Last Poster #7

[Dirty Dog]

A friend of mines older brother had a Plymouth super bird, that looked very similar, when they were new.

his looked like this

Do you see what I mean about the proportions being off?

I saw one of these at a light last Thursday

The new C8 is incredible. The Z06 will be available in 2023, and as usual it will come with a substantial HP bump. From 495 HP to 670 HP. And their have been test mules sighted that lead you to think there will eventually be an AWD gas/electric hybrid available.
Excuse me while I go wipe my chin.

 

[Xue Sheng]

Do you see what I mean about the proportions being off?

Yes I did, that is why I posted the actual super bird

The new C8 is incredible. The Z06 will be available in 2023, and as usual it will come with a substantial HP bump. From 495 HP to 670 HP. And their have been test mules sighted that lead you to think there will eventually be an AWD gas/electric hybrid available.
Excuse me while I go wipe my chin.

It is am impressive looking car, but when I think Corvette I still think 1982 Corvette and older. After that, to me, they start looking more like a European sports car.

And I saw something awhile back about electric and all wheel drive.

The only Corvette I have ever driven was a white 1980 back when I was a mechanic

 

[Dirty Dog]

It is am impressive looking car, but when I think Corvette I still think 1982 Corvette and older. After that, to me, they start looking more like a European sports car.

I go a bit further. I think the urethane bumpers and hatchback on the later C3 are gross. I very much prefer the earlier versions. And with the top off and the rear glass removed from the notchback, you essentially get a convertible with the hardtop's rigidity.
My absolute dream car would be an early C3 body dropped onto a modern chassis. There are companies that make the chassis to do this, but they cost around $30,000. So I'm not thinking that'll happen.
There's a '72 available near me that is just a rolling chassis. The engine is blown. The paint is faded. The interior is tired. I'm considering buying it and swapping in an LS and a 6 speed. Nothing insane like the LS3 in my C5. I don't need two stupid-fast cars.

 

[Flying Crane]

The new C8 is incredible. The Z06 will be available in 2023, and as usual it will come with a substantial HP bump. From 495 HP to 670 HP. And their have been test mules sighted that lead you to think there will eventually be an AWD gas/electric hybrid available.
Excuse me while I go wipe my chin.

I’ve seen a bunch of those in my area. They just kinda look like a Lamborghini.

 

[Xue Sheng]

I go a bit further. I think the urethane bumpers and hatchback on the later C3 are gross. I very much prefer the earlier versions. And with the top off and the rear glass removed from the notchback, you essentially get a convertible with the hardtop's rigidity.
My absolute dream car would be an early C3 body dropped onto a modern chassis. There are companies that make the chassis to do this, but they cost around $30,000. So I'm not thinking that'll happen.
There's a '72 available near me that is just a rolling chassis. The engine is blown. The paint is faded. The interior is tired. I'm considering buying it and swapping in an LS and a 6 speed. Nothing insane like the LS3 in my C5. I don't need two stupid-fast cars.

Older the better IMO. My favorite Corvettes are 1958 to 1967. But I also like the 1953 to 1957. but my favorites all fall between 1958 to 1967

 

[Dirty Dog]

I’ve seen a bunch of those in my area. They just kinda look like a Lamborghini.

You say that as if it's a bad thing...
When you design a bunch of cars for maximum performance, there are going to be certain traits they share. Aerodynamics and balance matter. But it's really not the least bit difficult to tell them apart, if you're a car guy.
The original designer of the Corvette, Zora Arkus-Duntov (yes, it is necessary to genuflect when saying his name), always wanted it to be mid-engine. Because that is the best way to build a performance car. The corporate stooges at GM (may they rot in hades for all eternity) objected.

Older the better IMO. My favorite Corvettes are 1958 to 1967. But I also like the 1953 to 1957. but my favorites all fall between 1958 to 1967

The first and second gen cars are lovely. The '63 split window is one of the most recognizable cars ever. But their performance was... lackluster... at best. And at this point, modernizing one will result in a lynch mob of the chalk-mark restoration folks showing up at your door.

