Ken
Gone but not forgotten
Here is a book that will greatly assist the Black Book, it may even replace it. All C4 owners should run right out and buy it today!
From the Introduction:
From the Introduction:
I do not hold myself out to be a Corvette expert. I'm an enthusiast just like you, just one with the good fortune to have had a nice second-row seat as the C4 story unfolded from beginning to end. My goal in doing this book was to act as your eyes and ears in presenting the story, photographs, and specifications of what I think is an amazing series of automobiles.
Let me give a brief overview of this book's straightforward presentation. Its first chapter is Conception, which lays the historical foundation for the fourth-generation. This is followed by one chapter for each of the fourth-generation's thirteen model years. Four pages at the end of each model-year chapter are devoted to a condensed presentation of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers Association (MVMA) specifications for that model. The Appendix contains brief summaries of fourth-generation Corvette service bulletins.
Some words of caution about the MVMA material and the service bulletins. The MVMA is a trade association for domestic motor vehicle manufacturers and acts as a media source for the motor vehicle industry. MVMA Corvette specs were often made available at Chevy media events and I devoured the nitty-gritty detail these documents contained. Nine-tenths of a pound added to a 1988's weight by two-tone paint? I love it! But as I summarized the material for this book, I found there were quite a few inconsistencies and errors. Some were due to early plans which later changed - a fact of life in the car business-others appeared to be simple entry mistakes. I turned to my friend, John Amgwert - for twenty-five years the editor of The Corvette Restorer, the National Corvette Restorers Society's member magazine - for help. John has an incredible appetite for Corvette technical material and spent countless hours massaging this wonderful data base into shape. We corrected and qualified every item that appeared to require attention, but in the end we still relied heavily on the raw data provided to the MVMA. Additional errors could certainly be present.
The service bulletin summary in the Appendix is included mainly for historical reference. I've condensed original bulletins-in some cases ten or more pages long-to a few lines. This is not intended to assist a reader in servicing a vehicle. For that, the complete bulletin is needed. Even with a complete bulletin, specific technical skills are often required.
This publication is the first of a series of Corvette Specs books, one for each generation. If I've learned one thing writing and publishing the Corvette Black Book for a quarter century, it is that Corvette enthusiasts are an understanding, but demanding bunch. They understand that no publication can ever be 100% complete or 100% accurate. But they demand a 100%, ongoing effort. So all the books in this series will, like the fourth-generation Corvettes, continue to evolve. For that reason, I welcome your input. I look forward to hearing from you~by mail, electronically, or at Corvette shows. As always, I promise to listen.
Mike Antonick