If you are the proud owner of a 1968-1982 Corvette, then you are probably aware that your headlight system operates with vacuum. These cars are around 30-40 years old now, so if you haven’t already experienced problems with the operation of your Corvette’s headlights, then it’s definitely something that is looming in your not-too-distant future. You can easily identify Corvettes with this problem by their drooping headlights, or one headlight that won’t open at all. We’ve seen these Corvettes driving around during the daylight with their lights still in the upright position so the owner doesn’t have to fight with them in the evening.
The basic theory of C3 Corvette headlight operation is simple. It uses vacuum from the intake manifold to open and close the headlight doors via vacuum actuators. With a call to Zip Corvette Parts and an hour or two under the hood, you can replace those hard, cracked hoses with new ones to insure many more years of good service.
The Headlight Vacuum Hose Kit from Zip Corvette Parts, which includes instructions and schematics, is the finest on the market, making hose replacement a walk in the park. The new hoses are color-coded and cut to length, plus we received new check valve and filter along with detailed drawings, and even tips for troubleshooting your system if you experience problems with other than the hoses. There are also detailed drawings representing the 1968 through 1982 Corvettes, which comes in handy as a checklist when replacing hoses.
01: Here are the manuals that come with the Zip Corvette Parts kit. Be sure to hang on to these after your installation because the material cannot be found anywhere else. They make good reference to possible problems that can arise in the future and take you through troubleshooting the entire system, including the wiper doors on late 1968-1972 Corvettes
02: This is what you see after opening the hood. The vacuum hoses are on top, making removal and replacement easy.
03: Start at the top of the engine. It all begins at the intake manifold. Identify each hose and replace them one at a time, checking them off on the supplied drawing to make sure you replace them all.
04: The kit includes new check valve, filter and any necessary tee valves.
05: As you can see, the supplied hoses are a direct match to the originals, right down to the color-coded striping running down the side of each hose. Simply identify and replace.
06: If you find that some of the hoses are difficult to get on, a little lubricant such as WD-40 can aid the installation. Just a quick squirt should be enough.
07: Here is the long hose that runs down the side of the engine compartment at the top. There are two of these that will be replaced.
08: Since you’re working in such a confined area, protect the body as much as possible. A scratch or nick in this area can really show up.
09: Up front toward the headlights is where things can get a little tight and may require you to crawl underneath the car. Just remember to take your time to identify each hose before removal and only replace them one at a time.
10: Here are our new hoses in the engine compartment and up front behind the headlight actuators, ready to give us many more years of faithful service.
11: Finished!
Corvette Vacuum Hose Replacement: 1968-1982 Corvette Headlight Vacuum Hose Kit
Text and images by Mark Potter
Source: Zip Corvette Parts
8067 Fast Lane | Mechanicsville, VA 23111 | (800) 962-9632
Corvette Parts List Related to Article:
- 1968 Headlight & Windshield Wiper Door Vacuum Hose & “T” Kit
- 1969 Headlight & Windshield Wiper Door Vacuum Hose & “T” Kit
- 1970 Headlight & Windshield Wiper Door Vacuum Hose & “T” Kit
- 1971-1972 Headlight & Windshield Wiper Door Vacuum Hose & “T” Kit
- 1973-1979 Headlight Vacuum Hose & “T” Kit
- 1980-1982 Headlight Vacuum Hose & “T” Kit
- Shop/Repair Manuals
