Thank Goodness for Corvettes! - ZR-1 Net Registry Forums

LancePearson · 10-29-2013

I never thought I'd say this but today it's true: I'm down to my last Corvette!

The guy at the shop when I pulled in driving my 76 which I had not started in a year since my 91 ZR-1 showed up in my garage said this laughing at my horrendous plight.

I have a Corvette based 2008 TBSS that had to be towed in when the front drive shaft spline broke on Saturday with normal driving on the AWD 4:10 rear end, 2008 LS2 vette vehicle. Welcome to the world of no longer made cars: trailblazer..no gm parts so they are scrambling for one of them now while it is apart on the lift.

Monday I used my 91 ZR-1 to drive up to downtown Richmond to sign some investment papers at the parking lot next to the Federal Reserve bank. Worked great until I reached down to turn the key to start it up and head home. An hour and a half later when the tow truck showed up after the gauge showing insufficient power in the battery it had normal power and started right up! Go figure. It's in the shop where they can't duplicate it but are going to put a new defined quality, known entity battery in it.

Meanwhile, it was a bicycle or start the 76 up. Air cleaner top off, shot of starting spray and it fired right up and had not been driven in a year. Been driving it all day and love looking at it even though it is nowhere near the power or performance of the Z. I ought to sell it but it is such a sculpture piece and corners so well on twisty roads I can't bring myself to do it.

So, today, the guy at the shop was having a laugh at my expense, kidding me by saying as I left to get back in the 76 and go home: "Tough life, poor guy, you are down to your last Corvette!"

I'm pretty darned happy right now until the other two get back to have that 1976 Corvette and to be able to laugh with him about it.

Lance

-=Jeff=- · 10-29-2013

There are threads here about the no start..

It could be one of a few things, I made some of the changes and I have not seen it return.. I changed the wired path for the solenoid and replaced the contactors I. The starter

Dynomite · 10-29-2013

Quote:

Originally Posted by -=Jeff=-

There are threads here about the no start..

Could be one of a few things, I made some of the changes and I have not seen it return.. I changed the wired path for the solenoid and replaced the contacts in the starter

Concur...I no longer have NO STARTS on either a 90' or 91' after a few good modifications as -=Jeff=- suggests.

Oh...and just turn the key on and have a couple guys push you forward popping the clutch in second and you are off and running

ghlkal · 10-29-2013

Quote:

Originally Posted by LancePearson

So, today, the guy at the shop was having a laugh at my expense, kidding me by saying as I left to get back in the 76 and go home: "Tough life, poor guy, you are down to your last Corvette!"

Great story and I'm glad the 76 started so you didn't have to ride the bike.

rhipsher · 10-30-2013

Lance no start is one of those things that just doesn't give a damn where you are or what your doing or how inconvenient it is for you. It will leave you hanging with a 3,400lb paper weight that won't move.

Oh yeah also a broken TB will do the same thing to you. But at least with a broke TB you can still move it in whatever gear your stuck in when it happens. lol! I have first hand experience with these unfortunate things and more throughout my years of ownership. It's just par for the course though. Depending on how attached you are to the car you either get rid of it or just fix it and get on with it.

rhipsher · 10-30-2013

It's a good Idea to keep a skateboard in the back hatch just in case. That is if you still know how to ride one

LancePearson · 10-30-2013

I sure am happy to have the Vettes. Nothing like the Z. Funny thing when it has happened, when it won't start when you turn the key during the period when it does not the gauge on the dash shows something like 10 volts instead of 13 normally and that is before the key is rotated forward to the starter position. Even putting a booster battery starter on it did not change that. Well before anything happens anywhere near the starter.

Relay under dash, switch on clutch? All possible but it smacks of some heat oriented process as an hour and a half later when the car has cooled both times and you turn the key with nothing else different it reads 13 volts and everything starts as normal.

