1969Vette383

Hello to everyone, I sent my car to Dave at NorthStar Auto Tech. in Mountain View. He's a nice guy and helped me in a large way, I got the car back Wednesday after ~2 weeks of downtime but I still have a LONG way to go. Almost every bushing under my car needs replacing, the suspension in general is shotty and basically I have a driveable project in my hands right now.

Who can tell me the differences in gas tanks between the model designed for 196x-197x (1969 fits in those spans), and the gas tank designed for 1969L-1970 :confused: I was looking in the Mid America catalog and they have two different tanks that would fit a 1969 car depending upon having the "L" designation or not. My car is a September 1969 car. Does that make it a late or "1969L" model?

The next thing is, I asked Dave about a fiberglass rear spring. He said he wouldn't go that route and used the "Bouncing Hondas" as an example. He asked, "Do you want to look like that?" I said I didn't want to particularly. Now back at home my friend said he's in favor of using fiberglass rear springs and that the shocks which get used in conjunction with that spring will make all the difference in the world. My friend says that shocks have come a long way in development and that generally speaking, unfortunate as it is, if you want better you will pay more. He used the Audi vs. Panoz prototypes example in ALMS, to demonstrate suspension tuning is way up there today. That's what makes Audi so dominating he says. The only negative side he has from now is due to inexperience. He always hears of racecars using a fiberglass spring here and there, but he asks, "How long will it last?" "Will it go 100k miles?" "Who runs one on the street?" My question is, "Is Dave right that it will make me bounce like a yo-yo?" Or is my friend right that the spring when used with better shocks will cancel out that yo-yo effect and I'll get a good ride? Any experiences out there answering either question are welcomed.

I love this forum and the help I get from it is worth its weight in gold. Dave was shocked when I came to him and said the majority vote told me to go see him. I'm looking forward to building my car up better so I can drive her and feel comfortable when I do so. I would love to attend some Santa Clara area Corvette club events. The few things I did with the Avanti club were cool and when that car gets restored I'll do more with them too.


[Modified by 1969Vette350, 1:51 AM 10/17/2002]

Larry B.

I have owned a few C-3's and now a late (Oct.) 69. There were many changes made during the 69 model years but not everything happened at once so you just have to match what you have. I know that is a pain with the tank but.... Sometimes stock was used out of order so I have seen cars built after mine that had earlier items. As for the glass spring.. I have done that in the past and it is a drastic improvement in ride, handling, and noise. It will not bounce. As a matter of fact, 80's up use a glass spring. You should however change shocks to the ones designed for use with glass springs.





[Modified by silvervetteman, 5:28 AM 10/17/2002]

1969Vette383

Thanks Silvervetteman, are there any other people who would care to question or comment?

timbo79

Get the spring. they moved to it in the '80's and they are very good. I used a 330lb one and changed the shocks. They have different spring weights, so be sure if you don't like stiff springs, that you get one that suits your needs. Sorry, no info on gas tank.

plbart3

In my personal and somewhat elder position, the Duntov rear fibreglass spring makes the difference between drving a car and a stagecoach. Can you appreciate the difference between a 1969 Sportster and a 2002 Fat Boy? I can drive my '81 the 500 miles to Vermont and not have my kidneys bleed for a week. I replaced the steel springs in a '66 and the ride was much better without any noticeable loss of handling. As to the "fiberglass tuned" shocks from K&B etc.... buy the best shocks you can afford. Rebound is a completely different force. I have not noticed anything with the so-called plastic tuned shocks, but you get what you pay for in Bilsteins..less so with Koni. But Zora had a great idea when he went to the glass rear springs. Even though almost everybody thought he was nuts...the proof is in the pudding.

plbart3

PS Don't listen to Ricers. Their's is something new. Ours is something holy. Remember American Thunder.
When a Ricer sounds like a Vette and delivers the ALMIGHTY TORQUE to the rear wheeels, we my have something in common. Otherwise, they are driving their grandmothers' hand me down Civics. Rememeber this too, the Ricer guys drive their cars to work. Vettes are driven to shows or to the track. One is wannabe, the other is teenage appreciation for American class. Love..... An Old '57 Chevy Guy

Paul L

But shield those rear springs from the heat of the rear Y-pipe. They can fail owing to heat. Steel springs do not. Be careful.

Corvettes White

Very true but the fiberglass ones do not wear out.

George


[Modified by 999, 4:53 PM 10/18/2002]

gdh

Are their any noticeable differences btn the TRW glass spring and the VB other than price?

wcj

I had a 63 with steel springs and it had a hard ride. I have an 82 with fiber glass and the ride seems better and I have a 97 with 2 fiber glass transverse springs and the ride is phenominal. (hope I spelt it right). fiber glass of today doesn't shatter although I am replacing the front spring in the 97 because it cracked with 20000 miles. just a defect. the 82 rear shocks are stock. I don't see why you just don't replace your spring setup with 80 up to 82 including the shocks. probably save alot of money going stock. wcj

1969Vette383

Thanks for all of the information, if anyone else has something to add please do so, but this should help my case for buying a fiberglass rear spring.