So I bought an 01 c5z about three weeks ago. It has 140k miles on it and is in serious need of a tune-up. There are not any good shops in my area (Boston, MA) that specialize in Corvettes. Would I be better off buying one of those flash tuners off of a site that is pre-programmed with a few settings? (would this make it worse?) Or would you recommend just going to a shop that claims to have done some corvettes before?
So I bought an 01 c5z about three weeks ago. It has 140k miles on it and is in serious need of a tune-up. There are not any good shops in my area (Boston, MA) that specialize in Corvettes. Would I be better off buying one of those flash tuners off of a site that is pre-programmed with a few settings? (would this make it worse?) Or would you recommend just going to a shop that claims to have done some corvettes before?
Thanks.[/QUOTE
I would find a tuner some where. You could have any number of things making it run like crap. It could be as simple as the oxygen sensors or maf. and you might not be able to fix it with that flash tuner.
Pitt
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2003 Z06 - 1.473 sixty foot , 383 Stroker NA, AFR 225's, Fast, Vararam, LG Longs, 390 Gear, thru stock mufflers. Pete Incaudo Street Cam, Full interior, stock suspension. All out of the box parts, no porting or tricks. 10.66 @ 129mph
I live nearby and might be able to help you resolve some of the more significant issues. I had an awsome Dealership in Westboro, but unfortunately they recently went out of business. At this point, though, having 10 years experience with C5s, I'm able to manage most issues myself. If it doesn't involve any major mechanical work (which I know how to do but don't have the tools/facilities), I can do it.
There's not a lot to "tune" on these cars. They're pretty much self tuning. If yours isn't running well, odds are good something's broken or worn out and we ought to be able to figure that out pretty easily. As a start, you probably want to look at what if any DIC codes are recorded. And with 140K miles, if the car hasn't had 'em already, the first thing I'd do is new Plugs....
Contact me in a PM and maybe we can find a weekend to hook up and I can take a look with you...
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That would be great! As far as stuff that's wrong with it, I'm not really sure if there is anything major at all. The engine feels fine but it's very loud in first second and third (hissing, whining, ticking) which I've heard they are all like this but it really sounds odd to me. It sounds like a combination of a vacuum leak and lifter noise. I have heard the ticking is just the fuel injectors so I'm not that worried about that. The biggest issue with the car is that it will frequently not shift into first, most times this is easily resolved by lifting up on the clutch until the release point and it will pop into 1st, but sometimes both this and switching into several other gears before trying to go back into first won't work and i just get the gear grinding noise..
Well, my car's blown, so it does sound different. But maybe all you need is to hear another Z and compare. If it's running strong, but it's a bit noisy, it's probably fine.
The ticking sound is likely the shifter. It's a common problem called "Shifter Rattle". Next time you hear the sound, gently push the shifter off the stop for whatever gear you're in, towards the neutral position. Lightly, not enough to push it out of gear, just enough to lift it off the stop. See if the sound changes or goes away. On my car, it does.
The intake can be a bit noisy, too. Especially if you have an aftermarket air filter or the "Zip Tie Mod". Also, some Z's make a "whistling noise" if you pop off the throttle at certain RPMs. My car did this, too. I muffled it with a Supercharger.
Not shifting in to first is yet another fairly common problem.
I also had this issue. I told the Dealership to rebuild it, figuring it would only be 1st gear, but when they got it apart there was a lot of play in other gears so they replaced it completely. Luckily, they warranteed it.
Not shifting in to 1st could also be a bad clutch. Especially if this car has it's original clutch, but maybe even if it's got a replacement (depending on how long ago it was replaced) you could need to do a clutch job.
Depends on your definition of "rediculous". To get the clutch the entire rear subframe needs to come off the car, tranny/diff/torquetube. It's kind of a pain, but luckily it pretty much comes off as a single assembly so it's not as bad as you might think. Some intrepid Z06VETTE members have been seen to do this kind of work with jackstands in a parking lot. Me, I wouldn't attempt it without a lift, but I lack their expertise/motivation...
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