sharknose

Hello fellow "sharkers", I've been reading the forum for quite a while and finally decided to post. I currently have a 71 small block auto. coupe- I love the car and she runs beautiful but it can't be driven long distance due to the heat issue. I put down new carpeting (with the foil shield) last winter but it really didn't help much. So I'm looking at an 82 Collectors Edition- I know that I'm sacrifying mucho horses but I wondered if the ride will be much better. Also, since the 82 has a Catalytic Convertor is there any heat issues coming from it? Thanks for your help!

page62

Yes, the ride is much better. And yes, you will be replacing a muscle car with a boulevard cruiser. I've never heard of the cat causing cabin heat issues.

BTW: Since I have working A/C, I can solve the cabin heat issue any time ... simply by turning on the cold air! :cheers:

UKPaul

I've got an '81 & the ride is nice, but I don't really get any heat issues. At the moment we're having a heatwave (record temps) & the Vette isn't bad inside, compared to the outside temps. I've removed the aircon but I still get cold air (or as cold as the outside air) coming through the vents. The heater shut off valve on mine works (which seems to be a common problem with interior heat). I've just got some thin foil under the front carpets & I've got stainless exhaust pipes which don't radiate much heat. I've also got ceramic coated Headers & the engine bay temps don't seem as bad as they did with the stock manifolds. One thing you should check for is that all holes through the firewall have good grommets in them (any leaks through there will soon heat up the interior). There was also a good post a while ago about the cold air intake.
Rather than sell a nice '71 to buy an unknown '82 wouldn't it be better to try and cool down the '71? The front end redesign for the 80 - 82 increased airflow through the rad by 50% (so I read). When I was missing the airdam (wing) from the front of mine the interior temps were really high, but once the airdam was back in place the interior temps were much cooler. Is there any way you could get some sort of spoiler/airdam assembly fitted to increase airflow?????
Welcome to the forum!
:cheers:

NHvette

Wrapping the exhaust with header wrap can help.
The heat shield and collar over the tranny may be missing.
Inner shifter boot ?
Metal heat shields on the front of the floorboards/firewall ?

That's all I can think of for improving your 'heat' issues.
:seeya

1971Ultra

Here are some links about cabin heat and what to do:
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=362830
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=568648

Hope this helps.