 

[Xue Sheng]

You say that as if it's a bad thing...
When you design a bunch of cars for maximum performance, there are going to be certain traits they share. Aerodynamics and balance matter. But it's really not the least bit difficult to tell them apart, if you're a car guy.
The original designer of the Corvette, Zora Arkus-Duntov (yes, it is necessary to genuflect when saying his name), always wanted it to be mid-engine. Because that is the best way to build a performance car. The corporate stooges at GM (may they rot in hades for all eternity) objected.

The first and second gen cars are lovely. The '63 split window is one of the most recognizable cars ever. But their performance was... lackluster... at best. And at this point, modernizing one will result in a lynch mob of the chalk-mark restoration folks showing up at your door.

Lynch mob is a bit much don't you think....more like a firing squad

There is no questioning the performance advantages of the new Corvettes over the older Vettes, but to me, after 1982, they started gradually moving away from corvette and gravitating towards European sports cars (Lamborghini) until today, IMO, they are more European sports car than American muscle. I'm not berating them, they are impressive, but to me, the old school guy/mechanic (back when we still rebuilt stuff) it just is not a Corvette anymore

 

[Dirty Dog]

Lynch mob is a bit much don't you think....more like a firing squad

Or both...

There is no questioning the performance advantages of the new Corvettes over the older Vettes, but to me, after 1982, they started gradually moving away from corvette and gravitating towards European sports cars (Lamborghini) until today, IMO, they are more European sports car than American muscle.

But the Corvette was never intended to be a muscle car. A muscle car, pretty much by definition, will kill you if you try to turn a corner. Ask anyone who has seen a Mustang leave a car show...
The 1st and 2nd gen Corvettes were as much like European sports cars of the day as today's is.

Small, light, two seaters built more for handling than acceleration.

I'm not berating them, they are impressive, but to me, the old school guy/mechanic (back when we still rebuilt stuff) it just is not a Corvette anymore

We do still rebuild stuff.

 

[Xue Sheng]

Or both...

But the Corvette was never intended to be a muscle car. A muscle car, pretty much by definition, will kill you if you try to turn a corner. Ask anyone who has seen a Mustang leave a car show...
The 1st and 2nd gen Corvettes were as much like European sports cars of the day as today's is.

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Small, light, two seaters built more for handling than acceleration.

We do still rebuild stuff.

Mechanics don't rebuild stuff much anymore, heck, they don't even turn disks for breaks on a lath anymore. No more points, distributor caps, carburetors ...sheesh.... bunch of pansies

I still am not a fan of the vette, as impressive as it is, after 82..it just fell into the cookie cutter auto world where all cars start to look alike...and as for the mustang... what ford did to that with the EV, is blasphemous

 

[Dirty Dog]

Mechanics don't rebuild stuff much anymore, heck, they don't even turn disks for breaks on a lath anymore. No more points, distributor caps, carburetors ...sheesh.... bunch of pansies

My local shop will still turn rotors if your brakes break and don't brake properly. And without breaking the bank, too.
Losing the points, distributor and carb are all good things. Getting rid of them is partly why modern engines are more powerful, more efficient, more reliable, more drivable and just plain better. I run the Vette on pump gas. Premium, but thanks to not having those stone age components, it'll adjust if I did have to put cheap gas (ok, there's no such thing as cheap gas - call it low octane) in. And I have total control over the tune without even getting dirty.

I still am not a fan of the vette, as impressive as it is, after 82..it just fell into the cookie cutter auto world where all cars start to look alike...and as for the mustang... what ford did to that with the EV, is blasphemous

The 1st and 2nd gens were cookie cutters too.
You're 100% right about Ford using the Mustang name on a freaking minivan. Mustang owners already get picked on enough.

 

[Buka]

Yes I did, that is why I posted the actual super bird


It is am impressive looking car, but when I think Corvette I still think 1982 Corvette and older. After that, to me, they start looking more like a European sports car.

And I saw something awhile back about electric and all wheel drive.

The only Corvette I have ever driven was a white 1980 back when I was a mechanic

That opened my eyes. The only Corvette I've ever driven was a 1980, white Corvette on Cape Cod.
It was WAY too much car for me.

