Decisions...

[Vettefan87]

Well guys I am sure you are tired of hearing me complain, but it I can't help it. For some reason I just don't "enjoy" driving my car as much as I used to. I have had way to many problems then I should have and they are still not over. The lazy throttle response makes me want to puke every time I drive it. The headers I have seen no gain at all from them, and the list goes on and on. My buddy called me with the VR4, and told me he just raced the one guy I work with who has the 89 TTA. (The setups they are both running will yield them low 12's to high 11's per what they tell me which I don't doubt considering how fast there cars are.) The VR4 is running stock boost which is 12 with capabilities of 24, and said he stuck even with the TTA to 100mph.

My whole post here is I am seriously considering selling my vette, and getting something else. I thought about getting a GN before my vette, and almost regret it know. Sorry to say it, but I am almost at the end of my rope fellas. It is almost to much stress to take at 17 and have your pride and joy run like crap. I just don't know what to do anymore. I guess I will check the TPS and I don't know see if the full exhaust with some added back pressure helps, which I doubt...

 

[hAZcAT]

Work through the bugs, and keep going. when you have the car running right, it will be worth it.

 

[Vettefan87]

But that is the point. I don't know where the bugs are... I thought I calibrated my TPS voltage all the way, but am unsure. What is the correct way to do it? Would the IAC have anything to do with lazy throttle? I am going to clean the MAF with brake cleaner tomorrow and possibly descreen it.

 

[Jeb]

Did I read it correctly? You're 17?

That's much too young to have a heart attack over a car, even a Vette. Take a step back, a deep breath, and relax.

It'll all work out and when you're 18, you'll laugh at this.

 

[Edmond]

I know how you feel but in a different way. Mechanically, my car is sound and it pulls like crazy. But I need cosmetic work and I wouldn't be satisfied with the power being that we're in a HP war of sorts.

Yes, I can take care of the problems but just by the age of the car, other problems are going to come along and I'm tired of fixing stuff.

I've made the decision to sell. I just haven't gotten off my lazy butt to list the car.

I'm going to get an LT4.

 

[Vettefan87]

I am almost in the same boat as Edmond. The motor went out due to neglect by the previous owner, then one shop screwed me over for a rebuild twice. The motor has been rebuilt three times. There should not be this many problems on a vette with a little over 50 thousand miles. All my friends have faster/nicer cars then mine. I could deal with my paint being all scratched up if it would run the way it should, which it does not.

 

[tnovot]

I am almost in the same boat as Edmond. The motor went out due to neglect by the previous owner, then one shop screwed me over for a rebuild twice. The motor has been rebuilt three times. There should not be this many problems on a vette with a little over 50 thousand miles. All my friends have faster/nicer cars then mine. I could deal with my paint being all scratched up if it would run the way it should, which it does not.

Screw me once, shame on you; screw me twice, shame on me.

This is what you want to hear or you would not have asked the question:
My advice is to sell this car. You will never be happy with it. You have had bad experiences with this car and feel cheated and fooled into buying a Vette. You will always be worried that your friends have faster cars.

Buy something that you can race your friends on the street with (and beat them). If you are still alive at an older age (say 30+) where pride in car ownership does not rely soley on speed, then buy another Vette.

 

[Vettefan87]

Screw me once, shame on you; screw me twice, shame on me.

This is what you want to hear or you would not have asked the question:
My advice is to sell this car. You will never be happy with it. You have had bad experiences with this car and feel cheated and fooled into buying a Vette. You will always be worried that your friends have faster cars.

Buy something that you can race your friends on the street with (and beat them). If you are still alive at an older age (say 30+) where pride in car ownership does not rely soley on speed, then buy another Vette.

You obviously did not see my last post, that in the last sentence I said "I could deal with my paint being all scratched up if it would run the way it should, which it does not."

You know I really take offense to that statement. I love telling people I drive a Corvette, most can't believe it, but why is a 17 year old kid on his first car having more problems with it then people that are 50+ and butt loaded with money??

You can ask anyone I don't have any speeding tickets/reckless driving etc... on my record for both cars I have. If killing myself was the option, it would have already happened, the car is plenty fast enough for that. If you don't have anything positive to say then please keep your comments to yourself.

 

[GeorgeT]

You obviously have soured on this car. Sell it as fast as you can! If you like Corvettes, get another one. Any motor that has had three rebuilds in 50,000 miles has major problems. If you want to keep this car, get a crate motor and replace the one that is now in the car.