I'm wondering if somehow the alarm system gets kicked in. Have to read the book. Right now it's going to get a new battery as I don't know the age of the battery that was in it in Atlanta area last Dec. when I bought it and drove it home to Chester, Va. I've looked but not pulled the fender to pull it out. They have not been able to duplicate the problem in the shop either. Hopefully they will put the new battery in today. I asked them to pull codes on it but they had not done so yet when I asked. Perhaps that shows the issue. Battery booster connected to the battery made no change in the gauge reading either so it smacks of some relay or breaker cutting off to most everything other than dash lights.

We will see.

Glad I have the 76 which is still pretty and fun to drive if half the power of the 91 Z. Love to drive it on twisty roads with its bigger than stock 255 mm footprint tires.

Lance

-=Jeff=- · 10-30-2013

SO what I did was trace the route for power to the solenoid. The last 'switch' is the clutch pedal prior to going to the Starter Solenoid. my mod for this was:

I installed a relay after the clutch switch, then I ran a 12v line direct from the battery Distribution block, through a fusible link to the relay(87), out of the relay(30) to the Solenoid.

Off the clutch switch the wire went to the relay(86) coil then from the relay (85) to Ground

I replaced the solenoid contacts as well, as they were pretty beat up and full of carbon

another thing I did was the VATS Bypass (this was done first) but did not fix the issue you are seeing

nelson007 · 10-30-2013

Hello Lance,
I had the same problem yesterday. I took my 95 Z in the morning around town to do some errands. I stopped 3 or 4 times and all was OK. I decided to top off the tank. After filling the tank I go to start the car and it was dead except for one indicator light that said: “Check Gauges” . I was ready to call a tow truck and remembered I put a battery disconnect switch in last year. I though maybe it was not making good contact. After opening the hood the battery I saw the battery switch was closed. I opened the switch and than closed it to make sure it was completely closed. Got in the car and started right away. Go figure…

Nelson 007

cvette98pacecar · 10-30-2013

Great story.

10-29-2013	#1
LancePearson Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Chester, Virginia Posts: 457	Thank Goodness for Corvettes! I never thought I'd say this but today it's true: I'm down to my last Corvette! The guy at the shop when I pulled in driving my 76 which I had not started in a year since my 91 ZR-1 showed up in my garage said this laughing at my horrendous plight. I have a Corvette based 2008 TBSS that had to be towed in when the front drive shaft spline broke on Saturday with normal driving on the AWD 4:10 rear end, 2008 LS2 vette vehicle. Welcome to the world of no longer made cars: trailblazer..no gm parts so they are scrambling for one of them now while it is apart on the lift. Monday I used my 91 ZR-1 to drive up to downtown Richmond to sign some investment papers at the parking lot next to the Federal Reserve bank. Worked great until I reached down to turn the key to start it up and head home. An hour and a half later when the tow truck showed up after the gauge showing insufficient power in the battery it had normal power and started right up! Go figure. It's in the shop where they can't duplicate it but are going to put a new defined quality, known entity battery in it. Meanwhile, it was a bicycle or start the 76 up. Air cleaner top off, shot of starting spray and it fired right up and had not been driven in a year. Been driving it all day and love looking at it even though it is nowhere near the power or performance of the Z. I ought to sell it but it is such a sculpture piece and corners so well on twisty roads I can't bring myself to do it. So, today, the guy at the shop was having a laugh at my expense, kidding me by saying as I left to get back in the 76 and go home: "Tough life, poor guy, you are down to your last Corvette!" I'm pretty darned happy right now until the other two get back to have that 1976 Corvette and to be able to laugh with him about it. Lance

10-29-2013	#2
-=Jeff=- Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Bartlett, IL Posts: 7,156	Re: Thank Goodness for Corvettes! There are threads here about the no start.. It could be one of a few things, I made some of the changes and I have not seen it return.. I changed the wired path for the solenoid and replaced the contactors I. The starter __________________ 1990 Corvette ZR-1 #1051 Watson Headers (2" Primary) - Flowmaster Cats - Borla Catback Late Model IH - Plenum Coilovers - 4.10s Shelby Series 1 - Wilwood Brakes Custom Interior NCM Lifetime Member #978 Last edited by -=Jeff=-; 10-29-2013 at 10:26 PM. Reason: really need to proof read more

