Help! Choke light

[Shannon]

Hi, first wanted to introduce myself being a new member. I just purchased (traded) for my first corvette this month. I have always wanted one so when the opportunity came along I went for it. I'm active duty USAF stationed in Utah, so my driving season is a short one. What is amazing is that my son (13) has suddenly become interested in working on cars, or should I say this 81 corvette. I previously had a F150 w/ 12" of lift and 38" tires w/ all the bells and whistles but he wasn't interested in the work I was constantly doing on it. So, me getting to spend additional time w/ him has been the most rewarding part to date. I am excited seeing him get excited about working on it. I made the first project a simple one to get started. Changing every fluid in the vehicle, giving it a good once over top to bottom and redoing the interior. I didn't care for the silver/gray so I changed it to black/silver. Came out fairly nice. The problem I am currently having is the choke light is staying on-once I found that it was disconnected. I figured it might be the electronic choke but I have also seen posts referring to the choke heater relay. the repair manual I have does not address any choke malfunctions. Before drilling out the choke, ordering a new one and replacing it I thought maybe someone on here might have had the same problem previoulsy and could offer some advice on the troubleshooting. Thanks for reading.

 

[Peer81]

Hello Shannon,

Welcome to the L81 forum! As you know THE place to meet fellow L81 owners and enthusiasts! Nice to hear the sudden interest from your sun in this car, nice that you can do things together from now on.

On the choke light, to be honest I'm not that much into chokes at this time but I think the relay controls your choke and thereby your light. I would say try to find the relay and check it or replace it. It could be that your light is always on because the choke is always on. (this could be a broken bi-metal from the choke). But I hope others have a better idea then this. Good luck!

Groeten Peter

 

[6880 Mike]

...(this could be a broken bi-metal from the choke)...

If memory serves, the 81 chokes are electric. The assembly instruction manual (AIM) will show the relay if there is one. Ditto for the GM Chassis and Service Manual.

Do you have a diagnostic reader? If the choke is acting up, it will almost certainly post an error code in the computer.

 

[bill81vette]

welcome to CAC!!!
If memory serves,the choke lite also works with something else...
I'll have to look and see what it was...

 

[Peer81]

Sorry, no bi-metal but there is a spring inside the choke "thing"

Groeten Peter

 

[pbcanney]

i would throw a VOM on the choke wire first before taking a drill to it to check for voltage

 

[Shannon]

After checking voltage and finding it at the choke I thought the fuse would have to be good but after further inspection the fuse is blown. Since I don't have the wiring diagram I am not sure how the wiring works w/ voltage at the choke, but after changing the blown fuse everything works as advertised. Just didn't know the choke worked off its own fuse. That is what getting a new car and learning it is all about. Thanks for all the help and replies.

 

[Evolution1980]

Glad to hear you got it sorted out!
Be sure to pop into the New Member Introduction section and say "Hi!" to the entire group of CAC'ers!

One thing you'll find mentioned often is "Have you looked in the AIM?" (as referenced above). While they are relatively pricey, they are an excellent on-hand reference when working on your car. You take that along with asking questions here and there is little doubt you'll get a solid working answer. And usually pretty quickly too!

Welcome to the

 

[Evolution1980]

A little addendum...I've just been edified relative to my previous post...

Being kind of picky here but, the GM Shop Manual is probably the better of the 2 (AIM) between the GM Shop Manual verse's the Assembly Instruction Manual esp. for trouble shooting anything other than sticker placement, locating components and general things like Seat assy, etc..

The shop manual for the 1981 is GM ST-364-81 and is the more expensive of the two. The AIM is a reproduction and can be bought for around $20 - $25 while the shop manual can go as high as $70 on ebay and more, but usually you get one for around $55 or so... ( I have 3 Shop Manuals, and 2 AIM's)