SoCalSACC Tech Session, October 25, 2025
Submitted by Eric Hershkowitz
Saturday, October 25 was the date of SoCalSACC’s biannual and well-attended tech session. Usually once a year this gathering is held at Kent Browing’s facility which makes an ideal meeting place as it has ample room for all the activities, secure parking and a fantastic display of cars, automobilia and (in a separate building) vintage radios. The opportunity to view the cars alone makes the trip worthwhile. Kent had some recent acquisitions on display in the parking lot, including a vintage Snap-on tool truck containing all of the tools and rollaway boxes restored and a 1947 Chevrolet Canopy displayed as a fruit-vending truck. The vehicles inside are unbelievable. Our Club is very fortunate and appreciates the fact that Kent has allowed us to conduct our tech sessions at his facility. Similarly, SoCal owes a huge “thank you!” to Rick DuFresne for taking the lead in organizing our tech sessions which takes a lot of work! Without Rick (and thank-you Lindsay) our Club wouldn’t enjoy these popular events.
The morning session was presented by Joe LeMay on the subject of Corvette cooling. He discussed the effects of Anti-freeze/Coolant and the choices of different formulations that we have in addition to the effects of pressure caps and tune-up tips. A few takeaways from Joe’s presentation are:
- Coolant should be changed periodically as it loses its effectiveness.
- Pressure caps raise the boiling point by approximately 3-degrees for every 1 lb. of pressure.
- A 7-pound cap over a mix of 40% coolant can raise the boiling point of the water from 212-degrees to 240-degrees.
- Don’t use tap water in your radiator due to the minerals it contains which may become deposited in your cooling system. Use distilled water mixed with coolant.
- Set your timing with the vacuum advance disconnected (if you have one). Lack of proper advance (or over-retarding engine timing) will increase engine temperature.
The group took a lunch break at just before noon and enjoyed a buffet of BBQ from Lucille’s which included brisket, mac-n-cheese, beans, coleslaw and cookies.
Our afternoon session was provided by Jeff Reade, owner of American Motoring Memories in Culver City California. An interesting, well-informed and entertaining speaker, Jeff explained how to rebuild a C-1 steering gear box and the features which affect the ease of turning the steering wheel in our Corvettes. A few takeaways from Jeff’s presentation are:
- Wider tires make steering more difficult. If not using the original bias-ply tires consider a “192” rather than a “205”.
- Tire pressure affects turning ability considerably. For example, notice the how much less effort is required when the tires are inflated to 35 psi rather than 30 psi.
- The wide spline at the top of the steering shaft should be at the 12:00 position, adjusted with the steering connecting rod, prior to adjusting tie rods.
- Too much caster will create more effort required to turn the steering wheel.
SoCalSacc would like to thank our presenters who generously share their knowledge in the interest of helping our members, the organizers who coordinate and help set-up and break-down the event and our members whose support makes it possible for us to conduct such enjoyable tech sessions.