 

[Xue Sheng]

My local shop will still turn rotors if your brakes break and don't brake properly. And without breaking the bank, too.
Losing the points, distributor and carb are all good things. Getting rid of them is partly why modern engines are more powerful, more efficient, more reliable, more drivable and just plain better. I run the Vette on pump gas. Premium, but thanks to not having those stone age components, it'll adjust if I did have to put cheap gas (ok, there's no such thing as cheap gas - call it low octane) in. And I have total control over the tune without even getting dirty.

The 1st and 2nd gens were cookie cutters too.
You're 100% right about Ford using the Mustang name on a freaking minivan. Mustang owners already get picked on enough.

View attachment 28612View attachment 28613

I know the advantages of the changes, I also know that those changes make it really hard for new mechanics to diagnose things like bad rotor or cap...it does not sow up on a computer and tell you its bad....like I said..sissies... and the if you saw a 1st and second generation corvette, you know it was a corvette...today,, not so much

 

[Xue Sheng]

That opened my eyes. The only Corvette I've ever driven was a 1980, white Corvette on Cape Cod.
It was WAY too much car for me.

I was a mechanic when I drove one, I was working on it. Because of the raised wheel wells (fenders) it made me feel like I was driving in a tunnel. These days, they sit way to low for me (knees and hips)... I like the SUV and 4x4 height

 

[Buka]

I was a mechanic when I drove one, I was working on it. Because of the raised wheel wells (fenders) it made me feel like I was driving in a tunnel. These days, they sit way to low for me (knees and hips)... I like the SUV and 4x4 height

I like that height in a vehicle, too.

When I was young and even more stupid than I am now, I was driving my Plymouth Valiant to Cape Cod at two o'clock on a Wednesday morning. No traffic, top speed on the car was 92mph, but it took three or four minutes to get up to that speed.

I was going 92 when I got a blowout. My car went all over the place, I thought I was done for. That's the last time I drove over seventy mph, ever. And that was a way long time ago.

When I drove that Corvette, man it went fast very quickly. I immediately took my foot of the gas. Too much car for me, way too fast for me.

Those kind of fast cars are for you crazy/fun guys, not me, no sir.

 

[Xue Sheng]

I like that height in a vehicle, too.

When I was young and even more stupid than I am now, I was driving my Plymouth Valiant to Cape Cod at two o'clock on a Wednesday morning. No traffic, top speed on the car was 92mph, but it took three or four minutes to get up to that speed.

I was going 92 when I got a blowout. My car went all over the place, I thought I was done for. That's the last time I drove over seventy mph, ever. And that was a way long time ago.

When I drove that Corvette, man it went fast very quickly. I immediately took my foot of the gas. Too much car for me, way too fast for me.

Those kind of fast cars are for you crazy/fun guys, not me, no sir.

Cars that scared me most, one was a Datsun 240Z I was the passenger and my friend decided to race the mustang that passed him on 495, all I can say is at 140 the over passes go by like gaurd rails... that car was way to small for that kind of speed, never road with him again, surprisingly he totaled the car a week later. The other I was also not driving, was a Vega a friend of mine dropped a 327 chevy engine in...that was way to much engine for that car. We went airborne over railroad tracks... I never road with him again. But the car with the most power, that scared me that I drove was a 1970 Chevelle SS with a 396, to much car for me. But then a YZ125 a guy I meant had, who raced for team Yamaha ,was WAY to much motorcycle for me, he let me drive it...to much power for 2 wheels. Drove that on the million dollar dirt pile near Saugus...once and only once

 

[Dirty Dog]

That opened my eyes. The only Corvette I've ever driven was a 1980, white Corvette on Cape Cod.
It was WAY too much car for me.

Really? The most powerful engine you could get in the 1980 Corvette was 220 HP, and most were sold with 180 HP engines. With 180 HP, 0-60 times are measured with a sundial.
If you're ever in my neck of the woods, I'll take you for a ride in my '99.

