427 engine (part 2) - RHS block

[Rich Z]

Well, I got a new driveshaft back from Pfadt today. No letter of apology. No "sorry about our screwup". Just the box with the driveshaft and install hardware inside. Honestly, I was rather surprised that they just didn't send back the old one and deny there was a problem at all.

I measured the new shaft and it comes to approximately 41 7/8 inches which works out to 1063.675 mm. The old shaft was 42 1/8 inches or 1069.975 mm. So the old one was 6.35 mm longer than the one they sent me.

Obviously I'm just going to sell it. I just don't have any confidence in Pfadt products any longer, and honestly if it would be an easy chore to do so, I would remove every product I have on my car made by them. This just left a very bad taste in my mouth for that company. No way in hell I'm even considering putting that driveshaft back in my car now or any time in the future. It's already caused far more headaches than any benefits using it would ever compensate for.

I ordered in some exhaust parts from Summit for the car because the left tailpipe tends to want to hang lower than the right tailpipe. So I'm going to try some different clamps on the pipes and perhaps see if I can mount some hangers in the back to try to keep them even. Probably will get to that over the weekend. No sense even thinking about driving the car lately because we've been getting rain every day and the darn road is a mess again. I'm guessing it will get straightened out again just in time for that hurricane forecast to come up into the Gulf of Mexico later next week.

Oh well, I guess I'll get that clutch broken in some day......

[Rich Z]

Originally Posted by craig04c5

I am not surprised it took a dealership to fix it. If they have a good certified tech it can make all the difference. I don't know if the other people that worked on the car were certified and had as much experience. Your dealership tech nailed it with the driveshaft being the issue and did the correct thing advising you use a stock setup.
We have a Master Tech at the local dealership here in Stuart Fl that loves working on Corvettes. I was having GMPP warranty work done a few years back to replace a bad slave and I asked how much to put an LS7 clutch and PP in since there would be no labor charge while they were already in there. The Tech said GM does not yet recommend this setup (this was when people were just starting to put the LS7 clutch in C5's) and said the LS6 upgrade would do fine for my mostly stock LS1 C5. I was thinking the 4:10's might need a better clutch but he said I would be fine. Anyway, the LS6 clutch has been flawless and I could not be happier. We all now know the LS7 will work just fine as long as you keep the LS1 slave. I always ask if he will be working on my car before I take it in. The service writer and I have a good relationship. I always bring him a gift card at Christmas time.
Glad it seems to be working well for you Rich. Was following your thread on the CF.

No, I seriously doubt either shop was certified in anything related to Corvettes. Chris Harwood definitely was not. And as for Aaron Scott, well, based on his claim that common trailer hitch wire is acceptable and standard fare to splice into oxygen sensor harnesses, I have severe doubts about his expertise and knowledge level on these cars. Based on the photographs and video I took of the "quality" of work he did on my car over the 14 months he had it, well, I would be surprised to hear that anyone else wouldn't have at least some of their own doubts about him.

Yeah, my thread got locked over on CF because one of their sponsors got called to the carpet about that driveshaft. Pewter99 made me an offer to reopen the thread and delete a rather nasty post someone made about me if I would agree to have the discussion about Pfadt removed. I declined that offer. It is what it is. And the discussion there about my car is now over with, as far as I am concerned. That was their choice, not mine.

[Rich Z]

I took the car out today and put 53 more miles on it to break in the clutch and get me more used to the idea of maybe being able to drive the car without something breaking on it. I've got the tailpipes more even, but I still need to work on it a bit. The bumpy road I live on tends to change that on me. But in any event, no issues noted while driving. Although I do have to admit the shifter is a bit stiffer than I would like. Maybe it being new as is the transmission is contributing to that and will loosen up a bit with some more miles on it. I do know my right elbow was aching a bit by the time I got back home.

Oh yeah, I monitored oil pressure again, and although it is low at idle (around 23 psi), while cruising at 1500 rpm, it is settling in at around 35 psi, which seems fine to me. Last time Connie and I took the C6 out with the LS2 in it, I don't think the oil pressure in that motor was much more than that. The C6 Z06, however, seems to generate a LOT more oil pressure in that LS7 for some reason. I still may use that 15W-50 weight oil I bought at the next oil change, however, just to see what sort of difference it makes in oil pressure.

I'm thinking that perhaps that higher flow oil pump in the engine might just have this kind of characteristic to it when coupled to an engine built with higher bearing clearances. Generally, all other factors equal, flow and pressure are diametrically opposed. Higher flow rates in the engine would equate to lower pressure (resistance to flow) to that fluid. Sort of the same thing you see with electricity in relation to voltage, current, and resistance. At least if my memory of this sort of stuff isn't faulty.

[CorvetteJohn]

On the oil pressure subject. I ran my 93 666 miles thursday and I had an oil pressure of 40 at 70 MPH 1650 RPM. At idle it dropped to 15#'s I am running 5w 30 full synthetic.

[Rich Z]

Yeah, I think my electrical analogy would apply in this manner:

• resistance = bearing clearances in the engine.
• current = volumetric flow of oil through the engine.
• voltage = pressure the oil pump provides.

I guess lighter weight viscosity combined with the more pronounced slipperiness of synthetic oils would possibly combine to produce lower oil pressure since it would take less force from the pump to force an equal volume of oil through the engine. I would imagine that everything has resistance to flow, even oil, so the less resistance of that fluid then the easier the flow takes place. Which, of course, means less pressure required to move it.

And actually from what I have been reading, the tighter the clearances in the bearings on an engine, the greater the potential for metal to metal contact, which in the case of crank and rod bearings, can result in a spun bearing as those two surfaces abrade against each other. Oil is supposed to form a film between metal surfaces to keep this from happening. In that regard, I have also read that thicker viscosity oils are actually better at keeping that protective film intact under load.

But heck, if you want to get driven insane in a hurry, read about engine oils and all the varieties, weights, brands, pros and cons of each, and the design theories behind the commercial formulations.

[Rich Z]

I put another 73 miles on the car today. Figure I might as well get some more break in mileage done before the rains set in from Isaac....

So far so good.

[Kap142]

All I can say is;

[Rich Z]

It was kind of funny in that I was stopped at a stoplight up in Tallahassee on an incline and when the light turned green, well, I gave it a little too much gas and let out the clutch a little too quickly to keep from rolling backwards. Did a little impromptu burnout in the capitol.

[CorvetteJohn]

No officer I was not racing. I over reved the engine and then my foot slipped off the clutch and it smoked the tires. I didn't even know it would do that. What are you saying officer that is the same story the guy in the Viper next to me gave you. Officer I was lucky because I could not get my foot from under the brake for two blocks. Thats his story too. What a coinsidence.

[schpenxel]

Good to see it looks like it's going to work out afterall...

Really pisses me off they locked your thread on the other forum though. That forum has some major issues with letting sponsors get away with murder--I can't even count how many horror stories of threads I have seen pop up over the years that get locked, moved or deleted within about 15 minutes and it's always the guy who starts the threads fault

I'm sure many people over there would love to hear the outcome.

Also, I can't BELIEVE Pfadt didn't jump on the marketing opportunity that they were given. How great would they have looked if they had just refunded your money, taken back the driveshaft and been done with that? They couldn't have wisely spent that much money in advertising money anywhere if they had tried, but instead they screwed it up.