A few small updates on my car - ZR-1 Net Registry Forums

Aurora40 · 08-22-2005

Well, when I bought my car in May, it drove real nice. But the engine was hardly nickel-balancing smooth. It wobbled back and forth a good bit, which I think contributed to some flywheel and gearbox rattle.

I have since changed the plugs (they weren't original, were Autolites) with some Rapidfire #5's. And I ran some Techron fuel additive through it. The engine feels much smoother at idle now and the engine is pretty smooth, though still not quite nickel smooth.

I believe the injectors leak, as fuel was evident on a few plugs when I changed them, and the car had sat for about two days prior to me pulling the plugs.

I also have a sendary leak, which initially resulted in the pump coming on every 5-8 seconds for an instant. Now it comes on every 2 seconds or so. I got the white racing kit and will tackle this soon. I think I will also send the injectors to RC Engineering to have them all rebuilt at the same time. Hopefully that, and maybe some new plug wires, will smooth the idle out perfectly.

The car is a lot of fun. It has over 22,000 miles on it, and I probably put about 800-1,000 of those on it. I've had to replace the brake switch, it needs the reverse switch done, the ABS may or may not work properly, the a/c doesn't work (suspect just a pressure switch is bad), and I probably paid top-dollar as it seemed at the time to be in excellent condition (not that it isn't, but I expected to change fluids, etc, not to fix things initially). But all in all it's a blast. These prices are all relative, and at about any price the car is a performance and exotic bargain. Look at what a Ferrari 308 or 328 goes for and the ZR-1 is a no-brainer.

Anyway, just thought I'd let you all know how it's coming along.

I also wanted to thank RKreigh for his insights into the choppy idle and reassuring me that it probably wasn't anything serious. Plugs and fuel system cleaner helped a lot, as he suspected.

rkreigh · 08-22-2005

thanks for posting. my bet is that once you get the injectors checked out and the under the plenum vacuum tight you will be back to smooth as silk.

it's amazing how well these cars respond to driving em hard and a bit of TLC.

keep the faith, your ZR-1 will reward you many times over with more grins per mile than other options.

Nick · 08-22-2005

Be careful of the Rapidfire #5 plugs!

They are not for a car that is aggressively driven. I ran those in mine for 1,500 miles and the car pinged and the temps rose. Changed the RF5's out for Autolites and its been smooth, powerful motoring ever since.

Jim Jones · 08-24-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nick

Be careful of the Rapidfire #5 plugs!

They are not for a car that is aggressively driven. I ran those in mine for 1,500 miles and the car pinged and the temps rose. Changed the RF5's out for Autolites and its been smooth, powerful motoring ever since.

What makes the difference?

What are the original plugs?

Aurora40 · 08-24-2005

The original plugs are ACDelcos, but no longer made. So far the Rapidfires have worked for me. I used to use them on my L98 too, though they had a pretty short life of about 10,000 miles or so.

08-22-2005	#1
Aurora40 Join Date: May 2005 Location: Leesburg, VA Posts: 2,713	A few small updates on my car Well, when I bought my car in May, it drove real nice. But the engine was hardly nickel-balancing smooth. It wobbled back and forth a good bit, which I think contributed to some flywheel and gearbox rattle. I have since changed the plugs (they weren't original, were Autolites) with some Rapidfire #5's. And I ran some Techron fuel additive through it. The engine feels much smoother at idle now and the engine is pretty smooth, though still not quite nickel smooth. I believe the injectors leak, as fuel was evident on a few plugs when I changed them, and the car had sat for about two days prior to me pulling the plugs. I also have a sendary leak, which initially resulted in the pump coming on every 5-8 seconds for an instant. Now it comes on every 2 seconds or so. I got the white racing kit and will tackle this soon. I think I will also send the injectors to RC Engineering to have them all rebuilt at the same time. Hopefully that, and maybe some new plug wires, will smooth the idle out perfectly. The car is a lot of fun. It has over 22,000 miles on it, and I probably put about 800-1,000 of those on it. I've had to replace the brake switch, it needs the reverse switch done, the ABS may or may not work properly, the a/c doesn't work (suspect just a pressure switch is bad), and I probably paid top-dollar as it seemed at the time to be in excellent condition (not that it isn't, but I expected to change fluids, etc, not to fix things initially). But all in all it's a blast. These prices are all relative, and at about any price the car is a performance and exotic bargain. Look at what a Ferrari 308 or 328 goes for and the ZR-1 is a no-brainer. Anyway, just thought I'd let you all know how it's coming along. I also wanted to thank RKreigh for his insights into the choppy idle and reassuring me that it probably wasn't anything serious. Plugs and fuel system cleaner helped a lot, as he suspected. __________________ Bob Saveland Former owner of #2517 [IMG]http://a.random-image.net/aurora40/vette.jpg[/img]

08-22-2005	#2
rkreigh Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Alex VA Posts: 1,087	thanks for posting. my bet is that once you get the injectors checked out and the under the plenum vacuum tight you will be back to smooth as silk. it's amazing how well these cars respond to driving em hard and a bit of TLC. keep the faith, your ZR-1 will reward you many times over with more grins per mile than other options. __________________ 95 390 LPE ZR1 (505 rwhp) LSV = Lingenfelter Super Vette Twin Turbo 2003 Z06 (800 RWHP)

08-22-2005	#3
Nick Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Auburn, Washington Posts: 586	Be careful of the Rapidfire #5 plugs! They are not for a car that is aggressively driven. I ran those in mine for 1,500 miles and the car pinged and the temps rose. Changed the RF5's out for Autolites and its been smooth, powerful motoring ever since. __________________ Nick ZR-1 Net Registry Founding Member #32 - lapsed...

08-24-2005	#5
Aurora40 Join Date: May 2005 Location: Leesburg, VA Posts: 2,713	The original plugs are ACDelcos, but no longer made. So far the Rapidfires have worked for me. I used to use them on my L98 too, though they had a pretty short life of about 10,000 miles or so. __________________ Bob Saveland Former owner of #2517 [IMG]http://a.random-image.net/aurora40/vette.jpg[/img]