I know the advantages of the changes, I also know that those changes make it really hard for new mechanics to diagnose things like bad rotor or cap...it does not sow up on a computer and tell you its bad....like I said..sissies...

Ummm... it doesn't show up because they don't exist. Modern engines use a reluctor mounted on the crank, which is way way way more accurate than a distributor, as well as being far more flexible and easily adjusted (by which I mean better, of course). If a misfire develops, instead of spending hours tracking down which cylinder is involved so you can then start figuring out what the problem is, you know exactly which cylinder(s) are involved.
With the primitive stone age technology you're talking about, you're stranded if your coil goes out. Which happened a lot. Thanks to coil packs and coil-on-plug technology, a coil going bad just means you have a misfire. You can still drive home on the remaining cylinders. And since you will already know not only that it is a coil (code P0351) but also which cylinder (P0301, P0302, P0303...) it can be fixed in 5 minutes or less.
And carburetors? A carbed car can leave my house (5500 feet) and drive up Pikes Peak (14,000 feet) and it wouldn't be a shock if it had to stop part way up for an adjustment because it's running incredibly rich. Off roading? Carburetors don't handle extreme angles well at all.

and the if you saw a 1st and second generation corvette, you know it was a corvette...today,, not so much

Every bit so much.

Those cars are no more similar than the 1st gen examples I posted.
Yes, form follows function, but it's really not the least bit difficult to differentiate which is which.

Maybe you're getting old and your eyes are going? Happens to all of us...

 

[Xue Sheng]

Really? The most powerful engine you could get in the 1980 Corvette was 220 HP, and most were sold with 180 HP engines. With 180 HP, 0-60 times are measured with a sundial.
If you're ever in my neck of the woods, I'll take you for a ride in my '99.


Ummm... it doesn't show up because they don't exist. Modern engines use a reluctor mounted on the crank, which is way way way more accurate than a distributor, as well as being far more flexible and easily adjusted (by which I mean better, of course). If a misfire develops, instead of spending hours tracking down which cylinder is involved so you can then start figuring out what the problem is, you know exactly which cylinder(s) are involved.
With the primitive stone age technology you're talking about, you're stranded if your coil goes out. Which happened a lot. Thanks to coil packs and coil-on-plug technology, a coil going bad just means you have a misfire. You can still drive home on the remaining cylinders. And since you will already know not only that it is a coil (code P0351) but also which cylinder (P0301, P0302, P0303...) it can be fixed in 5 minutes or less.
And carburetors? A carbed car can leave my house (5500 feet) and drive up Pikes Peak (14,000 feet) and it wouldn't be a shock if it had to stop part way up for an adjustment because it's running incredibly rich. Off roading? Carburetors don't handle extreme angles well at all.

Every bit so much.

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Those cars are no more similar than the 1st gen examples I posted.
Yes, form follows function, but it's really not the least bit difficult to differentiate which is which.

Maybe you're getting old and your eyes are going? Happens to all of us...

I'm not saying it was better, I am saying if a mechanic gets a classic car in front of him these days, chances are they cannot figure out what the issue is because there is no code and a computer will not tell them what is wrong. I am fully aware of the advantages of today's cars, I am saying most can't fix a classic because many mechanics today are more computer technician, followed by swapping parts. Call it stoneage tech if you will, it was a heck of a lot more fun to work on IMO, and required more thought and actual troubleshooting. But then IT has gone the same exact way in my tine in IT.

 

[Dirty Dog]

I'm not saying it was better, I am saying if a mechanic gets a classic car in front of him these days, chances are they cannot figure out what the issue is because there is no code and a computer will not tell them what is wrong.

Maybe this is a local phenomenon, because it doesn't match up with my experiences.

 

[granfire]

I put my chickens in their pen

 

[Xue Sheng]

It is a rather nice day today, I even started by going to the Y and working out, had not done that in a while...2 knee surgeries and a pandemic ago actually. And you know what I discovered.... I lost a lot of strength and I'm in horrible shape as it applies to stamina and strength that is.... even after losing 17 pounds... but at least my diet is good..... and DON'T start on me with the whole bacon thing and my lack of it....