Thread: Chevette blues

Tweet

Originally Posted by rspears

Yeah, if it was a numbers matching '72 or earlier Impala, Biscayne, Corvette or Camaro but a Chevette? Sorry, but that's a personal passion that not many will share. Power to you, but restoring a '87 Chevette to original condition just doesn't excite me.

Or a CORVETTE.

Originally Posted by NTFDAY

Or a CORVETTE.

Ken,
It said,

...if it was a numbers matching '72 or earlier Impala, Biscayne, Corvette or Camaro....

Grab another beer?

Just kidding, Ken, just kidding!

That's funny stuff!

Today I thought I had the electrical straight, but I forgot to check the wipers.

Yep, Nope. So wipers are next to troubleshoot.

Today I fixed the back up lights and fan blower (same fuse) and the blinkers.

Dug through the stash and found a headlight (halogen even) got it in. Needs new adjusters. The screws are rusty and plastic fragile. Headlights clearly angled badly.

Picked up trans seals front and back, hope they fit.

Using the clear paint instead of resin for fiberglass seems to be a win.

Soaking in vinegar to remove light corrosion is a win.

Check engine light is on for ever. I pulled the bulb then realized if ever i wanted to look at codes, I think it's the check engine light that blinks. So I put it back.

Calling a chevette a vette is tantamount to calling a mid 60's Chevy II a deuce, pure blasphemy.

Originally Posted by firebird77clone

Remember that I could have done signal checks to the ecu? Now it seems like a good idea. .

At least when I stop banging my head off the wall... the pain stops too!

Originally Posted by rspears

This is the stuff that I picked up, medium thick plus activator.
-

Was there some hidden meaning with the stack of newly sharpened knives as a back drop? Freudian slip perhaps? rotflmao!!

Originally Posted by 34_40

Was there some hidden meaning with the stack of newly sharpened knives as a back drop? Freudian slip perhaps? rotflmao!!

Nope, no hidden meaning or Freudian slip for me. Just a countertop space without regard for the background! If that's Freudian then I'll yield to Dr Freud!

hi again guys

No end to the amusement.

Water coming in when it rains.

Passenger side front floorboard and driver side rear.

Front might be windshield, I ran some clear roofing sealant, we'll see. Rear driver's, IDK.

I'm thinking two things:

One: I understand the interior rust.
Two: a cover would help. I used one for my 78 firebird. It was the only car in the parking lot not rusting.

Originally Posted by NTFDAY

Calling a chevette a vette is tantamount to calling a mid 60's Chevy II a deuce, pure blasphemy.

Or like a four door nomad?

I had one of those too.

Oh, also, the fuel guage is fixed. I dropped the tank completely convinced the sending unit was bad. Turned out it was just the ground. But it did get the dirt cleaned off the tank.

I pulled the speedometer and gave it a few drops of turbine oil to quiet it down. It helped some. Maybe a few more miles will work the oil in better.

Almost ready to use it for daily commute. I'm super excited to see what milage it gets.

Ok, more adventures with the 'vette.

I had a gentleman ask can it make it to HotLanta (2 hr drive) and he'll buy it when he comes through next week.

(I'll believe it when I see it)

Anyway I got s bit of free time, do I looked at the smog pump which I thought was rattling. Nope, it was the water pump. How the he'll there can be so much play in the impeller shift and it not leak is beyond me.

So I ebay a NOS pump and take a quick look at the factory manual to see what im up against:

#1 set engine to TDC compression #1


NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

Who the hell puts the water pump behind a timing belt?!

So, belt, front seal, install tool are on the way, pump arrived today and is in.

Which brings me to the point:

In the process I was able to see that the cam sprocket had slipped retarded one tooth, which explains the abysmal acceleration.

Is there a way to diagnose cam timing without physically looking at the timing marks (AKA tearing stuff apart)?

Originally Posted by firebird77clone

Ok, more adventures with the 'vette.

In the process I was able to see that the cam sprocket had slipped retarded one tooth, which explains the abysmal acceleration.

Is there a way to diagnose cam timing without physically looking at the timing marks (AKA tearing stuff apart)?

I don't know if there is room for it but, you might bolt a degree wheel to the crank and fashion a pointer with a wire hanger... you can find'em on Jegs or Summit.

Originally Posted by firebird77clone

Is there a way to diagnose cam timing without physically looking at the timing marks (AKA tearing stuff apart)?

I may not understand the problem, but isn't it just getting #1 to TDC Compression, removing the old timing belt, aligning the marks on the crank & cam gears with reference marks and sliding a new belt back in place?

Originally Posted by firebird77clone

.........Who the hell puts the water pump behind a timing belt?!...............

Can't help much with the Chevette timing issue( I do think Roger is correct), but having the water pump driven by the timing belt is very common on overhead cam engines. I first ran across it on an early 80's Ford Escort engine (also the first time I ran into torque to yield head bolts). I think the 3.5 V6 that was in my wife's Charger had the same setup. That's why it is recommended to change the water pump when you change the timing belt(s). I do agree that it just makes things more difficult for the mechanic. What should just be a quick job becomes an ordeal, but it is cheaper for the manufacturer.

The only thing I can say about the timing issue is that all of the engines I have changed belts on (and that ain't many) have had marks on or near the timing cover that the pulleys have to point to to be considered in time.

I looked a bit more for specifics on your '78 Chevette and it appears that there is a Quick Check hole in the cam sprocket that aligns with a hole in the front cover when the crank timing mark is aligned at #1 TDC. Later pictures call out a "lock bolt" where the '78 diagram says "Quick Check Hole" but you may find it's threaded to allow a bolt to hold the cam in position? Link to Pic - https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=...AAAAAdAAAAABAI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cO1aeFeDro Pretty straight forward.