hi guys,

i just purchased a 77 z with 88k miles on her. the car runs great, but i have a couple of questions. is the console
and transmission tunnel supossed to get very warm, i noticed inside the shifter boot its very warm almost hot?
thanks...

 

Welcome to ZDriver. Yeah... the tranny tunnel can get warm, especially if the shift boot is warn, cracked, or missing. Also if someone has removed the carpet insulation, or exhaust heat shields. It's nothing really "abnormal" on an old school RWD car. If it bugs, you can install some heat shields between the exhaust pipe & body, & some dynamat under the carpet.

 

thanks for that info, if i put a high flow cat converter on and a new exaust would that cut down on the heat?

 

that probably wouldn't make a huge difference, if at all.

 

If you think that's hot put your hand between the seat and tunnel. Mine gets scarry hot. My '70 does not so I'm pretty sure it's the cat. I'm going to make a new sheild.

 

yeah the cat is gonna make a 200-300 degree difference

 

im wondering when the last owner replaced the clutch, if they put back the transmission heat shield, i noticed when i changed the shift boot and the rubber shift boot, i could look down and see the ground. any comments? ...

 

there is no heat shield that i know of, only that rubber boot, really no need for one either as it doesnt get that hot during normal driving.

 

The tunnel on my 73 does get pretty warm. The rubber beneath the shift boot is in horrible shape and I've noticed an increase in heat over time. I've replaced the transmission and didn't see any signs of heat damage on the interior or exterior of the transmission tunnel. My guess is you're fine, but some heat shield on the interior / exterior of the trans tunnel can certainly make a difference. On a side note, I did put some heat shield (something like dynomat) on my floorboards and it made a huge heat difference.

 

hey guys,

i checked the rubber boot under the console, it wasnt screwed down, the boot was half off. after i fixed that, it made a big diffrence, its warm, but nothing like it was.
thanks for the help..