. Leaving a 5am I had to drive very carefully through residential areas, sneaking along! My “sneakanomical” driving netted me 20mpg. On the way home it was raining heavily and it's useless in the rain! There's so much low down torque you just can't get the power down and just spin the tyres all the time. Bumpy, pot hole stricken roads don't agree with the 17x9.5” wheels on every corner.
One of the seals is a bit marginal and I'm sure I'll find some niggly bits to do but it's half the fun of old cars! I popped out to the shops in the Porsche and it's very precise and feels like a go-cart but I'm already addicted to the noise and power of that 5.7L
I still have my 924S for sale if anyone wants it? I have been browsing Corvette forums and have realised I need lots of go faster bits!
5harp3y – I have ordered proper numberplates, I'm keeping an eye out for some tasty wheels. I've got 315 section urges...
Fartgalen – I paid strong money for it but it's in excellent condition and the spec really sold it to me. It doesn't have orange indicators, instead the PO wired the indicators to the numberplate lights, so they flash orange. I get to keep the cool red lights then.
Steveo3002 – Insurance is with Footman James
5ohmustang – That's right, it's the TPI engine with the ZF 6 speed (ala Lotus Carlton & ZR1) Being an '89, mine should have aluminium heads.
I took my Dad out in the car when it was dry, we hadn't even finished with 3rd gear when he stopped swearing and told me I'd proved my point.
All these American things like “hooking up off the line” are making sense to me now. I'm fortunate enough to live very close to the Butetown tunnels and can think of nothing better to drive through there.I took it to work today on a morning shift. Leaving a 5am I had to drive very carefully through residential areas, sneaking along! My “sneakanomical” driving netted me 20mpg. On the way home it was raining heavily and it's useless in the rain! There's so much low down torque you just can't get the power down and just spin the tyres all the time. Bumpy, pot hole stricken roads don't agree with the 17x9.5” wheels on every corner.
One of the seals is a bit marginal and I'm sure I'll find some niggly bits to do but it's half the fun of old cars! I popped out to the shops in the Porsche and it's very precise and feels like a go-cart but I'm already addicted to the noise and power of that 5.7L
Elesmart – Cool, I must've been driving to work then
Can't believe I've only owned this a month! I daren't add up the fuel bill
I've never owned a car that I've just wanted to drive all the time! The thunderous sound and earth shattering torque is completely addictive!
It has taken a bit of getting used to but the gearbox is a lovely thing, quick and crisp shifts with a very solid feel. I've found the key to going around corners is a full tank of fuel, otherwise it's a bit interesting. With so much torque, it's easy to overwhelm the rear tyres. Definitely a point, squirt & pray car! Even with 13” discs, it speeds up faster than it slows down, the brakes are very wooden feeling compared to the Porsche. It is exceptionally comfortable on a long run and it's hard to think of a car I'd rather hit the motorway with.
Perhaps the biggest surprise is how much other people like it, a dowdy 40 something woman in a Hyundai I10 was asking me to rev it at the lights even!
Surprisingly to me, my 924S still hasn't sold but when that's gone I can picture myself getting some nice bits for it. Still, the most fun car I've ever owned and one I don't think I'll top in awhile!
I'll have to make some proper images soon, in the meantime, here's some snaps.
Previous owner never used it in the rain, oops!
Can't believe I've only owned this a month! I daren't add up the fuel bill
I've never owned a car that I've just wanted to drive all the time! The thunderous sound and earth shattering torque is completely addictive!
It has taken a bit of getting used to but the gearbox is a lovely thing, quick and crisp shifts with a very solid feel. I've found the key to going around corners is a full tank of fuel, otherwise it's a bit interesting. With so much torque, it's easy to overwhelm the rear tyres. Definitely a point, squirt & pray car! Even with 13” discs, it speeds up faster than it slows down, the brakes are very wooden feeling compared to the Porsche. It is exceptionally comfortable on a long run and it's hard to think of a car I'd rather hit the motorway with.
Perhaps the biggest surprise is how much other people like it, a dowdy 40 something woman in a Hyundai I10 was asking me to rev it at the lights even!
