20 Most Recent 1981 Chevrolet Corvette - Page 6 Questions & Answers

what you could start with is checking to see what trouble codes are being logged for this vehicle...if the engine light stays on, it means the ecu is registering a fault......by the means of a trouble code...now the trouble code doesnt tell you how to fix it, but it does give you the direction to go down...judst wondering if you have tried to obtain the trouble codes

battery is dead or a bad connection

take out the ash tray its under there.

My 81 did that, cable has needs replaced under the hood. To open lift up hood on drivers side, slide hand under hood and pull cable where it hooks to latch.

Hi. What you need is the 1981 corvette owner manual. Here is a link to one I found for you. http://www.bishkobooks.com/servlet/the-27078/1981-CHEVROLET-CORVETTE-Owners/Detail

Joe

There is recorded case of oil soaking thought bottom of the distributor.
Open the cap and look the any sign of oil from the o-ring seal.
== Do not rule out vacuum advance line/hose. ==
Do a short test ran without air filter to rule out air restriction.
Add injector clean to rule out bad fuel. I recommend Lucas fuel additive.

Remove the switch and jump the B+ wire with any of the other two wires and see if the motor responds . If it does you have a bad switch. If it doesn't you have a defective motor.

Simple remove heat shields, removed four bolts on each set(therefore there are 8bolts total) remove exhaust manifold clean manifold replace with new gaskets. If bolts are rusted spray them with any lubricant the night before the job use a new socket and have a sandwhich and a cold beverage handy. Enjoy this its easy and fun. Don't sweat it if you break a bolt in the manifold... just let me know and I'll walk you threw it. .. By the way its a good time to use some dressing on the manifold pipes. It will make the engine seen new.

Biggest problem is neutral safety switch. When it goes you have no crank no start. A pain to get too have to remove driver seat and be a gynmist to get to it. Most customers turn its circuit into an ignition kill switch and do not replace it.
Next suspension and tires are fickle. At oil change intervals check all ball joint for wear and keep monitoring steering damper for dents and leaks.When this puppy goes you'll have steering wheel oscillations. very easy to replace and not that costly.
Tires just all around **** with this car. If you get 25k out of a pair( regardless of what brand) you did good.
If you have a manual transmission shifter rattles in third gear.
valve cover gaskets every 3-4 years
Calipers leak, there is a TSB on this basically hunt down a good brand and use them.
R4 A/C compressor is very fickle usually dies within 4 years of service.
A/C control head is in a bad spot and is effected by road conditions. pays to have extra parts for this hanging around ( vacuum valve,and setting switch and clear plastic cover)
Also good to keep power window switches handy.
Power seat motor usually good in all positions except tilt position.
Power seat connectors prone to fail due to corroded terminals.
Water pump goes every 50k .
lastly leaf springs , replace silencers every 25k or when squeaking is unbearable.

It is most likely the brake hoses going to the brake calipers,they stop up on the inside,If this was at all helpful,please rate,thank you.

Check ball joints , steering linkages and tires. Doesn't take much for a defective radial tire to make this puppy pull.

Either shifter needs adjustment or the gear is worn. I recommend bringing it to a transmission repair shop. The shifter adjustment is a bit of a pain and I would hate to have you go threw all that trouble only to find out its the gear .

Check wiring for tach off distributor. The wires get dry and crack and now you have an open.

Its either a short or the switch is defective. Remove switch from electrical connector and use an ohm meter to test their resistance.
If resistance is high replace switch.

check all ur fuses as a first step, should be under the drivers side of dash, usually the most common fault, if not check for power at the unit itself

Look in the fender wells and see what access that gives you

Check the fuse to see if it is blown,be sure to have the head lights on,and the dash dimmer on all the way bright,when checking the fuse,if it is not blown,check the fuse to see if it has voltage on that fuse,if it does not,then replace the head light switch.If the fuse has voltage to it,then either a bad connection at the cluster,or the bulbs are burned out in the cluster.