1960 Corvette 283-290 F.I. Survivor
 

I put a teaser in my latest 67 L79 thread about this car. I came to know about this car last June at the 2025 Bloomington Gold show. To know me is to know how much of a sucker I am for survivor cars. This certainly fits the bill.
https://i.imgur.com/u2xQm4yh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/5HiTg1jh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/zB06OhAh.jpg

This car is not as pure of a survivor as some others that have passed through my hands, but still is a stand up piece. The car retains it's born with drivetrain, all original dated secondary components, a wonderful unhit body, and chassis that still retains original inspection marks and frame stencil (albeit very faint).
https://i.imgur.com/AjkG1nWh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/haaPcVXh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/VFEYqCch.jpg


Delivered to VV Cooke in Lexington, KY and sold on April 2nd, 1960. It original owner Mr. Marvin Henderson maintained ownership from 1960 through 1995. At the time of sale, the car was documented to have 89,601 miles. All subsequent ownership is documented with title copies, as well as cataloging all dates, codes, and stampings in the car.
https://i.imgur.com/Vxi5Znlh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Xljohr8h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/fcQuP5Nh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/jypye89h.jpg

This car is well equipped with the following options......
-4 speed transmission
-Deluxe heater
-Signal seeking radio
-6.70x15 4 ply W/W tires
-Windshield washer
-Courtesy lights
-Parking brake alarm
-283 / 290hp fuel injection
-Positraction axle 4.11 ratio
-Metallic brake equipment
-Sunvisors
-Hardtop

I bought this from a friend who campaigned the car through 2025. Awards for the car include.....
-1997 Bloomington Gold Survivor Award
-2025 Blooming Gold / Gold Certification
-2025 NCRS Chapter Top Flight
-2025 MCACN Gold Concours
-2025 MCACN Triple Diamond

Not much left from a judging perspective:cool2:

As one can discern, this car has been a very static piece since 1995 accumulating 994 miles in 36 years. Much of the heavy lifting had been completed by the prior owner to get the car running, driving and stopping. When I picked the car up, I knew it certainly could run better. I no sooner got it out of the trailer and went to work.

The car sounded and acted like the timing was retarded. On these F.I. cars, the distributor housing is 2pc. The lower portion is fixed, as there is an oil supply line that feeds the gear box that drives the injection unit. The top portion which contains the breaker plate and distributor cap then rotates to set ignition timing. The upper and lower portions were seized together. I was so focused on fiddling with the car, I never bothered to take some pics. Anyways, I pulled the distributor, and soaked the joint between the two with penetrant, and got that loosened up. I then loaded it up on the distributor machine to check / adjust the dwell on the both sets of points. Reinstalled, that and set the timing. Good outcome there.

Then I diagnosed the F.I. unit was not getting a vacuum signal to the power enrichment diaphragm. The unit was against the rich stop (which the oil in the engine confirmed)

The vacuum signal comes from the air meter side of the unit
https://i.imgur.com/stK9bpIh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/y359oyLh.jpg

Then that runs under the plenum in a steel line to the enrichment diaphragm on the fuel meter.
https://i.imgur.com/s99b6Rdh.jpg

The stop on the right is the rich stop. It's engine vacuum that determines engine load and pulls it against the lean stop (on the left). It is those two stops that determine the "tune". This is one of the reasons big camshafts and low vacuum are a hurdle in F.I. engines.
https://i.imgur.com/GSzzaK0h.jpg

The steel line that runs under the plenum was plugged with some kind of gunk. So I sprayed some carb cleaner in the tube, let it sit overnight, and blew it out with compressed air in the morning. I am impressed with how good the car runs.

The new plug wires should be here today, and a fresh set of tires will be here on Monday!

Lookin good Tim, I love these threads!

‘

Another amazing car Tim, as usual.
:beers:
~ Pete

.

Maroon with the white cove just works SO WELL.

Eventually I need to buy a solid axle from you. It's the only generation of Corvette I haven't owned, yet. I've never even driven one.

Another VERY nice car, Tim. Somehow, I'm thinking you and your Dad will be trading Corvette's again in the foreseeable future....:hmmm:

There are already some of his nose prints on the windows:beers:

----To Kentuckian and southern Indianian Chevy gear heads VV Cooke was the epicenter. They sold a huge amount of Hi-Perf stuff and sponsored different racers as well....Bill S

Tim, I don't know how these amazing cars find their way to you, but I'm glad they do. Are you looking for an apprentice? I am pretty handy with a broom and dust pan.

What a feeling you must get from diagnosing and solving the problems. Well done Tim!