10-30-2013	#5
rhipsher Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 2,314	Re: Thank Goodness for Corvettes! Lance no start is one of those things that just doesn't give a damn where you are or what your doing or how inconvenient it is for you. It will leave you hanging with a 3,400lb paper weight that won't move. Oh yeah also a broken TB will do the same thing to you. But at least with a broke TB you can still move it in whatever gear your stuck in when it happens. lol! I have first hand experience with these unfortunate things and more throughout my years of ownership. It's just par for the course though. Depending on how attached you are to the car you either get rid of it or just fix it and get on with it.

10-30-2013	#6
rhipsher Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 2,314	Re: Thank Goodness for Corvettes! It's a good Idea to keep a skateboard in the back hatch just in case. That is if you still know how to ride one

10-30-2013	#7
LancePearson Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Chester, Virginia Posts: 457	Re: Thank Goodness for Corvettes! I sure am happy to have the Vettes. Nothing like the Z. Funny thing when it has happened, when it won't start when you turn the key during the period when it does not the gauge on the dash shows something like 10 volts instead of 13 normally and that is before the key is rotated forward to the starter position. Even putting a booster battery starter on it did not change that. Well before anything happens anywhere near the starter. Relay under dash, switch on clutch? All possible but it smacks of some heat oriented process as an hour and a half later when the car has cooled both times and you turn the key with nothing else different it reads 13 volts and everything starts as normal. I'm wondering if somehow the alarm system gets kicked in. Have to read the book. Right now it's going to get a new battery as I don't know the age of the battery that was in it in Atlanta area last Dec. when I bought it and drove it home to Chester, Va. I've looked but not pulled the fender to pull it out. They have not been able to duplicate the problem in the shop either. Hopefully they will put the new battery in today. I asked them to pull codes on it but they had not done so yet when I asked. Perhaps that shows the issue. Battery booster connected to the battery made no change in the gauge reading either so it smacks of some relay or breaker cutting off to most everything other than dash lights. We will see. Glad I have the 76 which is still pretty and fun to drive if half the power of the 91 Z. Love to drive it on twisty roads with its bigger than stock 255 mm footprint tires. Lance

10-30-2013	#8
-=Jeff=- Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Bartlett, IL Posts: 7,156	Re: Thank Goodness for Corvettes! SO what I did was trace the route for power to the solenoid. The last 'switch' is the clutch pedal prior to going to the Starter Solenoid. my mod for this was: I installed a relay after the clutch switch, then I ran a 12v line direct from the battery Distribution block, through a fusible link to the relay(87), out of the relay(30) to the Solenoid. Off the clutch switch the wire went to the relay(86) coil then from the relay (85) to Ground I replaced the solenoid contacts as well, as they were pretty beat up and full of carbon another thing I did was the VATS Bypass (this was done first) but did not fix the issue you are seeing __________________ 1990 Corvette ZR-1 #1051 Watson Headers (2" Primary) - Flowmaster Cats - Borla Catback Late Model IH - Plenum Coilovers - 4.10s Shelby Series 1 - Wilwood Brakes Custom Interior NCM Lifetime Member #978

10-30-2013	#9
nelson007 Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Westminster, Md. Posts: 434	Re: Thank Goodness for Corvettes! Hello Lance, I had the same problem yesterday. I took my 95 Z in the morning around town to do some errands. I stopped 3 or 4 times and all was OK. I decided to top off the tank. After filling the tank I go to start the car and it was dead except for one indicator light that said: “Check Gauges” . I was ready to call a tow truck and remembered I put a battery disconnect switch in last year. I though maybe it was not making good contact. After opening the hood the battery I saw the battery switch was closed. I opened the switch and than closed it to make sure it was completely closed. Got in the car and started right away. Go figure… Nelson 007

10-30-2013	#10
cvette98pacecar Join Date: May 2011 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 2,466	Re: Thank Goodness for Corvettes! Great story.

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