What is this??????????

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/media.cgi?site=electronic2&folder=*&id=1113095415-006218

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/media.cgi?site=electronic2&folder=*&id=1113095460-006219

i was told it blocked off the SB heater tube holes in the firewall(for BB cars)........Prove or Disprove please....thanks in advance

my statements about BB cars being SS cars are relative to 68 only, along with being a normal production run.....no copo, yenko, etc.....

They were correct! Give them a gold star. Actually it is the gasket for the small block heater core tubes with out the holes punched out. This was used to block them off on the BB cars.
Jim

Thank You GMJIM.....Now, without further ado, the bombardment of questions....:)

Did any other GM cars have this block off gasket?....

Does this appear to be from a camaro?

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/media.cgi?site=electronic2&folder=*&id=1113113353-006222

After looking at the above pic(not my car) more closely, the rust marks and outlines of the foam gasket would appear to fit the outline in the firewall..

So, this means my car WAS/IS an SS car........... correct?

i know i cant 100% prove my car is an SS car, so to speak,.....but i am slowly gathering more and more info...

i am really trying to prove it to myself....more than anyone else....lol...

the more info the better....

This car was butchered in the 80's.... didnt have hardly any OE distinction parts left... as far as motor, drivetrain....no POP or build sheet of course.

I would tell you yes! The firewall is a basic design used across several models, such as the Nova, Chevelle, Impala, and some Pontiac cars as well. The Chevrolet's are the ones that used this as they had the Mark IV BB engines. On Corvette's, I can't say for sure as I am not into those cars. Good Luck!!

what would the shape of the heater box gasket have to do with whether or not a car is an SS?

well they surely wouldnt leave those holes open to the elements now would they? ;)

looking at my gasket you can see where they would pull or punch the middle out for the SB heater tubes to go through the gasket.... remember the BB entered through the middle of the box, not the firewall......but all firewalls have the holes....hence the plug/gasket....

if the car was a BB , then it was an SS car...NO BB cars were regular coupes or verts...they were HiPo models.....

does this help with clarification? I cannot PROVE my car is an SS, but this is an indicator that points it was an SS........alas, i cannot DISPROVE it either.....:) :hurray:

clear as mud yet?

Hey, on your Camaro, tell us about this Tremec conversion you did, all the parts you needed to cross it over to mount directly! I noticed that the shifter is over quite a bit in the console; is that due to the location from the shifter location on the trans? Thanx!

i didnt do it personally...but i finished it up....

the kit was ordered from Fortes.

http://www.fortesparts.com/gmtremec.html

yes the shifter does sit a bit to the right.. but works great.... this was purchased back in may 2000.

so i am sure they have it to a science by now....

List of parts
TKO tremec
yoke
speedo cable
Rev lite switch
X member
manual hurst shifter
260871 Weber????

the total was $2625...

i think it needed a custom driveshaft(i have reciept for that, and crossmember...i have drawings of the crossmember with specs as well.

i think the crossmember was included but had to be modified a bit.....

the stock shifter hole had to be opened up a bit ....cut and folded back a bit..

the previous owner had someone else do the work.... when i bought this car in sept of 04...it was 95% complete...

i am really happy with it....

oh yeah, i had to buy a speedo cable adapter....

anyways..i can get more pics or info if needed....

ALL big block cars were SS's?
even COPO's?

Not to sour the milk here, just throwing out more discussion, if someone were to swap the SBC heater box for a BBC heater box somewhere along the way would they not plug the small block holes in the firewall like done at the factory? 50/50 maybe? Also the one pic of the foam gasket looks as though the holes for the heater toobs is filled with a different material, it has that shiny non porous look of dum dum putty...

Oh, I might be wrong but thought there were X44 COPO's, that would make it that not all BB cars were SS'...

We need a point of clarification...

I am talking about 68's in specific.......your Xcode is for a 69...correct?

Normal BB production runs in 68 were SS' cars.

I dont know about your gasket theory, but this doesnt look like any gasket i have seen in the aftermarket. This is 1 piece.......... This looks OE...........but i am NO expert here...thats why i came here to ask...

it is easy to doubt all of this.... the point is, there is a chance this could have been a BB car....hence the thread

i would love to get in contact with someone who has taken out the original SB gasket material that was not punched. Or has seen one........

at this point i assume the car is a SB conversion...but i will not stop trying to gain more history about the car...SB or BB.....

i know sometimes you just want to know every trivial little detail of how your car used to be- but i just have to ask- why does it matter so much if the car was once an original big block SS car? according to your description of things, all the original goodies that make the car an SS are long gone. unless you want to try to milk a few thousand $$$ out of a future buyer who doesn't know the difference, why does it matter?
at this point, if you want it to be an SS, throw some badges on it and be happy. hell, maybe make it a Z28 while your at it- because there are already more of them out there than ever rolled off the line at any factory back in the day.
i say forget about all that, build the car YOU want, and enjoy it. drive the wheels off it, then bolt them back on and do it all over again. if anyone asks if it is a "real" COPO big block SS Z/28 with a 5 speed tranny, just say that it's real enough for you.

everything is for sale...but that is not my primary objective here...the car is a far cry from stock form....even if i could prove what it is, at this point if ever, would i start a process of OE resto....OR the need to...

with that being said, its my car.............and i would like to know as much info about it as possible.......makes for good conversation at cruises, car shows. and just plain BSing.., ........if it matters...

i am really happy with my car...i have a few more items to add....and i am going to enjoy it.........i personally wouldnt own a car i couldnt drive.... or too afraid to drive....

i just thought with over 16,000 members someone would have seen one of these gaskets before and could give me some kind of yeah or neah.....so far, it seems GMJim is the only one......