Remember: Life is too short for aggraviting cars; there are too many great ones waiting to be enjoyed.

GT

 

[Edmond]

I am almost in the same boat as Edmond. The motor went out due to neglect by the previous owner, then one shop screwed me over for a rebuild twice. The motor has been rebuilt three times. There should not be this many problems on a vette with a little over 50 thousand miles. All my friends have faster/nicer cars then mine. I could deal with my paint being all scratched up if it would run the way it should, which it does not.

Is this Justin or Craig? I know it's one of you guys.

For me, it's the opposite. I think the car was painted from bubba from the last owner. It was fine until recently and took some time for the paint to come off. I don't want to deal with paying $3,000+ for a paint job.

The paint is a factor along with me wanting more power. I can put more power to the car but I would have to replace so many other things because the car wasn't designed to handle the type of power I would have it make.

I feel ya, man.

 

[tnovot]

You obviously did not see my last post, that in the last sentence I said "I could deal with my paint being all scratched up if it would run the way it should, which it does not."

You know I really take offense to that statement. I love telling people I drive a Corvette, most can't believe it, but why is a 17 year old kid on his first car having more problems with it then people that are 50+ and butt loaded with money??

You can ask anyone I don't have any speeding tickets/reckless driving etc... on my record for both cars I have. If killing myself was the option, it would have already happened, the car is plenty fast enough for that. If you don't have anything positive to say then please keep your comments to yourself.

Vettefan-

Sorry that you took offense to my comments. Maybe you are too young to know what the term “tongue in cheek” means.

However, I do stand by my advice to sell the car. You are obviously upset and unsatisfied with it. I agree with Jeb that you are far too young to get stressed out by a car. There are more important things in life (which I hope you have a long and happy one).
Terry

 

[vetteboy86]

I think the main reason he wants to sell is because of the hoops he has jumped through with this car. It is a low mileage convertible. It is tighter then my car, steering and cornering wise. The interior is better, but my exterior is nicer. Mine runs better with almost 100 fold the miles.

So I say to him, if he wants to sell then sell it. However I know the trouble we went through to find the car that he wanted. It is still a fresh motor, so procharging is always an option, which I would do if my motor was still young.

The biggest problem is the guys running around with cheap horsepower. The days when a V-8 and cubic inches meant something is gone. Today, any 4 or 6 cylinder that has a turbo, is just faster. The Grand National is a prime example. When introduced it kicked the vett's ass, that is probably why the pulled it from the lineup.

Who do we turn to, I have considered buying computer software for the cars. But the problem is the price, and the lack of knowlege as to knowing what works best. The trial and error approach has passed, and we need some answers.

He could take the car and sell it and be money ahead if he bought a newer coupe. But I know he likes the color, and having a convertible, and the digital dash, is not an option on a LT-1 car. So where are the trade offs. Nobody can tell him what to do, but I will continue to offer options. I dont have a problem working on his car, but it seems that his car is needing more attention these days then my three put together.

I am sure we will nail it down in the near future if he decides to keep the car. We are to the point of looking for vacuum leaks, checking sensor outputs, and the whole fuel pressure issue. One buy one, we are narrowing it down, but it will take time.

I hate to say it guys, but lets face it, in today's world it doens't mean anything to drive a vette. That is unless you too also drive a vette. To the normal person, it is just another car, and to a young kid with turbo's you are another slow car. Only the small group of owners know what it is to own one of these cars, and even then I think that light is fading too.

Well have a good weekend guys, and remember to wave

Craig (vettefan's brother)

 

[wishuwerehere82]

Have you considered enrolling in an Auto tech class at school? That way you could do all of your own work on the engine and have a good feel about what was done and what to do next. I was 17 once, and lived for the next day at Auto shop. My buddies were building dune buggies and rebuilding Chevy small blocks left and right. You have a good project car to improve with your own hands and could be getting class credits for it too. There's nothing like the feeling of ripping into your own motor and making it fast!

There are a lot of good books on rebuilding the Chevy small block that are in the bookstores if you want to self-teach. The idea is that you will do the work yourself instead of being at the mercy of somebody else and paying for the experience.

