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.: converting a 1976 corvette

1976 Corvette     Having removed the old '76 frame and cutting it up in pieces for hauling to the dump, the '82 frame is ready to accept the body.  Mock-up     The critical clearance area with the motor's rear crossmember was at the A/C housing. It's a real close fit - about 1/8" clearance. I may do some minor grinding on the housing so that as the body-mount bushings age and compress there is still some clearance.
    These pictures aren't in order. Here's an old fitting of the motor's rear crossmember to make sure everything is goes together. concept     The '82 frame uses a different transmission crossmember. The '76 required minor modifications where it bolts to the frame. 
    The shift is generic BW/Muncie. It was a good price - especially knowing that I would have to modify it.
    I'm not a believer in directly mounting the motor to the transmission so I made a hub that uses a RAM spring damper/coupler. My concern was minor motor pulsations resonating throughout the car.     I wanted the motor as low as possible (due to the clearance at the A/C housing), but I was limited by the steering drag link. At full steering lock, there is about 1/2 clearance. These parts are rock solid so running them tighter would not have been a problem - until the idler arm has 75,000 miles on it!
    How do you fill a one-gallon bucket with with two-gallons of water?
    I bought twenty-four Odyssey PC1500 batteries with the belief I could somehow cram them into the car.
    With a lot of creative mounting, I've shoe-horned them in with ample space for accessories - like an antenna for the new radio!
  The Corvette dash borders on trash. The only good things are the speedometer and tachometer.
    The console is also antiquated so it too will be trashed. 
    I was going to keep  some of the wiring from the old gauge cluster, but eventually canned that idea.
    The dash pad, while new, is only going to be used as a template - vinyl is vinyl, even when it has "stitching" accents!      Here's the full drivetrain. At the top of the picture are the tubular upper control arms - not necessary, but the price was right.


    Another shot of the wiring and some items that will be part of the instrument cluster and console. 


    After hours of looking for the "SAE" specifications for electric car charging connector, I eventually came upon that elusive hardware.
    While I won't need the CAN bus, etc., they at least look correct.