FWIW, I personally would not use the presence of that gasket to base my decision to tell people at car shows that my car was originally an SS or not. If the car was currently set up as in full SS trim with the corresponding correct drivetrain, then it would be more relevant.

i never said i claimed it to be a TRUE SS...but i did say, there is a probable chance it could be......

but with the badges people ask..... generally my response is i cant prove/disprove otherwise at this point...but i do NOT have documentation and with any 68 camaro, it is really needed to help proove authenticity as well as originality.. i mention some of the indicators, by then, unless they are a fan in the specific area...they have lost attention....so i begin with the introducing the car...

i really think you some of the guys replying are getting off the point of the thread....it started out with NAME THAT FOAM GASKET>>>>

i am not trying to sell the car, list it as a true SS, claim it is a TRUE ss....just being very aware of the possibilities....and the piece of the history of the car....

maybe i hit a nerve with some of your $30K +++TRUE cars....which this is not...but for a 1/3 of that, i am lucky AND thankful to have mine...

Original drivetrain...are you kidding.... the kids in the 80's butchered these cars... ....so you mean, if the previous owner put all the correct parts back on it, then that would make it okay to say that gasket has earned its right as a part of history in my cars resto.............really :clonk: you know i dont get it,, some of the most claimed to be TRUE cars dont have there ORIGINAL parts..but as long as they are coded right its ok............????

as the story goes(from the prev owner) the car was found abondoned on a campus in the mid 90's in california, resto begins in 96ish+/- and hadnt been registed/titled since 1981....receipts coincide with time frame but thats all....still tracking down people who worked on this car...

if anyone knows where i can get a VIN/title trace for 1968 pass car in california..please let me know.....

pick and choose what you will from the threads...

i would really appreciate a reply from a person that has seen one of these above mentioned foam gaskests before....and the history behind it......if thats ok... ;)

Kris - You yourself suggested the gasket was a sign it may have been a BB SS. I think we all agree with you and are just being friends saying too much could have happened over the years to take it one way or the other. You see no one but you knows your motives so we are just covering the bases. With that I'm not insinuating any bad motives on your part, we just don't know what's on your mind.

Nobody said you were calling your car an SS, it's all just conversation about the foam and it's applications and if it would be a sign of a BB car... Now go check the driver side frame rail for the exhaust hanger plate and let us know if it's a dual exhaust car or not! :beers:

i dont want to sound offended and there is a possibility of me wanting my car to be more than what i can prove...... but for my initial purchase price of the car, i cannot be blamed....lol...i would be exstatic(?)............my plans are far from profit, or embellishment.....

i know i just joined camaro.net in sept of 04, but before that i had a 4th gen and had no reason to be here... i joined camaroz28.com in 99 and you can search me there...tofus 93z28........ if you wish

this is a learning process for me, and i can see some take this very seriously and some do not.....

i shall make it clear, from the very onset of my owner ship...i try diligently to represent my car, myself and my fellow 1st gen camaro lovers with the proper etiquette and respect.

in regards to your dual exhaust(2x5ish" plate) request, i am not sure that is a requirement for a 1968 model car...or have i been misinformed....i think i read that here,..thats for 1969....

On another note, it appears most want to rain on my parade(with the exception of a few) instead of, pointing me in the right direction with my questions and intentions...

history, indication, and fact.........

i do thank the gentlemen who responded with fact along with data to back it up....

i know one thing is for sure about these cars.........nothing is written in stone about RPO's..... and some of the most informed(or so thought) camaro lovers i have spoken with, are very ignorant in relation to any year camaro but their own....INCLUDING myself :clonk: :D

AND, i do appreciate the HAZING :beers:

Yes, That is an OEM big block heater core block off foam. Meaning that it is blocking off the small block holes in the firewall. I recognize it as I just had mine in my hand, from an original L 78 69 SS, that I have had for almost 30 years. Wether or not that started out on your car is another issue. Good luck, Earl.

exactly what i wanted to hear...... i know i cant prove squat......

but at least now i know what the damn part is, and that it could have possibly came off of my car..... on with the research...why not?

i see how rumors get started....

so i spoke with the previous owner again, and he told me that the car was pulled out of barn in lancaster supposedly, had a 307 in it with a BOP tranny, along with a 10 bolt and 4 wheel drums...the story with the college is, there was a 1983 fresno college sticker on the window..........

and before you start yippin and yappin..

AND>>>>>>B4 ya all start pullin out your RPO cheat sheets...we all know anything was possible back then.....

An ss could have 4 wheel drums, and a 10 bolt, ...and no, a 307 wasnt an option in 68 only in 69(non-SS).............like i said,,,it was butchered....AND it was spray bombed hugger orange, i have found a portion of that paint in a spot that was overlooked when prepping and painting...

oh yeah, supposedly it was Hi hacked, and had Joe dirt fender flares...what were they smoking????

......jeez...what kind of person would bomb it, orange... ..........ahhh wait,,,it was the 80's........lol...........

still looking for someone to point me in the direction of a VIN/title search...... for california...