74 NovaMan's 1992 Camaro RS Convertible

[74NovaMan]

Late last December we ordered tune up stuff from Rock Auto. Plugs, wires, cap, rotor, and Trans filter/gasket - all AC Delco stuff for only $95. About a month ago, we did the plugs, wires, cap & rotor. All of it appeared to be original. The plug wires had the cylinder number on them and I had to pry the rotor off with enough force to break the collar that goes around the shaft. The plugs looked a bit gunked up but were consistent looking. I took extra care to route stuff properly using the factory retainers and heat shields. As a result, it doesn't really look any different than it did before (no pictures). We got a shot of decent weather a couple of weeks back and put about 300 miles on it over the weekend and we are happy to report that it runs great! No real change there but it's nice to know there is fresh stuff under the hood. Still need to flush the transmission and install the new filter.

[74NovaMan]

Long overdue update:

Heater core, hoses, thermostat and hoses are replaced. I used the original clamps except the one on the water pump (it had been replaced with a worm gear style so I used a fresh one.) The originals were this type and I wanted to keep the original look.



They were also very strong still, so I'm not worried about leaks. Hoses were all original and needed to be replaced (heater hoses were crunchy). The heater core was replaced without removing the upper dash but I did need a helper to guide the new heater core pipes through the firewall. Due to the tight access and the funky clamps the job took the better part of 6 hours. We did this back in August and pretty much just enjoyed driving it for the rest of the season.

[Runner1972]

New hose clamps. I don't know how many times to find leaks and people used the old clamps instead of new ones.

[74NovaMan]

Thanks for the ideas. New carpet was on our list anyway so I will probably clean it in place as best I can and replace it this winter.

I've now got all the parts for the heater core replacement - new core, heater hoses (all 5), radiator hoses, thermostat and fan switch. I need to flush the remaining parts of the system before installing all the new stuff. This basically comes down to the engine and radiator. One of the big reasons I want to do this is that the car currently has orange/red (Dex-Cool) coolant and it apparently had the standard green from the factory. I am planning on using the universal greenish prestone stuff so I should not have compatibility issues going forward but I want to start with a reasonably fresh slate. Here is my plan:

• Drain the coolant and remove the radiator hoses
• Flush the radiator with plenty of water from the garden hose (I'd like to leave the radiator in place for this)
• Remove the thermostat housing and flush the block with the hose
• Remove the knock sensor and block plug to drain the remaining water from the block
• R&R heater core & hoses
• Reassemble remaining and refill coolant

Should this be sufficient or am I missing anything?

[DanStokes]

Good thought on the vinegar. I'll try that if I have another one of these.

Dan

[yellomalibu]

Chris, I've always had to pull the carpet and wash the snot out of it with the garden hose. It can be a stinker, though, especially the jute backing.

Dan

Yep. I had to do this twice. Once due to a failed heater core in the Chevelle a couple years back, and once 13-ish years ago with a dually I had that was just nasty from being a lawn mowing crew vehicle.

Saw horses, possibly with 2x4's bridging them to keep the carpet from sagging.

After washing it (I used laundry detergent in a pump up sprayer to douse it first, let it soak a few minutes before blasting it thoroughly to clean/ rinse), I sprayed it with a vinegar solution from the garden sprayer to keep the carpet / jute insulation from getting mildewy as it dried in the sun for a couple days.

[DanStokes]

Unfortunately, we got confirmation that the heater core has expired. When I went to grab the screws off the floor for the arm rest reinstall my fingers came back slimy wet. We have a good sized puddle on the passenger side floor and the coolant is low by a bit. I picked up the heater core and fan switch today and we should have the Rock Auto order (hoses and T-stat) on Wednesday. If all goes well we will complete that project Thursday night / Friday morning and be good for weekend cruising!

Anyone have any tips for getting the coolant out of the carpet?

Chris, I've always had to pull the carpet and wash the snot out of it with the garden hose. It can be a stinker, though, especially the jute backing.

Dan

[1972Behemoth]

One thing to be on the lookout for with these Camaros, Firebirds and Corvettes is the VATS system. It has a tendency to fail. So if you get to where it starts intermittently, with no rhyme or reason. I can tell you how to fix it.

[74NovaMan]

Unfortunately, we got confirmation that the heater core has expired. When I went to grab the screws off the floor for the arm rest reinstall my fingers came back slimy wet. We have a good sized puddle on the passenger side floor and the coolant is low by a bit. I picked up the heater core and fan switch today and we should have the Rock Auto order (hoses and T-stat (195 degrees)) on Wednesday. If all goes well we will complete that project Thursday night / Friday morning and be good for weekend cruising!

Anyone have any tips for getting the coolant out of the carpet?

[74NovaMan]

Found this behind the passenger door panel!

[74NovaMan]

I wasn't sure about drilling holes in the door but for the time and aggravation saved we're sure it was worth it. It took about an hour start to finish. The window works now!

[74NovaMan]

Next up was the passenger window, which has not moved since we owned it. I checked Orielly's and was surprised to see that the window motor was a stock item for $50 for a new one. I was more surprised when I saw Napa had new ones in stock and on sale for $27. I went to town and picked one up. After fighting the door panel off (window was stuck all the way up) we googled window motor replacement and found these two helpful videos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-1lW3Vup1c

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9pWbhp3_-M

These suggest a shortcut that allows you to leave the regulator in place and just drill out the rivets that hold the motor in. The price of the shortcut is drilling 2 new holes in the door to access these rivets. We only had to drill 2 small holes to access the rivets and install the screws.

The offending motor:



That's a big door!



The 2 holes we drilled:

[74NovaMan]

The big black box pictured above was sitting loose on the under dash cover panel. The panel fits much better without it there. I do need 2 more of these clips as well as a new fuse door as the plastic clips on ours are broken.

[74NovaMan]

No solder was used to attach the Viper to the original car harness. The standard practice for the install was to remove some insulation from the wire on the car harness without cutting the wire. This was nice for removal as all I had to do was pull the wire off and tape it back up. In fact, only one wire was cut and routed through the viper. I had to add a small piece of wire and soldered the connections and we are good to go. No more embarrassing alarms going off when we don't want them too. Anyone want a gently used viper alarm?

[74NovaMan]

Spent a good part of today working on the Camaro. Step one was looking at the passenger window switch and why the electric release for the top cover was not working. The window switch checked out fine and the top cover and power locks was a fuse. The fuse popped at lease once more during the day so this issue may not be resolved. In checking the fuses, I pulled a wire off the valet switch for the PITA Viper alarm. Rather than fix it we decided to remove the system entirely as we hated it from the start. Here are some pics of the quality install.