OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions on Walk Behind Lawn Mower Frames Victa Lawn Mower Frames Help Please Victa Corvette 160cc 2 Stroke

Hello

Would greatly appreciate any info anyone can provide me with for my Victa Corvette. Have owned it for 5 years now after my dad gave it to me after owning it from new. He doesnt remember what year he purchased it in, however tells me its all original and hasnt spent a cent on it.

Thank you

A 1978 - 1980 Victa Corvette WW-160-AS

Series 80 pre-runner (actually re badged Series 70MKIV) 160cc full-crank Victa engine, should be a G4 carby, but could be a very early LM model carby.

Are you looking for any specific info?

This engine is covered in the manuals section.

That mower easy has another 20+ years left in it.

Thanks heaps was pretty much looking for what year it was made. Im pretty sure its the G4 plastic carby just going from the diagrams i have found online. Would anyone happen to know if these mowers were popular/big numbers of them built? Been looking for another one as a parts donour just in case anything went wrong with mine.

The only work i have had to do to this mower besides replacing the spark plug and blades once in 5 years now has been to replace the O ring in the carby. Still starts first time and doesnt miss a beat

Not all that uncommon, so it should not be too hard to find another.

Further, if anything does go wrong, more often than not it will involve the engine, not the chassis, and that engine was very widely used between 74 and 79, most Victa's with a full crank engine, stater on top, and the G4 carby will be good sources of donor parts (older engines had metal carbies, and the next engine had the starter on the side, followed by the powertorque half crank engines

As Ty said. Not rare parts.


But as a combo, that motor on the later alloy base, it is a little rare.


When made it would have been somewhat of an up market mower.
There was a plain high arch in gold with that motor, and ive seen store brands to a similar spec.
Your corvette has the larger back wheels, chrome handles and fancier catcher.


Theres the older VC mustang/sport base with the dual fold handle. These all had full crank engines. The base you have there is newer and is a lot more common fitted with the Power torque motor. So to find one thats not cracked or broken with the smaller centre hole for the full crank motor can be a bit of a challenge.

Good points Bob, to add a little more:

Parts for the base could be sourced from many late 70's bases, the specific base itself was used on some store brand mowers, and some victa mowers from about 76 to about 83, Such as the Series 80 Corsair.

The engine as above was widespread, the cowl was used on some store brands, and a few Victas of the late 70's, even the Utility at one point.

From a collecting standpoint, it's not a bad mower, not yet really a collectable, but not too far off, and particularly of interest to anyone who fancies the Corvette series (Victa's longest running badge)

The top cover to me is what dates it.

The earlier full cranks had nice rounded covers, i think they look like the head of a dolphin.
The one on your mower is more shaped and edgy and making a statement. 'Its the freakin 80's and im as modern as things will ever be'.

No to mention that is the engine I call the S80 Pre runner, it really is a series 70 MKIV, however you will find that sticker reads Series 80, making this most likely a 79 or 80 engine!

Im guessing its an 1980's engine as i have found a series of numbers, 080 00 2323, stamped on the inside of the engine. Have managed to find a Victa Mustang that im picking up this weekend for $110, in running order as a donor if the need arises in the future

That's a 1980 serial aright, although, as far as my research has shown me, the '80' is not the year, by the late 70's they had dropped to a single digit for the year, the year is just the '0'

$110 sounds a little more than I would pay for a mustang, but if it's working, that's a bonus.

I generally don't pay more than $20 for a mower, and I tend to be able to find what I need for that.

I think the same about the price.

20-40 depending on condition.


Will depend on what model mustang it is as to wheather any parts are of use to you.

The older ones with the bi fold handles are a different base and catcher. (the rear opening is a different height)

A mustang on that same base as yours will use a power torque engine so the base will not work for you.

It might be a good idea to pop a couple of happy snaps of the mustang up here before you buy, that way we can help you confirm what spares it would provide.

The catcher has seen better days but the mower itself runs like a dream and starts first time and doesnt miss a beat

1976-1979 Mustang, S70 MKIV engine, generally a very good machine!

The engine is the same (ignore the sticker) as your corvette, so in the event of any catastrophic failure of your corvette engine, it's a straight swap and still original, further to that, any issues you encounter at all with your corvette engine can be remedied with engine parts form this.

the base is not the same, however, a number of your most frequent base failures could be repaired from this, for example, the rear 'W' clips on the axle tend to sometimes break, you will find the ones on this machine fine to replace them, wheels should be fine too, and the internal components of the starter (Spring, pulley, etc)

This mower will provide most parts you would need to be worried about, and then some.

my only warning is the base of the corvette (or either) as the alloy will break from a good stone hit, etc, and this base is not the same, so to help preserve the mower, always check the lawn for debris first!

The price is more than I would usually pay, however, firstly it would appear you have already bought it, so the point is mute, further to that, I am a collector with over 70 mowers, so for me, getting dead ones for $20 from the tip is the only way to go, and I spend a lot of time working on them, considering you wanted a reliable, tidy, complete and working machine, the price is probably reasonable, you can be lucky at the tip, t this mower seems a good purchase for you to ensure the future of your corvette

P.S. In the event of an engine swap, personally, i would swap the lower halves of the crank cases, yes it is a lot of extra work, but it keeps the engine number of the corvette, on the corvette, which is a serial that will have numbers at the front that are just for corvettes. of course I understand for most this is unnecessary extra work, but the collector/mower historian in me just had to mention it!

Thanks Ty i appreciate the info you have provided. The price may appear to be steep however its fully operational and complete. The only thing missing is the rubber cover over the end of the spark plug which is nothing major, only a couple of dollars from a mower shop.

Prior to and during mowing im always on the lookout for stray stones/debris as i cringe at the sound of stones being hurled around under the mower, thats just me i guess, plus i want the mower to last as long as possible. Its survived 30 years already why shouldnt it last another 30!!

Once again i appreciate the info provided

Not a problem Mate, a machine like that can, it's a solid, full crank, reliable well built engine, on a sturdy alloy base.

On top of that, unlike many modern 2-strokes, the head, bore, upper and lower crank case are all completely separate, so any problems with one still leave you not needing to replace the others.

The spark plug cover for the mustang is a little different to the one fitted to the corvette, you can see it HERE in the online store.

Ok, this is my first post but here is mine and it ain't no Corvette like Lewis's above!

^^ Is it a series 70/mark 3/160cc/2 stroke/Victa Mustang?




~

I believe its a series 80 mark IV mustang, but dont hold me to that. one of our other experts may jump in here and correct me if i'm wrong. Looks like a good clean original machine, with the exception of the catcher, it's to suit a later model with the single folding handles.