Reverse Lights Pages Is Up!

Well, I've been on a little break from working on the car lately to spend more time hanging out with my wife and to just relax.  I did work on the door last weekend for a while (getting them cleaned up from rust).  I also did a little investigation into the alarm system after getting all the new wiring harness in.  Happy to say, the power windows now work with the new harness, and so does the "dome" light.  While investigating the alarm system, I accidentally set it off with my multimeter probe.  And yes, the horn still works!

I've been gearing up to finish the doors and interior repair.  Have to finish treating the rust in the doors before I can finish the wiring, and I have to finish the wiring before I can put the dash back together.  This part has just been slow going.  I've got the parts to do a complete emergency/parking brake rebuild, so that will probably be my next project once I'm done with this one.

I did end up getting the DeWitts aluminum radiator with electric fans when they were on sale.  It's freaking awesome!  It's so light that my wife can easily pick up the entire box...  Also on the way is a 55 GPM electric water pump.  With all these parts going electric, I will be needing to get a new alternator.  It's also possible that I may need to change out my v-belts and pulleys for something else because of clearance issues.  We'll see...

Anyway, I finally got around to putting together a page for a project I did in the early fall last year.  The idea was to put reverse lights in the car because it didn't really have any since tail lights had been converted to "bubble lens".  Check out the page for more info.

Wiring Trouble

So a couple months ago when I attempted to put the car back together after insulating the front section, I ran into problems with the power windows no longer working.  Did some checking and the no power was coming out the ACC or IGN lines on the fuse panel.  I disconnected everything and checked the wires.  Couldn't find any problems, but it still wouldn't work.

If you talk to anyone working on an old car, one of the first things they say to do is to check the electrical.  The 35+ year old wiring was not meant to last this long.  Chances are you have breaks you can't see, oxidized wires, and broken or corroded connectors.  I check out a bunch of connectors and they were all very corroded.  Rather than to chance an electrical fire and eliminate old issues, I ordered a complete set of wiring harnesses (except power windows and A/C because those are small ones I can easily check/fix).

Now that the insulation is done, I've been installing the new harnesses.  Anyone wanting to do the engine harness of a 1975 Corvette needs to check the starter solenoid connector before connecting up the harness.  The connector on my new harness was the opposite gender of the original.  It plugs into a small extension that's unique to the 1975 (pictured below).  Other years have this extension with the same connectors but it's much longer and without the heat shielding.  Be sure that if the manufacturer changes the harness gender that they can provide you with a new extension.  I'll be sure to post this information on the wiring page once I create it.

Sneak peek at current project

So I got the last set of insulation that I need for the car today.  It was on back order for a couple weeks otherwise I would have had it all in before New Years...

Anyway, I finished up the rear section of insulation (front was done a while ago), so I thought I'd share what it looks like right now.  I'm not going to go into details about what I did just yet for the insulation, but lets just say it's going to be a much more comfortable ride.  The last section missing insulation are the doors.  Once I get them done, I'll take a full picture of the car.  I'll also put together a page of what I used, why I did each step, and how I actually did the insulation (plus notes on issues I ran into).  But for now, enjoy a few pictures...

Yes, I realize I went a little overboard, but honestly you can't go wrong isolating noise and heat from your car.  It makes for a more pleasant ride...  And yes, there are two different kinds of insulation there (I'll cover that later with pros/cons).

Discovered New Problem

So I was working on the wiring the other night and saw that radiator fluid was sitting on top of the intake manifold.  It appears that the thermostat gasket is leaking.  There are some oil and transmission fluid leaks that was going to have fixed once I get this thing back together, but getting a car that runs hot and has leaking radiator fluid to the mechanic is going to be a problem.  Luckily it's only going to cost like $15 total to fix the leak (replacing the thermostat too as recommended by a friend).

Fixing the leak will force me to drain the radiator.  I was going to replace the radiator later this year for an aluminum direct-fit, and that was going to make me get new fluid.  So it doesn't really make sense to replace the radiator fluid twice in one year.  I was going to post on Corvette Forums about the situation for some suggestions and saw a posting by a well-known Corvette radiator manufacturer.  It turns out that they're going to be running a sale on the 15th on this month.  With the sale, getting their kit will save me $600-$700 on the upgrade over getting the replacement from a Corvette catalog or JEGS.  So, after discussing with the wife, I will be starting the radiator upgrade sooner than planned.

Quick Status Update

Alright, I know I haven't posted on here for a bit, so I thought I'd tell you what's coming up.  I kind of bit off a big chunk of work for my current project. Taking things apart and really good sales around Thanksgiving turned a small project of adding a sensor to the front end into a mammoth undertaking.  Fiberglass repair has been postponed until this is complete.  The projects I'm currently working are:

• Interior insulation (waiting on final shipment of material)
• Rewiring
• LED light conversion
• Vinyl repair/restoration
• Carpet replacement (waiting on insulation and wiring to be finished)
• Interior rust removal
• Parking/Emergency brake repair/rebuild
• Power locks with remote
• Power window restoration
• Main speaker upgrade
• Finish the front bumper grille supports

Here's what I've done that I have yet to post pages on:

• Brake system replacement & upgrade
• Reverse light addition
• Rear compartment restoration
• Shifter rebuild

Later this year I will doing the cooling system.  Next winter will be time to work on engine rebuilding and upgrading.  I've decided to put off painting until after the engine is done so that if I happen scratch things I don't have to worry about it.

Anyway! School starts in a week, I'll try to stay on top of things this semester so there's not a big gap in my project come finals time again.