Rough Running 327/365

[thaus65]

I am the new owner of 65 convertible 327/365, 4 speed no air, power anything w/#'s all matching original knock-offs's and side exhaust that has been run about 200 miles over the past several years. I am just in the process of investigating and repairing the few items I've found...

I would appreciate your thoughts and guidance in a few areas:

1. Starts easily and idles about 1,000 RPM but during acceleration starts to miss and cut out at 3,000 RPM. I'm in the process of replacing the plugs, wires and coil. Checked out the fuel filter, changes all the fluids and am starting to order some additional parts.

2. While driving around over 1,500 RPM the shifter rattles extremely bad! Is there a rebuild kit or is replacement required? Also, is this an indicator of a loose transmission or engine?

3. The only non-original part I've found are the seat belts which I want to replace with originals... Also the drivers seat has a torn seam and I want both seats rebuilt and covered - any recommendations?

I've been scanning the board and have picked up a lot of valuable info, thank you in advance.

 

[Sams '66]

I am the new owner of 65 convertible 327/365, 4 speed no air, power anything w/#'s all matching original knock-offs's and side exhaust that has been run about 200 miles over the past several years. I am just in the process of investigating and repairing the few items I've found...

I would appreciate your thoughts and guidance in a few areas:

1. Starts easily and idles about 1,000 RPM but during acceleration starts to miss and cut out at 3,000 RPM. I'm in the process of replacing the plugs, wires and coil. Checked out the fuel filter, changes all the fluids and am starting to order some additional parts.

2. While driving around over 1,500 RPM the shifter rattles extremely bad! Is there a rebuild kit or is replacement required? Also, is this an indicator of a loose transmission or engine?

3. The only non-original part I've found are the seat belts which I want to replace with originals... Also the drivers seat has a torn seam and I want both seats rebuilt and covered - any recommendations?

I've been scanning the board and have picked up a lot of valuable info, thank you in advance.

Welcome!
Have fun........this is a GREAT info source..

 

[studiog]

Since you have no other comments here is my 2 cents. As far as cutting out at 3000 rpms don't overlook the distributor and carburetor as possible culprits also.

Seat covers and new foam are available from Corvette Central, Paragon Reproductions and Ecklers... all have web sites.

Welcome and congrats on your Vette purchase.

 

[WayneC]

Corvette Central sells a rebuild kit for the shifter (and other vendors may, as well). Your first 2 purchases for your new Corvette should be a shop manual and an AIM (assembly Instruction Manual).

 

[IH2LOSE]

2. While driving around over 1,500 RPM the shifter rattles extremely bad! Is there a rebuild kit or is replacement required? Also, is this an indicator of a loose transmission or engine?

Congradulations on the purchase and welcome to the forum.I have a 1966 vette and I get a small vibration/rattle/feeling in my shifter and consider it normal it matches the harmonics of the motor and trans(is harmonics the correct word).I figure it is the trans and the motor just doing there thing.It is nothing objectionable or anoying it.The hardest part of rebuilding one is getting the old one off then readjusting it.

Best of luck and post some pictures of it when you get a chance

 

[Dave65]

I agree with Wayne that you should have the shop manual and AIM. Al Knoch is considered a good source for interior parts. Wally Knoch (his brother?) is a member of this site.

If your car is as original as you say you may want to talk to someone from the NCRS (there is a Des Moines area chapter) who may be able to provide some advice on what to do with the car to maintain/enhance its value and enjoyment - your choice.

My 2 cents.

Dave

 

[Mikey1]

I´m havin a 365 horse baby as well....

My recommendation would be to replace the points with an electronic ignition like the pertronix or breakerless. I had this problem as well and it was related to the points.

The idle speed should be about 800 rpm for the solid lifter engine.

How does it rev up ? Is it kinda hesitating ?

 

[thaus65]

I´m havin a 365 horse baby as well....

My recommendation would be to replace the points with an electronic ignition like the pertronix or breakerless. I had this problem as well and it was related to the points.

The idle speed should be about 800 rpm for the solid lifter engine.

How does it rev up ? Is it kinda hesitating ?

It rev's steady, only when driving do I get the hesitation, miss and even occasional backfire. I will investigate the electronic ignition. Thanks

 

[rwd]

It may not be necessary to replace the entire distributor. Mallory has a Unilite module that installs inside a stock distributor housing and replaces the points. It runs about $90, and I think it's still made. They're relatively easy to install and are very reliable.

 

[rwd]

The fact that it behaves differently under load/no load conditions isn't really revealing, and if you don't have a dwell meter, that'd be a place to start. You can also visually inspect the points, clean the contacts and reset them. Also, check the base plate on which they sit for movement.

