When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Well it's officially in my name. I've decided to trailer it home in a few weeks instead of driving it. I want to go through it before any long drives. Even though my uncle insists it will be fine. I found out the transmission was rebuilt approximately 500 miles ago. Have the receipts. That's a plus. My uncle has new weatherstripping for it that pretty much covers most of the car. Another plus. Installing it sounds like it will be super fun. Not. I'm sure I'll be posting questions when it comes time to work on it. Thanks in advance.
Congratulations! More pictures when you get home please. I think you will find it is a relatively easy car to work on. The engine bay is not as cramped as you would think.
My buddy and I picked up the 82 C3 yesterday and my 78 Rally Nova Custom. 2 trips in a day. Btw the reason I picked up the Nova other than the cheap price tag, is the fact I like Novas and it has some cool rare options. Cool car.
Anyway I was surprised the I5 fwy was pretty chill minus the tire tread that took out part of my trailer fender. I guess it would have helped to know being near 6'3 with broad shoulders makes a tight fit in a C3 lol. Holy smokes it's a bit cramped. More so with broad shoulders. Getting in and out is work lol. Well the parasitic draw killing the battery my uncle spoke of wasn't a draw at all. It was simply a bad connection. I used the C3 battery to start and move the Nova so I knew the battery was fine. I moved the C3 off of my car hauler which lordy was a turd to do. C3's are super low to the ground lol. I had to park in a dip to keep from hitting the bottom. The doors wouldn't clear the tops of the trailer fenders. Pain is the ****. After I parked the C3 it wouldn't start. Odd. Dash lights lit up. I then swapped the battery to the Nova to test it. Nova started fine. Put the battery back in the C3 which again another thing that isn't fun to do being tall lol. It's almost easier lifting the hatchback window and going in from there. Again dash lights lit up but it wouldn't start. I noticed a little block of wires next to battery that looked to be corroded or sprayed with that electrical anti corrosion spray. I'm guessing it's a relay switch??? That switch? or block? is mounted in between the battery and the drivers side wall in the battery compartment. 1 small wire was nearly broken off. Anyway I crimped a couple of wires there for now and it starts just fine. Went out late last night and again right now. Starts fine. My uncle may be pissed when I tell him lol. I'm going to replace the battery cables and that relay or whatever it is.
So it runs and drives grrrreat. The throttle response is immediate. Barely touch the pedal and you are off to the races. From a stop you can smoke the tires on a dry street without power braking at all. Super squirrely in the rear end. Even with new meats on it. I was a bit surprised since all of the videos I have watched said these crossfire motors were low in horsepower. Either history is wrong about these motors or this car had some motor work done. I know it passes smog. The exhaust sounds amazing. I want side pipes on it but the way it sounds now I almost don't want to change it. I know the trans was rebuilt. Feels like it has a shift kit too.
After really looking it over it will eventually need new paint. I see blisters, spider webbing and paint bubbling. The interior plastic was touched up here and there and painted with that plastic paint. Most of the interior is worn. I will probably replace it all. Also when pushing the accelerator pedal my shoe gets hooked under the side of the brake pedal. I'm thinking they added that sound barrier material under the new carpet and it pushes my shoe over making it catch the brake pedal.
In short C3's look sweet and are a blast to drive. It will take some getting used to. I am def looking forward to cruising this thing. I'll take some pics today of that relay and some other stuff. I was burnt out after yesterday. I think bbq and beers are well needed tonight. But I'll start the day with some motrin lol.
When you start working on the Nova, you can go over to our sister forum, Chevroletforum.com and go to the Nova section.
I've been working on it for a while. Just finally brought it home. I was posting on another Nova site. Posted tons of pics. I'll check out the sister forum for sure. I didn't know there was one here. Thanks for the heads up!
05-02-2022, 04:02 AM