Surprisingly to me, my 924S still hasn't sold but when that's gone I can picture myself getting some nice bits for it. Still, the most fun car I've ever owned and one I don't think I'll top in awhile!
I'll have to make some proper images soon, in the meantime, here's some snaps.
Previous owner never used it in the rain, oops!
Got my first lot of parts from the states today, ordered on Monday night and arrived this morning!
Replaced the gear knob, which now makes the steering wheel look tired. So I've ordered some cleaners for the wheel & seats. Got a few other interior sundries and a "lowering kit". I'm planning on a front end rebuild when I have the lowering wedges fitted. Should look much better a little bit lower.
Also took it for a proper setup in the meantime. Gone from 1deg +ive to 1 deg -ive on the rear camber along with a few other tweaks, it's like a different car now!!
I absolutely love this thing, don't think the novelty will ever wear off! Very tempted to buy some nice wheels, 11in rears fit nicely.
Replaced the gear knob, which now makes the steering wheel look tired. So I've ordered some cleaners for the wheel & seats. Got a few other interior sundries and a "lowering kit". I'm planning on a front end rebuild when I have the lowering wedges fitted. Should look much better a little bit lower.
Also took it for a proper setup in the meantime. Gone from 1deg +ive to 1 deg -ive on the rear camber along with a few other tweaks, it's like a different car now!!
I absolutely love this thing, don't think the novelty will ever wear off! Very tempted to buy some nice wheels, 11in rears fit nicely.
The car makes 350ft torque standard. It's good for a mid 5 second run to 60, not bad considering it came out in 1985. Mine has no cats and one silencer, so that frees up a bit more power. There's a lot on the table, a set of cams and some porting of the intake with a tune to our petrol would see 75hp IMO
Thanks for the comments all, it was a surprise to see it as Readers Ride of the week!
I do find myself lusting after other Corvettes now! I'm not a fan of how the C5 looks, apart from the Z06 with the notchback. I could see myself with a C6 in a few years though, hopefully mine will be worth a bit more and those a bit less
In all the excitement I've managed to win some wheels on ebay.de Happily they're the same size as my stock ones, so I'll just swap the expensive tyres over. Offset is a little different but they should fill the arches nicely once it's lowered. It'll be good to see the brakes too, there's 13in discs hiding under there.
The car is booked in with my mechanic at the end of the month so it should soon reappear looking just how I want it! Will slow down on the parts spree then and have a summer of cruising around
I'm off to Bicester Heritage tomorrow for the Sunday Scramble if anyone else is coming along?
I do find myself lusting after other Corvettes now! I'm not a fan of how the C5 looks, apart from the Z06 with the notchback. I could see myself with a C6 in a few years though, hopefully mine will be worth a bit more and those a bit less
In all the excitement I've managed to win some wheels on ebay.de Happily they're the same size as my stock ones, so I'll just swap the expensive tyres over. Offset is a little different but they should fill the arches nicely once it's lowered. It'll be good to see the brakes too, there's 13in discs hiding under there.
The car is booked in with my mechanic at the end of the month so it should soon reappear looking just how I want it! Will slow down on the parts spree then and have a summer of cruising around
I'm off to Bicester Heritage tomorrow for the Sunday Scramble if anyone else is coming along?
Picking the car up from my mechanic tomorrow, almost 30hrs of work in the end, eek! It's now polybushed throughout, new balljoints, tie rods etc along with the lowering wedges/bolts fitted. New Bosch injectors, leads & plugs have sorted my hot start issues too and a new fuel filter for good measure along with some other bits whilst it was apart! Can't wait to drive it again, should be spot on for my trip to Spa this autumn too! He was really enjoyed working on it and the way it was put together, made a nice change from classic BMW's and Brit stuff apparently!
Yeah, I think a bin is actually made of better plastic, but like you say, it's endearing. I love every rattle on this car!
Burned through a tank of petrol already, happy to report it's like driving a different car! The balljoints weren't too bad but the wishbone bushes needed doing. The car is a lot better on rutted roads, especially considering it has 275 tyres on the front! It doesn't wander so much and over bumps there's just the rattle of the dashboard now! The turn in is much better, although the rear is still a bit skittish, but I guess I'm spoilt by previous cars in a way. That's part of the fun with this though, there's massive amounts of torque all the time, so you have to be smooth yet assertive.
