20 Most Recent 1972 Chevrolet Corvette - Page 7 Questions & Answers

go here to buy a reprint of the original factory wiring diagram, $8.00 We have no diagrams here for the car, to old.

http://www.faxonautoliterature.com/product.cfm?p=3828&cs=products%2Ecfm%3Fvt%3D1007%26mk%3D6176%26yr%3D1972

if u can reach up carefully to back of dash along upper steering column u can feel and probably see the cable unscrew the cable from back of the spedo and guide it down open hood slowly pull cable thru firewall its under brake master cylinder or from inside slowly push thru firewall under vehicle at rear of transmission is the other connection unscrew with the new one slide shaft into trans might have to wiggle a bit than tighten reroute cable thru firewall be careful of shaft up behind dash reconnect done

Speedometer Cable REMOVAL & INSTALLATION Reach behind the speedometer and depress the retaining clip. Pull the cable from the casing. If the cable is broken, raise the car and disconnect the cable at the transmission. Lubricate only the bottom 3⁄4 of the cable core with speedometer cable lubricant. Reconnect all parts.

ARE THE FRONT AND REAR TURN SIGNAL INDICATOR BULBS ON STEADY AS WELL?

Sounds like the door latch mechanism is worn out.

The door latch mechanism for your door is operated by rods, from the inside door handle, and the outside door handle.
It is highly unlikely, (Though not impossible), that all those two rods have fallen off. (Spring clips hold the rods in place. Opening Rod Control Clip. In the link below they are shown as Item E)

With the window all the way down, carefully use a long flat tip screwdriver, to push down on the lever for the door latch mechanism, to open the door. Make sure the lever for the door lock, in the door latch mechanism, is in the fully unlock position.

This link may help show you the inner door hardware, I'm referring to above,

http://www.mamotorworks.com/corvette-c3-door-hardware+1968+1982-inner-1-106-9491.html

You can see that when you pull out on the inner door handle, it pulls a rod forward. This rod is attached to a Bellcrank. The Bellcrank in turn pulls down on another rod, which pulls down on a small lever in the door latch mechanism, to release the door latch.

When you push down on the outside door handle, it pushes a small rod that is attached to that same lever as the inner door handle. Looking down through the window opening in the door, it is that lever that you're trying to push down, to open the door.

Viewing down through the window opening, try to operate the outside door latch a little. Watch to see what lever it tries to move. That's the lever you have to move Down, with the flat tip screwdriver.

With the door open, it is a matter to check out,

1.The Inside Door Opening Control, (The inside door handle is attached to it), to see if the locking part of it is functioning correctly. Make sure that it goes to the full Unlocked position.

2.The Door Latch Mechanism. Make sure it is functioning correctly. It, along with the various door hardware parts inside the door, needs to be lubricated at specific intervals. The more it's used, the higher the interval rate goes up. (I find that owners seem to Skip this task a lot! I use Lubriplate White Lithium spray)

To replace the door latch mechanism, I suggest you buy a manual for your car, so you can view all of the door hardware to remove, to remove the door panel. Then view how the spring clips come off of the rods, and the three screws come out of the door latch mechanism.

Do you know what a Slide Hammer looks like? A long rod with a handle on the end, and a weight that slides on the rod. The weight hits against a stop made into the handle. At the end of the rod you attach various tools. You can attach a hook, or a threaded bolt, or screw, and many other attachments.

The reason I described a Slide Hammer, is that there is a miniaturized version of it, to remove hard to get at seals. At the end of this tool it has two 'fingers'. (Spring steel pieces of hooked flat metal) These fingers are forced through the rubber part of the seal, and the fingers spread out. They catch the metal outer ring of the seal.

Then the weight on this small slide hammer is slid hard against the handle, and after a few taps it withdraws the seal.

This link is to illustrate one companies version of this tool,

http://www.nextag.com/OTC-Tools-OTC1173-Slide-538274577/prices-html

Kind of pricey if a person just wants to use it one or two times! However it is the proper professional way.

There is another method that you may want to consider. Not a professional method, but if done correctly, it can save you in a pinch. (And also save $80 to $100 for the above tool!)

With this method you have to use care not to scratch the selector rod shaft, nor accidentally scratch the bore of the transmission, where the seal goes into.
A sturdy pick tool with a curved hook end is used. You carefully feed the tip of the curved hook, through the rubber portion of the seal. Then you clamp a pair of vise grips onto the pick tool towards the end of the tool. (Opposite end of the curved hook)

Making - Sure the tip of the hook, is resting against the middle of the metal part of the seal, you tap the pair of vise grips with a Small hammer. Tap the vise grips so that they are pulling against the tool, pulling the seal out.

Use the tool to pull out on the seal's metal ring on one side, then slide the tool over to the opposite side, and start tapping again. Keep working around the seal, until you work it out far enough to grab it with pliers, or needle nose vise grips.

either a bad spedometer cable on these older cars the spedo cable can be lubed with a special adapter and a special grease in your grease gun or the cable removed from the case and lubed OR the spedo head is tired and needs to be rebuilt

Your Intake valves are the larger diameter valves.

Check for power at the wiper motor. The door is vacuum operated the wiper motor is electric. If there is power present the motor is bad, if not check the fuse, and then check the wiper switch. My guess is that the wiper motor is bad.

