Guest z3fan1 Posted March 25, 2012 Share Posted March 25, 2012 I have a 1958 Impala that won a 1st Junior and I plan to enter for a 1st Senior later this year. The previous owner added an electric vacuum pump because it has the 280 hp engine that didn't develop enough vacuum to operate the wipers much of the time while driving in the rain. While the pump is not obvious, would it be a deduction or would it be considered a safety enhancement. Hate to remove it as previous owner said driving car while raining was not fun. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MCHinson Posted March 25, 2012 Share Posted March 25, 2012 z3fan1,Welcome to the AACA Discussion Forum.I am a bit out of my league commenting on a Chevrolet of the 50's, so take it for what it is worth...If the car's wiper system worked correctly when original, then it sounds like you should fix what is wrong with it to make it work correctly. If the electric vacuum pump is not authentic, yes it could cost you a deduction. Fixing whatever is wrong with the car to cause the low vacuum would be the correct route instead of an aftermarket vacuum pump. Unless the wipers would not work correctly when new, I don't think you can successfully argue that an aftermarket vacuum pump is a safety item. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shop Rat Posted March 25, 2012 Share Posted March 25, 2012 .....Unless the wipers would not work correctly when new, I don't think you can successfully argue that an aftermarket vacuum pump is a safety item.MCH, wouldn't something like that have to be approved by the judging committee to be exempt as an aftermarket safety feature? With wipers being a maximum point deduction of 3 points each (for non-authentic wipers, missing wipers or unable to be used for their intended purpose) X's however many there are, I would think that something like an aftermarket vacuum pump would be at least a 5 point deduction.One point can knock someone out of the point spread for an award they are going after. So it isn't wise to just give away point deductions if it can be helped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Siegfried Posted March 25, 2012 Share Posted March 25, 2012 Good question. Perhaps you should consider addressing it to the V.P. Technical Matters, and possibly the V.P. Class Judging for an answer that would be valid whenever you are, if you are, questioned at a national meet about the change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
61polara Posted March 25, 2012 Share Posted March 25, 2012 I agree with Matt and Susan above. Although the Judges Manual does not directly address an aftermarket vaccum pump, an electric fuel pump on your car would be a mandatory 10 point deduction. So I agree with Susan that the deduction could be at least 5 points. This is too many points to risk when going for your Senior award.I consulted my Holander's Interchange Manual and it appears that both vaccum and electric wipers were available in 1958. There are four different fuel pumps listed for the V8 cars as well, some dependent on if the car had vaccum or electric wipers. You could have the wrong pump on your car. With vaccum wipers, I suspect you should have a combination fuel / vaccum pump. From the interchange manual, the HP engines use a pump that was used into the mid 60's which is not a duel pump. This leads me to wonder if the HP and fuel injected engines required the electric wiper option.I'm not a Chevy expert, just raising some questions on why your wipers may need an electric pump. Matt is correct, you should try to find the cause of the problem and correct it. Good luck on your Senior! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Moskowitz Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Jim, VP of Technical Matters no longer exists. The job not the person! The VP of Class Judging becomes the go to guy for all things now. However, the electric vacuum pump would be a deduction if found. Non-original items that may be considered safety devices have to be approved by the class judging committee but I seriously doubt that this one would be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Siegfried Posted April 6, 2012 Share Posted April 6, 2012 Jim, VP of Technical Matters no longer exists. The job not the person! The VP of Class Judging becomes the go to guy for all things now. QUOTE]Steve, Thanks. I'll pay closer attention to changes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
novaman Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 The if he wipers are barely working without the aftermarket pump, the problem is most likely when the engine was rebuilt it has the wrong cam in it. A lot of times when rebuilding an engine, the cam gets"upgraded" for performance or the stock profile isn't available. A small change in the cam can/will affect the amount of vacuum the more radical the cam the worse it gets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ted sweet Posted April 19, 2012 Share Posted April 19, 2012 question is can a judge see the pump? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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