5th Gen ('95-'99): One Brickyard 400 Pace Car is off the streets, for now
#1
One Brickyard 400 Pace Car is off the streets, for now
Well, it was all fun while the timing belt lasted.
Unfortunately for me, as I was just some 30 minutes into a little road trip a few weeks ago, my 1995 Brickyard 400 Pace Car Edition Z34 suddenly stalled out on the interstate.
I did manage to coast over to the shoulder safely, and (remarkably!) came to a stop right in front of a weigh station.
The odometer was just over 95,000 miles; so not even 100k on the car yet. The timing belt was probably the original one, and I was aware that Chevy recommended it to be checked at 60,000 miles. I did have it checked around 86-88k, but my (good) mechanic didn't see any glaring signs of wear at the time. Admittedly, I suppose I should've had it changed regardless...
Anyway, since the belt's inevitable failure also led to a few bent valves, no shop wanted to rebuild or replace the fairly rare, 25-year-old LQ1 DOHC engine... and neither did I, knowing the multi-thousand-dollar price tag for the job.
But good luck followed the bad, and I shortly stumbled across a local car collector that showed some serious interest in the '95 Pace Car, even with its dead engine. He's much more well-connected in sales and repairs than I'll ever be, and we in fact arranged a partial trade, so the '95's title is signed over to him now, and I have a much newer (but much different) used car to get around in.
When I think of my Monte, I know I sure was not ready to part ways with it, and I'm gonna miss it. It was a cool car, something special. Still, at least that slick white coupe wasn't wrecked or vandalized, and it's probably not going to end up in a you-pull-it yard either. In fact, in its new hands, it has a real chance of powering up and hitting the road again sometime in the future, and that's the silver lining.
Unfortunately for me, as I was just some 30 minutes into a little road trip a few weeks ago, my 1995 Brickyard 400 Pace Car Edition Z34 suddenly stalled out on the interstate.
I did manage to coast over to the shoulder safely, and (remarkably!) came to a stop right in front of a weigh station.
(This happens to be the last photo of the car I took, but not the last time I saw it.)
After calling for a tow and getting myself back into town, two different shops gave me the diagnosis of a broken engine timing belt. (I thought it might have been the fuel pump that failed.)The odometer was just over 95,000 miles; so not even 100k on the car yet. The timing belt was probably the original one, and I was aware that Chevy recommended it to be checked at 60,000 miles. I did have it checked around 86-88k, but my (good) mechanic didn't see any glaring signs of wear at the time. Admittedly, I suppose I should've had it changed regardless...
Anyway, since the belt's inevitable failure also led to a few bent valves, no shop wanted to rebuild or replace the fairly rare, 25-year-old LQ1 DOHC engine... and neither did I, knowing the multi-thousand-dollar price tag for the job.
But good luck followed the bad, and I shortly stumbled across a local car collector that showed some serious interest in the '95 Pace Car, even with its dead engine. He's much more well-connected in sales and repairs than I'll ever be, and we in fact arranged a partial trade, so the '95's title is signed over to him now, and I have a much newer (but much different) used car to get around in.
When I think of my Monte, I know I sure was not ready to part ways with it, and I'm gonna miss it. It was a cool car, something special. Still, at least that slick white coupe wasn't wrecked or vandalized, and it's probably not going to end up in a you-pull-it yard either. In fact, in its new hands, it has a real chance of powering up and hitting the road again sometime in the future, and that's the silver lining.
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