 

[myonnone]

If your distributor is in unknown condition you should carefully look at its advance characteristics. A problem in this area can cause your hesitation issue. I would also want to assure myself that the carb is running right. A rebuild of the carb may be in order as well.

 

[ctjackster]

I own a 65 365 correct roadster too.

before jumping off and ditching the current and correct ignition system (breaker points) read up first on that choice here and on other C2 heavy forums. Myself, I would urge you to keep it as is. Certainly freshen up the points with the correct-spec points for you engine, you will see that your higher-revving engine will have special needs in many areas, this is one of them. Borg-Warner A112HP are correct for your application, higher tension on the arm for avoidance of jumping at higher revs.

I am not sure of the state of things in your engine compartment, if things are old and crusty, or Bubba-d up, you may wish to consider digging a little deeper into your distributor and ensuring that the weights and the breaker plate twist freely, gunk removal is good here, gobbing lots of oil or WD40 all over the place is not. Also consider putting in correct wieghts and springs, and if unsure, get a correct-spec vacuum can - NAPA/Echlin VC1810 is correct spec there for your L76. Once you can confirm that you have the correct points, vac can, weights and springs in there, it will rule these items out if your problems persist. And at that point, you will be persistanly asked if you have set the dwell and timing correctly, get thyself a dwell meter and a dial back timing light now if you do not have one. For me, I found the bes advice was to set my timing at that point where it stops climbing (3500 or so rpms), vac can disconnected, at 38 degrees. Hence the need for a dial back light. JohnZ and Duke have both been tremendously helpful in this area.

Please also post what carb is on there now, while yours origianlly came with a Holley list 2818, the sky's the limit for what may have found its way onto your engine in the last 40 years, and it may be relevant to your current problems.

Shifter rattles for stock 4 speeds shifters is dead on normal, you can consider a Hurst PerformacePlus shifter unit in time if you find the operation of the unit unacceptable.

Your 1000 rpm idle is high, if things are running right you should be able to idle at 800 (factory spec is 700?) with no problem, and nice sound too.

If you are going to be doing all of this yourself, definitely get (1) an owners manual, perfect repros on ebay for $12; (2) a shop manual, you need the 1963 manual and the 1965 supplement; and (3) an Assembly Instruction Manual (the "AIM") which will tell you how everything "goes together" since many unkind or unknowing hands have been at work on your car since 1965.
oh, and Welcome Aboard to the land of midyears!

 

[thaus65]

I own a 65 365 correct roadster too.

before jumping off and ditching the current and correct ignition system (breaker points) read up first on that choice here and on other C2 heavy forums. Myself, I would urge you to keep it as is. Certainly freshen up the points with the correct-spec points for you engine, you will see that your higher-revving engine will have special needs in many areas, this is one of them. Borg-Warner A112HP are correct for your application, higher tension on the arm for avoidance of jumping at higher revs.

I am not sure of the state of things in your engine compartment, if things are old and crusty, or Bubba-d up, you may wish to consider digging a little deeper into your distributor and ensuring that the weights and the breaker plate twist freely, gunk removal is good here, gobbing lots of oil or WD40 all over the place is not. Also consider putting in correct wieghts and springs, and if unsure, get a correct-spec vacuum can - NAPA/Echlin VC1810 is correct spec there for your L76. Once you can confirm that you have the correct points, vac can, weights and springs in there, it will rule these items out if your problems persist. And at that point, you will be persistanly asked if you have set the dwell and timing correctly, get thyself a dwell meter and a dial back timing light now if you do not have one. For me, I found the bes advice was to set my timing at that point where it stops climbing (3500 or so rpms), vac can disconnected, at 38 degrees. Hence the need for a dial back light. JohnZ and Duke have both been tremendously helpful in this area.

Please also post what carb is on there now, while yours origianlly came with a Holley list 2818, the sky's the limit for what may have found its way onto your engine in the last 40 years, and it may be relevant to your current problems.

Shifter rattles for stock 4 speeds shifters is dead on normal, you can consider a Hurst PerformacePlus shifter unit in time if you find the operation of the unit unacceptable.

Your 1000 rpm idle is high, if things are running right you should be able to idle at 800 (factory spec is 700?) with no problem, and nice sound too.

If you are going to be doing all of this yourself, definitely get (1) an owners manual, perfect repros on ebay for $12; (2) a shop manual, you need the 1963 manual and the 1965 supplement; and (3) an Assembly Instruction Manual (the "AIM") which will tell you how everything "goes together" since many unkind or unknowing hands have been at work on your car since 1965.
oh, and Welcome Aboard to the land of midyears!