 

[cjs2]

I hate to say it guys, but lets face it, in today's world it doens't mean anything to drive a vette. That is unless you too also drive a vette. To the normal person, it is just another car, and to a young kid with turbo's you are another slow car. Only the small group of owners know what it is to own one of these cars, and even then I think that light is fading too.vettefan's brother)

I have to STRONGLY disagree with that statement. Everyone I talk to when I tell them I have a Vette is in awe. And these are people who are not in to cars. Sure, they don't talk for hours on end about it with me like some of my "car" buddies do, but they still think it is impressive. So my car does not have the power the newer vettes have or even some other cars on the road, but I personally don't care about that. The thrill for me is opening my garage and seeing the car sitting there, knowing I can drive it whenever I want. My car turns a lot of heads when I drive down the street. Haven't seen a Turbo charged rice burner do that (unless it has one of those annoying exhaust systems on it).
When I was 17, I was very jealous of the cars my friends had. They always had nicer cars then I did. But as time went on, I was able to buy the better cars and now I am the envy of them all because I have a Corvette (it only took 13 years, but they are finally jealous of me!!!). I can't tell vettefan to sell it or keep it, but what I can say is if you sell it, in a couple years you may regret it. If you keep in, in a few weeks you may regret it... Kind of a catch 22 if you ask me!

But good luck whatever you decide to do.

 

[354RwHpLT4CE]

I think the main reason he wants to sell is because of the hoops he has jumped through with this car. It is a low mileage convertible. It is tighter then my car, steering and cornering wise. The interior is better, but my exterior is nicer. Mine runs better with almost 100 fold the miles.

So I say to him, if he wants to sell then sell it. However I know the trouble we went through to find the car that he wanted. It is still a fresh motor, so procharging is always an option, which I would do if my motor was still young.

The biggest problem is the guys running around with cheap horsepower. The days when a V-8 and cubic inches meant something is gone. Today, any 4 or 6 cylinder that has a turbo, is just faster. The Grand National is a prime example. When introduced it kicked the vett's ass, that is probably why the pulled it from the lineup.

Who do we turn to, I have considered buying computer software for the cars. But the problem is the price, and the lack of knowlege as to knowing what works best. The trial and error approach has passed, and we need some answers.

He could take the car and sell it and be money ahead if he bought a newer coupe. But I know he likes the color, and having a convertible, and the digital dash, is not an option on a LT-1 car. So where are the trade offs. Nobody can tell him what to do, but I will continue to offer options. I dont have a problem working on his car, but it seems that his car is needing more attention these days then my three put together.

I am sure we will nail it down in the near future if he decides to keep the car. We are to the point of looking for vacuum leaks, checking sensor outputs, and the whole fuel pressure issue. One buy one, we are narrowing it down, but it will take time.

I hate to say it guys, but lets face it, in today's world it doens't mean anything to drive a vette. That is unless you too also drive a vette. To the normal person, it is just another car, and to a young kid with turbo's you are another slow car. Only the small group of owners know what it is to own one of these cars, and even then I think that light is fading too.

Well have a good weekend guys, and remember to wave

Craig (vettefan's brother)

I hate to tell you this,but if you are looking to get your car running sub-12 second quarter miles,without spending ALOT of dough,you bought the wrong car.If you want reality,there it is....I am sorry,I dont mean to be harsh,or to hack on L-98 owners but there is a pecking order.You can build an L-98 to run like an LT-1,An Lt-1 to run like an LT-4,LT-4 to LS-1,LS-6,and now the LS-7.Newer technology is just that.I bought a car that already had 13,000 dollars worth of mods already done to it.And I am still modding it.Almost to the point where power adders are needed to gain anymore power(blowers,turbos,NOS).....And its just barely faster than a 2003 Zo6 with a K&N and exhaust.(Low twelve second quarter mile times).But I am comparing apples to apples(or vettes to vettes)Your friends didnt buy 11 second four bangers from the factory,I am quite sure they have spent alot of money and time on them initially.(purchase price and/or mods).There is no such thing as CHEAP horsepower.WRX's are 20,000 plus,twin turbo Mitsu's..same-SRT4's,you name it the initial cost was more than your car.Work out the bugs on your car and put a nitrous kit on it.That should put you in the high twelves,low thirteens.But dont be upset when it breaks.Your buddies cars will break too,but I guarantee when they eat a turbo,they will be reaching alot deeper in their pockets than you.And when they chase you into a curve,watch them fall back before you into the curve,while you barely brake,then accelerate thru it.Cheer up bro,and save up for a blown Zo6 like the rest of us.

 

[THORIN]

Its funny how people look at things differently. I would be be so pleased to be able to drive mine. It is in such sorry state that I don't even want to start it, let alone drive it. In a couple of weeks it will be going to another shop for more work. So if yours runs well enough to get you from point A to point B. Be happy. I know it is our nature to want more, bigger, better, But don't let that take away from what you do have.