The new Bosch injectors have cured my hot start problem, smoothed out my idle and it runs much nicer when it's hot. I guess those original Multecs were well past it! It certainly feels stronger now. After pottering about in my Volvo S80 for 6 weeks it feels quite nippy!
Burned through a tank of petrol already, happy to report it's like driving a different car! The balljoints weren't too bad but the wishbone bushes needed doing. The car is a lot better on rutted roads, especially considering it has 275 tyres on the front! It doesn't wander so much and over bumps there's just the rattle of the dashboard now! The turn in is much better, although the rear is still a bit skittish, but I guess I'm spoilt by previous cars in a way. That's part of the fun with this though, there's massive amounts of torque all the time, so you have to be smooth yet assertive.
The new Bosch injectors have cured my hot start problem, smoothed out my idle and it runs much nicer when it's hot. I guess those original Multecs were well past it! It certainly feels stronger now. After pottering about in my Volvo S80 for 6 weeks it feels quite nippy!
Time for another update!
I polished it. By hand. That bonnet is big.
I went to Santa Pod for the first time to see the MOPAR Nationals last month. It was a friendly event and I liked walking around the paddock but it was weird having one strip of tarmac rather than a scenic race track to walk around! And I was totally unprepared for the noise a pro-mod dragster made...
Happily the ticket marshals sent us to the show & shine, saving our legs walking from the car park, even if my piece of 80's tat sat out of place with all the vintage MOPAR cars!
Couldn't resist this sign on the way home...
I bumped into another PH'er with a Boxster S in Tesco, so we took each other for a spin. The Corvette is 100kg heavier and packs 270nm more torque. He described it as "alarming" and I couldn't help but notice my car went faster on the straights and the corners. Ditto going to Queens Square when I was stuck behind a Cayman S...
Then it was on to the MOT. It's always a nervous time putting an old car through an MOT, especially if it's the first one and it's imported. I ditched the US style plates, fitted a rear fog and was rewarded with a clean pass aside from some play in the rear wheel bearings! Result!
Days later one of the headlight motors would keep turning. GM in their wisdom decided each light should have its own motor, powered by plastic gears. You can guess the rest. No sooner had I removed one pod, stripped the mechanism off, made some new bushings out of a nylon rod and realigned the whole assembly did the other one decide to do the same! I nearly threw my socket at a passing dog.
On the weekend it was back to Queens Square in Bristol, where I bought the car at the start of the year. It's always a fantastic meet-up and it was nice to bump into the previous owner again. I hope he thinks the car has gone to a good owner, he couldn't resist hanging around to hear it again. The car sits just right now it's lowered, see:
Next up is Retro Rides Gathering in two weeks, I'm booked up to take on the Shelsey Walsh hill climb. My rear tyres are pretty wasted already so there's no loss in having a few flamboyant runs. At the moment you can shift to second, finish off making lots of smoke and then start going forwards...
After not breaking it up the hill, mid-September will see me clogging it over to Spa for the 6 hours and then dossing about on the autobahn for a bit.
I polished it. By hand. That bonnet is big.
I went to Santa Pod for the first time to see the MOPAR Nationals last month. It was a friendly event and I liked walking around the paddock but it was weird having one strip of tarmac rather than a scenic race track to walk around! And I was totally unprepared for the noise a pro-mod dragster made...
Happily the ticket marshals sent us to the show & shine, saving our legs walking from the car park, even if my piece of 80's tat sat out of place with all the vintage MOPAR cars!
Couldn't resist this sign on the way home...
I bumped into another PH'er with a Boxster S in Tesco, so we took each other for a spin. The Corvette is 100kg heavier and packs 270nm more torque. He described it as "alarming" and I couldn't help but notice my car went faster on the straights and the corners. Ditto going to Queens Square when I was stuck behind a Cayman S...
Then it was on to the MOT. It's always a nervous time putting an old car through an MOT, especially if it's the first one and it's imported. I ditched the US style plates, fitted a rear fog and was rewarded with a clean pass aside from some play in the rear wheel bearings! Result!
