any '62 issues?

[William F.]

I'm looking at a nice '62 with original 340 hp engine. Any particular maintenace issues or weaknesses )other than connecting rods) on these? Would seem to be less problems than C2's since they have drum brakes and straight rear axle.
Thanks
'67 L79
'67 L36

[Edward J.]

Re: any '62 issues?

Bill ,It would seem that there would be a lot more to worry about with a 50 year old corvette, and what you expect .Is it a restored corvette, what kind of restoration was it, NCRS ? Is it going to be a driver? there could be many topics.

Your best bet is to find someone in a local chapter willing to take a look at the car reguardless of what your plans. take a look at the cars history etc. wheres it been all it life? paper work?

Good luck with your endeavor.

[Bruce B.]

Re: any '62 issues?

Bill,
Explain the connecting rod issues.
I have never had any engine problems with my original 62 340 HP car.

[Edward J.]

Re: any '62 issues?

Bill,
Explain the connecting rod issues.
I have never had any engine problems with my original 62 340 HP car.

Bruce, that ,might be a Duke quote. He states that it was a weak link on the 340SHP engines. I suppose if your a racer it may be.

[Duke W.]

Re: any '62 issues?

This issue has been discussed numerous times on the TDB.

The early 327 connecting rods lack durability and are prone to breaking. The #7 rod on my '63 340 HP had a bad crank on the bolt seat when I had them Magnafluxed at 115K miles. It may have been a handful of trips to 6500 from breaking. The 283 rods are worse, which is why all these engines should get better rods if they are overhauled. I also knew of several 327s that blew up back in the sixties due to these weak rods.

Beginning at about the start of the '66 model year the second design rod added a little hump of material adjacent to the bolt seats, which reduced the previous stress concentration and greatly improved durability. These rods are okay to use as-is on 250/300 327s or 283s as long as they pass dimensional checks - no need to resize or replace bolts.

All other small blocks should use modern aftermarket rods, and the Eagle SIR at about $250/set are a good value and only marginally heavier than the OE rods.

Duke

[Steven B.]

Re: any '62 issues?

Bill, I have had my '57 since '64 and ordered my '77 and '78 so I have had alot of time maintaining and repairing each. The straight axle has been much easier and simple for me to keep going. It is the simplistic late 40's design. The "C3" mechanicals are essentially the same as the "C2". The straight axle cars are very basic. Considering the '62 and even '67 there are only 5 years difference but a big jump in chassis/suspension. If you are considering the '62 check the brakes if they need rebuilt and rear crossmember for rust. For the "C2" check brakes, trailing arms, IRS and the rest is mostly the same for any year. If you get the '62 be sure to get the ST-12 from the NCRS store and a couple of other manuals, learn the car and have fun.

Steve

[Rick A.]

Re: any '62 issues?

Bill, sent you an email/PM