Tim,

I’m sure you will post a legible photo of this triangle tag as I’m curious of the information.

PS, and the Oil Change sticker ….. when you have a moment …..no rush.

PS, this FI is so cool !!!

Such a cool car. I wonder how many people are left who know how to tune one of those FI units. My neighbor had a complete FI system in his barn until about a year ago. He's got a very rough FI '57 Chevy behind his house that the FI was supposed to go in.

I'm pretty sure that VV Cooke was in Louisville, not Lexington. I'm about 2 hours from Louisville and 2 1/2 hours from Lexington. We have a large swap meet coming up in Louisville in about a week. I'm usually looking for VV Cooke stuff when I'm there. There are a few collectors of VV Cooke stuff and they seem to be hoarding most of it.

A fresh set of tires, a new set of wires, and some detailed work on the injection unit....and this old girl is starting to really come around. Too bad driving season is 60 days away

One last item for today, has been my experience with Diamondback Tires. I've used these in scenarios where a car will not get judged, but I still want somewhat of an authentic look. I realize a tire like this (wide whites) is not typical to many of the cars the members here have.

Time and time again, I am so impressed with how concentric the tire is, along with the minimal amount of weight they require. I've gotten in the habit of spinning my wheels on the balancer before mounting a tire. That was I know what the wheel is asking for in terms of weight along with how straight they are. On these here, I do a static balance, as I do not want the weights on the outside (like original). None of these tires required anymore the 1.5 oz. for the tire. This is a radial, yet has the squared off tread like a bias ply.

----I'm sure that was a minor mistake on Tim's part!....Bill S

Like a blind squirrel, I can find a nut every once and again:crazy:. Honestly, there are a couple of guys over on Corvette Forum that are rather forthcoming with their knowledge. In fact, once I confirmed that the engine had good compression, good vacuum, and the ignition system was up to snuff.....it wasn't that hard.

The principles are very similar to a carb. Once I had the wires installed, I applied some base measurements to the lean stop and the power stop. That gives a spitball range from lean to rich. The car runs notably better after that (it was FAR to lean for a real stable idle). Without going real deep in the weeds, it just requires a good eye for detail. Once the weather comes around, I can tune it with a wide band O2 for a partial light cruise to full throttle / load.

I'm still going to pull the injection unit, double check the spray patterns on the injector nozzles, and install an anti siphon valve in the pressure side of the system to prevent a hydro lock situation. I've been there before and the connecting rods are not too fond of that.

You are correct Freddie. The names all start to sound the same to a fat kid from the northwoods of Wisconsin:grin:

Nice under 1.5 oz is nothing for balancing tires.

Your threads are very soothing, like watching a video of Bob Ross paint a picture.

Lately it seems those nuts have been dropping on your head with regularity Tim! :haha:

Being a past owner of an FI Vette, many are intimidated but as Tim says not that different from a carburetor if you approach with an open mind. But keep a spare fuel meter drive cable in the glove box...

Two Cooke dealers in Ky.
 

There was two Cooke chevy dealers in Ky. back in the day. VV Cooke in Louisville, Ky. and LR Cooke in Lexington, Ky.. It’s my understanding those guys were brothers. I never heard of LR Cooke as being a Hi Po dealer like VV Cooke but i could be wrong.
My brother bought a nice low mileage one owner 70 Vette coupe from VV Cooke once. When in Louisville we’d always go over to Jeffersonville, Ind. just across the river n go to Bobby’s Auto Sales, they always had tons of muscle cars. Those were the days!

Here is the F.I. tag Chris. I hate to pull it off and try to straighten it. I fear it's pretty fragile.

https://i.imgur.com/16mj13kh.jpg

And for the oil change sticker fans, this car has a few......

https://i.imgur.com/26uUGenh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/kFtOIVlh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/EP7FeaJh.jpg

I love that this car has been driven and enjoyed. Looking good buddy!

I have been bouncing between the 60 and the 67 this week. One item I was working on was the chassis on the 60. So after a couple rounds of degreasing, scrubbing with scuff pads, steam, and preserving......this is what I have come up with. To say I am pleased is a fair statement, especially when one considers the mileage of the car!

https://i.imgur.com/JZBvMN8h.jpg

Yes, that is the ignition shielding for the right side laying there in-between the frame rails
https://i.imgur.com/rzeO9MFh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/9kGr7Xth.jpg

These two marks I did not know existed (nor do I know what they represent)
https://i.imgur.com/b9x9hjNh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/5Rs6vPhh.jpg

The faint remains of the A.O. Smith stencil
https://i.imgur.com/pezzBgZh.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/9vEIPDeh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/zs9qy9wh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/crcCcLLh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ZdtgmRAh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/x1XwTwqh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ZIsagcYh.jpg