It is more than likely in a fuseable Link coming off of the battery or off of the alternator causing your power lose. How many grounds did you check, because there are at least two grounds on the car. The first one is the main ground off of battery and the second one coming off of the back of the engine.

The vents are controlled by vacuum. See if there isn't a vacuum line going into the firewall and back track it to its source An engine that old may have a clog in the intake and blocking the vacuum.

Hope this helps.

May be a bad torque converter. You did bolt it to the flywheel didn't you?

Chack ALL fuses 1st.
Fusible links dont always look melted sometimes they just burn out.
Only way to check is with DVOM

http://www.corvettefever.com/techarticles/corp_0907_corvette_starters/troubleshooting_tests.html

Sorry, I wish I could highlight the more relevant parts, but it's all there.

Corvette Starters - Crank And Go

Wiring on the mini-starter solenoid is rather simple. The battery cable runs to the top 8-mm stud while the starter switch wire goes to the spade terminal on the side of the solenoid. The text offers details for wiring when a wire from the distributor is required.
Troubleshooting The Starting SystemSix Corvette Starter TestsBackyard starting system diagnosis is pretty simple. Very few special tools are required, and for the most part, diagnosis can be handled in less than an hour. What follows could be old news to many seasoned Corvette enthusiasts. If you're stuck and can't trace a balky starting system, you might try the following:
Test One: Before you even consider a starter problem, you have to test the battery. A battery that's a dead player (or weak) can not only create starting troubles, it can make testing next to impossible. Once the battery is eliminated as the culprit, try this old mechanic's trick: Turn the headlights on and try starting the engine. If the lights go out when the starter is switched "on" and the starter doesn't spin, look for a poor connection between the battery and the starter motor. The number one cause of grief is a corroded battery terminal. The next biggest problem spot is a bad ground--especially where the ground strap attaches to either the car chassis (body) or the engine. In many cases, the problem is actually paint between the ground strap and the ground.
Test Two: If the lights dim when the starter is turned "on", and the starter turns slowly or the cranking action is sluggish, then the starter is experiencing a very heavy load. The number one reason for this in modified engines is too much initial ignition advance. If the engine has too much initial advance (or if it has mechanical advance weights and they're stuck) to start correctly, it tries to run backwards. The first thing to check is the mechanical advance. If it's stuck, free it. If the engine has too much initial advance dialed into it, reduce it. What if you need a bunch of initial advance to make your Corvette work (for example, a high compression Corvette race car with an automatic transmission)? Try separating the ignition and starting circuits. In other words, set up the wiring so that one switch (such as the key) turns the starter motor "on" while another turns the ignition "on." This way, you can get the engine turning quickly with the starter, and then flick on the ignition. It works.


Mounting hardware and shims are included with most mini-starters. What you see in this photo are shims that are used to move the pinion out. The shims are included with the starter, but McLeod offers a complete shim pack under PN 800170.
Test Three: If the headlights on your Corvette remain bright when you turn them on, but the starter does nothing, then there's an open circuit somewhere in the starting system. The first thing to do is to hook up a booster cable from the battery + post directly to the terminal on the starter. If the starter still doesn't spin over, then it needs work. Another component to check is the neutral safety switch. If you by-pass the switch, and the starter functions, you've found the problem.
Test Four: If the solenoid (or relay) makes clicking sounds when you flick on the switch, but it starts with a direct shot of battery power (you can by-pass the solenoid by inserting a large screwdriver between the large battery cable post and one of the small switch terminals on the starter), it doesn't necessarily mean that the solenoid is healthy. Quite often, the contacts inside a solenoid can be burned. This makes it impossible for the solenoid to switch on the heavy current to the starter. The most effective fix is to simply replace the solenoid. If you've done that, and the starter still refuses to spin, it's time to tear it down for a rebuild.


Mount bolts and conventional shims to move the pinion down round out the package. You'll note that there isn't a nose brace included (as used on many conventional Corvette hi-performance starters). The reason is simple. The starter is so light short and rigid it doesn't require extra support.
Test Five: If the starter works periodically, but with obvious grinding noises, remove it and carefully inspect the armature shaft where it engages the starter drive. Believe it or not, this problem is very perplexing since the starter will work fine (even off the bench) for a number of "starts", but then it will refuse to function. You might be astonished to find a fractured armature shaft (this is an extremely frustrating problem that plagued a low mileage truck this writer once owned). Usually, the cause is poor engagement with the ring gear.
Test Six: Finally (and we're leaving the worst for the last), if the engine refuses to turn over, even if the starter is making a bunch of noise, you could have "hydrauliced" the engine. Since liquids (coolant, oil or gasoline) cannot be compressed, they don't allow the pistons (one or more) to go through their complete stroke. The cause could be a leaking head gasket, a stuck float or even a broken block. Remove all of the spark plugs and try spinning the engine over. If it turns over freely, you'll soon be met by one (or more) of the above fluids. That should tell you what the problem area really is.

yes you will need to make your brackets. and the best place to get your power from is the battery but put a inline fuse or braker.or you could put in a relay that come on with the key?

chilton profellional power accessory and wiring diagrams manual 1968-73pps 666-674. I have it right in front of me. but don't have means of transmitting. any ideas? [email protected]