1973 Corvette Mechanic in Jacksonville
 

My father recently gave me his 1973 Corvette as an early inheritance. In brief, can someone recommend a mechanic for it?

In detail, the car stalled out and left me stranded. I put my faith in a mechanic that said they could work on it but, they've fouled it up. They replaced the intake manifold and carb and then said they needed to replace the distributor, as well.

But, they claimed there just weren't any distributors that would work with my original tach so they'd just attach one to the dash. I objected and started sending them internet links to acceptable distributors.

They also argued that a points distributor was no good and would have to be adjusted/fixed every two months. I interpreted that as, "I don't know how to work on points," and agreed to let them proceed with an alternative that would work with the original tachometer.

Anyway, the mechanic said he found a distributor to use and would get it done. A day or two later, another phone call from them. Oh, the key switch on the Corvette doesn't have constant power so, they ran a toggle switch into the passenger compartment to, "turn the distributor on."

It semi-runs now and I've got it away from that mechanic. I'm not proud of myself for letting this happen but, does anyone know of a mechanic who can sort this out?

Good luck in your search. There are a apparently some supposedly "qualified" Corvette techs here and there, but when the pedal goes to the metal, you find out that they are just singing you a tune and trying to "wing it" as best they can, hoping you know less about it than they do, and won't notice their incompetence. The older the model year, the more difficult of a position you find yourself in.

Hate to have to say this, but I believe your best bet is to educate yourself as best you can, and try to do the work yourself. Chances are, you won't do any worse than some of the guys who will take your money and wind up not doing any better than you could have yourself.

I had to find a non-Corvette tech that appears to be competent and conscientious in whatever work he does, so at least I feel I can trust him to figure out what needs to be done and do it to the best of his ability. But I believe this kind of person is very rare to find.

Thanks, Rich. That's an interesting point about my doing just as well and much cheaper than the ignoramus I just came from.

I went to a car show over the weekend and got a couple of recommendations from a few folks with antique Corvettes. I've got an appointment with one this afternoon. If they can't sort it out, yeah, I'm going to have to learn the stoichiometry of Corvette combustion!

Youtube can be an invaluable tool figuring this sort of stuff out.

Good luck!