The engine crayon marks. "CS" is the engine suffix for the 290hp F.I. engine
https://i.imgur.com/0OdXVdNh.jpg


After all of this was completed, I was going to pull the car outside shoot a few glamour shots of it, as the weather was pretty nice yesterday. I go to fire the car up, and the engine turns a quarter turn and met with a "clunk". WTF???? I've been here before..........I know the lyrics to this song:scholar:

So I start pulling spark plugs to check for fuel. Sure enough on the #6 cylinder, it sprays like geyser. HYDROLOCK:eek2: I got the cylinder cleaned out, and fired the engine. It's not right. It must have distorted the connecting rod a bit. So on Monday, I'll call the engine builder to see what his schedule is, and start pulling this apart.

The irony is, the last thing I was going to do yesterday was to sit down and order parts, including the anti siphon valve for the F.I. unit that prevents these instances. A good lesson to not procrastinate (intentional or non- intentional)

For those of you who enjoy these projects, there is more to come on this one. On the bright side, I can upgrade the rods, and spin this engine as originally designed. I'll pull the oil pan and strip it to knock down the color and try to make play the part.

Sorry to hear about the engine issue. Is this a common scenario for the early FI units? Hopefully the 1/4 turn of the engine wasn’t enough to distort the rod.

It is Tony. In hindsight, I should have pulled the unit right away. My plan was to see how far out the unit was from proper operation, to determine if I'd do the unit in house or send it out.

It seems to me, the engine has a bit more of a vibration to it, and the vacuum reading is not quite as stable. I'm not going to chance it. Be it if I keep the car or sell it, I want to make sure a problem does not show up..... and possibly hurt the block (by breaking a rod).

That car has too many miles on it for you to leave the engine alone anyway...:laugh: This justifies having it "freshened"...:wink:
The car will be better for it, getting the engine/trans gone thru.

Tim,

I can tell you are in love here, so you aren't going to "mind" the time and expense of starting anew with the engine. Just means more time until the trade...

Tim,

Your chassis clean on this ‘60 is awesome and so deserving for this beautiful Corvette.

A fresh engine is also deserving.

Tim, it hurts to read this. At least the damage appears to be internal, and the block was not damaged. You've also got a great engine builder, so you're in good hands. I also know you love that car.

Ugh............sorry to hear this.

This might be a blessing in disguise Tim? It sounds like you thought something was a miss from the get go.
While it sucks to have to pull the engine, I'm sure you will have peace of mind after it gets the ol Tim S treatment.:3gears:
None of us on the site have seen you do anything half azz.

Thanks guys. I appreciate the sentiments.

I will admit, I felt the timing chain may have been stretched an amount. These harmonic balancers are not known for shifting the outer ring (like the later 8" units) and this requires me to time the engine by vacuum, not with a light. These early cranks are not drilled for a bolt, and thus the balancer needs to be pressed on (or drilled and tapped for the bolt to pull it on). So, it's not like I could have done a timing chain and gears with it in the car. In all, it's all probably for the best.

I certainly enjoy the work and these projects. As I have stated before, I have a great engine builder and his shop makes these projects very enjoyable. The expense side of it sucks, but it's all part of the hobby and business.

An opportunity to have the crank drilled/tapped for a bolt and find TDC and install a timing tape and pointer on the harmonic balancer...:headbang:

I've been putting 327 cranks in my lathe and drilling and tapping the snout. It just takes a few minutes. This gets the hole nice and straight with the crankshaft centerline.

Great thread Tim, keep it going, the info shared here is incredible. I got a 60 fuelie that has been sitting for 20 years and I will have to go through this same path. I used to know how to take these apart and work on them but that was 25 years ago. Forgot it all.

Great looking car, makes me sad I sold a 61 (listed on here under sold cars) that looked underneath similar to yours. Can't keep them all.

Cant remember where you are in Wisconsin, but I can vouge for a great engine shop around Milwaukee.

-bob

A quick post before I head out of town for a few days. I started to pull the car down on Tuesday. My work stint was short, as I found out the TA was getting delivered to my Dad's house (had it delivered there to shorten up the delivery time). I didn't get too far, but I will share that the engine occurrence was probably for the best. The coolant was NOT impressive at all. I had to chisel the thermostat out of it!

https://i.imgur.com/6qrKImbh.jpg

On the bright side, all sign point to the intake has never been off of the engine:grin:

https://i.imgur.com/Pibkzuyh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/zdDYDaMh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/sBbUwkih.jpg

Nice warranty gaskets, Tim.