I see a stamp on both ends of the Holley 28181 with 4094 on one end and 4099 the other. I adjusted the idle down a bit and while manually accelerating I saw gas bubbling in, dripping and other bad things - so my next project is carb rebuild. The last carb I rebuilt was on a 340 Plymouth Duster in 1977. I look forward to the fun... Any watch outs!!!

 

[ctjackster]

that stamp you see on the Holley is likely 4099 in both instances; although I am hard-pressed to conclude that it is a date code because a 4-digit date code is in the format of day of year (first three digits) followed by year (last digit). I understand that this format sometimes flipped around though, so perhaps that is a date code for a 64 or 74 service replacement Holley, built on the 99th day of the year (I say service replacement because a 4-digit date code essentially rules out the possibility that your 2818-1 Holley is original to the car, in the event you are interested in that topic).

here is a picture of the area in question from a Ford-oem Holley for a 428 Cobra Jet (sorry folks, I happen to have this one handy):

Lots of info on Holley rebuilding available; should probably steer clear of non-Holley kits, don't assume the correct jets are in there now, make sure the base has not warped, etc.

 

[allcoupedup]

I think the 4099 and 4094 stamps you are seeing identify the meetering blocks and off the top of my head they seem correct for the 2818. The date code will be on the airhorn - right under where it says list 2818-x. You can see it in this picture if you squint:

 

[ctjackster]

leave it to my friend allcoupedup to at least post up a Vette-Holley! But, for the record, mine had all of the info explained on the photo itself !

 

[Tom65L76/96LT1]

I am the new owner of 65 convertible 327/365, 4 speed no air, power anything w/#'s all matching original knock-offs's and side exhaust that has been run about 200 miles over the past several years. I am just in the process of investigating and repairing the few items I've found...

I would appreciate your thoughts and guidance in a few areas:

1. Starts easily and idles about 1,000 RPM but during acceleration starts to miss and cut out at 3,000 RPM. I'm in the process of replacing the plugs, wires and coil. Checked out the fuel filter, changes all the fluids and am starting to order some additional parts.

2. While driving around over 1,500 RPM the shifter rattles extremely bad! Is there a rebuild kit or is replacement required? Also, is this an indicator of a loose transmission or engine?

3. The only non-original part I've found are the seat belts which I want to replace with originals... Also the drivers seat has a torn seam and I want both seats rebuilt and covered - any recommendations?

I've been scanning the board and have picked up a lot of valuable info, thank you in advance.

Welcome This is a great source of info and just a lot of real nice people. You mentioned your 65 needed original seatbelts,if your interior is Blue i may be able to help you,i have 2 sets of originals that i bought for a 66,sold the car,belts are just collecting dust on the shelf,if you have any questions or would like to see pictures my email address is Pologreen96vette@aol.com Tom in Apple Valley Minnesota

 

[JohnZ]

As pointed out earlier, don't make any assumptions about the condition or what may be inside the distributor or carburetor - lots of weird things happen over nearly 40 years. Do the basics of 60's tune-up before you do anything else (dwell, timing, points, condenser, rotor, dist. cap condition, correct wire indexing, condition of plug wires, plug condition and heat range, verify correct operation of centrifugal and vacuum advance systems, check for vacuum leaks, etc.), and go from there. People do all kinds of weird things and make substitutions over the years, most of which is done without knowledge of how things were designed to work originally. Lash the valves correctly, adjust idle mixture, check out the accelerator pump function, replace the fuel filter, and check the rubber fuel hoses at the tank outlet and fuel pump inlet for kinks, cracks, etc. These cars ran like gangbusters when they were new, and most will still do that IF they're set up correctly and the distributors are functioning properly. Start with the basics before you start modifying things.

 

[thaus65]

Just wanted to thank everyone for the great advise. I rebuilt the carb(twice), replaced the plugs,wires,rotor,cap,points,fuel filter,fuel pump and the car is running great. I found out NOS parts are expensive!!!

Since I've rebuilt the clock, headlight system and a great guy from Minn. sold me a set of seatbelts which I plan on installing once I get the seats recovered (Covers/Foam from Corvette America on the way).

My next projects are spare wheel and lock, replace the ammeter, entire jack kit with hold downs along with repair of a hole in the floor. Then comes the body with a few cracks around the door. Any suggestions on a good Corvette body shop in Iowa???

Thanks again..

 

[allcoupedup]

Is it running properly? What did the trick?