Days later one of the headlight motors would keep turning. GM in their wisdom decided each light should have its own motor, powered by plastic gears. You can guess the rest. No sooner had I removed one pod, stripped the mechanism off, made some new bushings out of a nylon rod and realigned the whole assembly did the other one decide to do the same! I nearly threw my socket at a passing dog.
On the weekend it was back to Queens Square in Bristol, where I bought the car at the start of the year. It's always a fantastic meet-up and it was nice to bump into the previous owner again. I hope he thinks the car has gone to a good owner, he couldn't resist hanging around to hear it again. The car sits just right now it's lowered, see:
Next up is Retro Rides Gathering in two weeks, I'm booked up to take on the Shelsey Walsh hill climb. My rear tyres are pretty wasted already so there's no loss in having a few flamboyant runs. At the moment you can shift to second, finish off making lots of smoke and then start going forwards...
After not breaking it up the hill, mid-September will see me clogging it over to Spa for the 6 hours and then dossing about on the autobahn for a bit.
A couple of years ago (already?!) I went to the Spa 6 hours in my 924 Turbo, except the head gasket blew the day before and the transport ended up being my Dad's diesel Megane. Well, that was unfinished business so this year we went again in something less economical...
My itinerary was quite tight, I wanted to revisit the roads in Luxembourg before heading to Spa for the weekend, then drop into Gent on the way home. Starting from Cardiff, it's the drive to Dover that's always the worst. Luckily we managed to navigate the M4 & M25 without too much trouble and soon we were driving off the ferry in France. It was easy going until we got further south towards Luxembourg when the weather got a bit crappy and it started to get dark. With 500nm torque low down, the Corvette isn't most suited to wet mountain roads, especially when you've already driven 400 miles...
We made it to the hotel alright and I had some beers in the only hipster bar in Vianden. Not much fresher the next day we visited the castle, which I'd missed out last time I was passing through. After this it was time to head to Spa to collect our passes. Being close to Germany we managed 165mph on the sat-nav on the way. The car was very planted and felt like it sill had more to give, which surprised me! Having collected the passes we couldn't resist driving down to the circuit and having a quick look at what was to come over the weekend.
On Saturday the weather was so good I had to buy the cheapest hat (with feather) to stop getting sunburned! It looked like it might rain later in the day but miraculously the cloud passed over. This made the 6hrs extra enjoyable, as I could walk the paddock and a lot of the track to soak up the atmosphere rather than my clothes! All weekend we parked in the classic area by the new start/finish. There was some interesting metal there and best of all, a Land Rover Land Train. This was a free shuttle to the paddock going around all day. I bumped into a friend from home and met up with another who I used to work on a journal with which was cool. Oh and I ate my own body weight in frites & mayo.
Heading home we hit rush hour outside Brussels and then the car wouldn't start at the service station. It seemed like a heat soaked starter motor, as we had a slightly longer coffee break and it cranked nicely. This was the only foible in over 1000 miles of motoring at speed and a respectable 19mpg. Dover & back we got 24mpg at a steady motorway speed. The Corvette really impressed, it was very comfortable (if a little loud) and effortlessly pounded the motorways. Come the twisty sections, it was fun & engaging, a true all rounder. LHD and switchable imperial/metric instruments were also a massive bonus. I can't wait to do it again next year!
Luxembourg
Vianden
Arriving at Spa
My itinerary was quite tight, I wanted to revisit the roads in Luxembourg before heading to Spa for the weekend, then drop into Gent on the way home. Starting from Cardiff, it's the drive to Dover that's always the worst. Luckily we managed to navigate the M4 & M25 without too much trouble and soon we were driving off the ferry in France. It was easy going until we got further south towards Luxembourg when the weather got a bit crappy and it started to get dark. With 500nm torque low down, the Corvette isn't most suited to wet mountain roads, especially when you've already driven 400 miles...
We made it to the hotel alright and I had some beers in the only hipster bar in Vianden. Not much fresher the next day we visited the castle, which I'd missed out last time I was passing through. After this it was time to head to Spa to collect our passes. Being close to Germany we managed 165mph on the sat-nav on the way. The car was very planted and felt like it sill had more to give, which surprised me! Having collected the passes we couldn't resist driving down to the circuit and having a quick look at what was to come over the weekend.
