427 engine (part 2) - RHS block

[Rich Z]

Originally Posted by RevXtreme 1

That is bad Rich.....you don't just push wires into a fuse socket.....unreal.

http://www.c5help.com/c5fuelpumpinst...structions.pdf
http://www.c5help.com/fueltank.htm

Hey Tracy, thanks for the links.

I had already seen that one concerning the LPE fuel pump. Some people claim that a new fuel strainer must be used whenever the old one is pulled out, and that writeup doesn't mention that detail. Interesting that it does mention that new retaining bolts must be used on the pump, as it appears whoever last removed my fuel pump simply reused the old bolts.

That fuel tank description doesn't apply to the 2002, as the 2003s apparently went to a top mounted fuel pump, and my 2002 has an end mounted one. At least with mine, the fuel pump will be a LOT easier to get to.

Oh, let me ask a question here. Is that large aluminum cover the ONLY thing holding the fuel tanks in place? Or is there another strap or something underneath it? I do smell gasoline around the passenger side tank that I would like to check out. I know Harwood dropped both tanks to clean them out when he had my car, so possibly something wasn't tightened down, or worse, maybe the tank got punctured. I don't SEE any leaking, but it might be small enough that it just pools slightly on top of that aluminum cover and then evaporates before dripping. I would like to be able to remove that aluminum cover, but really don't want the tank dropping down.

Oh yeah, I read some instructions somewhere about draining the gas tanks and it appears that the correct method is to drain them both from the gas line connections at the fuel pump mounting panel on the driver's side, and then on the passenger side at a similar panel. I dunno, seems to me that gasoline will forcibly spurt out of those hoses when they are disconnected. So I must be missing something somewhere...

[Benjamin]

Originally Posted by RevXtreme 1

That is bad Rich.....you don't just push wires into a fuse socket.....unreal.

those are "add a circuit" plugs, not just a wire shoved into the fuse box.

http://www.google.com/products/catal...ed=0CDUQ8wIwAA

[Rich Z]

Originally Posted by Benjamin

those are "add a circuit" plugs, not just a wire shoved into the fuse box.

http://www.google.com/products/catal...ed=0CDUQ8wIwAA

So does this plug also apply power to the original circuit? In this case, to the original in tank fuel pump?

Still, the fact of the matter is that I can't see any reason why the original fuel pump circuitry wasn't used to keep the fuel system SAFE for a street driven car.

I went over to the garage and inspected the new half shafts that came in. Look brand spanking new to me. Genuine GM, too. So at least I didn't get "shafted" with this deal. Well, I didn't do anything more today than just lube up the shaft ends in preparation to installing them. Probably tomorrow. Hell of a thing to be doing on mine and Connie's wedding anniversary, but she insists that she would just as soon have me get that out of the way rather than fretting about it all day. We just took a walk around the property today enjoying the nice weather and checking out the new fruit trees we have planted.

[Rich Z]

Well, I am tackling the half shafts today, and it's not going well.

The ball joint wasn't any problem, nor was the tie rod. Got the emergency brake cable off as well as the electrical connection going to the speed sensor. Had to lift the knuckle with the jack a bit to get the upper ball joint out of the upper A-frame, but no big deal.

But that shaft just does NOT want to come out of the knuckle/spindle/hub/whatever.... I've sprayed it down liberally with PB Blaster, whacked the bitch with a hammer and it just is not moving. I bought a set of hub pullers, but neither one will fit. One fits on the wheel studs OK, but is too shallow for the center screw to go in to apply pressure to the shaft end. The other is plenty tall enough, but the flange doesn't mate up with the wheel studs no matter how I position it.

Dammit..... Yeah, I know, you guys say this is all easy as pie, but sorry, I'm just not seeing it that way right at the moment. Basically I'm just screwed till I can figure out some way to get that shaft out. And then I have the other side to do. Lovely....

I really REALLY hate doing this auto mechanics stuff......

[Rich Z]

Well, here's where I am so far...





I removed the brake caliper and pads with bracket and then removed the rotor. I had hoped I could just remove the hub itself and pull the shaft through the spindle, but no such luck...



Nope, looks like one way or another, that shaft is going to HAVE to come out of that hub.

Oh while I was looking that all over, I noticed that the cable for the speed sensor had been rubbing against the shaft, and it appearsto have worn through the insulation.



Great.... Is there anything on this car that DIDN'T get damaged over the past 2 years?

Well, I have a GM tool for removing the hub on order that I found used on Ebay. Didn't really feel like paying $90 for a new one and use it maybe twice in my entire lifetime. Then I also bought an air hammer that I am going to use to try to work that shaft out of the hub, or at least break it free so the hub remover will be able to push it out easier. I got a suggestion about using two hammers together to beat on the shaft, so I'll apply that before using the hub puller as well. If all that doesn't work, then beats the heck out of me what my options will be.

[Benjamin]

Originally Posted by Rich Z

So does this plug also apply power to the original circuit? In this case, to the original in tank fuel pump?

yes, there should be 2 fuses stacked together, the one closest to the fuse box is the one that would be originally in the fuse slot, the top one goes to the red wire. we use to use those back in the day when people had radio head units that did not have a remote output for turning an amplifier on and off, so i would use that to find a switched power source that would turn the amp off and on when the key was turned off and on.

[Benjamin]

BTW, make sure the shaft is out of the tranny before you go beating it out of the hub. you don't want to cause any trauma to the trans where the shafts go in. also PB Blaster is your friend when it comes to unsticking rusted stuff.

[Rich Z]

Originally Posted by Benjamin

BTW, make sure the shaft is out of the tranny before you go beating it out of the hub. you don't want to cause any trauma to the trans where the shafts go in. also PB Blaster is your friend when it comes to unsticking rusted stuff.

I did pull the shaft out of the differential this evening, just to see if that could be easily done, of it I had another headache in front of me. I have the spindle connected back up to the upper A frame and the tie rod connected to give it some support when i try to tackle the shaft again later this week. in the meantime, I'm going to be spraying it liberally with lubricant. And yep, I bought a couple cans of the PB Blaster spray....

[Rich Z]

Well, I found some new hubs at a fair price -> http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/web...GRPWHELAMS____ so I have them on order. Luckily AdvanceAuto has some sort of 25% off promotion going on right now, and from what I hear, Moog is a pretty good brand name.

Now all I have to do is get the shaft out of the old hub without damaging the knuckle in the process. If I can't, well I guess I'll be in the market for new knuckles as well. Heck, I'm not sure whether I should even bother with the driver's side shaft and hub now. This passenger side is being a real pain in the ass, and quite likely the other side won't be any easier. But on the other hand, I guess it would probably just be smart to take care of both of them at the same time and be done with it. Had Aaron not left the brake line laying against the shaft boot and damaged it, this wouldn't even be an issue right now, but since it is, well, best to do it right rather than half assed... Literally..

Still waiting on the GM hub puller to show up here. I may go pound on the shaft a bit and attack it with the air hammer to see if it helps loosen the shaft up any.

Oh, if anyone knows of an inexpensive source for C5 Corvette knuckles, I sure would like to hear about it. From what I have been able to gather, the left front and right rear are identical, as are the right front and left rear. I guess they are sort of catacorner mirror images.

[shakedown067]

I'd give Corvette Recycling a call. They didn't list them on their site, but I don't think they always have 100% of their items in stock listed.