1996 Collector Edition Corvette

Update your progress on your various car projects.

Moderators: MostMint, wxo, Fred32v, Basement Paul, ttamrettus

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wxo
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Re: 1996 Collector Edition Corvette

Post by wxo »

In the past, I have cut the tubing at the fitting on the exhaust header and used a socket to remove the fitting. Then I just screwed a plug in place of the fitting to close the hole. I've tried to remove the fitting on this engine and it wouldn't budge. It's rusted in and I can't get a wrench on it that will move it.
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wxo
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Re: 1996 Collector Edition Corvette

Post by wxo »

I just realized that what I've been calling EGR plumbing is really Air Injection Reactor plumbing. This car does not have EGR.
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GMJohnny
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Re: EGR or no EGR?

Post by GMJohnny »

wxo wrote:I'm on the fence about the EGR plumbing that is always in my way when I'm trying to fix something on this car. I'm tempted to rip it out, but I don't want to regret it later when I decide to sell it. Comments/votes?

It depends on on how hard it is to take out and re-install. If it’s a huge job leave it, if it can be
reinstalled easily, take it off. If you hate it and its function is nothing,I would take it out and
save it if that’s a possibility. I always like a clean look, removal gives you that.

GM
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wxo
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Re: 1996 Collector Edition Corvette

Post by wxo »

I'm going to think about removing this plumbing while I work on getting the intake back on and the engine running again. Thanks for your comments and advice. One thing at a time. I have to refocus.
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wxo
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Re: 1996 Collector Edition Corvette

Post by wxo »

Minor update: I'm ready to move in a positive direction once again. Intake is clean, gasket surfaces of the heads are clean, and bolts are clean.
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wxo
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Re: 1996 Collector Edition Corvette

Post by wxo »

Maverick stopped over today and we were looking over the current status of the LT4 project. I pulled out the new intake manifold gaskets I had bought and lined them up on the heads see how everything looked. The gaskets lined up and sat nicely in place on the heads, but I noticed that each port opening is not tall enough and intrudes on the airflow at the top of the intake port and would not have provided the proper seal in that area. It turns out that the FelPro gaskets I bought were listed to include LT4 engines, but they obviously did not fit correctly. I searched and found that GM has a special intake gasket for the LT4 (Part #12367777) along with Edelbrock (#7244). I have a set of the Edelbrock 7244's coming from Summit. I believe I have just dodged another bullet. No telling what kind of symptoms I would have to tackle with leaking intake gaskets.
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wxo
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Moving forward again

Post by wxo »

From my last update, the Fel-Pro intake gaskets didn't fit, so I ordered some Edelbrock 7244's for the LT4. They were better, but still not good enough to use. Finally, I ordered some GM 12367777's and they fit perfectly. They were of very high quality gasket material with locating pins that placed the gasket precisely on the head and held it there. Now, finally, I am ready to move in a positive direction again on this project. This morning, I spun the engine with the starter to circulate the oil and mix it with any residual gasoline in the engine internals. Then I changed to fresh oil.
Finally, I installed and torqued the intake.
IMG_3929.JPG
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wxo
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Re: 1996 Collector Edition Corvette

Post by wxo »

Another issue has popped onto my todo list. Maverick reminded me about this old recall https://www.corvetteactioncenter.com/te ... d-516.html that applies to my Vette. It's a very serious issue where the LT4 roller rockers can come apart and cause engine mayhem.

I have looked into ways of verifying if the work has been done, but a local dealer told me that I would have to find the dealer that sold the car originally and maybe they could help me. That's an old trail to follow and it will be much easier just to pull a rocker cover and check the P/N on the rockers. I did some research on the availability of a set of the GM rockers with the correct GM P/N, but, they too, are not to be found. I don't want to get too far out in front of this, so I'll just wait to see what is under the valve covers on my next garage workday...after the snow melts...when it warms up a bit more.
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wxo
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Re: 1996 Collector Edition Corvette

Post by wxo »

Today, I spoke with a service rep at the dealership in Winter Park Florida that originally sold my Vette in 1996. He attempted to access a GM recall database using my VIN and it returned no data. Too much time had passed. He did assure me, however, that the dealership, by law, would not have been able to sell the vehicle without fixing the recall. I'm going to go with that and move on.
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wxo
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Re: 1996 Collector Edition Corvette

Post by wxo »

Well, I'm trying to move on, but still curious about this recall issue, so I removed the right side rocker cover to see if I could put the issue to bed once and for all by finding a part number on one of the rocker arms. There are numbers visible on the top of rockers, but nowhere else. The numbers just deepen the mystery, though. They are not all the same. From left to right they are:
18-96 18-96 33-96 12-96 33-96 33-96 33-96 34-96
IMG_3931.JPG
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Basement Paul
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Re: 1996 Collector Edition Corvette

Post by Basement Paul »

I'm just guessing here, but I'm thinking those are date codes stamped on there (week/year). Using that logic, if they are older than the date the car was manufactured, you're probably good. Or, I'm totally full of crap, which is possible.

-BP
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MostMint
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Re: 1996 Collector Edition Corvette

Post by MostMint »

For a long time I've been pestered by the manufacturer sending notices for any car that has an open recall. Problem is I can't recall when that started. I feel like its possible that started by the mid 90's but I don't know.

Might have to do some digging on when that started.
[quote="Basement Paul"]Is that a mint rocketship on the hood?? :shock:
-BP[/quote]
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wxo
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Build date

Post by wxo »

Silvia's build date on the door sticker is 1/96.
And, BP, a guy on the CorvetteForum agrees with you about the numbers being week/year markings.
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wxo
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Goodby Secondary A.I.R system

Post by wxo »

I had a very satisfying day in the garage today. After 5 days of applying Sea Foam Deep Creep to the AIR fittings on the exhaust manifold, I was able with some struggle, to unscrew the fittings and remove the plumbing intact without cutting anything. I also removed the electric AIR pump and pulled the fuse. I have two M22 plugs coming from Amazon and I have a block off plate to fabricate before I can mark this done. This AIR plumbing has been in my way since I started working on this car. Good riddence :evil:
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wxo
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Retractable headlights

Post by wxo »

The headlight motors on this car have been disconnected since I brought it home. In my spare time, of course, I search YouTube for solutions to future problems. One of the videos I found was this one https://youtu.be/RBCrYvslp_o?t=616. It describes a cheap fix for a very common problem with C4 headlight motors, so I decided it would be a good bet to remove a headlight and tear it apart to see what it looks like inside the motor housing. Here's what I saw >>>
IMG_3933.JPG
It's just as the video described. The fix is to get a piece of Delrin plastic rod and cut three small sections to replace those that had disintegrated inside the housing. The Delrin rod is coming next week from eBay. I can't wait to make the repair, get it back in the car and watch it flip.
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