On Saturday the weather was so good I had to buy the cheapest hat (with feather) to stop getting sunburned! It looked like it might rain later in the day but miraculously the cloud passed over. This made the 6hrs extra enjoyable, as I could walk the paddock and a lot of the track to soak up the atmosphere rather than my clothes! All weekend we parked in the classic area by the new start/finish. There was some interesting metal there and best of all, a Land Rover Land Train. This was a free shuttle to the paddock going around all day. I bumped into a friend from home and met up with another who I used to work on a journal with which was cool. Oh and I ate my own body weight in frites & mayo.
Heading home we hit rush hour outside Brussels and then the car wouldn't start at the service station. It seemed like a heat soaked starter motor, as we had a slightly longer coffee break and it cranked nicely. This was the only foible in over 1000 miles of motoring at speed and a respectable 19mpg. Dover & back we got 24mpg at a steady motorway speed. The Corvette really impressed, it was very comfortable (if a little loud) and effortlessly pounded the motorways. Come the twisty sections, it was fun & engaging, a true all rounder. LHD and switchable imperial/metric instruments were also a massive bonus. I can't wait to do it again next year!
Luxembourg
Vianden
Arriving at Spa
I've let this thread slip! Here's a little of what I've been up to... Sorry for a bit of a muddle of images and text, I'll do better this year.
Headlights started playing up again, this time the connections to the bulb. I bought a pair of replacements and some new H4 bulbs. Decent dipped & main beam once for the first time, wish I'd upgraded the bulbs before Spa.
Also on the agenda was replacing the tyres. The Falkens were bald on the back after a few thousand miles (oops) and I gambled on a set of Nankangs. It's hard to find 275/40/17 tyres and a set of these was the same price as one Michelin... I have to say next time I'll go mid-range again. Whereas before the car would stick with wide rubber all round, now it comes unstuck suddenly and has turned into a point and squirt machine. I'm not really bothered about wet weather performance as it's hardly a tame car in the rain anyway.
I went to Queens Square once again and bumped into Vesa, who'd I'd spoken to previously. He has a 1994 LT1 auto which he has just put back on the road. It was cool to see another C4 and interesting to note the differences between the two. Personally I prefer the sharper edges of mine, especially the rear. I'd take his sawblade wheels though and the interior falls into dated 90's rather than 80's plastic. I love the digital dash in mine though. Actually, I think every car looks best in its first iteration rather than the face lift, which always loses something from the purity of the original design.
I got some bargain 3 piece split rim wheels from Austria via eBay.de The RH ones I'd bought previously where 5x112 with 5x120 adaptors. This was no good as the Corvette has long studs not nuts and they protruded through the spacer into the wheel, as well as making the offset the wrong side of optimistic. These rims are made by Braid and called Folger Cup 4. I know Braid make some very nice wheels from my Porsche days and these are no exception. 17X10.5 on the rear and 17x9 up front should give a great stance and allow me to swap my tyres over from the stock 17x9.5 setup.
My soon to be neighbour in Cardiff has a cool car too
On New Years Eve I went on a tunnel run organised by PH South Wales. I think a flame spitting V8 was well received?
My girlfriend is a New Yorker and her brother kindly agreed to receive some parcels in the post for her to bring back after she visited at Christmas. He owns this rather tasty Audi:
A full set of quality weather seals was a £500 expense but should make all the difference to the overall look of the car and stop a nuisance leak. I've fitted the door ones so far but the others look more time consuming. There's no metal pinch built in, it's more like foam that has to be glued to the fibreglass body.
Then it started to get cold and I had the first actual failure in many miles of driving. The radiator started to leak. A short drive ended in some steam and I was fearing for the headgasket. A new radiator was only £160 posted from the US but it was with my mechanic and I didn't want to wait on postage. I sourced an excellent used replacement and all is well again! In the coming weeks I'll get the wheels fitted so if anyone is interested in the stock Corvette ones drop me a message.
It stills cleans up nicely after winter grime too!
