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Login to post Forums » Grassroots Motorsports » Guess we won't take the Corvette to Sonoma tomorrow

June 4, 2010 10:53 p.m. BoxheadTim Dork

Mmrpf. Owned for a bit more than three weeks, thought I had already caught up on most of the deferred maintenance...

Aaanyway, my wife and me are planning to go to the Sonoma Historic Motorsports Festival tomorrow and it looks like we'll be taking her Jeep instead. Corvette seems to have lunched its smog pump, I have no tools here (yet) and didn't have the time to find a vaguely trustworthy mechanic here either.

Ah well, I'll be flying back to the UK on Tuesday and I guess the basic tools will go into the luggage instead of the container...

Oh, and did I mention that I finally noticed that the check engine light wasn't lighting up before starting the engine? Ooops. Better find out on Sunday if that's only a burnt out bulb or a curiously missing one...

Given the number of cars I've owned, I really should've figured this car buying thing out by now.
June 4, 2010 10:59 p.m. Kia_racer HalfDork

BoxheadTim wrote:

Given the number of cars I've owned, I really should've figured this car buying thing out by now.

Why? This keeps the mystery alive. It is all about the chase after all. Otherwise you would have stopped a while ago.
June 4, 2010 11:08 p.m. BoxheadTim Dork

... and bought a brand-new minivan. Yeah, I hear you.

Still, I hate being somewhat short of working vehicles.
June 4, 2010 11:24 p.m. patgizz SuperDork

after the original smog pump died on the 91 we put on a parts store brand lifetime one. it died like clockwork every year. after replacing it 5 times i bought the delete pulley and eliminated it.
June 5, 2010 12:04 a.m. BoxheadTim Dork

I kinda figured the smog pumps aren't the most robust, given that pretty much every Corvette specialist has them in stock...
June 5, 2010 9:57 a.m. unevolved Reader

I feel like a questionable purchase every now and then is the hallmark of a true enthusiast.
June 5, 2010 10:55 a.m. benzbaron HalfDork

The smog pump seized on the mercedes before, it is a piece of junk. The original had plastic vanes and they move in and out in the smog pump housing. Well if anything gets hung up, spinning plastic + metal casing = broke smog pump. The metal ones failure mode is rust seized but they are easily taken apart and lubed.

The only issue with not running the smog pump would be lower catalyst life.
June 5, 2010 3:23 p.m. Helterskelter Reader

Do not pack tools in your luggage unless you are prepared to lose them.
June 5, 2010 3:48 p.m. Duke SuperDork

BoxheadTim wrote:

I kinda figured the smog pumps aren't the most robust, given that pretty much every Corvette specialist has them in stock...

Hey, at least when it dies it doesn't take out an expensive Ferrari V12 by stopping one camshaft dead in its tracks at about 5500 rpm... unlike my father's friend's car.
June 5, 2010 3:54 p.m. dean1484 Dork

What year Corvette is is? I have one from a C5 some place. I would let it go cheep as I don't think I will be needed it any time soon.
June 5, 2010 4:17 p.m. poopshovel SuperDork

Guess we won't take the Corvette to Sonoma tomorrow

No offense, but my first thought, considering I'll be driving my rusty 87 civic to work all weekend, was "Well boo berkeleying hoo."
June 5, 2010 4:44 p.m. MedicineMan New Reader

how hard is a belt change? When mine crapped out I was in the middle of moving (of course) I took a length of rope and fished it through the pulleys...tied as tight as I could and matched one up at the local box auto parts place. (Behind the counter they have a measuring device that no one apparently knows about...) Any way I sold the car 3 years later with the same belt on it!
June 5, 2010 11:32 p.m. BoxheadTim Dork

Helterskelter wrote:

Do not pack tools in your luggage unless you are prepared to lose them.

Unfortunately it's either luggage or container, with the latter arriving early August...

dean1484 wrote:

What year Corvette is is? I have one from a C5 some place. I would let it go cheep as I don't think I will be needed it any time soon.

1987 C4 (the one in my profile). Not sure if that's the same pump or not...

MedicineMan wrote:

how hard is a belt change? When mine crapped out I was in the middle of moving (of course) I took a length of rope and fished it through the pulleys...tied as tight as I could and matched one up at the local box auto parts place. (Behind the counter they have a measuring device that no one apparently knows about...) Any way I sold the car 3 years later with the same belt on it!

The problem is more changing the pump with no tools that how hard the belt change is...

unevolved wrote:

I feel like a questionable purchase every now and then is the hallmark of a true enthusiast.

"Questionable purchase" is kinda my middle name. Even when I've done the research and all that.
June 6, 2010 9:50 a.m. mad_machine SuperDork

is the smog pump driven by a belt you can get with with just cutting?
June 6, 2010 10:05 a.m. Helterskelter Reader

Tim, I think you'd probably be better off buying an inexpensive craftsman kit to get you by and sending your tools in the container (and on the plus side, then you have a set to toss in the truck or go junk-yarding with). Unless of course you already have a beater set you do not mind losing. For that matter, always carry-on valuables. Good luck w/ the corvette.
June 6, 2010 11:01 a.m. BoxheadTim Dork

mad_machine wrote:

is the smog pump driven by a belt you can get with with just cutting?

Serpentine belt, so I can't just cut the belt.

Helterskelter wrote:

Tim, I think you'd probably be better off buying an inexpensive craftsman kit to get you by and sending your tools in the container (and on the plus side, then you have a set to toss in the truck or go junk-yarding with). Unless of course you already have a beater set you do not mind losing. For that matter, always carry-on valuables. Good luck w/ the corvette.

Good point, I've only got a single set of tools and a lot of those say Snap-On or Bluepoint on them (courtesy of ebay).

That said, I've had vaguely valuable camera lenses in the luggage before and they didn't go missing. Only thing that ever went missing in six years of flying back and forth was a CD.
June 6, 2010 1:08 p.m. pigeon HalfDork

Lowes has a 40 piece basic ratchet/socket set, SAE or metric, currently on sale for $19.xx (through today June 7). My local store was sold out or I'd have a set of the SAE ones in my garage now.
June 6, 2010 1:21 p.m. 4cylndrfury SuperDork

unevolved wrote:

I feel like a questionable purchase every now and then is the hallmark of a true enthusiast.

QFMFT!
June 6, 2010 2:00 p.m. dean1484 Dork

The C5 unit is electric powered. Get the delete kit and use a C5 unit that way it if fails you don't have to be side lined.. . . Or get a shorter belt????? Or take the pump out gut it? Did this on the RX a couple times and it actually passed the emissions test with better numbers. Go figure.
June 6, 2010 3:51 p.m. Tyler H Dork

4cylndrfury wrote:

unevolved wrote:

I feel like a questionable purchase every now and then is the hallmark of a true enthusiast.

QFMFT!

+1. I'm glad I'm not alone here.
June 6, 2010 4:53 p.m. dj06482 Reader

unevolved wrote:

I feel like a questionable purchase every now and then is the hallmark of a true enthusiast.

This should be in the magazine!
June 6, 2010 6:40 p.m. 92dxman HalfDork

In reply to pigeon:

Home Depot has a 40 or 45 piece set like this for $14.98

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