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Getting dad's Corvette back on the road...


NickF1011

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Some background: my dad is a Vietnam vet who returned home in 1969. Upon his return, he used some of the money he had saved up while deployed to buy a new 1969 Stingray, Monza Red, 350 sbc (350 HP/380 lb ft torque), 4-speed manual. It was a daily driver for only a year or two, and as it was driven less and less it fell into more of a state of disrepair until around 2002 it was no longer driven at all. All said and done, it now still only has about 42,000 miles on it.

 

So, there it has sat in my parents' garage for the past 12 years...until this past weekend. My younger brother and I decided to take it upon ourselves to get the ol' girl back on the road for my dad.

 

This past weekend we started off doing an inventory of everything we think needs to be done (I'm sure we'll encounter surprises) and then got to work. We decided to tackle the brakes and wheels/tires first, as we didn't want a running car that couldn't roll or stop itself.

 

Here she is up on jack stands, ready to get to the brakes. We have new calipers ready to go on with new rotors and brake lines on order.

 

post-15254-0-48100100-1401202539_thumb.jpg

 

Here are the grimy old steel wheels in various states of before and after sandblasting to remove 45 years of rust, dirt, and brake fluid residue. Not too concerned about the final appearance, as long as they are clean enough for paint. The original hubcaps are going back over them anyway.

 

post-15254-0-19663200-1401202551_thumb.jpg

 

And there we are so far. Hope you'll enjoy following along as we continue the transformation!

Edited by NickF1011
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So we dug a bit into the fuel system yesterday. All the lines between the carb and fuel pump are basically garbage, so new ones are on order. Things are on hold now until the new parts arrive in a couple days.

 

On the good news front, after pulling the plugs, the crank spun freely with no effort, so no engine seizing to worry about! :yahoo:

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Man, check out them awesome bias plies! Only had to replace 'em once a year.

 

Haha for sure. To give you an indication of how long the car had been sitting on the "newer" tires, it was on 215/75/15 Michelin X tires. Michelin no longer makes the "X" and it doesn't appear that they make a single tire in that size at all anymore. :hysterical:

 

I ordered a set of timeless BFGoodrich Radial T/A's in 225/70/15 as replacements last night. Can't decide on whether or not to put the white lettering out or just display the blackwall side. Opinions?

Edited by NickF1011
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letters out. It's a '69, should look of the times, no?

 

Well, the original fitment was actually the red sidewall stripes as shown in the pics above. Suppose we could always try it one way and see how it looks. Not like mounting and balancing costs a whole lot.

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My step-dad has a 75 Stingray convertible 4 speed (same color). It's sat for the last 5 years and I'm thinking it may be about time to take it to the shop for "some love"

 

The longer you wait, the harder (and more expensive) it gets. I say go for it!

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Well if it's not one thing it's another. Got a call that they only had a couple BFG Radial T/A's in stock and that none will be available from BF Goodrich for likely 45+ days. :doh:

 

Discount Tire Direct worked with me and we went for some Cooper Cobra Radial G/T's instead. They were $40 cheaper a tire plus they threw in an extra $50 off for the trouble. Not what I originally wanted, but they made it right in my book. Well done, DTD.

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So we got into the brakes last night. New rotors and calipers are mounted...

 

post-15254-0-53906600-1401453121_thumb.jpg

 

But it's always one step forward and two steps back...

 

While bleeding them, the brake light switch striker snapped off the pedal assembly. Whoops. Doesn't look like too painful a repair, other than the lack of working room under the dash. Argh!!

 

 

But...it's still progress in my book!

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