The other thing I couldn't resist from the states was a set of louvres. I love the red rear lights but these are so retro!
Headlights started playing up again, this time the connections to the bulb. I bought a pair of replacements and some new H4 bulbs. Decent dipped & main beam once for the first time, wish I'd upgraded the bulbs before Spa.
Also on the agenda was replacing the tyres. The Falkens were bald on the back after a few thousand miles (oops) and I gambled on a set of Nankangs. It's hard to find 275/40/17 tyres and a set of these was the same price as one Michelin... I have to say next time I'll go mid-range again. Whereas before the car would stick with wide rubber all round, now it comes unstuck suddenly and has turned into a point and squirt machine. I'm not really bothered about wet weather performance as it's hardly a tame car in the rain anyway.
I went to Queens Square once again and bumped into Vesa, who'd I'd spoken to previously. He has a 1994 LT1 auto which he has just put back on the road. It was cool to see another C4 and interesting to note the differences between the two. Personally I prefer the sharper edges of mine, especially the rear. I'd take his sawblade wheels though and the interior falls into dated 90's rather than 80's plastic. I love the digital dash in mine though. Actually, I think every car looks best in its first iteration rather than the face lift, which always loses something from the purity of the original design.
I got some bargain 3 piece split rim wheels from Austria via eBay.de The RH ones I'd bought previously where 5x112 with 5x120 adaptors. This was no good as the Corvette has long studs not nuts and they protruded through the spacer into the wheel, as well as making the offset the wrong side of optimistic. These rims are made by Braid and called Folger Cup 4. I know Braid make some very nice wheels from my Porsche days and these are no exception. 17X10.5 on the rear and 17x9 up front should give a great stance and allow me to swap my tyres over from the stock 17x9.5 setup.
My soon to be neighbour in Cardiff has a cool car too
On New Years Eve I went on a tunnel run organised by PH South Wales. I think a flame spitting V8 was well received?
My girlfriend is a New Yorker and her brother kindly agreed to receive some parcels in the post for her to bring back after she visited at Christmas. He owns this rather tasty Audi:
A full set of quality weather seals was a £500 expense but should make all the difference to the overall look of the car and stop a nuisance leak. I've fitted the door ones so far but the others look more time consuming. There's no metal pinch built in, it's more like foam that has to be glued to the fibreglass body.
Then it started to get cold and I had the first actual failure in many miles of driving. The radiator started to leak. A short drive ended in some steam and I was fearing for the headgasket. A new radiator was only £160 posted from the US but it was with my mechanic and I didn't want to wait on postage. I sourced an excellent used replacement and all is well again! In the coming weeks I'll get the wheels fitted so if anyone is interested in the stock Corvette ones drop me a message.
It stills cleans up nicely after winter grime too!
The other thing I couldn't resist from the states was a set of louvres. I love the red rear lights but these are so retro!
Car time has been limited so far this year, having moved at the start of the month. This went smooth as a hedgehog. But I did get a tip off the mechanic I use that his friend might have a space in a garage nearby. A few days later and I had my half of a double garage around the corner! It's shared with a dormant Alfa, perfect for me to get my car in and out easily.
With the newfound roof overhead, I replaced the rear hatch solenoid. Unlike the 924's I've had previously, the Corvette doesn't have a key to open the rear screen. There's a button on the edge of each door and one in the centre arm rest. Unfortunately, my hatch wouldn't click open anymore! GM thought of this, and so there's a small wire pull hidden under the carpet in the boot. It's just a case of emptying whatever you have in the boot over the front seats, climbing in the back and trying to find the damned thing. Whilst I had the rear interior in bits, I took the opportunity to replace the rear hatch seal. This was the one I thought about leaving out of my order as it appeared in fair condition. Well, when I came to remove it, the seal fell apart into 3 pieces! How it was holding on I don't know. Keeping the new seal in one piece meant removing the rear hatch struts too and I was able to reminisce about weak hatch struts on the 924 as I tried to hold the hefty glass screen up without assistance!
Out with the old!
But the main reason for posting is that I have the new wheels fitted at last! The stock wheels on my car are 17x9.5 all round and these are 17x9 on the front and 17x10.5 on the rear, with a slightly more aggressive offset. I had the 275 40 17's swapped over and depending on your viewpoint, the fronts are a little over tyred or the rears a little under tyred. It's hard getting wide tyres in 17", ideally some 285 40 17's would look better on the rear or even some 315 35 17, which were fitted to the 11" wide ZR1 rims.
I think the tail light louvres will stay, I love the stance of the car now, shame you can't hear it
With the newfound roof overhead, I replaced the rear hatch solenoid. Unlike the 924's I've had previously, the Corvette doesn't have a key to open the rear screen. There's a button on the edge of each door and one in the centre arm rest. Unfortunately, my hatch wouldn't click open anymore! GM thought of this, and so there's a small wire pull hidden under the carpet in the boot. It's just a case of emptying whatever you have in the boot over the front seats, climbing in the back and trying to find the damned thing. Whilst I had the rear interior in bits, I took the opportunity to replace the rear hatch seal. This was the one I thought about leaving out of my order as it appeared in fair condition. Well, when I came to remove it, the seal fell apart into 3 pieces! How it was holding on I don't know. Keeping the new seal in one piece meant removing the rear hatch struts too and I was able to reminisce about weak hatch struts on the 924 as I tried to hold the hefty glass screen up without assistance!
Out with the old!
But the main reason for posting is that I have the new wheels fitted at last! The stock wheels on my car are 17x9.5 all round and these are 17x9 on the front and 17x10.5 on the rear, with a slightly more aggressive offset. I had the 275 40 17's swapped over and depending on your viewpoint, the fronts are a little over tyred or the rears a little under tyred. It's hard getting wide tyres in 17", ideally some 285 40 17's would look better on the rear or even some 315 35 17, which were fitted to the 11" wide ZR1 rims.
I think the tail light louvres will stay, I love the stance of the car now, shame you can't hear it
I'm surprised there's so much love for the old wheels, I'm not a fan. I like the sawblade style on the facelift C4's though:
I'm going to keep the old wheels just in case...
Personally I love the new ones, they're very period and similar to the Oz Mito's on the Callaway Corvette's
After going through a set of rear tyres in 5k, I decided to try the Nankangs. I've never had budget tyres before but my reasoning was:
The car is lively in the wet anyway, so I didn't care wet performance
A set lasted 5k
A Michelin is 4x the price
At the time I wasn't sure what wheels I would be using, so just wanted a legal tyre. Now I have the split rims on, I might change tyre size anyway and the Nankangs can go on the stock rims.
Of course the Nankangs are not as good, but does it spoil the enjoyment of the car? Is there £750 difference, or would I notice that in another aspect of the car?
I'm going to keep the old wheels just in case...
Personally I love the new ones, they're very period and similar to the Oz Mito's on the Callaway Corvette's
After going through a set of rear tyres in 5k, I decided to try the Nankangs. I've never had budget tyres before but my reasoning was:
The car is lively in the wet anyway, so I didn't care wet performance
A set lasted 5k
A Michelin is 4x the price
At the time I wasn't sure what wheels I would be using, so just wanted a legal tyre. Now I have the split rims on, I might change tyre size anyway and the Nankangs can go on the stock rims.
Of course the Nankangs are not as good, but does it spoil the enjoyment of the car? Is there £750 difference, or would I notice that in another aspect of the car?
I caught up with Practical Classics magazine last week as they toured Britain looking for the best classic cafe. Not sure they got the best impression of Cardiff, ending up in the docks next to a scrapyard. Although it was a fun little outing in between my night shifts and there was a good mix of cars. Whether mine is practical or classic I'm not sure!
I met up with a friend who has added some nice touches to his Boxster ( https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&... ) And Geraint's immaculate paint work motivated me to change the final weather seal. This has made a big difference in the appearance to my car. Then I took him through a tunnel and he made a little video...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDRakO2F0nc
I met up with a friend who has added some nice touches to his Boxster ( https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&... ) And Geraint's immaculate paint work motivated me to change the final weather seal. This has made a big difference in the appearance to my car. Then I took him through a tunnel and he made a little video...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDRakO2F0nc
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